#also realized that they say layers instead of rings of hell in this game so mb

[atlailx]

ultraposting

[actualsaii]

the bet

Pairing: Jungkook x Reader

Word count: 15k

Genre: smut, comedy, university AU

Summary:  You lost a bet and now it’s time to face the consequences. Aka when you lose and now you have to get a tattoo.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30140211

I'm reposting this one in case it's more comfortable for the readers to use tumblr instead of AO3 :) 

“I can’t believe they made me do it,” you murmured under your nose as you passed the street, knowing that your friends still sat in the car parked in the lot across the street with eyes pinned on your nervous figure. The closer you got to the two-story building, the stronger the crippling anxiety inside of you grew, causing your inners to shake under the heavy consequences of your Thursday night’s escapade that culminated into your worst nightmare.

Yes, everything started two nights ago in a shabby university bar that you grew so fond of during the past two years of your studies. It was always packed whether it was a school night or not, full of freshmen and also seniors, from time to time even postgraduate students that seemed to be only a myth to you as you’ve almost never met one outside the classes. However, neither of that mattered that night as you successfully finished your last exam and decided to hit the streets with your two best friends that carefully prepared the night to its tiniest details. Conspiracy was the first word that popped in your mind as the night continued to unfold her secrets, although it was quickly erased with the fifth shot of tequila after which you simply found yourself walking straight to the bar with one and only thing your friends managed to set your mind on.

The hot bartender, also a member of mythical postgraduate group, was your main target even though he was currently busy with lining the glasses of RedBull next to each other while smaller shot cups full of golden liquid, you somewhere in the back of your mind recalled was probably Jägermeister, balanced on the tips of the bigger glasses under. Each of his move was precise, yet you knew this wasn’t the first Jäger-train he had built. The man worked at this bar ever since you could remember - and you also recalled the moment he stepped into your first class of Forensic psychology, looking completely different than you saw him the previous night (which was your first time visiting the bar when you were a freshman) in the club. Just then one of your friends told you he was a postgraduate student who worked at the bar and also taught some classes because of his final research paper. And now he was here again, his longish black hair carefully slicked back, exposing the undercut that made him look like a bad boy. His eyes momentarily flickered up from his work and once they laid on you, smirk flashed through his features and he straightened his posture, done with what he was doing.

“Look who we have here on a school night. Isn’t it a little bit too late for you to be out, ___?” he tilted his head to the side, never allowing the smile to disappear from his handsome features. He was famous for many things, but the nickname he used really preceded his name - Worldwide Handsome.

“Kim Seokjin, nice and friendly as always. Not that it should concern you, but I’m successfully done with all of my exams; so tonight, I’m celebrating. And I’m also on mission,” you leaned closer to him, almost knocking the train made of multiple glasses of alcohol, however you couldn’t care less. There was only one thing on your mind - and you know your friends were watching you somewhere from the booth in the back of the bar. At least they tried because your mind wasn’t the only one clouded by alcohol and a stupid bet you nodded to extremely fast and without giving it a thought or two first.

“So, mission it is tonight. Anyway, congratulations to wrapping up the term. Now, is there something I can do for you? Because, as you can see, it’s Thursday night, and the place is already bursting. Also, my masterpiece is ready for the show,” he said, reaching for the empty shot cup, ready to put the train on move. Your eyes flickered from his to the said masterpiece and you chuckled. Of course, there was something he could do for you but you didn’t want to burst it out loud just like that, not when the place was crowded and you felt countless eyes pinned on you because you occupied the spot by the bar for longer than acceptable.

But then again, you were on the mission and that was more important than some impatient freshmen that expected to put their hands on one of the glasses of Jägerbomb Seokjin has just put on the move. He gently nudged the first shot sitting on the rim of the glass and watched with his eyes full of excitement how the following shot cups fell down like a domino. People around you cheered loudly and suddenly they started grabbing glasses one after another until there was just one left. In a moment you decided to snatch it for yourself, your fingers met with another long and slender ones, covered in black ink and shiny silver rings. Looking up, you realized the crowd of people was gone, scattered all over the place and dance floor while only a few people remained lingering around the bar area. And the man, who was about to steal the drink you set your eyes on, was now staring at you with a smirk that mirrored in his deep and dark eyes. Long strands of his wavy blonde hair fell into his face but he quickly pushed them back, yet he took an advantage of the moment of surprise and snatched the drink before you had enough time to say something.

“Too late, love,” he shrugged and quickly disappeared in the crowd of people, only his blonde hair shining like a beacon, eventually disappearing as well. You turned to Seokjin with lips formed in a shape of a small ‘o’, still processing what has just happened. The bartender smirked and started lining another train of glasses on the surface of the bar, this time with a different type of drink on his mind.

“What was that? Who was that guy?” you asked, momentarily confused but you quickly shook it off your shoulders like an invisible layer of dust. You had to succeed with your mission, some blonde guy stealing the drink you wanted for yourself was out of the question at the moment.

“That was Jeon Jungkook, no one you should care about. Now, what can I offer you, ___? Or are you going to just levitate around until you are brave enough to spill the tea? Because one of your friends is peeking from the booth like a chicken hidden in the bush. What is it that you want?” with those words, he leaned closer over the bar surface and you felt his hot breath hitting your face. And even though your senses were already covered by the heavy sheet made out of tequila and god knew what else, you still felt cigarettes and scotch in his breath, the favorite combination of his when he was working.

You chewed on your lower lip while the wheels in the back of your mind spun like crazy, contemplating whether to come out with your plan or just kept playing your little game of a spy on the mission - even though Kim Seokjin could see straight through you as if you were a thin piece of a transparent paper. So, with a heavy sigh, you smashed your palms against the bar in a dramatic gesture, looking him straight into his eyes. If someone was looking at you, and you were sure there was at least one person watching you besides your friends, they must have thought you were some kind of Seokjin’s crazy fangirl. Which wouldn’t be surprising since the man was quite famous at the university.

“I need Jimin’s number.”

“Oh my god.”

“I’m serious, Seokjin. I need Jimin’s number otherwise I’m in a very big trouble. You have to save my ass,” you basically begged him, now almost laying on the bar as you leaned closer to him. The black-haired bartender only shook his head no and gave you a look somewhere between ‘I like you, you are my friend, but I can’t help you’ and ‘someone please just kill me already before I strangle this girl first’.

“I’m sorry but if you want Jimin number, you have to ask yourself. And since I know the number is not for you, you should tell your friend to man the hell up and ask him herself. He doesn’t bite, you know. Well, at least I think he doesn’t,” he shook his head again and handed you a shot of tequila he managed to pour you while he was talking. Small pout formed on your lips and you tried really hard to pull out the most innocent look on your face, but such a witchcraft had none effect on Kim Seokjin.

“You don’t understand - I promised my friend I would get the number for her. We placed a bet and if I lose… Seokjin, I can’t lose! Of my fucking god, I can’t lose this one. That would be the end of me.”

Something in his face shifted and now he looked genuinely interested in your little mission. A tiny spark of hope lit up in your chest when his eyes softened and he turned to you again.

“What’s the bet about?”

You felt the heat creeping into your cheeks each second of standing by the bar, your eyes now pinned on your hands still placed on its surface. The shot laid untouched in front of you even though you felt your mouth watering just by watching it. And although the level of alcohol in your bloodstream was already dangerously high, you reached out for it and downed the shot in one gulp. Just in case you needed some more courage.

“If I don’t get Jimin’s number tonight, I will have to get a tattoo by the end of the week. So, please, you have to save my ass, Seokjin. I mean, it’s not like I don’t want that tattoo, I’ve wanted it for some time already, but I’m still not sure and—“

“You got to be kidding me, ___. This is the most stupid thing I’ve ever heard,” the almost caring look in his face was quickly replaced by his notorious smug smirk and you knew you were fucked for the night. There was no way he was about to give you Jimin’s number, and walking around the bar, asking random strangers for Park Jimin’s number was out of question.

“I will never forget your betrayal, Kim Seokjin. I will never forget how you turned your back on me. And if you come to me asking for help, I will repay you the same,” your index finger touched his chest and while you were sure you looked dangerous and almost and vengeful, Seokjin just chuckled and sent you one of his precious flying kisses.

“Duly noted, sweetheart. Don’t forget to send me a photo of your new tattoo. I will be waiting.”

And just like that, with his words still echoing through your mind, you showed him your tongue and waltzed back to the table where your friends were sitting.

Of course, without Park Jimin’s number.

And the threat of getting a tattoo dangerously hanging above your head.

“I can’t believe they made me do it.”

It was Saturday morning and the betrayal of Kim Seokjin and the following cheering sounds of your friends still rang through your mind like an annoying sound of the alarm clock set on the phone. You weren’t about to get away with new pledges and promises of getting Park Jimin’s number because your friends simply weren’t about to let you. No, a deal was a deal and now that you lost the bet, you had to get that tattoo from the artist in a parlor downtown. It was a new one and judging by what Sunmi told you a few days ago, they only opened the salon three months ago. However, the number of followers on social network sites grew higher and higher each day so you and your friends agreed it was a good place to get your first tattoo.

Although you weren’t so sure now that you were crossing the street with a paper cup of coffee in your hands. It was an olive branch from your friends when they picked you up at the dorms early in the morning, proposing the breakfast at your favorite café near the university’s main campus. At least something to ease your mind before taking such a huge step forward.

You took a deep breath and looked over your shoulder one last time, checking if those two creatures that came straight from the hell still sat in the car parked in the lot. And of course, they were still there, sending you thumbs up as if to give you a courage to step inside and get that goddamn tattoo. Thinking about that, it was all your fault because you were talking about getting one for a while, so it was only natural your friends took advantage of your big mouth and used it as a weapon against you. Although, you had to admit the smoothness they turned the bet into.

“Why am I even friends with you?” you muttered under your nose and took a sip of the coffee before you reached for the doorknob and pressed it, opening the door with a sound of ring bell accompanying your gesture. You peeked inside - and your inners immediately turned upside down with the scene that unfolded in front of your eyes. Not to mention you almost dropped the paper cup with coffee.

The studio itself looked neat and clean, shiny almost as each piece of furniture and accessory seemed brand new. Right opposite the front door sat a massive black desk with an office chair and a laptop placed on the top. But besides the PC, there was a small plant and an opened sketchbook with a picture you couldn’t see properly because you stood too far away. Not that you wanted to peek inside, not really. The wall behind the table was pitch black with a few modern art pieces and shelves full of books standing there. The remaining three walls were covered in various pieces of paper showing different tattoo motives that were apparently free for customers to choose. But that wasn’t what knocked the air out of your lungs and almost made you change your decision with backing the hell out of the studio, no. What made you almost squeal were two men half hidden behind the paravan that covered the tattooing area from the common area with two black leather sofas and a small coffee table. Even though you couldn’t see their faces properly, you exactly knew who they were. And the fact that one of them was indirectly responsible for you getting in this quite unfortunate situation made your blood boil.

“Park Jimin?”

Both of them immediately snapped in your direction while the said man rolled down his shirt and patted the blonde’s shoulder with a grateful smile curling the corners of his lips up. The blonde one only nodded but once his eyes met yours, there was something wicked mirroring behind his irises - and you were quickly reminded of the Thursday’s night and the talk you had with Seokjin after he successfully made the Jäger-train work. The blonde man was the one who stole your drink. The one who ever so shamelessly snatched it right out of your hands and walked away as if nothing had happened. You clearly remembered the wave of drunken rage that almost swept you off your feet the night it happened - the drink was supposed to be yours, not his. Either way, that fact only added to the moment of surprise you went through the second you realized the tattoo artist was no one else but the blonde thief with arms covered in ink.

“Oh, hi? You are the one from Seokjin’s Forensic Psychology class, right? ___? What are you doing here?” Jimin asked and at that moment, you felt like the dumbest dumbass walking the planet earth. What were you doing here? Oh, yes. The lost bet and the punishment you had to accept according to the terms of the deal. However, that wasn’t something you could come clean about since it would make you look like an… idiot. Complete idiot. So, instead of giving him an answer, your eyes flickered to the direction of the blonde tattoo artists who was now in the process of getting rid of the black latex gloves, throwing them into a trash bin. And as if he felt the weight of your eyes heaving him down, he looked at you with a slight hint of smirk tugging on the corners of his lips. He too seemed to be interested in your answer.

“Yep, that’s me. And to answer your question - I’m here to get a tattoo. I guess that’s what tattoo salons are for?” you tilted your head to the side and gave both males your best smile without being nervous about it.

“Do you have an appointment?” the blonde asked and approached the table where the sketchbook and other notebooks laid. As soon as his question sunk in the air filling the room, you cleared your throat and realized that, perhaps, you should have called beforehand, although this whole situation came into an existence during your Thursday night’s pre-game when you were already intoxicated and so determined to get Jimin’s number no matter what consequences might come out in case you simply failed.

Exactly like you did.

And it brought you here.

Silence fell over the room and for a split second, your brain came up with an idea of asking Jimin for his number and immediately backing away from the previous plan, but then, on the other hand, you weren’t about to chicken out of your punishment. You were too proud to do so.

“No, I don’t think so,” you smiled again, wishing for the mother earth to swallow you and spit you out on the other side of the world since the weight of the look in their eyes grew heavier and heavier each second that passed. They must have thought you were an idiot waltzing into a tattoo salon without an appointment on Saturday morning. Because who would have done that? No one but a psychology student who lost the bet and was now facing its consequences.

“Well, then I guess I will just leave you two alone. Lucky you, Jungkook was supposed to have a day off since it’s Saturday, but as I know him, he wouldn’t say no to a nice young lady, would he?” Jimin smirked and before Jungkook had the opportunity to throw the notebook in his direction, the brown-haired guy grabbed his jacket and disappeared from the salon at the speed of light.

And that made you feel bit anxious because right at the moment, it was just you and the tattoo artist Jungkook who managed to steal your drink, which, for some reason, couldn’t let you cold. The small and tiny voice in the back of your mind told you he must have been a member of the mythical postgraduate students’ group as well, but you weren’t stupid to voice your question out loud. You were just frozen in one place with lips forming a shape of a small ‘o’, unable to put together a rather coherent sentence to explain how you got into such a situation. Not that he should know each detail, but then again, he was the artist and according to Jimin’s words, he was supposed to have a day off until you came, and, well, obviously changed his plans.

Again, according to Jimin’s words.

“If you have a day off, I can come another time. Or I can book an appointment and—“

“It’s ____, right? I’m Jeon Jungkook, nice to meet you. Anyway, it’s fine. Jimin wasn’t on my list either when he came banging on the door early in the morning. One more tattoo wouldn’t kill me, really. I don’t have much to do, anyway,” his voice dropped a few tones lower and it genuinely surprised you how quickly he agreed on something that wasn’t on his schedule, therefore wasn’t supposed to happen. Honestly, you expected him to throw you out of the salon with the same sassy smirk and comment he addressed you with the night you met him at the bar. But nothing like that happened and you suddenly felt the inner storm gaining the momentum, throwing you off balance easily. And maybe, that was the reason you kept standing in one spot with lips still half-parted, staring at the young man standing in front of you with a smile plastered over his features. The smile first seemed to be innocent, reaching his eyes but mirroring something not so innocent any longer as the question slipped his lips. “Did you have fun with your friends?”

Wheezing noise came out of you and he raised his brows in unspoken question.

“I’d rather not talk about that night, really,” you rolled your eyes and bit on your inner cheek as the memory of the night came to you as a wrecking ball.

“Had too much to drink? You should be glad I managed to put my hands on the drink before you did then,” his innocent smile quickly turned into a smug one, reminding you of the way Seokjin basically laughed in your face when he found out about the bet. And since the bartender seemed to be familiar with the blonde tattoo artists, there was this one certain question that popped on your mind like a red light. Was it possible Seokjin told Jungkook about the bet? Did he out you?

No, Seokjin wouldn’t do that. He might have not helped you with getting Jimin’s number, but he certainly wouldn’t do something like blabbering about the bet to his friends who had nothing to do with that. Until now.

“About that - it was my drink, I had my eyes on that first,” you murmured but couldn’t help when the smile tugged on the corner of your lips. Fighting about something so trivial like a drink wasn’t really your thing, yet, for some reason you felt like this business needed to be taken care of.

“Then you should have been faster, love. Now, tell me about that tattoo of yours you want to get. Do you have something on your mind or am I free to come up with a design?” he asked, quickly shifting into his artist mode. He wasn’t really curious about the reason you ended up in his studio, nor he blamed you for barging in like Jimin did in the morning. He simply wanted to start to work, that was all. And you had to admit, it once again stole the wind from under your wings and left you standing there frozen in one place with lips parted but no words leaving them. A wave of admiration towards the young man that dedicated his free time to grace the skin of other people woke up inside of you and brought the butterflies in your stomach to life.

As the question settled in, your mind was suddenly blank like a fresh canvas, not a simple idea crossing it. Your loss of words made him chuckle before he turned to his table and reached for yet another sketchbook laying there. The sound of pages flipping filled the room, accompanied by Jungkook’s soft humming until he found what he was looking for.

“What do you think about this? It’s a free design I made a few days ago but I was too busy to put in on the wall. It looks like something that might suit you. Of course, it’s just my opinion,” with those words he handed you the sketchbook opened on a page with the design he had on mind for you. And you had to admit, it was beautiful. A simple line of flowers tangled together, nothing too exaggerating, quite the right opposite. However, you couldn’t quite grasp the concept of place where he wanted to put it.

“It looks really beautiful, and now I will probably sound too stupid, but where do you want to put it?” you asked, genuinely interested in his answer. Of course, he must have had an idea of where to place it once he was working on it. Your question brought a smile to his face as he came closer and gently grabbed the sketchbook from your hands. He put it back on the table while his right hand remained cuffing your left wrist.

“Here, around your wrist like a bracelet while the rest of the tattoo will continue to the back of your hand. Exactly here,” his fingers traced a delicate way from your wrist to the back of your hand, leaving a burning trace behind. Breath almost hitched in your throat when you realized how close he got to you without you realizing it, however, you quickly collected yourself and fixed your posture, looking into his dark eyes. “It’s your first tattoo and I believe I don’t have to tell you how important it is for you to choose the right place. Consider this a friendly opinion of mine. It would really suit you, ___.”

Just as he finished his little speech, his touch left your hand, yet the burning sensation remained lingering over the surface of your skin.

“That sounds like a really lovely idea,” you murmured as you brought your hand closer to your face, examining the place he traced with his fingers just seconds ago. As much as you weren’t excited about the idea of getting a tattoo this fast, although you’ve always wanted one, you started changing your mind in a snap of fingers. And whether it was the picture you really liked or Jungkook’s aura that was only hard to resist, you didn’t know. What you were sure about was the one and only thing - you weren’t about to back away from this decision. Not anymore.

You were surprised by yourself and the sudden discovery you missed the way Jungkook chuckled and shook his head over your strange behavior.

