#Start-up enoteca

[campadailyblog]

Negozio di Vini: Passi essenziali per avviare il tuo

Aprire un negozio di vini è un’opportunità affascinante per chi ama il vino. Però, per avere successo, serve una buona pianificazione e conoscere i passi chiave. Ti mostreremo come avviare il tuo negozio, dalla selezione dell’inventario alla gestione del personale. Scoprirai come fare un’attività di successo nel mondo del vino. Da come scegliere il posto giusto al modo di ottenere le licenze,…

[katyswrites]

don't call me 'baby'

PART 2 | SERIES

Pairing: Steve Harrington/fem!reader

Warnings: Sugardaddy!Steve, swearing, alcohol use, smoking, references to vomit/drinking too much, age gap

Wordcount: 4.4k

A sugar daddy modern AU, a whirlwind summer romance in Italy, and two people from completely different walks of life, somehow finding each other in one of the most beautiful cities in the world. But, what will happen when summer ends?

PART 2 | is it chill that you're in my head?

The next few weeks passed in a blur. With the semester officially wrapped, you threw yourself into working - early morning shifts at the coffee shop, then weekend nights Enoteca Bruni, slinging cocktails and lighting cigars, smiling prettily for high-end customers and their massive wallets. Fridays were the worst - working a double, swapping out your apron for a cocktail dress as you went from one job to the other, often fixing your hair and doing your makeup on the bus ride in between. 

It had been a bit of a culture shock, moving out to Rome. You had never envisioned moving abroad, but the offer had come from AUR with a great scholarship; it involved getting the Hell out of your parents’ house, working towards a degree, and starting a new life in Rome. Not knowing the language had been the hardest - you had spent nearly your entire first year enrolled in Italian classes, taking time to read newspapers, watch local television, and do everything you could to immerse yourself in the language. It wasn’t second-nature, exactly, but you found yourself switching from English to Italian easily now, thankfully. It was probably what landed you the job at Enoteca - they usually only took people with more restaurant experience (or the prettiest, you would later realize). But, an American girl, who spoke fluent Italian? It had made you invaluable, considering how many business executives and high-profile people from around the world dined there. 

That was probably why the experience a few weeks ago hadn’t shaken you all too much; you had become used to groups like that, men who were used to getting what they wanted, whenever they wanted. Still, when you allowed your mind to wander, or you had a moment or two to rest, you found yourself thinking of Steve Harrington.

It was rarely on purpose - the vision of the man encroached on your mind when you least expected, sticking and seeping through your brain like syrup. You had felt guilty about the money, initially - while some kind (and usually American) customers tipped, it wasn’t common on this side of the world. And, moreover, it had been far more than what was anywhere near reasonable, no matter how expensive their bill ended up being. Was he hitting on you? That wouldn’t have been the first time - plenty of pushy, or downright pervy customers had insisted on tipping you, slipping you a phone number with the cash. But, he hadn’t done that - there wasn’t any contact information, not even a return address. And, he didn’t seem like that - he could’ve made more of a move on you that night in the car, if he really wanted. It was confusing, more than anything - no matter how you had tried to rationalize it, the generous gesture was simply bizarre. That was probably why you found yourself thinking of him on occasion - why else would you be?

It was the last weekend of May, when it happened. If you had been back in the States, you supposed it would’ve been a long holiday weekend, thanks to Memorial Day. But here, it was just another Friday night. And, a rare blessing - you actually had the night off. Well, you had arranged for the night off. It had been a terrible week, beyond exhausting. When you had come home, last night, Robin had taken one look at you, and shook her head.

“No,” she said firmly.

“Huh?” you asked, plopping down in a kitchen chair.

“You need to take a night off, you’re miserable,” she said, sitting herself across from you.

“I need to work,” you explained. “In case you forgot, we need to pay rent.”

“Yeah,” Robin agreed. “But, you know… last I checked, a certain richy-rich business bro took care of that -”

“That cash is only gonna last so long, Robs.”

“Don’t you get it? That was his way of telling you to take a break - they love you at the restaurant. You never miss, just call out - and then we can go out tomorrow, and actually have fun, for once.”

You opened your mouth to protest, then stopped yourself - you carefully considered what your friend was proposing. The two of you rarely took time to have fun anymore - Robin once joked that you were both old ladies already, working all day and tucked in bed early most nights. You and her were often rolling coins for groceries, and you had treated yourselves to an actual sitdown dinner next week thanks to Steve’s money - it had felt extravagant, but nice. 

Buy yourself something nice, Steve’s note had said.

“Yeah, okay,” you conceded. “Let’s go out tomorrow, yeah?”

That was how you found yourself out that night, stuffed into your favorite jeans and flashy top, face made-up and six drinks deep at some nightclub, one of Robin’s favorite haunts from college. The air was hazy, the music loud, and you found yourself letting go, as best as you could.

Robin made her way through the crowd to you, shots in-hand, despite your earlier protests.

“Robs - no -”

“C’mon, live a little!” she shouted. “And don’t worry, it’s not tequila - I know how you get with tequila.”

You rolled your eyes, toasting her as you downed the shot, the liquor burning your tongue and throat as it went down. Robin grinned, pressing herself close to you as she asked, “Are ya having fun?”

You nodded, smiling. 

“Yeah, actually - I am,” you admitted. “But - I’ve got to get some air,” you said, pulling your pack of cigarettes out of your pocket and waving them.

Robin groaned.

“Those’ll kill you, you know,” she shouted as you headed for the door.

“We can only hope!” you sent back playfully over your shoulder.

You made your way through sweaty bodies and dodged the splashes of drinks, forcing your way out into the cooler night. 

The summer was in its infancy, the evenings still cool enough to raise goosebumps on the skin, to remind you that spring wasn’t quite done yet. It was a welcome change, the bar inside nearly suffocating with the pure volume of people. And more importantly, outside, it’s quiet. Yes, it’s still a city, the din of cars and motorbikes combining with the sounds of music and laughter from bars and restaurants, the cacophony of nightlife still a relief from what you just came from inside.

A few other smokers hung around you, alone and in groups, chatting and flicking ash onto the pavement. You leaned against the brick wall of the building, sighing and inhaling deeply. You let the night air fill your lungs, your head a bit fuzzy from the alcohol coursing through you. 

You fish a cigarette out of the carton, placing it between your lips before reaching into your pocket for a lighter - oh, no.

Your lighter was still in your purse. Because, you almost always have your purse, but because you were going out, you had just stuck some cash and your ID in the back of your phone, and left. Christ, you were out of practice. You slumped, and glanced around, only to realize a lot of people had headed back inside. You spotted a woman about ten feet away, exhaling smoke. You debated walking over and asking for a light - she probably wouldn’t have a problem with that, and she was probably done soon -

“Need a light?” a voice asked.

A godsend.

You turned to where it was coming from, and froze in place.

There he was, standing just a few feet from you. Steve wore a warm smirk and a fitted t-shirt and jeans, nearly unrecognizable from the man in the suit you had met a few weeks ago. His hair was still done immaculately, but he stood casually, hands shoved in his pockets as he leaned against the wall. In the dim streetlights, he could’ve been a stranger, just a boy on the sidewalk with a kind offer and a smile. Still, he wore nice loafers and a flashy watch, and though you didn’t know much about clothes, you imagine they cost more than most of your closet combined.

You couldn’t help but smile at the sight of him, unable to believe your luck. And, it doesn’t escape you, the irony of the reversed roles, of you being stuck for a light out in the night.

“If you’ve got one,” you replied, feigning a casual air.

“Well, I think I owe you the favor,” he said, reaching into his pocket until he produced a lighter. He held it up, and you leaned in close, letting him flick it on and light the cigarette until the end was a hot amber. You took a long drag, letting the smoke fill your lungs and exhaling, immediately relaxing.

You didn’t take your eyes off of the man next to you, still as boyishly handsome as you remembered. He was visibly more relaxed than the last time you saw him, and you couldn’t help but wonder… was he here alone?

“Thanks,” you said, pressing your foot into the wall to balance yourself. 

“Of course,” he replied, pulling his own cigarette out and placing it in his mouth. Still hand-rolled, you noted.

“Not just for that,” you said, measuring your words carefully. “For… for the other thing, too.”

He didn’t respond, at first. He just stared straight ahead, blowing smoke out into the night air.

“Don’t mention it,” he said, kicking at the ground with his toe.

“No, I should - I mean, that was… it was really generous. And, you really shouldn’t have.”

He looked at you then, face soft as he smiled.

“Yes, I should’ve. Because I wanted to. Did you do what I asked?”

You paused, confused. “What?”

“Did you buy yourself something nice?”

You suddenly felt your face heat, and it took you a moment to find the words.

“I - well, sort of. I mean, to be honest, I used a lot of it to pay this month’s rent. But…I took my roommate out to a nice dinner. And, there’s still a bit left, so I guess we’re using it now, for drinks and stuff tonight.”

He perked up at that, and smiled a little wider.

“Good,” he said. “I mean, I’m glad you were able to treat yourself.”

“It let me take the night off, for once,” you admitted.

“How many nights do you work there?” he asked curiously.

“Well, only four - Thursday through Sunday. But, I work 5 days a week at a coffee shop - you know Caffè Tazza, on Via Pave?”

He furrowed his brow, then nodded slowly.

“I think I’ve passed it on my way to work, yeah - not sure I’ve ever gone in.”

“Yeah, well, I work there. Enteco is just a side gig - it pays better. Well, slightly.”

You stopped yourself, then, suddenly feeling small - it hadn’t escaped you that the money Steve had sent you was probably a drop in the bucket, a negligible amount for him. You couldn’t even imagine what his bank account looked like, but from what little you knew about him, you knew it would probably make you fall to your knees. 

“But, it doesn’t matter - I needed a break, I don’t go out much, so here I am.”

He just nodded again, taking another drag. 

“Are you here with anyone?” he asked.

You nodded, glancing at the door behind you.

“Yeah - my roommate, Robin… you?”

You asked it carefully, glancing at him briefly. He turned to look at you again, and you could tell he was fighting a smile.

“No,” he said. “I’m here alone.”

You don’t know what it was - it was probably a mix of the alcohol, a long week, the buzz of the late night air, or the fact that both of you had subconsciously inched yourselves closer to each other during the last few minutes - you could feel the heat radiating off of him, hear his shallow breaths. But, you felt bold, bolder than usual.

“Did you plan on keeping it that way?” you asked quietly.

His eyes widened, and you saw him visibly freeze at your words.

“Not necessarily,” he admitted, voice soft and low.

Then, you pushed yourself up on your toes, and pulled him by the collar of his t-shirt, bringing his lips down to yours.

He tensed for a moment under your touch, then relaxed, leaning into the kiss. His lips moved with yours, softer than you had imagined. He tasted like cigarettes and scotch, and smells like cologne, the good kind. Your cigarette fell from your fingers and somewhere into the pavement, freeing your hand to snake up and press gently at the nape of his neck.

It was a bit messy, and not too sophisticated - if you had to guess, he was probably a bit drunk too, though maybe not as much as you. But you were kissing Steve Harrington, a man who was still practically a stranger, and he was kissing you back. And God, he was a good kisser. He pulled you closer, pressing his hands to the small of your back as you breathed into his mouth. And, for just a moment, it felt like you were the only two people in the whole city.

Perhaps it was a few seconds or an hour - most likely, it was somewhere in between. But eventually, you both pulled away for air, chests heaving, hearts racing.

He was looking at you through the dim streetlight, eyes wide. There was something there in his face - surprise, yes, but something else too… fondness? Excitement? 

“I,” you started, “um -”

“Yeah,” he said, chuckling under his breath.

A moment passed, and suddenly, there was an air of awkwardness that settled between you both. Did you misread that? Did he want you to kiss him? Well, he had kissed you back… but would he do it again?

He opened his mouth and took a step toward you to say something, but then you heard a familiar voice come from behind you, calling your name. You turn around, confused.

“I - Robin?”

Your friend stumbled out of the bar’s entrance, hand pressed to her forehead.

“Hey - I… I think I drank too much,” she slurred, making her way toward you.

“You don’t say?” you laughed, reaching out for her outstretched hand. She took it, face screwed up in pain as she squinted in the light illuminating the sidewalk.

“I think - hey, whose this?” she asked, standing up a bit straighter with a renewed interest.

