#We saw her development backwards

[redpandavvstuffs]

"We need more clomplex female characters!!!"

Yall mfs couldn't even handle her 💀

[chocochozi]

The Other Woman.

Pairing : Sanemi Shinazugawa x Hashira! Reader.

Warning : Spoilers for the anime/manga, angst, second choice reader, some fighting

A/N : HIII THANKYOU FOR READINGGG IM SORRY IF ITS HORRIBLE ITS MY FIRST TIME BSNXNZKZ

From the very begining, i always knew that i was just a second choice.

It has always been her it will always be her.

Shinazugawa and me met during our final selection.

He was harsh at first but warmed up to me the next few days together in the Mount Fujikasane. Truth be told, he didn't even want me to stay, i was the one following him around because he was the only one that caught my attention i didn't know why. But something about him just makes me drawn to him.

We fought in the mountain infested with demons side by side. During those times, my then unrequited love for him developed.

Time past by and we were promoted to be Hashiras. Though, it was ashame when Kumeno; the man who helped Shinazugawa and introduced him to a proper trainer, tragically died during both of their encounter with one of the holder of Lower Rank One of the Twelve Kizuki.

There, we met her.

Kanae.

And i can't blame Sanemi for falling for her charms. Shes beautiful, kind, sweet, patient, and has an easy-going personality.

How can i ever compare to her? Im not even close.

Kanae was easy to get along with, after becoming the Ice Hashira, we've sometimes been paired up by Master Ubuyashiki for missions. Therefore, we knew each other quite well.

Seeing the way Sanemi looks at her with heart eyes shatters my heart knowing he loved her, not me. The look in his eyes says it all.

How could I hate her? She's such an angel.

She's perfect where i fail.

"Nemiii~" i whined, impatiently waiting for him to stop training and come with me to eat.

"What?" The white haired man still kept his stance not once even glancing at you.

"C'monnn, you said you'll come with me to the ramen shop near byyy"

Huffing in annoyance, he straighten his body, turning fully to you a defeated expression plastered on his face. "Fine," "Your treat." He added.

"Alright, Let's go!" I grabbed his hands dragging him out then suddenly, Kanae's crow came flying to us informing about the unfortunate event's that led to Kanae's inevitable death.

The news, of course made me upset, she was my friend after all. But Sanemi took the news harder if not, the third hardest after the other two Kocho's. Talking to him seemed impossible after Kanae's death. He avoided me, he avoided everyone. When i try to have a converstation with him, his respond is always just a short answer or a simple hum.

Master Ubuyashiki summoned us two, to inform us about a mission, where we're both paired up. The walk to the place was quiet accompanied by the occational noises of cicadas. I was tired and didn't want to waste my energy to a one sided conversation so i stayed quiet.

As we were walking i felt a presence of someone behind my back, quickly turning around, i saw that a demon was launching at me, while his clawed nails reached for me. A hand wrapped around my waist hopping backwards to get away from the demon, a groaned escaped my lips,

"You okay?" I felt Sanemi's warm breath on my ears i felt a head rushed to my cheeks as i regain my composure. 'Its so hard to focus when im working with you.' I thought.

"Y..yeah. im okay, yeah." I patted the back of my neck and looked at my hands.

Blood.

"Fuck," i tilt my head up and glanced at the demon, a smirk on his face i pulled away from Sanemi taking my sword out of its sheath and drawing it towards the enemy. I took a deep breath and released it out my mouth.

"Ice breathing, first form, Freezing Slash." I launched towards the demon rapidly and precisely strinking him and his neck. Pieces of him dropped to the ground, his detatched head rolling to the ground as it disappears into thin air.

Sanemi walked towards me. "Come here." He softly says, and i obeyed like a puppy. He patched up the wounds on the back of my neck and that day, we reconciled our friendship.

There were times where i wanted to confess to him but didn't want to take advantage of his vulnerable state. Then, that day came where i finally mustered up the courage to finally confess to him, at first he thought i was kidding but once he realize i wasn't, he became nervous. But he did gave the relationship a chance, and we began dating.

But i could never shake the feeling that i was just a replacement, a second choice for the woman he really loved.

"Sanemi! Nemi! Wait!" I yelled running after him.

"What's your place to interfere with me and my brothers problem huh?" He stopped walking and turned around to look at me, a dissapointed look on his face was visible.

"Im sorry, i though– i though it would help.."

"Help with what?!"

"I..i don't know. When you told me about that story about your mother i–" a shaky breath escapes my lips.

"I know how to handle my own brother, and you're out of it." His tone as cold as ice.

"I thought that maybe it will help you move on.."

He stepped towards me, one of his eye brows upwards with a confused look on his face. "Move on from what?"

"From every thing thats keeping you from moving on."

"Why? What do you even know about how i feel? Do you know all the things i had to go to?" His eyes shifted. "Of course not."

"So stop acting like you know my pain, and stop acting like you own it!" His voice raised on the last sentence. "And you can't just say to me when i can move on."

I stood there, in silence. My glossy orbs looking at him.

"Even Kanae who is with me in everything, who knows everything, didn't interfere with my decisions."

That was my last straw.

"Im not Kanae, so stop comparing me to her!"

"You're right, you're not Kanae, and you will never be Kanae." He pointed his finger at me. I looked at him in the eye a tear sliding down my cheeks.

"Kanae is dead. She's not coming back Nemi, but until now you're still acting as if she is here."

"Because she is! She's here!" He pointed at his chest where his heart is.

"If she's there then where am i?.. " my voice quiet but shaky. "Forget it." I walked passed him heading to the door that leads out of his estate. My hand made its way to my mouth to stop myself from crying even louder, the other slid the door open.

I wanted him to chase after me, to tell me we will be okay. But he never did.

How foolish of me to even think that you will. I wonder, if i were to be her will you chase after me?

[dollielliot]

𐙚ྀིྀ ⠀︵　info on the Apalchee highschool shooting that happened today, 9/4/24˖ ㅤ૮𐔌ྀི ´ ཀ ྀི 𐦯ྀིა⠀

The 14-year-old suspect in the fatal mass shooting at a Winder, Georgia, high school has been identified as Colt Gray, Georgia Bureau of Investigation Director Chris Hosey said at an afternoon news conference. The suspect is a student at Apalachee High School who will be charged with murder and will be handled as an adult as he moves through the criminal justice system, Hosey and Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith added.

Two teachers and two students were killed, Hosey said. Nine other victims were taken to hospitals, according to the officials. The gunfire sent students and faculty desperately scurrying for cover as schools across the county went into lockdown and parents scrambled for information. Wednesday’s shooting is the deadliest of the 45 school shootings so far this calendar year, according to a CNN analysis. It is one of 11 school shootings with four or more deaths since 2008 when CNN first started tracking school shootings. Authorities said the first report of an active shooter came in at 10:20 a.m. ET. A school resource deputy assigned to Apalachee High confronted the shooter, who got on the ground and was taken into custody, Smith told reporters.

The witness sat next to the suspected shooter

Lyela Sayarath, 16, told CNN the alleged shooter sat next to her in an algebra class. She said he left class early, around 9:45 a.m., but didn’t take a bathroom pass. She thought he might be skipping. Toward the end of class, someone told her teacher over the loudspeaker to check their email, she said. Shortly after, Gray was outside the classroom door, which was shut, Lyela said. Another student who went to the door jumped backward when she saw he had a gun. "I guess he saw we weren’t gonna let him in,” Lyela said. “And I guess the classroom next to me, their door was open, so I think he just started shooting in the classroom.” At first, she told CNN she heard a burst of gunfire – maybe 10 to 15 shots – and then they were “kind of just Students dropped to the floor and crawled to the corner, Lyela said.

“It seemed like this wasn’t something he planned too well or that he wasn’t really strong with the gun because he didn’t try and shoot our door. Once he saw he couldn’t get in our room, he just went to the next one.”

Latest developments

The high school had received an earlier phone threat, multiple law enforcement officials told CNN. The phone call Wednesday morning warned there would be shootings at five schools, and that Apalachee would be the first. It is not known who placed the call. It was not immediately known whether the assailant had some connection with his victims, the sheriff said, though officials stressed that will be part of the investigation. Schools in Barrow County will be closed for the rest of the week.

Student texted mom: ‘I’m scared’

Erin Clark was at work Wednesday morning when she got a series of text messages from her son, a senior, who was attending class at Apalachee High School.

“School shooting.”

“I’m scared,” he wrote.

“pls” “I’m not joking,”

“I’m leaving work,” Clark replied. “I love you,” her son, Ethan Haney, 17, wrote back.

“Love you too baby,” his mom texted before racing to the high school.

Clark told CNN her son heard eight or nine gunshots before he closed his classroom door and, with the help of another classmate, moved chairs and tables to block the door.

Clark told CNN she was “absolutely terrified” when she read her son’s messages. “Just kept praying he’d stay safe,” she said.

Schools in the county went into lockdown

As emergency responders came from several counties, video from outside the school showed at least five ambulances and a large law enforcement presence at the campus, and at least one medical helicopter could be seen airlifting a patient from the scene. At the football field, where authorities had students gather, people lowered their heads and formed a prayer circle in the end zone, standing on the letters for “Apalachee” as their classmates milled around the field. All schools in the Barrow County School System, which includes the high school, were placed on lockdown and police were sent out of an abundance of caution to all district high schools, according to the sources, but there are no reports of secondary incidents or scenes. Some of the critically injured were removed by helicopter, and additional helicopters are on standby.

Atlanta Trauma Center and other hospitals take patients

Grady Health System – a Level 1 trauma center in Atlanta, about an hour's drive from Winder – received one gunshot wound victim from the incident who was transported by helicopter, a hospital spokesperson told CNN. Earlier, a source with knowledge of the situation who is not authorized to speak to the media, told CNN Piedmont Athens Regional Hospital in North Georgia received two victims from the shooting. The source said one victim was an adult with a gunshot wound to the stomach and was in surgery, and another was a minor with unspecified injuries. Three gunshot victims were taken to nearby hospitals following the shooting, according to a hospital official, and five other patients reported to the hospital with symptoms related to a panic attack. Two gunshot victims were taken to Northeast Georgia Medical Center Barrow with non-life-threatening injuries, Northeast Georgia Health System spokesperson Layne Saliba said. Four other patients came with symptoms related to panic attacks.

Another gunshot victim was taken to Northeast Georgia Medical Center Gainesville with non-life-threatening injuries, Saliba said, and an additional patient came to Northeast Georgia Medical Center Braselton with symptoms related to a panic attack.

Georgia governor sends prayers and says he can send resources

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp has directed all available state resources to assist at the scene, he said in a statement on social media. The governor urged “all Georgians to join my family in praying for the safety of those in our classrooms, both in Barrow County and across the state.” President Joe Biden has been briefed on the incident, the White House said, offering federal support to state and local officials.

“His administration will continue coordinating with federal, state, and local officials as we receive more information,” the White House said in a statement. Attorney General Merrick Garland similarly said the US Department of Justice “stands ready” to support the community after the shooting. “We are still gathering information, but the FBI and ATF are on the scene, working with state, local, and federal partners,” Garland said at a meeting of the Justice Department’s Election Threats Task Force.

Winder had a population of about 18,338 as of the 2020 census, according to the US Census Bureau The Barrow County School System is the 24th largest school district in the state, per the district’s website. It serves about 15,340 students, 1,932 of whom are enrolled at Apalachee High School.

[athenamikaelson]

Klaus Mikaelson x Soulmate!reader x Elijah Mikaelson Part 12

Warnings- 4.2k

Word Count- Swearing, violence, mentions of sex

“Is he my father or not,” My voice seems to echo throughout our family's little living room as I glare at my mother. 

“It’s not that simple, Y/N,” My mother raises her hands in surrender as she begins to take a step closer to me. The dark glare on my face seems to halt her movements and she closes her eyes and sighs.

“He’s the man that raised you, he-”

“You. Know. What. I. Mean,” I cut her off, biting out each of my words, “I want the truthful answer. Is Y/F/N Y/L/N my biological father?”

I seem to lose all the air in my chest as I watch my mother drop down onto the couch and look up at me with tears running down her face. And that’s all I need to have my answer.

“Oh my god,” I cover my mouth as my chest starts concaving on itself. Tears cloud my vision as I stare at my mother. Her tears mimicked my own. And a wave of anger flows through my body. She was crying as if she was the victim here. She was crying in front of her emotionally and physically wounded daughter as if this wasn’t her fault. 

I sit on the dark coffee table in front of my mother, our knees touching as I stare at her, “You’re going to tell me everything. And don’t even try lying to me.”

My mother looks up at me and nods as she puts her head in her hands, “Eighteen years ago your father and I were having problems. We’d been married 3 years and still couldn’t conceive. It took a toll on both of us. I got depressed and well… you know how your father gets when he is upset,” She looks up at me and I slightly nod as a wave of nausea passes over me, “Your father was out of town for the night and so I thought I would go down to a little bar outside of town. I was there for about an hour before I thought of leaving. But right when I was about to,” she pauses in thought for a moment then continues, “The most beautiful man I’d ever seen approached me. We talked throughout the night and then,” She looks at me to see if I understand where she was going and I nod disgusted.

“After I did what I had done I had never felt more disgusted with myself in my entire life. You have to believe me Y/N,” She reaches out to take my hand but I flinch away from her.

“Does Dad…or your husband know,” I ask but a part of me already knows the answer.

“When I fell pregnant with you soon after, you have to understand how happy your father was, I had never seen him that in love with something in the time I’d known him. You saved our marriage, Y/N. But… as you got older and you developed more of your own features and personality, neither of which were like me or him… I think your father realized or suspected that you weren’t his.”

My eyebrows furrow as I try to hold back my tears and sobs, “Is that why he…am I the reason he left?”

My question has my mother quickly shaking her head, “Your father and I had our own problems and even if it was because of that, it still isn’t your fault. He is still your father, he is the one who raised you.”

I stand up quickly, making sure not to move too much to upset my wounded arm, which is currently in a sling, and I huff out an angry laugh, “Raised me! Raised me?! I saw that man maybe once or twice a month for 16 years and in those few moments, all he caused was torture and heartbreak in my life. That man didn’t raise me! And looking at you now… I realize that you barely raised me too… I raised myself. Just like I’ve raised Theo,” I walk backward out of the living room as I shake my head at my mother, “I’ll never forgive you for this. Never.”

I hear my mother call out to me as I grab my keys and run out of the house. Rain pours down on me, dampening my clothes as I throw open my car door and turn it on. 

I drive around trying to decide my next move, and somehow I end up in the Salvatore’s driveway. 

I’m practically on auto-pilot as I walk up the stairs to the front door, I bring my hand up and knock, and within a moment it slams open and Damon stares down at me.

“What the hell do you…Y/N,” He pauses as he stares at my tear-filled eyes, “What happened? Are you hurt?”

I just stare at him and he takes a step forward and brings a hand to my arm. His touch seems to bring me out of my stupor and tears explode from my eyes as I throw myself into Damon’s arms. He doesn’t react for a moment as I cry into his shirt, but after a moment I feel his arms come and wrap around me.

“You want to…um, talk about it,” Damon asks quietly as if he’s not really sure how to comfort a teenage girl.

“My dad,” I hiccup out a sob, “Isn’t my dad!”

I feel Damon nod and he hums, “Um, sure, ok. Not entirely sure what that means,” He says the last part under his breath.

“I can’t go home. I can’t see my mom,” I pull away from Damon and I wipe the tears away from my face with my t-shirt sleeve.

Damon looks down at me for a moment before he turns sideways and gestures to the living room, “Then you’re going to stay here. For as long as needed.”

—

-2 months later-

“Hurry up hoe! This party isn’t going to decorate itself,” Caroline’s cheery voice calls up to me as I leave my bedroom at the Salvatore’s. 

“I’m coming Caroline, chill out,” I laugh to myself as I descend the stairs to where Caroline is standing. She shoots me a bright smile that rivals the sun when she sees me. 

“I can’t believe you’re still living here,” Caroline says as she grabs my hand and pulls me down the hall. 

I laugh awkwardly, “Ya, I guess I just like the bed here better than the one at my house.”

“And your mother really doesn’t care,” Caroline asks and I flinch at the mention of the woman I haven’t talked to in two months. 

“Um, ya. Theo’s away at some football camp until school starts and my mom’s always working so she doesn’t care.”

“You’re so lucky that you’re mom is so chill,” I laugh at the irony of that. My mom being “too chill” is the reason I’m not living at home right now. Caroline doesn’t know that though so she shoots me an odd look as she must’ve heard me laughing to myself.

After finding out about my paternal issues and moving in with Damon I made up a lie to all my friends that the reason I was living with him was that I needed a little vacation from my life, and not that I’m pissed off at my mom and scared to go home because it means I’ll have to face the reality of my life now. 

Damon is currently the only one who knows of my new “bastard” status. Even though sometimes I feel like strangling him, he has honestly been kind of a great friend these past two months. He’s gone along with my lie, not even telling Elena, who he is totally in love with. Damon and I have even started our own movie nights. Right now we’re bingeing the TV show Supernatural. He and I both like Dean, but our reasonings are a little different. God, I love Jensen Ackles. 

We’re postponing our movie night tonight because Caroline and I, mostly Caroline,  are throwing Elena her 18th birthday party. Elena told me to promise her that we wouldn’t make the party too big, but I kind of had to cross my fingers behind my back when I made that promise because when it comes to Caroline Forbes, no one will get in the way of her party making plans. 

“Good morning,” I look over to see the birthday girl smiling up at me as Caroline and I enter the living room. She and Tyler, who nods hello at me, are going through boxes upon boxes of party supplies.