“Are you sure about that? Because I don’t really want you to chase me down the university halls in case you don’t like it anymore, you know? Tattoo is mostly a permanent thing and let me tell you, it’s really painful if you want to get rid of that. Not to mention it’s almost twice as expensive. Think about it, love,” it almost sounded like he tried to change your mind, and honestly, you felt like a child getting a lecture. Which you didn’t like at all.

“Of course, I’m sure. I wouldn’t be here in the first place if I wasn’t. I’ve wanted a tattoo for a very long time, I just didn’t give it a proper thought - as of what to get and where to place it. I was hoping that since you are a pro—you could help me out with that. Which you did, so…” you shrugged, giving him a look full of confidence. At least, you hoped you did. And as to seal your words, you took a step closer to him with a smile gracing your features. “So, can we do it today?”

Smirk flashed through his features and mirrored in his eyes.

“Of course, love.”

Jungkook put everything into motion rather smoothly and you had to admire the way he basically danced around the salon while he prepared everything he was about to need for your tattoo. From time to time, your eyes flickered to the already prepared design laying on the small table near the tattooing chair you were aiming for. Excitement rushed through your bloodstream just when you imagined the art on your hand. Funny, how everything changed in a snap of fingers and your annoyed mood was quickly replaced by the excitement in the form of butterflies fluttering in your tummy.

“Do you mind if I play some music?” he asked with his back turned to you as he did some last preparations for your tattoo.

“Not at all. It’s your place, play whatever you want,” you shook your head and shrugged down the leather jacket you were wearing. The room was hot and you shouldn’t be wearing it anyway, so you took it off and climbed into the chair, waiting rather impatiently for the blonde artist to be done with his little preparations. The soft tunes of hip-hop music filled the air and you had to smile. For some reason, even though you didn’t know him at all, the music suited Jungkook very much. It went along the aura his persona gave off, almost hand in hand.

“What is that? I’ve never heard this song,” you asked curiously as you made yourself comfortable in the chair, leaning against the leather surface with the butterflies still playing the game of catch in your stomach. Have you really been that excited about getting that goddamn tattoo? Or was Jeon Jungkook responsible for the weird excitement you haven’t seen coming once you stepped out of your friend’s car? Such questions popped in your mind and you had to sigh in defeat as you didn’t have a single answer.

The way your question captured his attention and the way he turned to you with eyes sliding up and down your body in the tattooing chair certainly didn’t help to calm the storm inside of you.

“Do you know Jung Hoseok? He is one of the postgraduates, but other than studying, he likes to work on music. This is one of the songs he released within his mixtape a few weeks ago. It’s only on SoundCloud, so I don’t blame you for now knowing it, but you should give it a try. He is really good,” Jungkook smiled as he was apparently praising one of his good friends, reaching for the box of latex gloves to put a clean pair on. The gesture itself told you he was ready to start working on your design.

“Not only you are a mythical group everyone is talking about, but it seems like all of you have that hidden side no one knows about - well, besides Seokjin. Everyone knows he is the most handsome bartender. I guess he is the reason why the bar is still so packed. But hey, I will give that mixtape a shot. It sounds catchy,” you wondered out loud without giving your words a thought or two. Yet, it has already escaped your mouth and you couldn’t do anything about it. And when Jungkook chuckled, you only hoped he didn’t think you were a complete weirdo.

“Is that so? I’ve never heard anyone calling us a mythical group but I can see the point. It’s just we are always busy with the university and when there’s a slight chance to do whatever else than the research for doctoral thesis, we simply do what we love to do - and it differs from person to person. For me, it’s the salon and the art of tattoo. Although it mostly belongs to my older brother, every time I’m free from uni, I spend my time here,” he was open with you and it almost made your heart melt because even though he didn’t know you properly, he talked to you about the daily basis of his life as if you two were old friends. Plus, his words convinced you he didn’t think of you as a weirdo, which was definitely a very good sign. “I’m sure there’s something you love to do too.”

That made you wonder. There were many things you enjoyed doing, but suddenly, none of them came to your mind as Jungkook kept staring at you, probably waiting for the answer. Your brain worked faster than on the university entrance exam, yet the more pressure you put on that poor thing, the more alert it seemed to be.

“Honestly, I’m glad when I have a weekend off. This is my second year on the university and keeping my shit together is getting harder and harder. But well, there was this period of time when I enjoyed doing Yoga almost every day. Currently it’s just reading books and listening to music. Now you are going to think I’m one of those boring people who like to stay inside instead of partying with a large group of friends,” you decided to be honest with him because there was nothing left to lose. Also, why not being honest with someone who decided to sacrifice his own free time in spite of giving you tattoo?

“Why would I think you are boring? I love being by myself with a good book or a good movie on Netflix. However, I also like to go out with my friends from time to time. And I bet you do, too,” the teasing smirk was back on his lips, although it didn’t last long as he reached for your hand with excited sparkles dancing in his eyes. “Are you ready?”

You only nodded, watching him like a hawk when he reached for the disinfection and turned back to you with a smile tugging on the corner of his lips. And just like before, Jungkook easily slipped into his tattoo artist mode, moving around with grace and something more that made your eyes stay pinned on him rather shamelessly. He must have felt your eyes scanning him up and down when he did the magic to your hand - aka applying the disinfection and then wiping your skin gently once he was done. After that, he put some kind of gel on your skin and when you asked what he was doing, he only chuckled.

“I need to print the design on your skin. It helps with the process,” he said, not giving you a single glance as he was so drawn in each step of his job. Next time you looked down on your hand, he was pressing the paper against your skin, peeling it off after he was sure the design was completely imprinted. The picture came out blue and blurry in some places, but you knew that wasn’t an issue for someone like Jungkook. “Is it okay like that? Do you want me to move it a little?” he asked, pushing back on the chair he was sitting in for you to have space to inspect the future design of your tattoo. You brought your hand closer to your face, inspecting each detail of the pattern, internally already excited about how it was going to look once it was done and completed.

Honestly, it looked nice and somehow, you felt it suited you well. Exactly like he told you when he first showed you the design. Simple and delicate, yet somehow daring. Nonetheless, you must have been checking it for way too long as Jungkook cleared his throat and you were quickly snapped back to the reality.

“Oh, yeah, sorry about that. I think the place is amazing, you don’t need to move it. I can already imagine it,” you smiled without the realization Jungkook was closer to you once again, his hot breath brushing against the skin of your exposed shoulder. You weren’t going to lie here, the shivers danced down your spine crazily and your head spun a little when the scent of his musky cologne attacked your senses. How come you didn’t catch it sooner? Never mind, this wasn’t the right time nor place to be weak for the blonde artist.

Although he was hot.

Very hot.

“Okay then, let’s get this beauty done,” he smirked and you couldn’t do otherwise but mirror the excitement that was entangled within his voice. You outreached your hand for him, mentally preparing for the pain to come. Bonus points for Jungkook who let you breathe out for a while before he grabbed the tattoo machine and leaned closer to you to the point you felt his breath and cologne again. Damn, that kind of thoughts must have clouded your mind completely because you hissed when the needle first touched your skin. Thankfully, you didn’t flinch nor you moved an inch in your seat. Soon, you grew kind of used to the new sensation glazing through your skin.

“You okay?” he looked up to your eyes after a minute or two, you didn’t count. You only nodded, chewing on your inner cheeks because you couldn’t describe the weird sensation. On the scale of ‘it hurts’ to ‘it’s kind of annoying’, your feelings balanced perfectly in the middle.

“Yeah. Just can’t decide if it hurts or not. I mean, it doesn’t hurt as much as I thought it was going to hurt. Am I weird?” you voiced out your thoughts with a chuckle accompanying them, hoping Jungkook would understand the message you tried to send.

“You are not weird. I’ve met countless people who couldn’t quite decipher what they felt, and to be honest with you, I’m surprised you are not squealing in pain considering the place you chose for your first tattoo is quite painful. No offense, of course. Anyway, yeah. Long time ago, me and my brother agreed this type of pain was… somehow exciting. You are expecting something great and you are willing to go such a length to get it, whilst the pain. I, personally, like that pain.”

“I can see that. Considering your arms are basically drowning in the ink. I like it,” the bold confession slipped your lips without you even realizing so. Jungkook stopped working for a split second and looked at you, eyes hazy and suddenly full of something that hasn’t been there before. And as much as you yelled at yourself internally to avoid his gaze, the other half of yourself did quite the right opposite. You started back with the growing smirk curling your lips in a teasing matter. Something inside of you enjoyed the little game that was slowly but surely getting out of control with each second that passed. If he could call you love, you could play with him in return as well.

All while keeping his eyes on yours, he started talking, the process of tattoo momentarily completely forgotten.

“Most of it is mine work, some of it my brother’s. Got my first one when I was sixteen and parents almost killed me. My brother went with me, he played the role of my legal guardian since I was still a minor. And that’s basically how this addiction started. First tattoo, drawing my own designs, getting the machine and experimenting on my own skin. I fucked up some and my brother had to cover it with another design. And I still want more,” he said, giving a special emphasis on the last word as his eyes flickered in your direction for the last time before he started working on the tattoo again. The stinging sensation grew heavier, yet you prevented yourself from yelping or flinching in your place.

Because the sensation of his burning stare caused you feel more than the process of inking your skin itself.

“That really is a sheer talent,” you murmured under your nose, still bothered with the thoughts that kept whirling in your mind like a vortex that swept everything along the way. You thought about his words again and again until a question rolled down your tongue. “Do you think I might end up wanting more too?”

He looked up to you with the long strands of blonde hair falling into his eyes. The urge to push it behind his ear was too strong and you had to resist hard not to reach out to do it. Damn, there was something about him that kept bugging you like crazy.

“I don’t know, love. You can get rid of the tattoo in a year or less. Or you can come barge in like Jimin did because you will want another one. One can never know,” he said as he reached for the paper wipes to clean the first part of the tattoo that crawled around your wrist. His touch was gentle and caring, almost as sweet as the smile that appeared on his lips when he said: “I’m going to finish the outlining and then we can take a break if you want. But I should warn you that after the break, it might hurt a little. Your skin will be triggered, so if you feel dizzy or something, let me know.”

“Now you sound like I might pass out.”

“You wouldn’t be the first one,” again, the sound of his laugh filled the room and you rolled your eyes. “But so far, you are holding really bravely. You are definitely not going to pass out.”

The next twenty minutes passed in silence between the two of you, only the soft tunes of R&B music filled the room. However, that wasn’t something that disturbed you, quite the right opposite. You managed to relax yourself, body almost melting against the chair as you let Jungkook finish outlining the tattoo. However, despite your relaxed state, you couldn’t stop thinking about the way he touched you even though it was just a part of his job. Of course he had to touch you, of course he had to be careful with what he was doing.

But there was something more to it. Something more about Jeon Jungkook and the way he talked to you when he explained the story behind his tattoos. The way his eyes from time to time flickered to you and refused to leave just to hold a tiny piece of eye-contact. Not that you wanted to flatter yourself, but you did. This wasn’t only in your head - he was staring because he probably felt the same connection or how you should call it.

No, it was not connection.

Perhaps something else.

Something you would dare to call desire.

But then again, you didn’t want to flatter yourself.

But you did.

The realisation you were all hot and disturbed because of the blonde tattoo artist covered in ink felt fresh and exciting, however, you were quickly pulled out of the pool of your thoughts when he pushed back and put down the machine, getting rid of the gloves. He threw them into a trash bin and when he looked at you, there was this bunny smile gracing his features.

“Time for a little break. Do you want coffee or something? I bet the one you brought with you must be already cold,” he shook his head and got up from the seat, eyes still pinned on you. For some reason, a thought of him being able to read your thoughts momentarily flashed through your mind - and you felt stupid for even thinking about it. Of course, it was only able in those fantasy books you loved reading.

Yet, his eyes mirrored something deeper.

“Coffee, please. With milk and sugar if I can ask.”

“Of course. Everything for you, love.”

Jungkook wasn’t lying when he said it might hurt after the break. The skin on your hand was triggered and burning, however, you were too proud to admit it was getting too painful and too unbearable. Instead, you kept biting on your inner cheek while your eyes remained on his focused face and his skillful fingers that were almost done with the tattoo. What was first a design in Jungkook’s little sketchbook was now a beautiful art gracing the skin of your hand in a very delicate way. Just when the art was done and Jungkook cleaned your skin, he put on a transparent tape over it and gave you yet another bunny smile.

“And, we are done,” he pushed away from you and got rid of the latex gloves, cleaning the mess around while you hopped down from the chair and checked yourself in the mirror on the wall (although you didn’t really have to since the tattoo was perfectly visible just by looking at it). As you were scanning your posture in the reflection, you also felt something else. A pair of eyes running up and down your body rather shamelessly, and you had to admit - you enjoyed the attention he was giving you.

“You are strangely silent and I’m not sure if I like it or not,” Jungkook surprised you with his words, causing you to finally turn to him with a smile tugging on the corners of your lips. He was already done with cleaning the space, now sitting in the tattooing chair with arms folded over his chest. Something about him was so mesmerizing you found yourself unable to look away and take a deep breath. He seemed the same, though, giving you a rather intimidating look full of undisclosed attention and something more.

“I was just checking the masterpiece you created, that’s all. It looks amazing,” your voice came out strong and steady, surprising even yourself when you finished the sentence with a smile plastered over your features. Ever since you crossed the threshold of Jungkook’s salon, you managed to boost your confidence a little over the small talk and the cup of coffee you two had together during the short break.

“Now you are exaggerating, love. Anyway, I’m glad you like it. The first one is always very special. At least in my case,” the smirk was soon replaced by the bunny smile you found too cute on a guy like Jungkook. His appearance and look probably confused many people - including you. When you saw him for the first time, you thought he was a bad boy, a player, someone who would toy with you around only to tell you off the next day. But the more you were talking to him through the session, the more convinced you grew he was actually a nice guy with passion for art and tattoos. He was a nice example of that ‘to not judge the book by its cover’ saying. Those thoughts seemed to occupy your mind for longer than you thought as Jungkook slid down the chair and came closer to you, examining the tattoo he has just given you. “And it looks very good on you. Hot and tempting, but also sweet and delicate. It’s complimenting you well, love,” this time, he put a special emphasis on the last word, catching you completely off guard. However, you quickly collected yourself as your eyes found his, already staring. Once again, he came too close to you, completely destroying the last pieces of your personal space, but for some reason, you didn’t give a damn. If he was about to play, you weren’t the one to chicken out of this. No, not really. Therefore, came the answer with a smile flashing through your features and the smirk your eyes managed to pull out.

“Thank you, I like that place too. And who knows, I might come for more once I think about it deeper,” you smiled and internally fought the urge to touch him somehow. Anyhow. The aura around him was so welcoming you almost heard it whispering those teasing words into your ear, luring you to come closer despite the fact his work was over for now. You didn’t want to be done with him, not yet. You wanted more.

And moreover, you wanted him to call you like that again.

Gosh, being attracted to someone has never been more annoying than at this very moment when you wanted nothing more but to lean closer and—

“I’d be very happy, to be honest,” he took a step back, however, the smirk remained lingering over his facial features, giving you that tiny spark of hope that the game wasn’t finished just yet. But then again, he took a step back and it was a sign for you to do the same.

“Surely I will let you know in advance next time. Now, how much do I owe you?”

“How much what?”

“How much for the tattoo, Jungkook,” you couldn’t help but put a special emphasis on his name that rolled down your tongue easier than you first expected. He seemed to be caught off guard momentarily before a soft sound of him chuckling filled the room.

“Nothing,” he shrugged as if it indeed was nothing, as if he just didn’t grace your skin with his art.

His answer made you look at him in pure shock, blinking once and twice before his answer settled and you finally understood the simple word that left his lips. Just when you were about to scold him a little, he caught you unprepared with yet another shocking answer. “I stole a drink from you, so think about this as a payback. Also, you seem to be friends with Seokjin - and Seokjin’s friends are my friends.”

It was quick and bold answer, leaving you standing there as if someone spilled a bucket of cold-ass water over your head. Your lips formed a shape of a small ‘o’ and you very probably looked like a complete idiot.

“No, I can’t let you do that. I came here on your day off; you can’t give me a tattoo for free.”

“My studio, my rules, love. However, you are right about this one,” he wondered out loud, giving you a look that you couldn’t decipher, quite the right opposite. The look and his answer made your heart beat faster, almost as if it wanted to jump straight out of your ribcage. However, you kept it cool, just casually waiting for him to tell you more.

But he didn’t.

“So?”

“So… let’s just say you owe me this one, love. Let’s settle this as a debt I can collect anytime I want. What do you think about that?” he tilted his head to the side and gave you a look that was supposed to look innocent, yet there was nothing innocent about the mischief burning in his eyes. And despite the fact you didn’t know what did he mean by the ‘debt he could collect anytime he wanted’, the idea somehow excited you, causing the butterflies to play the game of catch in your tummy again.

“I think that’s something I can agree on.”

“Then give me your number, love,” he fetched his phone and unlocked it, handing it to you right after. You took a deep breath, typing the number and giving it back almost immediately. You didn’t dare to save the number, honestly curious about what name he was about to use for you. But as much as you tried to peek, Jungkook turned away from you, typed something down and then gave your phone a quick call so you had his number as well. Just then he put the phone back into the pocket of his jeans. Pout momentarily flashed through your features, but once he turned back to you, it was quickly replaced by a smile. At least you had his number now.

“Alright so… I’m gonna go now. Thank you for… you know, staying and working despite you were supposed to have a day off.”

“No need to thank me, pretty one. Let me tell you, it was a very well spent time. I will see you around? Perhaps on Seokjin’s anniversary party at the bar next week? Or… perhaps sooner, who knows,” the same mysterious look appeared in his face once again as he gave you a look. You tried not to pay attention to the way he ghosted after you while you collected your stuff and slid into the leather jacket. “And don’t forget to take care about the tattoo. Leave the tape on for approximately twenty-four hours and then gently wash it. And use a special lotion, here, I almost forgot,” it was impressive how quickly he snapped into his artist mode, reaching for one of the tubes standing on the shelf nearby. “Here, use this. Twice or thrice a day. If anything, call me.”

“Thank you, Jungkook. I will see you.”

“I already can’t wait, ____.”

Perhaps Jungkook was right when he said he would see you at the bar next week. And maybe, just maybe, you expected that stupid call or debt-collecting way sooner. Because once you came home from the tattoo session at his salon, you did nothing else but stared at your phone, almost cursing yourself for being that worked up over a boy you’ve only spent a few hours with. Yet, he left you excited and expecting, although nothing came. The week was long and boring, you mostly spent it with your friends or cuddled under the blanket with Netflix and bottle of red wine. From time to time, you thought about giving him a call first, but you always declined the idea as soon as it rubbed against your mind. You didn’t want to seem desperate; you didn’t want to look like another freshmen thirsting over the postgrad student, way out of your league.

But then again.

The way he talked to you never left your memory, quite the right opposite. Your brain decided to rub it in your face until the night of Seokjin’s anniversary party came and your friends came barging into your dorm room with paper bags full of alcohol they claimed to be a ‘pre-game you needed’. Drinks were followed by loud laughter and fight over who was about to use the bathroom first - because it had the biggest mirror and the best lightning needed for a precise make-up process.