You glanced back at Steve, who had taken a few steps back, his hands shoved into his pockets. He offered a small smile.

“Oh, um - this is, uh -”

“I’m Steve,” he finished, meeting Robin’s eyes over your shoulder. “Nice to meet you.”

“Steve? Who -” then, her eyes widened, and a cheeky grin spread on her face.

“Oh - Steve. Like, Steve Steve?”

You felt your face heat, and pointedly ignored the way Steve’s eyes were burning into the back of your head.

“Um, yeah - it was totally random, but we ran into each other out here and… we were… catching up.”

“Right,” Robin said, looking at you knowingly. “Nice to meet ya,” she said, casting her eyes to where Steve stood behind you.

Steve nodded, fighting a grin as he looked at the pair of you.

“Um, Robin is my roommate,” you explained to him. “But, from the looks of it… it looks like we need to get home. I’ll call us a taxi, yeah?”

“Can’t,” Robin groaned, leaning into your side. “I’m gonna throw up in it.”

You sighed, pinching your temples.

“Yeah, okay, well - if you do that, it’ll be like, hundreds of Euros, so… maybe you’ve just gotta make yourself vomit first, get it out of the way -”

Robin groaned into your shoulder at the thought, and you sighed again. It was then that Steve spoke up.

“Well, I can call my car to take you ladies home… if you want.”

You felt your face flush with embarrassment again, casting your eyes between Steve and Robin, hesitant.

“Oh, no - we couldn’t possibly ask -”

“You didn’t ask,” Steve said simply. “I offered. I insist, actually - I want you two to get home safely.”

You felt Robin lean further into you, and thought for a moment about your options - the last thing you needed was to rack up a fee and piss off a taxi driver.

“Well - I don’t want her to vomit in your car, either -”

Steve shook his head, waving you off.

“Please - don’t worry about that. There’s a garbage can and bags in the back, so she can use that. But, worst-case, I can send it to be cleaned after. I promise, it’s fine.”

You met his eyes, and all you saw was sincerity - he was being genuine, from what you could tell. Right then, you decided to surrender.

“I - yeah, okay. That’d be really great, if you could.”

He nodded, pulling his phone out of his pocket and making a quick phone call. You did your best to straighten Robin up, but she just clung to you, swaying on her feet. Great.

“My driver will be here in a few minutes,” Steve said. “So, no worries - I gave him your address for a stop on the way home.”

“You remember my address?”

He shrugged, and stared straight at the ground. If you didn’t know any better, you could swear he was blushing. 

“Well - yes. I mean, I had to send you the letter not too long ago… write it out, all that.”

“Right,” you said, opting to stare out ahead at the street. A few passersby stumbled past you, in various stages of drunk and cheery, mopeds and cars speeding down the cobblestone streets.

“Thank you,” you added, just a bit more softly. “I - you really didn’t have to do this.”

You knew how this probably looked - two drunk girls, hardly adults, partying too hard and threatening to throw up in the street. You suddenly became self-conscious of your tight ripped jeans, your cropped top, the fact that you were probably just a bit too drunk and sweaty. You were an idiot for thinking he was flirting with you - he was just being nice.

“Don’t worry about it,” he replied. “I was getting ready to go home soon, anyway. If you don’t mind me riding along, that is.”

You chuckled. “If I mind? It’s your car - of course you can come along -”

“Yeah, okay,” he said swiftly. “I just didn’t want to make you or your friend uncomfortable - Robin, right?”

You nodded. “Yeah - though, I don’t think she even knows where she is right now, so you’re in the clear.”

That earned a laugh from him - a real one. You hadn’t even thought it was that funny, but he acted as if it was the best joke he’d ever heard. You felt pride surge within you, and immediately pushed it down - that can’t happen, not right now.

The car arrived a few minutes later, and the drive home was mostly silent - Robin cradled a small garbage can, likely only meant for small debris like tissues, gum, water bottles - it only made your humiliation sink in further, feeling like a fool for even being in this situation. If Steve minded, he gave no indication - he sat up front with his driver, the same man from the other night. You sat in the back with Robin, keeping an eye on her in case the worst happened. By some miracle, it didn’t; she kept it down the whole ride, only occasionally groaning when the car went over a bump.

When you pulled up to your apartment, you felt a sense of deja vu - the same place, same time of night, with similar company. And, knowing how tonight went, it would probably be the last time.

After you had assured that Robin was out of the car and able to hold herself up on the sidewalk, you turned back to see that Steve had lowered the passenger window. He smiled as he looked up at you, and you once again realized just how handsome he really was. It was ridiculous, really.

“Um - thank you. Seriously - this was a huge help.”

“Of course,” he replied, leaning out of the window slightly. “Just make sure she’s okay, yeah?”

You glanced back at where Robin was sitting on your building’s doorstep, holding her head in her hands.

“I will - she’s going to be paying for it in the morning though.”

“I don’t doubt it,” he laughed, shaking his head.

You stood there for a moment, just looking at one another - the night was quieter here, just on the outskirts of the main part of the city. The silence was thick and heavy, and million unanswered questions between you two - perhaps they would never be answered.

“Right, well - I’m going to go in, I guess. I’ve got a shift tomorrow afternoon, anyways.”

“Yeah, okay - well, goodnight,” he said softly.

“Goodnight, Steve Harrington,” you whispered.

When you watched as the car peeled from the sidewalk and drove away, you couldn’t help but feel empty - you loved Robin to death, but she was going to pay for this, you decided. That thought really only lasted a moment - she didn’t actually do anything wrong, and she had taken care of you while you were drunk and stupid more times than you could count. Besides, it wasn’t like anything more was going to happen with Steve. You knew this for one reason - upon further examination, that look he had given you after the kiss… it wasn’t surprise, excitement, or any of the above. No - it was fear.

Still, that night, after Robin was put to bed with ibuprofen and a glass of water, you stared at your ceiling and thought of Steve. You thought of the way his voice sounded when it got low, the way he smelled when he was close enough, the way his lips tasted - and you didn’t sleep well at all, dwelling on what could have been.

*****

“Okay! Un caffè e due cappuccini!” you called out, placing the cups and saucers on the counter. The customers came up and grabbed them, knocking the coffees back and heading out, leaving a few coins behind. You were constantly on the move, Caffè Tazza beyond busy thanks to it being a Saturday. It had always fascinated you, how Italians took their coffee; your previous experience at Starbucks back in the States had proved nearly useless, considering that “to-go�� coffee hardly existed here. Normally, you didn’t mind how fast-paced it was. But normally, you weren’t hungover. 

You had been in far better shape than Robin this morning, who could hardly get out of bed. Initially, you had actually felt fine. But, after a few hours on your feet, a headache was setting in, and you had a feeling it was here to stay.

The line of customers was long enough that you hardly paid any mind to who was coming in, set of pouring coffee and steaming milk, taking used espresso cups to wash in the back. That was why you didn’t see him come in, or hear him place his order at the register. No, it wasn’t until you were putting the small cup of espresso on the counter that you saw him, face-to-face.

“I - Steve?” you cried, startled. 

You thought maybe it was a dream, and you were actually still in the middle of your fitful sleep from last night. But he was there, clear as day, sporting a white button-up with sunglasses pushed on top of his head.

“Hey there,” he said, flashing a smile.

“What - what’re you doing here?”

He glanced briefly around the coffee shop, shrugging.

“You know - I was in the neighborhood.”

You raised an eyebrow, unconvinced. 

“You were in the neighborhood?”

He just took the coffee off of the counter and knocked it back, grinning as he returned the empty cup. You tried not to look at the way his Adam’s apple bobbed, or the freckles dotting his neck, but it was nearly impossible, given how close he was, how he -

“You caught me,” he admitted. “You told me last night how you worked here… and that you had a shift today… so I figured I’d swing by.”

You felt your stomach flip, because he actually remembered, and came to see you. You gulped, shoving your hands in the pockets of your apron.

“You… you came here to see me?”

It was then that his smile faltered a bit, and he nodded. He was shifting on his feet, not exactly meeting your eye - whatever confidence and charm he had been exuding when he had arrived was quickly fading. In fact, he looked close to terrified, even though he was the one who came here.

“I - yeah, I did. I was just thinking a lot, after last night… about you, and how you - well, when do you get off? Or, have a break?”

You cocked an eyebrow, cautiously curious. Was he going to ask you out? Or, more importantly, would you say yes if he did?

“Um, I have a lunch break in a bit… and then I get off at 6. Why?”

He bit his lip, shifting on his feet again.

“Right, okay - do you want to meet here, after you get off?”

You felt your stomach turn again, bubbling a bit. Still, you tried not to get your hopes up, and measured your response carefully.

“Sure… can I ask why? Like, are you asking me out, or what?”

You said it bluntly, because the last thing you want is a guessing game right now. He gulped at that, and shook his head. You felt your heart sink just a bit, and immediately cursed yourself inwardly.

“Well, no, not exactly - but I do have something I want to talk to you about. Something that I think can help both of us, if you’re interested.”

Before you could ask anything else, he was nodding curtly, and out the door. Then it was just you, a line of customers, and what would probably be the longest 4 hours of your life.

What the Hell does he want to talk about? you wondered.

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[herwritingartcowboy]

hihi! i love your writings!!! may i please request hcs w various black bull members where their s/o (reader), get's a scary dream and is scared to go back to sleep, so they wake their s/o up and get comforted? thank you!

Fandom: Black Clover

Character(s): Asta, Noelle Silva, Vanessa Enoteca, Luck Voltia,

Warning(s): Angst-Fluff, Mentions of death, blood, Nightmares,

Readers Gender: Gn

Asta~

You couldn't believe this would happen. You had always trusted Asta and his skill but it seems your worst fears came true. Surrounding you were the black bulls but in that moment you were really worried for Asta but what you can see was him on the ground surrounded by blood. It looked like he wasn't breathing. Your voice cracked when you tried calling out to him, as you walked closer and closer to him as chaos was happening all around you. The more you got closer the more your eyes started to tear up as again you called out to but it was nothing more than a whisper. Then now you cradle him in your arms feeling his blood stain you and now when you yell for Asta your eyes open as you sat up in bed. You looked around as your heart raced while your eyes adjusted to the dark. You jumped when you felt a hand on your shoulder but calmed when you heard the voice of your boyfriend. When you turned to look at him the moon light was enough to see he was worried. "Y/n are you okay?", Without a second thought you tackled him back down to bed taking Asta by surprise. "Are you safe out there?", You asked as traced shapes into Asta's chest. Asta knew what you were talking about as yesterday he got hurt during a mission which sent you into a panic. "I'll always be safe knowing I have you to come home too", you looked up and saw Asta smile which made you smile. You laid your head back down on Asta chest and as you were drifting back to sleep you could feel him place a kiss on your forehead wishing you sweet dreams.

Noelle Silva~

It was clear as day as you saw Noelle trying to fight off Vanica as you were there if cursed with a frozen spell. You stood still there as you watched your girlfriend get beaten and you couldn't do anything about it or help. You can feel tears come down your face as you saw Noelle's body hit the ground and that's when you yelled out Noelle's name only for you to wake up? Your eyes scanned the room as you slowly sat up trying to calm your breathing. The room was silent till you heard a familiar voice call out your name. You turned to see Noelle rub her eyes letting them adjust to the dark but before they could you hugged her tightly. Noelle let out a yelp as her face grew red but when she was gonna say something she could feel your body shaking. Noelle rubbed your back as she hugged you back. You both sat there for awhile till she let you both fell back onto the bed. "I love you Y/n", Noelle said as now she just held you closely with her giving you a small kiss on the top of your head. You lifted up your head from her chest to look at her, "I love you too". You said as you laid your head right back onto her chest.

Vanessa Enoteca~

You didn't know how this happened this was supposed to be a non-lethal mission. But you two got ambushed by Diamond kingdom mages catching you both by surprise. You two tried to hold them back but it ended with Vanessa clinging to life and you being covered in yours and Vanessa's blood. You try calling out to her while pushing her hair away from her face while you couldn't stop the tears from coming down your face. Vanessa only smiled as her hand reached your cheek. You then closed your eyes only to open them seeing Vanessa looking at you worried with her hand on your cheek. "Are you okay? You kept tossing and turning in your sleep while mumbling something", you didn't answer but only pulled her close to you as your arms wrapped around her body. Vanessa was shocked by your actions but she connected the dots as she hugged you back. "I'll get stronger", you said looking down at Vanessa and she only smiled giving you a quick peck on the cheek as you two went back to sleep, with you now knowing that Vanessa will always be by your side and that she trusts you.

