#So My Absolute Lack Of Time Sense Settled For Me | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

wileys-russo · 4 months ago

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ahem. You. I have a foxy request— her obsession with her kindle while she’s dating you, perhaps? You don’t want to go paperless, but Foxy keeps trying to convince you to get a kindle. She’ll hide your book and make comments like “but if you had a kindle” and teasingly roll her eyes, but it goes both ways? Maybe R is taller than her, so one day she takes emily’s kindle and holds it over her head and emily tries to get it back and R just keeps gently tapping her head with the kindle before holding it back up. Absolutely no pressure, this just sounded like smth down your alley?

brand deal II e.fox

“em?” you called out hesitantly, frowning as the majority of the lights were switched off in your apartment and you let yourself in. “emily?” you called again, hair pricking up on the back of your neck as you took a few cautious steps forward.

“where is she?” you mumbled with a frown, knowing she was in fact here given she’d called you about five minutes ago as you were pulling into the parking garage to check when you’d be home.

you settled a little as you flicked on the living room lights, hanging your bag up and shrugging off your puffer jacket. “you’re back!” you screamed and almost fell over at the new voice interrupting the thick silence.

“don’t do that!” you scowled at your girlfriend, kicking off your shoes as she made her way closer with a grin. “do what? say hi?” the brunette teased as your facial expression remained unamused.

“why were all the lights off you freak? i called out for you twice!” you defended, making your way into the kitchen to wash your hands.

having caught your neighbours practically pantsless in your buildings elevator the other day you’d made sure to thoroughly wash your hands every time you had to enter it since.

“well it was light outside when i started this chapter, and now…many chapters later, it’s dark.” emily shrugged in explanation as you gave her an odd look.

“you were reading…in the dark?” “yes." "do you have like some superhuman ability to see in the dark that you just never told me about?" "obviously?"

"oh well sorry i didn't realise i was dating a mutant!" you teased with a roll of your eyes, your girlfriend smiling in amusement. "you don't need the lights on to read on a kindle babe." the american revealed the truth as you rolled your eyes again but this time less playfully.

"you know if you had one-" "don't try to brand deal me fox, i know all your little tricks."

"no come on, don't be like that!" emily laughed at your obvious disdain as you moved to start rummaging through the fridge. "like what exactly?" you sighed, tapping your foot trying to magically conjure up what you were going to cook for dinner with your severe lack of groceries.

the two of you were going away for a few days since there wasn't a game this weekend for arsenal and the girls were given some time off, so you'd both put off buying anything which might perish while you were gone.

"like such a negative nelly." "you are so american sometimes its painful." "hey! you were living in the states by your own choice when we met, thank you."

"emily i truly believe that if it was put to you that you had to choose between being with me or never reading on that stupid thing again, you'd choose the kindle." you pivoted back to the original subject making the brunette chuckle.

"and if i said you might be correct?" she grinned teasingly as you pulled your head out of the fridge to shoot her an unimpressed glare in warning.

"joking, i'm joking! just using my delightful sense of humor that helped you fall so in love with me in the first place." your girlfriend smiled charmingly as you hummed and bit back a smile of your own.

"since we have no food, how about i take you and paige to dinner?" emily offered, leaning around you and snagging a half empty bowl of strawberries out of the fridge, pulling herself up to sit on the counter to pick at them.

"me and who?" you closed the fridge and turned to look at her with confusion, untwisting the cap on a bottle of water and taking a sip. "paige." emily echoed as you waited for her to elaborate which she never did, just smiling at you as if nothing was wrong.

"who is paige?" you sighed, sensing you likely weren't going to enjoy her answer as the grin on her face grew.

"my kindle." "you named that thing?" "yes and you'll call her accordingly!" the brunette pointed with a playful glare. "darling i would so sincerely rather stick toothpicks into my eyes than address your kindle as if its a living thing."

"paige, address paige as a living thing." "are you cheating on me with an e-book fox?" "well she doesn't argue with me and nag me about doing my laundry after a game." "emily!" "just joking, joking again! trying to make you laugh since you have the most musical laugh babe." "kiss my ass fox." "who sounds american now?"

your rivarly with 'paige' only got worse as time went on, specifically as you both checked into the hotel you'd be staying at over the weekend for your little getaway.

your girlfriend had at least not pulled her kindle out the entire flight, the two of you playing a few very spirited rounds of her favourite card game instead and catching up on a few episodes of community which she had you watching for the first time.

but no sooner had you both gone out for a lovely meal together and a walk around town, retiring to the room for a glass of wine and some downtime, did paige resurface and not in the way you were expecting.

"em did you repack my case?" you questioned, sat on your knees and rifling around with a frown as your girlfriend had already settled herself in bed with her kindle in her lap ready to go.

"yeah you said i could put my big grey coat in if it fit, remember?" your girlfriend reminded as you hummed, eyebrows furrowing as you hunted around for what you wanted but came up empty handed.

"what have you lost baby?" the defender questioned as you unpacked and repacked your case for the second time.

"my books. i packed three of them and i can't find them? and i know they were in here because i was texting with lia about the series last night as i packed." you huffed in annoyance, sitting back and glaring at your now messed up case as if they might make them magically appear.

"oh those? yeah they're at home." the american confirmed, sitting up and fluffing the pillow behind her as your head slowly turned. "they're what?" you asked slowly, unsure if you'd misheard her.

"they're at home." her fingers flew across the screen with a slick click clack as she typed in the password to the kindle, not even looking at you and missing the way your eyes narrowed toward her.

"as in...they're still in london. "well that is where we live." "why are they at home?" "i unpacked them, you didn't need them." "i don't need them?" "nope."

again you waited for her to expand a little, even clearing your throat as she glanced toward you with a smile and going back to her kindle. "emily why wouldn't i need them!" you stood now, moving to stand at the end of the bed with crossed arms and a scowl.

"well if you had a kindle, you could just download whatever books you want and carry an entire library in your bag instead, without the dead weight." "are you trying to market me again? i told you i am not buying one."

"you don't need to." your girlfriend shrugged as you scoffed and threw your hands up in the air. "why? because you could click your fingers and have one magically appear for free?" you jutted your hip out and raised an eyebrow.

"you know you look very hot when you're getting all mad and dramatic." the american grinned, successfully winding you up more. "where are you going?" your girlfriend laughed as you mumbled something under your breath and turned away, sitting down on an armchair to wrestle on some shoes.

"theres a gift shop downstairs and i'm going to buy a book since i don't fancy sitting here staring at the ceiling while you get to read all evening!" you huffed, grunting as you managed to wedge your feet into your trainers without undoing the laces.

"i told you, you don't need a book."

"actually i'm now going to go and find the heaviest book i can and hit you over the head with it!" you threatened, standing and making a beeline for the door, a rustle sounding behind you.

"emily." you groaned as her hand shot out over your shoulder and pushed the door back closed as you opened it. "come here please." the girl snapped the waistband of your pajama shorts and you let out a long and deep sigh before following her.

"here." the defender rummaged around in her own suitcase for a moment before grabbing out a box and shoving it into your hands. "see? no need for any books, you're welcome." she kissed your cheek and wandered back to the bed.

it didn't take you more than a millisecond to clock what the box was for, the brand name splashed across the front as you shook your head. "you kidnapped my books so you could force me into using a kindle?" you waved the box in your hand at the brunette who nodded.

"correct, and i already purchased and loaded those same three books and the two that come after it. again; you're welcome babe." "i didn't say thank you!" "i know, i'll be waiting."

"well you'll be waiting for a long, long time!" you huffed, dropping the box back on top of her pile of clothes in her case. "where are you going now!" emily asked with a frown as again you headed for the door.

"to buy a book. then maybe while i'm at it look a new girlfriend who likes the smell of the pages and cracking open a fresh new novel, the thrill of a dog eared corner and the hefty weight of the paper in your hands. someone who appreciates reading for what it is, not something done digitally!" you rambled out with a huff, hand on the doorknob.

"baby, you're being dramatic. come here and i'll read to you, you can even close your eyes and pretend its a book!" emily opened her arms expectantly as your gaze narrowed and her face lit up more as you took a few cautious steps toward her, stopping once you'd reached the side of the bed.

"come on babe its our first night on vacation lets not argue over something so silly, come cuddle." the american patted the space between her legs as you stared her down.

her features brightened yet again as you pushed her legs together and moved to straddle her lap, lips curling into a signature smirk. "actually, why waste time reading?" you breathed out, leaning in as your lips ghosted hers.

you leaned back slightly as the american surged forward, a smile on your face as a pout appeared on hers, kindle left on the nightstand beside her as one hand grabbed the back of your neck and the other your hip trying to pull you closer for a kiss.

however right as you leaned in to do just that within seconds your arm darted out and fingers grabbed at the smooth cold metal, snatching the kindle and swinging yourself off of her, headed again for the door.

"babe what the hell? where are you going now?" emily groaned, head thumping gently against the wall behind her watching you walk away with a frustrated frown.

"oh well since you insisted on bringing 'paige' on holiday with us, i figured why should she miss out on all the fun? so i'm gonna take her for a little evening swim!" "don't you dare." "oh yeah? watch me."

again within seconds as your hand gripped the doorknob you heard the covers go flying and feet hit the floor, the door barely opened a few centimeters before a body jumped onto you and your own slammed into the door closing it again.

"give her back!" "no! you have a problem you just called an inanimate object a her!" "i said give it!" emily grunted, arms wrapping around your neck and legs clutching at your hips as you held the kindle away from your body, stumbling backwards trying to keep your balance.

"oh my god you are addicted to this thing, you need help!" "i do not! you just don't understand the future." "oh i do, i know the future is looking awfully wet for paige!"

"em!" you squealed as she managed to pull you down onto the bed, crawling on top of you as you quickly wedged the kindle under your back and fought to push her off.

the two of you bickered back and forth as you grabbed her hands and got a knee loose, pushing her off of you and trying to flee again as her arm wrapped around your neck and her leg around your waist in an attempt at some sort of sleeper hold.

you had a couple of centimeters of height on her though and held the kindle just out of reach, using it to bonk her several times on the head to try and get her to let go of you to which she protested loudly.

after a few more minutes of struggle you almost rolled off the bed, yelping as strong hands grabbed you and using that to your advantage you managed to climb back on top of her.

"are we really fighting over a kindle?" you managed to press her arms to the bed with a grip on her wrists, her chest heaving beneath you and both your faces flushed rosy pink after the tussle.

"yeah, yeah we are." your girlfriend sighed, body going limp as a beat of silence passed before you both shared a look and suddenly you were rolling off of her, both your combined laughter filling the air as you clutched your stomachs.

"this is so stupid!" you managed out with a shake of your head. "i know." the defender agreed with a chuckle of her own, both of you taking a second to calm down again.

"truce?" you held a hand up in the air, her own coming to interlock and give it a firm shake. "truce, i love you."

"i love you too." you smiled, head turning to look as hers did the same, the two of you craning your necks to sweetly peck one anothers lips a few times with some giggles, your body rolling so you laid half on top of her, legs intertwining as her heart pounded beneath your eat that was pressed against her chest.

"one thing though?" "mm?" "paige is not allowed to sleep in the bed with us."

#emily fox x reader #emily fox #woso x reader #woso community #woso #woso fanfics #woso imagine #woso blurbs #uswnt x reader

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kittenintheden · 6 months ago

Text

how to lose your mind

WE HAVE LIFTOFF. yeah I. it's a companion piece to how to train your brat and can be considered a future NYS teaser-spoiler. read the tags. enjoy.

Rating: E Pairing: Astarion/Ori (female Tav/OC) Word Count: 5k Content: 18+, pegging Astarion into an absolute puddle, sex toys, anal, handjob, multiple orgasms, facesitting, oral sex, overstimulation, prostate stimulation, idiots in love and so horny about it, future NYS content

That old Harper druid is a bloody harpy. Sniping, judgmental, disdainful. Eager to tell him exactly where his shortfalls lie and rebuff him like a child, smirking all the while.

Heroes. Who has need of them? Certainly not him.

Astarion bursts into their private room at the Elfsong like there’s a storm cloud over his head. Ori’s reading in an overlarge armchair near the small fireplace clad in one of her short robes. Her legs dangle off the side of the chair.

She raises an eyebrow at him. “I sense there’s a story here,” she says.

He flails his hands through the air in exasperation and stalks over to the cabinet, snatching up the crystal decanter he’s been keeping his spare blood supply in lately. He turns around and points the neck of the bottle at her.

“That Jaheira is nasty,” he gripes, removing the stopper from the decanter and turning back around to pour himself a glass. “She called me, and I quote, a ‘homicidal imp easily distracted by shiny things.’” He waves his hand through the air for effect and glances over his shoulder at her.

Ori lets the hand holding her book fall to her chest and gives him a fond smile. “Is that inaccurate?”

“She’s not allowed to say it,” he says. “She hasn’t earned the right.”

He picks his goblet up by the rim and turns, resting back against the cupboard and properly looking at her as he brings it to his lips. The hem of her robe rides up her bare legs and stops just before her arse. If he had to guess, he’d say she wasn’t wearing anything underneath.

“And what have you been doing this afternoon, darling?” he says, pitching his voice lower and taking another drink as he holds her eye.

Ori shrugs. “Sorting through our chest of assorted nonsense.” She holds up her book. “Reading a bit. Enjoying the lack of whinging.”

He tuts at her. “I come to my partner for support in my time of need and all I get is teasing,” he pouts. “Woe, for I am alone in all things.”

She lolls her head back and laughs. Rolling her body toward him, she lets her book dangle from her fingers and gives him bedroom eyes from beneath her lashes. The split in her robe separates between her breasts and gives him a peek at her cleavage.

“That’s too bad,” she says coquettishly, running the fingers on her free hand over the vine tattoos twisting over her collarbone. “Here I thought I had company and that he might want to spend quality time with me tonight.”

Astarion hums at her and knocks back the rest of his refreshment. “He’ll think about it.” He turns around to pour himself another, tapping his toe against the wooden floor as he does. Over his shoulder, he says, “What were you reading, anyway?”

“Something I picked up at Sharess’ Caress,” she says.

His mouth tics up in a half-grin as he watches blood refill his silver goblet. “Ah, it all makes sense.” He sets down the decanter. “Give you any ideas for the evening’s activities?”

“One or two,” she says, a tingle going up his spine at the sultry lilt in her voice.

He looks over his shoulder to throw another quip and it sticks on his tongue when he sees that she’s sitting perched on the edge of the chair. The robe’s untied and laid fully open, revealing her bare, freckled chest and full breasts, her legs stretched out in front of her. She has her hands on the cushion behind her and arches her back so he gets the full effect as his eyes follow the natural path down from her parted lips to the valley between her breasts to the plane of her stomach to-

Ori glances down to the place his eyes have settled and says, “I thought maybe, if you wanted to, you’d like to come sit on my lap while we consider our options.”

Astarion chokes a little on his own saliva and coughs to cover it, glancing away. He clears his throat and looks back to the space between her legs, feeling a wave of surprised arousal ripple down his torso, leaving heat in its wake.

“Is that, erm.” He gestures at the dark gray, exquisitely shaped cock she’s attached to her hips with a black leather harness. “Is that the one…”

She lets her head fall to one side and grins at him. “The one I saw you eyeing when we were out before?” she says. “It is. The D-”

He waves a hand in front of him and shakes his head. “Don’t… please don’t say the name again. I can’t handle it.”

Ori giggles, head thrown back and toy bouncing teasingly in her lap. When she rights herself, her smile goes soft. She lifts a hand and holds it out to him. “Come here,” she says.

He does, leaving his second drink on the cupboard as he approaches, taking her hand. She pulls him to her gently, just enough to indicate that she’d like a kiss as she tilts her face up for him. He bends at the waist and presses his mouth to hers once, then a second time. Then he drops his gaze to the toy and reaches down to touch it.

It’s hard in a way that makes his own cock respond in kind at its promise, but softer than he’d thought it would be, as if it’s covered in a thin layer of well-conditioned leather. He runs his fingers over it, mapping its shape. Good. Very good shape. Very good size.

“Mmmn,” he breathes before he can catch the sound in his throat.

Ori leans in to kiss the corner of his mouth. “It’s an option. If you want. Or we can do something else.”

He laughs through his teeth. “No, this, uh. This is. I like it.” He meets her eye. “I think I would like to do that. With you.”

She smiles and waits.

“Now,” Astarion specifies. “I would like to do it now.”

“Lucky you,” she purrs, twisting her fingers in the front of his shirt and pulling him against her for another kiss.

Their tongues tangle together and he falls to his knees between her legs. He pulls the robe off her shoulders so he can run his lips and tongue along her collarbone and up over the place where her neck meets her shoulder. Another rush of arousal throbs through his core as his body and mind remember that this can feel good, it can feel so good, and he trusts that she’ll take care of him.

Ori’s hands go up under his shirt and she helps him get it off over his head, their mouths only parting long enough to remove it. She twines both hands around the nape of his neck and strokes her tongue sweetly against his. He groans as he presses his body to hers and feels the cock pressed between their bellies.

Half-reluctantly, half-eagerly, he breaks away and pushes himself to standing, going to undo his fastenings. Ori’s hands fall over his and he lets her take over, loosening his ties. As she does, she presses soft kisses along the line between his navel and his pelvis, further igniting his need. It’s all he can do not to whine at her.

She chuckles and gets his laces undone, hooking her fingers under the hem of his breeches and pulling them down until his hard cock springs free, the head swollen tight and pink with want.

“Oh, sweetheart,” she purrs, observing him mere inches from her face. “I thought you might like this, but I had no idea.”

He murmurs his approval as she pokes out her tongue and runs it sweetly over the slit on the underside of him, his pre-fluid creating a tiny pool in the center of her tongue. Then she looks up at him and swallows.

“How would you like it, dearest?” she says. “This is for you.”

It fully hits him, then. His gaze shifts to the side table where she’s set out a few things – towels, a basin, vials. The toy she’s wearing won’t give her any pleasure of her own, at least not the way she’s offering it to him.

“You planned this,” he breathes. “For me.”

She nods.

His throat bobs, desire and adoration swirling together inside him. He doesn’t know how to thank her. For this, for everything. But he’ll figure it out. Every day until it all ends, he’ll figure it out.

“I can be on top?” he asks softly.

“Of course you can, love,” she says, running her hands up the outsides of his thighs. She helps him remove his remaining clothes and then reaches for one of the vials.

Astarion lifts one of his legs and sets his foot on the chair beside her, leaving the other on the floor. Ori takes his hint and applies lubricating oil to her fingers before she reaches between his legs, continuing to press open-mouthed kisses to his stomach as she runs her middle finger along the cleft of his arse. His breath catches when she finds the opening and massages it gently with the pad of her finger.

He closes his eyes and relaxes into the feeling, letting himself enjoy the way she’s touching him. His thigh falls open wider, giving her better access. She takes her time, completely unhurried, letting him shiver and sigh for her. She touches him, kisses him, sings him his praises.