Hours later, you finally made it to the bar, wearing short black dress your friends chose for you despite your loud protest. At first, it felt a bit uncomfortable because you were used to visit the place wearing jeans or shorts with comfortable tops, but once you realized you weren’t that underdressed, it calmed your mind a little since there were girls wearing considerably less amount of clothes.

“I’m thinking about tequila, what about you?” one of your friends asked, actually not waiting for you answer as she made a straight bee line towards the bar. Not caring about people waiting, she fought her way towards the bar and ordered you a round of the drink you swore you would never drink again. Yet, some promises were made to be broken - all over again, in your case.

After you received your shot of tequila, you cheered with your friends but not for long. It literally took them ten minutes to disappear, dancing in random corners of the bar with random dudes while you tried your best to find a calmer place - which was a corridor that led to the restrooms and deeper, where the visitors of the establishment weren’t allowed.

Not that you weren’t about to have fun, not at all. You just wanted to check your phone in case… well, you were probably very much head over heels for Jeon Jungkook who didn’t give you a call or spared you a text since last Saturday, but who were you to blame him?

“Looking for someone?”

You almost jumped in your place, placing the phone back into your purse as you turned around and face Seokjin, the handsome bartender to whom this crazy party has been dedicated. Instead of his usual place behind the bar, he seemed to have a night off, enjoying the party at its fullest.

“No, not really. My friends dumped me and I wanted to check my phone, that’s all,” you shrugged with a smile on your face, crossing your arms over your chest right after. “What about you? Aren’t you having fun tonight? It’s your third anniversary as the most handsome bartender - as I heard. What are you doing here?”

Yes, what was he doing there? In the hallway that led towards the door to the supply room when he wasn’t even working? Perhaps he was seeking some lone time as well, you didn’t know.

“Oh, we are at the VIP box with the guys but we ran out of some bottles so I was just going to get them. It’s easier than fetching it from the bar. Do you mind giving me a helping hand?” he asked with a genuine smile plastered over his features. You quickly nodded, following him to the supply room. You’ve never been there before which made you feel like going on an adventure. Seokjin quickly grabbed a few bottles of whisky, handing you two of them as he collected more. You gave him a look but he left it without answer which only left you wondering just how many guys were out there, sitting in the VIP box he had mentioned before.

“So, are you enjoying the party?” you asked and followed him out of the supply room, hands full of bottles of alcohol. Seokjin scoffed but smile crawled to his lips almost immediately.

“I’d rather spend the night behind the bar. I mean, I’m not saying I’m not enjoying the night, but it feels different to be on the other side. I guess I’ve been working here for way too long to enjoy a proper night off.”

“Come on, this is your party, you should enjoy it,” you nudged him as you navigated your way through the crowd of people dancing on the floor. The VIP box was located on the second floor of the bar, way calmer spot for people who just wanted to chat and enjoy the night without bumping into already intoxicated (mostly) freshmen. Way up there was a bit challenging with high heels and your hands full, but you successfully reached the spot - and almost dropped the bottles when your eyes met with Jeon Jungkook’s. He seemed to be surprised to see you up there but he quickly adapted to the situation and offered you a smile that quickly transformed into a welcoming smirk.

You put the bottles on the table, completely ignoring the looks of others, and straightened your posture.

“Okay, so… I’ll go,” you didn’t know who did you address your words to, but Seokjin was the one to answer you almost immediately.

“Why would you go? You said your friends dumped you. Stay with us for a while and then you can go. I don’t think the others would mind,” he said, turning to the guys sitting around the table. They shrugged one after another until it came to Jimin and Jungkook. The duo seemed to welcome you way warmer than the others, deep into a conversation about a thesis that was completely out of a place.

“Come, sit, sweetheart,” Seokjin ushered you to the last vacant spot next to Jungkook who immediately moved to give you slightly more space. Not so much, though, as he shamelessly threw his arm on the couch over your arms. He didn’t touch you, but you knew the motion spoke for itself.

“So, you got dumped, huh?” he asked, leaning a bit closer so you could hear him. The music might have been a bit more silent than down there, but people still needed to sit closer to each other if they didn’t want to yell like crazy. Exactly like the rest of them since the conversation seemed to escalate into something reminding more of a fight.

“It depends on the point of view. They were pretty much smashed before we even arrived here. You know, the pre-game and stuff. So, after a shot of tequila, they disappeared to look for an adventure like Powerpuff girls. I’m not blaming them, it’s not the first time. And right now, I guess I’m talking way too much, aren’t I?” you looked at him, kind of flustered by your own behavior. The words just fell off your mouth without you thinking about them first. Perhaps you were intoxicated more than you first thought and it perfectly mirrored on the way you were talking to him - shamelessly and without filter between your brain and mouth.

“You can never talk too much, love.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. At least you are not blushing and giggling like crazy. That’s really something I’m not digging,” he shook his head and looked into your eyes but soon, the gaze dropped to the hand in your lap. He gently reached for it, his thumb recreating the lines of the tattoo that was already in the process of healing. “Seems like you didn’t forget to take care about it. Good girl,” his voice dropped a few tones lower and his breath caressed your skin. Your eyes met and your heart fluttered, the urge to lean closer was back and on the highest alert. Yet, you were still not intoxicated enough to simply lean closer, grab his collar and kiss him right here, in front of his friends. Also, the way Seokjin peeked over his shoulder to check on you to stopped you from proceeding with the plan that has just come to life in your mind.

But taking one brave step forward would harm anyone, would it?

You leaned closer to his ear, desperately fighting the way his cologne was making you go crazy, and whispered: “Exactly like you told me, Jungkook.”

His posture changed and you could swear you saw the muscles shifting under the layers of clothes he was wearing. With clenched jaw and closed eyes, it took him a while to come back to his senses. Yet, you never pulled away from him, enjoying the scent of his musky cologne taking over your senses rather quickly.

“Love, what are you doing right now?”

“What am I doing?” you asked, blinking once and giving him an innocent smile. “I’m not doing anything, Jungkook. I just let you know I’m taking care about my tattoo the way you told me to.”

“Right,” he straightened his posture and cleared his throat. Something inside of you chuckled, the silent voice telling you that indeed, the game you started to play last week was on the table once again. With those thoughts, you watched as he reached for one of the bottles on the table and turned to you with a question mirroring in his eyes. You only nodded, giving him a go to pour you a glass.

Suddenly, you completely forgot about the pre-game drinks and the round of tequila you had shortly after you’ve arrived at the establishment. You forgot how annoying the hungover might be in the morning. Also, it was too late to think about it when Jungkook handed you a glass of whisky you brought with Seokjin. It was neat, without ice cubes you would be happy for, but this had to do.

“To—is there something we should cheer to, love?” he asked, taking his previous place next to you. Dangerously close to you. You looked at the glass in your hands and let out a humming sound.

“First, we should toast to Seokjin. In the end, this is his party,” with those words, you turned to Seokjin who occasionally kept an eye on you two. He smiled and nodded, joining the toasting process without even being invited. When the others joined and their loud cheering filled the space, you turned back to Jungkook without taking a sip of the drink. “And then, perhaps, we should drink to this masterpiece you managed to create on my hand,” you smiled softly, yet the softness never reached your eyes as the game has already started. And you hated being on the losing end.

“You are the fierce one, I see. Honestly, I misjudged you a bit,” he said, downing the drink and putting the empty glass on the table. You did the same and leaned back, your nape brushing against his arm that managed to find the way around your shoulders once again.

“Now you got me interested. How did you misjudge me, Mr. Jeon?”

“Easy as that - you came to my studio visibly stressed on Saturday morning. I knew you were not sure about getting the tattoo at first, but then, something changed. As if something has clicked inside of you and you took the complete opposite direction. I liked that. I liked that a lot. But then again, I’ve already told you I’m not digging the fake shy game. You decided to be honest with me,” he shrugged, offering you a genuine smile.

And that was the moment the smile vanished from your face.

Because you weren’t completely honest with him.

You didn’t tell him the whole tattoo thing was just a bet because you didn’t manage to get Jimin’s number. Yes, that satan who now sat at the same table as you, laughing loudly on something his best friend told him. However, you weren’t mad about the bet anymore, because what came out of the consequences you had to accept was something beautiful. Something you fell in love with your eyes fell on it.

And perhaps that was the reason you decided to be honest with Jungkook once again. You took a deep breath, desperately trying to calm the inner storm that dispersed the game of catch the butterflies played in your stomach.

“Actually, there’s something I have to tell you.”

“Come at me, love. Tell me whatever you want.”

“The tattoo… when I came into your salon last weekend, without having an appointment… it was a consequence of a bet I lost the night you stole my drink. I— I believe I don’t have to tell you what that bet was about, but the condition was simple. If I fail, I’m about to get a tattoo. I believe my friends used it against me because I was talking about getting one for quite a time, so… this was just a push for me,” suddenly, you weren’t so brave and bold as before. You felt shrinking in your seat, the touch of his hand on your shoulder almost burning. For some reason, you expected a storm coming but instead, your senses met with a chuckle that escaped Jungkook’s lips. He shook his head, giving you a rather unbelievable look.

“So, a bet, huh? I’m not gonna lie to you, love. You are not the first one to get a tattoo because of a bet. Although, I didn’t consider you the type to accept conditions like this. I guess I should put that on the mental list I made about you - things about ____ that keep surprising me. We should drink to that.”

You looked at him with mouth wide open, probably looking like an idiot. You were expecting a lecture but instead, he laughed in your face - and didn’t forget to flirt along the way. And although you were pretty much caught off guard, you quickly collected yourself and relaxed a little. Your little secret was out and you felt much lighter.

“May I know what was that bet about?”

“No, you may not. Now, pour us that drink.”

“Savage. I like that as well,” smirk graced his features momentarily. Your glasses were soon filled with another round of the golden liquid that easily slid down your dry throat and numbed your senses more. The good old feeling of intoxication clouded your view of world and your head spun a little, making you lean into Jungkook. The blonde didn’t seem to mind as he finished his drink and his hand other hand slid to your thigh, leaving a burning trail as it finished its journey on your exposed knee. He was silent for a moment, his eyes dropped to his hand that explored your skin, fingers dancing on the floor of your naked skin. The sparks of electricity were undeniable, making you take a deep breath.

“So? How did you decide? Do you want to get rid of that or do you want another one?” his hot breath met the sensitive skin under your ear as he leaned closer to ask you a question you didn’t see coming. Just then his hand left your knee and grabbed yours, thumb once again recreating the lines of tattoo he gave you. The way he was basically curled around you, shielding you from the outer world that seemed to go wild around you, made your breath got stuck in your throat, unable to give him a proper answer even though you were basically screaming in the back of your mind.

“I haven’t given it a thought yet, to be honest. But if I wanted another one, I’d definitely book an appointment beforehand, no worries about that.”

“Well, that’s your call to make. You have my number, so it’s going to be fairly easy,” he murmured, leaning even closer to you, not giving a damn about his friends sitting around the same table. You looked at him, taking a deep breath just to get a little bit higher on his musky cologne. And although his breath was mixed with alcohol and perhaps cigarettes as well, you so wanted to lean in and kiss those two sweet cushions. Inches of air held you from kissing each other, inches of nothing but space you hated so much. You hated it existed and you hated it prevented you from kissing the blonde tattoo artists. Although, everything you needed to do was simply to lean in and steal the kiss.

You didn’t do it.

No, you didn’t.

Because he was faster.

He crossed the last line of your personal space and pressed his lips against yours in a kiss that was sweet but tempting at the same time. You felt the tip of his tongue caressing your lower lip, wordlessly asking for a permission to slip in and give you more.

But there was this thing.

You weren’t alone. Not at all.

That was the reason you pushed back even though the kiss left you feeling like a hot mess. And before you had a chance to speak, he pressed his index finger on your lips.

“It’s time to collect my debt, love.”

“Collect how?”

“Do you want to get out of here?” he asked, boldly.

You felt your head spinning and you didn’t know whether it was because of the alcohol or the excitement that rolled through your body and settled in your core, sending painful pangs to your lower parts. Yet, you managed to give him an answer right away.

“Like where?”

“Like to my place.”

“Gladly.”

The cold night outside seemed to be the only witness of your little escape from Seokjin’s party. Jungkook’s friends sitting around the table were too busy with the fiery conversation going on to notice the two of you left, and your friends were nowhere to be seen. The club was packed, so Jungkook had to hold your hand tightly when he navigated the way through the ocean of dancing bodies. You liked it; the way his fingers tangled with yours, holding tightly onto you just to be sure you wouldn’t disappear or bail from his debt-collecting plan.

When you finally got out of the club, the cold air brushed against your skin and sobered you up a little to the point you realized what you were about to do, but Jungkook didn’t seem to care as he led the way down the street, knowing exactly where to go. Just when you crossed the street and walked for a few more minutes, you realized his studio wasn’t that far away.

The studio.

Was he really taking you to his studio?

“Didn’t you say we are going to your place?” you asked, a little bit dumbfounded when he didn’t aim for the main entrance of the tattoo salon, but instead led the way to the other side of the building. Another door came to your sight and Jungkook fished the keys from the inner pocket of his leather jacket. He noticed you staring at him with furrowed brows and he chuckled.

“Of course, love. This is my place, you just haven’t seen it all, that’s it,” he said as he unlocked the door and pulled you into a dark hallway. He closed the door and locked it again, but instead of turning on the lights, his arms sneaked around your waist like a pair of snakes, pulling your body closer into his. The way he teased you back in the club was nothing compared to how he held you at the moment, his chest hot and heaving with every breath he took brushing against you, igniting the fire again. “I hope you didn’t change your mind, princess.”

“Not yet,” teasing words rolled down your tongue and were followed by loud yelp when Jungkook’s hands slid down your bum and made you jump into his arms. The dim light of the street lights that peeked inside through the windows illuminated his face and revealed the smirk curling his lips.

“Love, you know I like it when you are fierce, but even I have my boundaries. So, if you don’t want to end up with blue ass and shaking legs, I wouldn’t go there if I were you,” he murmured into your ear and turned around as if you weighed nothing. His motion only made you wrap your arms around his shoulder and bury your face into his neck. Soon, you felt him climbing the stairs to the upper floor. Curiously, you looked around only to see nothing. The room was covered in darkness, not even the street light reaching inside.

“Mhm, mysterious,” you mumbled under your breath and squinted your eyes in desperate effort to scan the place. Jungkook only chuckled and continued in his little journey until he reached one of the doors, bringing you inside. Finally, he switched the lights on and revealed the place he brought you to.

The room was coated in darkish colors and was dominated by a big bed with sheets crumpled in a messy pile. Opposite the bed was a working table with PC and a pile of sketchbooks and in one of the corners stood a guitar. The rest of the room was made by wardrobe, drawers and shelves. It was simple yet it somehow complimented his persona. For a while, you just stood there, looking around yourself to grasp a tiny detail that would tell you something more about Jungkook’s character. And just when you were about to dive in, a pair of strong arms curling around your waist from behind cut the train of your thoughts.

“Do you want something to drink?”

You turned in his arms, wrapping yours around his neck to pull him into a kiss that seemed to be the most natural thing ever. Your lips met in a sweet kiss that soon grew into something more heated, perhaps a fight for dominance you immediately lost as he pressed you closer to his chest and caressed your lower lip with his tongue. You opened your mouth, welcoming him with a silent whimper that crawled from deep inside of you. He smirked into the kiss, deepening it a little to lure another series of moans out of you. And when he pulled away with the same smirk still playing over his features, you pouted.

“That wasn’t an answer, sweetheart.”

“I don’t want to drink. I want you,” you murmured and your fingers started to work on his leather jacket, slowly rolling it down his shoulders until the piece of clothing hit the floor. But you didn’t stop, the jacket wasn’t enough. Your fingers found the way to the buttons of his shirt, undoing one after another until his firm chest came to view and you took a deep breath.

“Seem like you like what you see, love,” Jungkook wondered out loud, chuckling right after. Honestly, you didn’t mind stripping you off the clothes that covered upper part of his body. He didn’t even mind when your fingers touched his burning skin and recreated the lines of tattoo covering his chest and stomach, mainly the tattoo of tiger and its paw that disappeared under the waistband of his peeking boxers. When you touched him there, his hand shot up and handcuffed your wrist. “In this household, we play the fair game,” with his words, you found yourself pressed against the wall with his lips lingering around the skin of your neck. So close, yet so far; his lips left you desiring when he didn’t kiss you there. And you were craving him. You wanted him like crazy. Your mind was clouded, your eyes seeing red as he carefully peeled your jacket off your body. Cold air mixed with his hot breath gently caressed your skin and you trembled, wishing for nothing but to be in his arms already.

“Then strip me,” surprisingly, your voice came out steady and full of confidence. Even Jungkook blinked once before the infamous smirk flashed through his features - and to your very surprise, he took a step back until the back of his knees meet the bed and he sat down. Spreading his legs while leaning back on his elbows, he teasingly clicked his tongue and you felt his eyes running up and down your body.

“Why don’t you do it yourself, love?”

Wave of heat rolled through your body and your cheeks flushed momentarily. He took the game to yet another level and for a split second, you weren’t so sure about playing. But then again, your eyes briefly flickered in his direction and you had to swallow the whimper crawling up your throat.

“Fine,” you shrugged and reached for the straps of your dress, internally cursing your friends for making you wear it. This piece of dress was too tight to allow you to wear a bra underneath, but thankfully, you could afford to wear at least panties. The process of thinking slowed down your motion which only boosted the hunger in Jungkook’s eyes. The spark of power play flashed between the two of you as you finally managed to pull one string down - and the second followed right after. You’ve never stripped in front of anybody - if you didn’t count your friends, but that was a completely different case - so you weren’t so sure about what you were doing. Yet, Jungkook seemed to like it. His hand slid to his crotch where the bulge started to form while a silent curse left his lips.

You pushed the fabric lower over your hips and let it hit the floor before you stepped out of it, kicking the high heels off your feet along the way. Shivers danced down your naked spin and you trembled a little under the weight of Jungkook’s heavy gaze. He was silent for a while, only staring at you as his tongue poked his inner cheek.

“I always knew you were a piece of art, love,” his words surprised you and brought yet another wave of blush to your cheeks. Even in the middle of a heated moment he was complimenting you like a true gentleman. His posture straightened as he sat on the bed and signaled you to come closer. “Come closer, sweetheart.”

Your body acted on autopilot, approaching him only to stop between his parted legs. He looked at you from down there, long blonde strands of hair falling into his eyes as his hot breath brushed against the soft spot under your exposed breasts. The shyness went completely away when he leaned closer and his lips traced a line of wet kisses down your stomach. And again, as if your body didn’t belong to you at all, your fingers found a way to his hair, tugging on the strands tightly when he slid down the bed and dropped to his knees to reach lower.