Luck Voltia~

You understood why Luck always wanted to fight but you always wanted him to be careful but here you can only see the worst thing possible. You can see Luck getting punched by some monster but when looking at his face you can see he now has black eyes, cuts, bruises, blood all over his face and around him. You couldn't say or do anything till you felt your body move as you ran towards Luck reaching your hand out getting ready to attack the monster but before you could you woke up after feeling you hit something. You looked at that instead of a monster you punched your boyfriend who now was waking up. "Y/n?" "S-sorry Luck", Luck still sleepy didn't really react as he usually would. But after a minute he got a good look at your face seeing how you know were just blankly staring at the wall. "Luck?" "Yeah" "Please be careful", it took Luck a couple of minutes but he soon got an idea of what you meant. After a minute you laid back down only for Luck to wrap his arms around you and look up at you. "I'll be careful", you smiled at his words and only answered by giving him a quick kiss before you both drifted back to sleep.

[pbear]

Ranking The Black Bulls

I am so high after finishing the Black Clover anime which is why I'm making this. This is definitely a personal list and I just want a way for me to talk about these characters because I do love all of them.

Also, some spoilers.

16. Nacht and his demons

Little screen time and he’s extremely suspicious. Also if you keep going around being condescending to everyone I won’t like you.

I do not know his backstory which could definitely explain things but based on what he gets in the anime, I don’t care for him.

Pros are that he’s a pretty asshole and his tiny demons are cute.

15. Liebe

Lack of screen time gets you closer to the bottom.

That backstory was making me tear up though.

He gained anti-magic but how??? It kind of just happened.

He has a place in the found family whether he likes it or not.

14. Gordon Agrippa

I like that he just wants friends despite everyone thinking he’s creepy and being part of a family that studies curses.

He gets forgotten a lot :(

Actually a character who comes to have a healthy relationship with his family

He is shown to be kind of a stalker though which docks points. There's people being unreasonably scared of you and then there's keeping journals on everyone in the squad and making dolls of each of them.

13. Zora Ideale

Gets almost no character development after his introduction. They have forgotten this man which is a shame because he was introduced as a very interesting and menacing person.

His relationship with his father is very sweet

Sassy

Zora, you will succumb to the found family.

12. Henry Legolant

Him going from a possible ghost to a true member of the Black Bulls is great. I love that the squad finds a way for him to be around them even with his curse

He’s very nice too.

Doesn’t get a lot after the Elven Invasion arc. All you see is him occasionally sitting in a box.

His magic is so epic when it gets used. I love the Raging Black Bull Formation.

11. Vanessa Enoteca

Doesn’t actually get too much to do after the Forest of Witches arc.

I love that she’s basically the squad’s big sister.

Her magic and the red thread of fate are super cool although Rouge kind of becomes her main power.

10. Grey

I really enjoyed the episodes that focused on her a lot and how she wants to overcome her shyness for the rest of the Black Bulls.

Her backstory is fairly basic but the reveal that she met Gauche beforehand and he saved her was so good. I already loved them and now I love them even more.

Also, Grey, Gordon, and Gauche are absolutely a trio. Them defending the base from the Eye of the Midnight Sun was great.

9. Secre Swallowtail

Her plot with Lumiere is very sweet and gets you to like her very quickly.

Lumiere helping her develop her magic that she thinks is useless is something I love too.

I like that she’s an example that your magic is what you make of it. What it becomes is so cool and actually very useful.

The fact that even after her seal is undone, she still chills as a bird on Asta's head.

Also, I think it's interesting that Luck is the one who came up with the name Nero and she agreed to it back in the earlier episodes.

8. Gauche Adlai

This man would be ten times more attractive without his sister complex. Fortunately, his gag isn’t his only character aspect (although it’s a fairly big one).

I actually thought he was going to be super unimportant and then he got his own arc early on which shocked me.

It was nice that he began wanting to protect more people than just Marie. I actually started to enjoy it when he showed up.

His magic is cool and powerful. I think it was one of the first magic types introduced that wasn't more elemental. I want to know how he got the magic item in his eye.

Berates everyone but is literally just as insane as the rest of them.

7. Charmy Pappitson

Slow clap for her magic literally being a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

Her sheep cooks are cute too.

Obsessed with food (same) and I thought it might be a gag that makes her annoying, but she has other aspects that make her interesting and she’s a side character so I’m not asking that she be incredibly deep.

Her crush on Yuno is funny and I love that her magic is actually super strong when she tries. I never thought one of the crush situations would be Rill -> Charmy -> Yuno

6. Noelle Silva

Seeing her growth from the start of the series is amazing.

Tsundere but manages to not be super annoying with it.

Her spells are awesome and every time she learns a new one you want to cheer for her.

Valkyrie Armor is so pretty.

5. Asta

The fact that he inspires everyone around him is incredible.

I think that he’s the final piece of the Black Bulls that pulls them together and brings them from a band of hooligans to a true found family.

Has a surprising number of girls in love with him. Yet he is only dedicated to Sister Lily which I do find funny.

He does a great job at being a protagonist you want to root for which is important in a show like this. Everyone likes him so how can you not like him?

4. Finral Roulacase

There is something to be said about characters that are still nice even though the world keeps throwing things at them.

Finral’s family was never nice to him yet he still came out a kind person and that’s beautiful. The fact that he still cares for Langris really shows that.

Although he tends to run away from his problems, he works to face them as the series goes on and become stronger to fight alongside his friends.

I love his hairstyle change so much for some reason. He's so cute.

3. Yami Sukehiro

The man who adopted like thirteen kids.

I really enjoyed how his experience as a foreigner led him to create a squad that wouldn’t be bound by status or discrimination.

He literally picks up new members randomly off the street.

Despite being seemingly irresponsible compared to other Captains, he cares for his squad and wants them to be better and surpass their limits. He also knows what they are capable of and what they can handle.

2. Magna Swing

He's one of the most passionate of the Black Bulls and that makes him stand out despite him not being the strongest.

He does have magic but a lot of the time his abilities pale in comparison to the others’.

Even then, he tries to get stronger and I love that about him.

I also really like that his fire magic has a baseball theme. It makes it more unique because fire magic is so common.

I love watching him and Luck be dumbasses with each other.

More attractive with his hair down during the Elven Invasion.

Luck Voltia

Easy favorite. I cannot explain why exactly but he is my favorite.

I eat up any screen time he gets.

Luck: *murders someone in a fight*

Me: I love you so much

He’s crazy in wanting to fight almost everyone that comes his way but it’s shown that he is smart in battle too.

I like how everyone else has a case for their grimoire and he just straps it to his chest.

[stargazer-dreamer]

It's on the Tip of My Tongue Chapter 2

character: yami sukehiro

content warnings: denial of feelings, jealousy

reader: gender neutral; ring magic user

chapter list: 1, 2 [you are here]

notes: also on ao3. 2k word count. pre-relationship. part of the stoprewind verse

Mealtimes at the Black Bulls were chaotic. In the week leading up to your official first day, you had no idea—you hadn’t dined a single meal with them. Either out for lunch with Finral during a break, or so focused on getting your room cleaned that you didn’t notice the plate left for you at the door until it grew cold, you hadn’t sat down at the table with everyone until the ebony robe sat upon your shoulders and the paperwork was properly filed away. And even then, it took the witch coming out to find you and bring you back already in the thick of it to get you to understand exactly how hectic things could get.

It was well-past noon, and you and Yami had wandered aimlessly throughout the forest talking. It turns out, he was serious about getting to know you—but his version of this seemed to only consist of asking unrelated questions one after another until you were sure he didn’t actually care about the answers he was getting at all. It became quite repetitive, a question and a reply, the captain barely sparing a moment to reflect on your answer given until he’s moved on to the next.

He probably does this to all the new guys, you thought, stepping over a fallen tree branch in the path, to help them feel included. You were going to be living under the same roof—you figured the plan was that Yami would spend some quality time with you before returning back to his normal routine. Break the ice, learn some facts about you, converse a little. The two of you were, after all, supposed to be working closely together from then on out. It made sense that he would be working from a mental script—he was the captain. This was apart of the job.

Nothing else to it. Nothing at all. But I didn’t know Yami was such a poor conversationalist…

It was starting to get ridiculous. You watched as he bent to pick the branch off of the ground. Pausing for a moment, he slowly rose to full height with it in hand, an unidentifiable look sitting on his face. Eyes on the branch, you watched as his eyebrows furrowed. And then, in a large swooping motion, he whipped the branch to the side. You blinked. He did it again, and again, and again, and with one step forward one more time, before straightening back up again.

After a pause, he looked at you, tossing the branch to the side. He said—“What do you like to eat?”

For a moment, all you could do was stare. What kind of a demonstration was that? And that’s what he decided to ask you? Mouth opening trying to formulate a response, you were needlessly cut off by a rising, grumbling noise. It came from Yami’s direction. The longer it continued, you realized that it was coming from the captain himself. Namely: his stomach.

“Oh!” you bit back a laugh, understanding the question now. “Oh, you’re—okay, yeah! We can find a place in town. Here—” a ring left one of your fingers and hovered in midair between the two of you. “There’s a place I really like that serves—”

“There you two are!”

Voice drowned out by the sudden interruption, the two of you looked skybound. Up higher than the trees, a figure on a broomstick waved, her dark robe stark against the sky. Flying in a sweeping circle, she found a break in the treeline and descend; the wide brim of her hat fluttering in the wind as she did. Landing, she walked over with the stick over her shoulder. Her eyes shone like jewels, tinted lips curving the closer she got. She was recognizable even from a glance—Vanessa Enoteca.

“I was sent to look for you guys!” she said, with a hand on her hip. She was as beautiful as they say. Perhaps moreso, in person. “Figured you guys would be in town by now, but now that I think about it—this makes way more sense!” She smiled at you like she knew something, but you were certain you had absolutely no clue on what exactly that something was. Before you had time to respond however, her gaze traveled. “A quiet little outing—I didn’t expect that from you, Yami!”

The captain shifted his weight, reaching for a new cigarette and swatting at your still-floating ring, causing it to return to your finger.

The action didn’t go unnoticed, but, “Lunch is ready,” she was carrying on. “Let’s get back and eat!” And with that, she turned on her heels and started down the path with a bounce in her step.

Hesitating, you adjusted the now resting ring on your finger. The final piece of the puzzle put itself into place in your mind as Yami’s hand came down gently on your shoulder as he passed you, leaning down so his next words were heard by you only—“Next time,” he said, scratching the hairline at the back of his neck. The action drew him closer, and his next words came quieter, a rumble that shot exactly to where it shouldn’t—“There’s a place I like. I’ll take you.”

---

Despite the order of finding work, it seemed like the entire squadron was there; filling their plates high and chatting all the while, loud and boisterous—this was the Black Bulls you knew. Sitting in a circle around a rather large table, chairs and sofas had been moved to gather around; the common room transformed into a space to share a meal together. The noise was incredible, each person’s voice raised to speak over the other, seemingly in a constant loop that grew louder and louder by the second.

“Captain!” called the man with the mohawk. Magna Swing, with his gloves still on and sunglasses pushed up towards his hairline. “I saved seats for you!” He patted heartily at the loveseat beside him, nestled between him and Finral. “Come eat!”

Vanessa found a seat on the opposite end of the table—and it appeared that the only remaining place for you was right next to Yami. A bit sheepishly, you followed him into the fray and sat down. It was a bit of a tight fit—the loveseat was of average size but Yami’s bulk was anything but average. An unfortunate shift in your seat could have your thighs pressed up against each other—and following that specific line of thought, you snuck a peek sideways out of the corner of your eye.

He was silent, face once again unreadable as he filled his plate with the buffet before him. The reach of his arm going across the table towards the various foods stretched his muscles nicely, and when he pulled back, the shape of his biceps had you—

At least Finral was on the other side of you. “Welcome back,” he smiled. “You two were gone for a while.” There was a certain lit to his voice, one that brought to mind the memory of earlier in the day, when just about everyone had laid witness to the misunderstanding in front of the base.

