#The center is moving locations so I was helping pack the stuff up

[cassandralexxx]

I volunteered at my local pride community center today and I really liked being there :)

I love interacting with queer ppl irl

[bluestar22x]

Serenity

Pairing: Frankie Morales x F!Reader

Summary: You take Frankie out on your boat for a weekend vacation, hoping to introduce him to an old friend

Rating: 18+ (to be safe)

Word Count: 1,450(ish)

Warnings: None really, except like one swear word and a mention of drugs and death (canon stuff). This is just a quick fic of a lovely couple and some beautiful animals.

Author’s Note: This is for Jamie's Ocean Challenge @mermaidgirl30

xxx

"I was so sure they'd be here," you said, nibbling on your lip out of concern. "Maybe something happened to them."

Your boyfriend, Frankie Morales, glanced at your face, and upon seeing the distress in your features rubbed your arms reassuringly. "Hey, hey, let's not go to the worst case scenario. There's many reasons why the pack wouldn't be here. You told me once that if fish get scarce they move, so maybe they're just further out now."

"Pod."

He blinked at you, confused. "Huh?"

"A group of dolphins is called a pod," you informed him.

He licked his lips. "Okay. I'll try to remember that, if you try to forget about the worse case scenarios that are popping into your head as we speak."

He knew you too well. You sighed loudly and plopped yourself down in the captain's chair of your smallish but still fairly well decked out cabin cruiser that you'd named Ocean Baby the day you'd purchased her. "It's not just that. I was really hoping you could meet Serenity. She's not as young as she used to be."

Serenity was a bottlenosed dolphin that you had helped treat after she'd beached herself on the Miami coast eleven years ago - during your early days as a budding marine biologist. She'd been brought to a marine rescue center for treatment and rehab, being released back into the wild with her pod nearly half a year later. It had been your job to make sure she ate as she got her antibiotic treatments and gained back her strength and you'd formed a bond that still carried on after her release.

A few times a year you took your boat out to check in on Serenity and her pod and every time you did you found them around the same location, even after she became the matriarch.

She was now around forty years old and while many dolphins could live to sixty, she was getting up there for an average member of her species. You really wanted Frankie to see her before it was too late and you feared it already was.

Why else would the pod move away from this part of the ocean after staying there for over a decade? There had to be a new leader.

"I already know her," Frankie said softly, approaching to brush one of his thick, warm thumbs over your chin in a fond manner. "You've told me her story in such detail, I could picture it in all in my head, baby."

You had the urge to argue with him, insist it wasn't the same, but you let it go. It wasn't worth it. Not even you could make the pod appear on command and that was a good thing.

You nodded and Frankie gave you a quick peck on the cheek before leading you down into the belly of your boat, towards the kitchen.

"Want dinner?" he inquired.

You smirked at him. "You cookin'?"

"I've been told I make a mean PB and J," he replied and you burst out laughing.

"Okay, you've sold me. Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches it is."

x

After dinner you stretched out on the deck of your boat and you did your best to live in the moment, closing your eyes to listen to the gentle waves of the ocean, the calls of distant seabirds, and Frankie's steady breathing as he also lazed around on the deck, shoulder to shoulder with you.

It was nice, and it was exactly why you needed to push aside your concerns for Serenity and her pod. This was supposed to be a peaceful weekend getaway for you both; a couple of days out at sea to get your mind off of the pressures that came with both your jobs and the expectations everyone had of you both.

Out on the ocean together you could just be yourselves. Just relax and enjoy each other's company.

You sucked in a deep, relaxed breath of salty ocean water smelling air, trying to lock it into your memory for keepsakes.

You didn't want to ruin this for Frankie, especially after all the shit he'd been through in the past. The military, the PTSD, the drugs, the loss of one of his closest friends. This was the first real vacation he'd gotten in a while.

You didn't know you'd dozed off until you felt someone shaking you awake, their strong hands gripping your shoulders tightly but not too tightly, their soothing voice drawing you back to the world around you, calling out your name quietly but urgently.

"Frankie?" you questioned, worried.

"You need to see this," he told you, helping you to your feet and ambling over to the front of the boat. "Look!"

You starred out at the ocean ahead, at the sun that had begun to lower in the sky and at the water below.

You lit up immediately when you saw them. Several grey dorsal fins that definitely weren't shark ones - they were way too curved.

The bottlenosed dolphins they belonged to breached their heads briefly from the water before arching back down underneath the surface completely.

At first you couldn't confirm if the three were from Serenity's pod or not. They were too far off and most didn't have major distinguishing features except mild scars, but they soon resurfaced again, with four others in tow before dipping back down again.

They slowly got closer and closer with every resurfacing, more and more of their pod members joining them as they did so, until their numbers reached into the twenties.

You beamed and pointed out one very recognizable cow to Frankie. "See that one with the thick white scar on her dorsal fin? That's Honor, Serenity's last calf. She's eight years old. Looks like she had her first calf this year."

You could see the much smaller dorsal fin beside her before they got lost in the crowd.

A lot of the cows in the pod had calves glued to their side and you wrapped your arms around Frankie's waist as you peered down to see some of the mother and calf pairs swimming around the bow of your boat, a mere few feet out of reach.

They were as beautiful as ever. Their sleek grey bodies gracefully moving through the ocean tides, making it look as easy as breathing. You never got tired of watching them.

"So this is Serenity's pod," Frankie surmised.

You nodded. "At least I know they're okay now."

You couldn't see Serenity anywhere. Maybe she'd gotten hurt or simply died of an old age disease. There was a lot that could have happened to her and you'd never know. That was the way of nature. As beautiful as it was, it was harsh.

But so was life in general. Most people had traded nature for modern living, but that came with its own trials and tribulations. You and Frankie knew this all too well.

"No Serenity?" he asked, voice gentle.

You were in the middle of shaking your head when you heard a sharp whistle from the far right side of the boat. Your heart banged against your chest as a rush of relief flooded you.

You knew that whistle.

You pulled Frankie in the direction of the sound and sure enough, just below the rails Serenity was rolling around in the water, clearly as overjoyed to see you as you were to see her.

Frankie glanced between you and the lively creature. "Serenity?"

You nodded, grinning ear to ear. "Even if she'd acted like she didn't know me, I could tell by the random scarring on her."

"She got those from a fight with another dolphin at some point," Frankie recalled.

"Yeah, before she got beached. Years before, likely." You'd have smiled harder if it was possible. Frankie really had been listening.

You whistled back to Serenity, a unique sound you considered to be a secret handshake of sorts between you two, her way of identifying you when you were out of sight, and she bobbed her head up and down making an eeee noise that her species tended to make when happy.

You chuckled. "I missed you too, girl."

"Nice to meet you," Frankie said casually, waving at her and you spontaneously turned to him and pressed your lips against his, knocking the heating oil cap he almost always wore off his head by accident, revealing the thick curly hair underneath that you gladly sunk your fingers into.

He was caught off guard but soon was deepening the kiss, passionately melding his mouth to yours over and over.

When you pulled away panting, he grinned at you. "What was that for?"

You embraced him, throwing your arms around his neck. "For always listening. For always caring about what I care about. For caring about me."

He nuzzled his nose against your cheek, his mustache grazing your delicate skin. "You make it easy, hermosa."

xxx

Tagged: @harriedandharassed

xxx

Main Masterlist

xxx

[lollytea]

You said that asks may help you formulate your au thoughts and prompt you to talk about it so if it helps- I'm very curious about the cliffhanger the last lore dump left us on, re: Luz! Very curious to see how she fits into all of this. Sidenote about hunters deal: is Belos like. A stagemom in this au? A stage uncle? Highly entertaining if so. Demoted in power but still just as evil

Hmm!! Yeah I think it would absolutely be easier to drop info about the AU in little bits at a time depending on what questions I get. I've already thought about almost everybody in this AU and where they're situated but I guess I was getting overwhelmed with thinking about writing it all down at once.

Anyways!! Miss Luz Noceda!!

In this universe, the "fancy hospital" was located in California so Luz and her parents packed up and moved from Conneticut when she was a little kid. Her Dad Manny spent a few years drifting away, slowly at first, and then all at once. And Luz, a girl who's already a bright and imaginative storyteller, falls deeply in love with the fantasy book he left her.

What begins as a healthy coping mechanism devolves into escapism as Luz desperately clings to fiction in order to endure the difficulty of real life. School is hard, making friends is hard and nobody really understands her hobbies and passions, not even her mom (Even if she tries. She tries so hard.)

Living on the outskirts of the world of showbusiness, Luz quickly takes an interest in the magic of the screen. More than anything else, Luz wants to create. And creation comes in many forms and she has no intention of being confined to just one. Luz wants to be an actor, a writer, a director, an artist, an animator, a singer, a dancer, etc etc.

It's when her mom Camila finally puts her foot down and insists that Luz needs to learn to separate fantasy from reality, that her life really kicks off.

The Reality Check Center, an after school program which Luz is meant to attend every week day at 3:30pm sharp.

But after meeting somebody special, this is not where Luz goes every day after school.

Instead, Luz is hanging out in the house of Edalyn Clawthorne, an ex-starlet who Luz recognized on sight as Hecate in the 1980s Azura film adaption.

It's always been a mystery why Eda did not reprise her role for any of the sequels/spinoffs that Hollywood churned out for years afterwards. But upon meeting her and learning a little more of her story, Luz learns the truth from behind the scenes.

Eda has a chronic autoimmune disease and she was considered too "inconvenient" to have as a star of the franchise, so she was quietly let go after the first film released. She hasn't acted since and really has no intention of returning to that life.

Luz idolizes Eda and quickly latches on to her, demanding that she be her mentor and show her the ropes of showbiz. Eda hems and haws for a while before being worn down by Luz's persistent enthusiasm.

Luz meets Willow when the latter is trying to talk herself out of having a complete meltdown and the two quickly bond over being a pair of neurodivergent academically and socially challenged silly billies.

Willow is weak for pretty girls so she lets Luz talk her into sneaking her on set. Predictably, Luz causes havoc and gets banned from the premises within a few hours.

But that's okay! Because guess what! Turns out Luz is a perfect third musketeer for the funky little friend group Willow and Gus already had going on.

Luz does tons of stuff. She writes fanfiction. She has several notebooks full of anime art. But most notably, she has a YouTube channel.

Remember mid 2000s YouTube? Before it became the corporate husk that it is today? Back when it was just kids dicking around and posting their dumb silly vlogs.

Thats what Luz does. She posts dumb silly vlogs. She infodumps to the camera about her interests, she films herself while she's out with her friends. She just has fun, yknow?

Willow and Gus have fun too. Considering they are featured in like 90% of Luz's videos, laughing and joking around with her. But thats not all they do.

Willow, who has spent several months being the butt of the joke in the the Hexside show, is experiencing what it's like to be behind a camera while being respected and loved.

Willow is an exceptionally talented rollerskater. So of course Luz is filming her do tricks around the skatepark, whooping and hollering and chanting her name. Willow has a huge interest in botany. And superhero comics. And photography. And romcoms. And Luz will let her share fun facts about her interests, or maybe even babble for a bit, and Luz will act as though she's privileged to speak to a professor of the subject. It makes Willow blush and giggle, pretending it's not a big deal.

It's a huge deal actually.

It's through Luz's vlogs that Willow's authentic personality finally bleeds through the screen. Willow Park is not Paulina. She's not ditzy. She's not unobservant. She's something else entirely.

Willow Park is soft spoken but opinionated. She is witty and expressive. She's tough and sporty. She's wise beyond her years. She's wild and mischievous. She's sweet and silly. She's so many things that she'll make your head spin.

The scripts of the final Hexside S1 episodes are beginning to trickle out around this time and honestly? The writers are sick of Paulina. They're tired of the character. They're tired of the "She's stupid" joke. They feel like they've hit a brick wall with her, in a creative sense. But now they have Season 2 to work on and...ugghhh...

That's when one writer just happens to stumble across TheGoodWitchLuzura on YouTube and finds two young actors that they know very well, just existing outside of the set.

Willow is different on Luz's videos. While on set around the likes of Amity and Adrian, she simply keeps quiet, keeps her head down and does what she's told. She doesn't really spark any inspiration, yknow?

But after seeing this? This bright, sharp witted, skater girl on a griny camera recording? Well after seeing that, they really start feeling the urge to maybe spruce up Paulina's character a bit. Make her a little more compelling.

So, in that way, Luz Noceda completely changed Willow Park's life.

Willow still doesn't think she believes in God but if angels exist, Luz is definitely one of them.

If you said this to Luz, she'd disagree. She'd prefer to be a Demon >:3

________

ANYWAY!! On to the Belos question.

See, I think I'm going to take inspiration from the show's canon version of the Wittebane family as an endless cycle of pain and suffering.

Philip and Caleb Wittebane were a pair of orphan boys that managed to somehow weasel their way into the spotlight at an early age. It fed them well. It kept a roof over their heads. So that meant that this was a nice life, right?

The two brothers were considered timeless stars and their names would go down in history as some of Hollywood's finest.

In the year 1990, Caleb Wittebane was found dead in his home at the age of 30. Based on the evidence, it appeared he had taken his own life.

Philip was then given custody of his brother's infant son and promised that the boy would be raised to understand just what a wondrous legacy his father left behind.

Caleb Wittebane may have been buried 6ft under but Philip had no intention of letting him die. His DNA was still preserved, attached to this fat clump of an infant.

This baby was Caleb's second chance to live. Philip was going to make sure his stupid brother made the right choices this time.

Caleb wasn't going to throw it all away this time. Philip wouldn't let him.

[iamvegorott]

Ink Month 2023 Day 11

Playground

“Humans gave up on this location long ago,” Dark explained as he jumped up on a merry-go-round. His long fur settled as he sat in the center. Anti followed, holding Robbie by the scruff in his mouth. He sat the small raccoon kit between his front paws.  

“So you just took over?” Anti asked.

“Humans are so wasteful. They never see how to take full advantage of what they have. So, yes, we took over to ensure we all have our own place while still staying within our pack.” Dark held his head up and puffed his chest with pride. 

“You look like you enjoy bossing others around too much.” Anti scoffed. 

“I maintain the peace. We are all happy, well-fed, and we have no fear of others hurting us.” Dark glanced down at Robbie. “Or our young.” Anti softly hissed without a thought, moving a leg to cover Robbie from Dark’s gaze. “I offer our home to you because of him. Yes, he is a raccoon, which is odd, even amongst our group and connections, but he is innocent. He can be raised, trained, and help our pack grow more.” 

“Then why have me here if you only care about the kit?” Anti asked, not moving his arm and shoulders still hunched defensively. 

“Because you would kill me if I tried taking him away from you,” Dark stated. “You made that promise to his dying mother, and I will not take that away from you or her.” 

“You saw?” Anti’s shoulders went down, as did his ears. 

“I did. And I saw the fight you got into afterward. That cat was nearly twice your size, and you sent him running with his tail between his legs.” Dark sounded impressed, there even being a hint of a purr. 

“He had it coming.” Anti twitched his nose. 

“Indeed.” Dark swished his tail. “Now. If you agree to stay, you must contribute however you can and follow our rules. We mostly keep to ourselves outside of meals, and we take turns with hunting. With your current situation, you won’t need to worry about that for the time being. But helping with maintaining our territory will be required.”

“So…like keeping stuff tidy?”

“Exactly.” 

“You’ll feed me and Robbie, provide us shelter, and keep others away if I help with dirt?”