When he begins to squirm impatiently and cracks his eyes to give her a heated look, she gives the head of his cock another lick and pushes her finger inside slowly, up to the first knuckle to start. He clenches on instinct, then in pleasure, then relaxes as she pushes deeper, past the second ring of muscle.

He didn’t have doubts about her experience, really, but any he might have had evaporate when she curls her finger and finds his pleasure center almost immediately.

“Oh,” he breathes, curling over her slightly and gripping the arms of the chair. “Yes, there, right there.”

She works him slowly with one finger, then two, stroking circles along the place inside him that makes his toes curl. A low, aching, insistent tension begins deep inside him. The feverish need for more.

Instinctively, hard-coded from years of experience, Astarion reaches out blindly for her cock to stroke along its length, to bring her in closer to his body. It takes him a murky moment to realize it’s likely for naught, but he does it anyway. He feels oil against his fingers and realizes she’s added more, this time to the phallus she wears. He swallows hard and spreads it, pumping like he would if she could feel him.

Ori reaches up to the back of his head with her free hand and presses their foreheads together. “Whenever you’re ready, love.”

“Ready,” he pants. “Gods, so ready.”

She carefully removes her fingers from him so he can crawl up onto the chair with her, his knees on either side of her hips as he straddles her. Ori puts her hands on his hips while he holds on to the back of the chair and helps him line up, the phallus held firm in its harness. He finds it and sinks down, his breath coming rapidly as the head of it stretches him.

He rocks softly down, down, and down again, and then she’s partway inside him, the curve of the toy hitting him just right.

“Uuuuhhh fuck me,” he grits out as he moves.

“Trying, baby,” she says.

She puts her forearm against the chair for leverage and rolls herself up into him, her torso undulating in a smooth wave. Astarion shudders out his breath and lets his eyes fall closed as she works the full length inside him, stroking firmly along his hot spot on the way in and out. His fingers tighten against the chair and he turns his head to the side to gently bite down on his own arm to stifle the noises threatening to spill from his lips.

He works his hips in tandem with her, finding an easy rhythm that feels absolutely delicious. Ori’s hands run up his chest and around his ribs to his back. She brings her face in close to him, licking her tongue over his pectoral until she finds his nipple, and pauses there to gently suck.

“Hmmmmn-ah,” Astarion moans, releasing his arm where he’s biting it and letting sound rise out of his throat once more. Too focused on the tension building within him to be anything resembling coherent. His head feels far too heavy as he presses it against the side of her face.

With his mouth near her ear, she can pick out a select few words – mostly Elvish, with her name peppered in for good measure.

She takes her mouth from his chest and turns to kiss him quiet. He continues to rock against her, occasionally bobbing up and down. His timing goes increasingly spotty.

When they break, she whispers, “This must feel good. You’re doing the garbled Elvish thing.”

“Mmmm sh-shhh,” he shushes her, leaning in to cover her mouth with his, kissing between shallow gasps. For once, he has no clever comeback on deck. The only thing currently top of mind is that the combination of riding good cock and knowing the good cock belongs to the person he loves is driving him out of his absolute mind with pleasure.

He releases a hand from the chair and lets one arm fall to his side, dangling it as he leans back and rolls his hips against her, panting out a steady stream of hah, hah, hah as he lets the sensations wash through him.

While she watches him lose himself from below, Ori rubs circles into his lower back and around his hips. “So beautiful,” she murmurs. “Beautiful and riding me so well.”

He brokenly cries out her name. The tension inside him is swelling and rising, threatening to burst. He reaches around to take his cock in hand and finish himself off, but Ori stays him, lacing their fingers together.

“I’m ready to come,” he gasps. “I’m… right there.”

“I know,” she says gently back. “You can. You can come for me, love.”

“I need to…” He tries to touch himself again.

She holds him. “Trust me, baby. You can. You can come, just like this.”

“I… I…”

Ori continues to slowly fuck him through his overwhelm. When he relaxes against her again to let the pleasure continue, she releases his hand and reaches between his legs, not quite touching his cock. She briefly cups him before moving a knuckle behind his balls to massage the spot right at the base of his cock.

Astarion’s eyebrows tick up and his jaw goes fully slack as the additional stimulation tips him over, the tension releasing from him as he clenches down around the toy, riding out the heavenly pulses sending ripples through his entire body.

His cock leaks a bit, fluid trailing over the tip and down the underside, but continues to stand rock-hard and at attention.

“Bleeding gods above and below,” he groans. He’s only had one of those a handful of times in his life. For good measure, his body gives one last mild clench.

Ori lightly runs her fingers over his skin. “Did I do okay?” she teases.

He heaves a breath and hums at the feeling of her still inside him, the need already starting to prickle at the edges of his awareness.

“I just came so well that I don’t think I could pretend I didn’t if I tried,” he says, deadpan.

“So, yes, then.”

“Yes.”

She takes one of his hands back in hers and brings it to her mouth to kiss. “Do you need to take a breather?”

“Also yes,” he says.

With her help, he gets his legs back under him and carefully rises up off her, whining a little at the loss. It felt good and he’s still so hard.

But he also genuinely needs a moment to catch his breath.

Astarion helps her to standing and she gives him a kiss before she moves to the side table. He moves to flop down onto their shared bed, flat on his back. The blankets are cool against his sex-heated skin.

Ori takes a moment to do a quick cleanup with her gathered supplies before she comes to stand between his spread legs where they hang over the edge of the mattress. She lays two towels down on the bed beside him.

With a pleased sigh, she runs the pads of her fingers down the dip in his abdomen, making him jump beneath her touch as she nears his leaking cock. She doesn’t quite touch and he flops his head back in mock disappointment, his blissed smile giving him away.

“I think…” she says as she crawls up to straddle him, holding his eye. “... you could do another of those. If you wanted.”

“Gods,” Astatrion groans, his core clenching in memory and anticipation. “I don’t know that I could.”

She places her hands on either side of his head and bends down to kiss him. He feels the rigid tip of her phallus against his hip and subconsciously nips at her lip with a growl.

“Would you like to try?” she asks sweetly, batting her eyes at him. “Before the big finish.”

A rumbling hum rises from deep in his throat and he reaches up to move a curl out of her eyes. “You don’t have to keep going.”

Ori smiles fondly. “I want to.” She lays on top of him and he gives a gravely moan as her weight settles across his erection, trapping it between their bodies. She reaches up and traces her fingers over his face, gazing at him like she’s enchanted. “If you knew how gorgeous you looked just now, you’d want to make it happen again, too.”

He barks out a laugh and swallows. “Always knew you liked them pretty.”

She puffs a breath out through her nose and leans in to kiss his cheek. “I like them well-loved,” she says. Another kiss. “And fucked the way they deserve.”

His body responds to that like a reflex, arousal stretching and purring under his skin, his cock insistently reminding him of its need. He kisses her with a hum, breaking to rest his head back against the bed so he can look up at her with lidded eyes.

“I love you,” she whispers. “I love making you feel good. Will you let me?”

Gods, he adores her.

“I’ll allow it,” he says with a slow smile.

Ori raises her eyebrows. “Good.”

She goes to fetch another vial and spends a moment prepping them both again, running her heated palm over the back of his thigh and guiding him to bend his knee to open himself back up for her. When he’s ready, she puts her hands on either side of him and pushes cautiously back inside, careful not to go too hard or too fast as she lowers herself over his body.

Astarion instantly tightens his leg around her and draws her in closer, groaning out his desire. It’s wonderful, but it’s also overwhelming. He’s so gods damned sensitive, the head of his cock nearly purple with unspent arousal.

“I don’t know if I…” he whispers.

Ori slowly rolls one more time, brushing her hand along the side of his face and whispering into the opposite ear, “You’re all right, dearest. Whenever you’re ready to let go, I’m right here.”

He sputters out a tearful sound and arches into her, lifting his leg higher up to wrap along her hip. The adjusted angle makes him gasp, igniting the tension to build anew, higher and more maddening this time. With a whine, he grips her upper arm and turns his face toward hers.

“Love me,” he says, breath warm on her cheek. “Love me, Ori, love me.”

“I will love you so well,” she says, closing the distance to kiss him deep. “You remember our word?”

“Yes,” he breathes, nodding a little for good measure.

“Say it for me, one time,” she says, voice soothing.

Without hesitation, he says, “Weavemoss.”

Ori kisses him again. “Any reason we want to stop, no matter what, that’s our word.”

He presses hard into the kiss, then says, “I understand. Now fuck me again.”

“Whatever my sweetheart wants,” she purrs, pivoting her hips to set a slow, reverent pace.

It’s too much and not enough at once, sticky-sweet with an edge. He wants to both melt into the feeling and cling to it desperately.

He hadn’t exactly been quiet before, but he’d maintained a sliver of control over his utterances. This time, he doesn’t have the capacity to care. He leverages himself to grind back against her, whining and huffing and groaning out his pleasure.

“That’s it,” she says, her voice winded from the exertion. “You’re incredible. What a good, beautiful boy you are.”

“I am,” he agrees, huffing out a delirious laugh. She adjusts her angle slightly and gives him a series of quick, shallow thrusts followed by a long roll and he loses himself.

“Gods, arsurinyas, gods,” he gasps, head thrown back. “How are you doing that?”

“Practice,” she huffs, leaning heavily on her arms and increasing her pace.

From there, it’s only a simple of matter of time before his pleasure catches him again, the thread drawing tighter and tighter until it snaps once more. The whole of his pelvis and abdomen goes sore from its clenching, but in the way that feels like the high after a run, after a kill, after an unbelievable fuck.

And still, and still, his bullocks ache with unspilled seed. He’s nearly mindless from it.

While he comes down from his latest high, he feels Ori pull out and he tries to tell her no, come back, it’s so much but it’s also so wonderful, but he needn’t have worried. She takes his hands and uses her bodyweight to pull him up to sitting. He lolls there, blissed out and feral with need.

“Think you can turn around for me, love?” she asks, giving his hands one more gentle yank. “I’ve got you.”

He groans and does as asked, thoughts too muddled to argue or attempt anything but her request. His leg is heavy as he lifts it and flips himself, feet now on the floor as he puts his palms on the edge of the bed. Ori approaches behind him and he barely registers her spreading the towels out under him, but then her hands are rubbing his back and he goes jelly-boned under her touch, a completely pliant mess.

“Ready?” she says. He feels her palms spread over his hips, holding him together.

He arches his deep in response. “Yes,” he breathes, barely audible.

When she enters him again, his mind hollows out and he instantly clenches down around the toy. She gives his body a moment to settle before she begins to move again. Her hands slide from his hips to the divots in his lower back, her thumbs massaging into the muscles there in the most deliriously enjoyable way, relaxing him and drawing a reedy purr from his throat.

Ori presses her breasts up against his back as she rocks into him yet again, kissing between his shoulder blades. He whimpers, overstimulated and desperate and continually dripping onto the towels below.

“You’re being so good,” she croons. “Such a good boy. Aren’t you?”

“Yes, yes,” he sighs, rocking back into her. “I’ll be whatever you want.”

Another kiss on his spine. “Good boys get good things.”

His hair is damp with sweat, breath puffing from his lips in his lustful haze. “Please,” he whispers.

Ori rolls up on her tiptoes and puts her mouth against his ear. She gives the lobe a little suck and enjoys his shuddering whine before she says, “Good boys get to come on my cock thrice.”

“Fuck,” Astation gasps, dropping his chin and feeling his cock pulse and twitch, his balls pulling in tight.

Then Ori reaches around and takes him in hand and his mouth falls open with a guttural moan.

The remaining oil on her hand and his own slick spread under her touch, offering a splendid glide as she jerks him, making sure to brush up against the slit with her thumb as she works.

“Aaaa-aaaahh,” he manages as he thrusts into her hand.

She follows his hips with hers and together the set a rhythm, him fucking into her hand while she fucks into him, a perfect storm. There’s no drawing this out. He’s already hurtling toward the end, eyes squeezed shut until tears trail from the corners.

“Ori, gods, Ori,” he whimpers. “I’m going to cuh- gods-”

Like a shiver, it runs down the length of him from the crown of his head all the way to his toes. He breaks apart like so much stardust, his release spilling out in an incredible rush, then again, again, and again as Ori pumps him through it until it slows to a trickle. Everything goes soft and quiet, his body sated at last.

He doesn’t speak and neither does she, their heavy breathing the only sound. Ori wraps her arms around him and holds him close, peppering kisses over his shoulders, his back, his neck. Slowly, softly, she trails her fingers over his lower belly, soothing the soreness there.

When she pulls out, the only thing he feels fit to do is drag his burdensome body up onto the mattress and collapse into the pillows. He hears her soft laugh as she removes her harness and collects the messed towels, setting everything aside for a proper cleaning later. She takes some time to wipe herself down with water and mild soap from the basin, then brings a damp cloth over to do the same to him.

His breathing slows as she turns him onto his back, helping him tent a leg so she can carefully clean up the oil and spend from his skin. Astarion blows a breath between his lips and cracks his eyes open to look up at her, curls falling limp and sweaty against her head. Her skin is dewy with lust and exertion.

It’s been a minute since anyone’s fucked him so well, so selflessly. He reaches up a hand to brush against the side of her face, taking the cloth from her and tossing it aside so he can guide her down into his waiting kiss. They’re drunk on one another, lips and tongue and touch.

They make out for several minutes before Astarion runs a hand down her body and between her legs, finally. He finds her completely drenched with slick.

“Hmmm,” he hums against her mouth. “Someone enjoyed that almost as much as I did, I think.”

“What can I say,” she sighs, hitching her breath as he runs a finger along the seam of her. “It’s a bit of a rush to get your love off three times in a row, especially when he looks so pretty coming apart.”

“I can relate,” he says, voice low. He reaches around to palm her just below her arse and pulls her up higher. “Get up here.”

She chuckles. “This was for you, sweetheart.”

“The hells it was,” he lilts, pulling her with slightly more insistence. “If you think I’m going to let you get away with all that without making you scream your pretty heart out, you don’t know me at all.”

“Promises,” she teases. But she relents, letting him guide her as he scoots himself down the mattress and lifts her leg until she’s settled directly on his face.

He runs the entire flat of his tongue along her heated cunt, savoring the moaning gasp she makes, and moves his hands up over her sides, counting every rib as he goes before he lowers one hand to her waist and palms her breast with the other. Ori offers little resistance before she begins rutting against his mouth, chasing relief he’s all too happy to offer.

His tongue works magic as he curls it up into her, stroking along the rough place just inside before drawing back up to lave at her clit.

Ori puts her hand over his on her chest, making him squeeze her tighter there as she begins to bounce a bit. “Gods damn it, you have such a sweet mouth,” she pants.

He smiles and continues to work her, using everything at his disposal to light her up – the flats of his teeth, the whole of his tongue, the suction of his lips. Her clit goes pebble-hard under his ministrations and she whines out his name.

“Gods, gods, gods,” she huffs out between bounces, her voice tight with need. “Gods, Astarion, that’s so fucking…”

He redoubles his efforts, moving both hands to the globes of her arse and gipping hard so he can help her fuck his face to her content. And she does, she does and she does until her thighs quake.

Astarion rolls three circles in quick succession, a delightful swirl that he knows will drive her mad, and she throws her head back and gives a rewarding, sobbing cry to the ceiling as she comes, her slick coating his chin.

After, they lay side by side naked on top of the covers, Astarion wrapped around her from behind with a hand still palming one of her breasts, softly snoring.

They don’t wake until midnight, and they don’t talk about the fact that for all his disdain for heroes, he certainly doesn’t mind being fucked by one.

#astarion smut #astarion #astarion x tav #astarion x oc #astarion fic #astarion x original female character #astarion x female tav #cw pegging #bg3 #not your sweetheart #kitten writes #no I'm not gonna tell you what it's called you gotta read NYS to find out lmao #sometimes I like to write the fun stuff first #to escape the angst

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scentedpeachlandcreator · 9 months ago

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"Frequently Asked Questions About the Law of Assumption”:

what is the law of assumption?

the law of assumption is a law where if you assume something and persist in it, it will harden into fact.

how to manifest?

1. decide what you want to manifest.

2. know that it's yours and that you already have it.

3. persist no matter what and ignore and dismiss the 3d.

can I manifest...?

yes and yes! everything is possible and there's no limit! you can manifest anything you imagine.

but what if I have hard circumstances?

circumstances DOESN'T FREAKING MATTER!! just know that you have it regardless of everything!

but what if I can't afford it? or it is too expensive for me?

DON'T SETTLE FOR LESS! imagination is a powerful tool, don't question “if or but”, you deserve everything and more! just fucking know that you already have it in your imagination.

but what if I have doubts or negative thoughts? will it affect my manifestation?

FUCKING NO!! it doesn't matter as long you already have your desires in your imagination so nothing matters, it won't affect or ruin your manifestation as long as you don't assume so.

what is 3d and 4d?

the 3D: is the outer world that we are currently living in, feeling it with our five senses, touching it, experiencing it.

the 4D: is your imagination, your mental world in your mind.

what is the wish fulfilled?

it is the state of knowing that you already have your desires so you don't look for the 3d for validation and you start living in the end.(read this and this and this)

what is self-concept?

self-concept is how you perceive yourself and the world around you, it is also a formation of beliefs, it also helps you with manifesting and putting yourself on a pedestal.(read this and this and this)

how do I fix my self-concept?

start off with clearing your doubt about manifestation first, secondly start embodying a person who is a master manifester, start acting like the queen you are, know your worth, and thirdly know that you are limitless and nothing is too big for you to manifest.

is manifesting superpowers and other illogical things possible?

FUCKING YES!! EVERYTHING IS POSSIBLE AS LONG AS YOU CAN IMAGINE IT!!

can I manifest on a time crunch?

yes, you can, but I don’t recommend doing it because it will create a state of lack and you'll focus on time instead of fulfilling yourself in your imagination.

I'm overconsuming loa what do I do?

stop it, please, get off of Tumblr or any other social media, and start manifesting and applying the law however you want, you know the basics of loa? right then start FUCKING APPLYING AND STOP OVERCONSUMING SO MUCH INFO!! go fucking manifest YOUR DREAM LIFE!! MAKE A CHANGE!!

can I change a person's behavior around me?

yes! You can, first of all, decide how that person's gonna start acting around you. okay now start assuming and persist in the assumption until it hardens into fact and dismiss the 3d.

can I make my crush love me? even my celebrity crush?

yes, you can! it's very easy, first start off by assuming that Sp already does love you and that you are already in a relationship with him/her, live in the end, fulfill yourself in your imagination and persist in the assumption, and dismiss the 3d.

can I manifest many desires at the same time?

yes! You absolutely can, if you don't want to list them all one by one, just make a blanket affirmation or you can even say a random word with the intention it gonna manifest all your desires.

for example the word "cinnamon roll" = your list of desires.

what is revision?