Your face burned. “N-no! We were just talking!” You looked towards Yami but any additional input you hoped he would have provided was nonexistent—his plate now towered high with several portions worth of food. He slapped thieving hands away, the movement drawing your eyes to the ring encircling his finger. Stealing the light, it sat vivid against his skin and the scars that embedded him. A new connection; a bond formed between the two of you, the ring a symbol of your—

“We were just talking,” was your explanation. For everything. “Just walking around the woods!”

Finral gave you another smile, polite this time, and raised his glass to his lips. “Okay, okay. I won’t embarrass you.”

“Nothing to be embarrassed about,” came Yami’s voice before the overloaded plate was dropped in front of you. “Figured we’d talk in peace. Finally. What with you hogging up my new ride’s time and all.” His face was still indescribable, but the angle of his brows were curious as he locked eyes with Finral. “Couldn’t even offer a simple hello before you started portaling across the entire kingdom.”

There was a certain hardness coming from the captain. A pressure that weighed you down, leaving you sinking into the cushions as suddenly an awkwardness settled within the room; a haze that slowly drowned out every voice. Not so subtlety, conversations stilled and all eyes came to your side of the table.

Avoiding every gaze, you focused your attention on the food. There was just about everything on that plate, the entire buffet’s worth of selection spilling over each other and tumbling down the tower every so often—and a glance at Yami found him without a plate of his own. Admittedly, with so many different flavors and textures mixed together, it didn’t look very appetizing at all—but a fork was passed over to you, so you started to dig in, if only to appear that you weren’t paying attention.

Picking at the bread, you listened as Finral sputtered. “I was just doing what you asked of me!” his eyes flickered in your direction. “Come on, I’m not trying to—we still have a lot of places to mark—”

“Now you suddenly want to work.” Coming from Yami, it didn’t sound like a question.

You knew of Finral’s reputation—he was known to slack off, often found leisuring around the castletowns instead of working. You frowned, remembering that day in the alleyway. The two of you were paired up immediately, imprinting upon countless and countless of locations, so really, who’s fault was it that you were often together? Besides, Finral was working—what was wrong with that? From what you’ve heard, he was usually off flirting…

Cutting through your thoughts like a hot knife, your attention was pulled across the table towards the starry-eyed boy from before as he called out to you. The conversation happening at your side drowned out as you tried to remember the kid’s name.

“Asta!” he supplied. “From Hage Village!” You didn’t know where that was. “I didn’t get the chance to ask you before—what kind of magic do you use?”

His obliviousness to the confrontation happening literally right in front of him was a breather, causing a soft reset in the vibe at the table overall. Slowly, conversations started to pick back up and the noise level steadily grew—not to what it once was, but high enough to no longer be as obvious about the eavesdropping as before.

“It’s ring magic,” you explained, trying to concentrate. With multiple conversations happening all around you—including the one currently flying over your head—you were finding it exceedingly difficult to hear yourself. “I can do a lot of things with it, but it follows the basic functions of rings as a whole.”

Asta shoveled food into his mouth as he looked at you in awe. Without swallowing, he asked, “What’s that?”

“Communication. At least, that’s how I think of it.” You thought of playing with your mother’s jewelry box as a child, and fiddling with her rings. They were cheap things, bought on whims, but you didn’t care. They were beautiful; hers, a piece of her left with you while she worked long hours, away from home. You felt your heart start to swell at the thought of it. Inspired, you carried on. “A ring usually signifies a bond or status, so I can use them as communication or tracking devices. Opening portals is what I do the most though—it’s just so much easier to take one step as opposed to walking all the way across town.”

Suddenly solemn, your eyes lowered as you remembered: “It’s not a really desirable attribute though, since it’s so easily replaceable with actual magical items. And it’s no good in a fight.”

“What are you talking about? It sounds like you could do all sorts of cool stuff,” Asta chewed. “Besides, it doesn’t matter what other people think—aren’t you here because of your magic?”

You didn’t know what to say.

“If you want to learn how to fight, I can teach you!” A messy-haired boy spoke up from the other end of the table. You recognized him as Luck Volta; and if his reputation is anything to go by, you knew taking him up on that offer was a bad idea.

His static raising your hair already, you frantically shook your head—“No, thank you, really, I’m not good at that—”

“If you need help with your magic, you should ask Gauche!” A small girl was stuffing her face. As she paused to down her drink, you were able to catch a glimpse of her features—Charmy Pappitson. She pointed in the direction of the man in question. “He’s usually using an item, too—he could probably give you some good advice!”

Gauche Adlai was looking at a photograph in his hand, hardly touching his food at all. Monotone, he replied, “I only help my sister.”

“Focusing on one aspect of your magic isn’t necessarily a bad thing,” Vanessa sipped directly from a bottle. “You’re working on portals, right? I heard you can make a whole lot more than you used to—and it’s only been a week! You should give it a proper spin.” Before you could ask what that meant exactly, the shine in her eyes appeared again as she stood up from her seat. Circling the table quickly, she came to a stop behind you. With each arm, she pulled both Finral and Yami closer, encaging you in a huddle of sorts.

“Okay you two, I think we can all agree that Finral can take a little break,” she smiled. “Yami! Why don’t you two lovebirds go on that mission you were talking about earlier?” She shot you a wink, “The two of you are perfect for the job!”

[loosesodamarble]

Oh! If you're still doing the headcanon ask game, can I get Vanessa and Morgen please? 🥰

Of course I'm still doing the ask game! I've only just started it today in fact!

And those headcanons you ask for are here now!

.....

Vanessa Enoteca

Realistic Headcanon: Vanessa’s Red String of Fate spell is a two-way street. There’s gotta be a mutual sense of connection for the spell to protect anyone. The spell can get around the elf possessions because the souls of Vanessa’s friends are still in the bodies. But if Vanessa and a person’s bond isn’t super stable, the spell won’t work for them. Zora and Nacht would have a high risk of not being under RSoF’s protection because of the walls they keep up. Nacht is definitely worse off than Zora. While he said he was gonna live with the Bulls, he would take growing accustomed to them at a snail’s pace, and even then his connection to most Bulls would probably remain as coworkers. Even with Nacht’s history with Yami, I think Vanessa wouldn't warm up to Nacht quickly. He is an acquired taste after all. Plus (and this is a personal me thing) I don’t see Nacht and Vanessa having much chemistry. (No hate to people who imagine them with a friendship or even romance. My mind just draws a blank when imagining them interacting. 😔)

While it might cause Vanessa some grief to learn that her spell does have conditions like that making it slightly harder to protect the squad/friends she considers her “family,” I feel like conditions like that would make for an interesting test of trust. Like, imagine if an enemy tried to infiltrate and bring down the BB? But RSoF outs them as an enemy because the spell won’t protect someone who doesn’t value Vanessa as much as she values them.

Not realistic but hilarious Headcanon: Vanessa has never won a drinking contest against other Black Bulls members. Either the members are too young to drink (Noelle, Asta), they aren't interested in competing (Grey, Secre, Gordon, Henry, Nacht), they'd rather compete with food (Charmy, Luck), or they agree to the drinking contest and in her overconfidence, she drinks ahead of time and ends up dooming herself to lose (Yami, Zora, Finral, Magna). Vanessa has won countless contests elsewhere but within the squad, it just never works out in her favor. 😅

Heart-crushing and awful, but fun to inflict on friends Headcanon: Vanessa remembers how her mother looked when she smiled. When she was first put in that cage, she hoped to one day be able to do something to make her mother smile again and thought that was how she'd get her freedom. She gave up on that hope eventually. But even years later, Vanessa would like a chance to make her mother smile again.

Unrealistic, but I will disregard canon about it because I reject canon reality and substitute my own Headcanon: Vanessa's actually a talented writer and has written a few romance stories (both the innocent and not so innocent variety). None of them are very long with 30,000 being the average word count. She's managed to write one short novel per year since joining the Black Bulls (which means her writing process might actually be "write drunk, edit sober" 😆). She bases the stories on the romantic gossip from other squads that she hears about. And one might've been a self-insert fantasy with a knock-off Yami. But you didn't hear that from me.

...

Morgen Faust

Realistic Headcanon: Morgen trained himself to specialize in healing magic. His magic had a natural inclination for offensive spells. But he wanted to heal and use support spells and so he underwent intensive training to get the spells he ended up with. He wasn't without any attacks in his repertoire but he was mainly a support mage with healing, defensive, and other utility spells. Morgen is not a noble who would coast by on his naturally strong magic and just take what's given to him. He will commit himself to learn how to use magic the way he wants to.

Not realistic but hilarious Headcanon: Morgen's go-to response to anything he really didn't want to do (meet with a suitor, clean the bathroom after Yami used it, do a spicy food challenge, etc) was to go to the nearest window and jump out of it. He wouldn't say anything, but walk to the window, open it, and jump out like it was nothing. If he wanted to make it clear how opposed he was, Morgen would run and leap out the window without even opening it. It was so bad that anytime Morgen was told something people knew he wouldn't like, they'd arrange to meet him in a windowless room. (Don't worry, he'd cushion his fall with a bit of Light Magic, that or he'd make a pair of wings and fly off.)

Heart-crushing and awful, but fun to inflict on friends Headcanon: Morgen's first loyalty was always to his family. Not just Nacht. But his parents too. Even if they didn't truly love him, he loved them. Because they were his parents. They gave him life and a home and clothes. He was quietly neglected, but he was never fully cast aside and abandoned. And they loved Nacht (albeit for the wrong reasons, but they at least values Nacht) which meant that the brother Morgen cared for didn't face the kind of cold treatment that Morgen got. And when it came to the matter of devils, Morgen was more scared of his family hurting themselves rather than the illegal nature of it (hence why Morgen brought absolutely zero back-up when he confronted his family; he didn't want them arrested, just out of harm's way). Morgen loved all of his family, in a desperate and one-sided way where he could only want for their love back, but it was still a deep and honest love. Because that's the only kind of love Morgen knew how to give.

Unrealistic, but I will disregard canon about it because I reject canon reality and substitute my own Headcanon: Building off how I said Morgen was more concerned about the dangers of working with devils rather than it being illegal, Morgen would've jumped at the chance to learn about Forbidden Magic. Not so much as to use it. But he'd tear through whatever books were available and watch with deep fascination as Nacht learned to control the powers of the Bremen devils. While not a scholar, Morgen is the type to like learning new things. And knowledge about devils isn't something you come across easily. Finally, it's his family's secret practice and Morgen would want to be in on that! Screw the law, the Faust family's devil knowledge is really cool!

...

Headcanon ask game

[deltajellybean793]

How the Black Bulls react to a Love Letter - Part 2

This is Part 2 of headcanons with the Black Bulls, Part 1 here

Finral Roulacase

He's over the moon that someone even cares enough to be an admirer.

Immediately goes out of his way to send gifts to the sender and plan out a date.

Vanessa Enoteca

Probably think it's a prank and ignore it for weeks.

After awhile though and after she sobers up she'll return the gesture by taking the sender on a night out.

She might even reward them with a kiss on a cheek, because she ain't no floozy, not that kind anyway

Nacht Faust

Determines whether or not you're a good person or not.

If you aren't, he roasts the shit outta you and refuses to speak to you.

If you are, however, he'll definitely send you thank you gifts and might consider taking you out.

Gonna have to be patient though, since he ain't the biggest fan of himself.

Charmy Pappitson

Thinks the sender wants to take her on a lunch date at first.

After the meal and explanation, she gets all flustered and scurries away on her fluff cloud.

Responds to you a week later and starts sending you some home cooked treats.

Secré Swallowtail

Ignores it for a while since she isn't quite over Lumiere or used to things yet.

Sends the sender a response letter saying she's open to the idea of meeting up.

After hanging out for awhile, she slowly starts to show her true feelings to the sender.

Sender will have to show her things outside of a library for fun though

[awakefor48hours]

Magluck Week 2023 1|| Day 2 -- Soulmates

[Fanfiction.net] || [AO3]

The Threads That Bind Us

Fandom: Black Clover Relationship: Magna/Luck Characters: Magna Swing, Luck Voltia, Vanessa Enoteca, Rouge | Vanessa Enoteca's Cat Additional tags: Soulmates, magluck week 2023, no beta we see where my sleep deprived brain takes us

Summary: Vanessa can see threads of fate, she's always been interested in one connecting Magna and Luck the most. Day 2 of Magluck Week 2023 -- Soulmates Anime friendly

Day 2 of Magluck week. I could not for the life of me write for yesterday’s theme but I could for today’s theme which is soulmates.