The tingling started in your fingertips, making them numb to the soft feeling of his hair, and continued to your inners, travelling down to your core that you already felt dripping wet. Your panties were ruined the moment Jungkook stick his tongue and copied the curve of its lacy hem. But before he could do something more, you pushed away, looking at him through your hazy eyes.

“Sit.”

Throaty laugh crawled out of his mouth, but he obediently sat back on the bed, waiting for your move. You weren’t so sure about your next move, but what you knew what that you couldn’t let him continue in his little play. You were already balancing at the edge of falling down the pit of pleasure - and honestly, you didn’t want to let go that easily. And that soon.

You waged your way between his legs only to drop to your knees like he did seconds ago, undoing his pants rather quickly. The bulge in his pants didn’t escape your attention and you found yourself licking your lips. The situation completely took over your senses and turned you into a someone who desperately sought something raw and feral.

“Must be painful, isn’t it, honey?” he was the pro in using pet names, but who said you couldn’t give him one as well? Mainly when he looked like he really enjoyed you calling him like that. However, you quickly hushed those thoughts to the corner of your mind and rolled down his pants, throwing it into the space behind you. Fierce, really. Suddenly, Jungkook was sitting in front of you only in his boxers, yet you decided to get him rid of those as well.

Wearing nothing but ink and the smug smirk on his face, you took another deep breath to calm your senses before your eyes dropped to his lower area. Tall and hard, his cock brushed against his underbelly with his red tip that called for some attention.

“It indeed was painful, thank you for your help, little one,” suddenly, his voice dropped a few tones lower and you swallowed hard, contemplating what to do next. Of course, you weren’t stupid, you knew what to do next. However, you wanted to adore the view in front of you for a little longer.

Because the naked man in front of you kicked the air out of your lungs completely.

“Well then we should do something about it, don’t you think?” you leaned closer, fingers curling around the base of his pulsing cock. Whimper escaped Jungkook’s lips and you smirked, leaning even closer to gently kiss his rosy tip.

“Love, don’t tease me,” he murmured, voice deeper than before because of the tense atmosphere lingering around. You had none of his shit as you took him in and twirled your tongue around his length, feeling the veins popping out. You gave him a few licks before diving deeper, letting his tip brush against the back of your throat. His whole body tensed under you and his hand found a way to your hair, tugging on it rather harshly. Not that you minded.

“Fuck, love, just like that—“ he threw his head back and moaned loud, causing you to swallow on purpose. You looked up at him exactly at the same moment he looked at you, eyes wide open as a deer caught in the flashlight in the middle of the road. What happened next was too fast for you to catch up but suddenly, you found yourself caged under his firm body on the bed, legs wide apart as he squeezed himself in between. His whole posture changed, the features of a soft artist were gone and replaced by something harsher and hungrier. He was hungry for lust and passion. He was hungry for you.

“It’s time for you to get rid of these,” he murmured, pushing away only to get you rid of the panties. The sound of fabric ripping filled the room and you gasped, giving him a rather offended look.

“Those might have not been my favorite one, but hey! I’m not going home completely underwear-less!”

“Who said you are going back home?” the cockiness in his voice caught you completely off guard and unprepared when he parted your legs again and slid lower, making himself comfortable in between. “Because I’m not letting you go home that soon, love,” with those words, you felt his lips burning a fiery path down your underbelly until he reached your womanhood. And then, the fireworks exploded behind your closed eyes. First, you felt his lips sparing your nether lips soft kisses, nibbling and sucking gently. Then, you felt his tongue sliding up and down your slit, lapping around to drink your juices. And last, you felt his teeth gently teasing your clit which almost pushed you towards the bliss you wanted to hold off for as long as possible.

But your plans were ruined the moment you felt one of his fingers pushing in slowly, curling inside only to leave your body twisting on his bed and in his sheets. Soon, second finger followed, stretching you oh so good while his lips never stopped the wicked dance with your clit. Moans mixed with curse words fell down your lips and your fingers tangled within his blonde locks in a desperate need for climax. And as it was slowly building inside of you, you rolled your hips against his face and now three fingers that pushed in and out in a desperately slow manner. The man exactly knew what he did to you - and he enjoyed it.

“Jungkook—I—I need to cum. Please—“ you stuttered with the last strength you found in yourself, giving him a look. He started back, looking like a hot mess between your legs with your juices glistering all over his face.

“You sound so good when you are pleading, love. Do you want it that much? Huh?” he asked, picking up the pace and you nodded, desperately rolling your hips against his hand. You felt the spasm coming, dangerously close, peeking around the corner. Chuckling sound filled the room as he dove deep into your core again, this time sucking harsher. That was the last action that finally pushed you towards the first orgasm of the night. You let go and welcomed the warm arms of the bliss, screaming and moaning while Jungkook tried his best to guide you through the paradise. The motion of his hands slowed down and he spared your inner thighs sweet kisses to calm you down a little.

It’s been a while since you experienced orgasm this hard and heavy, clouding your senses for minutes until you came back to yourself. You opened your eyes to meet Jungkook’s. He was hovering over your, his erecting poking your inner thighs only reminding you that indeed, he needed some release as well.

“You are so beautiful,” with those words, he leaned closer and gave you a taste of yourself, the kiss so sweet but so passionate at the same time. After you were sure your body recharged at least a little, you wrapped your arms around his neck and pulled him closer, bodies colliding together. Yet, what was sweet once again turned into something not so innocent anymore. His hips rolled against yours and you were again reminded of his pulsing shaft.

“Jungkook—“

“Yes, my love?”

“I need you. Take me. Make me yours.”

“As you wish, my love,” he spared you one last kiss before he pushed away and reached for the nightstand. You gave him a confused look before you realized he was reaching for a pack of condoms. Smile sneaked to your features as you grabbed his arm and pulled him closer again. And at that moment, it was his turn to be confused.

“You don’t need that. I’m clean and on pills so—“

“Shit, don’t tell me twice,” he was back above you, his hand crawling down to his shaft to give himself a few pumps before you felt his tip brushing against your slit. The familiar wave of heat rolled through your body and you didn’t even have enough time to collect yourself as he slowly pushed in, grunting noise accompanying his motion. Slowly, from the tip to the base he filled your pulsing walls and halted, his eyes scanning your face to find a tiny hint of discomfort. However, there was none, only a pure need to urge him to move.

“Fuck, you feel so good,” his voice came out low and hoarse with the first roll of his hips. Unable to form any coherent word or sentence, you only nodded, desperately reaching for him to hold onto something. The gentleman he was, he leaned closer, however the motion caused him to part your legs even wider until you find yourself in a position when your legs were pressed against your chest while Jungkook picked up the pace, sliding deeper and deeper with each thrust of his hips. He looked at you and despite the lust that almost sent you to another dimension, you managed to give him a smirk.

“I told you—I did yoga.”

“From now on, you are only practicing yoga with me, love,” smug smirk tugged on the corner of his lips as his thrust became harsher and you felt his tip hitting your cervix.

“You wish,” your teasing manners didn’t leave you even in such a situation, and you soon felt your legs pressed between his and yours shoulders as he decided to lean in and shut you with his own lips. The kiss was hot and heavy, broken from time to time because you the moans that crawled out of your throat. Each thrust of Jungkook’s hips became harder and deeper, which made you call out his name loudly. You felt the sensation building inside of you, slowly but surely. Clenching around him, you tried desperately to push him towards his own limit which was already visible in his hazed eyes. He was close and so were you, yet letting go still seemed out of option.

“More,” you murmured, tugging on his lock, pushing him closer and closer to the finish line. You felt him twitching harshly inside of you, first drops of precum warming your insides.

“Fuck, love, I’m so close.”

“Then cum with me,” your voice came out as a desperate cry, eyes almost tearing as you looked at him, completely lost in the view he provided you. Hot mess was nothing compared to the man towering over you, desperately chasing over the sweet release.

His hand found a way between your sweaty bodies, crawling lower until it reached your clit and gave it a few rubs which finally pushed you towards the finish line. Your body was momentarily caught in a spasm before you allowed yourself to let go, screaming and desperately digging your nails into the skin of Jungkook’s back. The second orgasm of the night felt stronger than the first one, mainly when Jungkook kept thrusting into you, still not there. And you let him. You let him overstimulate you until his body tensed and his cock twitched inside of you for the last time before the thick warm sprouts of his release coated your insides and eventually leaked out into his sheets. His body collapsed into yours and you let a whimper. The heavyweight of his relaxed body made you unable to breathe and when you tried to push him away, it didn’t work.

“Kook, baby.”

“Hmpf.”

“Jungkook.”

Nothing.

“Jeon.”

“What?”

“I can’t breathe.”

“Crybaby,” he murmured and slowly pushed away while gently pulling out of you. The sudden lack of his girth made you whimper but you soon found yourself comfortable as he rolled over and pulled you closer to his arms. His chest was firm but soft at the same time, the slight scent of his musky cologne mixed with post-sex scent lingering around. He pressed a kiss to your hair and chuckled.

“What was that?” you asked, too tired to actually look at him.

“Nothing. I just didn’t imagine collecting my debt to end up like this.”

“Now you are lying.”

“No, I’m not, love,” he shook his head and spared the crown of your hair another kiss. “I wanted to ask you on a date. Well, I guess we skipped that stage. Unless…”

“Unless?”

“Unless you want to go on date with me.”

Now that was something that made you look at him with a question mark hanging above your head. The man that has just fucked the soul out of you turned into a complete sweetie asking you out for a date. How unbelievable.

“That I’d love to, Jungkook.”

Heavy sigh left his lips. It almost looked like he was relieved.

“And you know what else I want?”

“What is that, my love?”

“Drink. I want my drink, Jungkook.”

“I swear to god… You are going to be the death of me.”

[ouyangzizhensdad]

Do you think LWJ took the advantage of being a Young Master of a prominent clan to publicly display the people he hates? (We know who that is) I saw someone claim about it and It's haunting my head.

Hi anon,

I’ll start first by saying that I think the novel does, to a degree, understand that there are people who have, to use Bourdieu’s terms, forms of ‘capitals’ that others do not and integrate that into the narrative and character dynamics. LWJ has not only capital due to his position as a gongzi and the son of a Leader (then later, as heir-in-line) to one of the prominent clans, but also due to his stellar reputation and fighting abilities (and to a degree, the fact he is a man). All this allows him to have a wider range of actions that are considered ‘acceptable/legitimate’ versus another person with different or lesser forms of capital--think for instance of the reaction and consequences when LWJ challenges what powerful men are saying (making up) about WWX versus when daughter-of-a-servant MianMian does the same. However, I find it weird to frame that as LWJ “getting away” with something--with his character, it’s more like he is able to have an opinion or stand up against injustices with less chances of getting punished and ridiculed for it.

Now, if it is about Jiang Cheng, it is kind of a myopic argument to be saying that LWJ “gets away” with “publicly hating JC”. First because by that point JC is technically even higher in the social hierarchy, being a literal Sect Leader. But it’s also weird to phrase this as “publicly hating JC”: LWJ is not running around badmouthing JC or the Jiang sect--the pettiest we see him is when he doesn’t silence LJY when he engages in gossip about JC. Instead we see LWJ standing up against JC when the situation calls for it, which is not the same. Of course, as JC does, it can be considered as an inherent ‘insult’ since it makes JC ‘lose face’ but I think there is a difference. And it’s not like JC does not get away with being impolite towards LWJ and the Lan sect, something we see at Dafan Mountain.

We know with the MXY altercation that JC was ready to kill him on sight for using modao (”Do you have any last words?”/“Break his legs? Haven’t I told you? If you see this sort of evil and crooked practice, kill the cultivator and feed him to your dogs!”). After LWJ intercepts, we have this exchange showing JC being impolite to a degree that prompts LJY to call him out for it, only bringing more disrespect for the Lans from JC:

He raised one brow and spoke, “Hanguang-Jun, you sure live up to your reputation of ‘being wherever the chaos is’. So, you had time to come to this remote area today?” [..] Right now, Jiang Cheng really didn’t seem too polite as he said the words in such a tone. Even the juniors who came following Lan Wangji did not seem comfortable hearing it.

Lan Jingyi spoke straightforwardly, “Isn’t Jiang-zongzhu here as well?”

Jiang Cheng replied grimly, “Tsk, do you really think that you should butt in when your seniors are conversing? The GusuLan Sect has always been known for its respectful conduct. Is this really how it teaches its disciples?”

It is imo more true to say that, due to LWJ’s higher and respected position in society, JC is not able to use his usual means of responding to someone challenging his decisions and thus making him lose face.This is again something we see during this altercation.

LWJ silences JL after he dismisses his mistreatment of other cultivators with the deity-binding nets. LWJ destroys the entirety of the diety-binding nets JC and JL were using to give JL an advantage over the other cultivators competing, something they were only able to do because of the Jiang and Jin sects considerable power and wealth. Is it daring of LWJ? Sure. Would he be able to do so without consequences if he was someone else? Probably unlikely, especially when we’re talking about JC. But is that ‘getting away’ with something? It’s literally the opposite scenario: LWJ is using his own status and capital to make it so that JL (and JC) are not getting away with what they are doing (although there are, in actuality, no consequences for their behaviours; they are just forced to give up on JL’s unfair advantages. Hell, LWJ even offers to pay for the nets he destroys, which I guess can also be taken as a baller move). What’s more, the novel even takes the time to point out that, if LWJ were not such a strong cultivator, JC might have pushed aside the risks of offending LXC and physically confronted him (let’s appreciate how this also serves as well-integrated exposition for their weapons).

Jin Ling’s grim expression was exactly the same as his uncle’s, “What can I do? It was their own fault for stepping into the traps. I’ll solve everything after I finish capturing the prey.”

Lan Wangji frowned. Jin Ling was about to speak again, but he suddenly realized that, shockingly, he could neither open his mouth nor make any sounds.

[...]

The man spoke in a low voice, “Not long ago, a blue sword flew over and destroyed the deity-binding nets that you had set up.”

Jiang Cheng glanced at Lan Wangji harshly, his displease plastered all over his face, “How many were broken?”

[...]

Although four hundred deity-binding nets were a whopping price, it wasn’t too much for the YunmengJiang Sect. Nonetheless, losing the nets were a small matter, but losing face was not. With Lan Wangji’s actions, Jiang Cheng felt a whirlpool of anger at the bottom of his heart, rising higher by every second. He narrowed his eyes, his left hand casually stroking the ring on his right hand’s index finger.

[...]

However, after stroking it for a while, Jiang Cheng compelled himself to restrain his hostility.

Although he was displeased, as the leader of a sect, he needed to take more things into consideration, which meant that he couldn’t be as impulsive as Jin Ling. After the fall of the QingheNie Sect, among the Three Great Sects, the LanlingJin Sect and the GusuLan Sect were quite close due to the personal relationship between the two leaders. By leading the YunmengJiang Sect alone, he was already in an isolated situation among the three. Hanguang-Jun, or Lan Wangji, was quite a prestigious cultivator, while his elder brother Zewu-Jun, or Lan Xichen, was the leader of the GusuLan Sect. The two brothers had always been on good terms with each other. It was best to not openly dispute with Lan Wangji.

Also, Jiang Cheng’s sword, “Sandu (三毒, Sāndú),” had never made actual contact with Lan Wangji’s sword, “Bichen,” and it was not yet decidable whose hands would the deer die on. Although he owned the powerful ring, “Zidian (紫电 Zǐdiàn),” a family heirloom of his, Lan Wangji’s guqin, “Wangji”, was also known for its abilities. The thing that Jiang Cheng hated the most was to be disadvantageous during a fight. Without complete confidence in his success, he would not consider fighting with Lan Wangji.

Now if it is about Su She, again what does LWJ truly do?

He silences him in the Demon-slaughtering cave? Although we’d be hard-pressed to believe LWJ respects Su She after what he’s seen him do in the Xuanwu Cave, the guy is literally trying to get everyone there killed and being a smartass to WWX while at it. And if it had been extremely disrespectful of him, LQR could have lifted the spell--something once again that the novel points out. When it dissolves into a game of calling out between the MolingSu sect and the GusuLan sect, LWJ does not say anything, even if, as LJY points out, Su She was imitating him. It’s only when WWX starts going that LWJ takes part by acquiescing to the truths WWX lays out (which are, yes, damning for the Su She and the MolingSu sect). But again, there are layers to what WWX is doing: he’s not only trying to expose what is going on, but anger Su She into revealing he still has his spiritual powers as proof of what he has worked out. So while WWX and LWJ are being by some measures disrespectful, there is a point to how they are going at it.

Touching his chin, he grinned, “Well I was worried that you’d get mad if I asked him too many things in front of you, wasn’t I? But since you’ve told me to ask him already, I’ll go ahead and ask. Lan Zhan?”

Lan Wangji, “Mn.”

Wei Wuxian, “The MolingSu Sect was a sect that branched off from the GusuLan Sect, right?”

Lan Wangji, “Mn.”

Wei Wuxian, “Although it branched off, the MolingSu Sect’s techniques still used the GusuLan Sect’s techniques ‘as reference’, right?”

Lan Wangji, “Yes.”

Wei Wuxian, “One of the GusuLan Sect’s techniques, the Sound of Vanquish, has the effect of exorcising evil. Amongst them, the seven-stringed guqin was the most powerful, and so there is the greatest number of people who cultivate through the guqin. The MolingSu Sect did the same, and the guqin is the most common in their sect as well, is that correct?”

Lan Wangji, “That is correct.”

Wei Wuxian, “Although the MolingSu Sect’s leader left the GusuLan Sect with knowledge of its techniques when he founded his own sect, is own guqin skills weren’t anything special, and the disciples he taught often make many mistakes too, right?”

Lan Wangji answered with honesty, “Yes.”

Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji went on back and forth, speaking as though nobody was around. More and more people realized that they weren’t only mocking Su She, but rather taking something apart. Thus, they began to listen more carefully.

Next, Wei Wuxian slowed down, “… And that means, even when a section of the battle melodies that the MolingSu Sect played when killing corpses on Mass Grave Hill was wrong, the GusuLan Sect wouldn’t find it unusual, and only think that they made a mistake because of their inferior techniques and remembered the sheet music wrong, not taking the time to notice whether it was an accidental mistake or a mistake on purpose. Is this the case?”

Hearing the last question, Su She’s pupils shrunk. The hand he placed on the hilt of his sword was suddenly lined with veins. The blade of the sword was already half-an-inch unsheathed. On the other hand, Lan Wangji lifted his eyes at the same time. Both Wei Wuxian and he saw the sense of understanding in each other’s eyes.

He stated one word at a time, “This is the case.”

Su She unsheathed his sword with a clang. Wei Wuxian moved the blade of the sword to the side with two fingers and smiled, “What are you doing? Don’t forget. You’ve lost all your spiritual powers. Would threatening me like this do anything?”

Sword raised in his hand, Su She could neither attack nor put it down. He clenched his teeth, “Aiming at me for so long—just what are you trying to imply?”

As much as we love to talk about LWJ’s hidden sass and pettiness, he does not seem to ever be disrespectful without a reason, and it’s usually in the process of standing up for others. Reading his character as an illustration of a man in a position of privilege and power getting away with things is a little bit of a reach--particularly when JC is literally right there. 