"Revision" refers to changing a past event or action that has already occurred. However, it's important to remember that the past and future only exist in our minds. Therefore, it is possible to change anything from the past and you will manifest it the same way you would manifest your desires normally.(read this and this and this and this)

can you manifest for me, please? can you enter the void state for me, please🫸🏻🫷🏻😓?

FUCKING NO!!! DO IT YOURSELF!! NO ONE IS GOING TO DO IT FOR YOU!! START APPLYING INSTEAD AND BE DISCIPLINED!!

but I can't enter the void...I tried everything and every method and it didn't work!

ASSUMPTIONS MANIFEST!! GET THIS THROUGH YOUR THICK SKULLS!! personally, I realized that assumptions are what manifest because, after 2 years of trying to enter the void state, I woke up in it with JUST A FUCKING ASSUMPTION! NO METHOD!! NO MEDITATION !!NO FUCKING BULLSHIT!! THE METHOD IS NOT THE ONE THAT IS GOING TO HELP YOU ENTER THE VOID STATE BUT THE KEY IS YOU!! IS SELF!!

#law of assumption #𓍢🌷᭝۪﹗eli's archives #loa #loa tumblr #loa blog #how to manifest #law of manifestation

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ffsg0jo · 6 months ago

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sukuna hated winter. it was by far the worst of all four seasons, and it made him feel downright murderous. his limbs ached and felt swollen despite him rarely ever wearing his prosthetic. the heavy metal being more for cosmetics and other people's comfort as opposed to his own.

everywhere he went, he'd receive pitiful stares when looking down at his arm. or lack of. sukuna absolutely despised it. if only people knew just how capable he was without it, then they'd learn to fear him, and rightfully so. the cold only worked to make his angry temperament worse.

the residual limb on his right arm fought against him tirelessly as it was. and with the addition of the cold, sukuna could barely move. the man had gone through all sorts of horrors in his life. the scars littered across his body were a testament to that fact.

but the pain was still debilitating. it felt like lightning shooting up his arm. he always found himself writhing and gasping in bed. even in the absence of his right hand, he could feel the brittle bones locking up and grinding against his each other. his forearm siezing up and screeching in pain.

it didn't make sense. he didn't have a hand or a forearm, so why could he feel it weighing down his side and moving through the air? why could he so vividly feel his fingers locking up whilst subconsciously trying to grasp his mug?

he'd move to hold his forearm and try to alleviate the pain only to end up grabbing onto nothing.

and then there was you. used to seeing him in pain as the winter goes by and feeling more and more helpless each time. you did your best, rubbing and massaging what's left of his arm and giving him warm, relaxing baths. putting his prosthetic on for an hour or two and compression socks to help swelling.

you knew sukuna was strong, and he'd get through it; he always did. but you hated seeing your lover in pain and wished you could take it all away from him. you'd hold him and kiss him through the pain, wiping the small tears away gently.

and when the pain eventually settled, you'd still be holding him for as long as sukuna wanted, knowing he craved your skin on his.

he'd never say it to your face, but the softness of your body against his brought him immense comfort.

a/n: i don't have any prosthetics/im not an amputee. i spent days researching for this little drabble, but if i have got anything wrong, then please do let me know !! i thought it would be interesting to write sukuna (who has 4 arms) as an amputee. if you liked this i would be really open to writing more and fully fleshed out one-shots !! im always open to suggestions :))

i am taking requests and writing fics and matchups for gaza. check the linked post out to find out more !!

tagging :: @interstellar-inn

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yamisnuffles · 16 days ago

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DATV Spoiler Free Review

I beat Veilguard a couple days ago and have had some time to let it settle in my brain. So, without getting into the nitty gritty and more spoilery things, here are my overall feelings on the game.

The Great:

The world itself. The scenery. It was really gorgeous and felt fully alive in a way that none of the previous games have quite managed. Since it wasn't as open world as DAI nor as narrow in scope as DA2 (nor as old as DAO lol), it felt more vital. Definitely a place where the advances in graphics helped, I'm sure.

The Good:

The companions. I wouldn't say any of them blew me away but they all at least ranged from enjoyable to very good. I definitely had my quibbles here and there but I think they were all pretty solid. As such, though I've only done one romance, I'll suppose they're all good. A bit... sparse in my experience and from what I've been hearing, but nice enough.

Overall, I also think the story was pretty good. Like much in this game, nothing that blew me away, but solidly compelling.

Also, mechanically, the gameplay and the glamour system. It still doesn't feel like DA to me but it was enjoyable once I got used to it. It works well with how I play games. And it was nice to just set looks for myself and my companions and not worry about stats vs appearance.

Rook. I have some definite Complaints, and so this point is probably closer to the good to mid range, but they did a pretty good job with letting you pull in your faction stuff. I'm prevented from saying great because it feels like, even with what are supposed to be rougher dialogue choices, you're limited to being mildly pleasant.

The Mid:

The music. This is tragic to me because every previous game had some really standout songs and DAI especially was such a solid soundtrack. I love soundtrack music. Also because Hans Zimmer! I love Hans Zimmer. But the entire thing felt very generic epic fantasy to me. It wasn't bad but it didn't feel good. The only times I ended up moved by the music was when they lifted DAI songs.

The lack of imports. It wasn't the end of the world but did make some cameos feel really off. And for all the talk of making what few things were imported matter, that really didn't feel like the case at all (unless you were in a specific subset of players). I didn't care too much, but it was just enough to make things feel weird, especially with characters like Harding who are so attached to previous stuff.

The Bad:

The world felt so sanitized. I have no issue getting rid of real life bigotry that makes so sense in the context of the world. For example, the sexism in DAO especially made no sense. That said, there was a lot of in world nastiness that is just... gone. The game does a lot of telling us the elves have it bad but doesn't show it. No one bats an eye at a Tevinter mage running about outside of Tevinter. No one cares about a Qunari in occupied Treviso. I suppose it's not the worst thing in the world but it feels weird, especially when it's so central to Solas' motivations.

This sanitization carried on through pretty much everything. All of the factions are presented as good and heroic, even the ones that are historically pretty shady. Your companions are all pleasant and palatable. They have the occasional minor squabble but even when they almost have actual beef, it's solved super easily. You might get some disapproval for decisions but companions never seem to much care or hold it against you, even on really big things. I don't need DA2 levels of interparty drama but, boy did I want a bit more tooth sometimes.

The Awful:

I can't get into it without spoilers but it did a Thing that Bioware sometimes likes to do that I absolutely loathe. This is definitely personal but it ruined some of my desire to replay.

Overall:

I'd give the game a 7/10 or maybe 6/10, depending on how I'm feeling. It was enjoyable for the most part but it had so many things that felt like splinters. Lots of little things that stuck under my skin and bothered me. Would I recommend it? Genuinely depends on the person.

#dragon age #datv #something something this is all my personal take #datv critical

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kiame-sama · 8 months ago

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Hello, Can you write more yanChrollo with the newly hijacked and autistic reader? Maybe where the reader is not yet used to Chrollo or the situation, And afraid of him and the rest of the members

I would like to make the reader male but if you prefer to make the reader female then I don't mind at all

I am now in my twenties

Thank you so much

Warnings; yandere, yandere relationship, yandere behavior, autistic reader, male reader, mention of kidnapping, less than pleased reader, tough situations, ficlet (not a fullblown fic), somewhat hurt/comfort,