“For the time. Your duties are mainly focused on the kit since I assume you won’t let someone else do that.” Dark lifted a paw to point. “The cat and dog dup over there are Chase and Marvin. If you need help regarding the kit or need someone trustworthy to watch him while you are away, they are the best to go to.” 

“You don’t trust yourself?” Anti asked with a tilt of his head, tone playful. 

“I am too busy to worry about that.” Dark sniffed, keeping his head up. 

“Yeah, sure.” Anti shook his head. “I’m guessing the others will introduce themselves?”

“Correct. They have all been filled in on who you are and will come at their own time.” 

“Alright.” Anti licked the top of Robbie’s head, getting a little squeak. “I’m going to Chase and Marvin then. Give them a real look.” He picked Robbie up by the scruff again and jumped off the merry-go-round, heading for the slides where Chase and Marvin were resting in the sun. 

Dark stayed where he was when he felt a heavier weight join him and wasn’t shocked when Wilford laid down next to him. 

“So? Is he a keeper?” Wilford asked before scratching at his muzzle with the bottom of his paw. 

“I’ve told everyone to keep an eye on him. He’s smart in his own ways, ways most of us don’t understand due to our upbringing, but he could still be dangerous. I think the kit is likely what’s keeping him from lashing out. I don’t know how long that will last.” Dark answered, eyes not leaving Anti as he went to Chase and Marvin, still keeping the kit as close to him as possible as he spoke to the two. 

“He’s lost,” Wilford said, resting his chin on his paws. “Reminds me of when I first found you.”

“He’s nothing like me.” 

“Sure, Dark. Whatever you say.” 

[awaitingfall]

01.20.25

Didn’t weigh

I wanted to weigh this morning but I forgot to before I ate. I will remember to weigh tomorrow morning, though. I’m also going to start Chloe Ting back up this week. I’m not going to stick to a hard schedule, I just need to start somewhere because I’ve become way too sedentary and it doesn’t feel good. I’m not sure where my yoga mat went during the moving process, so I’ll just use a blanket and lay it out in my art room tomorrow morning. Maybe I’ll do a workout before I eat breakfast. I usually like to start my mornings on the calmer side, but I know I’m not gonna a want to do it at the end of the day. So I’ll wake up, weigh myself, get in a CT workout for however long I can last, then make some coffee and breakfast. Actually I might skip on the coffee and just have my kombucha instead. I feel like the acidity from my coffee has been bothering my stomach more lately.

- - -

I didn’t get to read too much today. Like I said, I’ve become more sedentary than I’d like and it didn’t feel good sitting on my ass for a 3rd day in a row just reading. I couldn’t focus, I felt like I needed to move. So I took care of tidying up the bedroom a little more since we’re still in the unpacking process. We’ve got a few more kitchen boxes to go and then E needs to unpack the rest of his game room stuff but I know that won’t happen cuz as long as he’s got his PS5 set up, then he’s good and those other boxes can stay packed for another year until he finally decides to get around to it 🙃 I really be questioning why I’m attracted to men sometimes… Speaking of which, I feel like I need to start focusing a little more attention back on myself like I used to when I was ending my last relationship. I was super happy then, just doing things for ME and not having to baby another person because they didn’t know how to take care of themselves as a grown adult. Difference is this time E knows how to be an adult. I just get too sucked into wanting to do everything with him and a lot of the things he wants to do are stinky boring boy things and then I just wait around being bored until he wants to do something fun together. When really, in those moments, I should be doing things that I wanna do and that I think are fun! I just have to find those things again. I tried getting back into tarot but it just didn’t feel the same…

- - -

I’m like 99% sure I’ll be calling out tomorrow - I already gave my boss a heads up that I’m still not feeling better and might be going to urgent care. Just to give myself one more day to chill and not get taken advantage of on the busiest work days like how it has been. It just so convenient for them to let me get stuck with all the heavy lifting and counter work because my desk is the only one that’s located right in the mail room - everyone else has the luxury of hiding at their desks in the copy center where they can’t be seen or harassed by students. So tomorrow, when they’ll be busy with extra mail from the holiday and weekend, they can get off their asses and actually do some work for once instead of sitting off to the side listening to me struggle as I do the work of 3 people and not offering help.

- - -

What else…

Idk I’m so tired now. I’m gonna go buy some jewelry clasps and beads on amazon or something cuz I’ve been wanting to make my own jewelry for a while now and I have some of the things I need, but I forgot a few important things, like clasps, to actually put the necklaces together lol so yeah, I’m gonna do that now and then watch a movie with E before bed.

Goodnight!

[darkphoenixlady]

Queen Buffy - Episode 1 - part 2

Episode 1 – part 2

Buffy walks into Magic Box after dark, her head still swimming with all of the information she learnt from the doctor. As she draws level with the step down to the rest of the shop, Dawn stands up and embraces her in a hug.

Holding onto Dawn tightly, Buffy buries her nose into Dawns hair and takes comfort from the hug. After a moment, Dawn pulls back, “Is she awake yet?”

Buffy nods sadly, “She is, and she’s waiting for us.”

Dawn smiles, “Can we take her home then?”

Buffy opens her mouth to give Dawn a platitude, but changes her mind, “Probably not. They’re going to keep her in for a few days so they can remove the bad stuff from her head. If it’s longer than that, they’ll probably let her go home.”

Dawn looks at Buffy as though she’s betrayed her, “Why Buffy, why?”

Buffy’s shoulders sag, “There’s no good way to say this Dawn, but it’s cancer. If they don’t get it out as soon as they can, it could kill her before they can. Come on, grab your stuff.”

Woodenly, Dawn turns back to the table to start packing. At the same time, Buffy goes over to the counter where Giles and Willow are standing, “Hey guys, any news on big and snakey?”

Willow shakes her head, “Tara and I did a mini patrol, but biggie snake was nowhere to…”

Willow is cut off as the massive serpent crashes through the window of the shop and slithers towards Dawn. As it does so, it knocks a heavy hardwood bookcase over onto Buffy, knocking her over and spilling the contents around her.

As Dawn screams, and Buffy tries to get the leverage needed to free herself, the snake moves right up to Dawn before its tongue flicks out twice and tastes the air. As soon as it’s done that, it turns and flees out the way it came in.

It only takes Buffy a couple more seconds to heave the shelving off of her. During this time, Xander comes up from behind Dawn, “Dawn, are you ok?”

As Willow stands up from behind the counter, she asks, “Why was the big snake afraid of Dawn.”

At the same time, Giles hurries over to help Buffy, even though she’s standing up already. As he gets close enough, Buffy breaths, “It knows.” Before looking at Dawn.

As Giles turns back to look at Dawn, Buffy sprints for the entrance, shortly followed by Giles.

═══════ ೋღ ֍ ღೋ ═══════

 As she gets outside the shop, Buffy pauses to search the street in front of her and locate the snake while her eyes adjust to the lowered light levels. As she catches sight of it slithering past some scared normies, she blinks her eyes at the slight reddish yellow glow they’re giving off.

That’s just enough time for the snake to dodge around an oncoming car, and around a corner.

Buffy sets off at a run, swiftly following it around the corner, and then down the back road behind a row of shops. It’s less than a minute later when the sound of Giles car comes up from behind her, and she hops in so that she can keep an eye out rather than trying to both keep up and track it.

Just after she hops in, the monster grabs a dumpster with its tail, and uses it as a pivot point to turn a corner faster than it should be able to. At the same time, the dumpster moves out into the center of the back road, and into Giles’ path. Dodging around the dumpster, Giles is unable to slow down enough to make the turn, and ends up plowing into a pile of trash someone dumped at the end of the road.

Turning in her seat, Buffy looks back at the back road it went down while she struggles to open the door, “I’ve got to stop this monster before it gets back to Glory.”

Giles puts the car into reverse, “Glory?”

“That’s what he called her. Giles, she’s gonna know Dawn’s the Key if we don’t…”

With some strain in his voice as he puts his old BMW into first, and manhandles the steering wheel around to follow the monster, “We will!”

As they follow it along its crooked route[EM1]  through the city, Buffy almost jumps out of the car a couple of times when Giles misses a particularly sharp turn.

Occasionally, Buffy is certain that the only reason she’s managed to keep track of it is because of the faint blue trail it’s leaving on the dark blue pavement. The first time she mentioned it, Giles stared at her hard enough to crash. Since then she’s just kept directing him through the twists and turns of the city center.

At the speeds they’re driving, it doesn’t take them long to leave Sunnydale proper, and start driving through first the suburbs for the well off, then into the lower cost suburbs, before finally moving into the expensive suburbs, where there’s lots of greenery and sectioned off parks.

Eventually, they reach the grounds of a gated community that has been[EM2]  separated from the rest of the suburb with a chain link fence that is backed with black plastic sheeting.

Here, the monster turns to follow the fence out of the upscale area and back into the lower cost suburbs. Eventually, it seems to get frustrated with being unable to find a way onto the grounds, so it busts its own way through the fence.

While Giles slams on the brakes, Buffy undoes her seatbelt and jumps out of the passenger side of the car towards the gap in the fence.

Running through a picnic area, Buffy curses under her breath as the blue trail is much harder to follow on the grass. Though she catches sight of a faint blue glow moving in the darkness.

Setting off at a sprint, she swiftly starts to close the distance between her and the snake monster, and can just about see it in the faint light from the streets, and the light from the high-end apartment block that is likely to be its destination.

When it crashes through a chain hung between two fence posts, Buffy pauses long enough to arm herself with the chain, before spotting a large outcropping of rock that the monster is looking to go around.

Sprinting forward, she leaps up to the top of the rock with a single jump, and pushes off the other side onto its back. There, she whips the chain around its neck, and grabs the free end with her other hand, before pulling back hard.

Slowly, it’s struggles slow, and then stop as it sinks to the floor. After a couple of moments of holding the chain, in case it’s faking, Buffy lets go while breathing hard. As she does, it surges out from underneath her and darts off towards the apartment building.

Leaping up from the ground, she pushes herself into a jumping leap and skips the intervening space to land on its back. There, she grabs one of its vestigial arms, and turns it to face her. There, she proceeds to beat it into the ground until long after it has stopped twitching.

═══════ ೋღ ֍ ღೋ ═══════

 As they’re driving back to the shop, Giles glances at Buffy, “Buffy, I haven’t forgotten about your possible possession.”

Buffy looks over, “Giles. Can we not. Not right now, mom’s in hospital and I need to get Dawn to her.”

Giles coughs, “Look, Buffy. I understand. However, if you have been possessed, and you don’t know. It could catch you unaware, and you could seriously injure or kill people that are nearby. Including your mother.”

“Giles, it’s not possession.”

“Buffy, you can’t know that. Even if it isn’t, it could be some sort of parasitic demon that is growing inside you.”

Buffy opens her mouth, and then pauses, “Giles, it’s not a demon.”

“Buffy, I’m telling you this as your watcher, not as a friend. We are going to do the same basic trance you used to discover Dawn’s nature. I cannot, in good conscience, allow you to endanger others when a short spell will clear you of possession. If it’s not possession, then we know that you can’t pass it onto someone else while we research what it could possibly be…”

Buffy’s brain stalls as she pictures herself laying a leathery egg, which hatches a spider like thing. That thing then latches onto some sort of demon.

“Buffy, are you listening to me?”

Buffy shakes her head, “Uh, what? Sorry, I spaced out for a moment.”

“I said, if it is a possession, I’ll get one of the others to take Dawn to the hospital while the rest of us perform an exorcism.”

“Ugh. Giles, what if it’s not a possession, but I can still pass it on to someone else?”

“Then we research what it was that passed it on to you, and how to remove it before it hatches. If necessary, we’ll keep you locked in the training room until we’re done.”

 Buffy blanches as a memory of looking out at stars over an alien planet, before being engulfed in flames and appearing outside a Scottish castle, passes through her mind.

As she tries to tell Giles, the words stick in her throat as a self-preservation instinct rears up far stronger than it has ever done before. The savage need to survive no matter the cost or lives spent.

═══════ ೋღ ֍ ღೋ ═══════

 As they get back to the shop, Buffy makes her way into the training room, where she kneels down on the concrete floor in meditation. After a couple of moments, she pauses to wonder why she’s kneeling and not sitting cross legged as she normally does.

That thought is interrupted when her eyes catch sight of the quarter staff, and she considers how she could make a telescoping version that could be used as a baton, short staff, or long staff.

Of course, she’d need to transfigure the metals and alloys needed, but that shouldn’t be too hard once she’s made a wand. But that needs a core from a magical creature. It’s not like there’s a great deal of those around. But she could try demon parts if necessary. Maybe a hair from the bitch queen.

By the time Giles comes in, Buffy has a staff sat across her knees while she’s in the process of drawing out designs for wands, a combistick, and smart disc.

Looking up from her drawing, Buffy smiles, “Hey Giles. See anything unusual?”

Giles shakes his head as the image of a phoenix overlays his protegé, “Oh, um, no signs of possession. Um, I need to go and do some reading.”

Buffy frowns as he turns away from her, “Um, Giles, does that mean I can take Dawn to the hospital now?”

Giles nods absently, “Hmm, oh, right yes.”

While Buffy is putting the staff away, and packing up the drawing supplies, Giles walks back in, “Um, Buffy. Earlier, did you make a wish?”

Buffy looks over, “Er, yes?”

“Oh, right. Don’t do it again, especially around so much magic.”

As Giles walks away again, Buffy calls after him, “Ok?”

A few seconds later, he comes back, “What was it you wished for?”

Buffy picks up her supplies and walks over to Giles, “I wished there was something I could do. Why?”

“Oh, no reason. Go and see your mother.”

═══════ ೋღ ֍ ღೋ ═══════

 Buffy watches as Dawn is comforted by their mother, as she starts to explain what’s been happening to her.

“Buffy.”

Buffy turns around at the soft voice to see Riley standing there wearing a green turtleneck jumper. With a smile, she walks towards him.

“You ok? You look pretty beat up.”

Buffy nods, “I’m ok. Physically that is. Emotionally, I’m all over the place.”

“Come here.”

Buffy sighs and swallows a sob as she steps into his chest, and he pulls her into a hug. With a sniff, she smells the coppery scent of his blood. Looking up, she wipes a tear off her eye, and pulls aside the neck of his sweater before rubbing her tear soaked finger over the wound.

Riley looks down at her, “It’s all right. Let it all out.”

Buffy smiles sadly, “I can’t. If I start, I’ll be ugly crying for hours, and they need me.”

Riley’s about to caress her cheek, when Joyce calls, “Buffy!”

Buffy turns back to the ward and takes a couple of steps before briefly turning back, “You need to be careful about letting vampires bite you. Their saliva has addictive qualities.”

As she closes the door to the private room, Riley stands there with a lost expression on his face.

First Chapter Next Episode

[rassicas]

Haikara Walker Pages 179 - 193: The Inconvenient truths of Kamabo Co.

More artbook translations! These ones I translated a couple years ago (except for some stuff on page 188, just did that now lol), but they needed to be spruced up a bit and moved to a more readable format other than shitty discord screenshots on a twitter thread, so here it is. For the most part I’m not gonna bother translating the handwritten text since it’s usually just design notes. (scans by @milkiemilkshake)

[178 + 179, which is the first image i posted] A huge, mysterious company that creeps in the underground world

 The inconvenient truths of Kamabo Co.

During our coverage of the Deepsea Metro, our reporters saw a huge underground experimental facility. According to the sea cucumber conductor, the company that operates the facility is called Kamabo Corporation. In order to find out more about Kamabo Co., our reporters infiltrated deep underground.