“It’s 1 pm,” I say back to her and she frowns and checks her watch.

“Oh… Good afternoon then,” She laughs sheepishly.

I walk down the steps and bring her into a hug, “Happy birthday, Elena!”

I can hear Elena sigh and she pulls away from me, “Thank you,” Her vision goes from me to the boxes surrounding us, “I thought you said this was going to be lowkey?”

It’s my turn to smile sheepishly at her as I gesture towards Caroline, who is currently bitching to Tyler about hanging a streamer wrong, “You try getting in the way of her planning something. I love you Elena, but I’m more scared of her.”

Elena turns to look at Caroline as well and we both cringe when she hits Tyler over the head with a hard plastic plate.

“Good point,” Elena whispers out. 

—

“I feel like I have to fight Damon every single time we get a lead on Stefan,” Elena’s complaints have me side-eyeing both Caroline and her. I try to busy myself with unraveling some string lights, trying not to seem suspicious in any manner. I’m the only one here who knows really just how much Damon knows about Stefan’s “activities” this summer. 

About 3 weeks ago I found the articles about Stefan and he who shall not be named in Damon’s closet when I was going through Damon’s things. He’d gone through my things so I thought I’d return the favor. 

When Damon found out I knew he made me promise to keep it to myself. Only he, myself, and Ric could know. Damon didn’t want to worry Elena about all the killing Stefan had been doing. So “The Squad,” as I like to call us, have been researching different “animal killings” around the US this summer. Unfortunately, Damon and Ric won’t let me go on any of the road trips with them so I’ve been stuck at the Salvatore house this summer. 

“Maybe he doesn’t wanna find him,” Tyler’s comment makes me cringe slightly at the irony.

“Tyler!”

“What? He’s into you. Isn’t he” He asks Elena.

“The only reason Stefan left with Klaus was so that he could save Damon’s life,” Elena explains as she takes the supplies Tyler handed her, “I mean, trust me Damon wants to find him.”

You have no idea.

“But…you kissed him. Probably screwed with his head,” Tyler says and Caroline and Elena whip around to look at him while I hover a hand over my mouth to keep me from giggling. I’ve made fun of both Elena and Damon on multiple occasions this summer about the “kiss of death,’’ as I like to call it. 

“Tyler,” Caroline exclaims and Elena shoots her an “Are you serious” look. 

“I’m sorry,” Caroline apologies wholeheartedly. 

Elena raises her hand and shakes it, “I…Don’t worry about it. Look, yes, I kissed him, but it was a…”

“Kiss of death,” I say under my breath, but Elena still hears me and shoots me a glare.

“It was a goodbye kiss. I thought he was gonna die,” She tries to explain herself but Tyler shoots me a look and I have to fight off a laugh.

Elena fishes her phone out of her pocket, “I just missed a call from Bonnie,” She says.

At the mention of my witch friend, I perk up, “Tell her I say hi!”

Elena nods in agreement as she leaves the room. As soon as she goes, Caroline groans and whips around to stare at the werewolf.

“Just because I tell you things, doesn’t mean you’re allowed to know them,” She exclaims at him to which he apologizes. 

“I gotta run if I’m gonna change and pick up Sophie in time,” He says as he waves goodbye to me.

“Wait, you’re bringing a date? Slutty Sophie is your date,” Caroline asks and I frown at the nickname she gave her.

“Hey,” Tyler turns around, “It’s been kinda slow in that department. And… I’m horny all the time now.”

“Ya, tell me about it. Sometimes I feel like I’m gonna explode” Caroline agrees and I gag out loud.

“Ok, has no one here ever heard of too much information,” I say as I make a show of covering my ears. I go back to decorating trying to block out the obvious sexual tension between the vampire and wolf as they talk about their sex lives, or lack of. 

“Bye Y/N,” Tyler’s voice calls out to me and I just wave him off, which makes him laugh.

I turn around and watch Tyler walk out of the room and then I turn to my blonde friend, “Well, that was painful to watch…and hear.”

Caroline groans and throws the cups she has in her hands back onto the table in front of us, “Tell me about it. I just…ugh, I don’t know,” She groans in annoyance again as she picks up some streamers and tape.

“Can we talk about something else, please?”

I laugh slightly at her pleading tone and nod, “Sure, what about?”

Caroline thinks for a moment before turning to me and smirking, “About the guy you’re bringing tonight.”

I roll my eyes at the insinuation in her voice, “It’s not like that at all. Alastair is a work friend. He’s new to town and I thought he could use some more friends.”

“Is he cute,” She raises her eyebrows suggestively and I shoot her a look.

“Some might say that but I’m not into him like that, and he’s definitely not into me like that either,” I respond.

“And how would you know that,” She questions.

I think back to all the times I’ve seen him ogling the male customers at work and smile to myself, “Just a hunch.”

“When did you meet the guy again?”

“Around the start of the summer when I started working at The Grill. He got a job right after me and we’ve been put on the same schedules at pretty much the same times, oddly enough. He moved from Louisana, I believe.”

Caroline nods, “And he doesn’t know about…you know what?”

I shake my head, “As far as I can tell he’s a perfectly normal NON-supernatural guy.”

“Unlike Elijah right,” I glare at Caroline because of her comment which only makes the smirk on her face deepen.

“And unlike Tyler, right,” I smirk back at her and we both drop the subject on both of those men. Caroline got the jist about my little “friendship” or whatever it was with Elijah when she, Elena, and I, accidentally got into Jenna’s wine supply a few weeks ago. He also told me about her confusing feelings about Tyler. 

“Okay fine, changing the subject again,” She thinks to herself before frowning and looking at me, “Wait…when did you say your birthday was again?”

I frown at the question, “I didn’t say it.”

Caroline shoots her hands up in the air like a mad woman, “Well then tell me, hoe!”

I fight back a groan at her question and I don't want to answer but knowing Caroline she won’t stop bringing it up unless I tell her, “It was a few weeks ago.”

Caroline stares at me in shock as she drops the streams she currently holding. A wee bit dramatic might I add. 

“Excuse me! Why didn’t you tell anyone,” She practically screeches at me.

I shrug as I go back to untangling the lights I’ve been working on, “Elena has asked but I always just brush it off. Damon also knows, but he doesn’t celebrate birthdays either so I didn’t have to worry about him throwing me a party.”

Caroline’s eyes practically fall out of her head at my words, “So you did absolutely nothing for your birthday!?”

I just shake my head as if it’s nothing, “I don’t ever celebrate my birthday, Care. I haven't in years… I mean Damon and I had a pizza night, but other than that, no not really.”

Caroline continues to stare at me in shock as she comes over to me and throws her hands onto my shoulders, “Y/N Y/M/N Y/L/N I solemnly swear I will be throwing you a huge 18th birthday party very soon. And it will make you change your mind about not celebrating.”

I go to argue but she puts a finger to my lips, “Hush hoe. I’ve already started planning in my head.”

Someone kill me now.

—

“Well, don't you just look Darling,” Damon's sarcastic voice sounds from behind me as I flatten out my dark blue dress. 

I turn around and see him wearing the same color top, “We’re matching!”

Damon looks at his top and then the color of my dress and groans, “You really need to move out. We’re starting to become the same person.”

I frown slightly at his comment and I think he notices because he clears his throat, “That was a joke, Pukey. You practically have already made this entire place yours I doubt you’re moving out anytime soon.”

“And yet you still won’t let me paint the walls,” I gesture to the wooden walls of my bedroom. 

Damon shoots me a glare as he raises his arm for me to take, “The wood on these walls costs more than some of the houses in this town. I’d rather die than let you paint them.”

I walk over and grab his arm and he leads me out of my room and down the hall where I can hear dozens of people yelling and music blaring.

“Did you find anything about-” Damon shushes me before I can finish my sentence.

“No talk about that tonight. Only happy drunk thoughts tonight,” I want to argue but I notice the tension in his shoulders and drop the topic for a later time. 

“Where’s the birthday girl?”

Damon slightly glares at the young teens that surround us, “With Blondey. Somewhere.”

“Y/N!”

The sound of someone calling my name has me turning around. I smile once I’ve found the caller. Alastair’s bright smile shines at me as he pushes through the hordes of people. His dark skin contrasts beautifully with the white button-up shirt he’s wearing. Dark slacks cover his long legs and I have to fight back a laugh at how put together he looks compared to the rest of the people around us who look like they picked out the first piece of clothing they could find in their closets.  

Alastair slightly grabs me out of Damon’s arms and brings me into a hug, “You look beautiful.” 

His compliment makes a warm feeling coat my cheeks as I look at him. “You don't look so bad yourself,” And I’m not lying either. He’s shaved down his hair again since the last time I saw him so he’s rocking a buzz cut that makes him appear even more striking and his dark brown eyes sparkle against the bright lights that Caroline and I had previously hung up around the house. 

“I fear I might’ve overdone it a bit. It has been awhile since I’ve been to a highschool party” He jokes as he gestures toward his attire.

“You think,” Damon’s sarcastic tone has me turning to glare at him.

“Alastair this is Damon,” I gesture to the man beside me.

Alastair who is usually all smiles seems to glare at the vampire next to me for a moment before brightly smiling at him, “Pleasure to meet you, Damon.”

Damon just stares at him for a moment, “Y/N lives here with me. So if I find you in her room later I will kill you,” He threatens and then shoots him a fake smile, “Other than that, enjoy the party.”

My eyes practically fly out of my head as I watch Damon’s retreating figure leave the room and I quickly turn back to Alastair to apologize.

“Don’t worry about it. It’s good he’s protective over you,” He smiles at me and reaches out his hand for me to take, “Want to get a drink?”

“Oh definitely,” I sigh dramatically as I put my hand in his. 

We start walking but I catch Alastair and a blonde guy staring at each other as we walk by him. I smirk to myself and then look up to my friend with a raised eyebrow.

“Not a word,” He laughs out.

“I didn’t say anything!”

Alastair rolls his eyes as we approach the refreshments table and he hands me a bottle of water and I shoot him a questioning look.

“We’re so not drinking whatever is in that punch. Who knows if someone spiked it with something? Water is a safe choice,” I begin to laugh thinking he’s joking but at the serious look on my friend’s face I stop.

“A little worried are you?”

“There’s nothing wrong with being a little cautious,” He opens up my bottle of water for me and smiles, “Also what’s with the text I got from your blonde friend this afternoon about you having a birthday party?”

I groan loudly and I can hear Alastair laugh, “How did she even get your number?”

He shrugs his shoulders, “I’d like to know as well,” He looks down at me for a moment then frowns, “You really didn’t tell anyone about your birthday?”

I just shrug, “I told Damon. But other than that no. I don’t celebrate it, and whatever Caroline is planning you definitely don’t have to come.”

Alastair shakes his head defiantly, “Oh you bet your ass I’ll be there. Going to get you a pretty present with a bow and everything.”

I put my head in my hands and sighed, “I hate you.”

Alastair laughs and takes my hands away from my face, “You love me and now you’re going to dance with me.”

I’m surprised at the strength of my friend as he leads me to the dance floor that's filled with teens dancing and grinding together.

“You sure you don’t want to go and find that blonde guy,” I yell to him over the music and he rolls his eyes.

“You’re stuck with me, babe. I’m not going anywhere” 

—-

“Call me if you need anything alright,” Alastair says to me as I walk him to his car. After dancing for about an hour the party started to die down when people couldn’t find the hostess or the birthday girl. 

“I’m going to see you tomorrow at work. I think I’ll be fine until then,” I smile at him as he gets into his car.

“I know, just making sure you know you can call me for anything,” He says through his open window as he starts his car.

“I know.”

“Ok, I’ll wait for you to get back inside before leaving,” He nods towards the front door.

“Ok, bye,” I wave to him and start walking to the front door, I turn to look over my shoulder and find that he hasn’t taken his focus off me for a second it makes me unnerved but I shake it off and open the front door. 

As soon as I step a foot inside I hear the squealing of tires and I turn to see Alastair peeling out of the driveway. Guess someone’s in a rush.

I walk into the living room and sigh as I see the damage that was done by the hordes of kids. Bottles and trash line the walls as streamers and the decorations we had worked so hard to put up are lying all around the floor. I start to walk down the steps to start picking up when a loud bang comes from upstairs. 

I frown as I start walking towards the stairs, but as soon as I hear another loud bang I start running. I find myself in front of Damon’s bedroom as I watch the vampire throw and break anything he can get his hands on. I call out to him but he seems to be in his own world of destruction right now. I start to approach him like someone would a rabid animal and I freeze as he turns to look at me. Dark veins appear under his eyes as he glares at me. He starts walking towards me and I put up my hands.

“Damon, what’s wrong? What happened,” He gets closer and I’m about to run off but he grabs me. I shriek escapes my mouth before I realize what he's doing. He's hugging me.

“Damon? What’s wrong,” I slowly wrap my hands around his waist as he holds me tighter. Almost tight enough to bruise, “What happened?”Damon is quiet for a moment before he whispers out a growl, “Stefan.”

[ikarakie]

part 1

eddie wakes up.

he doesn't expect to. not on earth, anyways. but he does, in a hospital bed, to dustin's scolding and the girls' smiles. he's told they won, vecna's dead. the government are working on clearing his name as they speak as a fucked up 'thank you', and everything is fucking okay.

he asks after red and the sinclairs. apparently, they had a run-in with asshole of the century jason carver, but sinclair had held his own with a mean right hook that harrington had taught him once. max had fought vecna off with the help of supergirl, who'd come into her mind at the last second via shenanigans that eddie didn't understand. though he was assured he'd have the story told to him by mike himself, since he, supergirl, and the byers' were on their way in from california.

everyone's crowded around his bed, minus one very pretty head of hair, firing off their accounts. robin's partway through how the vines had attacked them when it happens.

"and then they grabbed me and slammed me against the wall! so steve-" and she hesitates. widens her eyes and a looks a bit nauseous all of a sudden. eddie feels his stomach sink.

"hey, speaking of harrington, where is he?" he asks, hoping to fucking god it's not what he thinks. though the way the room falls silent, the way dustin's suddenly holding his hand a lot tighter, makes his eyes water.

"he got you out." henderson whispers, sounding so very broken. "he- he carried you back to the gate and sent you through, but it- it was closing." he's biting his lip so hard he draws blood.

"he... he's still there?" eddie asks, breathless, horrified. the image of steve harrington hauling his ass out of that backwards hell dimension only to get stuck there himself makes his head spin. robin breaks down next to him, bringing her legs to her chest on her chair. nancy puts an arm around her shoulder.

"he made sure we all got through first." she says, deceptively even. eddie can see how tense her shoulders are, and he gets it. because, for fucks sakes, of course he sent the girls and henderson through first. "i think... i think he didn't want to risk coming through when it was so nearly closed. so he stayed."

eddie takes a second. looks around the room, at everyone's sullen faces. wonders why steve thought his was the life to save instead of his own, when all these people loved him so fucking dearly. eddie liked robin, and he liked max, and nancy, and the little sinclair, but they were more steve's people than his. and yet the guy, for whatever fucking reason, thought eddie, who was barely clinging on to begin with, was the one who deserved to live?

if you told him three months ago that he'd be sat in a hospital bed, having been dragged back from the edge of death by steve harrington, who'd fucking sacrificed himself to do so, he would've laughed. even more, if you told him that, in that position, eddie's heart ached with affection for the guy, he would've punched you. probably.

not that his puppy crush on steve was a recent development, but this whole... seeing him in action thing had just exacerbated it. especially with all those lingering looks they'd shared. semi-flirty words and little signals that eddie forced himself not to read into. but now he wished he had. wished he'd said what he'd meant to, that last time they saw each other.

"it's okay, though." dustin said, breaking the silence. "because when el comes back, she'll just open a gate, and we can go and get him." he sounds so sure, that for a moment, eddie thinks he's right, but the way nancy sighs indicates this is an issue.