[wickedgamesoyaoya]

Buddy! Congratulations! I’m so proud of you. You deserve it. 💜🤩 this event is everythingggg. When I was reading through the quotes I was picking where it was from and I just 🤩🤩

Can I request a fluff piece with Iwa? (Phrase 5 or 6) written or SMAU it doesn’t matter cause I love all your stuffs 😘😘

~♏️

The journey from the hospital to your shared home could easily be classified as an interrogation, albeit an unsuccessful one. After confirming that you were no longer in any pain, Iwaizumi had begun his investigation into the details of what occurred. However, instead of answering each targeted inquiry with a calculated response, you elected to sing out a song-lyric to tease your already stressed boyfriend. With the fibreglass supporting your injured hand and the pain killers lacing into your bloodstream, you felt perfectly normal. Hell, you wished you had the cast when you punched the idiot earlier. That way you could have broken more than his nose.

Once the vehicle pulled into the driveway, Iwaizumi instructed you to remain inside with an unnaturally long sigh. Your brows knitted together in curiosity as you watched him jog around the car to greet you on the passenger side. After tugging open the door completely, his gaze travelled from your cast to the surrounding area.

“You know my other hand works fine, right? And nothing is going to happen, stop that.” Exiting the car, a playful smile graced your lips. It was a small attempt at dismantling his concerns, and it could have worked if he bothered to return his attention to you.

“No.” His refusal was muttered plainly, indicating the matter was not up for debate. That was the thing with Hajime. Once his overprotective nature had activated, there was no stopping him.

“Haj, don’t be mad at me. I’m okay, I promise.” The second after he finished closing the passenger side door, you hooked an arm through his before batting your eyelashes up at him.

“I know you’re fine, but I’m not. I don’t like seeing you hurt.” The athletic trainer squinted at you, swallowing the growl that threatened to sound in his throat. “Can you blame me?” Removing his stare from yours, he fished out the keys to the house. As he unlocked the door and guided you inside, a sigh of defeat rolled off your lips.

“I guess not.”

Iwaizumi was mostly satisfied with your admission, a fact illustrated by the weakened scowl on his features. Now that he successfully brought you into the safety of the living room, he could breathe a little easier.

“Just go rest. I’m gonna make us some food.” He was about to shrug off his coat when his irises landed on you and the facial expression you had adorned.

The infamous puppy dog expression. One of the many expressions that would melt the man’s heart within seconds. With an intake of breath, he curled an arm around your waist, leading your body closer to his. Eliminating the space between your faces, he placed a gentle kiss against your jutted bottom lip then another against your forehead. Each kiss that was applied had more of an impact on your body than the injury he was currently nursing. Noticing your weakened knees, a faint smirk tugged at the corners of his mouth.

“Idiot.” Once he released you from his hold, Iwaizumi administered a flick to your forehead, an action that led your dramatic self to collapse onto the couch behind you.

“My heart.” As you tried to recover from the soft gestures, your boyfriend finally removed his jacket, tossing it against the corner of the couch. Before he exited the living room, the trainer stole one final glance in your direction, humour bringing his eyebrows to raise. Of course, you were pretending to “melt” into the couch.

This was the same girl who punched a guy in the face hours ago? You really were something.

Minutes after Iwaizumi exited the room you shifted on the couch, no longer interested in maintaining a performance for an empty audience. As you squirmed around on the cushions, attempting to find the best position, you discovered his discarded jacket. Plucking the fabric up, a mischievous grin plastered against your visage. If you couldn’t cuddle with your boyfriend, you could at least cuddle with his jacket. 

The cloth had also completely absorbed his intoxicating scent, filling your senses with him.

Yeah. You could sleep like this.

Dinner took Iwaizumi a little longer than he anticipated. The recipe had stated the prep and cook time should be around an hour – it took him almost two hours. His ego was slightly bruised by his failure to complete the task during the allotted time, but at least it tasted good. After setting the table, he removed the apron from around him and then proceeded to the living room. Not once did it occur to him that he left a certain object within your reach - something you were not supposed to find. 

To his horror, you were no longer asleep on the couch. Instead you were playing a game on your phone with his jacket blanketing over you. Once you noticed his presence, excitement ignited inside your eyes. But confusion joined the emotion seconds later when you traced the panic he was struggling to conceal.

“Come on. Food is ready.” Clearing his throat with an artificial cough, he reached forward to grab the coat casually. Except instead of releasing the fabric, you grasped it tighter, sitting up in the process.

“Why are you being so suspicious?” The question spills from your lips too soon, because the answer is granted a moment later. The final tug on the material had resulted in the emergence of an item you were unaware of for the last two hours. The velvet box dropped onto the ground, the low thud sounding louder than the chaos ensuing inside of Iwaizumi’s chest.  “Haj…”

“It’s empty.” Scarlet coloured his neck as he engaged in a staring battle with the inanimate object. This was wrong – this wasn’t how it was supposed to go. But lying would certainly not fix the situation now. “Okay, it’s not. Let’s just pretend this didn’t happen.”

If you were drowsy before you were absolutely awake now. The butterflies inside your stomach were celebrating and your heart was seconds from caving in from the suspense. “Hajime. If you don’t ask me that question now, I’m going to ask you. And I want you to realize that I don’t have a ring, so I’m going to tie a rubber band around your finger.” 

He hated how he knew you would say something along those lines. 

Lowering himself onto one knee, he retrieved the box and tried to calm the sirens alarming inside his mind. He had something prepared – something he had rehearsed 100 times in front of the mirror, and 100 times in front of Oikawa. So why the hell was he frozen? Slowly his eyes lifted from the box to meet your expecting gaze.

“L/n f/n, you are one incredibly infuriating woman.” A laugh escapes your lips at the statement, and the sound brings a smile to his mouth. “You drive me insane. Sometimes I don’t know if I should be protecting you, or if the world needs protection from you. But what I do know is there is no one like you. You make me want to kill people I don’t know, but you also make me a better man.” The tears blurring your vision cause his heart to shoot up from his chest into his throat, the sensation wasn’t painful, however. It only made his following words sound much lighter. “I love you more than I ever knew was possible. And I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Whether that means picking you up at the hospital when you’re an idiot, or loving you when you act like a clown… I want to be there for it all. So, will you make me the happiest man and marry me?”

By the time he finally voiced the question you were patiently waiting for, your cheeks were puffed and stained with mascara.

“Of course I will, you gorgeous man!” Instinctively you offered out your right hand, forgetting the protective layer around it. For a moment your eyes flickered from the cast to the ring held out ahead of you. Iwaizumi expelled a chuckle at your dilemma, then took your left hand, slipping the ring on.

“You know in some countries they wear these on the left side anyway.” The adrenaline of the situation had hit its climax, and all he could do was grin at you with love and joy.

Once the ring was settled against your finger, another chorus of sobs rang out as you jumped onto him, peppering kisses all over his face.

“I love you so much. Let’s go get married now.” Pausing your storm of affection, a toothy smile was presented towards him. Iwaizumi rolled his eyes playfully then ruffled your hair.

“How about we eat first and then go get married?”

A/N: I really hope you guys like this lololol

General taglist:  @haikyuufairy  @newfriendjen @lvoejimin @moonlightaangel @gyozaaaaa @byun-nies @thevillagehiddenintheinternet @amberalisa @graykageyama @yourstarvic @chaichai-the-weeb @dreamstormings @chibishae34 @haikyuusimp91 @volleybloop  @rajablast @idiot-juice-enthusiast @melonmayhere @cuddlesslut  @athenarosaline @memes-and-money @coconut-dreamz  @mismatched-loves @elianetsantana @tsumume @tsukkismamagucci @the-golden-jhope @camcam1617 @azumane-kun @prettyforpapiiwa @swoonhui 

Bolded means I can’t tag ya ~

[honestgrins]

could you do a continuation of chapter 29/49??

I'm glad you liked Reflection and Retribution, but I think I'm done with that universe. Could I interest you in Private Investigator!Caroline hired to infiltrate a criminal organization instead?

Also, many thanks to @recyclingss for being a kind ear and a supportive voice as I try to find my writing groove again. Thanks for the love, lovely (and sorry it’s not a new chapter of Burned)!!

Wanted || Klaroline

A squeak of hinges was all she had in the way of warning. Hurrying to tuck the files she'd been snooping through back into their respective cabinets, Caroline needed an excuse for her presence in the boss's office - and she needed one fast.

To give herself a bit more time, she slipped into the private bathroom. Her purse was lighter than her usual go-bag for an investigation, but that was the peril of working undercover. She shuffled through it anyway, only to find the makeup she needed to reapply between shifts, her wallet, car keys, and Taser. Fortunately, she had learned to be resourceful, and a plan quickly formed with what she had. 

Unfortunately, the plan could go very wrong. As footsteps sounded through the door, however, her time to improvise had run out. Slathering on a fresh layer of lipstick for luck, Caroline fluffed her hair and made her presence known. "Sorry to intrude, Mr. Mikaelson, I just— Who the hell are you?”

Her winning smile had fallen flat at the stranger making eyes down the line of her mostly bare leg. True, the outfit had been meant to draw attention, but he wasn't her intended target. She'd been expecting the fastidious Elijah Mikaelson, with perfectly tailored suits and a too polite charm that just screamed serial killer underneath. This guy was far messier with untidy curls and the paint-splattered jeans. Cute, though. And that smirk.

"Mr. Mikaelson," he answered cheekily, "but please, call me Klaus." Making himself a drink from the bar cart, he poured a second glass for her. His brow arched when she refused. "Come to ask favors of the boss, but you won't drink his liquor. I assure you, he only buys the good stuff."

"I'm fine, thanks." She narrowed her gaze as he draped himself over one of the armchairs, giving her another appreciative look. "I thought the brother's name was Kol?"

His nose scrunched. "Unfortunately, there are five Mikaelson brothers. A sister, too. Nosy for a dancer, aren't you? Most of those 'Lijah keeps on the roster know to mind their business."

A mild panic took over; she was usually better at playing it cool. Now, she was going to get busted for asking too many questions. If she couldn't handle the unexpected brother, she really had no chance at taking on the mob boss himself. "Not a dancer yet," Caroline answered, aiming for sheepish with her hands tucked into the tight back pockets of her shorts. "I'm just a waitress until a stage shift opens up."

Ideally, she would be long gone before that happened, if only to avoid breaking an ankle in the heels. Not even her most rigorous pageant training could have prepared her for the skill those things took to work. That, and she needed to tidy up this case fast to get Damon Salvatore off her speed dial. And Stefan - she never would have accepted the job had he not played the friend card. Her only solace was the fact they agreed to double her usual rate for a job like this. 

The tips were pretty great, too. Even just waitressing had earned her some nice spending money to splurge on clothes and pampering. Had the high-end strip club not been a front for Elijah Mikaelson to launder his ill-gotten gains, she might seriously consider moonlighting once the gig was over.

With the way the boss’s brother was eyeing her, though, that might happen sooner than she’d like. It wouldn’t do to get found out before she could track down what Damon asked her to find, and she did not relish the idea of handing back the hefty check he’d already given. Bristling, she crossed her arms, hoping to annoy him off the scent of her subterfuge. “Can I help you?”

Klaus, however, seemed unperturbed by her attitude. “If it’s better pay you’re after, I might have an opportunity for you.” When she gave an outraged splutter, he merely waved her off. “Not quite what you’re thinking, love, though I apologize for any offense. I’m in the market for a new model.”

“For your burgeoning porn empire? No, thanks.”

“I’m an artist, I would like to paint you,” he clarified with a wry grin. Leaning forward on his knees, he lowered his voice as though letting her in on a secret. “Any wardrobe choices — or lack thereof — would be entirely up to you.”

Sensing his interest wasn’t entirely aesthetic, Caroline figured she might as well learn what she could from the cad. “Don’t try to play me. The girls at the club talk, you know. I heard a rumor the Mikaelsons were, like, connected. The whole starving artist thing doesn’t really add up, so I’ll pass.”

Again, his gaze focused on her in an assessing way, lips still curled up. He took the bait. This was almost too easy. “I do alright, family connections aside,” he joked. “Perhaps you’d like to see some of my work...” Trailing off, he left her with an expectant look.

She pretends to cover a flattered expression with irritation. “Candy.”

“And if I were to check Elijah’s meticulous hiring paperwork?”

A beat passed. “Candice,” she relented with a sigh, reminding herself to buy Bonnie something gorgeous to thank her for crafting a bulletproof identity, complete with an otherwise authentic Social Security card and active social media accounts. “Candice Moore.”

That smirk of his spread to a full smile, and she was a bit stunned to see the utter delight on his face. “Funny,” he said, standing to move closer. Without meaning to, she swayed toward him in return, only to catch herself when he gave a teasing tug to her tousled braid. All her attention snapped to the mere foot between them, then to the intense blue of his eyes. "You look more like a Caroline to me."

Rearing back, she blindly reached into her bag. But Klaus was calm and collected as he plucked the Taser from her grasp. "Now, no need to panic, Ms. Forbes. I merely want to talk."

"Bullshit," she huffed. "How—”

He sat back in his chair, watching her with obvious amusement. "You're good. The cover might have worked had your application not been flagged by my security team. Don't feel bad, they're very thorough.”

The pieces were falling into place faster than she realized they were even missing. Unfortunately, she couldn't make herself focus past the first big answer. She finally took the drink he'd poured for her and downed it in one gulp. More potent than she thought, her voice was hoarse after a bracing cough. "Your security team."

His smirk was positively evil. "You seemed determined to learn the particulars of my organization, sweetheart, though I'm sorry to disappoint that Elijah's file cabinet wasn't able to satisfy your...professional curiosity. I, however, am more than interested in your questions." 

With a snap of his fingers, the office door squeaked, and Caroline caught only a peek of the guard she hadn't even noticed lurking outside before the lock clicked into place. Alone with an underground kingpin without a weapon, she fell back into the other chair like the sitting duck she was. "I don't suppose I could distract you by accepting the modeling offer," she tried with a weak laugh.

Ever the surprise, he chuckled with her. "Always. But if you tell me what I want to know, I can offer you a far more lucrative employment. Good private eyes are hard to find, and you're the first to get this far without ruffling feathers."

"I ruffled yours, didn't I?"

If his smirk was evil, his bright smile was disarming. "Who hired you? I believe I owe them a nice thank you for this introduction."

Caroline watched him carefully, confused at the game he was playing. "My clients pay for results and discretion," she answered politely. "If you were to secure my services, with a healthy retainer fee—"

"Of course."

"—I would promise you the same. Unfortunately," she sighed with a pout, "I think this little mishap constitutes a conflict of interest. But thank you for your interest in Forbes Investigations. Can I go now?"

He leaned forward on his knees, his hands folded in front of him. "You know, I might be of some help to your current clients. Were I to assist in your investigation, there would be no conflict at all. The opposite, in fact."

Chewing her lip in thought, she shook her head and decided to cut her losses. "It has nothing to do with the business, not really," she promised. "I've been tasked with finding someone, someone I thought your brother might be supporting with some creative accounting. That's all."

"Don't tell me," Klaus groaned. "Katerina conned your clients then clawed her way back into Elijah's good graces to hide from the consequences of her own actions."

She scoffed. "Says the guy who lets the world think his brother is a criminal mastermind while he's pulling the strings behind the scenes."

Smirking, he didn't seem offended in the slightest. "Elijah's better with paperwork, but his decision-making is unreliable. I think Katerina is example enough of that."

"Fair." Caroline only met her once, but everything she had learned since Damon hired her painted quite the picture. That, and the fact she all but disappeared after he gave her an heirloom engagement ring, despite the fact she was openly gunning for Stefan throughout their entire relationship. "But it sounds like this was a surprise to you, too, so you probably can't be of much help to me in finding her."

"Reverse psychology is beneath you," he flirted. "And I've already offered to help. You're the one being stubborn."

With a roll of her eyes, she finally stood to pour herself another drink. "Yeah, I'm the stubborn one. You probably have a hundred investigators already on staff. What do you want with little, old me?"

He just smiled. "You want my secrets, you'll have to earn them, love. Now, do we have a deal?"

Oh, she was going to regret this; if only she wasn't so damn intrigued. Draining her glass, she set it on the table between them with a thunk before stretching out her hand. "Deal."

Klaus shook her hand with a firm grip, the contact distracting to say the least. Then, he just had to open his mouth. "The modeling job is a standing offer, by the way."

"Good to know."

[oddlyhale]

James, James, James, James. My ultimate RWBY bias, my precious sad man. I have so much to discuss about prince charming here.

My Top 3 Ships For James IronQrow IronWatts IronWitch

To easily sum up all 3 ships as a whole, I like a character that directly challenges James’ personality. While James can be direct and cold at times, these 3 have a level of challenge but consideration for him.

Qrow is the rebellious grump that counters James with remarks but can relate to the emotional burdens. Watts is the cynic that still holds James to a higher regard if he had to choose between him and his team. Glynda is stern and insinuates, but she’s also careful and studious.

I think James works well with someone who can relate to the struggles he hides or someone that can shake it out of him. James is a selective guy, so I assume he’s extremely picky with who he’d like to have hanging off his arm. These 3 always gave me such strong personalities that counter James in a productive way, that they have an ingredient that James is missing in his own life that can spice things up or can change the flavour of what he’s used to. I never think James is into people who are just like him.

My Least 3 Favourite Ships For James This is hard for me to say since I’m pretty neutral with ships that include our tin man.

If I had to choose a few, it’d be IronWinter and IronRobyn.

I’ll admit, the only reason why I don’t like IronRobyn is that I fucking hate Robyn. She’s toxic and always has a short temper, and seems to direct it all at James when she could’ve been angry at any other enemy that’s right in front of her (cough Jacques cough.) I think she’d demean him way too much, which is why she’d be the worst girlfriend ever.

I’m still debating with IronWinter. I am falling off the ship due to V8’s ending, and how badly the writing handled their friendship (and possibly budding romance) horribly in the end. I think if only Winter could have tried to be compassionate towards James, and did everything she could to save him - express her anguish over his turmoil, showing how much it’s causing her pain as well, to the point where James has to stop and realize what he’s doing - then maybe I could like this ship. As it stands, it’s a no from me, doc.

My Biggest Criticism Of James Firstly, it’s obvious that I deeply despise what the writers had done to my boy in V8. They accidentally made him such a layered and likable character that they had to damn him straight to Hell, just so that we can like the sociopaths - I mean Team RWBY - again. It was such a sad sight to see, I still feel the string.

But also, I must criticize how James was barely portrayed as a bad guy from the beginning. People point at how cold he acted in the first few volumes, but I personally think that’s just people being too sensitive over such strong personalities. James is very direct and has no time for nonsense - which could make him disliked from the jump.

If he must be seen as such a morally grey person, then I would’ve loved to see that development properly from the beginning. Making him morally grey that teeters into villain status is exciting and tragic, but you knew it was going to happen. His entry into bad guy status would’ve made so much sense if he were quietly cold-hearted, choosing logic over emotion, and wouldn’t bother taking the time to protect people if he only created robots just to protect himself. He is evil, but deep down he finds himself vulnerable, and that would always be his burden that created a villain.