Ever since Vanessa first summoned Rouge, she could not only control fate but she’s also able to see fate. Threads of fate to be exact. It was surprising to her at first but after observing she’s been able to understand the threads and their properties. The threads took on 4 different colors, yellow, green, red, and black, each with a different meaning. The yellow threads meant platonic bonds, green threads meant family bonds, red threads meant romantic love, and black thread meant enemies. However, these threads would only show themselves once these feelings appeared in at least one of the individuals and would glow brighter the stronger these feelings got. 

Her abilities didn’t stop there though. She learned that with interference of Rouge, she could manipulate the soulmates to get closer together. This means if Rouge touched a soulmate with a yellow thread, it could end with them spending some quality time together. 

Manipulating and changing fate is quite a powerful ability and ever since she discovered this ability. She never told anyone about this ability of hers and she did her best to avoid looking at anyone’s thread to respect their privacy. As much as she did want to respect the privacy of others, she was still only human and curiosity would get the better of her from time to time. 

There was always one thread that piqued her interest and it was Magna and Luck’s thread. She had surmised that these two were soulmates and when she first looked for their thread, she saw nothing. 

This worried her because if they didn’t have a thread then they weren’t friends nor family, leaving only two threads left, lovers or enemies. She hoped it wouldn’t be the latter but after the absence of the thread, she started to fear the worse. She loved these two and the potential of seeing them becoming enemies would sometimes keep her up at night. But she still kept this to herself, it wasn’t right to even look at their thread to begin with. 

The fight was long and hard. Luck was already a really strong fighter and the fact that his mana was increased practically made him an unstoppable juggernaut. Even though she had Rouge on her side, there were times when she thought she was going to die. Her mind was flooded with a million questions and one of them was what thread now connects Magna and Luck. She hoped that they didn't have a black thread now but these questions would go unanswered since this fight required more of her attention. Once they were all safe, Vanessa couldn’t help herself. Once Luck and Magna had stopped hugging, she finally saw it. She saw a red thread connecting Luck and Magna and she couldn’t be happier for them. Clearly Luck didn’t know how to handle these new emotions, so instead of just saying a simple thank you, he decided to kick Magna directly in the face. She wished she could've indulged in the moment more but the elves were still a problem and required her focus more. 

But for a moment, she allowed herself to feel happy at the sight of a bright red thread. 

Nearly a month after defeating Zagred, things were finally starting to calm down and Magna couldn’t be more thankful. After everything that happened, Magna knew he had to get stronger not just for another attack but to continue being Luck’s rival. He worked to get himself stronger but it wasn't good enough and Luck had gotten such a boost of power. He had to keep working to get stronger.

Originally, he was planning to just train with Luck but there was something different Luck since their fight. It was such a subtle change that he didn’t even know how to describe it. He planned to ignore this change because it was so miniscule and there was chance that he completely imagined it but after nearly a month of this, he knew he had to talk to someone about this.

The best person to talk to about Luck's weirdness and other wise strange behavior was Vanessa, so he went to go find her. Finding Vanessa was quite an easy task, she was always either at the bar or on the couch. Today she was on the couch, downing a bottle of wine by herself as usual. 

"Vanessa, can I talk you about Luck for a bit?"

That seemed to grab her attention. She put her bottle down and patted the spot next to her and said, "sure. What do you want to talk about?"

Magna sat down and took a deep breath. He was really hoping that she would take this situation seriously and not use this situation to make fun of him. "Have you noticed that Luck seems... different lately." He didn't know how else to put it. "Ever since Asta saved him from that elf, he just doesn't seem to be the same as usual, y'know."

First there was silence, then Vanessa started giggling. “Magna, you’re so dumb, don’t worry about it." She then leaned closer to him. "Luck is just going through… let’s just say certain changes and I bet he's just taking out his pent up aggressions on you.”

Why did she have to make sense? Luck was possessed by an elf with uncontrollably rage that died hundreds of years ago. Even though Luck was pretty indomitable, that would overwhelm anyone. If that was the case, what should he do about this? This was such a unique situation that Magna had no idea how to talk about this. Was it even his place to even bring this up? 

As he was thinking, he felt Rouge start to rub her head on his leg. It's not that he hated Rouge, in fact if not for her, he would've died countless times a month ago, but he just wanted a warning if she was going to do this. “Vanessa, why is Rouge climbing on me?”

Vanessa grabbed Rouge and put her next to her face so they were both now looking at him. “Because she loves you and wants you to know you’re overthinking whatever you were just thinking about.”

He sighed and then spat out an agreement. She had a point after all, when does he ever think things through to begin with? He should just go talk to Luck to see if he needs anything. It was the right thing to do.

"I'm gonna go talk to Luck."

"Yeah! That's the spirit. Be normal!" She seemed just a bit too excited for this. Almost like she did something but it's not like she would anything that would hurt Luck so he chose to ignore it. 

Magna made it to Luck's room and knocked on his door. Luck quickly opened it and now that they were face-to-face, Magna started to regret this conversation a bit.

“Luck, I know things have changed this past month but... the thing is..." One of the things Magna liked about his relationship with Luck is that they never really needed words to talk to each other. Neither of them were exactly poets and their conversations would usually turn into fights. 

“I guess I just want you to know that you can always count on me to be by your side, no matter what.” He didn’t really know what he was even talking about. When he first walked over to Luck’s room, he felt a wave of determination wash over him but that wave was long gone now. It was so random and now he felt out of place and he probably already made the situation worse just by bringing it up. If this was really bothering Luck, he could bring it up himself.

“I’m sorry, I guess this is a bit weird to you. I’ll just leave you alone.” 

He started to walk away until Luck said, “Magna wait.” Magna almost didn’t listen. He wanted to keep walking but he should listen to what Luck has to say. “Things have changed and I don’t understand them.”

That got Magna’s attention, if Luck was going through changes that he didn’t understand, it must be serious. “How have things changed?”

“Mainly, I want things to be different between us.” What did he mean by different? Maybe with this boost in mana… he didn’t want to be rivals anymore. He didn’t want that. He cared a lot about Luck. Maybe a bit too much but why wouldn’t he? Luck had been his best friend for such a long time and for that to change was the last thing he wanted. 

Magna realized he was overthinking again, he just needs to ask for clarification. “What do you mean by different?”

“Well it’s like every time I think about you, I feel strange. I'm getting more excited when I think of you. I just always want to be around you all the time and it's all been new to me. But Magna..." Was Luck describing what he think he was describing? "I think I'm falling for you."

Magna needed a moment to think about what Luck had just said to him. Luck, his best friend, just admitted to falling for him. It was almost as if he got the wind knocked out of him but once the air returned to him, Magna knew what to say back. 

"I think I'm falling for you too. In fact, I think I have been for a while now."

How was this? I don’t know. I’m not used to writing characters like Magna and Luck so this was partially an experiment. I’m open to criticism. I meant to publish this yesterday but then classes got in the way and I forgot.

You can interpret each prompt as loosely or as strict as you want. Late submissions are 100% allowed. Most importantly, have fun.

[thoughtfullyrainynightmare]

Requested by @just-a-little-fan-1793

Vanessa Enoteca

3. Love language

I think that Vanessa’s love language comes from her… being there. As in, both physically and mentally there. She doesn’t want the people she cares about to feel like they’re alone. That’s why she would just be there, listening or talking, or drinking (if that is on the order of things), but… no matter what it would be, she would be there. Part of it comes from her childhood, and being alone and isolated, not having anyone else but her dolls to talk to. So… for her it’d be to be there. She gives time and space and effort for those she cares. It’s not in any specific way that she does so either, more so she goes with what she thinks the loved ones needs; the key is that she is there. To share to highs and the lows. Lends an ear, gives advice when she can, or just is there to hold one’s hand.

6. Their characteristic song

I wish I had a better song for her, but… considering how a lot of the fates (pun intended) of her friends are dependent on her, I think that there must be a lot of doubt and wondering on her part? When will she run out of mana? Will she be able to bring forth the realities that will keep her friends alive? Who is she? What will she become, and so on. So… I propose “Will I make it out alive” by Tommee Profitt

“Am I gonna swim, am I gonna sink? Am I gonna bend, am I gonna break? Will I make it out alive? Make it out alive?”

I think that... she would have some doubts. At times. Because, as said, her friends’ lives are more often than not, dependent on her spell; ability to cheat fate.

13. Body language headcanon

When she gest defensive, really defensive about something, she stands up straight. She doesn’t cross her arms or cock her head, she stands up perfectly straight. Holds her head high and her body tenses. It’s something she did in front of her mother, and it’s something that she feels she needs to do when she’s against something that really matters to her. She’s usually flirty and casual, even if there might be something against which she stands up. Might swing her hip and make a rolling motion with her hand, and just cock her head. But when she’s serious, you get none of that.

16. Their favourite body lotion/hair care product/ etc scent

A sweet elderflower scent that is mixed with a hint of vanilla. It’s a rather compelling scent that is both light, and velvety smell with the fragrancy of something floral. A little bit of mystery combined with something familiar.

17. Unpopular headcanon

I don’t know if it’s particularly “unpopular” but maybe “unconventional”. She doesn’t like sleeping in her own room, because she’d be alone there. When she’s sleeping on the couch of the common room, there are people coming and going, which makes her feel less alone. It’s the silence she doesn’t like. Generally speaking, she doesn’t like silence, because there she can hear her loneliness. That’s why the couch seems much more appealing. She could hide in her room with her bottles, at least in the past, but it’s… too lonely, too secluded. Even after she starts drinking less, she doesn’t like the quietness of her own room. It reminds her about how it feels to be alone.

[devinheirofhera]

Location: Enotecas Open to all

Enotecas had only been open for a few weeks now and the wine/blood bar seemed to have been filled almost every night with vampires and nonvampires alike curious to see what the maenad had created. The outside was like the other buildings around it but the inside was where the magic was; Grecian columns, wine fountains, feeders half naked carrying trays of wine and blood alike and gold plated statues of dicks - a symbol of Dionysus - lined the walls. It was at one of these statutes that the owner himself was leaning against sipping from a very expensive and old pinot nior as he watched a couple start to get heated on one of the red velvet lounge chairs. Yes, Ender Malikov may have built this place for the vampires and nonvampires to play but it was also a temple to his god where desires could be sent up to him as worship. Part of him wondered if the couple even knew that their act of carnal sin was being used as worship but he didn't question it as he felt a presence slid up next to him. "I do believe those two are the first ones tonight," he said between sips nodding at the couple. "I am surprised it took this long, though now that they have started others will soon follow." That was part of the magic of this place, Ender didn't even need to use his pleasure magic to help speed things along. "Do you want a drink as we wait for the real show to begin? On the house of course..." he asked as he turned his head to see exactly who had slid up next to him.

[acacia-may]

First Christmas

Description: This year the Black Bulls are going all out for the holidays because it's their nephew's first Christmas! Charlotte may still be getting used to her chaotic new family, but she and Yami agree that it's very sweet the new "aunts and uncles" are going out of their way to make the holiday season truly special for their son.

Rating: G

Warnings: Mentions pregnancy. Otherwise, just fluff.

Fandom: Black Clover

Genre: Holiday Black Bulls Family Fluff, Domestic Fluff, Christmas Fluff, Babies, and Slice of Life. Totally self-indulgent, but I hope you will like it too.

Relationships: The major emphasis is on the Black Bulls squad as a family and secondarily some YamiChar domestic fluff & babies. Other relationships included are Rill/Charmy, Vanessa/Finral, a little bit of Asta/Noelle and Gauche/Grey are teased also mentioned.

Characters: Charlotte Roselei (POV Character), Yami Sukehiro, Charmy Pappitson, Rill Boismortier, Vanessa Enoteca, Finral Roulacase, Asta, Noelle Silva, Zora Ideale, Magna Swing, and the Black Bulls

Word Count: 3578

Link to original post on AO3. Please do not repost to another site.

Happy Holidays everyone! Story below the cut!