"we'd like to do that." she says, "but... we don't know if vecna dying means... the upside down did, too." god, she was right. what if it'd all collapsed in on itself? robin sobs harder, shaking her head, and eddie puts a hand on one of her knees. wishes, not for the first time, that steve was here, to hold her. instead of- of- wherever he was.

the next week and half passes in a blur. eddie gets discharged, despite everyone's protests, and just told he needs to rest while he heals. they all set up camp in steve's house, which feels fucking weird, but dustin reasons that they need to all be together to form a plan, to watch eddie, and robin had a key anyways, and the place was massive, and it's not like steve ever minded. (the 'when he was alive' goes unspoken. they don't want to talk like that, not yet.)

it's one more week before mike and his little crew get back. apparently, they got caught in some government bullshit that'd held them up, but they return with joyce byers and a back-from-the-dead chief hopper, so that's cool. there's hugs and reunions and stories are exchanged. when the bit about steve getting stuck in the upside down comes up, eddie sees how will byers' face falls. remembers dustin saying he'd been trapped there once, too, and supposes it's sympathy.

chief hopper looks ready to tear the whole place apart. he'd asked after steve the second everyone had gathered, strangely terrifying for a man who was skin and bones. he'd only settled and listened to the story after being assured steve wasn't dead. (not that they... actually knew that, but no one wanted to say it out loud again).

supergirl, eleven, wasted no fucking time. she grabbed a radio and a piece of fabric and apparently began 'searching for steve in the void'. though eddie didn't quite understand, he held his breath alongside everyone else. only relaxing when she smiled, and said, albeit a little wobbly: "he is alive. he is okay."

robin's sobs would probably be with him till the day he died. she'd collapsed into joyce byers' arms, mumbling incoherently. dustin wasn't any better, crying into will's shoulder.

after some safety briefings, and a begruding blessing from hopper, supergirl opened a gate in steve's living room and fucked off through it. eddie was astounded at the ease with which she entered the dimension. will explained that, because vecna was dead, it didn't 'feel as bad anymore'. though he still held mike's hand tightly and sat as far away from it as possible.

and so the waiting game began. they tried to make small talk, tried to keep the mood light, but the whole thing weighed heavy on them. watching the gate to hell that they'd just sent a little girl through, wishing every second she'd come back in one piece.

it was maybe forty five minutes later when max perked up. they all turned to the gate at her movement, and sure enough, there they were.

he was pale, and tired looking, covered in some sort of goop or slime or something. holding eleven's hand the whole time- though for who's benefit, eddie wasn't sure. he stumbled a bit as he stepped through the gate and still, still, turned to help el through. though he was a bit slimmer, and clearly weary, it was him, it was steve, and he was alive.

robin was on him in seconds. screaming, clinging to him and asking him 'how dare you? how fucking dare you? never do that to me again, you piece of shit! i love you so much, you can't do that!' he buried his face in her shoulder and swayed slightly as he held her. murmuring things eddie couldn't hear. dustin wasn't far behind, squeezing between them and similarly blubbering. steve was hugging them both and gazing at them- at everyone who was crying- with such wonder. like he couldn't believe he'd been missed that much.

one by one, everyone had their fill. max whacked him on the arm and then hugged him so tightly it looked like it hurt. nancy brushed his hair back out of his eyes and called him an idiot. joyce byers gently wiped his face of dirt and grime before kissing his cheek. chief hopper held him like a father, strong and tight.

eddie sat back, just watched. wondered how someone could be so loved and not feel worth it at all.

then steve's eyes settled on him. they brightened, almost sparkled. "eddie!" he called. his voice was rough from disuse, but still sounding so relieved and happy it made eddie falter. he stepped forwards, feeling steve's dazzling smile pull the corners of his own mouth upwards. "you're okay!"

then he had an armful of steve harrington, and it all came flooding out. he felt a bit foolish, but only until he realised steve was crying too. "you... asshole." he muttered, holding him as tightly as his strength would allow.

"i told you not to be fucking hero." steve huffed, though it lost any of it's power with how his voice wobbled. "i thought you died, i thought-"

"you're one to fucking talk!" eddie cried, pulling away just enough to look him in the eye. "i woke up and you- they told me you dragged my ass outta there and then stayed behind! no one knew what had happened to you, it's been weeks, steve! i couldn't- why would you do that? why would you not just leave me-"

"i couldn't leave you!" god, he sounded so offended at the very idea. eddie felt like his heart was going to explode out of his chest. "i couldn't- i wouldn't do that-"

"i know you wouldn't." eddie lamented, because fuck, he did. he knew deep down even if he had died there, outside his trailer to those bats, steve still would've brought him home. "doesn't make it any less stupid. just makes you- makes you so-"

it hit him how close they were. probably an inch, maybe less, between their faces.

"makes me so what?" steve asked, a little breathless. eddie gazed at him, deciding that: fuck it. he'd been too close to death to not... see if whatever he thought they had was real. he sent a mental prayer to a god he didn't really believe in anymore: please, let him not have read this wrong.

he looked to steve's lips. pointedly. watched how his cheeks flushed and a shy smile crept onto them. how his eyes flickered down to eddie's as well. there was a silent, shared understanding: if we were alone right now, i'd like to have kissed you.

"so... stupidly perfect, steve harrington." eddie muttered, undeniably affectionate, pulling him in for another embrace. tucked his face into his neck so he could whisper. "you can't save someone's life and then die before they can tell you thank you." steve melted under his touch, pressing a kiss to where his shoulder met his neck under the safety of eddie's hair. it made him warm, and giddy, and so very fucking thankful.

"you can tell me now." he whispered back. eddie couldn't help but smile again. he'd tell him anything if he asked like that.

"thank you, steve." he muttered, squeezing him slightly. hoping his touch communicated what he needed it to: please, please, please don't leave me again.

"anytime, eddie." steve whispered back, hands balling into the fabric of the shirt eddie wore. i won't, as long as you don't either.

[redxixi]

~`all ours~` part 1

Part 2

~` pairing: viking!141 x fem!reader

~` summary: you were a simple girl living with your family in a small villiage when the price clan came and raided your villiage so now your their prisoner.

a/n: aight so im back and ready sorry for being gone for so long. so this fic is heavily inspired by @groguspicklejar fic SO GO READ CUZ LORD. Her fics are AMAZING. while i was gone i developed a heavy crush on price from cod and i wanted to write something like this for a while so here we are.

~` warnings: being chased, violence, dark shi. !CAUTION! these fics will contain dark stuff in them so if it is not for you do not read it pls. If you do read it and get offended by it it is not my problem cuz it says dark shi so yeah.

like any other morning you went to the nearby river for some water and berries. everything was peaceful, the winds were blowing a soft breeze, the birds were singing and the clouds looked like pillows you could sleep on when suddenly you heard loud yelling from your home. you ran back to see what had happend only to be met with the sight of fire. everything was burning and everyone was yelling. you rushed to your hut only to find it destroyed and then you saw them.

they were like animals slaughtering and destroying everything in sight. you ran as fast as you could and hid in the woods behind a gigantic tree. you waited, listenend and tried to proccess what just happend. the people who treated you like family and gave you food were killed brutally, the children who were just playing a couple hours ago now dead too. but you only saw 4 men. could 4 men really kill a whole villiage?

you waited for a while until you couldnt hear any screams anymore and carefully came out of your hiding spot. you slowly aproached the villiage and saw the 4 men and with them where a few surviors tied up. the 4 men where talking amongst themselves so you decided to sneak past them. you carefully and quietly snuck past one of em and heard one of em talking.

"there was no point coming here. the only thing these people had were crops and some silver other than that they had basically nothing"

the one that said this was a dark skinned man with an axe resting on his back and the masked one awnsered.

"exactly they had crops and we don't kyle. if we want to survive this winter we needed more food."

you carefully listened in on theire confersation while sneakily trying to flee when just then you stepped on a branch making a loud crack sound. the 2 men who were talking turned theire heads to your derection.

"what was that"

slowly you could heard them aproaching the bush you hid behind. you were shaking from fear and you could hear your heart beating in your chest. without thinking you ran.

"fuck GET HER"

you heard one of em say. filled with adreneline you ran as fast as you could. you ran past the tied up survivors and just when you thought you could make it out of there one of the men suddenly appeared in front of you making you collide against his chest causing you to fall on your butt.

"well well well what do we have here."

you looked up at him. he had short black hair with a mutton chop beard and was build like a greek god with countless tattoos on his chest.

"did you really think you could run from us las?"

you started to crawl backwards with fear while he slowly aproached you. you could feel the tears coming out of your eyes so with your last strenght you stood up and ran the opposite derection only to see the other men in your way. both of your ways to escape were blocked by these monsters. you felt you heart beating almost out of your chest and tears were streaming down your face.

"p-please don't i-i just wanna go please"

you pleaded to them sobbing.

"aww sweetie its okay we wont hurt c'ha"

the one with a dark brown mowhawk said sarcastically while grinning. before you could do anything you were grabbed from the back by the masked man. you tried to squirm out of his grasp but his hold on you was rock solid.

"shhh its okay we aren't bad people....well we are but we will take good care of you okay"

the man with a mohawk then put a cloth with some sort of substance on your nose. you tried to resisit by shaking your head but he pulled your hair back and shoved the cloth onto your nose. slowly you could feel yourself slipping away and everything slowly became blury.

"shhh sleep now we have plans for ya bonnie"

So this will be part 1 in a multiple part series so feel free to send suggestions and ideas cuz i need em.

[owlsie-hoot]

ACGAS series 5 in general.... (thoughts about 5.6. later)

Where to begin? (that I said I would write no more essays?)(beware this is not really positive)

Maybe with this: The writers seem to have completely forgotten the entire character development from four previous series. I don't get how you can come up with such a series after series 4 (and I mean series as in "season") ?

Harsh words, sorry, but I am annoyed and frustrated and after episode three I had sadly lost faith in series 5. Slowly, but for reasons I try to explain in this very lengthy text post (not everyone will agree with me of course and that's ok).

So far ACGAS has really managed to keep up very high quality writing for four consecutive series. There was the odd episode that I didn't like that much but there was never such disappointment involved.

First: usually the episodes feel well balanced, the storylines are all interwoven in a way, all characters have an equally strong story arc for each individual series and continuous character development. There is also a good balance between heavy and light topics. ACGAS is very good at giving us meaningful quiet scenes that show a character's depth without overdoing it. To me almost all of this was missing in series 5. Mainly because they changed the structure and therefore also the balance of the episodes. Instead of connecting the characters, each episode featured and focused heavily on one couple, giving them a lot of space with one long storyline and the other characters were pushed into the background.

Episode 1 focused on James with an almost 20 minute long sequence of scenes that only featured him and his crew. Usually (and this applies to all subsequent episodes) the show switches back and forth between the different storylines and never lingers too long on one character. That creates a good balance. Because you feel that all characters are treated equally even if the main focus in an episode is only on one character.

Episode 2 focused on Audrey and her new role as warden. The main focus were her and Siegfried in this episode.

Episode 3 put the focus on Tristan's return but also had the christening and Helen's struggle with Hannah and until after the christening the episode felt well balanced to me. But then we didn't see Audrey anymore for almost 15 minutes and focused only on Helen and Hannah as well as on Tristan and Siegfried.

Episode 4 made the same mistake episode 1 made: a very long sequence of scenes that only features Tristan and Carmody. Siegfried was not seen for about 25 minutes.

Episode 5 introduced a potential "love interest" for Siegfried, something I absolutely hated and was extremely annoyed at. After the first two episodes, Audrey and Siegfried's interaction in episode 3 and the couch scene in 4 it felt like a huge step backwards and an ignoring of Siegfried's reaction to Audrey's entire series 4 storyline. Convinced that nothing would come out of this I tried to brush this away as a misstep. A plot device to show Siegfried how important family is for him. This episode also pushed all other characters, except him and Carmody, into the background and although it felt better balanced than ep 1 and 4, the other characters didn't move forward.

Episode 6 was actually the one that stood out from the others and felt like the episodes I love. There was a focus on two couples this time (Tristan and Siegfried / Helen and James ) and they balanced it really well with a fun and a very emotional storyline. Suddenly they remembered how to do it! But only in episode 6. But the entire "love interest" plot was a bit too much through the Tristan and Siegfried scenes, which feels like a disservice to the entire fandom after series 4 when we saw how important Audrey is for Siegfried and when even the press finally realised that these two should be more than friends. The ending sadly felt unfinished to me. No conclusion, no real denouement at all. It felt like it needed two or three more scenes to finish the episode.

I have never complained about an entire series of ACGAS before and I hope this will be the first and last time I am doing this. As much as I love my ship and have of course also watched series 5 from a shippers point of view, it also failed to deliver for James and Helen (until episode 6) and also for Tristan. We knew James was struggling, we saw glimpses of that every now and then but everything felt rather shallow and was not given that much depth. Mainly because this heavy topic was buried underneath a lot of fun and happiness and laughter and silliness that seemed to be the main theme of series 5 (as opposed to the more angsty series 4). Yes, that topic was resolved in episode 6 and also in a good way but the way towards it felt a bit half-heartedly.

Same goes for Tristan. I was so looking forward to his return and they did a great job with that in episode 3 and also in 4 (although episode 4 dragged a lot, and felt a bit repetitive in the end) but after that I would have loved to see the cracks in his mask, see how he really struggles, see him in quieter moments, unobserved by others. This is what made ACGAS so good in the last 4 series! And it was totally missing. Siegfried and Tristan's talk did not really get to the bottom of his troubles at all. I felt that Tristan was not really telling the truth here.

Take Helen. She's a new mom, we saw her struggle a bit with her new role at the beginning but then they did not give her a storyline for herself at all. Throughout series 5 she was mainly used as a plot device to crack single cases. Like the poisoning of Bingo, the poodle incident in episode 3, Frisk's death and resurrection. We only really saw her shine in episode 6.

Audrey had an amazing start with episodes 1 and 2 but from episode 4 onwards she was more or less degraded as housekeeper, busy in the background. Of course there was the "bomb" incident in episode 5 which was fun but in previous series they would have connected that story with the other storylines of the episodes, used it to show what a strong woman she is, how no one can tell her what to do. In interviews it was hinted at that she would get a storyline that tests her mental health. We have not seen any of it at all. Nor have they managed to use her role as Warden to bring the reality of war closer to Darrowby. It was funny, even ridiculous in episode 5. The seriousness of her war effort was wasted almost entirely. And the other major failure was the complete omission of Edward. Which further underlines my main complaint about series 5: lack of depth, lack of character development, lack of meaningful progress. What bothered me most about her storyline was that they separated her completely from Siegfried in the last two episodes. The scenes they shared were mainly her working in the background, except for that moment about going to the Drovers. Suddenly they felt like employer and employee again. And she was a housekeeper. Not a family member. This is something that I really cannot take. Sorry.

And at last Siegfried. We saw him struggle here and there, we saw him embracing his found family in the first 3 episodes. He was the most emotional in episode 3 but after that his character development also kind of stopped and even went backwards with the "love interest" storyline they forced him into. Throughout the last four series, Siegfried has slowly moved from overcoming his grief to testing the waters again with Dorothy and Diana, then his focus slowly shifted back to Audrey. And especially in s4 we saw how much she means to him in more ways than housekeeper/friend. All this was now disregarded in the Miss Grantley storyline which would have fitted into s3 when Audrey and Gerald were not yet a thing but serious enough for Siegfried to react to it every now and then (the "not date" and his reaction to the kiss). At the beginning of the series, the interviews made us think that Siegfried felt left out, as if his work was not important enough. We saw very tiny glimpses of that but only if you look closely. This was another storyline and development left floating on the surface instead of really delving into it and developing it properly. (and I might write an entire essay about Siegfried + Audrey soon) In the end he felt very far removed from Audrey and the married banter was completely gone in the last 2 (maybe 3 episodes) as if the writers decided to extinguish the slow burn all of a sudden.

So overall s5 started well with the first 3 episodes but then started going downhill (for me) halfway through episode 3. A lot of potential was wasted. The focus was mainly on making sure everybody had something to do but they forgot to go deep, to show us what makes this new adaptation of ACGAS special:

It's the much more real, rounded characters, their feelings, their experiences, the way the storytelling goes much deeper and makes the characters more relatable than in the old series.

And when you take that away, you lose bits of the soul, you lose what makes this version of ACGAS so special. It was still there, partly, but not in the way we have seen it in series 1-4.

Now: We still have a Christmas special and it was written by a writer I really trust. However, I have always trusted the writers and they have let me down this year so I am now sadly really anxious about the final episode of series 5. I never thought I would feel that low about a favourite show and my ship again after Downton s6. But I guess there is no escaping that in fandom. Ever. I just want my "giddy anticipation" back :(

[shadowdaddies]

Hello!!! Can I please request a Fenrys x reader fic where they realise they’re mates during the war and all that but reader and Aedion are twins so Gavriel is also obviously her father and just how they deal with the messiness of the situation but also with lots of fluff from all sides? Thank you so much 💚💚💚

I LOVE this request; it took me a minute to figure out how to make it fluffy just because Empire of Storms is so intense but this is such a cool idea; I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it💜

Reunited

Fenrys x Reader (ft. Daddy Gavriel)

Your world flipped upside down when Adarlan conquered Terrasen. Managing to escape with your brother, Aedion, the two of you formed a plan to infiltrate the Kingdom of Adarlan, developing rebel forces for when you were reunited with your cousin, Aelin.

Aedion took over as general of the Bane, filling his ranks with those who sympathized with your cause, while you worked your way up in the palace as a servant. Your duties, ranging from cleaning rooms to becoming a handmaid to the Queen, provided great intel for Aedion that allowed the Bane to stage battles. 

When Aelin returned, you aided in her rescue of Aedion, joining her and Rowan on their journey to Skull’s Bay from that point. 

It was in Rolfe’s office when your world turned upside down. You stood alongside Rowan as Aelin pitched her deal to Rolfe to join forces against Erawan. And then the door opened, revealing two males who made your heartbeat stutter for different reasons. 

You recognized your father immediately, and he you, when your tawny eyes locked with his. He stumbled forward, a gasp leaving his lips as you stared at each other. Rowan stepped protectively in front of you, one hand on your wrist as he stared down the famous Lion, the legendary member of Maeve’s cadre, Gavriel.

“Please, let me see her,” Gavriel pleaded with Rowan, his gaze struggling to meet yours around Rowan’s hulking form. 

“Rowan, it’s fine,” you whispered. You hadn’t held the same animosity towards your father as your brother, Aedion had, as you always believed he had a reason for leaving you. This was your opportunity to learn it.

Rowan turned to you, his gaze softening at the hope in your eyes. “He is blood-sworn to Maeve. He can only deny her will to an extent, and I will not let him hurt you.”

Your eyes flicked to the other male in the room, losing your balance as you stumbled backward at the look in his eyes. Fenrys watched you, awe etched on his face as he, too, moved towards you.

Rowan growled, Aelin leaping up from Rolfe’s seat where she lounged as they moved in front of you in a protective stance.

“It’s okay,” Fenrys promised, his gaze never leaving yours. “She’s my mate.” Tears formed at your eyes, the instant connection you felt towards the striking male in front of you breaking your guard down.

“Please, Row,” you tugged against his grip, desperate to meet the two males you were sure would be the most important in your life.

Rowan looked down at you, pure fae instinct in his eyes as he turned to the members of his cadre, every bit the legendary warrior as which he was known. “What are your orders from Maeve?” he demanded.