And don’t fucking kill him in the end. With an amasing written villain, you’d be stupid enough to not let him be recruited by Salem. He is a boiling pot of what she needs, and he would oblige if it meant he could ring the necks of our heroes.

My Favourite Thing About James Him. Just him.

Everything can be generalized into one word, which would be strength. Not only is he strong physically, but his heart also showed his truth and his mind was what kept him capable. He was always on top of the game, never asking for help, and would do whatever it took to save those before himself. He truly is a guy that could be the embodiment of true strength. Somebody that I can look up to, and read him for what he stood for, what he thrived on, and what made him move forward. He works so hard and still keeps pushing to do the job right. Your status didn’t matter to him, whether you were rich or poor, or just an adventurer, he would still have his own way of welcoming you as a trusted friend or shun you for being a prick. I think James would be the perfect example of someone who can keep going, and with so much persistence and diligence, you can succeed.

Even when he was a villain in V8, the writers proved to us that he was still the biggest character to always look forward to. Salem was practically a joke compared to our favourite tin man, and that’s sad when even the main villain is nowhere as important as James.

I have been told people did love and look up to James, which is such a major shame that he is gone and gone in such a disrespectful way.

A Headcannon I Have About James My biggest headcannon about James is that he is asexual-biromantic.

James valued anybody who was loyal and worked with him to reach their goals. I like how it doesn’t matter who it may be, whether you are female, male, or something more. James had his heart in his hands, and he would always give it to those he trusted most. Falling in love would be tough, but adorkable to see.

What I Would Change About James If I Was Making A Rewrite To be honest, not much. I adore him as he is.

My biggest change, however, would be his semblance and keeping him morally-grey-to-hero. I think James thrives on such a great story if he had a semblance that mirrored himself, and how he would try to stay on the path of heroics than to steer into the stupid cartoony villain one. Hell, James needs his own show.

I have a variety of ideas as to what his new semblance would be, but I’d be here all day. Instead, I always loved the idea that James has a sentient semblance that corresponds with him. James wants somebody to trust, so what better than your own responsive semblance? Such as barbed-wires, or a familiar, or even the ability to manifest weapons with his aura. How cool!

What I Think Of James’ Character Allusion And What (if anything) I Would Change About It

As much as I like the tin man allusion, I personally would have chosen something much more tragic and detrimental to his character. I get he’s supposed to be in the Oz Faction, but it’s lame at this point.

For me, I would’ve made him the Beast. (No I’m not asking for IronwoodxBlake, I am saying he should’ve been the Beast.) It makes sense if he were the Beast - he is cold, he is intimidating, he is brash, he is distrusting of others until they have his full confidence. Beast was always hiding away, not wanting to go out and expose himself to a world that would hate him or fear him. He masks himself in an authority role, but would likely drop it when he’s alone. He can go into a flurry of rage and is destructive. In the end, however, all he wants is somebody to break his curse - a burden.

You don’t have to change much about his appearance, other than making him a Faunus. Since Beast could have a closer likeness to a werewolf, give James some wolfish characteristics, like a bushy tail, or even some cute ass wolf ears. Even his eyes can shine menacingly in the dark, like a wolf. Or, give him some massive canine teeth, so when he bares them in anger, they’re gleaming sharp and ready to bite.

Yup that’s it. Thanks!

[recurring-polynya]

I have to say I knew that at one point renji, ikkaku, yumichika and iba were in the same squad with kenpachi but good god you managed to paint a beautiful picture for me. I simply assumed that for them it was simply party time all the time along with a few bald jokes but this is much better. Emotionally healthy squad 11 which still love fighting more than anything. I always cringed when someone would just describe them as hooligans that do nothing but fighting. I mean they do that too but I love the idea that they are all emotionally healthy and mature, a loving and supportive family to their own - in their own wakka doodoo kind of way thats endearing - and of course they are in my opinion they single capable force against sexisim. Because they don't care about anything else - gendere, sexuality, gender performances, race, mentality or anything - other than if you fight good you respectable and if you fight good in squad 11 you family. ( like when kenpachi just became captain he made yachiru his lieutenant and no one was against it no one thought it was beneath them, sure thru nag at her sometimes but that's mostly in a banter like way because she call them stupid nicknames but no one hates her for being unrightfully their superior. One day they got a new captain and a new lieutenant that's a child and they just went with it.) I admit their disdain and disrespect to squad 4 is still frowned upon but I do believe some squad 4s can handle their own, it's just that we saw the really peaceful ones. Anyways sorry for ranting. Just wanted to say that yeah, I really like how the past squad 11 with iba and renji in it was a great place in general. I think if they found out some one was being sexist - for whatever reason - they would be there right next to nanao - or iba's mom protesting. Kenpachi and yachiru as well. And that makes me want to be squad 11 ,despite not being much for fighting, so bad.

So, for starters, thanks! I try to have fun whenever I write Squad 11, and I’m glad you enjoy my take on them.

My Squad 11 is just... really not very canon, though. Canon Squad 11 is actually pretty gross and sexist. Yumichika is transphobic, Kenpachi makes homophobic remarks about Yumichika, they bully Squad 4, there’s a filler episode devoted to a guy that Ikkaku bullied for, like 100 years because the guy lost his reiatsu saving Ikkaku’s dumb ass.

When you write fanfic, you occasionally run into these more problematic aspects of the source media, and you can choose to dig in and analyze them, or just... remake them in your own way. Take for example, Gin. If you read fanfic about Gin, there are some people who will peel away the layers of him and his fears and insecurities and still make him be a horrible gremlin, and it’s really stellar writing. Other people prefer to write him in an AU where maybe less bad stuff happened to him, and he’s more mischievous than sociopathic, and this is a less meaty interpretation, but it’s also more fun. Sometimes fanfic is a meal and sometimes it’s candy. It fulfills different needs and different fantasies and all of it is welcome.

Yumichika, who for me is the fulcrum of Squad 11, presents this problem. I really don’t like the way his “appreciation for beauty” plays out in canon. He doesn’t actually appreciate beauty, he just likes telling other people they’re ugly. I don’t think he’s ever pointed out beauty in anyone else aside from himself or his zanpakutou. I remember the first time I watched his fight with Charlotte and it struck me as so off -- why wouldn’t he find her beautiful? I mean, I know it’s a transmysogynistic joke, that’s why, men dressed as women is funny, hurr hurr, but Yumichika is gender nonconforming himself. This was an opportunity to make a cool character point, and Kubo took the cheap laughs road instead. Going back to what I said last paragraph, a skilled writer could, in theory, write about his insecurities and his brittleness and meanness and write a pretty compelling story, but a) Kubo certainly doesn’t, and I have never actually found a Yumichika-centric fanfic of this nature, and b) this doesn’t fit the role I need him to play in my stories. I am rarely really interested in writing about Squad 11 for its own sake. I like to write them as a backdrop for the period of Renji’s afterlife where he hit absolute rock bottom and bounced back up again. We already know the role Ikkaku played in this, except that Ikkaku is a complete moron in terms of mental health, and I really, really felt like this is where Yumichika needed to come in.

I like to massage Yumichika’s character a bit, but I do want to keep the flavor of some of his character flaws-- he’s still shallow and mean and judgy, and I love that for him, but I like to add in a positive side to his appreciation for beauty. Having Yumichika make fun of Izuru’s pores is funny but it’s even funnier if he’s just given Renji a compliment on his hair first. The idea that a Yumichika compliment is attainable makes all his drags the more vicious. Yumichika also judged people by their beauty instead of their moral character, which is humorous to me. He dislikes Byakuya as a person, but is obsessed with his haircare regime. I like to have him treat Rangiku as an equal, beauty-wise, and a person whose opinion he respects based on her aesthetic. Rangiku is actually a pretty savvy and very emotionally intelligent person whom many people write off because she likes to present herself as a lazy airhead, so in an extremely convoluted way, this all works out. I like to think that Yumichika’s ideas of beauty are also caught up in boldness and risk-taking and having one’s outward presentation ring true to their inner self. To me, this is the core of why he loves Ikkaku. To him, Ikkaku’s devotion to doing the most Ikkaku thing at all times, no matter how stupid, is irresistibly sexy. 

Aside: At some point, I decided that the fact that a lot of people in Bleach have colorful marks on their faces and elaborate hairstyle and accessory games implied that make-up in Soul Society is gender neutral. I like to think there is actually more of a divide between the nobility, who like their make-up to follow rules and be classy, and, well, Squad 11, who like to get make-up ideas from Jem and the Holograms. I don’t even wear makeup (I don’t know how and it’s expensive and I am ashamed of myself, we can talk about my own gender presentation later) but I like to write about both my male and female characters wearing make-up. I don’t actually know how my readers feel about it, but it just falls under the “Is that what people want?”/“It’s what we do” philosophy of all my writing.

I think one of the theses of my writing is that middle management is more important to the character of a squad than the person at the top. Captains sort of act as ideals to strive for, but they are generally unapproachable for one reason or another. Yachiru is more like her captain in this respect (which makes sense, since she is, in fact part of her captain). Ikkaku and Yumichika present this dual idea that 1) strength is awesome, fighting and being the best is awesome, and 2) part of strength is presenting yourself to the world in a bold and confrontational way. (The fact that both of them are hiding huge parts of themselves is laughably ironic). Kenpachi and Yachiru are shining examples of Do Whatever You Want and Be So Strong That No One Can Stop You. 

What really makes this work is that you need someone one layer down-- does anyone actually subscribe to this nonsense, and that’s why Iba - Abarai Squad 11 is Best Squad 11. I really, really enjoy the genre of Reddit posts where a total bro will find out that his girlfriend is trans and react by becoming a vehement advocate for trans rights. I love the bodybuilders typing encouragement to each other meme. Our world is flooded with disingenuous messages from concern trolls trying to tell us why being kind and inclusive to one another is bad or that you should reject help because struggle makes you stronger and the idea of a Himbo looking at something like that and saying “that seems dumb" is delightful to me.

I actually feel like there are a lot of awful people with bad ideas in Squad 11, it’s just that Renji and Iba don’t put up with their shit, and over time, that becomes the culture of Squad 11. I think that Squad 11 has incredibly turnover, but the ones who stay are the ones who subscribe to the ideas you mentioned-- fighting is what matters, if you wanna go argue about shit, go join Squad 5. In the IkkaYumi story I wrote, which happens shortly after Zaraki takes over, a ton of people leave. The Bount Arc (which I know a lot of people skipped) features a dude who was extremely pissed off because he had liked the old Kenpachi and thought Zaraki sucked and was so mad about it that he betrayed Soul Society. You might think that this arc would feature Zaraki caring about this in some way shape or form, but he really didn’t. So, I think there are a lot of Soul Reapers that took issue with serving under a little girl as a vice captain, they just aren’t in Squad 11 anymore.

Oh, one last note on Iba’s mom. I am of an age where a number of my friends have mothers who were Second Wave Feminists. The moms in question are a real mixed bag, because they Came From a Different Time, and on one hand, you have to respect what they went through, and on the other hand, they are very difficult to get along with. I liked the idea that Iba has always chafed against his mom and her big personality, and then Renji comes in, and is like, “hey, your mom is strong as hell and she has a lot of ideas that I never thought of but they make sense” and Iba realizes that, even though she’s still a huge pain in his ass, his mom is the person who made him who he is. Moms are complex.

Uhhhh, I have definitely lost the thread of wherever I was going with this post. Thank you for enjoying my Squad 11, which is nothing like canon Squad 11. Hopefully maybe this year, I will actually finish my Squad 11 Self Care story, where Renji stops being a drunk disaster person after Yumichika teaches him how to fill his brows; I got stuck on a part where Rangiku gives Renji a talk on ethical sluttery.

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #433

“i really wish that you could help, but my head is like a carousel: i’m going ‘round in circles”

Would you rather visit Rome or Spain? Rome. Do you really care what’s going on in celebrities' lives? Depends on the person. If I have a big interest in them, like Mark, then yes, because I care about that person and want to know they're well. Have you ever broke a plate/bowl? Accidentally. Has anyone ever drunk called/texted you? I don't think so. Can you do a backwards London bridges? Hell no, I'd bust my ass and spine. Are any of your pets “overweight”? Why the quotations? But anyway, no. Has anyone ever bought you a ring? Yeah. What has been the most traumatic experience of your life? Does it still bother you? The breakup with my first real bf. And well yeah, it resulted in PTSD. It sounds so overdramatic, I know, but I'm not even remotely exaggerating. Live a day in my head and tell me it's not actual trauma. If you knew you had the right person, would you marry them today? God no, not right now. I am not in a position to be married right now. Think back to your most important relationship, was it all your fault it’s over? My damaged side wants to say yes, but I know to be realistic, we both failed in unique areas. He didn't communicate, and I just put too much weight on him. What was your first alcoholic drink? A Mike's Hard Lemonade. What were the first lessons you ever took? Ummm I want to say choir? Did you ever go to a mental hospital? Multiple times. Do you believe that weed should be legalized? Yes. Have you ever had a significant other with a mental disorder? Yes. If you could transform into something, what would that something be? Uhhh idk. Maybe a cat? Out of 10, (10 being really shy) how shy are you? Oh, easily a 10. When was the first moment you discovered love? I actually don't really know the moment I realized I was in love w/ Jason. It was a gradual thing, so no one occasion stands out. What’s the best mistake you’ve ever made? Well, I suppose accepting Jason's Facebook friend request because I thought he was a different Jason. I can't think of many good mistakes I've made... Even the one I mentioned, it's debatable how good that one was. I really do wonder how different my life would be if I declined it. What do you think of frogs? I love frogs! They're so cute and derpy. :') Who did you last worry about and why? My cat, because he was apparently hiding somewhere and Mom couldn't find him. Who did you last feel sorry for and why? Sara, because of health stuff she's dealing with. Is there a name that you can’t stand but it’s the name of a loved one? It sucks, I feel like this burning in my stomach a lot of the time when I hear "Ashley" because that was Jason's girlfriend after me. But I have a sister with the same name. Are you currently looking for a new place to live? I'm not, and I don't think Mom actively is, though we both want to move. When did you last make up a baby’s bottle? I don't think I ever have. Well... maybe once? idr Do you believe there’s a devil? No. Have you ever felt an earthquake? No. Have you ever been on an island? Yes, actually. Did you watch the last presidential inauguration? I've never watched one. Have you ever been a fan of The Killers? I don't consider myself a true "fan," no. I only like two songs that I know. Do you have your own lighter (why or why not)? No, because I don't need one? Do you believe in miracles (why or why not)? No. I just don't. Everything has the have a cause and reason. How often do you sleep naked? Never. Are you looking forward to your prom? If you already went, how was it? I went twice, and it was fun. I especially loved having the pictures taken that I regret wiping from the face of the earth. Prom itself was pretty bland each time, like you can't hear shit and they just play awful music, but still. I was a teenager with a very fairytale outlook on love and wanted to just feel like I was in one I guess. Do you prefer Quizno's or Subway and why? I don't think I've ever tried Quizno's, actually. What’s one of your best memories from during a rain storm? I don't know. Why did you need your most recent x-ray and what were the results? It was to see if I broke my foot, I think? If that's the one, then no. I also had my legs x-rayed at some point to see if they could find any damage there because of my extreme weakness in them, but there wasn't. Do people more often mistake you as being younger or older than you are? I actually don't know. Have you ever made out with someone you weren’t dating? No. Do you know anybody who was abused? Yes. Have you ever touched an elephant? No. How many siblings do you have? I have five I "count," but I do have another half-sister on my dad's side that I don't know. I want to, but yeah... it just hasn't happened. Do you get bored of your girlfriend/boyfriend easily? I've never gotten bored of any s/o I've had. Who do you want for president? I voted for Biden. Do you think abortions are horrible? No. Forcing someone to undergo what can easily be considered a traumatic experience is horrible. Do you enjoy drama? Ugh, no. Have you ever had a guinea pig for a pet? I've had a few. Were you/are you popular in school? No. I was very much under the radar and mostly stuck to myself and a small group of friends. What brand clothing do you wear the most? No clue. Have you ever studied any new age or occult religions such as Wicca? Yes, actually, when I was leaning towards Neo-Paganism. I did research into some of its branches, such as Wicca. Are you a wrestling fan? Not at all. I honestly think it's dumb. What’s the longest movie you’ve ever watched? I want to say Troy? It never felt THAT long to me though because I love it. Have you ever been on a subway? No. Do you think spending a ridiculously large amount of money on one designer item is stupid? It sure as hell isn't for me; I lean towards people can spend their hard-earned money on whatever they want, BUT I do feel that they could still spend their money on more important things. Do you find baths relaxing? No, they gross me out. Do you have any hats? I probably still have the hat Dad got me at a Carolina Hurricanes hockey game somewhere, but idk where. Has any part of your house ever been flooded? Not on the interior, no. Have you ever been interested in learning about murderers or murder cases? Not especially. Is there anyone that you’re worried about right now? Who and why? I'm just about praying Sara's new med for her POTS helps. I think me worrying how Jason is doing after his mother's death is gonna be a permanent fixture in the back of my head... If you won a lot of money, would you donate any of it? To what organization would you donate it? Oh, absolutely. I'd have to do some research first, but the Trevor Project comes to mind immediately, as well as ones that protect wildlife, help the mentally ill, fight cancer... Are you a competitive person? What are you most competitive about? Not really, no. I have my areas where I'm more likely to feel it than others, but it's generally mild. I'm not too sure what I'm most competitive about, but maybe outdoing other hunters in WoW since that's my main class that I've played religiously for years. Have you ever adopted a stray animal? Yes. What do you appreciate most about your parent(s)? The fact they somehow still support me even though I'm like... this. I feel like I should've exhausted their faith by now. Do you believe America should legalize drugs? If you think they should legalize only some drugs, which drugs do you think they should legalize? I only support the legalization of weed. What is your biggest turn-off of a person (besides physically)? Arrogance, probably. Or being aggressive/explosive. What song cover do you like better than the original? "Sound of Silence" by Disturbed, for one. That one's easy. If you could find one long-lost friend of the past, who would it be? Megan. I want her to know I forgive her and miss her friendship. What holiday do you enjoy the most? Christmas. (: Were you born in the state you live in? Yep. Have you ever lived in a house that has been broken into? No, but almost. Who do you know that watches the most sports? Probably my dad? Idk. Do you like South Park? Not really. Are you good at bowling? No. Made out for more than 3 minutes? Three minutes is nothin' lmao. Have you ever gone snorkeling or scuba diving? If yes, what’s the coolest thing you’ve seen? No, but I'd love to. What’s your favorite filling in chocolates? Caramel. What do you remember from sex ed class when you were younger? Abstinence was the only option. Heteronormativity. What’s the first instrument you ever played? Ha, a recorder back in elementary school. Have you ever had a friend break up with a bf/gf for you? Essentially. We didn't date, but that's why he broke up with her, because he wanted me instead. Do you see a bright light at the end of your tunnel? I don't like thinking about this. I can only hope there is, but I doubt it a lot. Have you ever waited in line overnight for something? No. Is there such a thing as being too rich or too poor? "Too poor" is very obviously a thing??? "Too rich" is more complicated to me, as I can see both sides to it. Like it's your hard-earned money, but at the same time, is it really necessary at a certain point? Like start donating regularly or something. Do something good. Do you think having an expensive phone is a good investment? Depends on how expensive, I suppose, and what you use it for. What’s your largest bill? Electric, gas, phone, etc. I don't have any of my own bills. It's embarrassing by this age. Do you like your job? I'd like to even have a job... What is your favorite song and why? "False Flags" by Massive Attack, because it's so poetically haunting in its message of how fucked up politics are. Its monotonous tone also adds another layer of sadness to it, like a reminder of how "normal" and bland and unsurprising everything is, no matter how horrible... I could honestly probably write an essay on how I interpret the song, especially if you add in the incredible symbolism of such a simplistic music video. Are you introverted or extroverted? I am very introverted. If you’re married and your spouse cheated on you, would you forgive them? Nope, byeeeee~ Who knows the real you the most? Sara, really. How old is the oldest person you’ve had sexual relations with? He'd be 27 now. Have you been upset the past few days? My PTSD has been kinda vicious the past couple days, especially today. Then earlier at my nephew's b-day party I had to nearly bite my fucking tongue off with that family's political bullshit. My anger really flared up a few times hearing despicable shit, but I think I concealed it fine by just not saying a word. What’s the craziest thing you’ve ever thought of doing for a job? Nothing "crazy," really... Who was your first celebrity crush? Jesse McCartney had my young heart, ha ha. When did you last see or speak to someone you dislike? Why do you dislike this person? Today, at my nephew's aforementioned b-day party. I in specific don't like my sister's husband because he's sexist, racist, homophobic, bigoted... I could go on and on. We don't just have "different opinions," we have different morals entirely. When you listen to music, do you generally sing along, or just listen? I almost always just listen. I don't sing a lot. Can you remember the last time you felt emotional? What was the reason? Today. PTSD is a bitch. What if you were told that your life has to stay exactly as it is right now, and nothing will ever change? How would you feel about that? Quite honestly, I don't think I would want to live anymore. Have you ever been to the hospital for something really serious? I'd consider an OD on cold medicine to be serious, but then again, I experienced almost no effects from it. Idk if I just got fluids fast enough or what, but whatever it was, I'm thankful for. Are you excited for winter? UGGGHHHH BRING IT ONNNNNNN. Have you ever had a moment with someone you like that seemed like a movie moment? Many. What are you listening to right now? "Down In The Park" by Marilyn Manson. What’s your favourite flavour of iced tea? Tea is gross. Have you ever been to a casino? If so, which one(s)? No. Have you ever visited a sex shop? I haven't. Have you ever ridden a bicycle through a busy city? NOOOOOOOO. I could never do that. What’s your favourite place to get pizza? Literally Domino's, lmao. I am so basic. Do you have a lock number or pattern for your phone? No. There sure isn't anything important on it. What’s the most number of people you’ve ever lived with? Five.