(Despite being a male reader, still using my own autism as a reference)

~~~~~~~~

"Why are we just letting him-"

"Don't question Boss. His soulmate, his rules."

"But why the hell is he just letting his soul mate sit in the corner like that?"

You watched them closely as you sat and stared, trying to keep to yourself as best you could. It had been days but you still couldn't bring yourself to relax among the group of people that had so readily grabbed you off the street. They were much more openly curious than Chrollo- the man they had grabbed you for- and clearly did not care if you could hear them or not.

Chrollo, the man that claimed you as his soulmate, had been rather keen on letting you acclimate to him but also keeping you in his sight. Luckily, he did give you some privacy, but he was never too far away from you even when you were out of his sight. Even when you slept you knew he was somewhere nearby and it only made your stress levels rise.

"No sense in upsetting him more than getting him to me had," Chrollo, spoke with a vague grin on his lips, "clearly I just have to learn how to best interact with him, that is all."

"I can hear you."

"I know you can, my darling (Y/n). However, you are not keen on talking, so there is no point in making you talk."

"... But there is a point in taking me from my home?"

Chrollo turned to you now, intentionally blinking in an attempt to come across as less threatening despite how it obviously didn't fool you. Still, he was learning what unsettled you and what was going to keep you calm. Any progress in relaxing you around him was good progress in Chrollo's eyes.

"Yes. As I explained earlier, we are soulmates. You can distrust me as much as you wish, you will eventually never want to leave my side. Soulmates are connected for a reason, Dear."

You just let out a soft humming sound in response to his words, drumming your fingers against your arm idly. Chrollo continued to smile at you despite your lack of response before returning to his book. The other members of the group didn't seem to feel the same way as they continued to glance at you suspiciously from time to time.

The sounds from the outside wre muffled but absolutely enough to occupy you. Not many cars went by, but there were still the various barks of dogs as others passed the abandoned building you were held captive inside of. Despite the sounds, your eyes stayed fixed on the relaxed figure of Chrollo.

The more you stared, the more your situation began to weigh on you. A very faint sting of salty tears burned your eyes as your throat seemed to tighten with distress. When you finally dropped your gaze, you had to hide your face against your arms and you pulled your knees to your chest. The first few tears fell quickly but you tried your best to remain as quiet as possible to not draw attention to your now sensitive state.

It was while you choked back any sounds from escaping that you felt something drape over your shoulders. Whatever it was almost seemed like a blanket and you quickly took to wrapping yourself in the material. The faint brush of fur against your arms brought to mind thoughts of the coat Chrollo always wore and you gathered just what the item was.

A soft sound of movement next to you made you peak one eye past your arms where you hid your face, seeing Chrollo settle an arm's length away from you. He leaned against the wall as he sat- completely topless- and opened his book back to whatever page he had been on. He didn't even glance at you as you stared at him, trying to gauge what he was doing. Without missing a beat, Chrollo spoke in a soft tone to you, the low rumble of his voice somewhat soothing your anxious heart.

"I know it is a frightening time for you. You're somewhere new. Somewhere you don't know very well. It all is so sudden and confusing for you. I understand. Even if you don't trust me now, I still don't wish to bear the thought of you hurting all by yourself."

Chrollo had that grin again, the one where he seemed to be both bemused and patiently waiting. You couldn't tell if you liked that look on him or not.

"You will warm to me eventually. For now, take comfort in the fact I have quite the patience. I can wait as long as I need to until you begin to trust me."

#kiame-sama #yandere #x reader #yandere x reader #reader insert #tw yandere #hxh yandere #yandere chrollo #tw autism #tw kidnap mention

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eponymous-rose · 5 months ago

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I can't find it now, which probably means it was months and months ago, but someone sent me an ask about considering adopting a cat but, as a dog person, not knowing much about adoption (e.g., whether shelter cats are good for first-time owners) and the day-to-day responsibilities of cat ownership. I can answer for my own experience, although I'm sure I'll be forgetting some important aspects!

Shelter vs Purebred:

I have a little 5-year-old shelter cat, a female domestic shorthair with a tuxedo coat! That's a big difference between cats and dogs - the vast, vast, VAST majority of cats you'll ever encounter are simply categorized as domestic shorthair/medium hair/longhair, with purebred cats being rare enough that they generally are limited to breeders - when I was an adoption counselor at a shelter, I only saw a couple of potentially purebred cats some through, and both were likely mixes. A lot of the time, cats are identified by their coat colors instead (e.g., calico, tabby, orange, tuxedo, colorpoint, dilute, etc.) with much made of the personality traits associated with those coats even though there's tragically no real science to back that up. Some coat colors are much more common with particular sexes of cats - orange cats are about 80/20 male/female, while calicos are >98% female - and that may contribute to some of the kitty stereotypes (e.g., orange cats are typically male, and neutered male cats tend to be quite calm and chill).

I'd heartily recommend shelter cats to anyone, including first-time owners. A lot of purebred cats sadly come with medical conditions (e.g., scottish folds often have significant pain due to connective tissue disorders, manx cats are prone to arthritis and spinal problems, maine coons and sphynx cats have relatively high rates of congenital heart disease, persians are brachycephalic and have breathing issues) or extra-high maintenance care requirements (e.g., sphynx cats must be bathed regularly because the lack of hair means the oils on their skin stick to any and all dirt, maine coons and ragdolls and norwegian forest cats require significant daily grooming to keep their long double coats from matting, brachycephalic cats require extra baths and grooming since they're generally unable to keep their own coats as clean, and breeds like bengals are so immensely high-energy that it's nearly a full-time job keeping up with their needs for enrichment and constant activity).

Shelter cats are almost all domestic shorthair/medium hair/longhair breeds, and tend to have the longest life expectancy of all kitties - although there are no guarantees (I sadly lost a 9-month-old kitten to a congenitally damaged heart) the lifespan numbers quoted lately for indoor-only cats tend to be around 15-25 years. And, of course, most places are overrun with stray cats - adopting from a shelter often comes with a free spay/neuter and vaccines, along with the satisfaction of having rescued a little critter that had a rough start before finding a forever home. You can visit shelters and get to know the kitties there - keep in mind that most cats are dramatically more fearful and shy in cages, and that you can often ask volunteers to point you to their favorites, especially if you're looking for an extra-chill cat as a first-time owner.

Consider adopting an adult cat! Kittens are adorable, but their energy levels are absolutely through the roof... as well as their destructive potential. Picture tiny whirlwinds with knives on their feet, the ability to jump 4-5 feet from a dead stop, zero sense of self-preservation, and the ability to keep sprinting for hours at random times of day and night. If you do get a kitten, consider adopting two - they tend to be less work since they'll keep each other entertained. Adult cats, however, tend to have more chill personalities and are more likely to settle into a routine quickly. My Clara is still pretty high-energy, but at 5 years old she's happy to have a shorter session of zoomies and intense play if it means she can then just curl up on a lap or in the sun to snooze and purr. Senior kitties are also wonderful - often cats don't have a very visible decline and remain relatively high-energy and chipper until very late in life, so it's not unusual that a 13-year-old cat will still act like a kitten and have many good years ahead, just a bit more chill.

Keep in mind that a cat is a long-term commitment. I was 7 years old when my parents brought two kittens home from the shelter - they lived another 18 years, until I was well into grad school.

Common Health Problems:

Cats that were once strays are very prone to two common diseases: FIV and FeLV. FIV (feline immundeficiency virus) essentially is a disorder of the immune system: these cats may be more prone to getting ill and may get more significantly ill when they do get sick. Luckily, FIV is far from a death sentence! These cats can live a normal quantity and quality of life with proactive health monitoring and regular trips to the vet (we're talking every 6 months instead of every year). FIV is contagious to other cats, but generally is only spread via deep bite wounds, so mixing of FIV+ and FIV- cats is possible given that you know that the cats are unlikely to get into a major fracas. FeLV (feline leukemia virus), sadly, has a worse prognosis - there's a lot of variability, but generally the best-case scenario is only a handful of years before the viral load is too high to avoid dangerous symptoms.

Another kitty disease that is sadly common among younger cats in particular is FIP (feline infectious peritonitis), which is a complication from a common kitty coronavirus that can emerge at any time and often manifests in very vague symptoms and is difficult to pin down. Until very, very recently, FIP was essentially considered to be 100% fatal within a couple of months and the recommendation was euthanasia. Now there are medications that can bring that survival rate past 90% - they're in the process of going through FDA approval, although there are groups online dedicated to getting you those medications through less official channels as needed. If anyone's familiar with Drawfee, Jacob and Julia's cat Olive was diagnosed with FIP at around 1 year old and was considered to be terminal - and, thanks to one of those online groups getting them the medication, is currently a happy and healthy 6-year-old kitty.

Nearly all shelter cats I've encountered have some level of URI (upper respiratory infection) - be prepared for a little extra sneezing and potentially having to give eyedrops the first couple weeks after getting home. URIs are SO CONTAGIOUS that it's almost impossible to keep them from spreading in a shelter setting. Also common is ringworm, although most shelters will isolate any contagious kittens and keep the infection localized.

Please spay and neuter your cats! They can have kittens incredibly young and incredibly frequently - unspayed female cats are also prone to certain cancers and unneutered male cats are prone to spraying (urinating on walls and other surfaces). The surgery is incredibly routine for both males and females (Clara had complications, but that just meant she had a few extra days of confinement) and generally the hardest part is keeping them from going after their stitches. Most shelters will provide spay/neuter services for free or on the cheap. They recover quickly and completely.

Cats also do incredibly well in a lot of different situations - deaf or half-deaf cats are quite common (nearly all blue-eyed cats with white coats are deaf) and just need some extra care to ensure they feel safe; the same goes for blind or one-eyed kitties, who can still happily play and navigate a space once they're familiar with it. Routine is key! Three-legged cats do so well that the saying is that cats are all born with a spare leg they don't actually need. If this is a recent condition, or if there are big changes in the cat's life (such as moving to a new home), just make sure to give them some extra time, support, and patience while they adjust. Amputation in cats can be really rough in the first couple of weeks, but soon enough they'll be sprinting around and jumping up on improbably high shelves.

Male cats are more prone than female cats to urinary blockages, which is one reason why I think it's important to actively clean the litter box yourself rather than using a robot. Changes in urinary output/pain while urinating/urinating outside the box can give you hints about a urinary blockage (a medical emergency in cats) or longer-term issues such as kidney disease, which can be managed with medication for quite some time as long as you know they're happening.

Cats are really good at hiding pain/illness, so it's important to be aware of signs of discomfort (sitting hunched with the neck extended can indicate difficulty breathing, whiskers extended stiffly from the face can indicate a grimace of pain, disruptions to routine such as avoiding beloved people or favorite spots, eating/drinking/litter box irregularity) and to ensure that you bring them to the vet on a regular basis to catch the stuff that might not be causing symptoms yet. Clara has a benign heart murmur and a little stiffness in one ventricle that requires her to visit a vet specialist every year or two to get an echocardiogram to check for any progression into heart disease (one in seven cats wind up with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, which has a long median survival with presymptomatic treatment) - if those symptoms are ever present, we get her on medication early and it's unlikely to influence her lifespan for quite some time, whereas unmonitored and untreated, the first symptom would likely be sudden death. Knowing about this in advance also means that she has recommendations in her chart if she ever needs anesthesia for a different procedure. Having a regularly updated baseline at the vet means your cat is that much more likely to live a long, happy, healthy life.

The Day-to-Day:

Caring for cats is extremely fun, and the key is routine! Cats LOVE routine and will happily follow you around through your day-to-day. Clara is fed with an auto-feeder, which means she doesn't tend to pester me too much about food (and which means I can monitor how much she's eating and make adjustments as needed). She's prone to stress-induced stomach upset (aren't we all!) so she gets prescription food and some extra wet food with probiotics if I know something stressful is coming up soon. The auto-feeder dispenses food multiple times during the day, so she can't gorge herself and get sick.

For grooming, Clara does a pretty great job on her own, so I just have to brush her occasionally and every few weeks I will trim her claws. Do not declaw a cat! It's an amputation that is illegal in many states/countries and frequently results in chronic pain and behavioral problems such as an aversion to certain textures (a Major Problem if that texture includes litter...). If you can't trim a cat's claws on your own, try doing one or two at a time while they're sleeping - unlike with dogs, the quick is super visible on a cat's claws, so it's tough to mess up too badly. If all else fails, vets will trim claws for you, or can provide you with glue-on covers for the claws. I also brush Clara's teeth - you can get soft little toothbrushes and tasty-to-cats toothpaste, and even just them gnawing on the toothbrush can provide some benefit. Regular vet visits are also important to monitor any tooth decay that may occur. Cats can do well even with no teeth at all (the teeth are generally just for tearing pieces of prey, not chewing), but keeping those teeth healthy while they've got 'em is important, if only to avoid general anesthesia for a cleaning!

Most cats do very well without baths - so far, Clara has only needed a few little spot-cleans after minor accidents. Bathing is extremely stressful for most cats, so if necessary, I'd check out guides online to help reduce the stress levels. Many cats gradually lose the ability to keep themselves clean, so it's worth looking into, but don't expect to have to wash a cat as often as you would a dog by any means. (Unless you have a sphynx cat, of course...)

To help with scratching, provide scratchers for cats and keep them near the things you don't want the cat to scratch, as attractive alternatives (you can entice them with some catnip sprinkled on the scratchers!) - it's important to have both horizontal and vertical scratchers, since they exercise different muscles. Be aware, though, that bringing a cat into the home means that some of your furniture may be at risk. You can absolutely minimize the risk of damage, but I'd say you can almost never get rid of that risk completely.

Play is super important! I play with Clara throughout the day, but I also set aside some time every single evening to run around with her and really get her playing hard for a while (after which I clean her box, replace her water dishes, and go to bed - the importance of routine!). Cats aren't endurance hunters, but they require very little rest between bursts of energy, so hanging around for a bit with a toy even after you think they may be done is super valuable. Keep in mind that cats can get into life-threatening danger if they eat pieces of toys (strings, feathers, etc.) so it can be good to have some safe toys out all the time (e.g., foam balls) while the more dangerous ones (strings, feathers, etc.) are locked away when you're not actively playing.

Daily maintenance is pretty easy. I clean Clara's litter box at least once per day (which just involves scooping the contents into a bag that I then throw into the trash bin outside - less than 2 minutes/day) and do a deeper clean every week or two where I empty out all the litter and quickly scrub the box itself. Cats are lousy at remembering to drink, so I have three water bowls around the house - these get washed and replaced with fresh water every evening. Fountains are great for some cats (Clara had no interest) - some cats are obsessed with running water. Keeping water away from food can also help encourage cats to drink more. Apart from that, it's mostly just refilling the auto-feeder, attempting to tempt her with wet food (she's not a fan), and giving the occasional treat.

She also gets a monthly flea/tick preventative, which is just a couple drops of liquid that I apply at the base of her neck (usually while she's sleeping). She's an indoor-only cat, but bugs get inside and can transmit all sorts of bad stuff. Be warned that you should NEVER use a dog flea preventative on a cat - the dosage can be so high that it can cause a lot of harm. Make sure you have a correct dosage - ask your vet for more info.

And that's about it! In return for that minor maintenance, I get a silly little fluffy friend who follows me around and makes me laugh all day every day. She's gone from a really skittish little scaredy-cat to... well, still a skittish little scaredy-cat around most people, but around me she's affectionate and constantly looking for cuddles.

I hope this is in some way useful! I think a lot of people who don't consider themselves cat people would really enjoy having a cat - and even if you decide it's not for you, I hope you can appreciate and enjoy the other cats in your life!

#eponymous cat tag #long text post

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blueariel3-blog · 1 year ago

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Only Her

Pairing: Tom Riddle x Reader

A/N: Hello! This is the first fic I'm posting so let me know if you like it! I had so much fun writing it and I always have ideas in my head for stories, so I thought it was time I finally posted one lol.

The autumn breeze was chilling to the bone once you had been exposed to it. No amount of thick sweaters, fluffy scarves, or wool gloves could keep the bite out once the cold really settled in. Tom blew a warm breath into his hands ( as warm as he could manage in the current weather) and cursed the skies. He would not be trekking through this treacherous weather if it weren’t for the bubbly girl skipping in front of him.

She had asked him to accompany her to Hogsmeade this weekend and no matter how hard he tried to find the cold, unappealing mask he had perfectly molded, he knew there was no way he could turn her down. She was his opposite in every aspect and as much as it didn’t make sense, it also did.

He tried to keep his usual schemes far away from her innocent ears, though she was not oblivious to his extracurricular activities. He supposed one of the things he enjoyed most is that she never judged him or tried to talk him out of his plans. She simply took him for what he was and loved every part of him.

“Oh Tom, look! The snowflakes are so pretty!” She beamed as she caught one in her hand, shoving it toward the grumpy boy following behind her. He merely grimaced and attempted to at least look half-interested. She continued admiring the puffs of feather-light ice, paying no attention to what was in front of her, trusting her boyfriend to watch out for her completely.

Tom sometimes wondered how different things would be had she not been assigned his partner in charms and been forced to attend several study sessions together. If she hadn’t insisted on working together as much as possible and making sure their assignments had no errors, would he be further along in his plans?

He had been delaying releasing the basilisk for months out of fear for her. Only her, no one else he cared enough about to even consider their well-being. His closest friends had taken his distraction as an excuse to delay plans and stop attending meetings altogether. He knew he needed to make a move soon, but he also knew he could postpone it a little longer.

“You ought to be careful, the bridge is frozen and you could easily slip.” Despite the lack of warmth in his tone, his message was well-intended and he knew she understood that. She simply giggled and held out her hand to him, allowing his large hands to encompass her small ones and keep her balanced.

Although he sometimes found it tedious to always make sure She was in safe hands, he also secretly adored it. Sometimes he got tired of the constant anger and despise in his head, the blood on his hands, the nagging feeling of never being enough, and simply let thoughts of her overwhelm him.

“Look, the Three Broomsticks has their lights on!” Tom reigned in the urge to tell her that they always had their lights on, instead letting her indulge in the simplistic fun. She tugged him along hastily through the crowded streets and burst through the old wooden doors. Tom snarled at those who dared looked their way and lead the girl in his arms to the farthest table in the back.

He was not embarrassed to be seen with her by any means. However, he absolutely despised the nasty looks she received for being with him. It wasn’t his own feelings he was concerned with; hers, on the other hand, were as delicate as a blooming flower. Tom sometimes wondered if it was the mean comments or the prospect of being humiliated that made the tears roll down her porcelain face.

“What would you two like to drink?” Tom eyed the man who had come to take their order. He was tall and lanky, probably a graduate from last year or the one before who couldn’t find anything better to do with his time than smoke and drink. She batted her eyelashes and ordered two butter beers, unaware of the blush now coating the snob's cheeks.

She never meant to flirt, she was just a charismatic being. Tom never reprimanded her for it and never pointed it out, not wanting her to lose the joyous nature about herself for the sake of others’ stupidity.

“So, heard anything good lately?” Tome whipped his head back to her and narrowed his eyes. She loved to gossip.

“I heard Walburga and Orion are engaged.” He had come to enjoy passing secrets with her. Only her.

“They are not!’ She gasped. Tom nodded his head and smirked. “Are they not cousins?”

“Well, yes, but the pureblood families tend to interbreed anyways. Their children will probably bear all sorts of problems.” She giggled and slapped a hand over her mouth, tho the tint to her cheeks never left.

He caught himself almost smiling but quickly scowled as the man set their drinks down in front of them. He gave her an extra long pause, telling her to call out if she needed anything, and slowly walked away from the table.

She took a long sip of her drink, sighing happily and looking at Tom expectantly. Truth be told, he hated the damn drink. But he indulged her in tasting it every time and then letting her have the rest. He always ended up dragging her back to the castle by the end of the day but he couldn’t deny her this simple pleasure.

He grasped the glass and took a slow sip, swishing the amber liquid around in his mouth before swallowing. Tom hated the grime that coated his teeth every time he drank something sugary and made a mental note to brush his teeth as soon as he returned to his dorm.

Once her drink was gone and Tom had taken three nanoscopic sips of his, she downed his as well. A glassy film covered her eyes and she began laughing uncontrollably, doubling over and clutching her stomach as the drink coursed through her.

A rough hand on his shoulder brought Tom out of his watchful stare. Abraxas Malfoy stood next to him, a sort of excitement in his eyes as he beheld the giggling girl in front of him. Tom shook his disgusting hand off his shoulder and raised his eyebrows at his right-hand man.

“Hello, you two! Well, don’t you look as lovely as ever!” She giggled again.

“Why thank you, Abraxas!”