[180 + 181]

Beyond light's reach, unusual sights spread in the deep.

[180] In recent years, the existence of the Deepsea Metro has become clear and has garnered attention. Surprisingly, each station is said to be an experimental facility of a company called Kamabo Corporation. Our reporters had a hunch that more secrets were hidden further in the Deepsea Metro. We received a CQ-80 and a CQ Card from the Telephone, who called itself "The Tour Guide to the Promised Land," and started the investigation. As we hopped on the subway, we were greeted by a squishy and blue sea cucumber conductor. "Overcome the challenges of each station, and gather the four thangs" are the words we went by. As we arrived at the first station, we couldn't believe our eyes at the extraordinary spectacle. There were Octarians whose bodies were so unthinkably blue, and objects from back in the day, floating in the air, defying gravity....  And when we listened closely, we could hear mellow sounds, unlike anything heard in the squid's world. What does this facility do? Why did it develop in this way underground? And what is the "promised land" told by the Telephone? We will continue our coverage further. 

[Page 181, bottom left] Inside the facilities of the Deepsea Metro, medical instruments and equipment can be seen everywhere. Although the hospital-esque atmosphere isn't completely there, there are traces of some clinical trials that have been conducted. As the mystery of the dim and lifeless facility deepens, one could shudder at the thought of it.... 

[Page 181, bottom right] The upper image shows Octarians who are dressed in protective body suits, who appear to be doing some sort of research. What is the huge object in the center? The lower image is of the NILS Statute, which is the center of Kamabo Co.'s facilities. Details will be described later, but it’s understood that it was created through advanced science.

[182 + 183]

Aiming for the "Promised Land": to the core of Kamabo Co. and the NILS Statue

[182 bottom left] While surveying the facilities found along the Deepsea Metro, our reporters found a huge statue called the "NILS Statue."  Upon closer examination of it's interior, seven areas could be seen, with names based on the organs of the humans who once thrived, such as the "Coccyx Prison" and the "Villi Control Zone."* This is Kamabo Co.'s most important facility, as it has more blue-green Octarians and advanced equipment than the facilities in the Deepsea Metro. Through unforgiving Octarian assaults and near-death experiences with the traps strung about, we barely escaped through the top of the statue with our lives. The salty sea breeze comfortably caressed our cheeks, and the radiant rays of the sun shone as it set. In the distance, we could see the region of Inkopolis. Is the world we live in the "Promised Land" the Telephone spoke of? [* translators note: While in the English version it's all just "(name of organ) Phase", the JPN version gives the areas names that are more specific to what actually goes on there. I figured it would make more sense in this context to tell what goes on in those areas.]

[183 with the arrows and 5 little pictures]  The top of the head, which is the final area. There's several devices alongside each other that one can't even imagine what they’re for. There's a gaping hole where the mouth and the right eye are, and there seems to be something in them. Yet the more you look at it, the more beautiful and graceful it looks. ↑ An elevator is installed in the "Spinal central hole". This mechanism that runs through the center of NILS statue is like a spine of a human. From the elevator, you can get to a long and narrow ladder that lets you leave to the surface. It's really long, how many steps are there?.... ↑ An energy core is hidden around the "Diaphragm control tower" and "Peristalsis flow passage." When it is set in a certain place, the core supplies a tremendous amount of electricity to the inside the statue. At first glance, the core looks like a Zapfish, but its power is beyond comparison. ↑ The abdomen of NILS statue. This area is fully prepared to keep intruders away, as it is packed with things such as moving scaffolds and life-threatening lasers. Sometimes the Telephone's voice can be heard through the CQ-80, but one can't tell what it's saying, as the transmission gets cut off. ↑ An area located around the waist of NILS Statue. Since weapons can not be found anywhere, one must use stealth to advance. Move slowly, as any sudden movements will expose one's whereabouts to the Octarians. [183, small text by the cut open statue]  An image showing how the internal structure of the human body has been applied to that of the NILS statue. While looking at the statue, we can't help but wonder: are we just something that gets digested through its body? The rumor that the NILS logo represents a "stylish turd"* suddenly has some truth to it.

* [translators note: literally says "kakkoi unko". take that as you will.]

[183 handwritten captions] [pointing to the top of the statue's head] Mem Cake [bottom right] Digest everything and knead it well, and it'll turn into one thing→ 

[184 + 185]

Revealing Kamabo Corporation's Eight Secrets

[184] As a result of searching all over the Deepsea Metro, these eight confidential documents related to Kamabo Co. have been found. These documents show devices that aren't seen in our world, but if their functions and purposes can be explained, then maybe we can reach the hidden truth and essence of the company called Kamabo.

File no. 1 Telephone  [184] A machine installed at the central station. Although it appears to be a piece of telecommunication equipment that was used ancient times, it seems that it was made by combining some of the latest technology. It has the function to detect an ID from an Octarian's body and discern individuals. Removing the back cover confirms it has an elaborate internal structure.

File no. 2 Ticket Examiner [185 top] Ticket gates and dressers are set up at the entrance of each station of the Deepsea Metro. After getting off the metro and choosing a weapon with the dresser, it appears that there's a system in the ticket gate that opens when the specified amount of CQ Points are paid. When one returns to the dresser after clearing a mission, they can receive a Mem cake. File no. 3 Goal Point [185 bottom] The goal point provided at the innermost part of each experimental facility starts up by painting the device with ink, and stops after a certain period of time elapses. It's a device that has been confirmed to be seen even in the Octarian residential areas, but the ones in the Deepsea Metro are shaped like a pen or a push button. [translators note:  The goal point likely looks like a pen because the words for "ballpoint" and "goal point" are extremely close in Japanese.]

[186 + 187]

File no. 4  Target [186 top] The kind of targets that looks like a cube can be set up on the ground, or are often arranged in stacks. The durability depends on the size of the frame. The kind that looks like a round balloon floats in the air. They say that after a certain amount of time passes, it soars up into the sky. File no.5 8-ball [186 bottom] A huge sphere with a big "8" drawn on it. One can roll it around using the momentum of the ink fired from a weapon for example. It is a fine product that boasts of it's sturdiness; if it falls from a high place, it wont get a single crack. It seems that challenges can be solved by rolling it in accordance with the on-site neon signs, and by hitting the bumpers.

File no.6 Traps [187] Traps found within the body of the NILS statue. There are blueprints of a large device that ejects blue-green Octarians that have been packed in boxes, a wall-mounted ink laser, and an energy core. How dreadful would a secret have to be for one to guard it with traps? [handwritten text by the power core] -On a closer look, it's a nucleus-like part of a baby Zapfish. It actually is an egg. -The baby is blobby. -The energy is captured with the socket

[188 + 189]   File no.7 NILS Cannon [188 top]The NILS statue seems to exemplify the dignity of Kamabo Co. Set in its oral cavity is the NILS Cannon, a device that radiates an enormous amount of energy, said to hold the surprising power to remake the world. When it's triggered, our world may be destined to fall....

[188 bottom, by bottom left image] The top of the NILS Statue's head. There are huge tanks and countless antennas and radars that catch radio waves of some kind, reminiscent of an advanced chemical plant or military facility. Just what was this place made for? [188 bottom, by image at the bottom of 189]  The mouth area of the statue operates like a ventriloquist's dummy, and the NILS cannon is deployed as if it's being spat out. The cannon is filled with bright green ink. Upon closer inspection, there seems to be something mixed in among the ink...?

[190+191] File no. 8 Thangs  [190] It gets installed in the Central Station, and as told by the Telephone, it leads to the "promised land". In order to get there, one needs to collect "the four thangs". One can't even imagine what the individual parts do, but according to these top-secret blueprints, one can guess that it's something that kneads. Is that the Telephone in the part that looks like a lid? [advertisement on the right side of 191] Aim for the promised land Mass Recruitment of capable beings Overcome challenges at each facility in the Deepsea Metro, and do the simple job of finding just four "thangs". Even the inexperienced are warmly welcomed, all that matters is if you're motivated! If you can collect the four "thangs”, you will be invited to a bright utopia!! <Application Requirements> Working place: In the Deepsea Metro, all facilities Reward: depends on the challenge Working time: as much as you like Holiday: up to you Remuneration and benefits: depending on your skill Others: you will be supplied with a sample kit*, CQ Card, and a CQ-80 Contact: Deepsea Metro Central Station

[* translators note: The "sample kit" is the name of the bag attached to your ink tank that expands and explodes when you fail a test. JP splat twitter made a post about it, but the SRL never translated it for some reason.]

[ushidoux]

who needs memories? atsumu x reader

warnings: minors dni, fluff

You sigh, and look around you. 

It’s amazing how much quickly clutter and random nonsense can fill up every nook and cranny of a small apartment, and you swear you and your fiancé have spent about a full day, maybe two cumulatively, on packing endless items into boxes.

For someone who insists on living in the moment, Atsumu Miya is a huge hoarder.

Some of the things in the open box before you are reasonable things to keep, like ribbons, old medals, trophies, everything that helps to represent the blood, sweat and tears put into this primary profession. Others seem ridiculous at first but are laced with sentimental value - for example, a tiny notebook in which he’s practiced his autograph as a teenager, as though he knew he’d someday be famous.

You still stash them away with as much care as he would any of your own precious things. Closing the top of the box,  you realize you’ve mislocated the packing tape yet again and groan before getting to your feet.

After a couple minutes of shuffling around the over crowded room as you searched, you finally locate the packing tape, thrown haphazardly into the center of the room.

Over the loud screech of you dispense the tape to secure the box, you hear Atsumu suddenly run into the living room, excitedly calling for your attention.

“Babe! Babe! BABE!”

You turn around startled, and he’s already slid onto the carpet and right next to you, now so close that his face could have crashed into yours if you had moved just a little further forward when you turned. His grin is so wide and pure that you can’t will yourself to scowl at him.

“What?”

There’s a small box of photos in his hands, resting on his folded knees. He kisses your forehead quickly, then readjusts himself into a sitting position.

“I found this, I thought I’d lost it! Fuck, I almost cried when it disappeared.”

Your eyebrows furrow as you peer into the box to take a look at the pictures. They’re prints, having lost their glossy features over an uncertain amount of time. He picks up the first picture, an image of you sitting in what looks like a small bakery, biting your lower lip nervously as you occupy a small table on your lonesome. It’s a candid, taken from a distance, and you barely recognize yourself. It must have been from years ago.

“That was our first date,” he says, the glee in his voice as he reminisces almost childlike. “Remember, I was a little late?”

By little late, it was almost half an hour and you were sure you’d gotten stood up.

The next picture is of you, at the same seat, but turned, smiling and waving at the camera. You don’t remember ever posing for this picture, but clearly he does. He was good at snapping pics surreptitiously though - you knew this firsthand.

“I don’t think I ever told you how pretty you looked then,” he says, as he continues to admire the photo. He then turns and looks at you.

“You’re prettier now though, because I love you even more now, and now you’re all mine.”

The next photos - and there are possibly up to a hundred in the stack - chronicle your dates. Between couple selfies, candid photos of you out and about or in the home you’d built together, with each other’s families, and on your trips around the world, it’s a compilation of the many memories that you’ve created together.

Even though you listen to his narrations in quiet, there’s a stirring of the heart that replaces the frustration centering around packing up all of your life and leaving for your new home with him. 

You’d wanted to leave everything behind more than once today after all and buy everything anew. Who needed all this old stuff? 

But Atsumu reminds you, as he holds you closer and presses soft kisses to your cheeks once you start to tear up the longer he goes on, that the memories are valuable, and he’s captured them almost perfectly. 

They’re valuable even if he promises he’ll make more as you share your lives together.

[shego89notabot]

Meet Cute

Pairing: James “Bucky” Barnes/Darcy Lewis

Rating: Teen and up audience (for swearing)

Warnings: Swearing; mild violence; Darcy’s taser can be used more than once (because in my world Tony never died and he totally hooked a girl up)

"And why were WE asked to play chauffeur to this scientist?"

Bucky was grumpy. He was beginning to think he maybe should have just said no to Sam. But, no, here he was traveling in the middle of the night to retrieve some scientist.

"Apparently Doctor Lewis is a friend of Thor. Known her since his first arrival and all. Bruce asked if we could make sure she was safe. Special favor." Sam patiently responded. He was getting used to the two moods of the man next to him, grumpy and grumpier.

"Friend, huh?"

Sam shrugged, "Friend. There has been recent, credible chatter about her. The not so friendly kind. She's being moved to another, secret location but Bruce is concerned enough to think she might need a little extra, temporary, protection."

Bucky gazed out the window. To be honest, it's not like he had anything else going on and Sam was a good guy and usually decent company, if annoying at times. When Sam had shown up out of the blue and asked if he'd like to help it didn't take long for him to pack a bag and join him.

Bruce had asked for their help. He liked Bruce. The big, green doctor was calm and sensible and one of the few people he could tolerate for long periods of time. If Bruce felt strongly enough about the threat to this scientist then he'd give him the benefit of the doubt.

Soon they were pulling into the parking lot of a small building. A van was parked haphazardly by an entrance which in and of itself was not alarming. What was alarming was a man lying on the ground not far from the door.

"Shit." Bucky muttered under his breath. Sam stopped the vehicle and the both jumped out, hands going in jackets for weapons.

They both cautiously made their way towards the door. "I'll see if there's another entrance," whispered Sam.

Bucky nodded, face grim as he checked the pulse of the downed man and finding he was still alive, merely unconscious, he watched as Sam rounded the corner then quietly headed to the door and put his back to the wall next to it. Listening, he heard loud voices from deeper within the building. He didn't hear anything closer so he turned quickly into the doorway, gun up.

Inside was a hallway with doors opening to either side, several feet from the entrance. The door on the left was open and that was where the noise and light was coming from. He walked over to it then stepped just inside to find a man grappling with a woman, the woman in question loudly cursing the larger male.

"You asshole! Let me go," she bites his arm.

"Ow, you bitch!" He then proceeds to throw her against a metal file cabinet and she falls to the side, stumbling, before grabbing a chair that was nearby and hitting him in the side with it. He grunts before pulling out a gun and aiming it at her head. She freezes, eyes big, then snaps her left arm up, shoving his gun hand up while bringing her right hand up from her side and shooting him in the center of his chest with her taser.

Bucky watches in slight awe as the small, dark haired woman smirks with satisfaction at the other man as falls, shuddering and drooling to the ground. "Lady Sif taught me that one, asshole!" Then she notices Bucky. " Oh, fudge. 3? Hey, I'm armed! Back off! ". She points the now expended taser at him.

Bucky gives her what he hopes is a reassuring smile then raises his left hand in surrender while putting his gun away. "Doctor Banner sent us. Are you Doctor Lewis?"

"Us?" Darcy looks confused for a moment before Sam pushes in through a second door at the other end of the room. Sam takes in the scene and, noticing the man still twitching in the ground, relaxed with a smile.

Darcy places her hand on her hip. "Wow, Dr. B sent in the big guns, huh? Well, you guys have any zip ties or anything? These two aren't going to restrain themselves."

"Two? " Bucky moved forward and peers down around the corner of a desk that had been blocking his view of a second unconscious man. His eyebrows shoot up and gets a good look at the woman in front of him. Long dark hair, blue eyes, full, generous lips and a pretty coke bottle figure under the turtleneck sweater and jeans she was wearing.