[abuskinswarrior]

find our way back... part 6

here’s part six y’all! summer classes are kicking my butt ngl, but we gotta do what we gotta do right?

Tag-list: @pprettyboyreid @genuisgub @ataidyl (it’s not letting me tag you) @andiebeaword @dreatine @cncopmwhoore @sixx-sic-sixx @nanocoool @kookiescooky3 @fatefuldestinies

~~If you want to be tagged on this, let me know!~~

Warnings: none,

Summary: Persephone enacts her plan, causing trouble for Spencer.

Words: ~3416

part 5 | part 6 | part 7

Spencer was beyond pissed. His alarm didn’t go off in the morning, making him rush to get ready in the morning. He needed to do laundry as all his clothes smelled as if they had been dragged through dirt, and to top it all off, he had to make a quick stop at the hospital for more blood. His mind was racing as he drove to work. He couldn’t help but think he was missing something as he drove. He was going to be late and he was hoping Emily wouldn’t say anything.

Persephone was a nervous mess. She pulled her hair in a messy bun that may or may not have taken her an hour to perfect. She had pulled a few strands out, framing her face. She decided to not put on any makeup and put on one of her favorite dresses, a lacey white sundress. It had an open lace pattern around the waist while everywhere else had another layer of cotton underneath. It fell just short of her mid thigh. She looked at herself in the mirror, breathing, twisting her body around.

“You look perfect.” Persephone looked at Iz through the mirror. “Stop worrying so much.”

“I can’t help it.” Persephone smoothed down the bottom of the dress, looking out the window. “It’s pretty sunny out today.”

Iz walked in the shadows of the room, getting closer to Persephone. “Uh, uh. You will not use the weather to get out of doing this. We’ve been planning this for a week. Also, I would have wasted my energy looking for this.” Iz dug into her pocket, pulling out a small ring.

“Oh, you found it?” Persephone moved closer to Iz, grabbing the ring from her hand, placing it on her ring finger. The band of the ring was small, holding together two small stones, one amethyst and the other peridot. 

“Yeah, and it wasn’t easy either. I found like 50 rings! Why don’t you have all of them together?”

“I don’t know.” Persephone was still admiring the ring. “That’s a smart idea though.” 

“Great,” Iz rolled her eyes, placing her head in her hand. “Well, you’ve got your ring, the weather isn’t an issue anymore, you gotta leave now if you wanna beat Spencer.”

Persephone wrung her hands together, letting out one more deep breathe. “See you later!” 

Persephone stood in front of the building, looking up at it. “Sixth floor, come on,” Her heels clacked on the floor, as she approached the front desk. It hadn’t taken her long to get through security, although she did move things along, skipping a few steps in the process.

She stepped into the elevator, pressing the button for the sixth floor, her guts rearranging her insides. She bit down on her lip watching the numbers slowly move upwards. As the sixth floor dinged, she closed her eyes, expelling all her nerves in her breath and stepped out of the elevator. She walked down the small space, opening the clear doors into the bullpen. She kept her face neutral, looking around the area.

Many people didn’t pay much attention to her, moving around her with files and items. She noticed a woman sitting at her desk, her blonde hair falling in her face as she was hunched over writing frantically. Persephone walked towards her, her heels alerting the other woman of her presence.

“Excuse me?” The woman looked up, doing a double take. “Do you think you could help me, Agent,” Persephone read the nameplate. “Jareau?”

JJ looked at this mysterious woman. She had a small smile on her face, her brown eyes holding a sense of warmth. JJ was at a loss of words. If someone was to ask her, she would describe her as beautiful. JJ cleared her throat before speaking.

“O-of course. What can I help you with?” JJ put on a smile as well.

“Is Spencer Reid in yet?” Persephone asked fully knowing he wasn’t.

“Actually no, not yet. I could leave a message for him?”

“If you could point me to his desk, I can just wait for him.” Persephone wanted to throw up. She has never had to act this nicely before and it was tiring her out. JJ pointed over at his desk, Persephone following with her eyes. “Thank you Agent Jareau,”

JJ nodded and as soon as Persephone turned around, she whipped out her phone, paperwork forgotten.

JJ: BULLPEN!! NOW!!  Penelope: emergency?? JJ: JUST COME!!!

Penelope shot out of her chair, walking quickly as she could in her wedges towards the bullpen. She walked through the doors, heading straight to JJ’s desk.

“JJ? What’s wrong?” Penelope’s worried tone brought JJ out of her thoughts.

“Look,” She pointed at Spencer’s desk where Persephone was flipping through one of Spencer’s books. Penelope looked over, also doing a double take.

“What’s Persephone doing here?”

JJ gawked at her. “You know her??”

“Spencer asked me to look into her the other day. I asked if they were together and he said it wasn’t like that.”

“What did you find out?” JJ stood up, grabbing Penelope’s arm.

Persephone mindlessly flipped through the book. She hid her smirk as she listened to the two blondes talk about her.

“Tara, Tara,” Penelope grabbed Tara’s arm as she walked through the doors, passing JJ’s desk.

“Whoa, what?” Tara asked. 

“Hot chick at Spencer’s desk. We need the 411 on her.” Penelope spoke quickly.

“Isn’t that your job?” Tara raised her eyebrow at her. Penelope waved her arm.

“Go talk to her!” 

“Why me?”

“You two are desk mates, it makes the most logical sense.”

Tara rolled her eyes. “I’m gonna go talk with Emily, you speak to her.” Tara walked away from the two of them, walking into Emily’s office.

“Fine, I will.” Penelope huffed, fixing her dress before strutting over to Spencer’s desk. JJ tried to stop her, but instead, walked over to Matt’s desk. She took a seat at the desk, pretending to do work there so she could listen in on the conversation.

Persephone glanced upwards at the colorfully dressed woman stopped in front of her. 

“Hi, I’m Penelope.” She stuck out her hand. Persephone smiled brightly, standing up, taking her hand.

“Nice to meet you, I’m Persephone.”

“I know,” Penelope's eyes widened, as Persephone raised an eyebrow.

This must be the person that looked me up. Persephone let out a small laugh. “I didn’t realize Spencer talked about me.”

Penelope let out a small breath. “Oh, he’s mentioned you in passing.” Lie. “He did not do you justice.”

“Thank you?” Persephone tilted her head, playing with the hem of her dress.

“Oh, that’s a compliment. You are very beautiful.” Penelope’s wide smile affected Persephone.

“Thank you, you’re very pretty as well. I love your dress.”

Penelope blushed, waving her hand. “How do you know Spencer?”

“Oh, Spencer’s-”

“Garcia, are you going to introduce your friend?” Persephone peered over Penelope’s shoulder, an older Italian man and a younger Mexican man were standing behind her.

“Oh, uh,” Penelope couldn’t form a sentence.

“Hi, Persephone, pleasure to meet your acquaintance.” Persephone took a few steps forward, placing a hand on Penelope’s shoulder, holding the other one out for the two men to shake.

“Luke Alvez.” Luke was transfixed on Persephone. She felt familiar to him, but couldn’t place where he had seen her before.

“David Rossi,” David kissed Persephone's knuckles. “The pleasure’s all mine.”

Persephone bit her lip, a small blush creeping across her face.

“I didn’t know Penelope had such beautiful friends.” Luke spoke smiling.

“She’s not my friend.” Penelope shook her head. “She’s Spencer’s.” Both Luke and David look at each other, their eyes widening slightly.

Spencer stepped out of the elevator in a huff. He was only ten minutes late. He went to open the doors of the bullpen, but stopped when he saw the group of people surrounding his desk. He furrowed his eyebrows, they seemed circled around someone. Someone he couldn’t see. He pulled the door open.

Penelope was the first to turn. She looked at Spencer who was still standing near the door in confusion. Penelope waved him over, moving over, nudging Luke to move as well. When they parted, Spencer’s movements still, his brain went into overdrive.

His eyes started from the bottom, taking in all of it, her smooth tanned skin, the natural curve of her body. Persephone was standing in the middle of the circle. Her body was angled away from, he could see part of her face. Her lips curved upwards, tilting her face, her slender fingers tucking a piece of her hair behind her ear. She laughed at something David had said while Spencer took a few more steps forward. Persephone’s eyes wandered, noticing the movement and then turned fully to look at Spencer. 

Spencer was utterly confused. What was she doing here? At my work? How long has she been here? What has she told them? “K-Kore,” The words left his mouth with his breath, the only one to hear it was her. Persephone smiled at him, too sweetly, and that’s when Spencer moved.

He rushed forward, Penelope and Luke stepping further away to avoid getting knocked over. Spencer bent down, wrapping his arms around her waist, squeezing her and picking her up.

“What the hell are you doing here?” He whisper shouted in her ear.

Persephone wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling herself closer to him. “To see you, silly.” 

Spencer hated how her voice was too high pitched, it was too preppy, not her at all. She wanted something and he couldn’t figure out what. Spencer placed her back down, her hands still resting on his shoulders.

“I wasn’t expecting you here?”

Persephone tilted her head to the side, feigning confusion. “But, I thought you would have something for me.” 

Spencer was painfully aware of everyone surrounding the two of them, not even trying to pretend they were busy doing other things. Spencer wracked his brain, trying to figure out what Persephone’s game was, he barely registered Penelope's gasp.

Persephone waited patiently, staring into Spencer’s eyes. She started drumming her left hand on his shoulder, but he seemed too far into his own mind to notice. It wasn’t until she looked away and Penelope, whose mouth was covered with her hands that Spencer was able to think clearly.

“Penelope, are you alright?” Persephone tore away from Spencer, who grasped at the empty space she was once in. Spencer looked up facing David who had an unreadable expression on his face.

Penelope shook her head, grabbing Persephone’s hand, staring at the ring on the finger. “Who gave this to you?”

Persephone smiled, looking back at Spencer’s head. “My husband.”

Spencer closed his eyes, putting his head in his hands, swearing. He felt the eyes of his team staring him down and he raised his head, turning around, keeping his eyes steady on Persephone.

“Can I speak to you,” He pulled Persephone’s arm slightly, pulling her away from Penelope. “Privately.”

Persephone nodded as Spencer pulled her out of the bullpen and into the hallway. She turned her head around, giving a small smile and wave to his team.

Emily wasted no time. “Penelope,” When she turned, Emily pointed at the computer on Spencer’s desk and she sat down on his chair, pulling up the video feed of the hallway. Everyone gathered around, watching the scene play out.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen Spencer that angry.” JJ stated. Spencer’s entire body was rigid. He pulled Persephone in front of him, her back facing the wall.

“Look how calm she is.” Luke said. “I mean, if I saw Spencer like that, I’d be pretty scared. She doesn’t even bat an eye.”

“How long have they known each other?” Tara asked.

“I don’t know,” Penelope responded, zooming in closer. “He told me ‘it wasn’t like that’.”

Spencer used his arms, moving his entire body, pointing towards the doors of the bullpen. Persephone stood relaxed, watching his face. She played with the hem of her dress. Her eyes narrowed, responding to something Spencer had said and he caught it. Spencer lowered his arms, dropping his head slightly, running his hands through his hair.

“Whoa, did you see that?” Matt pointed at the screen.

“They’ve known each other for while based on their reactions to one another.” David chimed in.

Emily narrowed her eyes at the screen. “Whoever she is, she’s been in the public eye.”

“What makes you say that?” David asked.

“Look at the way she carries herself. Something Spencer said has made her upset, but look at the posture, nothing but her eyes gives it away. Trust me I’ve pissed off enough royalty to know that look.”

Spencer took a step forward, blocking Persephone’s means of escape and her back hit the wall. He placed his hands on either side on her head, leaning in. Persephone smiled, leaning forward to whisper something in his ear and while doing that, pushed Spencer back, turning their bodies so his back hit the wall.

“Whoa,” Penelope’s eyes widened.

“Penelope, I know you’re going to look into her more so I would expand your search to international as well. I’m 95% positive she’s connected to royalty in some way.” 

Persephone placed a small kiss on Spencer’s cheek, turning towards the bullpen. Penelope closed the browser as everyone else scrambled to look busy. Persephone walked back into the bullpen, heading straight to Spencer’s desk, grabbing a small item on his desk. She turned her head to where Penelope stood, next to Tara’s desk.

“It was really nice meeting you all.” Persephone smiled at her.

“Oh, you as well. I hope we get to see more of you.” Penelope smiled politely.

“Really? Maybe we should get together for dinner. Here,” She grabbed Penelope's phone. “I’ll send you the location.” 

Tara and Penelope watched Persephone leave the bullpen and talk to Spencer while waiting for the elevator.

Spencer let out a breath of relief. He ignored the stares of his team, walking into Emily’s office.

“I need to leave.” He turned around, not bothering to wait for Emily’s response. Emily followed after him, but was stopped by David. He just shook his head.

“He needs to figure this out for himself.”

Persephone sent Penelope a message the next day of the location for dinner.

Seph: Here’s the location! Invite everyone, dress fancy. my treat! Penelope: :)

Since yesterday, Penelope had run Persephone’s number through the database, as well as running an international search on her. She knew it was wrong, but not being able to find anything on her bugged her to her core. She sent out in a group text relaying what Persephone had sent getting a chorus of thumbs up. Everyone wanted to know about this mysterious Persephone. The only person that hadn’t responded was Spencer.

Penelope: Everyone’s in! JJ and Matt were wondering if they could bring their spouses Seph: Of course! The more the merrier! Penelope: Spencer hasn’t responded… Seph: Hmm, that’s alright. I don’t doubt he’ll be there!

Persephone stood outside the restaurant she had picked out, her phone in her hand. She enjoyed talking to Penelope. Her good hearted aura drew her in and she was excited about getting to learn more about everyone. She needed to figure out what she was going to wear. Heading back to Iz’s Bar, she raided through all her clothes, throwing them haphazardly.

“Seph, could you be a little more careful with your clothes?”

“Huh, why?” Persephone barely paid much attention, finding the outfit, gracefully maneuvering between all her clothes towards the jewelry cabinet.

“Because just one of these could pay off all the loans on this place!” Iz threw her hands in the air. “How’d it go?”

“We got into a fight, but his team is really nice. They seemed to really like me.” Persephone held the dress up, looking at the different jewelry. “I’m taking them out for dinner so we can get to know each other!”

“What was the fight about?” Iz walked over, helping Persephone zip up her dress, smoothing out the edges. The dress was a deep red, falling down to her feet. It was strapless with a plunging neckline. The light bounced off the dress making it sparkle.

“‘Why are you here, in my place of work? Are you trying to ruin my life? As if they’d actually like you without your cute princess act.’” Persephone imitated Spencer.

“You look stunning in your dress.” Iz helped Persephone braid her hair. She made a makeshift crown on her head, leaving the rest of her hair to fall down her back in loose curls. “When was the last time you wore this dress?”

Flashback -Italy ~1632

Persephone ran down the corridor, giggling as she bit into the cherry custard she had stolen from the kitchen. She turned the corner almost running into someone.

“Ah, Annette, you scared me,” She chastised her great great great granddaughter.

“What are you doing?” Annette asked her. “If the king find out,”

“Oh please, I have the king wrapped around my finger. For anyone that’s concerned, you’re his daughter and I’m his Imperial Consort.” Persephone ran her hand across her collarbones.

“Rumors are spreading about you though,” Annette pulled Persephone into an empty room. “How the king is pursuing a woman almost as young as his own daughter. What must people think?”

“Just have some fun. It’s not like we’re planning a coup. Loosen up, have some fun. Don’t you have a lesson soon?”

Annette sighed, giving up. “Fine, but you also have to go and learn diplomacy rules and law.” 

Persephone smiled. “Now you’re getting it. There’s a ball tonight, the king is looking around for suitors for you, so be on your best behavior.”

Persephone opened the door, looking both ways before walking into the corridor, Annette following closely behind. 

“Will you come by and help me into my dress?”