“I was actually referring to our good friend Tommy here, but you look lovely as well.” A smirk adorned Abraxas face as she laughed even harder. If Abraxas had not been one of his most trusted followers then he would have obliviated him. He still might.

“He does look quite lovely.” Tom simply rolled his eyes and motioned for the blonde boy to tell him whatever it was he interrupted their night for.

“I just came to wish you both a good night and check-in.” The glint in his eyes told a different story and Tom almost pulled him into the alleyway to explain. But that would mean leaving her alone, and that was something he would never do.

“Thank you, Abraxas. Oh! Are you excited about the quidditch game tomorrow?” Although she came from the yellow house, she adorned a different color for every game. She just liked to witness the excitement of someone winning.

“I am, I hope you’ll be in green and black tomorrow?” He gave her a lazy grin as she nodded her head eagerly. She would not remember agreeing to that tomorrow and Abraxas would have quite the time teasing her when he sees her decked in blue instead.

“Darling, did you want to go to the bookstore before the end of the night?” The light was dimming outside, but the shops were far from closing. With darkness came cold though, and Tom would not have her out in weather worse than this.

“Oh, of course! I thought we could pick up a few to read before bed?” Abraxas snickered but quickly stopped once he saw the sharp look Tom diverted at him. Instead of answering, he simply shrugged his coat on and offered her a hand. He made sure her scarf was wrapped tight around her neck and her coat buttoned properly to seal in any remaining warmth.

He held her hand tightly and led her down the snowy street. The small bookstore came into view and he quickly pulled them in to fight off the cold, leading her down to the section she adored the most.

Tom watched as her fingers skimmed the old parchments as she lazily looked for a few to bring home. He felt bad the first few times they came because he couldn’t afford to buy her what she wanted, but she insisted she had enough money for the both of them. After many disagreements (they never argued because he couldn’t stand to make her upset), he finally accepted that she would buy them and he would read them to her.

“I want this one, please.” Tom grabbed the rather thin book off the shelf and held it out for her to tuck in her arms.

“Just one darling? We’ll go through that pretty quickly, maybe you should pick another one as well.” She hummed in agreement and pointed to three more books. He rolled his eyes humorously and pulled them from the shelf.

With the books in hand, she set them on the counter and bounced on her toes as the clerk rang them up. She handed them the payment and Tom took the wrapped parcels along with her hand and made for the door.

The walk back to the castle always felt longer, though he knew it wasn’t. Perhaps it was the impending time to sit by the fire with her curled into his side or the way her scent would wash over him and lull him to sleep. It could have been the sleep-filled nights he only seemed to find wrapped around her or the quiet the castle offered only at night.

“Tom?” He hummed and turned to her. She had a contemplative look on her face.

“Do you think you’ll ever get tired of me?” He stopped in his tracks, pulling her back when she attempted to carry on walking. His heart beat a thousand times faster than normal and if he thought about her words too long, he was sure it would beat out of his chest.

He carefully placed one hand under her chin, tilting those glassy eyes to look directly into his. His sharp features made him intimidating to most people, but she was never afraid of the death that could shine in his eyes.

“Why are you asking me that darling? Has someone said something?” Merlin forbid someone else had made her think this way. They would be dead within the hour.

She shook her head quickly, long strands of hair falling in her eyes. She pushed them back with one hand and huffed, looking at the ground while she played with his fingers.

“No, I was just thinking. I know I’m very different from you and your friends, and sometimes I just wonder…well…if I’m too different.”

Tom would do anything to wipe the sorrow from her voice. He forced himself to take steadying breaths. The wrapped books thumped against the snow-packed ground as he freed both of his hands to grasp either side of her face.

“Darling, I will not get tired of you. I enjoy the differences between us. I know I am not capable of the extent of feelings you have for me, but one day I hope to learn to feel those things.” He placed one of her hands against his beating heart, letting her feel how tilted his world had suddenly become.

“Are you sure?” She batted those long, beautiful eyelashes up at him.

“I am quite sure.” She nodded once, the smile taking on her face again as if she hadn’t just torn his world apart and put it back together in the span of two minutes. She grabbed the books from the ground and tucked them under one arm, wrapping the other around his and pulling him quickly towards the castle.

There was no one else he would ever consider confessing his feelings for, good or bad. No one else could destroy him if they ever decided they were tired of him. No one else held his heart as she did. Only her. Only ever her.

#tom riddle #hufflepuff #harry potter #tom riddle fluff #tom riddle x reader #tom riddle fans #hufflepuff!reader #tom marvolo riddle #tom riddle x fem!reader

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444takeomi · 1 year ago

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YOU’RE PERFECT

: ̗̀➛ summary: your boyfriend always seems to know how to make you feel better when you're insecure

character(s): shinichiro sano

warnings: female reader, nsfw, unprotected sex, mentions of body image issues and insecurities, multiple orgasms, oral (f receiving), fingering, mating press, creampie, mirror sex, love-making, praise, dirty talk, lots of body worship, crying during sex, v v sappy

wc: 4.2k

a/n: this one took me quite a while to write as it's very personal to me, i still kinda hate how it turned out but i hope some of you can relate to it and find comfort in it as well. i tried to be as non-specific as possible when describing the reader’s insecurities so apologies if it comes across as a bit vague, i tried my best ahahah

it was another one of those days, one that had you looking at your own reflection and hating everything you saw in front of you.

feeling uncomfortable in your own skin wasn’t exactly anything new to you, having felt unsatisfied with the way you looked for as long as you could remember. with that being said, today in particular had left you feeling much worse about yourself than usual, and you found yourself unable to refrain from picking apart your entire appearance. despite your best efforts at reassuring yourself that you didn't look as bad as you thought, nothing you said was able to provide you with any sort of comfort — if anything you just felt even more hopeless.

it had come to the point where it was almost hard to believe that the person staring back at you in the mirror was actually you. the sight of your own body straight up disgusted you, and you just couldn't understand how it was possible for someone to be so hideous. it was hard to even look at yourself — had it always been this bad? you didn't even want to think about it.

the way your clothes clung to your body did nothing except highlight how blatantly disproportionate your features were, and you were starting to regret your choice of not opting for something baggier when you got dressed this morning. oversized clothing was the only thing that you felt suited you nowadays, the loose fabric swallowing up your figure and concealing all of your flaws, temporarily putting your mind at ease and making you forget about the hard reality of what was hiding under those clothes.

you really tried to distract yourself, to do anything other than spend the entire day wallowing in self-pity over something as superficial as your appearance, but your feelings of self-consciousness persisted no matter how hard you tried to ignore them, which led you to where you were now — clothes scattered across the floor as you stared at the reflection of your bare figure, managing to somehow find fault in every part of yourself.

you knew that your boyfriend shin was living proof that you were indeed worthy of love, but you often found yourself wondering if you were really good enough for him — he was so handsome and tall with such a perfectly toned body, and not to mention he was the most hardworking person you knew, and overall was just an absolute sweetheart who always put everyone else's needs before his own.

he was so wonderful, and you couldn't help but think he deserved someone so much better.

it made matters worse when you subconsciously started comparing yourself to all the other girls shin had asked out in the past, focusing on everything they had that you lacked, appearance or otherwise, and you couldn't help but notice how they all had one thing in common — how absolutely gorgeous they all were. you wondered if shin was just settling when he finally asked you out, it would make sense given the fact that all those girls were clearly far more attractive than you ever were.

shin always looked at you with nothing but adoration, and even if at times you were unable to understand exactly why, it was still clear that he loved you with all his heart. however, no matter how hard you tried to block it out, you always found yourself listening to that little voice in the back of your mind — the one that repeatedly told you how unattractive you were, that you weren’t deserving of love, that you weren’t good enough.

you were so lost in thought that you didn't even hear as your boyfriend came home from work and greeted you from downstairs, too preoccupied with the heavy feeling in your chest as you fixated on every imperfection you saw whilst you stared at your own reflection. shin was a little worried upon not hearing you answer him, used to your usual cheerful welcome as you paused whatever you were doing to give him a warm hug and ask him about his day.

he began searching the house for you, checking each room before making his way upstairs, just to make sure that you were okay. he opened the door to your shared bedroom, and you watched through the reflection of the mirror as he walked in, feeling the sudden urge to cover your body with your hands and hide yourself from his gaze.

shin’s eyes widened ever so slightly at the sight in front of him, and he couldn't help but whistle lowly as he took in your naked figure in its entirety. he looked you up and down, in complete awe as he wondered how someone could be so beautiful without even trying. he felt a little giddy at the thought of you doing this on purpose to surprise him, especially after he'd had such a long day at work. he could feel his cock twitch in his pants as he shamelessly checked you out, his mind beginning to wander as his dark eyes clouded with lust.

“damn, baby. what did i do to deserve all—” shin paused, abruptly cutting himself off upon seeing your saddened expression as you turned to face him, “hey, what's the matter, sweetheart?”

you shook your head at him, averting your gaze in hopes that he wouldn't see the tears that were beginning to well up in your vision.

“it's nothing, i’m fine,” you sniffled, fingers coming up to gently pat at the corners of your eyes, “i just want to be alone right now.”

you didn't want to lie to him, in fact you desperately wanted to tell him everything that was on your mind, wanted him to comfort you and reassure you like he always did whenever you felt like this. the last thing you wanted to do was push him away, but at the same time you knew that you couldn't keep doing this to him. it was obvious how tired he was after a hard day's work, and the last thing he needed right now was you burdening him with something as pathetic as your own insecurities, but here you were.

“no, you're not,” needless to say shin wasn't convinced, easily seeing through your rather weak attempt at hiding how you were truly feeling from him, “i’m not going anywhere until you tell me what's wrong.”

you sighed, swallowing the lump in your throat as you desperately tried to hold back the tears that were threatening to spill. how could he be so perfect? he was always so kind and caring, so patient with you regardless of how exhausted he was after working so hard to provide for the both of you — you didn't know what you did to deserve him.

“why do i have to look like this?” you turned back towards the mirror, voice wobbly as you finally broke down crying, “i— no matter what i do i never feel good enough. i’m so sick of feeling like this, i just… i just wish i was pretty.”

“oh, sweetheart, come here,” shin came to wrap his arms around you, pulling you into his chest as he looked at you through the reflection of the mirror with so much love in his eyes, “you know i think you're perfect the way you are, i just wish you could see yourself the way i do.”

shin was familiar with your insecurities, and he always tried his best to console you despite the fact he couldn't possibly understand why you felt so negatively about yourself. he hated seeing you like this, hated seeing you unhappy with the body he loved so much, it made his heart ache. he didn't know why you constantly talked down on yourself, didn't know how you could be so blind to your own beauty when it was so obvious to him.

he wanted to show you the way he felt about your body, wanted to make you feel loved and desired. he knew that while he wouldn't be able to completely alleviate your feelings of insecurity, regardless of how much he wanted to, he hoped that if he carried on showing you exactly how much you meant to him that in time you would start to realise just how amazing you were.

“shin, w–what are you doing?” you asked, voice faltering as you felt his hands beginning to caress your sides, before they came to rest comfortably on your hips.

your breath hitched in your throat as he began placing open-mouthed kisses along your neck and shoulders, his hands kneading the flesh beneath his palms, and you couldn't help but lean into his touch as your eyes fluttered shut and you let out a sigh of pleasure.

“showing you just how gorgeous i think you are,” he replied lowly, his breath fanning against the shell of your ear, “is that okay, baby?”

“shin, you don't have to,” you insisted, biting your lip as he began sucking a hickey onto the skin of your neck, “you've— aah— you've had a long day, you should rest.”

“want you so bad,” he mumbled against your skin, pressing his erection into the curve of your ass, “been thinking about you all day, please?”

his words were making you needier than you would've liked to admit, looking into his dark eyes through the mirror as you began imagining all the things he was going to do to you. shin always made you feel so loved during sex, worshipping every inch of your body and telling you just how beautiful you were. the thought of that alone made you squeeze your thighs together as you nodded, knowing that despite how self-conscious you were feeling, deep down you really needed that kind of treatment right now.

you let out a soft gasp as he picked you up, carrying you over to the bed and carefully laying you down before hungrily pressing his lips against yours. you melted into the kiss, a small whine escaping your throat as soon as he pulled away.

“shhh, let me take care of you, pretty.”

you felt as his lips softly brushed against the valley of your breasts, his dark hair tickling your skin. he looked up at you, smiling fondly as you turned your head away in an attempt to avert your gaze elsewhere, embarrassed by the intimacy of it all. shin took your hand in his, gently squeezing it in hopes of reassuring you a little, before his head dipped back down and he began peppering more kisses over the entirety of your chest, his other hand squeezing your waist before coming to cup one of the mounds of flesh in his palm.

“my baby’s got the prettiest tits, i'm a lucky guy,” he told you, taking your nipple into his mouth and flicking his tongue over the hardened bud, his thumb running across the back of your hand that was interlaced with his own.

you squeezed your eyes shut, feeling too self-conscious to look at your own body as he touched you. as much as you tried to suppress them, several needy mewls and whimpers slipped past your lips as you softly ran your fingers through his hair. shin couldn't help but groan against your skin as he sucked your tit into his mouth, feeling his cock starting to leak in his pants as you arched your chest into him and the sounds of your sweet noises filled the room. once he was satisfied, he released your nipple with a pop, and you felt him eagerly switching to your other breast as he began giving it the same treatment.

after making sure both of your tits had been shown plenty of attention, he went back to kissing along your body, his lips trailing down your tummy as his hand came to gently rub and massage at your hip. you opened your eyes and immediately felt yourself stiffen — instantly noticing the way your stomach looked in your current position, and you just hoped that shin wasn't paying any mind to it.

your feelings weren't lost on him, he noticed the way you tensed up ever so slightly whenever he touched you in certain places, noticed the way your gaze seemed to land anywhere but his eyes. you were so easy to read, your reactions alone telling him everything he needed to know. shin couldn't help himself as he came up to kiss you once again, feeling the heat radiating from your face as his lips gently brushed against yours, before taking your hand that was still entwined with his and bringing it down towards the obvious tent in his pants.

“feel that? feel what your pretty body does to me?” he groaned, your fingers brushing against his aching cock, “you make me so fucking hard.”

you looked down shyly, feeling your face growing even hotter than it was already as you squirmed underneath him — his compliments and praises made your stomach flutter and goosebumps prickle across your skin.

shin made his way between your thighs, prying your legs apart as his lips began trailing sloppily along your skin, gently squeezing the soft flesh beneath his palms. you could feel yourself growing embarrassingly wet as you watched him, excitement beginning to pool in your gut as his dark eyes locked with yours and his mouth gradually made its way closer towards your awaiting heat.

“such a pretty pussy, m’gonna make you feel so fucking good,” he drawled, staring at you in awe before he started pressing open-mouthed kisses over your slit, splitting your folds apart with his tongue and groaning at the taste of your slick.

shin was entirely fixated on you as your face contorted in pleasure, your chest rising and falling with each shaky breath as he took your clit between his lips, his mouth hungrily latching onto the swollen bud. one of your hands instinctively came up to cover part of your face, worried that your expression was off-putting and that you looked especially unattractive from this angle, but your boyfriend wasn't having any of it. he grabbed hold of your wrist, guiding your hand away and granting him a full view of your cute face, watching in infatuation as your brows furrowed and your mouth fell slightly agape.

he couldn't help but growl into you, the vibrations making you jolt in pleasure as you let out a squeal, feeling yourself throbbing against his tongue as you clamped your thighs around his head. shin lifted your legs over his shoulders, giving him complete access to you — he could feel himself slowly losing all remaining self-restraint as he proceeded to absolutely devour you. he continued to slurp at your clit, flicking his tongue over the nub and moaning loudly into your folds, unable to stop himself from humping the mattress below him when you began eagerly grinding your pussy against his face.

that familiar feeling started to build up in your gut, his mouth already drawing you towards your release. before you even had the chance to tell him you were close, you felt your orgasm rip through you, throwing your head back as your whole body tensed up and incoherent, broken whimpers of his name fell from your lips. both of your hands came to tangle themselves in his hair, rolling your hips against his face and practically suffocating him with your cunt as you rode out your orgasm.

once you had come down from your high, shin began stripping himself of his usual white t-shirt and jeans, and you watched as his gorgeous body was revealed to you in all of its entirety. you couldn't help but feel your thoughts of insecurity starting to resurface once again, overcome with the urge to hide yourself from him even after he had just been between your thighs. it didn't take long for shin to notice the way you suddenly began to shy away from him, and so he pulled you into another soft yet deep kiss, holding your face in his hands and gently caressing along your jaw as his lips moulded with yours.

after the two of you pulled apart, he briefly pressed his forehead against yours, his fingertips lightly brushing up and down your arm in a soothing manner, before his hands settled themselves on the backs of your thighs. he pushed your legs upwards and folded you in half, pressing his hardened cock against your pussy as he began to gently glide the head over your soaked folds, sliding the tip right against your sensitive clit. you cried out, your walls clenching around nothing as you clutched onto his shoulders, nails pressing crescent shapes into his skin.

“patience, sweetheart,” he whispered in your ear, taking your earlobe between his teeth and softly nibbling on the flesh.

you felt as the tip came to rest at your entrance before he carefully slipped himself inside of you, his thick cock stretching you out and filling you to the brim. he let out a low grunt as you clamped down on him, biting his lip as he stilled himself inside of you and buried his face into the crook of your neck.

“you're so beautiful, can't believe you're mine, my pretty girl,” he continued to murmur sweet praises against your skin, his hand interlocking with yours as he began thrusting into you.

“shin, i— mmmh! ahhh, please—!” you mewled, indistinct babbles and whimpers falling uncontrollably from your lips at the feeling of every inch of his cock dragging slowly against your walls.

“i know, baby, i know. just— fuuuck, just sit back and let me make you feel good, okay?”

it was all too much, but in the best possible way. everything just felt so right, from the feeling of his chest pressing against yours to the way he meticulously worked his hips into you at the perfect angle. a sweet slapping sound began to fill the room, alongside the combination of his needy groans and whines about how good you felt in your ear, mixed with your sobs of pleasure at the feeling of his pubic bone brushing against your clit. shin looked at you with so much love, like you were the most beautiful thing he had ever laid eyes on — it made tears start to well up in your eyes, but this time they weren't from sadness.

in that moment you just felt so appreciated, to the point where all of your insecurities and self-critical thoughts momentarily left your mind as you completely lost yourself in pleasure, unable to think of anything else aside from how good it all felt. your boyfriend’s thumb came to wipe your tears away before his lips locked with yours, the pair of you moaning desperately into each other’s mouths as his thrusts picked up in pace, the tip of his cock kissing your cervix as he fucked you deep.

shin was reluctant to break the kiss, addicted to the feeling of your lips against his in combination with your walls squeezing around his cock. however, the way his lungs were practically begging for oxygen didn't give him much choice in the matter, and he found himself gasping for breath as he pulled away, his eyes squeezed shut as his brows furrowed in pleasure. you reached upwards to hold his face in your hand, the other refusing to let go of his own as you interlaced your fingers together. shin leaned down to press his forehead against yours as his hips began to stutter, his pace faltering as he felt himself drawing closer to his own release.

“fuck— baby, m’gonna cum. gonna cum deep inside this pretty fuckin’ pussy,” he growled, feeling as your walls clamped down on him at his words, “yeah, you like that? want me to cream inside this tight little cunt? fill you up nice and full?”

“mhm, yes please— ahhh! want your cum, shin, please don't stop, i— mmh, need to feel you…”

“that's my good girl. take it, take it— fuck, that’s it, baby. such a good girl for me.”

he finished with a few sloppy thrusts, burying his face into the crook of your neck as he fell over the edge, his hot cum shooting into you in several thick ropes. you could feel your clit throbbing as you clenched around him, the heat between your thighs continuing to grow as you watched shin ride out his orgasm.

his cock began to soften as he gently slipped himself out of you, watching intently as his cum dribbled out of your hole. he was well aware that he had reached his high before you did, eager to get you off again and bring you to another orgasm — tonight was supposed to be about you, after all. before you could oppose, he sat you at the edge of the bed with you in his lap, facing you towards the mirror so that you could look at yourself.

“wanna make you cum on my fingers, baby,” he mumbled into your ear, spreading your legs apart as his hand made its way between your thighs, “want you to see how pretty you are when you cum nice and hard for me.”

two of his digits circled your entrance before he slowly pushed them inside, taking note of how easily they slipped into you after having previously stretched you out with his cock. he began curling them upwards, softly massaging your g-spot while his other hand came to caress your waist, travelling down towards your hip and then back up again. shin placed several kisses along your neck before his hand suddenly picked up in pace, the heel of his palm smacking against your clit as his fingers pumped in and out of you and a wet sticky sound proceeded to fill the room.