Gavriel spoke first, his voice like something from a long-lost dream, a memory from a past life that you longed for. “We were ordered to find Lorcan and kill him. If you can help us fail in finding him, we can assist you for as long as possible. Please, Rowan, Aelin, let me meet her.”

After a long, tense moment, Rowan and Aelin nodded to each other, parting ways as you now saw clearly the two males ahead of you. Your father moved towards you first, his dark tattoos in contrast to his golden hair the first thing you noticed as you rushed towards each other. He was warm, broad, muscular arms pulling you into his lithe form as you wrapped your own around him. This is home, you thought, holding back the tears as you allowed yourself to simply feel. 

Gavriel didn’t move, waiting until you reluctantly pulled away enough to look up at him. “I have so much to explain to you. So much that I wish I could take back...”

You shook your head, a small smile gracing your lips to silence him. “We will get to all of that - later. For now, I just want to know you,” you whispered, leaning up to press a kiss to your father’s cheek before turning your gaze to the male in the corner.

Breathing was difficult as you took in the extraordinary beauty of him. Blonde curls fell around bewildered, onyx eyes that locked in on you. The world spun around the two of you as his gaze held you in place. “My mate,” you whispered, moving towards him slowly, as though your feet moved of their own accord, your body drawn towards him.

Fenrys simply nodded, swallowing as his chest moved with each deep breath. A chuckle from where Rowan and Aelin stood drew the two of you from your trance, and you turned to see the amusement written on Rowan’s face. “Fen, I don’t believe I’ve ever seen you so stricken,” he teased.

You turned, enjoying the blush on the handsome male’s face. Biting your lip, you dared to bring a hand to the golden-brown skin of his cheek. With a slight giggle, you joked, “it’s nice to meet you, Fenrys.” He nodded, transfixed on you.

Gavriel cleared his throat, clearly refraining from his fatherly protective instincts as he leaned backwards slightly. “I’ve never... scented a mating bond quite so strong,” he noted, lip slightly curling as his glance flicked to Rowan and Aelin. They nodded in agreement, smiling encouragingly at you as they held their hands up, covering the scent from their noses.

“A strong bond, indeed,” Fenrys spoke softly, stepping forwards towards you as his fingertip grazed your jawline. A slight shift in movement from your father drew you out of the moment, stepping back as you giggled nervously at your newfound family, and mate.

Rolfe rolled his eyes, shooing the group of you out the door as Aelin sent him a wink. “Let’s go figure this out elsewhere,” Rowan grumbled, guiding you outside. The group settled at a pub downstairs, where you sat in between Gavriel and Fenrys, a deep peace settling through you as you enjoyed the presence of two males who cared about you more than you’d ever dreamed.

[youwouldntdownloadapizza]

The Gates of Jackson | Joel Miller x F!Reader | Chapter 8 - Locked Out

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You showed up at the gates of Jackson with hands covered in blood and no memory of how you got there. That was two years ago. Since then, you've become Maria's right-hand woman and the person in charge of Jackson's logistical backend. Patrol schedules, inventory—all your purview. When a patrol gone wrong forces you to get to know Joel, memories of your past begin resurfacing—along with their consequences.

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pairing: joel miller x f!reader

rating: 18+, minors DNI

word count: 1.5k

tags: no use of y/n, eventual smut, no beta we die like sarah, jackson era, other additional tags to be added, slow burn, ellie needs a hug, joel lives, good parent joel, reader-insert, reader insert, forced proximity, only one bed trope, nightmares, childbirth, hurt/comfort, emotional hurt/comfort, angst with a happy ending, soft joel, cuddling & snuggling, fluff, masturbation, pining, joel falls first, possibly demisexual reader (tbd), ptsd, ptsd flashbacks, panic attacks, amnesia, sexual braiding

Chapter 8 - Locked Out

Few things about post-outbreak life had come easy to Joel, but one thing he never struggled with was silence. He was a man of few words, he relished in solitude, and his years as a father made him excellent at moving quietly. While he’d developed that skill to avoid waking Sarah as an infant, it also proved useful for avoiding Infected. He never thought he’d get another chance to use his light tread for anything other than survival, but here he was. Carefully climbing the creaky wooden steps to his brother’s front door, stepping over the squeakiest one he’d been meaning to fix for ages now.

Knock! Knock!

Joel rapped softly on the warm oak door, just loud enough to announce his presence without risking a screaming baby.

Tommy answered a moment later.

“You look like shit,” Joel cracked an amused smile. Tommy had said something similar the first time he’d greeted Joel after Sarah was born.

“Gee, thanks,” Tommy rolled his eyes. He stepped backward, holding the door to usher Joel inside. He hung his filthy patrol jacket on a peg and turned to take it all in.

It was as if a tornado had swept through. Dirty dishes were scattered across every horizontal surface but the floor, and the burp cloth situation wasn’t much better. By the looks of it, Maria was currently making do with a bath mat.

A smile crept across his lips as the baby finally spit up and then descended into soft, easy snores. It was peaceful in the way only small children could be.

“Congratulations,” he said softly, patting his brother on the back far more gently than Tommy had when he’d been freshly uncled.

“Thanks, Joel,” Tommy smiled. There was exhaustion in his eyes, but also a familiar, joyful satisfaction Joel recognized. It was the look of a father.

“Fatherhood suits you, you know.”

“You think?” Tommy asked.

Joel nodded. “I know.”

Maria chimed in from across the room. “You wanna meet her?”

Joel beamed. “Can I?”

Maria nodded, and he crossed to where she stood beside the fireplace. She jutted her chin toward the couch, and he took a seat in his usual spot.

“She’s beautiful,” he whispered as Maria placed the sleeping babe in his outstretched arms.

It didn’t look right, all his wrinkles and scars and gray hair against such pure, unbridled innocence. He didn’t expect the tears that slipped down his cheeks as he beheld her.

Tommy came to stand behind him, watching with newfound respect for his brother as he met his niece for the first time.

“What’s her name?” Joel asked.

Tommy looked at Maria. She nodded, giving him silent permission to proceed.

“Margaret Sarah Miller. Maggie for short.”

Tommy wasn’t sure what he saw in Joel’s eyes as his head snapped to look at him. All he knew was there were tears and something undeniably raw in there. It moved him.

“Maggie, like our mom Maggie?” He asked.

Tommy nodded.

“Yeah,” he said. “And Sarah, like your daughter.”

Joel rolled his eyes through the tears. “Well, yeah, I got that part.”

Maria barked a laugh, and Tommy couldn’t help but follow suit. Joel of all people giggled, and then before they knew it little Maggie was opening her eyes. Her skin was dark like her mother’s, but her eyes—those were Miller eyes. It wasn’t the color that confirmed it, but the tenacity within them. The spark. The wildness that would forever refuse to be tamed.

“She’s gonna be trouble, this one,” Joel mused. “No doubt about it.”

Tommy chuckled. “Well, she’s got Ellie as a big cousin. I’d expect nothing less.”

Joel smiled wistfully. “I’ll have to get her over here tomorrow or the next day. We’ll help clean up so the two of you can get some rest. Would’ve been by sooner, but patrol ran long.”

“Speaking of which,” Maria chimed in, retrieving the baby from Joel to bounce on her hip. “Where’s Doe? I figured she’d be with you.”

Joel’s smile fell then. He still couldn’t make heads or tails of the way you’d stormed off earlier. He sure as shit didn’t know how to explain it to Tommy and Maria.

So he gave them a total non-answer.

“I’m not sure,” he shrugged. “Probably went to bed. It was a long patrol, I’m sure she’s tired.”

Maria cocked an eyebrow at the lame excuse. “Too tired to meet her niece?

* * *

Bang! Bang! Bang!

You awoke to the sound of thuds on your front door.

What now? You thought to yourself as you sat upright, rubbing the sleep from your eyes.

“Doe, open up. I know you’re in there,” a gruff male voice called out to you.

Joel. What the fuck does he want?

You rose from your nest of blankets on the futon and padded towards the door in your slippers, stepping over the piles of dirty laundry that littered your floor.

It got like this, sometimes. You tried to keep things under control, but life had a way of thwarting that endeavor at every available opportunity. You shoved the clutter out of view as best you could and opened the door a crack.

“What?” You eyed him through the opening.

He was dressed casually, a light brown t-shirt giving way to denim down below. He was sweaty, and his hair was mussed. And the look he was giving you, when paired with crossed arms, was downright murderous.

“Office doesn’t open ‘till eight.”

“It’s ten-thirty,” he said, his voice rife with exasperation.

Shit, you winced. I can’t believe I overslept by that much.

You sighed, then opened the door a bit more. Your outfit was messy, but nothing out of the ordinary for pajamas.

“How can I help you, Joel?”

“Wanna tell me why Tommy says you still haven’t been by to see Maria? You’ve been back three days, Doe. She had the baby damn near a week ago. What gives?”

You didn’t know what to say. You’d never been one for excuses, but they were particularly elusive now. You broke eye contact, instead opting to try your hand at staring a hole through the corrugated metal outside your door. It didn’t work. 

Joel reached forward and grabbed the door handle, yanking it open to expose you to the fresh morning air and bright sunlight that hurt your unprepared eyes. You stepped forward quickly, shutting the door behind you before Joel could get a good look at the depression pit formerly known as your office.

“I’m not leaving until you give me an answer,” Joel drawled.

You leaned back against the door and looked up at him with a frown. “You weren’t this mean back at the fire tower.”

“That was different. You needed coddlin’.”

“Who’s to say I don’t need coddling now? You don’t know me. You don’t know my life.”

“That’s the problem.” Joel dropped his hands to his sides. “I don’t know. Because you won’t tell me.”

“You assume there’s something to tell. There’s not.”

“What, cause you got amnesia or somethin’? I saw how you signed your name in the logbook. Either you’ve got real shit taste in aliases or there’s something more going on here.”

You pressed your lips into a thin line. “That’s private.”

“Clearly,” he spat. “Just tell me, are you planning on ignoring her forever, or are you gonna get your ass over there and go meet your niece?”

“That’s not my niece.”

“Maria begs to differ.”

Your eyebrows shot upward, and Joel seized the opportunity to continue.

“You’re her best friend. Her right-hand woman around here. She thinks of you as a sister, Doe.”

Something seized in your gut. “I don’t have a sister. Not anymore.”

You reached for the door handle and pulled, but–

“Fuck.”

It wouldn’t budge. Your heart rate picked up. You resisted the urge to vomit.

You pushed past Joel and scanned the flat expanse between the base of the building and the large wooden gates that enclosed the community you’d dedicated yourself to protecting. It was busy this time of day, but there was one person in particular you were looking for. You spotted her by the stables.

“Casey! Hey!” You waved your arms over your head to catch her attention.

“Doe? What’s wrong?”

You jutted a thumb over your shoulder. “Got locked out again.”

She sighed. “That’s the third time this month, dude. You gotta get a doorstop or something.”

“I know. Sorry,” you called down as she stopped beneath the wraparound balcony that surrounded your small office perch.

She tossed the spare up, but before you could catch it, a hand reached out and snatched it from the air.

“Thanks!” Joel called down to Casey. “I’ll help her get inside.”

“I could’ve caught that, you know.” You scowled, striding back towards the door.

Joel walked right past it and set off down the stairs that led to ground level.

“The fuck—Joel, where are you going?”

“To Tommy and Maria’s. And if you want to get back into that office of yours, you’re coming with me.”

You took a shaky breath. This was so not what you needed right now. You peered through the door's small wire-infused utility window and gazed longingly at your office. Or was it your apartment? You guessed it was technically both, since you slept on the futon. You locked eyes with the crusty rat plushie perched tall atop your mountain of cozy blankets, and whispered a solemn vow.

“I’ll be back for you soon, Ratty. I promise.”

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taglist: @aspecialgreenie, @guelyury, @amyispxnk, @picketniffler, @hiroikegawa

[cryobabyy]

Tbh I don't think it's that Storer is against Syd and Carm moving past a platonic relationship, he probably just doesn't want to reveal too much about what goes on in the writer's room and what they're cooking. You gotta throw people off with some misdirection - it's pretty standard for keeping the plot a surprise. No one wants to watch a TV show when they already know what's going to happen.

That being saaaaaiiid 👀

The decision to use Strange Currencies; first when Carmy and Claire see each other for the first time in the supermarket, and then again but distorted and backward when he's thinking about Claire, and then clear and forward when he thinks about the first time he met Sydney; that was pretty heavy-handed symbolism. It was a deliberate choice. From a narrative standpoint, there are not many ways to read that juxtaposition of Claire and Sydney other than Claire triggering anxiety associated with his past and Sydney representing the future and stability. Claire reminds him of who he was and what could have been. Sydney reminds him of who he is; More so who Sydney believes he is. "You're the most excellent CDC, at the most excellent restaurant in the entire United States of America". Her voice literally and figuratively cuts through the chaos, the thought of the first time he saw her and how she came back when he thought he was irredeemable brought him down from the panic attack.

I literally can not come up with a platonic justification for such blatant imagery. I guess you could say his vision of Sydney represented the restaurant as a whole? But if that were the case, why not include any of the other staff in the montage? Why choose a romantic song for this sequence? WHY IS IT THE SAME SONG THAT PLAYED WHEN CARMY MET CLAIRE???

"These words; you will be mine all the time." LIKE??? HELLO???

Anyway lol

I can only think of two logical explanations

1.) This scene was a massive oversight in the writer's room. They unintentionally framed Carmy's feelings for Syd as romantic by making the creative decision to Juxtapose her with Claire (his actual love-interest at the time). What was written did not translate well to the screen. So basically "Oops we didn't mean it like that".

2.) Storer is slowly laying the groundwork for Sydney and Carmy's relationship to evolve past friendship, or at least experimenting with that narrative possibility.

Now, I do think it will literally take forever - like multiple seasons forever - but I do think it will happen. The build-up is so important. Well-developed and satisfying romance (especially in television) takes time. Don't lose hope y'all!!

[rwbyrg]

A Rosegarden by Any Other Name Would Smell As Sweet

AKA Reasons Why Rosegarden is Canon #015: Ruby and Oscar's Multiple Shared Allusions to Other Fairytale Love Stories

Typical disclaimer that while all characters within the RWBY narrative have a main allusion, they often have secondary allusions that apply to the roles they fill in relation to other characters stories. Like how Yang is Goldilocks on her own, but becomes the Beauty to Blake's Beast when paired together.

The first, most notable example for Rosegarden is, of course, The Little Prince (expanded upon here). Oscar's primary allusion is of a boy who grows up on a planet "scarcely bigger than himself, who was in need of a friend", and one of his most influential relationships is that to a rose with whom he loves. They spend much of the story separated from one another, while the prince wanders lost in a desert, pining for a way to reunite with her back home.

Important to note this isn't the only time Ruby has been a Rose for another fairytale. She also slots in as the Rose Red to Weiss' Snow White, she acts as the successor to her mom as The Last Rose of Summer, and she also stands in as the Enchanted Rose to Bumbleby's Beauty and the Beast given how it's a "true loves kiss will break the spell before the last petal falls" situation... and BB kisses two episodes before Ruby Rose "dies".

The second notable allusion for Rosegarden is the Warrior in the Woods (expanded upon further here), a canon RWBY fable from The Fairytales of Remnant. The very first story within the book is about a village boy who becomes a huntsman after being inspired by a huntress he meets in the woods. A huntress, I might add he fell in love with the moment he saw her silver eyes.

Something to note about both of these examples, is that they are each stories with a focus on caring for someone else in unique ways. With The Little Prince, the Rose is vain and has many demands and asks the prince to tend to her; while in WitW, the warrior works tirelessly without thanks to protect a village. When the boy meets her, he starts looking after her for a change because he figures that's the least he can do to repay her. Both of these tie in well to RG's dynamic of Ruby carrying such heavy responsibilities alone, with Oscar making a conscious and active effort to help her shoulder those burdens.

The third, more subtle allusion, is their respective ties to The Wonderful Land of Oz. Oscar's first confirmed allusion before the Little Prince reveal was originally to Princess Ozma/Tip, the heir to the Kingdom of Oz given his proximity to Ozpin as the man behind the curtain, as well as to fit a "genderbend" character within the framework of team JNPR.

How does Ruby tie into this one? Well, we have to work backwards a bit. Ozpin's initial four lieutenants were all linked to the original cast of Oz:

Qrow as The Scarecrow without a mind (travels around as a crow and is regularly inebriated)

Ironwood as the Tin Man without a heart (his multiple cyborg prosthetics and character development in Atlas)

Lionhart as The Cowardly Lion (his fear overtakes him and pushes him to join forces with Salem to save his own skin)

Theodore as Dorothy Gale (donning ruby gauntlets instead of the traditional red slippers)

But RWBY is a story about legacies and breaking cycles. With the new generation of huntresses in Oz's inner circle, they replace those who came before them.

Blake takes Lionheart's place (cat faunus that ran out of cowardice, only to become brave and return to the fight)

Weiss as the Tin Man (aka Ice Queen, who's heart melted as she became kinder and grew more attached to those around her)

Yang the Scarecrow (no longer blindly following orders, but making an active effort to question the words and intentions of those around her)

Ruby as Dorothy (her little dog Zwei and the red - or silver, depending on movie or book adaptation - slippers that lead them all on their journey)

Why bring up Oscar as Princess Ozma and Ruby as Dorothy? Well, according to the original books and not the movie, "Dorothy and Ozma are each other's closest relationship" as illustrated here:

Very good friends. Just gals being pals. Sharing the responsibilities of leadership with one another. Smooching in the palace gardens. Dorothy as the only one who's allowed in Princess Ozma's rooms without an invitation. #BFFS4EVA

These are all the canon ones that are easy enough to parse, but there are some similarities to others famous stories that can be found with a bit of squinting that I will also share just for fun.