He watched as she tugged her crooked glasses back into place and bit her lip and gestures at the unconscious men and cocks her hip. "Yeah, these two. I mean, I used my taser on both of them so we have a little bit longer but it'd probably be best to get them restrained before they get themselves together."

Sam grabs a power cord off the table near him and proceeds to restrain the men while Bucky just stares back at the small doctor. Bucky steps forward, and extends his hand to Darcy, “James Barnes and this is Sam Wilson”. His breath catches as she gives a brilliant smile and shakes his hand. “Darcy Lewis. And it is a pleasure to meet you”.

Sam stands after tying up the goons and realizes she’s still holding Bucky’s hand and the two are just staring at each other. He clears his throat and smirks as the two startle a bit and blush - seriously, Bucky blushing?

“You might want to grab anything important so we can get out of here before their reinforcements arrive,” Sam says.

“Right!” Darcy smiles once more at Bucky then heads over to her computer.

Bucky watches her and quietly mutters to Sam, “Just how good a friend of Thor is she? Is she a friend or a friend friend?”

Sam shakes his head. “Why don’t you ask her? I’m going to walk outside and check on that guy in the parking lot”.

Sam leaves the room and Bucky shuffles his feet. She was just so pretty. But now was not the time to sit there and get goofy over a pretty face. She was just attacked and there might be more coming. His protective instincts kicked in and he strode over to her to see if he could either help or hurry her along.

“Um, can I help with anything?”

She flashes that dazzling smile at him again. “This is it. I learned years ago while I was working with Jane to keep all the important stuff close by.” She waved at the laptop in front of her then closes the laptop and puts it in a bag. “I’m all yours!”

Bucky grins at her statement and she blushes. “I mean I’m ready to go with you. Away from here. Ok. Um, this,” she lifts the bag, “is the important stuff. We can get the equipment later.”

Bucky is having a hard time reconciling this pretty, blushing woman with the badass that put down two men nearly twice her size but he’s loving it. He can’t get over how taken he is with her and wonders if when she’s safe would he, could he, ask her out.

He offers to hold her bag but she declines only to wince when she tries to put it on her shoulder. “Ow. Guess I’ll be bruised from that idiot. Can you help get this over my head?”. Bucky helps her get the strap over her head so the bag rests comfortably across her body and goes behind her and lifts the strap to free her hair from under it. “Comfy?” he asks and he’s dazzled again by her smile.

“You know, if this situation weren’t so serious I would totally ask you out for coffee or something.” She shrugs, “but I’m sure you have plenty things to keep up you busy-no time for that sort of thing, right?”

Bucky smiles, “I think I would like that. But maybe we can make it dinner and a picture, doll? Or some dancing?”. He offers Darcy his arm and she takes it.

“That sounds fantastic.”

“Um, I’m not gonna have some Norse God hunting me down for moving in on his girl, right?”

Darcy laughed. “No! He’s just a friend.”

“Well, then. It’s a date.”

[unholyobsessions]

K9 Approval

Pairing: Spencer Reid x fem!Reader

Description: Spencer starts crushing on the cute dog handler

Requested: Yes 

A/N: Not really falling in love, more of a meet cute but I am considering writing a short blurb as pt2 who knows

Warnings: Mentions of kidnapping, typical criminal minds stuff

Word Count: 1.8k

Masterlist 

It’s a pretty standard case. Spencer wishes he didn’t have to classify a number of women getting kidnapped and murdered as ‘standard’ but there is nothing particularly strange about it. The good thing (well not exactly good, more like convenient) is that it’s a local case and he is able to go home to his apartment every night. 

When he arrives to the BAU on their third day on the case he knows as soon as he looks at Hotch that this case just became anything but standard. 

“He sent a note,” his boss speaks and all color drains from his face. A note can either be extremely helpful, or extremely dangerous. He rushes to follow Hotch into the round table room where the rest of the team is crowded over a lined sheet of paper. 

I’ve always enjoyed a nice walk in the park. Especially those with lots of trees. Makes it easy to hide from the monsters crawling in the dark. It’s also easy for the monsters to hide their secrets. Can you find my secret? I’ll give you a hint. She’s no longer breathing. 

Spencer’s brain immediately tries to find any codes that could be hidden within the words but comes up with nothing. He picks up the plastic bag the paper is in and starts to read the note again. 

“Reid what can you tell us?” Hotch asks, arms crossed over his chest. 

“There is a lot of abbreviation. I’ve instead of I have. Lots instead of a lot. It’s casual, almost nonchalant. The pen is pressed lightly against the paper, which shows that he was calm as he wrote it. He’s confident, not worried about getting caught.” Spencer explains his findings without looking up. “Garcia are there any parks within the geographical comfort zone?” 

Garcia immediately starts typing away on her computer, not needing to look at the keyboard to click the correct keys. In a matter of seconds she’s speaking the location of two parks, both conveniently placed in the center of the comfort zone. 

“We need to get two teams of search dogs in each park. Morgan, Reid, and Prentiss go to the one on fifth avenue. Rossi and JJ you’re with me at the park on eighth. We need to find her.” 

. . . 

Arriving about twenty minutes later, the park was already crowded with search dogs and their handlers. Spencer crinkled his nose, never particularly excited to work with the dogs. He was vaguely listening to whatever Morgan was saying next to him as he let his eyes scan over the park. 

There were certainly a lot of trees and it seemed like the place children would enjoy playing hide and seek in. It wasn’t huge but it was certainly bigger than the average park and the lack of street lamps surrounding the area would have certainly made it easy for the unsub to sneak around at night. 

As he kept looking over the area, his eyes caught sight of you and the breath was knocked from his lungs. 

You have always loved animals, dogs in particular, and you have known since you were young that you wanted to be able to work with them when you were older. However, eight-year-old you never expected to look for dead bodies for a living, well you look for living people too. And technically you don’t do this for a living, you’re a veterinarian who happens to spend her time volunteering in search and rescue missions. 

The decision to start volunteering as a search dog handler came after a girl in your college went missing. Everything was okay and she was thankfully found unharmed but it was two days of your campus being crowded with search dogs. You talked to one of the officers about the job and after a few short minutes of conversation you were instantly hooked. Five years later and you cannot bring yourself to regret your choice. 

You remember when you got Ash, a gorgeous German Shepard, after your first training session. He was only three months old and the perfect age to start his training. It required you to spend all of your free time playing hide and seek in your small, one bedroom apartment, which is not as fun as it sounds after a few weeks. 

In the end it was all worth it since you are able to help people and it got you a new best friend. 

You walk around the park with a tight hold on Ash’s leash. You got the call about fifteen minutes prior and you are thankful that it is your day off from the vet. You keep your eyes on your dog, making sure to look out for any change in his behavior that may indicate that he found something. 

The small hesitation in his step was enough to make you stop walking. He started rounding one of the trees, sniffing the ground before looking up at you and giving a loud bark. 

You call Hank, one of the members of the team that is carrying the shovel over. “I think we got something.” 

Your voice not only attracted the search team, but also three FBI agents. A few seconds later there was a small crowd gathered around you as Ash used his paws to help Hank dig the hole. Once the body has been uncovered you lead Ash away from the crowd, your hand going into the fanny pack strapped around your waist. 

“Good job,” you say as you kneel next to him. You hold out the treat and he excitedly licks it off your hand. You can’t stop the smile that comes on your face even though it’s not the most appropriate reaction considering the situation. You feel a pair of eyes on you and you look up to see one of the FBI agents staring at you. He looks embarrassed at getting caught and you wave him over. He does so cautiously, keeping his eyes on Ash. 

“Hi,” he says once he gets within speaking distance. You stand up and dust your hands on the fabric of your jeans. 

“Hey, you’re from the BAU right?” You already know that he’s from the BAU, your team leader having had told you so as soon as you arrived. But he’s cute and you need a way to start a conversation. 

“Yes. I’m Dr. Reid. Uh I mean Spencer…you don’t have to call me doctor.” He looks away bashfully and you smile, finding the blush creeping up his neck endearing. 

“Well Spencer, I’m y/n.” You introduce yourself. You notice that he hasn’t taken his eyes off of Ash, who is looking up at you as if waiting for you to introduce him. “Everything okay?” 

“What? Oh yeah it’s just that dogs don’t particularly enjoy my presence. They actually kinda resent it.” He says it so casually and you are sure that this isn’t the first time he’s had to say it. He looks just about ready to run away if the need arises and he does look a tad surprised to see that Ash isn’t attacking him already. 

“Nonsense. Ash is a sweetheart and loves meeting new people. Come on,” you gesture for him to come closer with your hand. What you say is true, however Ash does look a little more vigilant than he usually does, as if he senses a threat in the FBI agent but won’t act upon it without your command. You don’t comment on it though, assuming this will only make Spencer more hesitant. Spencer approaches slowly, afraid that the dog will start barking at him. Once he’s standing next to you, you hear him audibly gulp. “Hold out your hand.” He does as you say, placing his hand out in front of him and toward Ash. 

Ash looks at you for confirmation and at the small nod of your head he leans forward, sniffing the stranger’s hand. Spencer looks completely terrified of the situation and after a few seconds, Ash leans back. Spencer is about to retreat his hand but you stop him, knowing that everything is riding on Ash’s next move. Ash lifts his left paw off the ground and places it on top of Spencer’s hand, barking once and you let out a relived sigh. If he had refused to shake Spencer’s hand and barked twice, it would have been a done deal, because even though you are attracted to him, if Ash disproves then it can’t happen. 

You smile and nudge Spencer slightly. “See, you just got the Ash stamp of approval.” The laugh that leaves his lips makes your heart flutter and you scold yourself. You just met him, get it together. 

You see the grimace on his face once Ash removes his paw and leaves a good amount of dirt on his hand. You reach into the fanny pack and take out a small pack of wipes and a small bottle of hand sanitizer, always prepared. He looks grateful at the items, immediately taking a wipe and running it against his palm. Once he’s done he turns back to look at you. Ash has settled down at your feet, happily wagging his tail and sniffing Spencer’s shoes. 

“Does this stamp of approval allow me to ask for your number?” He asks it so casually and it is such a contrast from the shy man a few second before that it takes you completely by surprise. It takes a second for your brain to properly process the question and now you are the one stuttering. Once it catches up, you turn to him with a grin. 

“Definitely.” You grab your phone from your pocket and hand it to him and he does the same, both of you typing your contact information. You stare at each other with matching grins but are inevitably broken out of your daze by a voice calling out for Spencer. 

“Reid, Hotch wants us back at the BAU. You can flirt with the pretty dog handler later.” The dark skinned agent yells across the park.

Spencer blushes furiously and turns back to you, barely stuttering out, “I have to go.” 

You nod your head in understanding. “I’ll talk to you later Spencer.” 

“Definitely.” You are pleasantly surprised when he leans down and pets Ash a couple times. “Bye Ash.” 

You keep looking at him as he walks away, too distracted to notice the new presence beside you. 

“Got a date?” Hank asks. 

You shove his shoulder, trying to feign annoyance but the large smile on your face betrays you. “Shut up.” Ash barks up at you, seemingly wanting to join in on the teasing and Hank laughs, lowering his hand to high five Ash. “I hate both of you,” you reply with a frown. 

Your façade breaks when your phone chimes with a new notification. You grin at the screen, the text sending butterflies to your stomach. 

Want to get coffee on Saturday? 

Tilting your phone away from the prying eyes of your team leader and furry friend, you type out a reply. 

It’s a date

[domesticblisss]

Marcel with ‘a cozy, old coffee shop owned by a lovely elderly couple’ ?

a cozy, old coffee shop owned by a lovely elderly couple

location drabble prompts

marcel is a creature of habit. he wakes up at 05:30am, works out, takes a shower and at 8am sharp, he’s at los rubios.

los rubios is a little coffee shop located two blocks away from his apartment, owned by arturo, a former spanish boxing champion, and laura, a former american model. the two met in the 70’s, while vacationing in greece and have been inseparable ever since.

the sight of marcel in that tiny coffee shop was almost funny, but he liked how it felt like home and how the old couple basically treated him like he was their son.

it was the third time that marcel had seen her this week.

it was the third time this week that she had sat on marcel’s table.

third table on the right, underneath the middle window, the one on the perfect spot so he could people watch before heading to the performance center.

arturo had noticed how fidgety marcel was as he took the german boy’s order.

“she used to come here in the afternoon’s, you know, after work, but she finally quit it to pursue her writing dreams.” arturo told him and marcel looked at the girl. “now she comes in the morning, writes for a while and even helps laura with the cooking, even though we’ve told her countless times she doesn’t have to. she always sat there too, maybe you should sit down with her.”

marcel laughed, it wasn’t the first time arturo tried to play matchmaker with him. “it’s fine, i’ll find a new table. gracias, turito.”

fourth table it is now.

friday, 08:15am. walter lecture about imperium’s losing streak went longer (and harder) than he had expected, and now he is off his schedule, los rubios is packed and even the fourth table on the right was taken.

she sat there, on the third table on the right underneath the middle window, her macbook in front of her, a cup of what he assumed to be plain black coffee and a plate of pancakes on the side. and an empty seat right in front of her.

“you’re late, marcelo.” the use of the nickname made marcel smile.

“yep.”

“any troubles?”

“just walter being walter.”

“the usual?”

“yep.”

“your new table is also taken. maybe you should–“

“i know turito, i know… just give me my coffee.”

“sit down and one of the girls will take it to you.”

with a lot of stubbornness, he did.

“hi.” she looked up at him and waited for him to continue. “umm, do you– do you mind if i sit down? the place is packed.”

“oh, of course, please! just let me grab my stuff” she said as she moved her laptop, trying to make space for him.

she introduced herself to him, and marcel followed through. the duo ended up falling into a light conversation. they talked about their lives and what they did for a living, she asked marcel how different florida was from germany, and what he missed the most, he asked her why she decided to quit her job, and after her shocked face he had to explain that arturo had told him that, to which she laughed and said “of course he did.”

they talked for hours that went by so fast, it felt like minutes. he soon realised that it was almost time for him to go to the performance center.

“i really enjoyed talking to you today.” marcel said as he got up.

“me too! see you tomorrow?” she asked, hopeful.

“oh, i was thinking maybe we could go out for some drinks tonight?”

she smiles.

[jokertrap-ran]

(光与夜之恋 Light and Night) Main Story Chapter 1-20: 命运的拐点 Destiny’s Turning Point Translation [3rd Beta Test]

*Light and Night Master-list is under WIP *Spoiler free: Translations will remain under cut *Game is releasing in 2 days!!! *Join the Light & Night Discord~ *Beta Test’s main story tag will be #Dreams of Light and Night

It was already late at night by the time the celebration ended.

Stepping into my apartment, I off-handedly turned the TV on. The results of the Warson Prize Contest were currently being broadcasted. I saw my utterly crestfallen face flash across the screen.

An’an’s incoming message snapped me out of my depressing reverie.

❖☆———————————★❖

An'an (SMS): Let’s go out for a round of hotpot before you leave the country again. We’ll order a gazillion dishes and eat till we forget all our troubles!

MC (SMS): Then I want milk tea and barbecue. You’re gonna have to accompany me on a food trip all over Guangqi City!

An'an (SMS): Huh? But, don’t you need to go back?

MC (SMS): No. I intend to stay here… It’s actually quite a long story so I’ll tell you about it another time.

❖☆———————————★❖

After a short while of feeling in the dumps, I pushed away all the sadness and dissatisfaction I felt, locking it deep inside my heart.

Though my lone return back to this country didn’t make for a good start this time, I refuse to doubt my own ability. Besides, I still have friends here who support me.