“look at you, so fucking gorgeous,” he told you, looking at you through the reflection in complete awe as his hand began roaming across your body, “so perfect here… and here… and right here, too.”

the more you stared at your own reflection, the more different you felt from earlier. your eyes no longer seemed to gravitate towards everything that you thought was wrong with you, and it was as if you were just simply seeing yourself as you were in that present moment, just existing within your body. you couldn't take your eyes off the mirror and suddenly you found yourself wanting to watch — wanting to watch him touch you, wanting to watch his hands trail over every part of your body, wanting to watch yourself fall apart because of him.

you wanted shin to watch too, how could you not when his eyes showed nothing but love and adoration for you and your body?

you could feel your legs beginning to shake and you found yourself frantically bucking your hips into his hand, your orgasm rapidly approaching as you grabbed onto his wrist and abruptly fell over the edge once again. you began gasping and whimpering as your vision turned white and you creamed all over his fingers, and shin watched your reflection in admiration as you came down from your high — the only thing he could think was how beautiful you looked in that moment as you completely let go, your eyes rolling back as you were consumed by pleasure.

once you had fully rode out your orgasm, shin gently removed his fingers from you, the two of you sitting in a peaceful silence knowing that words didn't need to be exchanged right away and you could just enjoy one another’s presence for a moment. he wrapped his arms around your waist, resting his head on your shoulder as his lips brushed against your skin.

“are you feeling a little better now, sweetheart?” he asked you, finally breaking the silence.

“mhm, definitely,” you nodded, feeling yourself starting to smile, “thank you, shin.”

while you were aware that this feeling wasn't going to be permanent, and that there would still be days to come in the future where you would feel unsatisfied with your body again, you knew that if nothing else, your sweet boyfriend would always be there to help you slowly start to love yourself a little more.

“i should take a shower,” he pondered, unable to stop himself from grinning as he added, “care to join me?”

you rolled your eyes, trying to fight back a smile but ultimately failing as your expression mirrored his own and you nodded, feeling as he excitedly took your hand and led you towards the bathroom. the two of you stepped into the shower, the warm water running over your tired bodies as you helped wash away the sweat and cum from each other’s skin. as to be expected, you both found yourselves unable to keep your hands off each other, and one thing slowly led to another which ultimately resulted in the two of you fooling around once again, not that either of you were complaining.

and afterwards shin pulled you into his chest and just held you, wrapping his arms around your waist as he mumbled soft praises into your skin that were barely loud enough for you to hear. although there was one which you were just about able to make sense of, and you felt your heart flutter as you realised what it was that he had said to you.

“i love the way your body feels against mine.”

please do not translate, repost, or share my writing on any other platforms eg. tiktok

#tokyo revengers #tokyo revengers x reader #shinichiro sano #shinichiro x reader #shinichiro x you #✩444.writings #✩444.fics

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escarlatellie · 2 years ago

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my heart's mistaken ; ellie williams. (4.9k.)

⤿ f!reader, modern!au, anxiety attack (you), lowercase on purpose, hurt/comfort (?) confessing your feelings & misunderstanding trope my favorite!! title inspired by heaven / troye sivan.

⤿ returning to your hometown after leaving for five years, you're met with a mix of kindness, worry, and rage. when dina ends up scaring you away (though she has the best of intentions), you crash into the one person you'd run away from all those years ago, and end up having to face the feelings you'd been so afraid of.

“thanks for letting me crash,” you whisper, only half paying attention to whatever kdrama dina has playing on her old flatscreen. you shoot her a look, and she responds in kind with the one-finger salute before getting back to chatting with whoever she’s on the phone with; you’re not self-centered enough to try and drag her away from it, since you’re technically the one intruding.

a part of you worries, briefly, that your being here is a problem. understandably so, since you’d up and left everything and everyone here without a word of goodbye five years ago. typically, you’d expect all of your old friends to be pissed, right? you’ve had years to consider going back, reason winning over the fear that you’d harbored when you left. you’d given dina just a couple days' warning, which felt good enough regardless of the hovering anxiety surrounding the idea that she’d call everyone and tell them.

you weren’t ready for that, and it seemed as if she knew that too.

your bag had felt heavy, slung over one shoulder as you rode the elevator up to her quaint little apartment, which you’d taken the liberty of looking at on her social media; something she had every right to keep from you after so long, but offered up anyway. your eyes water at the distinctive warmth of home you get from being back here, the security you feel settling into a place you haven’t been in in a while.

what was great, actually, was the way she’d greeted you. dina’s just sweet like that. she’d had her phone cradled between her ear and shoulder, a birman cat cradled in her arms, clawing at her top as she swung the door open. regardless of what you presumed was absolute chaos on her end, she smiled at you, reached out with her just barely-freed hand and pulled you into her place by the shirt. when the door shut, you’d barely had time to collect yourself before the small birmin was cuddling up to your legs and inviting you in.

there was no awkwardness, just a sense of familiarity as dina cooed her cat and gestured towards the hall’s tiny little closet; hang up your stuff there, she mouthed, just as excruciatingly hospitable as she’d been five years ago. you figured any dismissal or worry you showed would be shut down the moment you spoke on it, because dina’s just..like that, so you did exactly what she told you to do, hung your stuff up, and had been promptly dragged to her little living area and thrown onto the couch.

just let me finish cooking, she’d mouthed once again before getting back to her call, and off she’d gone. that left you here, knees pulled up to your chest as you pondered what exactly it was you were doing here, or what you planned to achieve by coming home. you had a whole life back where you’ve been staying, a place you could call home even though it hadn’t felt as..safe as here did. something was calling you back, a gut feeling which had been nagging at you for a while and it’d been long enough for you to think screw it, pack your stuff, and figure out where you could stay before taking the nearest train back home.

if you were being honest with yourself, you knew what was calling you home. though life back where you were living was good, the one thing lacking was love. it’s not as if you weren’t loved by the friends you’d made there, nor as if you hadn’t tried, because christ, you’d tried so hard to find someone, but every attempt had been a massive fail. most of the time, they were great people, mature and committed, but nothing had ever felt right and you’d grown to accept the fact that you weren’t built for it until you went through some of your old stuff and found a picture of you and an old friend all those years ago.

you’re not exactly sure what it was about the picture that triggered it—perhaps it was the pose, your expressions as you two fucked around, or what was going on in the back—, but now, for some reason, it was folded nicely in the back of your phone case and you were back home looking for this person. ellie williams, you thought, thumbing at the case and wondering whether or not it’d be weird to take it out right now, where dina could see it. god, you’d seem like a creep.

williams, for all you know, could’ve run off and started a life of her own outside of the city. williams, for all you fucking know, could’ve crashed her car and died in a fucking ditch, never to be seen again. williams could’ve gotten over you long before she stopped trying to call you. she could hate you, now. she might not even be the same person she was all those years ago. god fucking knows what she’s up to, and you might just be wasting your time looking for her here.

you think back to what’d caused this mess—it was one night, a stupid choice while the two of you had been drunk out of your minds just after your second-year first-semester finals. you’d tumbled into ellie’s bedroom, messed around a little, then next thing you knew you were waking up at hell in the morning sore all over with ellie’s arm draped over your waist.

it was a fucking nightmare because as you’d tried to sneak out, joel’d caught you and sat you down for coffee in their little, horrendously well-decorated and lived-in kitchen as he sat oblivious to your dilemma of when the fuck is ellie gonna wake up, when can i get out of here, and only let you go once he heard ellie’s footsteps and a faint call of your name from upstairs.

you’re not even sure if he knew, if anyone knew that you two had anything going on. you hadn’t stuck around long to find out, as you’d practically raced out of their house and ghosted the poor girl. you’d barely spoken to any of your friends aside from the occasional i’m okay messages you’d shot to dina right up until you left. then, you stopped speaking to everyone because as a fucking nineteen-year-old, you were falling for someone—you had fallen a long time ago—, your best friend, and said best friend was in love with someone else.

really, how was dina so chill about you coming over after so long? you knew she was a good person, but even the best of people would have completely lost it. she’d left you alone when you’d come in, had been kind enough to let you relax and get used to being here again, but a part of you knew the second she got off the phone, she’d be on your ass about it.

it wasn’t as if you’d expected anything different. as a matter of fact, you’d been prepping yourself for it since you boarded the train hours ago. telling her why and explaining the circumstances along with your feelings at the time would probably end you up in shambles, but she deserved to know. despite the effort you’d put in to try and forget her, too, she was the only person who’d worried about you the entire time. it was hard to forget someone like that.

that urges a pang in your heart; obviously, you’d never really gotten over ellie.

“hey,”

dina’s voice whips you out of your own thoughts. she’s holding two dishes, presumably the food she cooked though she’s standing and is too high up for you to be able to see. she sets them both down on her little coffee table and curls up on the other end of the couch, lower lip tucked tightly between her teeth as she figures out what to say. honestly, you figure you should spare her the trouble and start with your well-practiced, yet still unbelievably nerve-wracking apology, not because guilt is eating away at you (though it is), but because she deserves it.

so does everyone else, but one thing at a time.

“dina, i’ve kinda accepted the whole i’m an absolute piece of shit thing, so don’t try and deny it or anything, okay? jesus christ, it was so fucking stupid. cutting you guys off like that was so screwed up, i can’t even imagine how you felt. you didn’t deserve that,”

you’re about to continue, pausing to take a breath when dina cuts you off with one of her disgustingly sympathetic chuckles. nothing has changed, you think, because this is something you’ve already prepped yourself for; one of dina’s lectures, spoken through teary eyes, has been long expected since even before you’d messaged her for the first time in a while.

“yeah, no one did, you idiot. we were all so fucking worried about you. do you know how often ellie called me, before you dropped off the face of the fucking planet, to ask if you were okay? god, she was crying,” dina cuts herself off with another laugh, this time watery, a stark contrast to how she’d greeted you earlier. the idea that she’d been just as scared as you, though, is shoved back promptly at the heartbreaking image of ellie, your best friend, bawling her eyes out, because you left her after sleeping with her, for fuck’s sakes.

when you zone back in, dina’s still going and you’d be completely open to listening to her if guilt wasn’t already causing tears. her voice has lost any sympathy, and it sounds a lot more emotionally driven than it had been when she’d greeted you earlier. “i don’t get it. you left us, you didn’t even say goodbye– you ghosted ellie—”

“i was scared, dina,”, you cut her off, and this time regret makes its presence known in your gut.

“of what? your best friend? just cause you slept with her once, god,” dina mutters your name under the hand she has over the lower half of your face in disbelief. if anyone, the person who should be in disbelief is you, you think, because shit, dina knew?

how many other people did, you let your mind wander, and shit, your fight or flight instinct is kicking in.

“she told you,” your wide-eyed gaze was enough to scare dina out of her outrage, because even if you deserved to be berated for this, she still considered you a friend—family, if she was being honest with herself—, and seeing you afraid felt like a dagger stabbing through her chest. she’d already figured you’d feel bad for it, leaving just like that, that you’d regret it, and at first wanted to comfort you before the sight of her best friend sobbing in her arms makes its return, ellie’s watery gaze as she crowded into dina’s apartment five years ago looking for you because she couldn’t find you at your place fueling her rage; who leaves their best friend, just like that? you just… you were gone.

if dina reacted like this, your thoughts wander, and it hurts. how is everyone else going to react?

you glance over at her tiny little analog clock, seated just under the tv, on a cute little shelf that you would’ve liked to look through under different circumstances, to check the time. it reads 3:09 pm, and the scared little kid in you is sure that if you run you’ll make it onto the next train by 3:30 and make it home by dusk.

“yeah, she did,” you hear dina say, but it sounds distant, far away, because you’re panicking. you don’t even hear her mention ellie coming over, or the fact that no one else knew, as far as she’s aware through your rush to get up and out.

dina shouts as you rush to the door, left unlocked and you swear you’d turn around and yell at her to be more careful, and to lock her doors if you weren’t so intent on leaving, but you just tear it open and slam it shut on your way out. you try not to think about the fact that everyone knows and might hate you or the fact that everyone knows and must have figured you were in love with her, because both are causing your heart rate to stutter and pick up in your chest, but it’s rather difficult when you’re quite literally surrounded by memories.

dina’s calls of your name echo down the hallway, but you’ve already turned the corner and are making your way down the stairwell before your guilty conscience can pull you to a stop. you almost pull open those heavy-duty parking garage doors, only belatedly realizing you went too far down but craving fresh air so badly that you don’t care. you collect yourself enough to realize it’s a fucking push door, chill the fuck out as you push it open and let the cool air engulf you.

what comes as yet another surprise, though, is the heavy metal door’s collision with a whole person on the other side. you hear them curse as it knocks into them, sending them stumbling a couple of steps back just before you let go and slip out yourself, the door closing quickly behind you—practically slamming—thanks to the impact it made on the unsuspecting stranger.

“fuck, ow, shit, jesus christ, ow!”

now that you’re not caught off-guard by their existence, the stranger’s voice strikes you in a way no other person’s voice has. their consistent stream of curses easily brings you back to instances years before, when the possible love of your life had put herself into the same kinds of unfortunate situations and couldn’t control her language.

then, you realize, this sounds like her, reminds you of her, because it is her, and your heart rate is picking up for a whole different reason entirely. ellie williams is in front of you and you just smacked her with a door. if you’re lucky, she won’t recognize you until she ends up seeing dina because why else would she be here and you can go about your life pretending this never happened, but then the idea that she’s coming to see dina because they’re together pops into your head and you’re frozen to the spot.

“i’m so sorry, christ, that was so stupid. are you okay?”

you find your body speaking for you before it can consult your brain, and then ellie’s eyes are on you rather than the floor as she clutches whatever’d been damaged in that collision. you really don’t want to describe your gazes colliding as anything magical or relieving because it was anything but; it only heightens your anxiety and brings about the sudden worrying of your lips and ellie’s shocked countenance.

you’re terrified.

“um, again, i’m so sorry, but i have somewhere to be, so,” you bow your head slightly and turn to leave through the stairwell even though that’s exactly where you came from, and likely where ellie’s going, and god, you must look so fucking stupid right now. maybe it’s not even ellie, maybe your anxiety’s peaked so far up you’re starting to hallucinate and you just decided to walk away from a random stranger who you’ve smacked with a fucking door—

you don’t even realize the guest keycard dina’s sent you on your phone isn’t properly aligned with the scanner in your rush to get out.

ellie’s utterance of your name must be your breaking point, because all of a sudden tears are springing to your eyes and you’re having trouble breathing. this is why you ran away, this is why you hadn’t even considered coming home, this feeling is fucking terrifying because the only person that has ever pulled it from you is ellie and her being oblivious to how much you love her.

ellie fucking williams is reaching out and trying to fix your shaky hold on your phone so you can open the fucking door when her hand is just as shakey as your own.

“if you didn’t wanna see me, i’m sure dina could’ve just—”

“you’re blaming this on her when you knew i was coming?” your voice comes out weak, but loud, and you see her flinch at your tone because ellie has never been the type to avoid being where she wasn’t wanted, but when it came to you she’d respect what you wanted no matter what. she’d been the only person to sit with you as you went through shit like this, and now she must think she was the cause.

“no, no! i didn’t, fuck, what’s wrong with you?” she asks. it’s not meant to be accusatory, a part of you knows that ellie just sucks at being all open and vulnerable—at least the ellie you knew did—, but the other part is afraid and feeling defensive and it wins against the other in a fight for reason as you choke out a disbelieving laugh, turning around and shoving her as far away from you as she can get.

“nothing’s wrong, i just have somewhere to be—”

“this is the first time we see each other in five goddamn years, and you say you have somewhere else to be?!”

ellie’s voice breaks at the question, and you swear you feel your heart shatter in your chest once you see the look she gives you; it’s true, pulling the i have places to be card was a dick move, but you’re in the midst of what feels like an anxiety attack and arguing with the supposed love of your life is not what you need right now. honest to god, all you want is to leave, get the fuck out of this town, and pretend nothing happened in the first place because being back there is ten times better than dealing with your fucking feelings and facing rejection head-on.

“don’t you!? this is dina’s place, i’m not stupid!”

“what the fuck are you talking about!?”

she should know, you think, the two of you had spent hours either on-call, out, or in either of your respective bedrooms talking about ellie’s massive crush on dina and how she was going to ask the girl out. every day, you’d urge her to just get it over with because there’s no way she doesn’t feel the same.

understandably so, because had anyone else seen the way the two of them looked at each other all those years ago, they would think they were a match made in heaven, too. perhaps to ellie, you think, it wasn’t that big of a deal and was an easy little crush to forget about, but to you? the best friend who had been in love with ellie since she was, at the very least, sixteen years old and struggling with comphet? it was like being shot over and over again until you were completely numb to it.

it was your whole world, and you haven’t let go of those childish and immature feelings yet.

“i’m so glad you got the girl, ellie, god knows i was rooting for you,”

you see her face fall. “...what? dina and i, we aren’t..”

“you don’t have to lie to make me feel better, jesus christ, i’m not some stupid—”

“shut the hell up for a second,” ellie cuts you off. this time, she’s putting up an act, you can tell. what she’s using it to hide, though, you’re unsure of because ellie has always been really good at pretending when she actually wants to.

you can’t tell if she’s trying to make you feel any worse by laughing, though. it’s not gleeful, or amused, in fact it sounds aggravated and it’s scaring you a little bit, because ellie’s only ever laughed like that just before she swung at a couple idiots in high school (like the idiot she is, really) or before cursing out some bigot in the middle of a busy club or group outing.

“you need to fucking breathe,” she exhales, and it feels like your airway opens just a little at her words alone. ellie’s care has only ever been shown to those she’s close to, since she’s always been too afraid to open up and show that kind of vulnerability, so the fact that she’s showing it to the person who ditched her and fuck—you’re reminded of dina’s words—, the person that made her cry, gives you the kind of relief you don’t feel like you deserve.

“i’m not…with dina. she’s pregnant with jesse’s kid, for fuck’s sake.”

the admission makes your heart stop, something you hadn’t even considered—understandably so, given the fact dina identified as a lesbian when you’d up and left all those years ago—even though, now, thinking back, there were pictures on those shelves, sonograms, and…

“oh”, you breathe out, feeling the sudden need to go up and check if dina’s okay because god, you’re so stupid, you made a pregnant woman—god knows how far along she is—run around her fucking apartment complex looking for you, made her stress out because you were acting like a fucking child.

jesus christ, what is wrong with you, you think, and practically collapse onto the dirty ass floor of the parking garage. you pull your knees up to your chest in a near-fetal position as every bit of anxiety seeps out of you, allowing yourself to relax, now knowing dina and ellie aren’t together but also granting guilt full access to your conscience. it’s both a relief and a nightmare all at once.

“i’m so sorry,” you force out, and figure this is the only time you’ll ever be able to get it out. at least you’ll walk out with no regrets; your relationship with ellie is damaged enough as is, so the revelation of your feelings will only act as another reason to forget about each other’s existence. it’s a win-win, you tell yourself, even though the idea of losing her for real is ripping you apart.

you tug your phone out of your pocket, ignoring the stream of notifications from dina, asking where you are and, again—something that will never fail in making your throat close up and bring tears to your eyes—if you’re okay. this time, away from prying eyes, you’re free to take out the picture without judgment. your phone case falls to the floor along with the picture, and you try to pretend you don’t feel ellie’s eyes burning into the top of your head.

all of her attention is on you and it hurts.

“i found this. last week.” you start, and unfold the paper. your hand is surprisingly steady as you hold it out to her, anxiety pooling in your gut when she takes it from you and your fingers brush just enough to send sparks racing up your arm and into your chest; to your heart.

“it was in a box of a bunch of old stuff. i guess that’s when i realized i missed you guys. where i am now, i guess, it felt like i was just staying there, you know? like i was visiting or some shit. it didn’t feel like a place i could call home.”

ellie’s gaze flits between your face and the paper. she even goes as far as flipping it over and reading the date written on the back; something scrawled unevenly that you’d already memorized. it was taken not long before the two of you graduated high school, and there’s still a little bit of mischief sparkling behind your eyes, your closeness evident even through a cheap piece of film.

“i know you know i left for a reason,” you start, and cringe because you’re already expecting her to ask in the same harshness that dina did, if it was because you slept together one time.

“fucking figured, yeah,” she mutters, but it’s her way of telling you to continue.

“i um,” you swallow past the lump in your throat, “i was missing you. i couldn’t—” and your voice breaks again, this time you don’t have the chance to stop it. “there was something missing, ellie. i ran away because i couldn’t stay after—”