The first is how Ruby's experience in the Tea Party acts as a near perfect display of Romeo and Juliet's ending. For those unfamiliar with - or who have forgotten - the bard's infamous tragedy, it is a story about two star-crossed lovers very much doomed by the narrative. It ends with Juliet faking her death without telling Romeo. So when her prince charming comes across what he believes to be her corpse, he drinks a vial of poison and kills himself out of grief. When Juliet wakes and sees he has left her, she takes his dagger and stabs herself so they might be together.

In the tea party, Ruby fills the shoes of Romeo and Oscar of dear Juliet. Oscar is "killed" by Ruby's blade, but it is an illusion. He's not real. Like Juliet, he's not really dead. However, the vision is still enough to push Ruby into drink a vial of poison (the tea that takes her to the tree), giving up in the face of her grief, just as Romeo does.

And if we need any more evidence for this one, can't hurt to bring up the infamous quote of Juliet wherein she likens her love to an oh-so-familiar flower:

What's in a name? That which we call a rose By any other name would smell as sweet;

A line that Juliet says to proclaim that if her Romeo weren't a Montague, then she would still love him regardless, but through which implies that it would be easier for them to be together if he were not himself. And within V9, Ruby's cited motivation to go to the tree is because she doesn't want to be herself any longer.

And last, but certainly not least, is how a lot of ships within RWBY seem to have fairly direct parallels to the myth of Eros and Psyche. It is a classical tale about the trials of love, putting the protagonists under multiple tests of loyalty and attachment before letting the two lovers unite at the end. Both love stories within Beauty and the Beast and Snow White and Rose Red pull inspiration from the myth, and we see it in CRWBY's approach to writing romances throughout the show thus far.

Blake and Yang being separated, breaking and rebuilding trust, before coming together in V9; Ren and Nora going through trials and conflict, currently apart now so they might discover who they are on their own before re-uniting with one another again; and Rosegarden having constant reunions, separations, and trials with strong focuses on their attachment to each other. Another common archetype they use from Eros and Psyche is that of the "Animal as Bridegroom", wherein at least one of the partners undergoing a transformation that is often monstrous in nature.

Bumbleby is self explanatory

WhiteKnight has the issue of Jaune being lost to time and becoming an Old Man, who's curse is reversed by magic. It alludes to his role as the Prince within Snow White and Rose Red who was initially turned into a bear via a curse

Rosegarden, has this instance for both characters. Oscar as an Ozcarnation (becoming something he doesn't want via a curse they are trying to break before time runs out) and Ruby's future fate should she be captured by Salem (being turned into a Grimm by the wicked witch - or eaten by the wolf - like her mother before her).

All of these line up with the myth's structure as well as Monty's foundational philosophy on love stories that we see in his quote from many years ago:

A lot of these all have really tragic endings so uh. Good thing RWBY likes to subvert the stories it's telling, right? They're going to get a happy ending, right CRWBY???? 😰

[marwhoa]

request: What if Y/N is really sensitive to tickles (like, sides and thighs), to the point that if it gets even a little too rough, the laughs quickly turn into tears. Can we get a rise!boys x reader (you can decide gender) where they individually find out how tickle-sensitive Y/N is? Bonus if there's a gentle apology tickle sesh <3 ~🌺👸

🝮 “ tickle-fest ”

rise!boys x reader (indiv.)

author’s note: hihi !! my bad for how long it took to do this uwu did it at my own leisure (though, maybe a tad bit over that 👉👈 some of them aren’t very “tears after tikl… ti… tickling? Oh my I forgot how to spell that for a second—ah, anyways, enjoy please !!

word count: 5.7k

┆ ── ˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ — Raph 💌

It hadn’t been easy warming Raph up to you. Being a human much smaller than he was and with much more fragile skin than his, he was walking on eggshells when it came to ensuring he didn’t hurt you. His hands would flinch and hesitate before resting themselves on your shoulders. His legs would lock up his position when he heard you near, especially if you were behind him. And never would he approach you without a warning of where he was, a little “ behind ya! “ or a “ Hey, comin’ in. “

It was especially bad when his feelings for you developed. They came so suddenly, nearly toppling the big guy over when you asked him of all people if he was okay one day. He wasn’t—the mission that day was far too stressful. He lost sight of his brothers as they tried to reason with a tree yokai—an ent, much heavier than he was with branches far more than capable of causing harm to his brothers without his tough skin and spiky shell. They totally held their own, as they always did, but with lives as dangerous as theirs?? No one could really blame Raph for his worries. And worst of all, he couldn’t share any of these feelings, not with anyone, lest he wanted to risk his responsibilities and confidence as their leader.

How could he falter? Would his brothers take on his fears if he dared share them? April would try to reach out to him, but he just couldn’t bring himself to share such heavy baggage with her.

Raph insisted he was fine. April always knew he was lying.

But, she respected his space, within reason.

Never would he have expected you to ask him how he was though, and somehow that ended up being the little drop of water that broke the dam. In your arms, he poured everything out, shaking the whole time. You stroked gentle touches down his neck, sometimes reaching out to trace little circles and hearts against his chest—knowing full and well that he could feel it.

When he calmed down, Raph jolted backwards, afraid to have made so much contact with someone he saw like glass. To his surprise, not only were you unharmed, but you encouraged him to return to your loving arms, and he would be a liar if he said that he hated it or found them uncomfortable.

And that was how you managed to get him to warm up to you, becoming a bit more playful, much more likely to embrace you, to seek your company. You frequented the lair more, and he would always rush to you once he was free. You would lay together in his room, hearing his most vulnerable emotions—just you. You were the apple of his eye. Raph relaxed around you, let down some guards, and allowed his hands to stroke your skin just how yours did his.

And that, dear friend, is how he discovered how ticklish you were—right on your tummy. It surprised him when one day, while running his fingers mindlessly against your skin, you began fidgeting. He tried again, and this time you started laughing, pushing his hands away.

Today, he was doing the same thing. You were both together, laughing and being close as usual, when suddenly he towered over you and gave a toothy grin. Oh no, not that look, please—anything but THAT look! He pushed your shirt up a bit—respectfully so— and immediately began assault on your tummy!

You squirmed and shrieked, fighting to escape the torture that made you laugh so bad. You couldn’t stop laughing and pleading.

“ Raph—Plehihiji—please! Let—hELP, I-I’M gonahahah—I’m g— PEE! “

“ Not a chance, Y/N. “

With empty threats, you pleaded, and he simply eyed you with a glint of enjoyment flickering through his eyes. Now began stage 2 of your fight for your life—kicking. It never usually reached this point, but you were desperate! Tears were pricking in your eyes and your laugh was starting to just become your mouth open and body jolting as if laughing but no sound came out.

Of course, when you’re someone like Raph with tough skin and a spiky shell, little human kicks don’t hurt at all. But, when you’re a human with easily torn skin, kicks against an alligator snapping turtle can be dangerous.

“ Y/N! I—I’m sorry, you’re . . . “

Raph was quick to catch when your cries weren’t done out of too much tickling. You gave a squeak of pain, halting your kicking abruptly, and suddenly Raph was brought back to an unpleasant memory of the past, one where a particularly purple turtle was hurt by him.

To omit the yucky details, let’s just say there was a bit of a ouchie-ouch on the sole of your foot. Raph quickly separated himself from you, putting an uncomfortable amount of distance between you both as he rummaged through drawers to find precious bandaids that were probably in every nook and cranny of the lair because of him.

“ Where are they, no, no, no, please. I didn’t mean to! “

Panicking, his shaky hands dumped bandaids into the drawer and quickly hurried to you with them and some Neosporin. Though, when he saw your teary eyes looking at him, Raph couldn’t help but freeze up. The materials were sat near you, but he kept his distance. His head hung to the right, like a puppy ashamedly holding their head down.

“ Raph? “

Y/N called with a low voice, reaching their hand towards him. A hesitant step back, and quickly you put the pieces together. It was just like before. Was he going to push you away now after this incident, too?

“ Raph, you can sit near me. It was just an accident, I’m not mad and it’s not even that bad of a cut! “

His eyes twirled light in them as tears glossed them up. Even so, even if you were okay—this just proved he was dangerous, right? This just proved he shouldn’t be so close to you, right? This proved every little thought he had every time he held you, every floating voice telling him, “ No, you are too close to them. You’re going to hurt them, it’s only a matter of time. You hurt everyone, Raphael. “

“ Y/N, please, you should be upset! I hurt you, it was only a matter of time. Just, LOOK at me? “

Fuming? He was fuming? Anger contorted his face as the tears welled up and rolled down his cheeks, leaving little trails that shone like crystals of sadness under the light basking his room. His eyes never met yours, staying fixated upon the floor.

This made your heart ache. You didn’t want to go back to when his hands would flinch, trembling as they gingerly touched your shoulders, your cheeks, your hands! You didn’t want him so afraid to touch you—you WEREN’T glass or tissue! You were resilient! After smearing the neosporin on your wound and pressing the bandaid neatly against your skin, your eyes traced his body while you spoke, noting the way he was so stiff yet quivering so visibly.

“ I AM looking at you, Raph. You didn’t do it on purpose, it was simply an accident, please—“

You leaned forward on the bed, reaching for him, but got startled when he jerked away, staring at you with eyes full of a kind of fear you hadn’t seen since the fight with Shredder years ago.

“ NO—Stop! I’m dangerous, just listen to me Y/N, and stay aw—Irk! “

He was startled as you suddenly leapt to him, his arms instinctively catching you. Guilt washed over him—he just said don’t touch him! But the way you held him and your voice cracked as you cried out,

“ Raph, you dummy! Listen to me, ”

Y/N pulled back, resting their weight upon Raph’s arms that held them securely with a little pinch of love. Their hands cupped his face, gently stroking his cheeks in slow circles,

“ I know you think I’m made of glass or something dumb like that. You underestimate how strong I am, okay? Of course I may get hurt here and there by your little points, but hey, ”

His head leaned against your hand as you rubbed his tears away,

“ That doesn’t change how much I . . . How much I love you, okay? “

The look on his face coupled with the blush dusting your cheeks was adorable. Though you both knew it, neither of you had said it aloud. And, what better time to say it than after a tickle fight gone wrong?

His eyes traced your expression, clenching tightly closed before opening with the kindest, most loving gaze that made your heart skip, but not as hard as his next words did. Now THAT made your heart trip over itself.

“ Can I kiss you? “

┆ ── ˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ — Mikey 💌

Loving Mikey was easy—the hard part was figuring out how he loved you. The way he treated you, it was sometimes indistinguishable from how one loves a friend or how one loves a partner. Your heart fluttered when his smile called your name, but that same smile called to his brothers, to his sister, fathers, everyone.

One thing that you knew was only for you, though, was the way he always wanted your hand. Now, there was no doubt that Mikey loved physical touch. He climbed all over Raph, always hugged Leo and Donnie (who would give little headpats that Mikey loved. Mental note made!), and never missed a chance to high-five April when she came by.

But you? Silently, he would lace together y’all’s fingers together and carry on as such. These were the moments that made you wonder if how he felt for you was exclusively for you. The answer to that always escaped you, never having the heart to ask him.

That is, until the answer decided to find you itself. One day, his hands met yours. Everyone headed out of the room, and you moved to follow them, expecting Mikey to follow along like always. But instead, you were pulled back, landing gently into his hugging embrace. Mikey hugged you, which wasn’t out of character, but it struck you as odd that he would want to lag behind the others, especially with you. Your heart began spinning with joy, but that was quickly shushed—quiet down, my heart, please. Don’t jump to conclusions that could hurt us!

“ I love you, a lot. “

The words had frozen your body. After a few seconds, you dared lift your head and lost all words at the loving smile and look he used as his eyes held yours. A rush of emotion, and soon your lips had met his, locked in a kiss so sweet.

From that moment on, you were surprised to find out just how much Mikey enjoyed contact with you. Sitting together, your body would be against his, his arms draped over your frame and yours holding his hands. Little churrs would emit from his chest, low for your ears only as you laid against his plastron. You frequented his room much more, usually laying across each other while reading from his absurd collection of comics—you didn’t know what surprised you more, the sheer amount of them or the fact that he actually kept comics that weren’t just Jupiter Jim. There were other stories, and even some of his own made comics that starred him and his brothers. You loved reading the ones he made himself.

One day, in his room in front of a cute mirror he had found and painted the outskirts of himself, you tried on a new shirt. It was a tad bit short, revealing your stomach. With a few twists, turns, and poses, you still hadn’t settled on how you felt about it before Mikey came in and saw. You held your tongue, burning under his gaze, but he erupted with joy at how nice you looked in it! He especially loved the colors and designs on it.

“ Can I touch the trim? “

He asked, eyeing the bottom of your shirt with a look only an artist could have. You of course obliged, allowing him to see whatever it was he wanted to inspect. It was then that his fingers grazed your skin, pulling a few giggles from you as your hands quickly moved to push his. With a confused look, he quirked a brow ridge at you, grinning as the pieces instantly fell into place.

“ You’re ticklish, aren’t you? “

“ Absolutely not. “

A suspiciously fast response. No, really, you had countered his question so fast that there was no way it could be seen as anything but a “ Yes, absolutely! “. And so, the only thing going through your head as your legs buckled and laughter shook your body was “ god have mercy. “

No time was wasted by the mischievous orange banded turtle as his fingers tickled your exposed stomach. Your legs had buckled, hoping to dodge him and run for your life, but you hadn’t accounted for just how fast he could really be when locked in target!

“ MIKEY—NOOOOO! “

You screamed, as if you were a character in a game betrayed by the one they trusted. Which, technically you were. This wasn’t a game, but you were being betrayed by whom you trusted as his hands tickled and tickled and tickled you until all you could do was gasp for air and reach for the sky—ceiling?

The laughter falling from your lips encouraged him. It made he himself laugh—but no, Mikey needed to focus on his attack! He couldn’t laugh so hard that he became weak, like you and your frame which shook with earthquaking giggles right now as your hands tried to hit and push him. That made him laugh even more—you were laughing so hard that your hands were hardly even putting enough pressure to TOUCH him!

That did him in as he rolled over beside you, trembling as he held his stomach.

“ You sounded so sil—pffft—silly! ”

“ Oh YEAH? DID I? ”

Regaining composure, you were quick to flip up over onto him and hold your hands up with a downright DEVIOUS smirk.

And Mikey recognized the fate that was about to be bestowed upon him.

“ Wait—Y/N, hahaha, come oNAAAAAAH! “

Y/N’s hands came down to his sides, beginning their relentless revenge upon their assailant. Their weight on top of him was holding him down effectively.

“ No mercy! “

They cried out evilly, laughing as Mikey’s laughs turned from joy to tickled horror! Free him!

“ Y/N, Y/N PLEASE, I’LL DIE! “

The deviant in your smile slipped away, replaced with a loving smile. The way his eyes were squeezed shut and how his big grin let out the most contagious laughs. The relentless tickle-attack was about to be lifted, but instead you were met by Mikey’s knee slamming into your back accidentally.

“ OUGH! “

“ HH—Y/N! “

Y/N’s body lurched forward from the impact, chest hitting against Mikey’s plastron and their noggin smacking right into his. The clonk sent you both rolling on the floor, opposite of each other and holding your heads. A string of whispered curses left both of your mouths as you squirmed in mutual pain! Who knew that tickling could become so painful for all parties involved?

Amidst your rolling, you both had began settling down, resting on your side and facing each other.

“ Euughhh… “

Mikey and Y/N groan, eyes fluttering open to meet each other’s. The giggles subsided, silence overtaking the two as they searched each other’s eyes for something. Mikey, looking for any pain, maybe even fear or hate for him hurting you. Y/N, looking for any pain, sadness, fear—and possibly even a hint of love. The silence turned into a melody of the two’s laughter, the sounds intertwining, weaving into a jovial harmony. With a few little nudges and scoots, Y/N and Mikey met their noggins once again, this time with a soft affectionate touch instead of a violent thunk. Their hands came together just as lovingly.

“ … “

Y/N’s eyes lowered to where their hands hugged. A content smile met their features, followed by a loving sigh as eyes trailed back to meet the bubbly ones that followed, hand in hand, curious of what had your attention.

“ So? Is the shirt weird on me? I’m not exactly the spitting image of those you normally see wearing this. “

Your eyes escaped, laced with a glint of anxiety and a pinch of discomfort. The fleeing gaze was brought back by Mikey’s hand, stroking your cheek.

“ Everything looks amazing on you, Y/N! “

He leans up, placing a sweet kiss upon your forehead.

“ Do you like it? “

┆ ── ˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ — Donnie 💌

Surprisingly enough, loving Donnie as much as you do now was not all that hard. If anything, it wasn’t even planned. The hard part was getting him to reciprocate.

You were a school friend of April’s, roped together by the dreaded “Group Project”. Little did you know, this group project soon turned into a “Group-Run-From-Some-Big-Lizard-Mutant-Thing!???” Without skipping a beat, April sent out a little “ help! doing a project with a potential NORMAL HUMAN FRIEND and a mutant has appeared? “

The two of you were saved by four highly impressive men—wait no… no, that’s a turtle? No, a frog? No, no, turtle frog men? No, that can’t be right?

“ Watch out! “

A voice startled your thoughts immediately as metallic arms gave only a second to respond before they yanked you away from the much larger and redder of the four thumping down where you once laid. Your eyes met the cold ones of your savior, who narrowed them with a clicking of his tongue.