It is only with this mindset that I can welcome a brand new day tomorrow.

I just turned off the TV and focused on packing the stuff from the competition away while thinking about the next step I should take.

MC: My hopes for winning the championship and making my own brand have all but fizzled out into nothing. What should I do next…?

Suddenly, my phone vibrated to life atop the table. An unknown number was displayed on the screen.

???: Hello. I am Mya, calling from Warson’s Design Hub.

Mya!?

MC: Hello… May I ask why you're calling me?

Mya: You left a pretty big impression on me during the Warson Prize Contest. You're pretty good for a greenhorn.

Mya: Although you still have a long way to go in terms of your designs, I can't deny that you're gifted.

Mya: The Warson Brand, which is currently looking to be refurbished, requires new blood.

MC: You mean to say...

I felt my heart race, thudding erratically.

Mya: Miss (Y/n), as a representative of the Warson Group…

Mya: I'd like to invite you to join us at Warson's Design Hub as a Junior Fashion Designer.

Mya: HR will be emailing you the official offer letter in a moment. Please consider our offer seriously. For Fashion Designers like us, our starting point is of the utmost importance.

Mya: It's a rare opportunity for greenhorns like you to be able to stand on the shoulders of a giant as they proceed onwards along their path.

Mya: And Warson is that giant. The giant of the Fashion Industry.

❖☆———————————★❖

I opened my email after the call to check. I'd indeed gotten an offer letter from them.

My name was written beneath the golden logo. It was just as Mya had told me earlier. Warson was really offering me the position of Junior Fashion Designer.

I read every word and sentence thoroughly, only for my eyes to pause on the signature.

MC: Warson Group, Evan Lu…

Before all of this, it wasn't as if I never thought of joining a company. I simply wanted to try a little bit harder on my own, in hopes of establishing my personal brand.

However, I realized after this contest that my skills weren't as mature and well-developed as I'd thought. There were still many things that I had to learn and understand.

And perhaps, Warson was just what I needed to help me cross the bridge.

Even if I am unsure whether I can thread safely upon this sudden path that has opened before me, I'm willing to give it a try and aim for higher heights.

❖☆———————————★❖

Basked under the same moonlight, in a room of a mansion located on the other end of the City… Bright lights were suddenly extinguished.

A middle-aged man was kneeling on a knee in the center of the room, bowing his head respectfully before an imposing, yet dignified, old man.

???: What is the situation?

Lupin: ...The Purplite bird in District 5 has disappeared, and tag HCP18407 is still being tracked.

A heavy sigh sounded. It was only after a long while that the voice continued speaking once more.

???: If such a thing happens again, then there will no longer be any need for you to return here.

❖☆———————————★❖

Lupin took his leave of the room. The wavering candlelights on both sides of the corridor elongated his shadow, casting upon the wall, where it trembled with restrained fury.

Footsteps echoed through the hallway as another figure passed by him.

Lupin: You shouldn't have returned here.

Evan made no move to reply, his smile deepening.

❖☆———————————★❖

He pushed open those heavy doors, heading towards the hunched figure, and the nightscape reflected behind.

???: Let's let bygones be bygones. Now that you've returned to the family, you ought to uphold your mission.

???: You will help Lupin with the nameplate.

Evan: Consider it done.

???: This is our last chance. We must not err.

His body gradually disappeared, yet his voice still lingered, reverberating through the room.

Evan stood silently at the center of the room, an icy look slowly unveiling itself on his face.

Evan: Last chance…?

❖☆———————————★❖

A blue-ish purple bird flapped its wings outside the window, soaring up high, above the highest point of the City before dissipating into mist.

All the people who were asleep were unable to hear its shrieking cry.

A sliver of scarlet peeked out from amongst the dense clouds in the sky.

A new day is approaching.

❖☆————— ⊹ Dreams of Light & Night⊹ —————★❖

Previous Part: (Chapter 1-19 Light) / (Chapter 1-19 Night)

[stars-a-n-d-scars]

10 Days of Summer - Chapter 1

Hi so no one was really seeing this over on ao3 and I worked really hard on it, so I decided to give it a shot over here. The next 9 chapters will be coming soon, so follow me or the tag to see them!

- Mia x

*

It was the hottest summer Buckinghamshire had ever seen. The rolling fields were dusted with the final remnants of spring, as the less-resilient plants wilted and those suited to the sweltering conditions flourished. The sun sat high in the sky for so long that one began to wonder if the night would ever come. Of course, it always did, but was rarely accompanied by any sort of liberation from the fervor.

The only relief to be gleaned from the unnerving sensation of being cooked in your own skin could be found in the cool waters of a large, clear lake that sat beside a homely manor, nestled in the hills of the county. Hidden beneath the outstretched branches of various trees, the lake had been subject to many a morning swim or late-night gathering over the years. It was here, in fact, that the four marauders could be found, on the hottest day of August, 1975.

With Euphemia and Fleamont gone to France for the summer, the boys had taken the opportunity to spend their last 2 weeks at the Potter estate. Of course, James’ parents had been reluctant to let the boys stay there without a set of rules, and so they created a long list of guidelines, all of which the marauders had plans to break before their return to Hogwarts on the 1st of September. It had already been four blissful days of this, and they still had 10 to go when we join the group.

Sprawled in their various positions around the lake, James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew were all basking the shade of the trees, simply taking in this pocket of bliss they had found in a world that was becoming increasingly more war-like with each passing second. The sun was shining overhead and they were with each other. And in that moment, that was all they needed.

The silence was broken with a loud splash, followed by an indignant “OI!” Remus clambered out of the water and up the bank, his eyes fixed on is assailant, vengeance in his expression.

“You fucking moron! I was reading! You could have thrown any one of them into the lake! Merlin knows a good dip would’ve done Peter some good, but no! You had to choose me!” His outburst was cut short when he got close enough to take in Sirius’ expression. His face, far from showing any signs of regret, instead bore his signature Sirius Black smirk. One corner of his mouth was upturned, his nose scrunched in a way that suggested both innocence and the opposite. It was an expression that, on anyone else, would have looked out-of-place and frankly stupid, but that befitted Sirius’ features perfectly. Remus had often marveled at how it drew out his devilishly handsome side.

Having lost his train of thought completely, his wand limp in his hand, Remus decided the best thing to do was to go and find a nice warm patch of sun in which to dry off. Sirius, however, had other plans. Remus had barely taken two steps toward his towel before he was grabbed around the waist and thrown, for the second time that day, headfirst into the water.

Sinking was an enjoyable feeling. Down there, in the water, nothing could hurt you. It was all up to you. Sound became nothing but a detached concept, and time joined it in its alienation. You could sink forever, simply being engulfed by the soft waves of the water, and emerge not a second later. Remus did just that. As his head broke the surface, spluttering, he lashed out wildly and managed to grab hold of an ankle. Pulling hard, the owner of said ankle tumbled into the lake next to him, and Remus soon found himself floating, face to face, with Sirius, once again bearing that ridiculous grin.

As both of the boys tried to catch their breath, time stopped. And it was just them. Remus and Sirius, Sirius and Remus. Floating in that never-ending pool of possibilities. Breaths became heavy as an invisible force seemed to draw them closer, closer.

Their noses were nearly touching now Remus could see every detail of Sirius’ eyes from here. He could almost pinpoint the exact place where blue leaked into grey, which leaked into black. It was strange, really, how anyone’s eyes could be so captivating. Almost a point of curiosity. Eyes had a purpose. They captured light, which was then translated into information, which was then processed by the brain to take in the person’s surroundings. So why did all logic defy Sirius’ eyes to be so beautiful? They had no reason to be. It wasn’t to make it easier to see. It wasn’t to draw in a mate (because merlin, he needed no help with that), so why? Their breath mingled in the moist summer air, their lips inches apart. It was taking every ounce of restraint that Remus had in his not to close the gap and snog his best mate senseless, but then again, that was the norm when you were secretly in love with your best friend.

The tensions was shattered by the snap of a book closing.

“Alright, boys, I’m bored”, James announced, stowing Quidditch Through the Ages in the small bag he had brought down from the house. The boys sprung apart, all nervous coughing and straightening of hair. Remus hurriedly turned his back on his – what, crush? It was more than that. But he knew one thing for certain; now was not the time to figure it out. This was what he told himself as he climbed up the bank and rolled out onto the grass.

In an attempt to restore himself to his former state of nonchalance, Remus rolled his eyes sarcastically (quite successfully, given the situation he was actually thinking about).

“You’re reading that book again? You’ve barely taken your hands off of it all summer!”, he said, pulling Sirius up the bank after him (and definitely not thinking about the sensation of his friend’s warm, wet hand in his).

Sirius grinned. “Aw, lay off him Rem. This is the first year Lily had gotten him a birthday present. Honestly, I would be concerned if he read it any less than a thousand times.”

This comment was met with a playful shove from James, but the lovesick boy couldn’t hide his grin at the recollection of Lily’s favor. James shook the memory from his mind (with difficulty, it seemed).

“I’m bored. Let’s go to town, grab a milkshake or something.”

Sirius, always keen for an outing to the muggle town that was located less than a kilometer from the Potters’ house, agreed almost immediately. Peter followed suit at the mention of food, and began rummaging in his pocket for the stash of muggle money his parents had granted him for the holiday. Remus was somewhat more reluctant.

“I don’t know guys. It’ll be dark soon, and I don’t really want to go walking around a strange village in the middle of the night.”

“It’s not a strange village, Rem! Jamie grew up here!” (The use of the less-than-favorable nickname earned Sirius yet another shove). “Plus… there’s an antiques store. And last time I was there the owner said they’d be getting a new stock of books in this summer.”

“You know me too well”, Remus caved, and packed up his stuff. They went and dropped off their things at the main house, got changed into some town-going clothes and headed for the road that led down into the charming muggle settlement of Padbury.

**

It really was a lovely little town. Old cottages with thatched roofs skirted the border, with carefully-trimmed gardens of heather and honeysuckle. A beautiful old church sat in the town center, with a clock tower and a bell that frankly, shouldn’t still be operational, given it’s age. But, as many things in the town of Padbury, it seemed to be denied the effects of the passage of time, and instead chimed beautiful notes out over the countryside every hour.

The main road took the boys right into the middle of the town, where a collection of stores seemed to be waiting for them. The town square had everything, ranging from mechanics to diners, from supermarkets to florists. And, nestled in between a non-descript restaurant and a lavender-adorned wall, was a beautiful little antique store. Remus made a beeline for it, but was stopped in his tracks by James’ hand on his wrist.

“Come on Remus. Let’s go check out that comic-book store first! I love muggle comics, they’re so corny…”

Remus sighed, knowing that very few people could ever change his friend’s mind, and began to follow him across the street. But fortunately, Sirius was one of the people capable of performing that miraculous feat, and, in that moment, happened to be on Remus’ side.

“C’mon James. Remy doesn’t want to spend hours with you oggling at randos in spandex and getting inspiration for your next move at Evans. You take Pete over to the comic-book store, and Remus and I will go to the antiques shop.” Sirius shot a smile Remus’ way, which managed to both make his heart beat a million miles a second and stop it altogether.

James scoffed. “What do you want with an antique shop?”

“I have to get something for Reggie’s birthday, and he loves old dusty books and things. Plus, I have no desire to spend any amount of time dicussing whether or not Lily would think it was funny if you dressed up as Superman for halloween.”

Without giving James a chance to retort, Sirius dragged Remus back across the street and into the antique store before he even had a chance to register what was going on.

The second they entered the store, the rest of the world fell away. Somehow, the noise of the bustling street outside was silenced, and the only sound that could be heard was the ticking of an ancient grandfather clock that stood in the corner. Remus revolved on the spot, taking in every inch of the sequestered nook that they had just stumbled upon. Ornate carvings of all sorts sat in the windows, varying from animals to sprawling, intricate landscapes. Tapestries and paintings hung on the walls, each a moment of time, perfectly captured and eternalised on canvas. Furniture, bits and pieces and other oddments that had washed up in this place over the years were scattered haphazardly around the room, making for a display of authenticity that, although was now mostly gone from the world, seemed to have survived in this tiny corner of the English countryside. And the books. Oh, the books. They lined ever wall, and were stacked 10 high on shelves. Strewn and slid into every nook and cranny where they would fit. Not in any way categorized, but instead exactly where they were always meant to be. Delicate printings of Jules Verne, Ernest Hemmingway and even Shakespeare were mixed in with books as common as The Very Hungry Caterpillar. Remus closed his eyes and breathed. He breathed in the smell of dust and time. He breathed in the taste of the years these books had seen, the years he might catch a glimpse of between their pages. Be breathed because here, he could.

A soft hand rested on his shoulder and an even softer voice pulled him, somewhat reluctantly, from his reverie.

“Rem?”

Remus opened his eyes. It was Sirius. God, it was always Sirius.

“I’m going to look over here for something for Reggie”, he gestured to the carvings in the windows. “You take your time, okay? We have all day. Hell, we have all summer.”

Remus could do no more than nod as the comfortable weight on his shoulder lifted and he found himself alone again.

**

An hour and a half later, the boys exited the store with more books than anyone could possibly read, and two small, hollow carved flowers that Sirius had plans to enchant so that he could send his brother messages by placing a note inside his, and having it be transported to Regulus’.

They met up with James and Peter in the diner, and ordered four caramel milkshakes. When they came, Sirius whipped out his flask and added a little ‘extra flavour’, as he liked to call it. When the boys had finished their concoctions, they started to head home. However, it was quickly discovered that with the combined weight of Remus’ books, Sirius’ wooden flowers and James’ numerous gifts that he had gotten for Lily (“Maybe we should have gone with him, you know, for impulse control…”), it was going to be all but impossible to walk back to the manor. And so was hatched what was simultaneously the best and worst idea any of the marauders ever had. To rent a motorbike.

All they had to do was walk down to the mechanic down the street and rent one of the bikes they had going. They would only need it for a day, and would bring it back tomorrow. And so, the combined riches of James and Sirius making cost something of a trivial topic, the plan was enacted. The books were placed in a basket on the front, which was lowered so that Sirius could see. James’ takings from the trip were strapped (with slightly excessive security methods) to the back, and the flowers were placed in the side bags. After a few failed attempts at getting the bike started and close calls for the wooden ornaments, Sirius managed to be riding along next to the other boys at a steady pace. It took them no more than 20 minutes to get back home, at which point it occurred to them all that they were wizards, and could have easily bewitched all of the objects to float along beside them as they walked.

The boys ended the night collapsed around the living room fire. James charmed it so that it kept them cool, rather than warm, and Sirius entertained himself by making multi-coloured rainbows blossom from his wand. In the firelight, he looked over at Remus and smiled. Not a smirk, not a grin, a smile. And that smile what all it took for Remus to realise that he was totally and completely done-for. He was in love.

As Sirius went back to blowing bubbles, Remus began to drift off to sleep. The last coherent thought that entered his mind that night was this:

Merlin, it’s going to be a long 10 days.

*

I hope you liked it!!!

[athena-is-a-chaotic-lil-shit]

Of Ice and Blood

Part 4

Welcome back! Hope you enjoy✨

Pairing: Tai'chi Kashharzol (Orc) x Pearl Blackbell (Human OC/Reader)

Warnings: Violence, cursing, shouting, and fighting. No blood mention. Just broken bones and stuff.

2.1k+ words [originally 1.6k but I revised it and added more details!]