“after you slept with me?”, she tries to finish for you, but it sounds wrong coming from her; her tone screams defeat, it screams acknowledgement and unbidden heartbreak, and it genuinely tears you right the fuck apart. you freeze up a little, because it was something you’d considered time and time again while you were away, the idea that ellie thinks you ran away because it was her you’d slept with, because you thought it was weird and that she’d forced herself on you, because that’s just the way ellie is, but you’d ignored it solely because being rejected would’ve felt worse than knowing your best friend was blaming herself.

man, you felt like such a dick.

“no, ellie, i love you, you fucking idiot. i ran away because i’d just slept with the love of my fucking life.”

the look she gives you fills you with an unbridled sense of hope, even though ellie’s given you that look before. she’s given you hope before, too, for years. honestly, even before you’d realized you were in love with her, she’d give you that kind of hope. maybe she loves me too? your teenage self would ponder, and then would have her heart broken once again every time ellie’d bring up dina and have the two of you waste your night chatting about her.

so you shove that feeling down and try to finish.

“i stopped talking to you because i knew i needed to get over it. i know now that was complete bullshit, and i shouldn’t have just…walked away like that. fuck, ellie, dina said you cried about it, shit, i’m so sorry—”

“don’t.” she cuts you off, and if she weren’t holding onto the last physical memory of her that you own, you would have gotten up and left. anything to avoid her rejection, anything to avoid hearing it from her mouth and have her feelings clarified to your face—it’s going to sting, you know, it’ll feel like a slap to the fucking face even though it’s what you’re expecting.

“you’re seriously not the only idiot here. i don’t actually think i ever actually liked dina,” ellie starts, and you don’t dare look at her, staring at the floor next to your feet. she’s only saying this to make me feel better, you think, because ellie’s just like that. you realize you’ve been making that excuse all afternoon, but really don’t see a point in stopping, it’s what’s gotten you this far.

“i loved seeing the look on your face whenever i talked about her, though. you were always really into it, the whole romance thing, and it felt nice having your eyes on me, you know?”

she stares at the paper, and god, ellie thinks, was it obvious to everyone but you? how the hell couldn’t you have noticed? the way she’s looking at you in this picture, dina—who had taken it herself—had to remind her to be subtle about it or she’d be found out immediately. honestly, ellie was a lost cause with you, but the fact that you’d run away from her because, what…you were afraid? after sleeping with her, because…

“you thought i hadn’t felt the same way.”, she says, and then everything clicks into place. ellie’s hushed utter of your name prompts your gaze on her, and she returns that look with just as much intensity. she’s not sure she’s ever wanted someone to understand something as much as she wants you to understand this right now.

“you’re so fucking stupid, you idiot. it’s always been you. i still love you.”

ellie, having gotten down onto the floor herself in the middle of her little monologue, scooches towards you and picks your discarded phone case up off the floor. it takes you a second, still… processing her words, believing them, to realize she’s holding her hand out for your phone, and you scramble to give it to her.

she fumbles with the case and the picture, folding it up nicely so it’ll fit into the back before ensuring the case and the picture are securely back where they belong. she stares at your case, different than the one you’d had all those years ago, and figures she has to decorate it the same way she had all those years ago.

it was her mark on you, those ugly stickers, folded-up gum wrappers, random concert tickets and any shit she’d find that’d been given to you as gifts, things that she honest to god never saw you throw out. right now, ellie’s hoping you’ll give her the chance to fill it up again, leave parts of her somewhere you’ll never forget them, and belatedly realizes you’ve never actually forgotten her even though you’d only dug up this picture about a week before.

“i’m so sorry,” you start again, and ellie’s just about as sick of hearing you apologize as someone who’s hopelessly in love with their ex-best-friend can be. so she cuts you off by tossing your phone carelessly at your face, earning a yelp of surprise, before scooching even closer to you and leaning in far enough that her chin can come down to rest on your knees.

“stop fucking apologizing and kiss me.”, she says, and the press of your lips against hers calms you like nothing else ever will.

#ellie williams x reader #ellie williams drabble #ellie williams blurb #ellie williams prompt #ellie x fem reader #ellie x reader #tlou x reader #tlou2 x reader #ellie williams x female reader #ellie williams x you #ellie williams x y/n #ellie williams #ellie williams fanfic #ellie williams fluff #tlou ellie #modern au #confession

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magnagaruzenmon · 7 days ago

Text

A man named Doom NSFW

I am jolted awake, and I notice three things. The first is a badge on my chest it reads, “Sheriff of charisma: Doom” the badge is mostly one solid silvery metal with the name plate portion slotted in. This portion seemed to be more personalized.

After getting that accounted for my eyes snap to the weapons on the desk I sense a familiar malignant aura and pull from them. My weapons had been turned into two revolvers and a carbine with their blades fused to the firearms from the looks of it.

So that means I’ve been unconscious for some time possibly 3-4 days as the craftsmanship is par none, and that takes time.

The last thing I noticed was the young lady sitting in front of me. I sat up as my eyes fully “adjusted” and she came into view, absolutely stunning gorgeous figure hair cut short and just how I liked it, full lips and eyes that breathed intensity. Her hair was a light color but somehow still held strength and buoyancy.

As I moved she noticed me and I said to her,

“Am I dead, and are you an angel?”

The young lady pursed her lips into a faint smile hiding her emotions,

“Well aren't you a Charmer?” she said, my heart skipped a beat her voice was soothing and her eyes now focused were comforting and soft, “to answer your question though not that I know of Sheriff, but who knows? The man with pale horse could have revived you.” the young lady says.

I scratch my face as I think… for me its love at first sight. This girl has stunned me and I don't know how to feel really. The young lady smiles and says, “cat got your tongue?” I nod and reply,

“Its not often I'm met by someone with such captivating beauty okay,”

The lady’s eyes narrow judging before she steps toward me her eyes lock with mine then she says.

“Oh yeah you're smitten. Well Sherrif Doom my name is Momo Hirai. Nice to meet you,” I smile and take her hand. She giggles as I carefully take it and shake her hand. Since she's closer I get a better look at her. Her eyes are a lot softer and sillier up close. There's still an air of intensity around her but she’s also got a… squishy soft aura for lack of a better term. Its distracting. Her blonde/white hair wolf cut is as mesmerizing as the rest of her is. Unable to stop myself my hand finds the side of her face.

Momo surprisingly leans into my touch. “You know you're a bad omen, with a name like Doom and all,” she whispered as our faces grew close. Our eyes locked our bodies inching closer.

“Then make me a good omen and yours!” I exclaimed before kissing her.

The kiss was weird but cathartic. For most kisses are an expression of affection but this felt like an exchange of ourselves. Like I could feel myself giving a part of myself up to her and vice versa. I felt myself give up part of my relentless fire of zeal and passion what I got from her was a spring of calm and joy. It was intense as our hearts marked on each other and the stars bonded us together. When we broke it we stared at each other panting trying to calm our racing hearts. Momo spoke first

“Couldn't help yourself could you?” she teased. I shook my head and said

“Why would I settle for anything but the best?” Momo beams at me then kisses my forehead before a loud crash can be heard. We both roll our eyes before I grab my weapons and then Momo’s hand.

“Oh!” she gasps as I follow her out.

We walk outside to see the whole town (I'm assuming) rioting. I sigh dejected. I noticed that the town didn't all just look like Momo, but had a myriad of men and women with different skin tones builds and heights. In the scuffle, I also noticed some others wearing sheriff badges. I considered my next moves carefully. I could use my magic to stop the riot (and definitely scare the locals) or I could use a cantrip to maybe achieve the same effect. (with less incurred local terror)

“Well there goes my initial thoughts that this was going to be a “peaceful” job,” I thought to myself. Momo turned to me and asked if I'd help I nodded then reconsidered the previous options. I went with the former. I air-wrote a magic circle to make my voice louder than the commotion.

“Excuse me,” I say my voice echoes noticeably through the crowd. Momo turns to me and comments on the ring,

“Oh you're a mage?” she asks

I turn away from the circle so my voice doesn't boom at her.“Kinda. I didn't “study magic” in the traditional way.” I responded

Momo nods and then we turn back to the riot.

“Do you have any other tricks you can do magic man?”

I scratch my head and then say, “I have a bunch the issue is scaring the locals.”

Momo notes this as she says, “a mage who’s mindful about his terrible cosmic power, wow you are different,” she teaes. I shrug I look to her and notice a small rune on the left side of her collarbone.

“What is it ?” she asks?

I point to her collar. She looks down and laughs,“Oh so I guess you are truly in love with me” she says before she giggles some more.

“Its a mark of binding rune akin to symbolizing I found my partner, and have promised myself to them. My race does this when engaging in… marriage I think is the common word. You have one on your right shoulder t” Momo explains and I look down to see. There is an M-shaped rune on my right shoulder. I smirk and Momo asks, “what is it?”

“Well its not often that one gets married to someone so gorgeous.”

“Really you're taking this in stride?” Momo challenges. I nod.

“Before waking up this morning the last thing I remember is walking in a desert, and now I'm not only not in the desert anymore but married to one of the hottest gals I've ever seen. While it's not the best-case scenario it's still pretty good.”

Momo narrows her eyes “And what would be the best-case scenario?”

“Well, we'd be on a beach making out and living on a little idyllic villa really enjoying the honeymoon,” I say. Momo smiles and says,

“We can enjoy the honeymoon still but later we have a riot to stop…well you Mr magic Man,” she challenges. I sigh and have her move slightly behind me before I use more of my magic. As the skin on my hands and feet turn to metal and Loathefire spews out of the a familiar visage of flames covers my chest and opens. About 60-65 tendrils come out to grab the rioters and separate them nonlethally. When I was done my Loathefire dissipated I asked a simple question.

“Are you all done?” the town stared at me with a mix of intrigue and horror.

After the riot was cleared up, I found myself in a meeting with the other sheriffs: Aion, Jojo, Nevin, Grendel, Dredrom, and me, all seated at a large table in the sheriff’s office. Momo had left to help her friends Mina and Sana, the town’s tailors.

The air was thick with tension from the moment I sat down. I could feel eyes on me, sizing me up, judging whether I belonged here.

“So, who are you?” Aion asked first. His eyes were calm, but I noticed a subtle tilt of his head, the way his fingers drummed lightly on the table—he was cautious, already trying to unravel me before I even spoke.

“Well, I can’t say much, as I don’t remember much, but the name’s Doom, and I woke up this morning,” I replied. As I spoke, Dredrom and Nevin exchanged glances. Their jaws tightened—doubt, maybe even suspicion, was etched in the slight narrowing of their eyes. Nevin crossed his arms, leaning back in his chair as if distancing himself from me, while Dredrom’s grip on the edge of the table betrayed his impatience.

“I’m sorry, but I find it a little far-fetched that you would just arrive in the cloak of night, brought in by the pale rider, and have no memory,” Dredrom responded, his voice clipped. He was trying to mask his discomfort, but the way his eyes flicked between me and the others gave away his insecurity—he wasn’t just suspicious, he felt threatened.

I chuckled lightly, watching the subtle shift in their postures—Jojo leaned forward, curious; Nevin uncrossed his arms, readying himself to argue.

“Well, this pale rider offered me a job, and I guess I said yes before collapsing in the desert,” I replied, deliberately keeping my tone relaxed. Humor was often a good way to diffuse tension, but Nevin and Dredrom weren’t in the mood. Nevin’s fingers tapped impatiently on his knee, his foot bouncing lightly under the table—he was on edge.

Before they could tear into me, Jojo interjected, his voice cutting through the building tension. “Your magic—what was it?” His eyes locked onto mine with an intensity I hadn’t expected. He was intrigued, not fearful.

“Loathfire. Specifically, Conqueror’s Spoils,” I answered. I watched for their reactions. Jojo’s expression shifted slightly—his mouth tightened, and a crease formed between his brows. Unnerved.

“It’s unnerving. Don’t use it,” Jojo said firmly. His tone was sharp, flat, like a command. I noticed how his hands remained still on the table, but his fingers curled just enough to signal discomfort. He didn’t like that power, and he wanted control over it.

I paused, knowing what I was about to say would ruffle some feathers, but that didn’t bother me. I caught Aion’s subtle shift in his seat, his eyes flicking between Jojo and me, sensing the coming storm.

“Um, no. If I need to use it, I will. I don’t care about scaring people if there’s a job that needs to be done. If it’s the tool I need, I’ll use it. Besides, you’re all magic users as well,” I said, watching their faces carefully. Jojo’s expression hardened, his lips pressed into a thin line, but he didn’t respond. Nevin’s hand tightened into a fist in his lap, his jaw clenched in frustration. Dredrom leaned forward, ready to argue, but Aion stood up before it could escalate.

Aion’s movements were slow, measured, the way someone steps in to diffuse a situation without directly taking sides. His eyes were steady as he looked between me and the others. “Then how about you teach it to us?” he asked, trying to maintain a calm but firm tone, though I could hear the underlying tension. It was a diplomatic move, but his clenched jaw revealed he didn’t fully expect me to comply.

I sighed internally, knowing again what I was about to say wouldn’t go over well. I noticed Nevin shift uncomfortably in his seat, bracing himself for an answer he wouldn’t like. Grendel’s eyes flicked between us, watching silently, assessing.

“No. It’s not something you can just teach or learn. And with some of y’all’s spirits, I don’t think you need this kind of power,” I said, my voice deliberately even, though I could feel the tension spike in the room. Nevin’s knuckles went white, gripping the table, while Dredrom leaned forward aggressively, his eyes narrowing with offense. His fingers twitched, as if itching to reach for something—a weapon, maybe, or just the control he felt slipping.

“Oh, and what makes you so right, Mr. Amnesiac and Mysterious?” Nevin spat, his voice dripping with sarcasm. He leaned in as if challenging me, his eyes burning with resentment.

I met his gaze calmly, keeping my tone measured. “You see power as a weapon. I see it as a tool. That’s the difference.” My words hung in the air, and I could feel the silent shift in the room—the way Nevin tensed, bristling under my response, while Dredrom leaned back, clearly agitated. Jojo’s gaze remained fixed on me, but there was something softer in his eyes now, a recognition maybe, or at least a grudging respect for my perspective.

Without waiting for a response, I stood up and walked out. As I reached the door, I caught Grendel’s voice behind me, low but unmistakable. “He’s strong, but he’s going to need to watch his back.” His tone wasn’t hostile—it was more of a quiet observation, the kind of thing someone says when they recognize the dangers that come with standing out.

I didn’t turn around, but I could feel the weight of his words. They weren’t a threat, but a reminder. In this world, power—whether as a tool or a weapon—always comes with a price. As I walked out I left my badge on the hook signifying I was “off duty”

Feeling hungry, I made my way down the dusty street to a building with a sign that read “Emanuel’s Victuals.” The sun hung high, casting sharp shadows across the wooden facade. As I stepped inside, the scent of sizzling meat and fresh herbs hit me—comforting, almost grounding.

Behind the counter, a man with kind eyes and weathered hands smiled at me, the kind of smile that felt like an unspoken welcome.

“How much is a heavy lunch?” I asked, stepping closer.

He chuckled, shaking his head. “We don’t really take payment here if you live here, especially not from the Sheriffs, Mr. Sheriff.” There was something about the way he said it—no fear, no awe. Just genuine warmth, like he’d already accepted me into the fold, even though I barely knew this town.

“We all work for each other here,” he added, and his words hung in the air. I could feel a sense of community in them, the unspoken bond that tied the people of this town together. It was different from the power plays I’d just walked out of with the other sheriffs. This felt real. Human.

I nodded, offering him a small, genuine smile of my own as I walked closer. He smiled back, something soft and shared passing between us in that moment. No need for words. We understood each other.

I ordered the special, and within a reasonable amount of time, a plate was placed before me—a ribeye, beautifully marbled and cooked to perfection, surrounded by spring vegetables that gleamed like they’d just been picked from the earth. It wasn’t just food. It was a labor of care, something crafted with the intent to nourish, not just feed.

As I ate, I found myself slowing down, really savoring the meal. Each bite was a reminder that life wasn’t just about conflict or survival—it was about moments like this too. Simple. Uncomplicated. I minded my business, letting the food and the quiet settle into me like an old friend.

When I finished, I reached into my pocket and pulled out a gold piece, something that was probably worth more than the entire meal. I set it on the counter and stood to leave.

The man’s eyes widened, his hand hovering over the coin like it was a foreign object. “I can’t take this,” he said, looking at me with a mix of surprise and confusion.

I laughed lightly, the sound escaping before I even realized it. “Consider it a tip,” I replied, as I headed toward the door.

His face softened, and I could feel the weight of the gesture sink in for him. In a town where no one asked for much, a small token of gratitude seemed like everything.

After leaving Emanuel’s Victuals, the warmth of the meal still sat in my belly, grounding me in the simple pleasures of this strange town. The gold coin had felt heavier in my hand than it should have. Something about this place—its people, its warmth—was getting under my skin. Despite the odd tension with the other sheriffs, I was starting to feel more… present. Like I could make something out of this place, out of whatever life I had left.

But before I could even take three steps out into the street, something shifted in the air. The world around me blurred, colors bleeding into each other like water on a canvas. My stomach lurched as the ground disappeared beneath me.

I barely had time to react before the world snapped back into focus—except now, I wasn’t in town anymore.

I blinked, taking in my surroundings. The warm sunlight outside had been replaced by dim, flickering candlelight. Shelves lined with jars of herbs, strange crystals, and an odd assortment of trinkets stretched along the walls. The air here was cool—almost unnaturally so—and carried the scent of damp earth and incense.

At the center of the room sat a woman. She stirred a cup of tea with slow, methodical movements, her pale fingers tapping the rim of the cup in a rhythm as cold and precise as her surroundings. She hadn’t acknowledged me yet, but I knew she was aware of my presence.

“You’re earlier than expected,” she said finally, her voice devoid of any warmth. She didn’t even glance up. “I thought you might have taken your time with that meal.”

“Where am I?” I asked, my voice still hoarse from the abrupt shift between spaces.

“My home.” She still didn’t look at me, her tone almost clinical, as if this was nothing more than a routine transaction. “You’re here because I brought you here.”

“And why’s that?” I took a step forward, my eyes searching her face for any sign of emotion, anything to indicate why I was here.

She finally looked up, her cold blue eyes locking onto mine. Her gaze felt like ice against my skin. “Because your only purpose is to be Momo’s companion. Nothing more, nothing less.”

The words hit me like a punch to the gut, but I refused to flinch. I could feel the heat rising in me, the frustration bubbling just beneath the surface. “Only purpose?” I echoed. “That’s it? You drag me out of wherever I came from and tell me my only purpose is to serve someone else?”

She shrugged, a slight tilt of her head. “You’re here as a favor to my friend Giselle. She asked, and I delivered.”

My hands balled into fists. I wasn’t the type to explode, but the way she spoke—detached, emotionless, as if I were nothing but a cog in some grand machine—was stoking a fire in me. “You don’t get to decide that. I’m not just some tool for you to use.”

“Tool?” She arched a brow, her lips curling slightly in what could only be described as mockery. “You misunderstand, Doom. Tools have value. You are simply a means to an end. A temporary necessity.”

The chill in her voice clashed hard against the heat in my chest. Every word she said was like a slap in the face, stripping away any semblance of humanity I had left in this situation. But I wasn’t going to let her see me break. No, I needed to get her to understand something—and it wasn’t going to happen through anger.

“Look,” I said, my voice lowering, trying to rein in the heat. “I’m not trying to start anything here. I want to understand what’s going on. Maybe we can work together—figure this out.”

Her eyes flickered, but not with understanding. If anything, they grew colder, more calculating. She set her teacup down, her fingers resting lightly on its edge. “Work together?” She chuckled, but there was no humor in it. “Why would I need to work with you? You’re here to fulfill your role. That is the extent of your usefulness.”

My heart pounded harder against my chest, not from fear but from frustration. How could someone be this detached? “You think that’s all I am? A role to play in some game? You’re talking about a person here.”

“A person,” she repeated, as if the word was foreign to her. “Your personhood is irrelevant. What matters is that you fulfill your function.”

I could feel the burn rising in my throat, but I held it back. This wasn’t the time to lose it. “There’s something else going on here. You say you brought me here, but you’re not the only one pulling strings.”

She raised a brow, her expression narrowing ever so slightly. “What are you talking about?”

“The man,” I said, my voice firm. “The tall pale man who claimed he brought me here, gave me a job. You expect me to believe that’s all part of your plan?”

For the first time, her cold exterior faltered. A flicker of confusion crossed her face, brief but telling. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

I stepped closer, sensing the crack in her façade. “So you don’t know everything after all.”

Her gaze hardened again, icy walls snapping back into place. “I brought you here. That is all that matters.”

“No,” I said, my voice steady with conviction. “It’s not. You might think you can use me however you want, but there’s more to this than you’re telling me. We both know it.”

She stood up suddenly, the air around us growing even colder. “You are here because I allowed it. Don’t mistake whatever other forces you think are at play as important. Your past, your future—they mean nothing.”

I laughed then, surprising even myself. “You think my past doesn’t matter?” I shook my head. “You don’t even know what I left behind, do you?”

Her lips tightened, but she didn’t respond. For the first time, I felt like I had the upper hand, even if only slightly. There was something she didn’t know, something beyond her control.

“You want to know why I’m really here?” I asked, stepping forward. “Then let me show you.”

Before she could react, I felt a surge of energy in the room. My memories flooded back, crashing into me with the force of a tidal wave. Blood. Battles. Victory. And then… silence. I had saved a city, defeated a warlord who had terrorized my people. And then, when it was over, I’d made a choice—a choice to erase everything, to forget, because I knew the temptation of power too well. I couldn’t become the thing I had defeated. then memroriew of the desert flashed and The white rabbit witch saw the pale man i reffered to earlier.

The witch watched me carefully as I came back to myself, her calculating eyes taking in every shift in my expression.

“Now,” she said, her voice quieter but no less cold, “do you see? You chose this. You chose to forget, to walk away from everything. That was your decision.”