“ Maybe you should leave zoning out for when you’re safe?! “

“ Donnie! “

“ Donnie… “

He was scolded by your dearest groupmate, April, and you found yourself parroting the name she said. Now he didn’t seem all that fond of you already!

But, that first impression dissolved over time. Knowing their existence now, you were more inclined to ask April to let you see them. After a few visits, you would even begin going to see them on your own—without her as your safe little guard as you got to know these brothers.

Donnie, though? Now he was who you were most interested in. His lab was where you gravitated towards the most, especially when visiting the lair on your own. Your comfort zone had extended from April’s side to the lab of a rather recluse scientist.

At first it seemed like you were an annoyance—a pain in his neck, maybe even a thorn in his side? That slowly subsided as you came to know not Donnie, but rather Donatello.

Donatello was someone who had quiet kindness, the kind of nice that gets overlooked—unnoticed for a while. Had you compared the lab before your time and to now, you would have noticed easily that some shelves were a bit higher now, and the floors were less cluttered. Memories of you tripping and bonking your head flooded in, followed by the split seconds of worry you caught on the purple-banded turtle that melted into misplaced frustration as you got carted straight out of the room. Then, you had thought it was the last straw, but now? You knew it was simply him getting you away to basically … “ Y/N proof ” the place.

The spark between y’all had grown during one night that had left Donnie completely and utterly vulnerable.

By this point, you had spent so much time with Donnie that you could proudly vocalize your title as “ Assistant Scientist! “ In fact, you were even more proud to say you could always catch the split second smiles on the Great, Genius, Bad-Boy-Who-Never-Smiles Donatello when you entered his lab. The smirks he gave when you connected dots during his scientific spiels, the big-eyed worry he had whenever you made an “ ouch! ” or a “ dang it! “ or any less-favorable expletives, even the stiffness his body had before jumping into action when his eyes caught your frame entering an active battlefield—all of it, you noticed. Donnie was a book you had read cover to cover, many times over.

Maybe part of him had noticed that, too, because you were the one who was reached out to immediately during one particular accident on a solo-patrol.

With feet running so fast that they rivaled that of Hermes and his winged shoes, you clambered desperately down narrow alleyways, cluttered paths, and much-less-worn trails. You were blindly following a help signal sent to your phone by Donnie—it had quite literally spooked you out of bed. I mean, him? Donnie? He of all people? Reaching out to YOU of ALL people? The intrusive thoughts plowing through your brain were increasingly terrifying, fueling your breathless rush to the destination all the more.

With one last glance towards the coordinates, Y/N’s eyes rose to catch their surroundings. A park? They were at a park? What was he doing somewhere like this, this late at night? Under the cloudy moonlit skies, their footsteps crunched autumn leaves until stopping as the faintest of beeping was heard. Then, there was a stomach-turning stench that whisked through you, followed by whimpers hardly louder than the wind itself. Moving closer, Y/N saw a glimpse of purple and rushed around the bushes to find the frame of none other than the Genius Scientist himself, terribly injured and with his battle shell casted away a few feet.

“ Donnie …? “

Y/N whispered, with a voice just as low.

His hand was over his neck, digits trembling upon where the purple tech that encased his shell usually laid. With a sharp inhale, he turned to you with watery eyes that sent tears blurring your vision.

“ You’re, you’re hurt, Donnie, why did you call me? “

You were by his side immediately, his weight leaning into yours as you swiftly yet gingerly hoisted the violet vigilante up with his arm casted across your shoulder.

“ You’re—haaahhh— you’re the only one I trust to do this, ‘Assistant Scientist’ “

His joking behavior—though if it were under any other circumstances, surely a blush would paint your cheeks—was frightening enough, as was the journey back to his lab.

The two of you managed to sneak in under the radar, and when you dropped him to the bed, albeit a bit harshly, you hadn’t missed a single beat with the interrogation.

“ What happened to you? And … ”

Y/N’s eyes glanced to the purple tech through the doorway, laying illuminated by fluorescent fixtures in the center of the lab.

“ and … why was your battle shell so hot? ”

They recalled half an hour earlier as their eyes laid upon the faint red of burns on their fingertips.

Before Donnie’s warning, call—no, beg— to not touch his battle-shell, Y/N’s hands were already grazing the underside of the purple shell before a hissing leapt from their throat as the chilling rush of red-hot warmth nipped at their fingers. Desperation to get him home grew overwhelming as the realization that the scent they caught earlier had been akin to that of … well, you were frightened to complete that thought.

You shook your head, chasing that scary memory away, looking from the shell in the other room back to Donnie. He didn’t seem to want to talk much, so instead you settled for rummaging through his things for medical supplies. After a few moments, you heard him speak up, repeating his statement again with a groan. With a quick glance, your heart skipped a beat at the sight of him leaning over in his seated position on the bed’s edge, flashing a weary grin.

“ I meant it, you are the only one I trust to help me with this. “

That night, a few years ago from today, had become a beloved memory for you, despite how much it had your heart racing. It had also become the exact reason why whenever Donnie had solo-patrol, you were always at his side. But, without that frightening night, you wouldn’t be where you are now—on the floor of a particular scientist’s lab, a giggling fit as said genius was relentlessly tickling each sensitive area on your body. Curses slipped your lips as you kicked and flailed, trying desperately to pry his hands away from their main target: your neck.

Did you know just how ticklish necks are? Clavicles, shoulders, but especially the back of your neck.

This assault had begun when the unsuspecting Y/N happily obliged to help look over Donnie’s latest invention. While you weren’t even nearly as intelligent as this literal sentient computer (hell, he might even be smarter than that), you, as the officially appointed “ Assistant Scientist ”, had definitely picked up a thing or two! Enough that you were upgraded to being his reviser, the second pair of eyes that looked over his work. With your guard fully down, your beloved Donatello began his relentless tickling of your neck as you were firmly and lovingly pinned to the floor.

The fit of giggles that erupted from your chest as you thrashed under the weight of the turtle sitting comfortably upon your derrière were quickly taken as his reward.

Weakly, Y/N kicked and squealed as tears pricked their eyes. Their cries grew hoarse and then into quiet gasps and silent laughter as the tears stained their cheeks. The experience had left them so out of it that they hadn’t noticed the tickling ceased until oxygen filled their lungs once more.

“ You, you trai … Let me catch my breath, you—you snuck up on me! Hast thou no honor? No shame? “

Y/N slipped from under their bully, lifting into a cross legged position as the other let out a genuine laugh seldom heard.

“ Hmm, let me check my calculations once more, “

His lips quirked up into an annoying grin as he tapped on the tablet attached to his forearm before his eyes looked up at you—ah, that look, had your heart skipped again? Y/N’s eyes quickly avoided him which only transformed his grin to a victorious one.

“ I am 98% devoid of shame! “

“ Uh-huh, and—pray tell—what about that missing 2%, oh all smart and powerful Sir Donatello? “

“ Realistically speaking, you can never be 100% confident. “

“ Why you—! “

An inaudible squeak erupted the genius as Y/N lunged forward to tickle him back, only to have their hands grabbed swiftly and intertwined in his.

“ Though, I was 100% sure you would try to get revenge. “

“ 100? Check your math because I almost didn’t do it! “

Y/N gave the cheekiest grin, only to have Donnie’s hands wrap around them and pull them flat against his plastron, his hand holding your head against him.

“ But you still did it. “

┆ ── ˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ — Leo 💌

“ … “

“ Ah… “

Y/N and Leo stared at each other, then the amalgamation of burnt mush between them, and then back to each other again.

“ On the bright side, we’ll know we aren’t on cooking duty next time? “

Leo cracked a grin before both of you stiffened instantly at the, “ WHO BURNT SOMETHING? “ echoed from across the lab. A fit of giggles escaped you as the blue banded dinner-criminal in front of you uttered a signature “ gyuu “ before tugging your frame through a quickly made portal as you two made your escape!

While running along the rooftops with an exhausting amount of stamina, leaping down into his arms whenever there was a jump a little too high for your legs to comfortably hop down, and laughing out what little oxygen was left in your lungs here and there, an important memory swirled to the forefront.

See, when it came to loving Leo, you never expected to be charmed by someone so …

Infuriating?

Sure, that sounded right. When you appeared into the brothers’ lives, it had happened at a Jupiter Jim movie showing. You and them were the only folks in the theatre, since it was a rerun of a previous movie that seemed to not be as much of a fan favorite. While you were the perfect example of how one should behave in a theatre, these rowdy brothers were quite the opposite.

Highly vocal about their disagreements with stuff in the movie, popcorn exploding in the air as they dramatically reacted to plot twists—like come on! How many years has this movie been out? No way they hadn’t seen it, what, did they live under a rock for god's sake?! But what really marked the line in the sand was when the beloved climax of the story came, one that had the most beautiful colors and framing you could ever see in any other movie.

On the edge of your seat, awaiting the dazzling display, the four brothers erupted from their seats and cheered louder than the movie’s volume. Each time you tried to look around them, it seemed almost too planned how they managed to cover your desperate gaze.

“ UGH! ENOUGH, YOU—“

Y/N yelled out in boiling anger, pointing towards them with a spiel on “ just how unruly they were ” prepared, but their throat seemed to dry up instantly when their faces all turned to them, revealing faces that just weren’t human.

The first of you all to respond and approach was a boy obscured by a blue beanie and scarf. He flashed a shaky grin and gave a polite bow with the nerdiest voice.

“ We apologize for being so rowdy, and I hope our snazzy turtle costumes aren’t spooking you too much! “

The fading memory brought a smile as Y/N dropped into Leo’s arms once more, walking hand in hand on the rooftop. He cracked an unknowing grin at your smile, and you squeezed his hand before letting go and walking towards the railing to gaze up at the sky.

“ Remember when we first met, Leo? “

“ Psh, yeah, at that Jupiter Jim showing of my favorite movie ever? You were completely enchanted by me, how could I forget? “

“ What? Enchanted?! “

Y/N sputtered out a laugh, whisking around to lock eyes with their love.

“ I was not enchanted, I was annoyed! You and your brothers were being disruptive and then you tried to pass off as cosplayers. “

With a snort, they turned back around and looked up at the stars. Y/N leaned against the railing, elbow as weight and head resting in their open palm. There was a comfortable silence blanketing the two now, likely with Leo trying to figure out some witty comeback to combat that with. A few thoughts crossed your head, figuring out if you should speak again or continue in this quiet moment beneath the stars—rather romantic in and of itself already, if you did say so yourself. This made you smirk for a second, shaking your head before deciding on the perfect thing to say next.

“ I would say I’m enchanted now, though. “

“ … “

The silence was not comfortable this time—honestly it was more awkward than anything you could imagine experiencing at this second— so with a tilt of your head, looking over your shoulder, there was a star-struck ninja illuminated by moon’s light. His eyes looked through yours with a warm kindness that felt like home. It took everything in you to not break this silence, wishing to stare into those eyes forever. Alas, embarrassment under such a loving gaze resulted in you nervously stuttering out your words, contemplating on turning back to the sky.

“ He-Hey, you okay? Are you good? “

“ You’re so important to me. “

“ Whuh— “

Snaking around your waist were his arms, snug against your frame as his chin rested on your shoulder. Your face flushes as your bashful gaze returns to the sky, catching a star here and there. A gentle kiss was pressed upon your cheek, resulting in you loosening against him and giving a content smile. With your head against his plastron and the stars captivating you in what could’ve been an absolutely romantic moment, there was the mischievous smirk that went unnoticed.

Leo pulled away slowly, his hands resting upon your hips.

“ I’m only doing it ‘cause you’re too cute. “

“ What? “

In merely a second, his fingers snaked under your shirt and tickled your sides relentlessly. A screech escaped your lips as you struggled and squirmed away, only to be held in place by one of his arms while the other continued tickling you.

“ LE—HHH—LEO PLEAAAAAAAH! STAH—STOP IT! DEMON! DEEEEEEMOOOOOONNN!! “

The two of you plunged to the ground from your frantic kicking, the blue culprit laughing all too hard while you struggled to cry for help between heavy inhales, sucking air in before your traitorous laughter emptied you all over again.

“ LEEEEEE—-!!!! “

Soon, Y/N’s struggling slowed down out of exhaustion until the two laid upon the rooftop with scattered giggles and chuckles. You wiped away tears from your eyes, rolling away from Leo with a playful shove and a glare that said, “ don’t you dare do that again or else! “ He flashed you puppy eyes, holding out his arms to beckon you on back.

So, of course you left him hanging for a bit, watching as he pouted—all a ruse, of course! Don’t be fooled!! And you weren’t, you stood your ground until he simply muttered a “ c’mere “ and pulled you back over to him. Head resting on his shoulder, his own hand pulling yours to rest on his plastron, and now you both look up at the sky where gray clouds fly by ever so slowly upon the navy blue landscape, illuminated by a full moon. The two of you basked in its gentle glow. Silence wrapped its arms around you both, allowing the beeps and distant shouts of the below New York world to supply ambiance.

“ So, do you think Mikey’s found our mess? “

“ Think? “

Leo tilted his head to you, confident in his next response,

“ I wouldn’t be surprised to see him swinging over from right over there. “

His finger pointed at the rooftop across from the one you laid on. A snort escaped you at the image of an angry Mikey booking it towards you both.

But, for now there was no angry brother in the distance hunting you down—well, that you knew of at least, so you settled for snuggling closer against his shoulder with a little tremble (which went unnoticed, as his arms hugged you tightly for a second then loosened, his hand moving to rub your arm fast enough to generate some heat!)

Once more, silence blanketed you both as a game of “ I spy ” and “ What Shape is the Cloud ” ensued.

Said silence was broken as y’all pointed up and screamed,

“ THAT CLOUD LOOKS LIKE JUPITER JIM?! ”

[stars1997]

Lover Boy - Part 1

Warnings: None

Pairing(s): Jeremy Swayman x Fem!Reader

Summary: Y/N Ullmark gets a job with the Bruins as their new photographer. They haven't seen each other in a few years, some things have changed. What happens when her brother's best friend develops a crush on her?

________________________________________________

“Hey guys today’s media day as you know, we gotta get our roster shots. We have a new photographer so do me a favor, be nice to her, she’s ullmarks sister.” I heard Brad Marchand say from inside the locker room. A series of cat-call whistles went off in the locker room before I heard my brother clear his throat. I roll my eyes. Here we go, I think to myself. “Completely off limits to every single one of you. Don’t even think about it.” He says. The whistles continue and I let out a laugh a little louder than needed. The locker room went silent. “I guess I’ll come in now,” I said, stifling the giggles from seconds ago. “As you guys know I’m Y/n Ullmark, your new media girl. So if you guys could suit up and head out to the hallway in 20 that would be great!” I say, and just before walking fully out of the locker room, I saw someone I recognized, Swayman. The last time I saw him was when he first got signed and became best friends with my brother. He looks a little older now. We locked eyes, he gave a smile and a wave which was returned before I headed to the hallway to set up. I set up my camera stand, the lights, and the background as the guys were lining up. A few of the boys jokingly hit on me, but I took it lightly. I could tell I was going to love this job. I was down to the last two guys which were Pasta and Sway. After photoing Pasta it was just me and Sway in the hallway. “Y/n, it’s been so long. How was school?” He asked. “Ah, he speaks. School was awesome but it definitely had its ups and downs. I’ve been keeping up with stats, you guys have been doing really well. Are you excited to be in net for the rangers game tomorrow? I hear they’ve got a new bruiser, Matt something?” I asked while fixing the lighting for his photo. “Matt Rempe, yeah I’ve heard of the kid. Make sure you get my good side tomorrow. No bad angles.” He joked. I laughed and playfully pushed him into position for the photo. I snapped a few good headshots for the roster and some full body for the Instagram, which I now run. Most of the photos weren’t usable since he kept making silly faces at the camera but those were the photos I knew the fans would adore. After taking his pictures he walked back to the locker room and I started putting away the lights and backdrops. This took longer than I thought it would. Almost all of the boys had left by the time I was almost done putting it all away. “Hey, Y/n do you need any help with all of that?” Sway asked from down the hallway, walking out of the locker room in jeans and a flannel, while putting on his hat, flipping so it's backwards. “Oh no its okay, I’m almost finished.” I responded with a smile. “Are you sure, its really no bother.” He said. “Y/n, is this guy bothering you?” My brother asked, stifling a chuckle as he walked down the hallway towards us. “Hey Bubba, Sway asked me to go get drinks with him, would you mind putting the lights and tripod in the closet?” I asked my brother sweetly, watching Jer’s face drop into a puzzled expression out of the corner of my eye. “Wait, what I-“ My brother started. “Thank youuuu.” I interrupted, grabbing Sway's hand and pulling him toward the exit. I turned around to see my brother still standing there shocked. “No need to worry bubba its just as friends, promise.” Once we walked about of the arena I let go of his hand. “Alright tendy, where are you taking me for drinks?” I asked as we make the short walk over to his truck. “Well, since I don’t have much of a choice I was thinking Brock’s bar. Have you ever been?” He asked unlocking the doors and opening his own. I opened mine and grabbed the handle at the top to pull myself in. “Oh come on Jer don’t act like you don’t love my company. I’ve been once or twice but I don’t really remember those nights honestly.” I joked, and we both laughed at the hard truth while he started the truck.