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 5 Part 6

Sensing another one behind me, I went low and struck his leg with mine, using his fall to punch his chin with my right fist this time, being careful to use a controlled amount of force or else the nerve I hit will result to permanent brain injury and can be fatal.

I got up, swift in my actions as I saw the guy with a raised baseball bat heading towards me from my left flank, and the other one from the right, fast.

On reflex, I leaned back, the bat that was aimed at me hitting his comrade on the shoulder instead. Guy's lucky, actually. He would have suffered internal bleeding if it bashed the side of his skull.

Four down, two to go.

I took my stance once again to ready myself. This dude was a foot taller than me, with muscles packed with raw strength, but even so, pale in comparison to Tai'chi's p—

Stop thinking that! Focus!

"Smash her head Dan!" The man behind him yelled.

This 'Dan' went straight to me with his bat raised with intent once more.

Breathe in.

Everything slowed down. I let my heart rate decelerate, my hearing sharpened, my sense of smell heightening even further.

I closed my eyes, letting the rest of my senses take over. Years of practice, days of pain from training, each motion engraved to my entire body with purpose. To defend not only myself, but also those who are looked down upon, discriminated and stepped on like dirt. My parents had always taught me to defend myself. Me. Don't get me wrong, my parents are good people, albeit wary of the other races in our community. But the moment I left the roof of my home, I knew it was time for me to defend someone other than myself. I don't give a damn about where we come from or what kind of blood flows within our veins. I will protect those who need protecting, and set anyone straight and down to the ground when they deserve it.

Breathe out.

At the last few moments, with my eyes still shut, I changed my form. I followed his aura and pictured out the shape that was drawing up to land a serious blow to my head. Dan is solid and heavy, but everyone has at least one weakness. And this guy is not spared from that.

The bigger they are, the harder they fall.

I opened my right fist, right foot forward and relaxed my arms, my legs serving as a firm foundation for my upper body. With the bat inches away from me, I smoothly dodged to the side, using my palm to push away the hand holding the weapon and punched a vital pressure point right under his bicep.

I bent my legs even lower and struck the center of his ribs with my thumb, closing my hands as I jabbed his sciatic nerve on each side at the same time, both located in the middle line of the thigh between the groin and the knee. A solid blow to those nerve points will cause intense pain and shock to the person, along with a temporary immobility of the feet.

a/n: Self defense 101! Remember that dear readers♥

With the support of my left leg, I went behind the man, standing straight and proud. Calm, I opened my eyes when I heard his fall, staring right into the fearful ones of the moron that started all of this.

"Y-You- You killed them!"

Is he that dumb?

"Correction, I didn't. I knocked them unconscious is all. And the fellow that attacked me first? Well, he passed out from the pain of his now funny-looking arm." I stated flatly as I trudged to where he was standing.

"S-Stay away from me! Monster! Freak!" He stumbled, his ass on the ground and away from me until he felt a tree trunk on his back.

I scoffed and withdrew my knuckle dusters back under my baggy sleeve.

"You wanna know who the real monster is?" I stopped and held him in place with my scrutinizing gaze. He was trembling like a wimp at this point.

"It's you.

"You and your disgusting racist friends.

"You, along with all the people who view and treats anyone other than humankind as lowlifes and pests that are meant to be squished and eradicated from the society.

"No, it's you, and the ones who have the same mentality as you, who are monsters under the guise of a human."

I paused, not even blinking as I bore holes into his skull.

"I am human, down to every inch of my being. But unlike you, I respect and treat everyone, regardless of kind or gender, and to those who deserve it, fair and right."

Before I could continue, I scented new people coming into the scene. It was the teaching staff, along with the uni's guard.

Shocked of what they have seen, they turned towards me, angry, surprised, confused expressions on different faces.

"What have you done?!" A female, human instructor, looking to be around her late 20s shouted.

"Ma'am, if you would just let me explain—"

"You are hereby expelled from this institution, young lady!"

All the color of my skin left me as I heard the words I have dreaded even before I set foot in the campus grounds.

"Now let's not go straight to conclusions. We need to deal with this professionally AND properly Miss Holson. You are also not in authority to suspend this student." A heavily bearded dwarven professor, clad in a brown suit and Oxfords, told her off firmly.

"What are you saying Mr. Dulrik? Look at her! Look at this! She murdered students and oh my God, is that the dean's son?!"

For the love of— she blind? Why does everybody think I killed someone???

"Ma'am they are—" I was about to tell her but got cut off, again!

"Helpmehelpmehelpme!" He scrambled away from me and ran to the group of teachers and hugged the young instructor. "I don't know what came over her! She just attacked us out of nowhere!"

The audacity of this fucking bitch!

"Pardon me? Attacked you? YOU were the one who followed me out here! You and your" —I gestured to the bodies laying flat on the ground— " buddies over there!"

"She is lying! The orc was with her and and and—"

It dawned on me that I almost forgot about Tai'chi. My eyes widened, and I frantically scanned the area around for him. And there he was, standing by the oak tree, right where I told him not to move.

He seemed...irritated?

Oh no. At me?

"I have not moved an inch from where I am standing ever since I planted my feet here." He said with his deep baritone voice, turning to confront the staff. "What she's speaking is the truth. They were the ones who followed her here and attacked her, first."

"And how can we be sure you are telling the truth, orc?" Miss Holson replied spitefully.

Even the teacher, huh? Her odor smells like vomit. I mean, I knew she was...foul, but I thought it was because of the situation. Guess not.

Tai'chi did not respond. Instead, he moved to look at me in the eyes. His gaze, searching, but not in an awful way. Was he asking me what I'll do?

"How about we discuss this in the office, shall we?" An elderly professor spoke. She was wearing the university's formal teaching uniform together with black, flat, closed toe sandals. "And Miss Holson, please quiet down. As Mr. Dulrik said, we should not jump into baseless conclusions."

Miss Holson fumed and shut her mouth, holding the coward in her arms.

"Now then, Miss...?"

"Blackbell."

The woman paused. I caught a smell of surprise and... astonishment?

She cleared her throat "Well, then Miss Blackbell, please follow us to the Dean's office, along with your, companion."

Weird.

"Oh and Mr. Smith, kindly call for assistance and take the unconscious students to the infirmary to be treated and looked unto. Thank you." She told the guard. With that, she and the rest of the faculty started walking back.

I glanced at Tai'chi once more to find him, again, staring. I approached him warily, expecting him to be mad at me.

"Uh. Hi?"

I let out a long exhale when he replied, with a slight tug of his lips, his tusk jutting out. "Hi."

I fidgeted, trying to come up with words to explain myself.

"I uh, uhm. Are you mad?"

With his brow raised, "Why would I be?"

Yeah why would he be?

"I-I never told why I keep wearing my mask." I stuttered, "You see I—"

"You two! Start moving before I force you to." A teacher yelled at us from a distance.

"We'll talk later, Pearl. For now let's get this resolved first. I know for a fact that they won't expel you unless they ignore the ill intentions of the ones who attempted to harm you first. But better be safe than sorry, he was the dean's son afterall."

"Yeah... Thanks. We should.. go." I turned and started walking along his side.

******pov shift for a bit*******

Little did Pearl know, he was thinking about how...nice, yeah that's the word, definitely not sexy, you were when he witnessed your skills in combat. It awakened something in him that it took a lot of control not to get aroused there and then, which was the real reason why he stood there, unmoving from his place. Not once did he leave his eyes from you, almost jumping to help you when the guy with the baseball bat was closer than we would have liked. But oh no, he was not surprised, he was astonished and shookt , amazed when you pulled that last technique, sending the human plummeting to the ground almost soundlessly. And the way you stood right after, he knew he was smitten. That proud and intense aura you gave off was enough to make him bow down at your feet. He could feel it. He could smell it. That was his secret, he can scent people and catch any mood shift they make. Even though he told her that her eyes and brows gave it away, it was not entirely true as he could smell, literally, you and the changes on your scent.

Oh but little did he know you could to. Just not as observant as he is.

:>

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

Wow— when I copy pasted the original thing from my notes to my drafts in Tumblr I was like "okay, so. I should read it AGAIN before I post it if I wanna avoid more unnoticed mistakes and keep editing it again and again even though I posted it already! " And I never though it would lead me to adding almost a half thousand words and a pov shift— which i found interesting and really nice! Should I do it more often? Like little inserts of what Tai'chi or another characters thoughts in second pov in between fics if necessary? It's just, nice, to put them in and write all out about what they were thinking outside of Pearl's pov! Let me know what you think and I hope you enjoyed reading❤

Tags: @kokokatsworld @crackinanutshell

[markosmate]

David’s girl want to see his goofy side so she keeps hitting him with her pillow and stuffed animals- can go anyway you want💖 Also if you are up could you do this as head cannon for all the boys (?)

this is the cutest!! ok so i’m gonna do kinda like a blurb for each boy if that makes sense?? you’ll see what i mean haha,, i hope you like it!! :) - 🧚🏻

David

It had only been a few months since the boys moved you into the cave. You had nowhere else to go and the boys didn’t need to be told twice about your predicament before they were already offering you a spot to stay with them. David had taken it upon himself to move all of your belongings from your old house to your nest at the cage before your parents - who had kicked you out after you dropped out of school - could get the chance to throw it all away.

The boys did their best to make sure you were as comfortable as possible at the cave, getting Max to find a way to hook up running water in the cave and even buying a never-ending supply of batteries to run a mini fridge on so you could keep drinks and snacks in your nest. Over the first few weeks of spending every waking moment together, you and David began to become significantly closer than you were with the others. A few innocent kisses were shared here and there before you all went to sleep or when the group split up to do different things at the boardwalk.

You began to like him quite a lot and you couldn’t help but stay up into the early mornings after they fell asleep thinking about if he actually felt the same for you, or if he was just playing around with your feelings. One night you had woken up with a horrible cramp taking over your entire abdomen. You chose to stay back at the cave for the night and hopefully stuff yourself till you couldn’t feel it anymore or sleep off all the pain. The boys understand, Star having already explained to them why some nights a month she didn’t feel like running after Laddie on the boardwalk. They didn’t pester you much about it and left soon after you broke the news to them.

Not even two hours later, David came back early without the boys in tow. There was a plastic bag of goodies from the convenience store down the block from the beach in his hand and he placed it gently by your side without a word. You tried to read any emotion on his face but failed miserably as his expression stayed completely neutral.

“What’s all this?” You mumbled with a large smile pulling at your lips as you sat up slightly to look through the contents of the bag.

He shrugged halfheartedly, moving to push some of your blankets aside so he could sit at the edge of your nest and watch your reaction to what he had gotten. “Just some stuff Star said would help. Thought maybe you needed something to cheer you up.”

You glanced up at him with the biggest smile on your face and for a moment, you could have sworn that you saw his eyes soften as they gazed into yours. The bag was filled with different kinds of candies, and even some small pieces of jewelry like a couple of rings and a necklace he must have slipped from one of the small stands. “Thank you so much, this means a lot.” You giggled, leaning up to press a kiss to his cheek. His lip quirked up the tiniest bit and you moved back to sit up completely with two or three pillows supporting your back.

“You know... there is one more thing that could make me feel better.” You grinned sneakily at the blond vampire.

He quirked an eyebrow at you and rolled his eyes. “What, the candy and jewelry wasn’t enough?”

You laughed at him before teasingly holding your arms out at him. “A cuddle?” That made him still for a moment as his eyes slowly raised back up from his lap to meet your own.

He scoffed as he moved to stand up and make his way towards the opening in the fabric curtains. “I don’t cuddle kitten, sorry.” You rolled your eyes dramatically, moving to place the bag of goods on the old bedstand next to your bed. You moved to grab one of the many stuffed animals stacked in the corner of the bed and in an instant you had thrown it at him. It hit him dead center in the middle of the back and he froze halfway out the exit.

He turned and looked at you, before his eyes travelled down to the floor where the stuffed horse lay. You giggled at his reaction before standing up quickly and running over to him, ignoring the pain pulsing in your abdomen. You grabbed his wrist gently and pulled him along with you, pulling him down on the bed. He scoffed before grabbing the closest stuffy - a giraffe - and whacking you across the back of the head with you.

You gasped, staring at him with mock surprise as you laughed, struggling to get out your next words. “You didn’t!”

“Oh but baby, I did.” He chuckled, blocking your next attack and tossing you over him, making you land softly in the entire pile of plushies. You kicked weakly, trying to regain your upper hand in the battle and trying to grab some kind of stuffed toy to hit him back with.

You both were laughing so hard, you didn’t even realize most of the plushies had already been accidently kicked off the mattress and onto the floor. “Okay! Okay, you win!” You cried weakly, giving up in surrender as you grabbed onto his shoulders to try and steady yourself and catch your breath.

His laughter died down slowly with yours and he just smirked down at you with a cocky triumph. You thought he was going to say something to rub in his victory, but he chose not to. “That was the most ab exercise I think I’ve done in six decades.”

You threw your head back in a loud barking laugh, pulling him down next to you to cuddle yourself into his chest. “You hang from the ceiling every night to sleep, I think that’s enough core engagement for an entire lifetime.”

“I guess you’re right.” He chuckled, chest still heaving along with yours as your heartbeat slowly calmed after the little wrestling match. “Go to sleep,” He whispered into your hair, pressing a kiss to your temple shortly. “You’ll feel much better when you wake up kitten.”

Dwayne

You and Dwayne weren’t dating - not by any means. It was common knowledge among you both that you were completely head over heels for each other, but neither of you were confident enough in that knowledge to try and make the relationship official. So, for the mean time, you both settled for what you had now. You were his, and he was yours - even if it wasn’t totally sealed into place with labels.

So, that brought you to where you were now. Movie nights were common for the both of you, but it was usually at your place since Marko and Paul couldn’t sit still long enough to watch a whole movie so every movie night at the cave usually turned into a horribly chaotic failure. However, this time it was different. Max had suggested taking Marko and Paul to a shop right out of town to snatch a few things for him. David took it upon himself to spend the night cruising around town on his bike to give you and Dwayne some alone time. He had been the one to personally suggest that you guys finally attempt to have a successful movie night at the cave.

So, the plans were set. That night you only wore some pajamas, not really finding a point in dressing up any better. You packed a few blankets and stuffed animals in your bag and ran outside to meet up with Dwayne who had taken it upon himself wait in your driveway for you to finish getting ready. “Whatcha bringing doll?” He grinned at you as you strapped your bag to the department of his bike.

“Just some extras.” You giggled shortly, climbing on behind him and wrapping your arms tightly around his middle. You arrived at the cave in no time and within the hour the couches were stacked with pillows and blankets for a makeshift fort you both had thrown together as quickly as possible. You couldn’t for the life of you remember the name of the movie you were watching, you were too busy staring at Dwayne from the other side of the couch to listen to what he was explaining about it.

He had been awkward the entire night so far. Stiffening when you wrapped your arms around him on his bike, almost tripping down the stairs when you grabbed his hand to help steady yourself while entering the cave, and even going as far as to sit on the other side of the fort when he pressed play. You glared at the side of his head, hoping he would pick up on your mood and explain himself to you - but either he didn’t notice your staring or didn’t care.

Had you said something? Was he mad at you? Annoyed that he had to stay in with you all night instead of causing trouble with his friends? You couldn’t figure it out, and instead resulted to plan B. Looking around as unsuspiciously as possible, you located the closest plushie to you and grasped it in your hand - deciding your next moves very carefully. You could either play a guilt trip - act all sad and pouty until he comes over to your side of the sofa and gives you the loving that you want - or you could chuck it at the side of his head to show him that you were angry about the distance he’s putting between the both of you. 