I shook my head. “I chose to leave behind a warlord’s crown, not my humanity.”

She said nothing, her gaze fixed and unyielding, but I could feel the tension between us shift. Neither of us trusted the other completely, but there was an understanding now—something had brought me here that even she didn’t control.

“Whatever brought me here,” I said, “it’s not done with me. And it’s not done with you either.” The white rabbit Witch smirked.

The air in the White Rabbit Witch’s home was unnaturally still, the kind of silence that made every heartbeat feel loud, every breath too shallow. The room itself was strange—walls lined with trinkets that felt out of place in any reality I’d ever known. But despite the oddity of the surroundings, it was the woman before me who unsettled me the most.

The White Rabbit Witch sat with an elegance that bordered on eerie, her delicate fingers wrapped around the handle of a cup that never seemed to empty. Her gaze fixed on me, cold and calculating, as if I were a puzzle to be solved, a piece on a board she had already mastered. I felt the weight of her scrutiny, but I wouldn’t let it break me.

“Why me?” I asked again, slower this time, my voice straining to remain calm. I needed answers, not more riddles.

She raised an eyebrow, almost amused by my persistence. “I thought I made that clear,” she replied, her voice soft but icy. “You were the perfect choice.”

“Perfect for what?” I snapped, frustrated. “To be Momo’s—what? Companion? Some… pawn you shuffle around?”

Her lips curled into a faint smile, but there was no warmth in it. “If you want to use such crude terminology, then yes. But I see you as more than that, Doom. I see you as the toy Momo needs.”

Her words hit me like a punch to the gut, my hands curling into fists. “A toy?” I repeated, incredulous. “You brought me here to use me like some mindless servant?”

“Not mindless,” she corrected smoothly, her tone never wavering. “Far from it. I chose you precisely because you have a mind—a heart. One that Momo would find endearing. One that she could fall for.”

She leaned forward slightly, her eyes gleaming with a knowing look that made my skin crawl. “You were never selfish. Always putting others before yourself, always sacrificing your own desires for the greater good. It’s why you wiped your memories, isn’t it? You couldn’t bear the thought of becoming the very thing you fought against.”

Her words slithered through me, and I felt an icy weight settle in my chest. I had made that choice, long ago. To forget. To walk away from the power that could corrupt me. But the way she spoke about it—so casually, as though it was all part of some grand design—made me sick.

“And that’s why Momo would love you,” she continued, as though she were explaining an equation that had already been solved. “You’re exactly the kind of man she would want by her side. A good boy who always does the right thing. Who helps everyone but himself.”

I felt my heart twist at her words. Not because she was wrong, but because of how cold and detached she made it sound. Like I was nothing more than a carefully chosen pawn in her scheme. A chess piece placed just so.

“That’s not love,” I said, my voice tight. “You can’t force someone to love another person just because it fits into your plans.”

She tilted her head, her eyes narrowing with a glint of amusement. “Oh, Doom, you misunderstand. I didn’t force anything. I simply created the conditions. You’ve already done the rest.”

I stared at her, confusion knitting my brows. “What do you mean?”

Her smile deepened, as though she were about to reveal a hidden truth I wasn’t ready for. “You’ve already begun to fulfill your role, Doom. You care for Momo, whether you’ll admit it or not. You can’t help it. It’s in your nature.”

“That’s not—” I started to protest, but she cut me off with a wave of her hand.

“You think I haven’t noticed?” she said, her voice still eerily calm. “The way you look at her. The way your heart shifts when she’s near. It’s written all over you, in your eyes, in the way you talk about her. You’ve already started falling for her.”

I clenched my jaw, feeling my pulse quicken. “That’s not… you’re twisting things. I care about her because she’s a good person, not because of whatever game you’re playing.”

“Is it really so different?” she asked, leaning back in her chair, her cold gaze never leaving mine. “You think you’re immune to the pull of destiny, but you’re already tethered to her. Even now, you’re thinking of her—wondering if she’s safe, wondering if she needs you. You were always going to fall for her. That’s why I chose you.”

I took a step forward, my voice rising with anger. “You don’t know anything about me.”

She chuckled softly, a low, almost mocking sound. “Oh, but I do. You’ve always been predictable, Doom. Even without your memories, you follow the same patterns. You’re the hero, the protector, the one who sacrifices himself for others. You don’t see power the way others do—as something to wield like a weapon. You see it as a tool, something to be used carefully, sparingly.”

She stood up, gliding toward me, her presence filling the room like a shadow. “That’s why Momo will love you. Because you’ll protect her. You’ll put her before yourself, just as you’ve done for everyone else in your life. And in the end, you’ll realize that you were always meant to be by her side.”

I stepped back, my fists still clenched. “You’re wrong. I’m not some… plaything for you to manipulate. My feelings are my own.”

She tilted her head, a cruel smile playing at the corners of her mouth. “Am I wrong? Look inside yourself, Doom. You already love her. You can’t even deny it.”

Her words hung in the air, suffocating me. And as much as I wanted to argue, as much as I wanted to push back against her manipulations, I couldn’t shake the truth of what she was saying. There was something there—something that had been building since the moment I met Momo.

But that didn’t mean I was going to let her control me.

“I’m not your puppet,” I said, my voice low, firm. “Whatever feelings I have for Momo, they’re mine. Not something you’ve created.”

She waved a hand dismissively. “You can tell yourself that, if it makes you feel better. But the truth is, you’ve already fulfilled the role I needed you to play. You care for her. You want to protect her. And soon, you’ll realize that everything I’ve said is true.”

I shook my head, anger burning in my chest. “You don’t get to decide that. I make my own choices.”

Her eyes gleamed with a cold, calculated certainty. “Perhaps. But the choices you’ve made so far? They’ve already led you here. And they will lead you back to her.”

There was no arguing with her, not in that moment. I could see it in her eyes—the absolute conviction, the belief that she had me figured out, that I was just a piece on her board, moving exactly as she wanted.

But I wasn’t going to let her win.

“Whatever you think you know about me,” I said, my voice steady, “you’re wrong. I won’t be controlled by you. Or anyone.”

She smiled, but it was cold, hollow. “We’ll see, Doom. We’ll see just how much control you truly have.”

As I turned to leave, her final words echoed in my mind, chilling me to the core. But no matter what she thought, no matter how deeply she believed she had orchestrated all of this—I knew one thing for sure.

My heart, my choices, were mine.

The air outside the White Rabbit Witch’s home was cooler than I remembered, though maybe it was just the weight of the conversation hanging over my head. The world around me seemed hazy as I walked beside her, my thoughts swirling like a storm I couldn’t outrun. The Witch’s soft footfalls barely made a sound as she led the way toward the tailor’s shop, her demeanor unchanged—calm, calculating, as if she were already three steps ahead of me in this game she claimed we were playing.

For a while, the only sound between us was the distant murmur of the town and the occasional rustle of leaves caught in the breeze. I thought she might stay silent the entire way, but then she spoke, her voice carrying that same eerie certainty that had unnerved me inside her home.

“You’re struggling,” she said softly, not even turning her head. “You’re trying to fight the inevitable, Doom.”

I clenched my jaw, not in the mood for another round of her manipulations. “I’m not fighting anything,” I replied, though the words tasted hollow even to me.

She glanced at me, her eyes sharp and knowing. “You are. I can see it in the way you carry yourself. The way your mind races, trying to reconcile what you feel with what you think you should feel.”

I didn’t answer. What could I say? That she was wrong? That I wasn’t confused, wasn’t battling against this… thing building inside me for Momo?

I’d never been good at lying, especially to myself.

“Let me make it easier for you,” she continued, her voice unyielding but not unkind. “Momo… she’s drawn to you for a reason. You’re exactly the kind of man she needs. Someone selfless, someone who will always put her first. You already do it without even realizing it.”

I swallowed, my throat suddenly dry. “I don’t… I don’t want to be just some puppet in your game.”

“You’re not,” she said, stopping briefly to face me, her gaze piercing. “This isn’t about me. It’s about her. And you.”

She began walking again, and though I tried to keep my mind focused, her words burrowed deep into my thoughts.

“You protect her because it’s who you are,” she said softly, almost like she was talking to herself now. “You care for her in ways that are impossible to fake. And I’ve seen how she looks at you too, Doom. Momo isn’t blind to it. You just haven’t let yourself fully see it yet.”

I shook my head, struggling against the truth she was laying out in front of me. “It’s not that simple.”

“It never is,” the Witch replied with a small shrug. “But don’t mistake complexity for resistance. Feelings, real ones, grow despite the complications.”

I didn’t have a response to that. I couldn’t, because she was digging at something I didn’t want to admit, not even to myself.

“She needs someone like you,” the Witch pressed on, her voice taking on a more personal tone, almost… gentle. “A man who isn’t driven by selfish desires. Someone who sees the world as more than just a place to take from, but as something to give to. And you—” she glanced at me with something that looked dangerously close to pity, “you’ve always given more than you’ve taken, haven’t you?”

I looked away, my chest tight.

Before I could respond, we turned the corner, and there was the tailor’s shop, nestled between two smaller buildings. The Witch stopped a few paces before the door, turning to face me fully.

“You’re perfect for her, Doom. Whether you want to believe it or not.” She stepped closer, her eyes locking onto mine, and I felt that weight in my chest again, heavy and suffocating. “Stop fighting it. It’s already there. You just have to let it be.”

I opened my mouth to argue, to say something that would counter her manipulations, but the words caught in my throat when the door to the tailor’s shop swung open.

And there she was.

Momo.

She stepped out, her eyes lighting up the moment they met mine, and before I could react, she rushed forward, throwing her arms around me in a tight, warm embrace.

It was like time stopped. My arms instinctively wrapped around her, holding her close. Her scent—sweet, familiar—washed over me, and every single flutter and jump in my heart felt like an earthquake in my chest. My pulse raced, and I could feel her heartbeat against mine, the way her body pressed into me like we were meant to fit together.

For a moment, the world disappeared, and it was just her.

Just Momo.

And in that instant, I knew the Witch was right.

I did care for her. More than I was ready to admit. More than I could hide anymore. It wasn’t just a passing feeling—it was something deeper, something real. Something that had been there since the moment we met, whether I’d seen it or not.

When Momo finally pulled back, her eyes were shining with warmth, her smile soft and genuine. “I’m glad you’re here,” she said, her voice like music in the stillness between us.

I swallowed hard, feeling the intensity of her gaze, the way my heart was still racing. “Me too,” I managed to say, though my voice sounded distant to my own ears.

And then, just as the world seemed to settle back into place, I felt a presence beside me. The Witch leaned in close, her voice a whisper in my ear that sent a shiver down my spine.

“Don’t fight it, Hero,” she murmured, her breath cold against my skin. Her whispers echoed in my mind even after she left

I felt a strange, soothing warmth seep into my mind, calming the storm of emotions that had been raging just moments before. It was subtle, like a soft wave washing over me, but I knew immediately what she had done.

A spell.

She had cast something to calm my emotions, maybe. But despite the initial resistance in my gut, I didn’t fight it. I couldn’t. Not now. Not with the way Momo was still looking at me, her eyes full of something I couldn’t name, but felt in every fiber of my being.

The Witch pulled back, her expression unreadable, though I could feel the satisfaction radiating from her. “See?” she said, her voice carrying a note of finality. “It was always going to be like this.”

And as Momo gently took my hand, leading me toward the tailor’s shop, I couldn’t help but wonder if the Witch was right about everything.

Maybe this was always how it was meant to be.

The warm light of the tailor’s shop cast long shadows across the floor as I stepped inside with Momo still holding my hand. The feeling of her fingers intertwined with mine was grounding, almost like an anchor keeping me steady amidst everything swirling in my mind. The White Rabbit Witch’s words still echoed in my head, but I pushed them aside for the moment.

Mina and Sana were waiting inside, their faces lighting up as we entered.

“There’s our new sheriff!” Mina grinned, giving me a once-over. “Or, should I say, soon-to-be well-dressed sheriff.”

Sana gave me a playful wink, already pulling out fabrics and boots from the back of the shop. “We’re going to make you look fantastic, Doom. Momo’s been talking about this all morning.”

Momo laughed, the sound soft and melodious. “I figured you could use something a bit sturdier than what you’ve been walking around in. Especially since you have a tendency to… well, burn things.” Her eyes twinkled with mischief, and I couldn’t help but smile back.

“Fair point,” I replied, squeezing her hand gently before letting go. “I’m not exactly… subtle with my magic. But I’ll try not to destroy your hard work.”

Sana and Mina exchanged glances, clearly amused by the banter between us. Mina stepped forward, placing a hand on my arm as she led me toward a row of neatly hung clothes. “Don’t worry, we’ve got just the thing. Boots and clothes enchanted to withstand whatever magic you throw at them. We don’t mess around here.”

Momo stood next to me, her gaze warm. “And besides, I’m sure you’ll look amazing in whatever they pick.”

I raised an eyebrow, leaning closer to her. “Is that why you’re here? To make sure I don’t look like a fool?”

She grinned, a playful glint in her eyes. “Exactly. I have to protect my investment, after all.”

“Your investment?” I chuckled, playing along. “I didn’t realize I was part of your portfolio.”

“Oh, you are,” she said, stepping a bit closer. Her voice dropped to a soft, teasing tone. “And I expect a high return.”

Sana pretended to gag in the background, making exaggerated faces. “Oh no, they’re flirting. Someone stop them.”

Mina smirked, folding her arms. “Let them have their fun. Besides, it’s cute.”

I felt the heat rise to my cheeks, but I didn’t break eye contact with Momo. The tension between us felt electric, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. It was warm. Inviting. I was still getting used to the fact that I wasn’t fighting it anymore, and now, standing here with her, it felt… right.

Sana came up behind me, tapping me on the shoulder. “Alright, lovebirds, let’s get to work. Doom, off with the coat.”

I hesitated for a moment, glancing at Momo. “You sure about this? I’m not exactly… a fashion icon.”

Momo laughed, crossing her arms as she watched me. “Oh, I’m very sure. Now, stop stalling and let the professionals do their job.”

I grinned and shrugged out of my old, worn coat. It felt strange to be standing there without it, like I was missing part of myself, but Momo’s approving smile was enough to keep me from second-guessing.

Sana and Mina wasted no time, throwing a perfectly tailored shirt over my head and pulling me toward a tall mirror. The fabric was light but sturdy, the cut sharp but comfortable. The designs were floral and pretty yet still masculine in color.

“Looking good already,” Sana said, adjusting the collar. “But we’re not done yet.”

Mina came forward with a pair of dark pants and a belt, holding them up with a smile. “Try these. They’re enchanted with anti-burn magic. Even your flames won’t get through these bad boys.”

I took them from her and quickly changed, feeling a little out of my element with all the attention. When I stepped back out, though, I couldn’t help but be impressed with how well they fit. The pants were flexible, and I could feel the enchantment humming faintly in the fabric.

But it wasn’t until they handed me the boots that I really felt like I had stepped into something new. They were heavy but balanced, they were a metallic sheen that was tough but comfortable. I tugged them on, rolling my shoulders as I stood up straight.

“We call them lavaspur boots,” Mina said happily.

“They are the only non enchanted clothes we made as they are made of magical leather and metal that can take temperatures up to 15 million degrees,” Mina added

“So how do they feel?” Sana asked wide-eyed.

I moved my feet around a bit and took a few steps. “I like em… I like all of the outfits and clothes you've given me thus far. Thank you so much,” I responded

The two girls smiled and said, “Well you're very welcome Sheriff Doom,”

I turn to Momo to get her take and she stares me focused.

“You look…” Momo’s voice trailed off for a second, her eyes wandering over me appreciatively. She cleared her throat, her cheeks flushing just slightly. “You look great.”

I smiled at her, feeling that same flutter in my chest I’d felt outside the shop. “Thanks,” I said softly, stepping closer to her. “Though I’m sure it’s not just the clothes. I’m pretty sure it’s the company that’s making me look this good.”

Her face broke into a wide grin, and she punched me lightly on the arm. “You’re impossible.”

Sana and Mina exchanged knowing glances before stepping back, clearly deciding to give us some space.

I reached out, brushing a strand of hair behind Momo’s ear, my fingers lingering just slightly. “Maybe. But you seem to like me this way.”

She laughed, a soft, breathless sound that made my heart skip. “Maybe I do,” she said, her eyes locking onto mine.

For a moment, we were just standing there, inches apart, the world fading away. It was just her and me, and the warmth between us. It was real. Tangible. And it scared me how much I wanted it to stay.

Before I could say anything else, I felt a light hand on my shoulder. The White Rabbit Witch had reappeared, silent and sudden as always. She leaned in close to my ear, her voice a low whisper that sent a shiver down my spine.

“Don’t fight it, Hero,” she murmured, her words echoing the spell she cast earlier. This time, though, there was something else—a deeper, almost primal magic settling over me, calming the rush of emotions I’d been battling. “Just let it be.”

I closed my eyes for a second, feeling the tension leave my body. When I opened them again, Momo was still there, smiling up at me, her eyes filled with warmth and something more. Something that made my heart race all over again.

The Witch stepped back, her presence fading into the background as Momo reached out and took my hand again, her fingers fitting perfectly with mine.

“Come on,” she said softly, tugging me toward the door. “Let’s show everyone the new and improved Sheriff Doom.”

I let her pull me forward, a smile tugging at the corner of my lips. For the first time in a long while, I wasn’t afraid of what came next.

The tailor shop buzzed with laughter and warmth as I looked down at my newly acquired outfits, all thanks to Momo, Mina, and Sana’s tireless efforts. I had to admit, they’d outdone themselves. I felt different in these clothes—lighter, yet somehow more grounded. The enchanted fabrics hummed with magic, shielding me from burning them away, which was a relief.

As I finished buttoning the last shirt, Momo looked up at me, her eyes soft and warm. “You clean up pretty well, Sheriff.”

I grinned. “All thanks to my personal fashion squad.”

Sana smirked and brushed off an imaginary speck of dust from her sleeve. “Well, we do what we can.”

Mina clapped her hands together, her excitement palpable. “Okay, now that the makeover’s done, what’s next?”

Momo’s face lit up. “How about dinner? I was thinking we could all have a nice meal at my place tonight. What do you think?”

Sana immediately perked up, her eyes gleaming. “Ooh, count me in! What about you, Mina?”

Mina nodded eagerly. “Definitely. We’ll bring some food—and maybe a couple of extra guests?”

Momo smiled. “The more, the merrier.”

With plans made, we all parted ways for the moment, agreeing to meet later for dinner at Momo’s place. As Momo and I walked toward her home, the evening air seemed charged with something unspoken between us. Her hand was warm in mine, her laughter like a melody that lingered in the spaces around us. It felt effortless, as if we’d always been walking side by side like this.

And yet, the warmth in my chest grew harder and harder to ignore.

Stopping in our tracks, I turned to her, letting the feeling take hold. Before either of us could speak, I leaned in and kissed her. It wasn’t like the others we’d shared earlier. This time, it deepened, grew more insistent, and with it, something stirred in the air around us.

I felt the pulse of my own magic responding, flaring up like embers catching wind. Behind Momo, shimmering waves of light began to dance in the dimming sky—auroras, glowing ribbons of colors that wove and twisted with a beauty that seemed almost alive.

When we finally broke the kiss, I stared at her in awe.

“You’re a mage too?” I asked, my voice barely more than a whisper.

Momo nodded, her cheeks glowing almost as brightly as the auroras behind her. “Not a war mage like you, though,” she said with a soft laugh. “My magic is music and dance. It’s… gentler, I guess.”

I nodded, still mesmerized by the lingering traces of light around her. As the magic faded, we continued walking, the quiet between us now heavy with unspoken understanding.

Imagine my surprise when, as we approached her front door, I saw a familiar figure curled up on the porch—a hulking, scaly mass that could only be one thing.

“Blastoise?” I called out in disbelief.

At the sound of his name, his large, glowing eyes snapped open, and his massive tongue lolled out in joy. With a low rumble, he bounded forward, licking my face enthusiastically.

I laughed, my arms wrapping around his neck as I hugged him tightly. “I missed you, big guy.”

Behind me, Momo tilted her head, her expression one of delighted curiosity. “You know this big guy?”

Still scratching behind Blastoise’s ears, I glanced back at her and nodded. “Before I was brought here, I set him free. He was one of the warlord’s experiments—one of the few that survived.”

Momo’s smile softened as she crouched down to pet Blastoise’s sturdy shell. “I’d never have guessed,” she said.

Blastoise gave a satisfied huff, leaning into her touch as if he already adored her.

Inside, as we began preparing dinner, I couldn’t help but notice Momo’s enthusiasm in the kitchen… and the minor chaos it caused. Her measurements were off, her timing a bit rushed, and some things were on the verge of burning.

“Uh, Momo?” I asked gently, stepping in as she reached for a skillet that was a little too close to charring its contents. “Mind if I help?”

Her eyes flicked to mine, relief evident in her smile. “Please do.”

Together, we salvaged the bread from over-baking, adjusted the seasoning on the stew, and kept the vegetables from turning into an unrecognizable mush. By the end, the kitchen was filled with delicious aromas instead of the smoky haze we’d narrowly avoided.

Just as we were setting the table, I heard a low growl coming from outside.

Blastoise.

Momo glanced toward the door, wiping her hands on her apron. “Blastoise, stop it! They’re our guests,” she called as she opened the door to reveal Sana, Mina, Jojo, and Nevin standing on the porch.

Sana gave a low whistle, eyeing the tortoise-dragon hybrid with amusement. “Finally gave him a name, huh?”

Momo shook her head, grinning. “Nope. Garuzen named him—since Blastoise is his friend.”

Jojo and Nevin exchanged a look, their collective sigh audible as they stepped inside.

The moment their eyes landed on me at the stove, an expression of surprise flickered across their faces.

“Wait, you’re cooking?” Jojo asked, his tone teetering between disbelief and amusement.

Mina, ever the peacekeeper, laughed softly as she nudged him. “It’s not that hard to believe. He does seem like a man of many talents.”

Sana smirked, leaning casually against the counter. “Guess you’re full of surprises, Sheriff.”

Momo beamed at their reactions, clearly proud of how seamlessly I’d stepped into the evening’s preparations. I chuckled, shrugging as I plated the last dish.

“Just trying to make myself useful,” I said simply, though the warmth in my chest had nothing to do with the food. It was the way Momo looked at me—a mixture of gratitude, affection, and something deeper—that made me feel, for the first time in a long time, like I belonged.

Dinner was ready, the table was set, and the room buzzed with laughter and conversation. Blastoise, ever the vigilant guardian, settled himself outside the door, his glowing eyes keeping watch over the night.