[intheholler]

east tennessee native here, and we don't call them "halfbacks" but the problem is just awful. we have about 30,000 people in my town and most of them live in the older, eastern part of town, and range from poverty-level to middle class. but those "halfbacks" have been tearing up our natural ridges, buying up lake property that used to be priced reasonably for the middle class, and selling it all to other rich folks or to development companies, or using them as vacation houses for a month or two a year.

what's worse is that the local government thinks that pandering to them is the best option since they're rich. our tax dollars aren't going towards upkeep and renovation for the older part of town, which has many more people, but to developing the beautiful forested ridges and farmland on the western end into upper-middle class, cookie-cutter house subdivisions, or worse.

then the devils decided to build a community center - which would be great, if it was in a place accessible to everyone. instead, they build it way out on the west end, too far for those without transportation to walk, and the real kicker is that, even though our tax dollars fund and maintain it, they still charge you a fee to enter. it's plain out tailored to the rich folks.

i don't know what to do about it other than get sad. i'm sick and tired of rich folks and northern conservatives buying out our land and then coming down here and pretending we've ever thought like they did, or that they could ever fit in with the salt of the earth when they're the scum of the earth.

"i'm sick and tired of rich folks and northern conservatives buying out our land and then coming down here and pretending we've ever thought like they did, or that they could ever fit in with the salt of the earth when they're the scum of the earth."

tattoo. that. on. my. ass.

man. reading this ask stoked a real ancient anger in me. i don't know what to do except be sad, neither. sad n pissed.

the speed with which the general sentiment went from "fuck appalachia, let's just saw yall off into the ocean" to "i can fix her with my old money and my backwards politics, actually" liked to gave me whiplash.

atp, id rather them stay home, keep their uninformed beliefs about appalachia and let us in peace to do our thing. better than them coming up the holler and cutting down a tree just to make an expensive sign telling us we're spellin hollow wrong

solidarity, east tn <333

[bitethedevil]

Living with The Devil You Know (Raphael x Tav): Chapter 6

Chapter: one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen

Read this fic on AO3 (Link)

Fic Summary: Tav broke their agreement by handing the Crown of Karsus to Mystra instead of Raphael. Not only that, but she also robbed his house and killed his incubus. Raphael is patient and he is determined to get his revenge.

…Tav isn't too bothered. She will figure something out eventually. Until then she just has to find a way to live peacefully with a devil.

Chapter Summary: Raphael learns that Tav has been up to something. Tav is reminded of the reality of the situation she finds herself in and of who Raphael really is. She also learns that she is beginning to develop a bit of Stockholm Syndrome.

(AN: I can't believe we're already at Chapter 6. I think I started writing this fic early this month. I literally haven't thought of anything else since. I should really try touching some grass...)

TW: Mentions of Violence, Mentions of Blood.

Hope you are still alive and well. What is it that Raphael wants from us and what should we expect if he contacts us?

That was the message that she had received in the morning from Gale. She had to get a message back to her friends, though it would prove difficult as Cassius was watching her with the intensity of a predator waiting for its prey to move before it pounces.

She could take him easily. That was not the problem at all. The problem was that Cassius would not fall for the same trick and he would definitely tattle on her this time if she tried anything. She would have to be very discreet.

She got up from her chair and started slowly walking back and forth in the large main area of the house. Cassius narrowed his eyes at her.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“Getting some exercise. It’s not like I can go out for a stroll, is it?” Tav answered and stretched her limbs.

“Sit down,” Cassius ordered.

“Free roam of the house~” Tav said, repeating what Raphael had promised her on her first day there. “You are supposed to follow me, not the other way around.”

“I can’t watch you if you keep pacing,” he said with a sneer. “Sit. Down.”

“No,” Tav said and kept walking at a leisurely pace.

There was a quiet growl of frustration from Cassius, but he did not get up from his chair, although he kept watching her intently.

She kept walking around the room, testing if he would get up from his chair if she turned her back on him. She could sense that he tensed up when she did, but he did not move. All she needed was a moment.

She turned her back on him once again. She quickly and quietly mumbled the message she had rehearsed in her mind for Gale.

Unfortunately, Cassius were on her before she could even say the incantation for the sending spell.

“You insolent little bitch,” he hissed.

He grabbed her hair and pulled her backwards, making her land on her back. She opened her mouth to say an incantation, but Cassius was fast. He punched her square in the face, and it took her by surprise. It was clear that he had just been waiting for an excuse to hurt her.

He held her arms down and muffled her with his hand.

“I can’t wait till he sees your true colors,” Cassius said and pressed down the hand that was over her mouth and nose, making it hard for her to breathe.

Tav bit his hand hard and then she worked fast: Thunderwave, Sleep spell.

Cassius flew back and slumped to the floor.

Tav was breathing hard. She closed her eyes for a moment to try and calm her pulse down a bit. She rubbed her face and when she withdrew it, she saw that there was a good amount of blood on it.

She got up from the floor and walked over to Cassius, before casting another spell that would ensure that he would keep sleeping for quite a while before getting up again.

Tav closed her eyes and said the message she would send to Gale:

The Orphic Hammer. I’m in chains. He is trying to lure you here to try and free me. Don’t come here under any circumstances.

She sent the message and then glanced at Cassius on the floor before sending another as well:

I’m safe and well. I’ll probably not be able to contact you any time soon. Too risky. Don’t worry about me. I’ll figure it out.

Tav sighed. She threw herself down in an armchair and called on one of the servants. The poor halfling woman who entered looked at Cassius’s unconscious body and then at Tav’s bloodied face with widened eyes. Tav smiled politely at her.

“Can you call Raphael here?” Tav asked.

“Yes, miss,” the halfling servant mumbled and nodded.

“Thank you.”

Tav waited and expected the worst when Raphael would come home.

Raphael was in his devil form when he returned home. He looked furious when he entered and saw his warlock unconscious on the floor. He looked even more pissed when his eyes went to Tav.

“Please…” Tav said and held her hands up in defense. “Let me explain…”

“Oh, you will,” Raphael said in a low voice and walked closer to her. “Talk.”

“The day after I got here, I incapacitated Cassius to cast a sending spell to my friends,” she explained hurriedly. “I convinced him not to tell you. Today I did it again. I am being upfront with you, because it’s not my intention to piss you off or to hide anything.”

The latter being a bit of a lie. She would not have told Raphael if she had not been caught in the act by Cassius, and he probably knew that she was only trying to come clean in order to get ahead of Cassius’s allegations.

Raphael’s eyes narrowed at her as he studied her bloodied face. He was quiet for a moment. It was tense and uncomfortable.  

“What did he do to you?” Raphael asked. He said it with eerie calmness, but she could hear the anger hiding right under the surface.

That was…not the question she had anticipated. She had been so busy saving her own ass, that she had not really considered the fact that Cassius might be in danger from getting punished as well. It was not that she had a lot of sympathy for the warlock, but she knew what Raphael was capable of doing to people, and she did not like the thought of being responsible for it.

“Oh this?” Tav asked and gestured to her face. Her nose was still slightly bleeding, and she felt that her cheek was starting to swell up slightly. “He only tried to hinder me from attacking him.”

Raphael's eyes narrowed even more.

“Mm…And why are you protecting him, Tav?” Raphael asked in a dangerous tone.

“I’m not,” she said with quietly. “It’s just…he was just doing his job.”

“I am well aware of his incompetence. His job was to call upon me should anything happen. Which he has failed to do twice, if what you are saying is correct,” Raphael said darkly and came closer. He grabbed her chin gently and turned her face to study her injuries. “I did not give him permission to harm you like this, so I will ask you again…Why are you protecting him?”

The intensity of Raphael’s stare and the tone of his voice made her nervous. She swallowed hard and her eyes flicked away from his gaze.  

For once, she actually felt like a little mouse, shaking under the paw of the cat, knowing that one wrong move could mean that its claws would sink into her.

“Do you care for him, is that it?” Raphael asked pointedly.

Her eyes went back to his and her brow furrowed at the odd question. Was that…jealousy she saw on his face?

“No,” she answered as if it was obvious. “I don’t. I’ve told you what I think of him before…it’s just…”

“Just what?” Raphael asked, his fiery eyes still boring into hers.

“I just…don’t want to be responsible for what you are going to do to him…” she answered in a quiet voice.

A sadistic smile flickered across his face for a brief moment.

“Do not worry yourself with such matters,” Raphael said in a slightly lighter tone and ran his thumb over her chin before his tone turned dark again. “Cassius, is responsible for what I am going to do to him.”

He let go of her chin and used the same hand to snap his fingers. Korrilla appeared in a flash of smoke and embers. It looked like she had been in the middle of something when she was whisked away. She looked at Tav and Raphael with slight confusion.

“Take her to the boudoir,” Raphael said to Korrilla and then looked at Tav to address her. “You and I will talk later.”

That little sentence and the tone of his voice made her hair stand on end.

Tav was pacing the room with an empty look in her eyes. She was not easy to scare, but now she was terrified of what Raphael might to do her. She had heard the sounds of when he sometimes punished the servants for disobeying his orders.

Whatever he would do to her, it would be personal. She had told Raphael too much. There was way too much for him to use against her and she felt anxiety bubbling in her stomach. She had not felt fear like that for years. She felt like a scared little girl again and she hated it.

“Sit down, Tav,” Korrilla said calmly. “You are going to make a hole in the floor with all that walking back and forth.”

“I think I really fucked up…” Tav mumbled and kept pacing. “What do you think he’ll do? Do you think he’d go after my friends?”

Tav had not even considered that before she said it. He probably would not. It seemed below him, but her anxiety was telling her that he might.

“Sit down, Tav,” Korrilla sighed. ”And calm down.”

“How am I supposed to be calm?” Tav asked and flinched slightly as she heard the muffled sounds of Raphael’s shouting at Cassius through the barrier to the boudoir.

“Tav,” Korrilla said slowly. “Sit down and tell me what happened.”

Tav sighed. She sat down and explained everything to Korrilla. She noticed that Korrilla was suppressing a smile as she explained, which annoyed her to no end.

“What is it that is so fucking funny about this situation?” Tav suddenly snapped at her.

Korrilla chuckled. She put her elbows on the table between them and leaned closer to Tav.

“You’re a smart girl,” Korrilla said in a lowered voice. “Use that brain of yours. You’ve seen his other debtors roaming the halls, haven’t you?”

“What are you talking about?” Tav said with an annoyed expression. “Yes, obviously. So what?”

“Do you see any of them getting treated as well as you? Are any of them dressed in silks, sleeping in their master’s bed?” Korrilla asked.

“No but that’s just because he needs me alive and in one piece to lure my friends here. He said that himself,” Tav said. She was getting frustrated with Korrilla’s calmness.

“Why?” Korrilla asked and then pointed to Tav’s chains around her wrists. “You’re wearing those. You can’t leave the house anyhow, so how would they know that you are 'alive and in one piece'? Wouldn’t it be more motivating for your friends to come and save you if they were told that you are suffering in a dungeon somewhere in the Hells?”

Tav was looking at her with a mix of annoyance and confusion.

“What are you saying?” Tav asked.

“I am saying that had you been any other person who had defied him, you would be in there watching as he made an example of Cassius. Instead, I was ordered to herd you into the only room that is somewhat soundproof in this house,” Korrilla said. “He favors you, Tav. You are not in any danger of getting hurt. Not yet anyhow.”

Tav rubbed her face trying to make sense of it. Of course, she knew that she was being treated surprisingly well for what she had expected when she got there, she was not blind. It just did not make sense, when she was the one who robbed him of his precious Crown of Karsus that he had been hunting for years. It must be some cruel joke and at some point, the hammer would fall.

“But why?” Tav asked.

“Who knows,” Korrilla said with a shrug. “I’ve worked for him for a long time, and I still won’t bother to try to figure out his motivations when it comes to certain matters. It’s a lost cause. Raphael does what Raphael wants. Which is what Cassius is learning for the first time as we speak.”

As if on cue, she heard the muffled sound of a scream from the other side of the barrier.

Tav hid her face in her hands.

“I feel terrible…” Tav said. “I hate the fucker, but he doesn’t deserve that.”

“Do you want me to make it worse?” Korrilla asked.

“No,” Tav mumbled into her hands.

“In the beginning we were given permission to hurt you if it was necessary to stop you, you know?” Korrilla explained anyway. “It sounds like Cassius overreacted, but technically he was not completely out of line. Aside from the fact that he failed to report it when you did it the first time, of course.”

Tav looked up from her hands and her brow furrowed.

“Then why is he even getting punished?” Tav asked in disbelief.

“Half of the job is figuring out Raphael’s whims and fancies…” Korrilla said. “I suppose he changed his mind along the way.”

Tav was quiet for a moment. She was trying to make sense out of it, but with little luck.  

“But you haven’t heard any of this from me. Understood?” Korrilla said, as she always did when she had said too much. 

Tav nodded. Gods, she loved Korrilla for her tendency to gossip.

“Thank you, Korrilla,” Tav said.

“For what?” she asked. “I didn’t say anything that wasn’t common sense…”

Tav flinched as she heard another muffled gut-wrenching scream.

“What should I expect from him when he’s done?” Tav asked.

“My guess? He might yell at you. Perhaps a few threats of what would happen if you do it again,” Korrilla said. “I really can’t imagine that he would hurt you over something like a few sending spells.”

Tav nodded. That helped her calm down somewhat.

Tav and Korrilla went quiet when Raphael entered the boudoir. Korrilla left immediately, leaving Tav alone with him.

He was drying his hands from blood with a handkerchief. He looked Tav up and down. She looked him up and down in return. Her anxiousness was bubbling up in her stomach again. The fact that Raphael’s facial expression revealed nothing, did not help. He was eerily calm. He started walking towards her at a leisurely pace and sat down where Korrilla had sat a moment before.

Tav’s nerves made her break the silence.

“Am I in trouble?” she asked with a tinge of nervousness in her voice.

He looked at her with a slight smile and those same intense eyes he had looked at her earlier.

“Is that fear I hear in your voice, mouse?” he asked. “How delightful it is to see that you do have some sense of self-preservation after all…”

He snapped his fingers and the bloodied handkerchief disappeared.

“Tell me, what did you say to your companions in those messages?” he asked calmly.

Tav hesitated with her answer for a moment. He would most likely know if she was lying, so she decided to tell him the truth.

“Where I was. That I was safe for now…That they should not deal with you no matter what,” she explained.

“Mm…” He hummed in thought. “And this was the day after you arrived, correct?”

“Yes.”

“Good,” Raphael said. “And the second message? There were just those two, yes?”

“Well, I sent two today right after each other,” she explained. “I received a message asking what you wanted from them. I explained and once again emphasized that they should not come. Then I told them that it might be my last message, because I anticipated that I would have to come clean to you.”

“I’m glad you did,” he answered calmly. “Cassius will not be guarding you anymore. He won’t even see you if it can be avoided.”

Tav’s brow furrowed in confusion. Surely, Korrilla would not be able to do anything else if she was constantly watching her.

“Who will be then?” she asked.

“No one,” Raphael answered. “You will be granted that privacy you’ve been yearning for. I see no reason why you should not. You haven’t proven to be destructive or shown even the faintest interest in escaping. Not that you would have any luck even if you tried, of course.”

…What?! Tav could not believe it. This had to be a trap, or she was seriously missing something. She was dumbfounded.

“I hurt your warlock twice, I send messages to my friends to discourage them for falling into your trap, and I’m getting rewarded for it?” Tav said in disbelief. “What am I missing here, Raphael?”

“I had expected you to do as much. In fact, I had expected you would do much worse…” Raphael said calmly. “I am rewarding your honesty, not your actions. Besides, I am using a lot of resources on keeping an eye on you and I now find it unnecessary. It is as simple as that.”

Tav was still dumbfounded. She was honestly a bit more nervous about this reaction than she would have been if he had simply punished her or yelled at her. He was up to something. He must be, or it did not make sense.

“Though I need you to understand this…” he said and leaned closer to her. “If I catch you trying anything, I will not let you escape punishment again. I will not let you abuse the trust I am giving you by loosening my grip on your leash. Do you understand?”

She into those fiery eyes of his and nodded.

“Good,” he purred and smiled at her. He studied the injuries on her face from Cassius punching her. “You should get that cleaned up, dear.”

Tav wanted to ask him something, but she hesitated for a moment.

“What did you do to him?” she asked quietly.

There it was again. That look on his face that she could not quite place. Anger? Jealousy? Possessiveness? He quickly replaced it with a smirk.

“I still have a few things to see to before I will return,” Raphael said, ignoring her question and getting up from the chair. “Enjoy your first little taste of privacy, my dear.”

He left her and as promised, no one came to watch her. She was alone for the first time in over a week. There was complete silence. She found herself unable to figure out what to do with herself.

She was left to her thoughts, and it quickly became uncomfortable. She had acted like a good little pet for Raphael, and she was starting to realize that she had almost forgotten that she was there against her will, robbed of her freedom.

She had cowered before him and admitted everything. She had been reminded of what he was capable of and who he really was…and yet…throughout the day she found that she missed him and longed for when he would come home again. And yet, she found herself thinking about what Korrilla had said to her: He favors you, Tav.

Why did that thought excite her? Why did she care that he favored her? She was nothing more than her captor’s favored prisoner, but she found herself feeling warm inside at the thought.

It disgusted her to think of who she was becoming and yet, the feelings were still there...

[candyflossfairy]

𝑚𝑟. 𝑚𝑢𝑛𝑠𝑜𝑛 (𝑒.𝑚. 𝑥 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑟)

𝑠𝑢𝑚𝑚𝑎𝑟𝑦: Dad!Eddie x Teacher!Reader. It's that time of year for parent-teacher conferences, and you finally meet Ronnie's father, Mr. Munson.

𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔𝑠: 18+ only, unprotected sex (p in v), slight choking, Jacobs Ladder piercings.

𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑑 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑡: 3.7k

𝑛𝑜𝑡𝑒𝑠: Eddie manip by @eddiemunsons-missingnipple . My work for @newlips milestone of love!