The Black Bulls’ hideout was as busy and bustling as Charlotte would have expected, but it was far more festive than she had ever seen it before with colorful holiday decorations in every nook and cranny. Magna had told her that he had gone on an expedition with Luck and Zora to find the biggest tree in the woods behind their base, and now that they had brought it back home, Gordon, Gauche, and Grey were busy hanging tinsel, ornaments, and strings of popcorn on all the branches. Charlotte had always known that the Black Bulls enjoyed celebrating around the holidays, but they had been super insistent on going “all out” this year since it was their nephew’s first Christmas. 

The thought brought a warm and gentle smile to Charlotte’s face. Of course, she and her husband wanted the holidays to be special for Katsu, but it was so sweet that all of his Black Bulls uncles and aunts wanted this as well. Uncle Gordon had been showing off some of the shiny ornaments to him earlier before Aunt Charmy and Uncle Rill had whisked him away for a tour of the kitchen, filled with all kinds of delicious holiday treats he wasn’t old enough to eat yet. Uncle Magna had him now and was walking him around to look at all the twinkling lights while Uncle Luck prattled on about having a snowball fight once he was old enough which, he was promptly reminded, would be a long time since Katsu was only a few months old. 

Katsu’s big, blue eyes were wide—almost mesmerized by the lights which seemed to please his Uncle Magna who had been responsible for lighting all the candles in the first place. When his Uncle Asta tried to take him, however, he started to fuss and cry, and Magna looked over at her almost helplessly.  

“Sorry, Charlotte,” he said as he handed the baby off to her. She shrugged and patted her son’s back until he calmed again, nestling into her shoulder. 

“It’s okay. He’s probably just tired.” 

“Or he wants his mom,” suggested Asta with a good-natured smile. “He looks pretty happy now.” 

Asta was right. Though Katsu still had a tear in the corner of his eye, he looked as content as could be now that she was holding him again. Yami often teased that he was sure their son was a mama’s boy. Maybe he was right about that. 

“He’s probably just tired of being passed around all the time,” huffed Noelle, and Charlotte supposed she had a point. Ever since Katsu had been born, it seemed like his Black Bulls aunts and uncles were fighting over who got to hold him. When they were all together like this, he tended to get passed around faster than even his parents could keep up with. “That’s a lot of strange people holding him.”  

“We’re not strange people,” said Asta, giving Katsu a gentle pat. “We’re his family.” 

“Noelle has a point though,” Secre interjected. “Maybe we should let Charlotte have him for a while. You can hold him afterwards.” 

Zora huffed looking up from the string of popcorn he was putting together. “Wait a second—I was next.” 

“I thought I was next…” protested Finral. “We need to write this stuff down or something.” 

“Calm down. You’re all gonna get a turn to hold him”—Yami shook his head with an almost-affection—“you knuckleheads.” He sighed before he raised his glass. “Now I’m gonna go get some more mulled wine. This is the best year yet, Vanessa.” 

Vanessa smiled. “Glad to hear it. Unfortunately, I won’t be having any.” Shrugging  her shoulders, she ran her hand across the small bump which had only recently popped out of her abdomen. “You had better be worth it,” she teased, giving her stomach a pat. 

“You can always have some next year. I’m sure it’ll be even better then,” Asta reassured her with a bright smile. 

“Unless she’s pregnant again,” quipped Charmy without even looking up from the cookies she was currently decorating with Rill.   

Vanessa rolled her eyes, but Finral choked out a shaky, “Don’t even joke about that!” 

“She’s got a point though,” quipped Yami with a lopsided, teasing grin. “You’re gonna have been married what—9 months when this brat is born? If you keep this up, you’re gonna have a whole hoard of them.” 

“You’re terrible, you know that?” huffed Vanessa though there was a playful twitch of a smile in her the corners of her mouth.

“Well I think it’s great,” chimed Rill. “Congratulations!”

“You would,” Charmy teased, playfully wiping frosting on his nose. Rill merely laughed. 

“Who knows? Maybe it’ll be you and Charmy having a baby next.” As Vanessa winked at her, Charmy wrinkled her nose. 

“We just got married a couple months ago,” she protested crossing her arms as Rill’s cheeks flushed pink. “I don’t expect that to mean anything to you but some of us actually want to wait awhile before having kids.” 

Vanessa blinked at her but sighed, rubbing her hand almost absentmindedly across her belly. “This wasn’t exactly planned, Charmy.” 

“Yeah we figured,” quipped Zora who had finished his popcorn string and was handing it off to Gordon to put on the tree.

“Even if this one was a surprise, babies are awesome,” exclaimed Asta with a bright smile. “And with two of them around we won’t have to fight over who gets to hold Katsu nearly as much.”

Vanessa ruffled his hair affectionately. “Thanks, kiddo.” She turned back to the rest of her squad mates. “I’ve decided Asta gets to hold my baby first.” 

“What about me?” asked Finral pressing his hand to his chest in a somewhat playful outrage that made Vanessa shake her head and stifle a laugh. 

“Don’t be such a goofball. Of course you’re going to hold our kid first. Then Asta and then the rest of you.” She paused before she winked at Charmy and teased, “Except Charmy, unless she starts being nicer about it.” 

Charmy huffed but bantered, “You’re the one who decided to marry Finral—we get to tease you about it.” 

“She’s got a point there, little birdie,” quipped Yami twisting his mouth to one side. 

“Hey!” protested Finral, but Vanessa just sighed. “You guys are so mean to me. You’re both married and no one ever gives you a hard time about it.” 

“That’s because Rill is wonderful”—Charmy beamed at him—“there’s nothing to give me a hard time about, and we were all waited for years for the Captain and Charlotte to get together. When they finally did, we were just so relieved that they had stopped being so dense.”

“Charmy, Rill didn’t even know who you were for how long…” bantered Vanessa. “We actually told him that you were his ‘food goddess,’ and he still didn’t get it. I don’t think you get to tease anyone for being dense.” 

“That was a mistake,” said Rill apologetically. “But I know who she is now, and we’re very happy!”

Finral patted him on the shoulder. “It’s okay. These things happen.”

“He’s still not as dense as Captain Yami,” said Zora dryly.

“Listen, I got married before any of you morons so I don’t think I’m the dense one here.” The room grew suddenly quiet as the entire squad just blinked at him. Yami frowned, as Charlotte’s cheeks flushed. She had learned pretty quickly that the Black Bulls had been waiting for her and Yami to get together for almost as long as she had, but she was still getting used to getting teased about it. “She was sending me a lot of mixed signals, okay? I was just trying to be respectful.”  

Vanessa snorted a laugh before she rolled her eyes. “They weren’t mixed signals. She was totally into you—even Magna noticed.”

“Hey, what’s that supposed to mean? I notice things!”

“We were honestly starting to get worried it was never going to happen,” teased Vanessa with a wink, completely ignoring Magna’s protests. “But you figured it out, and now you have this little one.” She turned to Charlotte with a smile, and as ran her hand across Katsu’s back, he turned to look at her with wide blue eyes that looked far older than his years. “And he’s such a cutie! Do you think he’s ready to be held again?”

Charlotte nodded as she held Katsu out to her and said, “Sure. Go ahead” to the wide-spread protestations of the rest of the squad who were promptly told to wait their turns.

Smiling brightly, Vanessa took the baby and began walking around with him to show off the decorations. “Hi Katsu. Aren’t you just the cutest little man? You look just like your dad—especially with all this messy dark hair. If only we could get him in a Christmas sweater like this.” 

Yami frowned. “Don’t even think about it.” 

Charlotte laughed, and her husband tilted his head at her. “What? It might suit you,” she said with the slightest twitch in the corners of her mouth. 

“We should all wear matching sweaters next year,” suggested Gordon. 

Gauche huffed. “We’d look ridiculous.” 

“We should have worn them this this year for Katsu’s first Christmas,” Asta interjected.  

Noelle bristled. “He’s not even going to remember this, Bakasta…”  

“But that doesn’t mean we can’t get him presents.” 

“Oh that reminds me. I have a present for you,” cooed Vanessa as she walked with Katsu over towards the tree. As she walked back with the gift, she paused. Laughing, she pointed up above her head. “Ooh, mistletoe. Do you have kisses for your Aunt Vanessa?” She chuckled and kissed Katsu’s forehead causing his little brow to furrow at her as he frowned. “Now you really look like your dad.” 

“I’ll trade you,” said Finral playfully, reaching out for Katsu. “A kiss for the baby.” 

Vanessa hummed thoughtfully. “I’m not sure that’s a fair trade,” she teased, but she gave him a quick kiss and handed Katsu off to him. 

“You guys are gross,” mumbled Gauche with a shake of his head. 

“Oh yeah…you sure you don’t want to get caught with Grey under the mistletoe?” As Vanessa winked at them, Gauche’s cheeks flushed a faint pink as Grey turned bright red, buried her face in her hands, and muttered something incoherent but unmistakably mortified. 

“Well I for one would love to get caught under the mistletoe,” declared Rill as he grabbed Charmy hand—spinning her until they were both in the perfect spot. Then, he dipped her and kissed with the kind of dramatic flourish they had come to expect from him. This earned him a prompt round of applause and laughter, especially from Charmy who was wiping frosting off her face. 

“Alright, Captain, you’re next,” Vanessa teased him. 

Charlotte’s cheeks blushed red, but Yami frowned, “Isn’t the whole point of this stupid tradition that it’s supposed to be spontaneous?”

Vanessa shrugged. “No one ever said that dragging someone over there wasn’t allowed.”

“And pushing people together is always an option,” chimed Charmy. 

Charlotte’s cheeks flushed. She had been the victim of this rule during her first Christmas with the Black Bulls when she and Yami had only been newly dating. She had never been so mortified as when his squad had teamed up on them and casually corralled them until they were basically cornered under the mistletoe. Though Yami had told off his squad for being “knuckleheads” and had insisted that they wouldn’t need to kiss because of some stupid tradition, Charlotte had said it was fine—albeit she was bright red in the face and barely managed to choke out the words. He had just barely brushed her lips, but it had earned oohs and ahhs from their companions as well as a few whoops and whistles from some of the rowdier members of the bunch. Neither before nor since had Charlotte ever seen such a concerted effort to trap two people under the mistletoe, though they still hung it up every year, if only for tradition’s sake. 

“Well with all you knuckleheads pairing off already, you don’t really need to do that this year, do you?” 

“It’s for Noelle’s benefit. Since somebody is still dragging their feet…” Vanessa winked at Noelle, and Charlotte could have sworn she glanced over in Asta’s general direction as well—though he was cheerfully oblivious to it. 

Noelle’s face flushed a deep red, and she spluttered, “Wha—what? Why? Why would you—? Take it down!” She quickly stood up from her seat and rushed over towards the mistletoe—jumping up and down and grasping at it even though she was, unfortunately, too short to reach. 

“Oh, Katsu, please don’t cry,” pleaded Finral, pulling Charlotte’s attention to the baby who was squirming and fussing in his arms. “I think he wants mom—unless he just hates me,” he added with a sheepish chuckle as he handed her son back to her. 

“I’m sure he’s just tired,” Charlotte tried to reassure him. 

“Or he needs changed,” suggested Yami taking Katsu from her with an “I’ve got it” before grabbing their bag and stepping out. 

Gauche shook his head. “You couldn’t pay me to change a baby.”

“What are you going to do when you and Grey have kids?” teased Vanessa.

“What? We’re not… um… what?” stumbled Grey burying her face in her hands. Gauche frowned, but his cheeks flushed pink.

“I’ll do it. I could be the nanny,” said Gordon excitedly.

“I can help too!” interjected Asta.

Huffing, Noelle shook her head. “Bakasta! They’ve barely even been dating. They’re not having kids right now.”

“Th—thank you,” choked a particularly red Grey.

“I’m sure they will someday, and so will you…and Asta…” As Vanessa winked at her, Noelle huffed and crossed her arms despite the beet-red color of her face and her incoherent spluttering.

“That would be great! I love babies!” said Asta with a bright, beaming smile.

“And the most dense man award goes to…” muttered Zora under his breath with a roll of his eyes.

Before Noelle could jump into more protestations, Yami appeared in the doorway with a much happier Katsu in tow. “Who wants him?” he quipped dryly to an exuberant chorus of volunteers. Eventually, Katsu was handed off to his Uncle Henry, probably on the merit of Henry not being nearly as loud or persistent as the others.