You decided on the latter, calculating the distance between him and you and analyzing how hard you would have to throw it to hit him where you wanted it to. Finally, you threw it as hard as you could and it whacked against his shoulder before falling to the ground below. He turned and locked eyes with you, eyebrow quirking upwards as his gaze flicked between you and the toy on the ground. There was an underlying question in his eyes as confusion filled his face. Why had you..?

“Pay attention to me asshole.” You mumbled, crossing your arms with a pout on your face.

That only made his confusion worse as his jaw dropped in exasperation. “Pay- pay attention to you? We’re watching a movie?”

You shook your head stubbornly and frowned at him. “We can watch a movie with you over here. Why’d you sit so far away?”

That made him roll his eyes as a deep chuckle rumbled from his chest. “You dork!” He teased, picking up the plushie from the ground and chucking it back at you. It thumped against your forehead before landing in your lap. “All you had to do was ask me to come over.” He stood from his side of the couch and made his way over to you, moving some of the blankets and pillows to the side to make room for him to sit. You kept up with your act, crossing your arms impossibly tighter and turning your head to look away from him.

He softly laughed and with a roll of his eyes, reached out to cup your cheek and move your head to face him once more. “You wanted me over here, baby.” He teased, eyes flicking between your own and your lips.

You didn’t wait to hear what he had to say next, just leaned in to capture his lips in your own in a soft sensual kiss. You reached up to tangle your fingers in his hair, pulling him closer to you in a way you had been dreaming about for months now. When you finally pulled away for some much-needed air you giggled and nuzzled yourself into his chest. “I’m glad we finally got that situated.”

He sighed, letting a smile tug at his lips as he guided your chin back up to look you in the eyes once more. “You’re telling me.” 

Paul

The boys had skipped the boardwalk that night, going straight to the less crowded part of the beach to look for an early meal. They couldn’t quite pin-point why they had woken up that night feeling so much hungrier than usual, but it couldn’t hurt to just feed earlier than usual.

Wrong, very wrong. The beach-goers in the early night are much more sober and alert than they are later on, meaning the second the boys exposed themselves to them, they were already defending themselves much more than the vampires were used to dealing with. At one point, one of the surf nazis pulled a gun from his sleeping pack while they were drinking from the others, and the bullet lodged itself in Paul’s shoulder.

They disarmed him and killed him quickly before cleaning up the area of attack and making sure that there was no remaining evidence to point towards what had happened. Dwayne sat Paul down on one of the logs and managed to get the bullet out of the wound fairly quickly. “It hurts man.” Paul whined out, thumping his foot on the ground to a random rhythm to try and distract himself from the injury.

“Your body will heal itself in not even three hours. If it hurts to bad to chill at the boardwalk, go on over to Y/N’s, get it patched up and get some ice for it to numb it.” David explained shortly, mounting his bike as the other three followed after him.

“Yeah, I think I’ll do that. Meet you guys at the cave later?” The tall blond decided, starting his bike up and glancing at his brothers. Once they all gave him a nod, he turned his bike and drove in the opposite direction of the boardwalk. Your house wasn’t too far away from the boardwalk, you could make the walk in ten minutes tops.

You had been working on making a new comforter blanket for your bed when you heard the rhythmic knocks on your door. Three short ones and two long ones, Paul’s signature knock whenever him and the boys invited themselves over. However, you hadn’t been expecting them tonight - you guys had made plans for Friday, so it was confusing why he’d show up two nights before the designated plans.

You stood, making your way over to the door and opening it, the first thing you noticed being the glittery blood leaking down his shoulder. “Oh my god, Paul!” You cried pulling him into the house and shutting the door after him. “Do you need me to clean it or wrap it up?”

He chuckled, shaking his head at you in dismissal. “Nah doll, my body will heal it completely by tomorrow afternoon. I was just hoping to get some ice and hang out.”

Twenty minutes later, you were both sprawled across your couch. The living room was completely silent with the exception of the occasional quiet breathing. He was laid back, head against the back of the couch and holding the icepack against his wound to try and numb the pain as much as possible. You knew that he was in pain, and obviously quite upset that he let his guard down and ended up getting injured by the prey.

You didn’t like this version of Paul, and you wanted to cheer him up. What better way to do so then have a plushie war? You grabbed the one nearest you and threw it gently at him, watching as it hit his thigh. His eyes cracked open and he looked down at the offended stuffed animal with a large smile. “It’s on babydoll.” He declared, grabbing as many toys as he could to load up on amo.

“Hey!” You cried, quickly sitting up to grab the remaining ones as quickly as possible, pulling one of your couch cushions out from its spot to sit in front of you to serve as a sort of barrier between you and the vampire.

He made the first throw, throwing the two largest at your cushion and successfully knocking it off the couch. You were wheezing with laughter as you lazily threw a few at him to distract him, while also trying to pull the cushion back up to block you from any plushies. While you were distracted, he lunged at you and wrapped his arms tightly around your waist, lifting you into the air and spinning you both around the living room.

“Oh my god!” You cried out in between loud barks of laughter, trying to pull at his wrists to get him to drop you. “Stop I’m going to puke!”

He laughed along with you before twirling you around so your chest was pressed to his. “I win?” He teased, nuzzling his nose against your cheek with a sly giggle laced into his words.

“Yeah- yeah, you win.” You whispered, wrapping your arms around his waist in shy hug and burying your face into the shoulder that wasn’t injured.

“I’m glad I came here instead of going with the guys. It’s been so long since we spent time alone, just the two of us.” He mumbled, pressing a flurry of kisses to your neck and jaw.

“Well, let’s start making it something that happens way more often.” You offered, swaying side to side with him as you both just basked in the relief of having someone you both could always trust and love.

“Yeah. That sounds nice.”

Marko

You and the blond vampire had been dating for a good four months now. The feelings had been apparent ever since you both first met at the beginning of summer. Still, you hadn’t ever really seen him let go and relax. Either he was putting up a tough front for all the people on the boardwalk, or he was pretending like he wasn’t absolutely whipped for you in front of the boys.

You didn’t want to push him to open up, though. Maybe he was just the type of person that found it difficult to even let the closest people to them inside their walls. He would fully relax around you when he knew it was time, you weren’t going to force him into it.

It was a Sunday night when he showed up at your window with some snacks and a move from Max’s shop asking if you were up to staying in for a movie night with him. Now you both laid on top of your bed covers, curled into each other as the comedy he picked out played on your tiny television. He had been tense the entire time, which confused you because he was always comfortable around you. Did he see your underwear on the floor or something? You didn’t think so, you could’ve sworn that you had put away all of your laundry.

You wanted him to have a good time with you, not feel like he had to constantly keep up some kind of persona. So, you did what only seemed reasonable. You reached out to his sides and began tickling him. Immediately a loud laugh left his lips as he tried and failed to squirm away from your fingers.

“S-Stop! What are y-you doing?” He wheezed pushing you away from him. When that didn’t work he resulted to tickling you right back. You immediately stopped your attack on him, moving backwards towards the wall your bed was pushed up against to put space between you both.

He just laughed, scooting closer to you and continuing his devious plan. You reached out for something to grab onto and your hand met one of the stuffed toys on your bed. You picked it up by the leg and started whacking him with it in an attempt to get him to forfeit. “Stop it, you psycho!” You laughed as he finally moved his hands away from your sides, instead using them to cover his head from the blows of the plushie in your hands.

“I have to stop? You started it!” He grinned back at you, grabbing your waist and pulling you over him until you were looking down at him. He smiled slyly letting his eyes flick between your eyes and your lips. You gazed back into his eyes, letting your guard down momentarily. It was enough for him however, and he quickly snatched the plushie from you and used his legs to flip you around until you were lying on your back again.

“Hey! You distracted me, that’s cheating!”  You pouted, hands against his chest so that you were ready to deflect any attacks he was getting ready to throw your way.

He chuckled, twirling your hair around his pointer finger - opting to not attack you with the plushie any further. “I was just doing what I had to do to win babe.”

“Yeah well you’re just mean.” You frowned up at him and watched as he just playfully rolled his eyes at you. 

“Yeah, whatever loser.” He mumbled before lowering himself down so you both were once again curled into each other, in the perfect spot to hold each other comfortably and see the television at the right angle.

[eideticmemory]

EVER SINCE NEW YORK IV | MATTHEW GRAY GUBLER

Description: I was messaged saying: “If you don’t write a young Matthew enemies to lovers fic featuring an obsession with sucking on boobs then what’s the point 😔.” So, here it is, folks! The ultimate College!Matthew fic. Cover by @timey-wimey-lovi​!

PART 4! Read Part 3 here!

SOUNDTRACK:

Let Me Know - Clear Eyes.

Friends - Ed Sheeran.

Perfect Places - Lorde.

Word Count: 4,551.

Rating: M.

Warning/Includes: Sexual intercourse, drinking, recreational drug use, a bit of angst.

Fall, Junior Year.

Tisch School of the Arts, 

New York University.

New York City. 

“We’re going out tonight,” Claire said, plopping down on your bed. 

“Oh? We are?” You replied, a notebook in your lap, and your back resting against the pillows.

“Yes. There is a welcome back party on campus tonight and we’re going.”

“I don’t feel like partying,” you sighed. “We just moved back in. There’s still so much left to do, to unpack.”

“Guess what? It’ll be here when we get back. And we’ll have all of tomorrow to decorate. But right now, we’re juniors, we’re thriving, and we’re gonna party!” She did a little dance, her red hair bouncing on her head. 

You giggled, “Fine. Only until midnight! Then, we’re coming right back.”

“Geez, grandma? Midnight? Make it one!”

“Fine, one-thirty.”

“I’ll take it,” she smiled. She hopped out of bed, and turned on her heels, finger guns pointing at you. “Wear that red tube top. Step all the way out, kid. I mean it!”

“Yeah, we’ll see.”

You wore the top. It looked good. Abnormally good. Insanely good. It hugged your body, and accented your breasts, little ruffles handing on the hem. You paired it with a loose pair of jeans, leather boots, and sparkly jewelry. Your hair was pulled out of your face and you applied light makeup. 

“Yes, ma’am!” Claire cheered when she saw you. “For someone who didn’t wanna party, you sure snapped.” 

“Hush,” you blushed. “I just wanna be prepared, y’know, in case we take pictures or run into people.”

Person. Singular. 

You anticipated a high chance of seeing Matthew tonight, and if it was true, it would be your first time seeing each other in person in two months. After week upon week of late night phone calls — full of dirty words, quiet moans, and soft goodnight wishes. With his timezone being three hours behind yours, the two of you set alarms on your phone to talk in the early hours of the morning. Until you fell into this routine of talking every night. First, helping each other get off — sometimes more than once. And then having a sleepy, giggle-filled conversation about anything under the sun. It regularly lasted until one of you fell asleep.

So, yeah. You were eager to see him. Even more eager to get back to his place. Get back underneath him. It’d been a week since you last spoke, both of you being too busy moving back to New York. You ached for him dearly. And you wanted his first reaction to seeing you again to be lustful, intense. The outfit was perfect.

Claire and you walked across campus, arm in arm, skin glowing under the lights, hair blowing in the breeze. The music was palpable, and you could hear it from miles away. The two of you stepped into the dorming building, giggling at the sight of familiar faces, the smell of alcohol and weed, the sound of bass. 

For most of the night it was easy to mingle. You carried a solo cup of alcohol from each room — vodka. Everytime you drank rum, you got horny. It was weird. You couldn’t turn a corner without bumping into someone you knew, be it a dancer, an actor, film student. Being a double major, and active on campus, you knew way too many people. And everyone seemed to be there that night. It took you a good hour to rotate amongst groups. 

“[y/n]?”

You turned around, a smile instantly appearing on your face. “Alex! Oh, my goodness! How are you?”

The dashing boy smiled at you, his hand on your shoulder. “Hey! I’m great, how are you?”

“I’m good, I’m good. I’m currently trying to have a good time despite being tired as hell.”

He laughed, “Well, I see you’ve got some good time juice there, so you’re halfway to freedom. Hey, I forgot to tell you — your performance in the nutcracker last Christmas was incredible. I, uh, I actually went to the spring ballet after that because I was so impressed.”

“Thank you,” you grinned. “I like to inspire people to experience ballet. It’s cool.”

“I was very inspired,” he nodded. “Hopefully we’ll have some more classes together this semester.” 

“Yeah! If not, you know how to reach me.” You bit down on your lip to keep from smiling too wide. He gave you a quick wink, and walked away. 

You instantly began looking for Claire, rushing around the dorm for anyone resembling your friend. You noticed her in the threshold of a room, shoulder leaned against the wall, her arms crossed. You walked up to her, “Claire! Claire, you’re not gonna believe who I just ran into. It was definitely not the reunion I was expecting tonight.” 

Claire was dazed, staring in front of her with a face solid as stone. You very rarely saw her like this, and it freaked you out right away. “Claire? Claire, dude, what’s wrong?” You turned your head to follow her gaze, and your eyes landed on the couch. 

People lined the cushions, and dead in the center was Matthew. His hair had grown out a lot, and he dressed differently. All button down shirts and khaki shorts. With that damn chain tucked in his collar. And beside him was a girl. Hair jet black, a matching black mini dress, paired with sandals. They were kissing. Hot. Heavy. His hand gripping her hair, the other on his thigh. When they seperated, she touched his lips and you felt yourself having a stroke. The giggled at each other and Matthew kissed her cheek. 

“It’s about one-thirty, right?” Claire asked you, her sight not moving. 

You gulped. There was an ache in your chest that made it hard to speak. But you took a deep breath, and release the words, “Yeah. Let’s go home.”

Claire walked around you, heading towards the exit, and you followed. The two of you walked home, silent, arms over each other’s shoulders. In the room, Claire dropped her stuff to the floor,  kicked her shoes off and sat on her bed. You rushed into the space, approached your nightstand and rummaged through it. 

“What are you doing, [y/n]?”

“I’m packing a bowl,” you replied, grabbing your herbs, a lighter and the bowl. 

“Right now? In here?” She gasped.

“Is that okay?”

She sighed, “Yeah. Come share.”

The two of you sat on her bed, thirty minutes later, laying against the wall with your heads staring at the ceiling. Your eyelids were lowered, red, and your breathing was slow. 

“I’m hungry,” Claire said, texting on her phone. “Do we have gummy bears? I want gummy bears. But haribo gummy bears. Not those knocks off we used to buy. And some soda. Soda would be so good right now. My mouth is so dry.”

You stayed quiet, eyes focused on the lights overhead. You couldn’t get the image out of your mind. Matthew. And that girl. Kissing. Touching. 

“Her name is Veronica,” Claire said. 

You turned your hear to her, “Huh?”

“Her name is Veronica,” she repeated. “Or Roni for short.” She rolled her eyes. “She, uh, she’s from Vegas. She went to school with...Gube, actually. They dated.”

“Oh...” you nodded. “Are you...are you okay?”

“I — I, yeah, I’m fine,” she shrugged. “It’s just...really inconvenient of him to go back to her right now.”

“Back to her?”

“They’re together. They’re dating. Apparently they got back together this summer.” 

You furrowed your eyebrows together, a thousand thoughts running through your mind at once. “What do you think about that?” Claire asked. 

“Uh...” You shrugged. “I’m surprised anyone actually touches that boy,” you laughed, the sound coming out broken and sad. 