Your first year of teaching was going by pretty well. The students were sweet, fun, and for the most part, they listened. Of course, sitting in a classroom all day was tough work for second graders, they got a little restless after lunch. You didn’t mind it, though. There was a lot of gift giving that made it all better. Notes, drawings, coloring book pages, apples, even one gave you a glass apple with the words World’s Best Teacher! on it that you kept on your desk. It was sweet, really. All of them were, in their own ways.

Even the ones that acted out more than others.

Like Lucy Carver who had a knack for acting like a princess and bribing others with lunch money to do classwork for her. 

Or her step-brother, Ronnie Munson, who would pick on his sister relentlessly and talk loudly in class for attention. You knew it was for attention, because you saw who picked up Lucy every day and who picked up Ronnie. He was missing out on some motherly love. You hated Chrissy Carver for that. There were days when she did pick him up, but most of the time it was Mr. Munson, or Wayne Munson, Ronnie’s great uncle that would pick him up. 

You hugged Ronnie a little tighter than the other kids. You made sure he did his classwork and helped him when he needed it because of it. Not to say you had a favorite, you just knew which kids needed an extra push. It was sad that at such a young age he felt like he wasn’t getting enough love from his mother, even if he didn’t know that’s what he was feeling.

He was a cute kid, too. Looked like a carbon copy of his dad—dark curls and chocolate eyes. It was better that way, you thought. When he was older he wouldn’t look in the mirror and see his mom staring back at him.

It was parent-teacher conference day. You were nervous for your first one, but your colleagues assured you that there wasn’t much to be nervous about. Some parents were dicks when it came to their child’s grades, but for the most part it was manageable. Plus you got a better insight on what parents helped their kids at home, and which ones left them to their devices.

“Lucy is doing great as far as her social skills. She’s developing them very well. She also has a talent for math—on the days she decides to do it.” You explained to Mr. and Mrs. Carver, “I think a little more encouragement from the two of you and she will be on top of her schoolwork more.” 

“So you’re saying it’s our fault?” Mr. Carver spat.

“Jason—” Mrs. Carver chastised.

“I’m not saying that at all, Mr. Carver.” You said calmly, giving him a smile, “But I do think restricting the amount of money you give to your child will keep her from paying others to do her schoolwork for her. She’s a very smart girl when she applies herself.” You continued.

“Thank you very much for your time. We will keep that in mind.” Mrs. Carver said, as they stood up. She picked up the progress report and the two of them stepped outside.

You sighed, pressing a hand to your face.

“I feel that way after interacting with them too,”

You shot up straight, a soft flush to your cheeks. 

“No, really, they can be pretty awful.” Mr. Munson stepped inside, shutting the classroom door behind him. 

“Is… Mrs. Carver not joining us?” You asked, clearing your throat as you shuffled your papers before looking for Ronnie’s. 

“Chrissy? Nah, she tries to forget that we both exist as much as she can.” Mr. Munson told you with a playful grin, as he grabbed a chair on the other side of your desk. He turned it around before sitting in it backwards, his legs spread widely and his crotch on display from the wide hole in the back of it.

You kept your eyes on his face, even though it was in your peripheral. Mr. Munson was attractive, covered in tattoos, a labret piercing above his chin, one in his eyebrow. He also had muscles that strained against his shirt from many days working at the mechanic shop in town. You hadn’t been there since you’d moved to Hawkins, but you did know he worked there.

Single mom’s talked about him quite often. He had a little bit of a reputation for fixing problems that they’d had. 

Not to mention, he was a bit older than you — not by that much. He was in his late 20s, you were in your mid, it wasn’t bad. 

You didn’t know why you were thinking about this. You were having a parent-teacher conference about his son. It had nothing to do with the fact that you hadn’t had sex since you’d moved here. It didn’t have to do with the fact that Mr. Munson was too sexy for his own good.

You swallowed, and looked down at Ronnie’s progress report.

“I’m sorry to hear that.” You responded. 

“Nah, no biggie. I’m more upset for Ronnie’s sake than my own. She’s been a bitch since she married Carver.” He shrugged.

You snorted a chuckle at that, trying to hide it. You’d seen how snooty she was, too. You couldn’t imagine her ever being any other way.

“It’s true. She used to be a sweet little thing. Loved me and our boy. Carver’s…persuasive. I’m just glad we split up before Ronnie could remember much. He doesn’t remember her like that. I think it makes it hurt less — sorry, didn’t mean to like — spill on you. Anyways, how’s Ronnie doing in class?” 

You swallowed back your thoughts. So, you’d been right. Mrs. Carver didn’t care for her son much. 

“He needs a little extra pushing from me from time to time. He does like to aggravate Lucy and awful lot and cause disruptions, but he’s been getting better since the school year first started.” You started off, looking over his progress report. You highlighted a few grades and slid the paper over to Mr. Munson.

“These zeros are homework assignments he never turned in. It’s not particularly hurting his overall grade, but if you can get him to do them, I’ll give him seventy-five percent credit for them. I know single parenting is much harder than it looks on the outside, so I’m willing to work with you, and him, to make sure he’s able to move up next year.” You smiled at him kindly.

“We appreciate that.” Mr. Munson nodded, looking at the report, “These aren’t hard assignments either, huh? I guess they just got lost in the fray of things.” He laughed, before his eyes flicked to you, “Though, it’ll be a shame that I don’t get to see your smiling face every morning after he moves up.” 

Your cheeks flared pink at that, and you brushed some hair behind your ear. You couldn’t tell if he was flirting or not, but… God, you hoped he was. 

“Well, I’ll still be here next year… so there’s no shame in dropping by to see me.” You smiled at him, folding your hands on your desk.

“No? Wouldn’t be weird if I… came by and saw you without my kid?” He asked, grinning back.

“Definitely not.” You hummed.

Mr. Munson looked at the time, before standing. “Our time slot is up.” He mused, turning the chair back around the right way. 

You bit your lip, before standing. “My last one ends at eight.” You said quickly.

“Oh? Did you…want me to come back?” His brows lifted.

You nodded.

“Alright, I’ll see you in an hour.”

“Thank you, Mr. Harrington. Goodnight.” You shut your door after your final meeting and bellowed a sigh, closing your eyes for a moment as you leaned back against the door. It had been a long day, and for the most part people hadn’t been awful, but there had been a select few who had been awful.

There was a soft knock on your door, and you opened it back up.

“Oh, Mr. Munson —” You had forgotten, so wrapped up in everything, you had forgotten he was going to come back. Your cheeks flushed again and you stepped aside to let him into your classroom. 

He kicked the door shut behind him, his hands shoved into the pockets of his leather jacket. “Did you not expect me to come back?” He asked, grinning a bit.

“No—it’s not that.” You laughed, “I just. You know.” You shrugged. “I’m glad you’re back.” You rubbed your arm nervously. 

“Yeah?” He chuckled, stepping closer to you, “And why’s that?” 

You were almost nose to nose with him. You could feel his breath fanning over your skin. You swallowed, thickly.

“Mr. Munson—” 

“You can call me Eddie.” He cut you off.

“Eddie—” You started, “Is Ronnie taken care of for the night?” You had to make sure.

“Took him to his great uncle Wayne’s. He loves it over there. He’s set.” He gently lifted a hand and brushed some of your hair back.

You wet your lips, and his eyes flicked down to them. 

“Why don’t we go back to my place?” He suggested, his hand gently resting on your jaw. He rubbed his thumb over your bottom lip and you couldn’t ignore the warmth that flooded between your legs at that. 

You nodded, numbly, and turned to gather your things. He watched you from afar as you placed all of your paperwork into a binder and shoved it, and your laptop, haphazardly into your school bag.

“Wanna meet me there, or ride with me?” He asked, winking at you.

“Either is fine.” You cleared your throat.

“You like motorcycles?” He chuckled. You raised your brows before nodding.

Fuck, that was hot. He had a motorcycle? He should just breed you now.

You let that thought wash over you as you followed him out of the school, stopping only to put your bag into your car before swallowing thickly as Eddie handed you a helmet.

“Safety first.” He winked at you, pulling his long hair up into a bun at the base of his neck. You tried to not think to hard about him putting his hair up to eat you out, but it wasn’t easy to ignore. 

You slipped the helmet on and clipped it into place. He straddled the motorcycle. 

“Alright, throw your leg over like I did and hold on tight.” He grinned at you.

“What happened to ‘safety first’?” You asked, raising a brow at the fact that he didn’t have a helmet on.

“For you, sweetheart. Not for me. I like to live dangerously.” He laughed loudly.

You shook your head in amusement as you took his hand, throwing your leg over the back of the bike. Surprisingly, you didn’t fall on your face or stumble, and settled into the seat behind him.

You wrapped your arms around his waist and held on tight.

He was warm, body toned. You couldn’t wait to see what it looked like naked.

He turned on the bike and kicked up the kickstand, revving the engine a few times before he took off out of the parking lot.

You couldn’t help the laughter that bubbled up in you as he raced down the street. It had been a while since you’d done anything fun. Moving to Hawkins had been a bit of a poison to your social life — sure, you had the other teachers at Hawkins Elementary, but most of them were much older than you and had lived there their entire lives.

He pulled up to the only apartment complex in Hawkins; a newer building you had been told. They looked fairly nice from the outside, and you couldn’t wait to see the inside. 

Eddie pulled into a parking spot and kicked the stand back down, shutting the bike off. 

He helped you off of the bike and tilted his head towards the stairs in front of you. “Just up those.” He told you.

You followed him up to the second floor and he unlocked the door first door you came to, letting you in.

“Home sweet home. It’s not much, but it’s ours.” Eddie smiled, shrugging his jacket off. He hung it on a chair in the small dining area and stepped into the kitchen. 

“You like beer?” He asked.

“Yeah, a beer would be nice.” You nodded as you looked around.

The front area was a decent sized living room, connected to the small dining room that held a small round table with four chairs. The kitchen was connected to that. There was a short hallway right in front of you. You had to assume the bathroom and bedrooms were back that way.

“Here,” Eddie handed you the beer, popping his open before sitting on the couch. “Make yourself comfy.” He said, propping his boots on the edge of a beat up coffee table.

You followed his suit, sitting next to him on the couch. You crossed one leg over the other, popping your beer open.

You took a sip. It was cheap, but it would take the edge off of whatever nerves you were feeling.

The two of you sat in silence for a moment, just quietly sipping from your beers. It wasn’t awkward persae, it was just… different? You both knew what you were here for, so you weren’t sure why he was playing worlds best host.

You just wanted him to fuck you already.

You downed your beer in the next second, placing it on the coffee table.

“Woah, want another one?” Eddie asked.

“No,” You said, and feeling a spur of confidence, you uncrossed your legs and threw one over his lap, straddling his legs.

He smirked up at you, letting his legs fall from the coffee table. 

“Hi,” He said, learning around you to put his beer down.

“Hi,” You responded, smiling down at him.

His hands gently rested on your waist, pinkies on each side pushing up your shirt to feel your skin. 

You reached forward, and brushed his hair off of his shoulder. 

“Kissing, or no?” You asked, your voice a soft whisper.

“Why wouldn’t I want kissing?” He chuckled.

You shrugged. “Some guys think it’s too intimate.” 

His brow furrowed. “Sex is intimate.” He laughed.

You shared a smile with him before leaning in to kiss him. His lips were softer than you had expected, the stubble on his lip scratching your skin softly. You didn’t mind it, really. He was…so fucking hot.

He nipped your lip softly, and you parted them for him, allowing his tongue to invade your mouth. He tasted like beer, and cigarettes. You didn’t mind it as much as you thought. However, maybe it was because it was him. 

You brushed the thoughts from your mind, biting at his bottom lip, your teeth lightly clanking against the piercing there. 

Tattooed hands pushed up the sides of your shirt, fingers squeezing your sides, pinkies slipping beneath the waistband of your pants. You could feel them toying with the edge of your underwear, too. 

You broke the kiss for a breath, panting softly as his mouth made its way to your neck.

“No hickies.” You said quickly, “I don’t need the kids asking questions.”

Eddie chuckled against your skin. 

“Bedroom?” He asked, nipping softly at your pulsepoint.

You nodded; and up you went. He had lifted you like you were nothing and he carried you down the hallway. He dropped you on the bed and pulled his shirt off, displaying more tattooed skin. He climbed onto the bed, pressing a knee between your legs as his hand cupped the top of your head, his elbow resting near your shoulder as he kissed you, his entire body covering yours.

You moaned into his mouth as his knee rubbed against your mound. You reached between you to press your hand against his half-hard cock in his jeans. He responded with a soft groan.

You stayed like that for a long while, teasing each other, him with his knee and you with your hand, your lips never leaving one anothers. 

It had almost became a game. See who would last the longest before they asked to go further.

You were losing. Your hips were guiding themselves up against your will, rubbing your clothed pussy against his thigh. You weren’t getting much friction from this, but what you were getting was making you soaking wet.

You popped the button of his jeans open, and reached past his boxers as a concession. He had won.

You gasped at what you felt in his pants, breaking the kiss.

“What?” He asked, his voice deep and husky as he continued to rub his knee against you.

“You’re—”

“Yeah, I know.” He chuckled, leaning down to kiss at your neck again. 

He hooked his fingers in your shirt and you lifted up to let him pull it off, still a little in shock at what you felt.

His hands were then working at your pants, unzipping them and dragging them, and your panties off in one fell swoop.

His pants were next to go, and you were both naked, but—

Your eyes met his cock. It was large, the tip red and wet with precum… Your fingers gently brushed across the bottom of the shaft. Nestled there in a row were five bars. He had his cock pierced.

You swallowed thickly, wondering what it felt like for those piercings to be inside you. Especially with how big he was.

“Doesn’t hurt — at least no one’s complained.” He chuckled, “And it’s been fully healed for a few years, so nothing to worry about on my end.” 

“You did them all at the same time?” You asked, a little shocked.

“Yeah, hurt like hell. But looks fuckin’ hot, don’t it?” He grinned.

You nodded.

He grasped himself in his hand and slapped it against your pussy, making your insides clench tightly. With his other hand he spread your lips and started tapping again, this time against your clit. Your legs jolted softly with each tap, your lips parted in a soft moan.

“Damn, you’re so fuckin’ wet.” He sighed, rubbing his cock against you. “You on the pill?” 

“Yeah,” You nodded.

“Good.” 

Neither one of you needed for you to get pregnant right now. That was unsaid between you.

He tapped your pussy a few more times, before lining himself up and pushing in.

Your back arched, a low moan leaving you. Your eyes fluttered and your head tipped back.

“That’s it… that’a’girl…take it.” He sighed into the warm air between you. 

“Fuck, Mr. Munson..” You moaned.

He laughed softly. “You like callin’ me that? Alright, honey. We can pretend I’m a lot older than you. Bet you flick that pretty little clit of yours at home thinkin’ bout me and the other dads, hm?”

Your cheeks flushed, but you nodded. There was just something so fucking hot about fathers to you. You wanted to have someone like that in your life. Someone to raise kids with you. 

“Say it.” He grunted, as he pressed fully into you.

“Ah—! I touch myself thinking about you!” You gasped, your legs circling tightly around his waist.

That’s not how he wanted it, though. He grabbed you tightly by your thighs and wrenched your legs up until they were on his shoulders. He scooted closer to you so that your hips were angled up.

Now, now he was impossibly deeper.

You moaned helplessly, grasping at the sheets.

“You got a pretty little cunt here for me. Soaking wet and tight, mmm…” He sighed, pulling out and thrusting back in. 

He found a medium pace that you both seemed to like for now, his hand sliding up your thigh and squeezing. 

“You like being choked, baby?” He asked breathily, his free hand brushing up your chest.

You nodded, your lips parted. You couldn’t make words come out right now, you were fucking gone.

His fingers circled around your throat, fingers pressing into your pulse point. Your back arched higher, your head tipping back as you moaned out.

“Fuck, you’re a sweet little thing..” He groaned, speeding up his pace.

“Mr. Munson—!” You whined out, his cock pressing over and over into that spongey spot inside of you.

“Yeah, baby. Say it.” He chuckled.

There was something so inherently dirty about this, even though it was all legal. It was probably because you taught his son at school, really. You couldn’t think about it now, not with his cock pressing into your gspot, and his piercings rubbing up against your walls with every thrust.

“Mr. Munson!” You moaned out again, your hips lifting higher with every thrust. 

You could feel your orgasm growing, the heat in your belly getting hotter and hotter until the rubber band snapped, your cunt clamping down on his cock and spasming as you cried out helplessly. 

He released your throat, his thrusts never stopping. He groaned, and a few moments later he was pulling out and spilling his seed on your belly.

You were both panting heavily as he dropped onto the bed next to you. 

You laid there in silence for a long while, your insides burning from overuse. It had been a while since you’d been fucked, especially by such a thick cock.

Fuck if you didn’t feel good, though.

“Here,” Eddie said, leaning over to grab you a few tissues.

“Thanks.” You hummed, sitting up slightly to clean the cum off of your belly. You tossed them into the trashcan nearby as Eddie stepped across the hallway into what you now knew was the bathroom.

You waited for him to finish cleaning up before you went in yourself, relieving your bladder and cleaning up. 

When you came back into the room, Eddie had laid out a shirt for you on the bed.

“You can stay over. Wayne is supposed to take Ronnie to school, so he shouldn’t be here in the morning.” He said, smiling.

You nodded, pulling his shirt on before climbing into the bed.

Eddie flicked off the lights before climbing in after you, his arm wrapping around you waist. He pulled you close, your back flush against his chest.

You felt safe that night, and got the best rest you’d had since you moved to Hawkins.

The next morning you were awoken by the front door slamming loudly.

“Daddy!” 

Oh, shit.