“Now that Katsu’s back, here.” Vanessa handed Charlotte a wrapped box with a pretty bow. “This is for him. He’s so little he probably won’t remember it,” she chuckled. “But I still hope he gets a good use out of it.” 

“This is so sweet. Thank you, but you really didn’t have to—” Charlotte began, but Asta cut her off. 

“Oh is Katsu going to open presents?” 

“He’s a baby. He can’t open presents, dumbbell,” Zora quipped, but he still reached for a wrapped gift under a few of the tree branches. 

“We’ve got one for him too!” exclaimed Charmy as she and Rill made a dash for the tree. Everyone else, it seemed, followed suit and started grabbing their gifts and excitedly throwing them at Charlotte and Yami to open on Katsu’s behalf. 

Yami shook his head. “More presents? You already gave us a ton of sh—” He stopped himself as Charlotte glared pointedly at him. “stuff when he was born. How many presents does he need? He’s not even gonna remember any of this.” 

“It’s his first Christmas. We had to get him presents,” Finral insisted. 

With a sigh, Yami shook his head again, but the lines of his face softened and Charlotte could tell that he was genuinely moved by the gesture. Charlotte and Yami took turns unwrapping Katsu’s presents as he was passed around by his uncles and aunts. He got two more hand-knitted sweaters from his Aunt Grey, a hand-carved wooden rattle with his name on it from his Uncle Gauche, a cute but somewhat frightening set of plush farm animals his Uncle Gordon had clearly sewn together himself, and a handmade magic knight doll from Uncle Zora.  His Uncle Magna and Uncle Luck had teamed up to get him a tiny broom that Magna had decorated himself, and Uncle Asta, Uncle Henry, and Uncle Liebe had jointly purchased multiple sets of wooden blocks: some with numbers painted on the sides, the others with letters or pictures of animals. Aunt Secre had bought him a tiny pair of shiny, leather boots, and Aunt Noelle had purchased several complete outfits including a tiny vest that Charlotte thought was particularly adorable. Uncle Nacht’s gift was an incredibly practical set of bottles and several pairs of tiny socks of varying sizes for Katsu to “grow into.” Rounding out the haul was a wool coat, a painting of him, and several empty jars with a promissory note for homemade baby food as soon as he was old enough to eat it from his Aunt Charmy and Uncle Rill, and a silver ornament in the shape of a bird, a collection of illustrated children’s books and a beautiful, hand-embroidered quilt from his Uncle Finral and Aunt Vanessa, who Charlotte was sure, must have completed all the sewing and embroidery herself. 

“Well now my son is officially spoiled,” said Yami with a lopsided grin as he folded the quilt back into its gift box.  

“We’re his uncles and aunts. That’s what we do,” Charmy insisted, and Yami chuckled with a certain softness in his eyes.

“Thanks you guys. This was real nice.”

Charlotte nodded in agreement. “Very thoughtful—thank you. Though Katsu seems more excited about the wrapping paper.” Chuckling, she glanced over at her son who was playing with a large piece of shiny paper from one of his presents as his Uncle Asta held him on his hip and swayed back and forth.  

“You look like you’re dancing,” laughed Luck.  

“Ooh that’s a good idea,” said Rill reaching out and taking Charmy’s hand.

“There’s not even any music,” she chuckled with a shake of her head as he spun her around.

“Finral, why don’t you play something for us?” suggested Vanessa, rubbing her hand across his back.

Sighing, Finral sheepishly ran his hand across the nape of his neck. “I…don’t know…” After being begged by his squad mates, however, he took a seat at the piano and began to slowly pick out a familiar carol. Charlotte’s brow furrowed, and she began to wonder if he had forgotten the tune until he slid his hand across the piano keys and began to play at a jaunty, lively tempo that was perfect for dancing, much to the delight of his laughing companions.

“Show off…” muttered Yami with a shake of his head, but the corners of his mouth with turned up into a slight smile which widened when he turned to her and held out his hand. “What do you say, Prickly Queen? If we don’t get out there and dance, they’re just going to make us like Gauche and Grey over there.”

Charlotte chuckled as she watched Gordon and Vanessa practically pushing the two together over by the tree. Meanwhile, it appeared that Charmy and Rill were trying to corner Noelle and Asta under the mistletoe. Noelle let out a squeal that reminded Charlotte a lot of herself back in the day, but Asta gave her a quick kiss on the cheek that stunned her into blushing, sheepish silence as he pulled out into the middle of the room to dance. Charlotte smiled. Maybe they were both a lot like her and her husband after all.

“Alright,” she said taking Yami’s hand with a smile. Her husband had never been much of a dancer, but he tried his best especially when they got their son back after he started fussing for his Aunt Secre. Katsu seemed to like the swaying motion of dancing, and he soon nestled into his father’s shoulder and began to drift off though Charlotte wasn’t sure how he could even think about sleeping with all that music in the background.

“You’re under the mistletoe!” Vanessa’s teasing voice pulled Charlotte out of her thoughts. Her brow furrowed as she looked around the room, wondering who she was talking about. A blush filled her cheeks as Yami twisted his mouth to one side pointing above their heads. He smiled at her; then at their son before he kissed the top of Katsu’s head; then he leaned in and gave her a gentle kiss to the—albeit quiet—applause of their companions…no, their family who had made this a wonderful holiday.

Charlotte was suddenly struck by a warm feeling radiating in her chest at the thought. Somewhere along the way Yami’s chaotic knuckleheads, as he would probably call them, had become her family too and now were an amazing group of aunts and uncles to Katsu. As Yami met her eyes and smiled at her, she knew he must be thinking the same thing. Sure, the Black Bulls were all a little zany and quirky and more than a little chaotic, but looking around at them now, it was so clear that they cared and that was what mattered—to Yami, to her, and to their son who had just been given the best first Christmas thanks to them. A smile tugged at Charlotte’s mouth. She hoped the holidays to come would be just like this one.  

[the-black-bulls]

Hi there, friend! 😊 I hope you're doing well! You always find the most fun and interesting games! I'm really curious about your opinions so I hope it's okay if I send in a couple of characters for your character ask game. Please don't feel like you have to answer all of these if it's too much, but could you please answer: 2, 10, and 24 for Vanessa, 21, 25 and 26 for Finral, and 5, 16, and 22 for Charmy! Thank you so much!!💕

Send a character and a number/several numbers, and i'll answer:

yo! I'm doing amazing, thank you for the nice words! vanessa, finral and charmy are one of my favorite trios and I'd love to talk more about them! I'll save finral for another ask and tag you, if you don't mind, since he's been requested to me twice 👍

Vanessa:

2. When I think I truly started to like them (or dislike them, if you've sent me a character I don't like)

the second I learned she was a full-blown witch I became a fan of her instantly because who doesn't love witches? however like many other black bulls I only started to love her in the underwater arc specifically when she stepped up to help asta and noelle against vetto, back then I told myself: "she's definitly the vice captain!!"

10. Describe the character in one sentence

red thread of love personified into a family-loving drunkard!

24. What do you think is a secret they have that they never told anyone?

no-no-no, no secrets at all, vanessa is an open book and doesn't shy away from sharing her secrets to the squad, be it the silly ones or the serious ones or the depressing ones... okay, so maybe that's a result of her excessive drinking, but keeping secrets in general makes her feel like choking and all nervous, and vanessa enoteca has enough claustrophobia in her bones to deal with as it is.

however she doesn't just share her secrets to anybody, she tends to be more talkative and honest with few members depending on how serious the secret in question is.

Charmy:

5. My favorite ship of them:

I'm very torn between charmy/yuno and charmy/rill, I love both ships for different reasons and I'd rather roll all three of them into one poly-ship than pick one over the other (also charmy/harem rules!)

16. A childhood headcanon

I'm a firm believer in the feral child charmy theory and I want you all to consider the headcanon of yami braiding her hair into what will be her iconic hairstyle :D (everyone shuts up and look at this!)

22. When do you think they were at their lowest?

I wouldn't say it's her lowest, but learning that she's a half dwarf with a monster wolf living inside her grimoire all of sudden has thrown her into a fit of existence crisis... and because charmy overracts to many, many things, the squad didn't take her seriously, all except for asta who helped her to get over this phase because he's also a far cry from your normal human being and has a freaking devil inside his grimoire.

[funky-sea-cryptid]

go apeshit!

TRAP CARD!!!! YOU HAVE ACTIVATED HYPERFIXATION TRAP CARD!!!!

it's all gonna be beneath the cut so i dont clog your dash

black clover time!! the protagonists are asta and yuno, who are fifteen year olds from a place affectionately called the boonies and officially called the forsaken realm because they're poor as shit. they're both orphans, both raised at the same orphanage under the care of father orsi and sister lily, they share a birthday they have an incredibly homoerotic relationship that depends on their rivalry to become the wizard king which is like. the head of the magical clover kingdom law enforcement, the magic knights.

the wizard king position actually has a fair bit of lore behind it. five hundred years before the start of the story, a demon was rampaging around the clover kingdom and it was so powerful that people were like "this is it this is the end :(" until the first wizard king defeated the demon and now its bones hang out in the forsaken realm.

the difference between yuno and asta however, is yuno is dripping with god sauce mana to the point where he gets a legendary four-leaf grimoire and asta uh.

area man has no mana. he's beefed up but beef means nothing when he has no mana no grimoire and everyone's like "well now you can't be the wizard king" except against all odds asta does recieve a grimoire, albeit like a few hours later. and this one has five leaves. which is where the devil lives. asta has officially become Bearer Of The Curse, and now owns fuckoff awesome swords coated in this shit called antimagic which nullifies magic obviously courtesy of the devil hiding out in his grimoire. demons and devils are different things btw jot that down.

anyways asta and yuno head out to do the magic knights exam and join one of the squads. yuno, because he's fucking doused in god sauce, gets into the best magic knights squad, the golden dawn, lead by prettyboy extrordinare william vangeance, while asta gets into the worst squad known to man, the black bulls, lead by man of all time yami sukehiro.

members of the black bulls include: yami sukehiro (legend with dark magic who's from a place called hino), asta (none mana left beef), noelle silva (water magic, owns 90% of the money), charmy pappitson (cotton magic and food magic because she's an eldritch deity, eats whatever she can get her hands on), luck voltia (lightning magic, tends to get into fights a lot but he's skrunkly so it's okay), magna swing (fire magic, luck's homoerotic rival, has the best aesthetic), finral roulacase (spatial (portal) magic, no attack spells, whiny lesbian), vanessa enoteca (thread magic, witch, her gender is alcoholism), gauche adlai (mirror magic, crippling older sibling complex), grey (shape changing magic (?), gender, god i wish they were me), and gordon (poison magic, he's really sweet but he looks creepy and everyone's scared of him which makes me so so sad), nero (bird). there are four other members but they're introduced later in the series.

asta and the black bulls have a giant found family arc and it means the world to me tbh <3. also the current wizard king, julius, is mega autistic coded and i love him.

in the first arc of the series the main antagonists are the nobility (sort of) and this cult called the eye of the midnight sun, lead by a guy called licht (who has the FUNNIEST TWIST KNOWN TO MAN) and the third eye, vetto, fana, and rhya. their goal initially is like. fuck the nobility (based) and they're gathering these magic rocks by any means necessary to redistribute the mana (also based). so the magic knights are out trying to stop these hoes from getting the rocks with varying degrees of success.

along the way, vetto and fana are blown up which is devastating to me, a third eye enjoyer. vanessa revisits her old trauma, asta gets both his arms broken and proceeds to "fuck it we ball" all over the clover kingdom until vanessa fixes them, there's a competition to become the "royal knights" in which finral is smote into oblivion by his half brother bc of langris vaude's intense superiority complex. but you know, asta claps him into oblivion which is very fun. introducing my best friend zora ideale to the black bulls roster. the royal knights head over to fuck up what remains of the eye of the midnight sun and what follows are successively the funniest twists known to man.

william vangeance rolls up to julius and he's like "julius :) thank you so much :) for being kind to me as a child :) i love you so much. however" and he takes off his mask to reveal: it's licht. william has been helping the enemy the entire time. licht loses his entire shit when julius refuses to die but eventually kills him. he goes back to his cult and kills all of them because it turns out him and the third eye are reincarnated elves and they HATE humanity. homie forcefed his cult the koolaid, reincarnated the rest of the elves, including....the actual licht. YEP. THIS IDIOT ISNT EVEN THE ACTUAL LICHT. TURNS OUT HE IS JUST SOME KID. HIS NAME'S PATRI AND HE WAS FIFTEEN WHEN HE DIED. vetto and fana come back btw this is important to me.