“Yeah...well...Misty says Roni is a big one for Gube. That, um, necklace he wears? She gave it to him years ago. He never took it off.” 

You nodded, “Yeah,” your voice cracked. “Well, that’s...that’s some heavy fixation there.” 

“[y/n]...”

“I should shower. I’m gonna shower.” You went to get off the bed, but Claire grabbed your wrist. You turned to her, and she pushed your hair out of your face. 

“I’m really upset about this, kid,” she said. “Can you...can you just lay with me for a bit?” 

You sighed, gave her a small smile and leaned in to hug her. She held you close, placing one hand on your head and the other on your rest. And she let you rest your head on her chest, as you let silent tears roll down your cheeks. 

Monday morning, you got up at 5 in the morning. You spent 2 hours in the ballet studio, twirling and dancing until your feet went numb. When you returned home, Claire was still asleep and you took a quick shower. You tried on ten different outfits, applied makeup, spent a long time on your hair. You made breakfast, checked for any assignments, surfed social media. And still had an hour before class. 

You chose to walk around campus, locate all your classes, grab some coffee, and then you headed to your first class. Walking through the building, you sipped on your drink, moving absentmindedly roaming the halls. Suddenly, a hand reached out and pulled you into a storage closet. Your scream was cut short, and you jumped as the door closed behind you.

You looked up at see Matthew staring at you, a soft smile on his face. “Hey.”

“I’m going to class,” you muttered, turning to exit the room. But Matthew put his hand on the door knob to stop you.

“Wait, wait,” he pleaded. “Um, do I see you at the party —“

“Yep,” you nodded, not making eye contact with him. 

“So...then, you saw me at the party with—“

“Yep.”

“Okay...[y/n]...”

“I really have to go to class, so, thanks for the detour, but I’m leaving now.” You removed his hand from the knob and left the closet, not looking back. 

You walked into your classroom, swallowing to get rid of the weird feeling in your throat. You set your bag down and took a seat. You attempted to shake Matthew out of your mind, the smell of him, the sight of him, the tension of being so close to him. But it was hard. It may have been the hardest thing ever. 

“Well, well, well,” a voice called to you. “Guess I got lucky, huh?”

You looked up to see Alex, giving you a toothy grin and a look of pure joy. “Alex,” you breathed. “Hi. This is awesome, you’re in here?”

“Yeah,” he took a seat beside you. “Haven’t seen you much since freshman year. This is nice.”

“It sure is.”

So. 

Remember number eight on your list of atrocities against Matthew Gubler? 

Fucked his friend. While said friend was supposed to help Matthew with his project. 

Alex would be the friend. He was gorgeous and kind and so good in bed. You first met in a cinematography class freshman year, where he very boldly asked if you wanted to hang out some time. You smiled, said yes, and that led to the aforementioned sexual encounter. It only happened a handful of times, until the semester was over. Then you didn’t see each other as often.

But he was here now. He was here and he was flirting with you. You were flirting back. You were hurt and upset and confused and so fucking horny, you could burst. So, after classes, you reached out to him and asked if he could help you with a pre class assignment. He told you to come over. You did. 

You didn’t work on the assignment though. 

Starting off pretty hot and heavy, it was a few weeks of meaningless sex until he asked you out. Claire cheered when she heard the news, causing you to give her a confused look. “Why are you so happy that I have a date?” You giggled. 

“Oh...I just — Alex is cute! He’s great, I always wondered what happened to him. You said he was good in the sack and he was always sweet to you. I’m just, so glad you’re happy.”

You gave her a faux smile, “Yeah. I’m happy.” 

Alex’s friend was having a birthday party at his apartment, and Alex insisted you come. Said it was the only way he’d be able to have any fun when everyone got too drunk. You agreed, and when he picked you up that night, you were dressed in a purple romper and diamond earrings. 

“You look beautiful,” he whispered, leaning in to kiss you. 

“Thank you,” you smiled. “You look beautiful, too.” 

He held your hand as he drove to the apartment, as you got out the car, walked up the stairs, entered the living space. He introduced you to everyone you met, his arm around you proudly and your head nuzzled into his chest. 

Watching you across the room was a very irritated Matthew Gubler, who sat with Veronica on his lap and a beer in his hand. You didn’t notice Matthew’s presence for a long time, considering the fact that he was avoiding you, and you were more focused on Alex. 

While talking to Alex’s friends, you excused yourself to go to the bathroom. You strolled down the hallway, searching for the restroom. 

“[y/n]!”

You turned around, confused. Matthew marched up to you, his hands in his pocket, his face determined. 

“I have to go to the bathroom,” you told him, and continued to walk. 

He followed you. “So, you dating Alex now?”

“That’s not really your business, now is it?”

He grabbed onto your arm and pulled your body into his, hiding you two behind a corner. “No, but it bugs me.”

“It bugs you?”

“It bugs me. I don’t want you with Alex. Alex is a dick.” 

“Well, not to me—“

Matthew leaned down and kissed you, his hands tightened on your waist. He kissed you like he was starving, mouth open, breath heavy. 

You pushed him away, your eyes closed in shock and ecstasy. No, no, you thought. “Matthew—“

“Let’s leave,” he interjected.

“Huh?”

“Let’s leave. Me and you. Let’s go.”

“No,” you snapped.

“Why not?”

“Because, I’m here with Alex! And you’re here with...her, so, no. I’m staying here, with the guy I came with.”

“C’mon—“

“Matthew, no! No! Are you deaf? Are you dumb? Leave me alone, and go back to your girlfriend.” You suddenly didn’t have to pee anymore, so you returned to Alex and his group of friends. Matthew watched as you took a seat in Alex’s lap, and you pretended not to notice. 

There was radio silence for months. Matthew even removed you on snapchat, and for your sanity, you ignored it. You continued a casual relationship with Alex, and he continued to worship the ground you walked on. A vast change in pace from Matthew. Claire pushed for the Alex relationship hardcore, saying hi to him when came over, giving you guys time alone, tagging alone with you two to parties. 

But every once in a while, you thought about Matthew. When you saw a particular movie, or heard one of his favorite bands, right after you would have sex. And especially on Halloween. Over the summer, he told you all about his costume plans, party plans, and movie marathons he was going to have. And for some reason, like a clown, you just assumed you’d be with him when it happened.

By the time final exams were over, you and Alex considered yourselves exclusive. You strolled into the end of the year party, holding hands and laughing. You’d fallen into a good groove with his friends. They all liked you, you liked them, and you enjoyed their company. While sitting with them, one pulled out a joint, lit it and began to pass it around.

“Want a hit?” Alex asked.

“She’s pretty tiny. Can she handle it?” A friend said. 

You glared at her and took the paper between your lips, inhaling and holding a large amount of smoke. She watched in amazement as you exhaled through your nose, “Well...I stand corrected, princess.”

You took in a sharp breath of air.

And that was just the beginning of the spiral. 

You stayed in rotation of the weed for a long time, until your thoughts were nothing but a mess of words racing everywhere. Your eyes felt heavy, so did your body. And you couldn’t stop thinking about him.

You were wondering was there ever really a connection or were you just highly sexually compatible? Did Matthew ever have feelings for you or did he just want one thing? Why does kissing him and fucking him and just talking to him feel so different? How come when everything falls apart, you want Matthew? How come when everything is going well, you want Matthew? Need to talk to Matthew. Where’s Matthew? Where’s Matthew? 

“[y/n]!” Alex called. “You’re high as fuck,” he laughed. “What are you thinking about?”

Matthew. 

“Come here,” and he pulled you into a kiss. And when you pulled away, feeling nothing, nothing at all, you realized you needed Matthew. You needed to feel something. But Matthew wasn’t here. And you wish he was here. Where’s Matthew? 

Tears were springing to your eyes, but you quickly began to cough, distracting yourself with a new sensation. You rose to your feet, and exited the room, much to Alex’s disapproval. He watched you rush past him, his face laced with confusion.

Everyone you passed by looked like Matthew. Why did everyone look like Matthew? You missed Matthew. And this was unfair. You wiped at the tears in your eyes, but they were already gliding down your cheeks. They burned your skin and it made you cry more. You were blinded. And way too high to notice Matthew - the real Matthew - entering the hallway. 

His eyes were redder than red, a lot like yours. His movements were slow. But something told him to reach out for you. Like a magnet. And you fell into his arms. It took him a whole second to realize it was you, but he did. 

“[y/n]?” he whispered. “Oh, my God, [y/n]. What’s wrong? What happened?” His hands moved to cup your face, his thumbs wiping the tears on your cheek. 

“[y/n]!” Oh, no. Alex. “What are you doing? Where are you going?” 

At that point, you looked up at Matthew. Focused in on him. Said his name. But his attention had turned to Alex. And he was pissed. You could tell. 

“Wait, wait, Matthew, wait,” you pleaded. 

“What the hell did you do to her?” He shouted, holding you close. 

“Wait, Matthew, he didn’t—“

“Gube, let her go, dude!.” Alex snapped, reaching for your arm. 

And that sent Matthew through the roof. He released you from his arms and moved towards Alex, delivering a swift punch to his face. You’d never seen Matthew so much as cuss someone out, so this. This. This was hard to register. Nonetheless, you screamed his name, attempting to push both of them away from the brawl. But it was useless. 

Two guys had to step in and separate Alex and Matthew, pulling them to opposing sides of the hallway. And you had to decide who to follow. It wasn’t a hard decision to make. 

You kept a good 100 feet behind Matthew the whole time, watching him stomp his way to his residence hall. You knew exactly how to get into the building, but weren’t sure you should. You’d never seen him so angry. So red. So primal. 

But, Matthew. 

Oh, God, Matthew. What would you say? What would you do? Did he want to see you? Did he want to be alone? Was his roommate there? You paced for 20 minutes, freezing your ass off outside the dormitory. Your mind was made up when you found the side entrance and let yourself in, marching up the steps. Now or never. Now or never. And you needed to see Matthew now. 

You perched yourself in front of his door, paused, and proceeded to knock with full force. “Be home, be home, be home,” you whispered. 

He was home.

He came to the door, shirtless, his face bruised, his hair tasseled, and that stupid, ridiculous gold chain around his neck. And you’d never wanted to suck a dick so badly in your entire life. You instantly imagined grabbing him, kissing him, pulling him close. But you didn’t do that. You stood there, looking like an idiot, until he spoke. 

“What are you doing here, [y/n]?”

You hadn’t even thought about it. It just felt right to follow him. “I—I wanted...I wanted to make sure you were alright.”

He shrugged, “I’m alright.” His face was stern. Stoic. No emotion showed on his features and it made you sick.

“Oh,” you said. “Okay.” 

You stared at each other for a long time. You just wanted him to say it. Ask you to stay. Ask you to come in. To admit it. But he wouldn’t. So you had to walk away. 

“Okay,” you nodded, sadly, and ducked your head as you headed towards the exit. “Okay.” You sniffled, patting at your eyes as they watered. 

Matthew watched you go. His bottom lip caught between his teeth, his shoulders relaxing as he exhaled. “[y/n],” he called. 

You’d stopped in your tracks.

“You...you were pretty stoned at the party,” he told you. “Are you sober?” 

You turned your body to face him. You thought about his eyes. How red they were. How slow he moved. How you had both been utterly and totally high as hell. “I’m sober,” you said. Honestly. After all of tonight’s events, and the sheer shock of seeing Matthew, being so close to him again, you had sobered up. “Believe me, I’m sober. Are you?”

Matthew licked him lips, nodding as he sighed. He stepped out into the hallway, and pushed the door to his dorm open. He signaled for you to enter. 

You gave him a quick and sad smile, and you avoided eye contact with him as you stepped into the empty room. He led the way to his private room, and let you in, closing the door behind you. You kept your back to him, arms crossed over your chest. 

He sighed, “I’m—Veronica and I broke up. Actually, she broke up with me...again. So, y’know, it wasn’t much of a surprise, but—“

“Matthew,” you cut him off, turning to him. “I need a favor.”

He hesitated, then his voice was strong, “Anything.”

“I leave for home next week for Christmas break. And since, I can’t seem to figure out what the hell about you is driving me insane, Matthew Gubler, I’m going to need time. Space. If you need time and space. So, you need to make that decision.”

“Okay.”

“But right now, take your clothes off,” you ordered. 

“Okay.”

He stared at you lustfully, just like you wanted, his body moving on autopilot to remove his shorts and boxers. You mirrored his movements, and took off your dress, subsequently tossing your bra and panties onto the floor. He grabbed onto your body and kissed you, one hand tangled in your hair and the other gripping your waist. He pushed you back onto his bed, falling on top of you and kissing your neck. You held onto his torso as he made way to your collarbone, nibbling on it lightly. He pulled away and gropped your breasts, massaging them with his fingers. 

He was practically drooling over them, his eyes focused solely on your boobs. He leaned down and sucked on your nipple, while his hand slid down between your legs. He felt around your core, and slowly slid two fingers into you. You threw your head back, and moaned. 

Matthew kissed a trail from your breast to your hips. He began to kiss your inner thighs, kneeling down in front of you and pulling you up to his face. He pressed his tongue against  your clit, working his muscle in an up and down motion. You moved your hips against his face and his fingers, gasping weakly. You forgot how good his mouth felt, but this was huge, huge reminder. You gripped onto his hair and swore under your breath. 

He noticed your thighs tightening around his face, and increased his intensity and speed. Your back arched off of the mattress, you whimpered into your mouth, and your chest was heaving. You let out a long groan as you came on his face, your entire body tensing up. He withdrew his fingers from you, and licked up from your core to your navel to your breasts. He kissed your neck, then your lips. And he sucked his fingers clean, holding eye contact with you.

Overwhelmed, you pulled him in by his face and kissed him passionately. He grunted against your lips, rubbing his cock on your core. He pushed into you, his jaw dropping and his forehead against yours. You wrapped your legs around his waist and this encouraged him to thrust into you. Matthew held you in his arms, moaning into your ear as he moved his hips. 

You kissed his jaw, sucking on the skin until you felt it pulse between your lips. You could feel his muscles moving under your palms, and his cock striking a sensitive spot inside of you. It felt like you were crumbling, getting weaker by the second. But when you felt the chain hitting your chin, you wired back to life. You gripped onto the necklace and twisted it around your fingers, angrily biting your lip. 

As he slammed into you, you muttered a soft “fuck!” and yanked on the chain. It popped off of his neck, and it was cathartic. You moaned and threw it to a far corner of the room. You reached down and rubbed your clit quickly, panting as Matthew’s body began to tremble. He kept his gaze focused on you as you let him fuck you into another orgasm, and your hips rolled against his in an eager rhythm. 

“Oh, fuck!” Matthew exclaimed, pulling out of you just in time. He released himself onto your stomach, moaning and gasping for air. 

The mattress creaked as he laid down beside you, collapsing with a thud. The two of you stared at the ceiling, naked and breathy and covered in sweat. You rested your hand on Matthew’s chest, and he intertwined your fingers. 

The next week, you were headed to the train station to get home for Christmas. Not knowing what to say to each, Matthew and you hadn’t talked since last week. You sat in the back of an uber, your suitcase at your side, when your phone vibrated in your lap. You picked it up and recognized Matthew’s name flashing on your screen. 

You sighed, swiped to answer, and held the phone to your ear, “Hello?”

“I don’t want space.”

“I—“ You stuttered. 

“I want as little space as possible.”

You were stunned, quiet, “Okay.”

The line went dead, and you set your phone down. You bit down on your lip. But the smile was still clear.

[PART 5.]