shenanigans ensue, the elves fuck around, turns out another devil manipulated everyone oh and remember the wizard king thing? 500 years, the demon, yeah uh the demon was actual!licht after the elves were all fucking murdered by clover kingdom nobility and the actual licht was married to mr 1st wizard king's sister, tetia. the devil who caused all this, zagred, has been manipulating patri's incredibly just anger at being fucking murdered and turns him into a dark elf and steals his fucking grimoire rip baby you did your best. asta undarkelfs him and they all fuck up zagred with the help of actual licht and the first wizard king who's brought into this with the magic rocks. also his assistant secre who has been nero the entire time. bird girl i love youuuuuu. the elves mostly get exorcised sans patri, rhya, vetto, and fana my beloveds. william gets really gay about the elf sharing his body. julius is back from the dead but he's 13 now?

also henry legolant enters the black bulls roster he's been living in the house and he eats mana. wonderful little man.

some guy named damnatio is like "devils bad" for obvious reasons but he goes about this by trying to kill asta and secre bc devilisms and almost murders a child for some bullshit. the black bulls get exiled to learn about devils more? very fun. they go into the heart kingdom, they have more found family shenanigans. secre's a member now. then these hoes known as the dark triad step up. the dark triad are. well. spade royalty (they got here by ursurping the grinberryalls, the actual spade royal family)

i mean. they're real fucked up. devil contracted hoes, all siblings in the zogratis family. dante (body magic, contracted to lucifero, giving him gravity magic too), vanica (blood magic, contracted to megicula, giving her curse magic), and zenon (bone magic, contracted to beelzebub, giving him spatial magic). they invade the heart kingdom to get princess lolopechka and open the gates of hell so now the magic knights have to stop them. yami and william get kidnapped because their specific magical attributes can open the gates of hell.

enter the final member. vice-captain nacht faust. contracted to four devils, and so SO mentally ill he's like "hey you wanna help right?" and asta's like "yeah" and nacht's like "alright time to do illegal shit" and asta meets his grimoire devil, liebe, and they become besties in spite of nacht's insistence they need to Not. anyways spade raid happens, the gates of hell are opened, devils everywhere, dark triad all gets fucked up by some epic meat fistery. nacht continuously gets folded on his quest to save his husband who he loathes. asta claps the supreme devil directly into hell and all is well.

WRONG.

remember juilus? well. he's just turned into the fourth zogratis sibling, lucius, and now he's calling himself god and a year after devil shit he turns a nun into a paladin (host of a purified devil spirit) rip sister lily, and then claps asta out of the sky and he's presumed dead.

asta wakes up in hino and meets yami's sister ichika hi ichika who's like "my brother sukehiro KILLED OUR FAMILY" and asta's like ">:( leave my captain alone" and he's training to get stronger so he can clap lucius back so hard he hopefully dies. the paladins roll up to hino to fuck shit up and asta unpaladins sister lily and that's as far as the manga is up to.

[wildflowerwoodsworld]

You have so many interesting wips! And the crossovers too 👀

I am quite intrigued by the Clover Civil War AU, Spade gone wrong, and Captain Challenge... if you wish to elaborate! 🫡

I have too many ideas. Is it a blessing or a curse? Not a clue!

Crossovers are both incredibly fun and really timeconsuiming bc I like to be accurate with things (see the table of maths I did to work out wingspans for the wings au) so it generally means a lot of deepdiving into wikis.

The Clover Civil War au is, well, to be fair, calling it a Clover civil war is a bit of a misnomer. It's more Dante took over as Wizard King and now the general people (plus a couple of the captains who aren't captains) are rebelling. Of course, nearly all of the sitting captains want to help, but if they step out of line Dante will let Vanica brutally murder all of their squad and make them watch so, uh, they're toeing the line.

Spade Gone Wrong was the idea that, instead of kidnapping Yami and William seperately, the Dark Triad attack a Captain's meeting about a month earlier than expected and everything goes to shit from there.

As for the Captain Challenge, I actually have the opening of it written. Though, it is a pretty old peice and would need rewriting before I posted the actual fic. If I ever get around to finishing it.

"They're waking up," Charlotte called as the two figures on the screen finally started moving. It was supposed to be a standard test, she and her fellow captains were supposed to be watching Yami go through some challenges to prove that he was still fit to be a captain. Instead, two of the Bulls had got caught up in the transportation spell and were in the maze instead of Yami.

Finral Roulacase. First Class Junior. Spatial Magic.

Vanessa Enoteca. Third Class Junior. Thread Magic. Witch.

They likely didn't stand a chance in the maze, but Yami's squad had a history of surprising people, especially those two. Two thirds of Yami's infamous 'disaster trio'.

"Hey, Vanessa," Finral finally spoke, sitting up as he looked around the room. "I think we've been kidnapped." Vanessa groaned.

"Again?" she threw an arm over her eyes. "Captain's gonna killed us." Finral pulled a face.

"No. He won't kill us. He'll just make us wish we were dead." assuming that they had been kidnapped was a fairly logical conclusion, Charlotte had to admit, but to jump to worrying about how their captain would react rather than worrying about their potential kidnappers was- strange, to say the least. And, if she didn't know better, would paint some very unflattering implications about how Yami ran his squad.

"How is that any better?" Vanessa demanded. The two spent another few minutes on the floor before Vanessa pushed herself to her feet, sighing. "Well, either way, we should probably figure out how we're going to get out of here. We both know Captain's only going to be more annoyed if he has to come and get us. Again."

"Yeah," Finral agreed. "there's just one minor complication we need to consider."

"And that is?"

"My long range portals aren't working."

"What do you mean, they aren't working?"

"I mean, my long range portals aren't working. There's a barrier around this place that I can't break through."

"I thought that was impossible."

"Well, clearly it is possible." Vanessa groaned.

"Captain is going to kill us!"

"I have to ask, Yami," Dorothy, who was actually awake for once, said. "how many times have members of your squad been kidnapped?" whilst the rest of them were gathered around the screen, Yami was in the corner, blindfolded and with his back to the rest of them. The reasoning was so that he couldn't see his challenges ahead of time and cheat, but Charlotte was sure Nozel just wanted revenge for all the times Yami had embarrassed him.

"Depends on the idiot, but I generally end up having to save those two pretty regularly."

"Why them?" Rill asked, and it was things like that that reminded Charlotte just how young the Aqua Deer's Captain was.

"Their magic. Why else?"

"And you keep letting it happen?" Nozel scoffed. "Some Captain you are."

"I'd like to see you corral my idiots, especially those two, for any great length of time."

"Hey," Charlotte's attention was drawn back to the screen as Vanessa spoke again. "there's a door here. Captain can't be mad at us if we bust out before he even realises we're gone. We can just say we went to town or something."

"'Nessa, I love you, but there's no way Yami doesn't know we're gone. We were literally right in front of him." Finral said, wandering over and staring at the door.

"Shit, we were, weren't we? Hey, think we can use it as an excuse to get out of physical training? That stuff's brutal."

"You try that and Yami'll just say that it's another reason why we need to do it. I have no desire to do more because you wanted to get out of the thankfully small amount we actually have to do."

"You- you have to do the least!"

"It's called knowing when training's coming up and getting the hell out of there. Hardly my fault you can't portal."

"Oh, and here I thought it was your alternative methods of persuasion."

"Actually, that doesn't work anywhere near as well as you'd think it does. Yami's surprisingly hard to bribe."

"Wait, seriously? Then why the hell do you portal him everywhere and do the paperwork if not bribes?"

"It's called making a deal that's overall in my benifit-"

"It's called you being a pushover is what it's called."

"It's called knowing what the training plans are in advance and working out how to avoid them actually."

"Wait, you can figure that out from the paperwork?"

"Yeah. Yami has to get permission if he wants to do something that'll take us out of action for a while."

"Huh."

"Anyway, we're getting off topic. There's a door. How the hell do we open it?" Finral gestured to the large door next to them. "Dunno if you missed this little fact, but there's no keyhole. Which means we can't just pick the lock."

"Damnit. There aren't any hinges on this side of the door either, are there? No. Of course not. Because that would be too easy," Vanessa paused for a moment. "hey, are you sure this isn't some training exercise Captain thought up as punishment for dodging so many of his other ones?"

"No."

"You sound certain."

"There's no obvious time limit. If it was Yami, there'd be death spikes on a slowly lowering ceiling or something because he's a sadist."

"You'd know, wouldn't you?"

"Oh, shut up and help me find a way out of here!"

[zetexa]

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[loosesodamarble]

Ooo for the cozy ask game again; 5, 6, 20, and 22 for…Selen and Cynthia please Erika 🥰?

Aaaawwww! Asking about father and daughter! Thank you Lyra!

……….

Selen Nymvire

5) It's cold and wet outside, your OC has just come in the front door. What do they do to get warm?

First off, Selen is shaking himself down like a drenched dog (regardless of if he’s in an animal form or not). The man probably always forgets to carry a jacket or umbrella and thus is cursed to always get soaked on a rainy day.

Once he’s shaken himself down, he’s grabbing himself a towel (or two), stripping down, and drying up the remaining water. Once that’s done, Selen takes his wrapped up self to the nearest cushion and just blacking out. He’ll do enough work to get out of wet clothes but he’s just lazy enough not to put on new clothes or start a fire.

6) What's your OC's idea of a cozy night in?

A night in for Selen is kinda also a night out? He goes outside, to the roof of whatever house he lives in, to sleep under the stars. The cool night air and the faint light from above is comforting to Selen.

20) Do they hog the blankets?

Not really. Selen’s body runs warm so he’s usually kicking blankets off of him. He’s a pillow hogger though. He likes wrapping himself around other stuff for whatever reason. (Btw, I can imagine that when Cynthia was little and slept beside Selen, he'd end up squeezing her in his sleep because she's small and the perfect size hugging size. Just a little father-daughter bonding...)

22) How would they solve the one bed and two people scenario? Could they share a bed?

Selen is a little cheater. He’d transform into an animal and just curl up on the floor (yes, Selen can maintain a transformation while asleep). He’s perfectly content like that since the animal body is built for that. He’s only really ever shared a bed with his family, Magna, and Vanessa and gets awkward about it with anyone else.

…..

Cynthia Enoteca

5) It's cold and wet outside, your OC has just come in the front door. What do they do to get warm?

Hot shower is the first thing on her mind. She doesn't mind being wet, it's really the cold factor of being cold and wet that gets to her. So she'll rinse off with a hot shower. She'll then dress warm and finish drying off in front of a fire. It's a process for Cynthia.

6) What's your OC's idea of a cozy night in?

Cynthia would construct herself a blanket and pillow fort and get comfy in there. She'd have a mug of tea to drink and a notebook to write or doodle in. She could also bring along her arts and crafts kit if she really wants to get creative in her fort. For Cynthia, being cozy is being hidden away from the world, tucked in a warm space where she can let her thoughts wander and maybe create something.

20) Do they hog the blankets?

Unlike her dad, Cynthia runs cold. So she will in fact hog the blankets on the couch or bed when she's settling down, just to sit or to nap or sleep. Even when she's sound asleep, she'll find a way to drag blankets to her and securely wrap them around her body like she's a burrito.

Cynthia has joked that "it's not my fault that all the fabric gets drawn to me. That's my magic, y'know?" Very silly but that's what she's said in the past.

22) How would they solve the one bed and two people scenario? Could they share a bed?

Cynthia is fine with sharing a bed with another person. She's done it with her parents as a child and when she babysits Jesse, they cuddle up too. With someone she's friends with or at least knows well, she's perfectly fine sharing a bed. She'll just be careful not to sleep too close, depending on their person's boundaries. Cynthia would, understandably, be hesitant to do it with a complete stranger.

If needed, Cynthia would use a bit of her Fabric Magic to create a curtain barrier of some kind with some kind of ability that will keep her and the bed partner from getting too close. But that would only be possible once Cynthia is older and stronger and able to cast spells that remain in effect even while she's sleeping.