“Of course,” Persephone poked Annette’s nose. “You have to help me as well. I’ll bring the dresses around later tonight.”

Present Day

“The night Annette got engaged.” Persephone looked over at the clock. “Oh, I have to go.” She finished putting her jewelry heading downstairs.

“Driver, let’s go.” 

“You hired a driver for tonight?” Iz smirked.

“No, he’s always been my driver,” Persephone smiled at the man in the tux. “Isn’t that right Arnold?”

He smiled at Persephone. “That’s correct. My family has been driving you around for as long as I can remember.” 

Iz shook her head. “You’ve had a driver all this time, and you still make me take the bus whenever you want to hang out?”

“You’ve never asked,” Persephone shrugged her shoulders heading outside, waving a goodbye. “Oh,”

Iz turned around. “Hmmm?”

“You can take one of those dresses if it’ll help you out with your loans and stuff.”

“What I couldn’t!”

Persephone smiled. “Really it’s fine.” She walked out leaving no room for argument.

Persephone sat in the back of the car, making small talk with Arnold as he drove. “How’s the honey? Your kids alright?”

“She’s doing fine, has her hands full with our youngest. Bo’s been running around breaking everything, including himself.” 

They both laughed. “That’s great.” Persephone got out of the car, Arnold helping her out. 

“Thank you, if there’s anything you ever need, don’t be hesitant to ask all right?”

Arnold nodded. “Of course.”

“Don’t stray too far, I’ll call you when I’m ready.”

Persephone stood by the host, waiting. She smoothed down her dress, nervous. She wanted to make a good lasting impression. If Spencer’s friends approved of her, then maybe Spencer will finally see her.

Emily and Penelope got out of the car, glancing at one another as they entered the restaurant. The smooth white tiles, the sounds of their heels clacking against them. One of the walls was a giant fish tank. 

“Wow” Emily let out a low whistle. “Are you sure this is the right place?”

“Yeah, I triple checked.” The two of them walked towards the second entrance.

“Emily, Penelope,” Persephone rose her hand, waving over the two agents.

Emily and Penelope stopped in their tracks for a moment before resuming. “She looks like an actual princess.” Emily whispered.

“She is,” Penelope whispered back. “Or least was, Her grandmother was the queen of a small country near Italy. I don’t know what happened though. Files are still being gathered.”

“Well, I guess we can find out tonight.” The three of them smiled at one another, ready for tonight’s events to unfold.

[quixotic-writer]

Switch it Up (Sal’s POV)

request: @birdgirl1772

summary: For some mysterious reason, Q and Sal wake up in the other’s body. After a quick pep talk they both agree that they’ll pretend to be each other for the day and hope they’re back to normal the next day. As Sal does some cleaning around Q’s place, he stumbles upon a journal and can’t help but give in to curiosity and dive into what’s between the lines of Q’s rambles.

———————————————————

“meow!” Was all I heard as I feel something small and warm curl up against my face. I feel myself slowly rising from my sleepy state and it’s quickly replaced with confusion. The moment I manage to open my eyes, a black cat was mere inches from my face staring down at me with beady green eyes.

“AAAH!” I let out a scream and fall out of bed in attempts to distance myself away from the cat. When I screamed though, it didn’t sound anything like my voice at all, it had a low bass to it and felt as though I spoke with an accent. My hand shoots to cover my mouth and my eyes are wide and I can hear my heartbeat in my ears.

As I look at everything that surrounds me, I am now quickly noticing a list of things: this isn’t my room, there’s — not one but— THREE cats surrounding me, and my voice isn’t mine, nor is this body. I look at the tattoos on the arms but my vision feels so blurred that I can only make out the shapes of them. I quickly pick my now sore body up off the floor and rush into the bathroom.

“Q?!” I spat to the reflection in the mirror with a sense of shock and awe. I stare at each and every detail of the body I now reside in, familiar with it because it was my best friends, but it all felt dysmorphic at the same time because his body is built entirely different from mine. I knew this body wasn’t supposed to be mine, but I was still the one controlling it and there’s no escaping that it seemed. I bring my hand to my face and rub it across feeling the stubble of the beard tickle my palms and finger tips insuring that this wasn’t a dream.

As I continue to play around in the mirror and marvel at the sticky situation i’ve found myself in, I feel the cats begin to brush up against my legs and mewl. I jolt at the sensation and feel the anxiety of my feline phobia well up in my stomach, but there isn’t much I can do since they seem to think i’m Q.

“I guess I should feed you guys, huh?” I speak down to the cats who chatter in response. I step out of the bathroom to head downstairs but I suddenly jump at the sound of a phone ringing. Looking to the nightstand I see Q’s phone ringing with my contact ID lit up on it. ‘Sally Boy♡” it read, a very effeminate name for me. It didn’t bother me, it was actually kind of cute.

“Hello?”

“Sal! Thank god you picked up. What the hell is going on?!” Judging by the sheer panic and the speech pattern and also the blatantly obvious answer: it was definitely Q on the other end of the line. Is that really what my voice sounds like to other people?

“I guess we switched bodies or something. You don’t have anything important to do today that would need me to be you... right?”

“No, I don’t have anything. Do you have anything I have to do for you?” I pry into my memory to think of the seemingly endless list of things I usually have to do, but to my surprise nothing really comes to mind.

“Pretty sure I got lunch with Gatto today, nothing else I can think of. But check my calendar in my phone just in case, and for the love of god DO NOT destroy my house.” The line goes dead and I know Q doesn’t wanna hear it. He’s the complete opposite of me as far as cleanliness goes, if even one thing is out of place if I ever get back to my own body, he’ll never hear the end of it.

I turn on my heels and go to feed the cats as I had initially planned, carefully tip toeing around them so I don’t touch them or stomp on them on accident. As soon as their breakfast is made and served, I retreat upstairs to get myself cleaned up. It’s still a shock every time I walk past any reflective surfaces and see the i’m not actually me.

I brush my teeth, comb my hair, wash my face; the normal things anyone does when they wake up. As I go to spray some cologne, I get a quick whiff of it and just soak in the scent. Q always did smell hypnotically good to me, every time he walked past a gust of it would hit my nose and I would just stop what I was doing to take it in.

“That sounds kinda creepy.” I say out loud to myself and my thoughts come to a halt. I step out of the bathroom and take a look at all the details of Q’s room. It’s a mess to say the least. Clothing everywhere, it looks like he hasn’t dusted in here in ages, his work desk in the corner of his room is riddled with piles upon piles of paper and is completely disheveled. I know this isn’t a matter of a “system” going on, I just know he has a hard time keeping up with things sometimes especially when his depression weighs down on him a little harder on certain days.

I step over to his desk first to try and make sense of the clutter and piles and try to organize them so that he’ll know where they are and why they’re arranged so specifically.

“Notes from a meeting. Notes from another meeting. Paid bill. Fan mail. Contract.” I shuffle through and assign them a pile until I reach a composition book at the pit of all the papers. The front has nothing written on it so I saw no harm in peeking inside and turning to the first page and reading it.

My therapist suggested I started keeping a journal/diary since I tend to lose track of time and have a hard time remembering certain things. It seems stupid but why not give it a shot.

I stop reading immediately and my eyes go wide and pause on the last word I read on the page. This is his DIARY, I can’t be reading this. I flip the pages and see almost half the book is filled with endless scrabbles of words of what’s going on in his head. I’ve never been good at reading Q’s mind quite like he can with mine, he’s always so closed off about his emotions and curiosity is enticing me to read every word on these pages.

“This is so wrong.” I say holding the notebook closed with my forefinger creating an open gap of temptation between the pages. I look around quickly and look back down at the notebook and slowly open it back up. “Maybe... skimming things wouldn’t hurt. Right?” And with that, I was nose deep in the notebook.

Today at set we filmed Sal’s punishment, it was payback for the time the boys thought it would be funny to put tarantulas all over me. I went in early to play with the little cats and kittens that were brought in for the day and I had never felt happier. Nothing brings me more joy than to just be around animals. That joy was quickly taken away though. It was funny at first seeing the little kittens all over him. It was all just mild discomfort it seemed, it wasn’t SCARY since they were small and harmless to him. But when we brought in the actual cats, that’s when I really started feeling bad. He was drenched in sweat, his throat seemed hoarse from the sheer panic and stress to the point where he could barely get anything out, his body looked like it was ready to concave on itself because of the situation. I was laughing with Joe and Murr, but deep inside, I felt guilty because it was all my idea. I caused him pain. I know it’s a part of the game we play, but something about it just didn’t sit right. I just wanted to go and help him and hug him until he felt better. I wanted to say sorry over and over but I knew it would kind of raise some suspicions. So instead I kept quiet and played along... At least at the end of it I helped ease the tension and brought out Big Benjamin Cat. Sal seemed fine after that, and I think that’s the only reason it won’t really bother me for a while is because he was okay after it all. I hate seeing him hurt.

He felt bad about my punishment? This was truly news to me. The way he talked about it too, it seemed so endearing and despondent about the whole situation. Now i’m intrigued and enraptured by what’s within this book, all inhibitions have been thrown out the window and I quickly flip through a few pages and land on another page.

After today’s therapy session, i’ve noticed myself talking a lot about Sal. I love Gatto and I love Murr, let me preface all this with that. But I feel this magnetic connection to Sal that I don’t think i’ve ever really felt with anyone. He gets me even though I don’t tell him a lot, he’s just there for me. When I do tell him stuff, he handles it like it’s glass; He gives it a lot of care and attention. There’s no one else who makes me feel the way I do. It feels like this growing thing for a long time and I really don’t know what to make of it. I’ve tried sorting out all of these thoughts and emotions that go through my head with him, but I really just don’t know. I’m a grown man still confused and I think that’s what makes it hard. It’s also kind of scary because for so long i’ve just been seen as your standard single and sleeps around kind of guy and i’m kind of growing tired of that image but I can’t just wipe it away when its been stained on me for so long. I just hope one day I can sort this shit out and be honest with myself.

With each page that I devoured, I felt as though I was peeling away the layers of an onion and was slowly getting to the heart of it all. With each sentence it felt like I was suffering from whiplash because I kept doing double takes to all the seemingly outlandish remarks. What caught me incredibly off guard was the endless ramblings of me, his infatuation with the idea of me. The image of the mental ideas of Brian Quinn was slowly being pieced together like a puzzle with this journal. Without realizing how much time had passed or how much I had read, I had finally reached the last and most recent entry, the one that sent my heart into an inferno.

I think now is a good a time as any to finally come clean with myself. It’s time i’m honest with myself and I stop holding myself back, no more lying to myself, no more blind blatant ignorance, none of that. I’m Brian Quinn, and I admit it: I have fallen in love with my life long best friend Sal. Wow. It feels oddly invigorating to finally get that out of my system. Maybe my therapist was right about this journal thing. Yes, I love my best friend but I don’t know what to do about it. He’s honest with me and said he wouldn’t mind being with a guy and that gave me a small spark of hope, but I just don’t know if i’m a guy he’d be into or not. It could be an unrequited love situation for me and it would hurt a lot to have my heart crushed like that. But honestly, I don’t care if he doesn’t love me back, I just don’t ever want him to disappear out of my life. That’s what’s stopping me from just spouting it out and telling him the truth. I don’t want to scare him away, I don’t want him to feel awkward around me, I don’t want things to change for the worse. I just want Sal, in the sense of his presence, his companionship, his friendship. That’s all. Maybe one day i’ll have the confidence to tell him, but for now i’m just happy that i’m confident enough to tell myself the truth.

I sat there for an unknown period of time. I leaned back in the chair with my mouth slightly agape and brushing a hand through my hair, unsure of how to process everything that I just read. It felt like a guilty pleasure to finally know all of this about someone I thought I had pegged pretty well.

There’s one big detail that stood out loud and boldly to me: Q, my best friend, has fallen for me. It’s so crazy to read what’s on his mind and watching him figure this out and realize what the emotions were page by page.

I close the notebook and place it with all his other books neatly in the little nook of the desk and finish tidying things up. After another hour, his room was back in livable shape. I smile and beam with pride at my handiwork and hope this helps him feel a little more at peace in his own living space.

Just as he was headed downstairs, a knock on the door echoed through the quiet home. When the door opened, I was startled to see myself standing before me, forgetting for a brief moment that I wasn’t in my own body.

“Fucking hell Q, you could’ve at least texted.” I had a hand over my chest as my heart rate begins to subside from the mild scare of seeing myself standing before me. Q rolls his eyes and looks down and beams with jubilation to see the three cats prowling towards him.

“My babies!! Daddy’s home!!” He kneels down and gives a happy helping of pets and scratched to each one of them.

“So how’d lunch with Gatto go? Did he suspect anything?” Q picks up Brooklyn in his arms and cuddles her close and they both step into the house and seat themselves on the couch.

“Went fine. He did say that ‘you’ were acting strange today, he just said that i’ve been hanging out with Q too much. Little did he know that it was me!” He chuckles releasing Brooklyn from his arms and watches as she trots away. “How were things here? You seem fine with the cats since you’re not dead and none of them are missing.” I think back to the little notebook upstairs but try and play things cool as to not give anything away, he’ll talk to me when he’s ready. It’s not my place to pry at his emotions.

“Things were fine. I did tidy up your room though, just thought i’d help you out a bit. If and when we switch back, just ask if you need help finding anything.” I smile to him and he smiles back, it was a bashful smile and it made my heart melt. “Did you wanna order dinner or something?” I say into the silence of the living room.

“Well considering this technically is MY house, I say we eat my favorite pizza: a hot pepper pie from my favorite pizza joint. However, since you’re me, you’re gonna have to order.” I roll my eyes and open up my phone and see that Q has the pizza place’s number saved and on speed dial in his phone.

“Okay Q, c’mon dude you’re kidding me. Speed dial?” He gives a cheeky smile and shrugs his shoulders.

We order and eat the pizza and talk to each other about our experiences in the other’s body. Q got to experience the wonders of my sleep apnea, he told me how startled he was when he woke up with my mask on his face. I told him of how the cats wouldn’t leave me alone because they thought I was him, it got a hearty laugh out of him since he knows how uncomfortable they make me.

“Thanks for cleaning up my place Sal.” He says as we clean up our pizza mess.

“Yeah, it’s no problem. It’s hard to find time to keep things in line with our schedules, thought i’d help out a little.” He pauses for a moment and goes to play with his fingers and realizes he doesn’t have his usual ring to fidget with. He’s nervous and that was one of his tics, but I pretend not to notice and I wipe down the table.

“Sal, uuuuh... Weird question but did you clean my desk?” I know where he’s going with this.

“I did. Books in place, papers in stacks. Why?” I say innocently.

“There’s a... There’s a notebook... it’s for my therapist and stuff... sensitive info in there.” He’s sweating and his eyes are pleading that I don’t know anything. The guilt hits me harder than ever now, but I can’t do that to him, I don’t want to shatter that trust.

“I didn’t snoop around man, it’s none of my business and this is your space, I respect it even if i’m in your body.” His tensions seem to ease in that moment and his shoulders slumped to a relaxed position. I feel like crap lying to him like this, but if it means his comfort, then it’s a harmless white lie. I mentally make a promise that nothing I read would ever leave my memory, and that’s all it will ever remain to be: simple memories.

“Okay, thanks man. I’m gonna head back to your place and hope that when I wake up i’m surrounded by my cats and not a face full of apnea mask.” He jokes to me as he gathers his stuff to head back out.

“Make fun of my sleep apnea all you want, but now you know the pain I live with!” I joke with him as I let him out. We said good night to each other, and just like that I was left alone in the silence of Q’s home. It was late already so I figured I close this night out already and head to sleep.

I cleaned myself up and prepared for bed, slipping into a pair of pajama pants and brushing my teeth. I took one final look into the mirror hoping that when I woke up, I wouldn’t need a mirror to see his face. All I want tomorrow is to just give Q a hug as myself again.

I crawl into the sheet with the cats cuddled up against me. The cats have kind of grown on me today, dare I say that maybe I learned to love them a bit today. I close my eyes and shift around until I was in blissful rest.

When I woke up at last and opened my eyes, I saw as the husky rays of the sun shone through my window and the familiar hun of my sleep apnea machine filled my ears. I peel it off my face and rub off the sleepy sensation from my entire face. I lean over and grab my phone to see a text from Q waiting for me

We’re back in business baby!

Was all it read and I smiled to myself. I walked to the bathroom and was met with the delightful sight of my true reflection. It felt so good to be back in my own body, in my own house.

I head to the kitchen and fix myself up a griddled PB and J and sit at the table and eat with nothing but my thoughts to occupy me. Through that whole mess, I didn’t question the switch, I didn’t question why then. I only had one lingering question that seemed so insignificant:

What happened with Q and that lunch with Joe. I wonder if he found out some of my own sensitive information and didn’t say anything just like I had. Maybe one day I’ll be able to solve, but it just won’t be solved today.

———————————————————

A/N: Just wanted to say I loved playing around with this idea so much, that soon i’m gonna write this segment from Q’s POV ♪( ´▽｀)

[v-t-holmes]

MCR songs rated by how many of the Bandori bands could and/or should cover them

romance: no lyrics, but it has roselia vibes 1/5

honey: afterglow vibes, but also popipa (and also I want Rimi for the screaming parts), they might be kira kira doki doki but they also covered a song entirely about sex and god knows ... is pretty dark too, 2/5

vampires: roselia and afterglow both seem like the type to cover this, 3/5 for the third possibility of yukina and ran covering it together

drowning lessons: once again, afterglow and roselia or a yukina and ran cover vibe, but also RAS, 3/5 + 1

sorrows: afterglow, and RAS and glitter*green vibes and also ran, layer and yuri deserve to say fuck 1/5 + 2

halos: lets just go ahead and say that most of the bullets album has afterglow vibes, but this one also has hello happy world! vibes, harohapi is the kind of band to cover stuff you wouldn't expect them to 2/5

turnstiles: it does have afterglow vibes but should any of them really be covering this song 0/5 + 1 bc I trust yukina's dad with it (also i googled him after writing this, why is he so pretty excuse me)

monroeville: afterglow/5, ran has the range

best day ever: clearly, afterglow, 1/5

cubicles: just like approximately 100 times previously, this has clear afterglow vibes, but also roselia, maybe glitter*green too, 2/5 + 1

demolition lovers: everything but screaming in this song says roselia bc screaming is very un-yukina-esque, 1/5 + ran would totaly scream

helena: fits roselia the best, but it also has afterglow or glitter*green vibes, maybe even RAS, but at the moment they don't have the emotional depth for that yet, 2/5 + 1.5

give ‘em hell kid: realized that bullets and three cheers have afterglow and roselia vibes respectively, but their imagery is exactly the opposite. that being said, both roselia and afterglow could do a great cover of this song, 2/5

to the end: just like a bunch of times before, roselia and afterglow, 3/5 for a possibility of yukina and ran cover

prison: Hello!!!! Happy!!!! World!!!!! I do not take constructive criticism on this one, 1/5 let kokoro tsurumaki say motherfucker

i’m not okay: guess the band it starts with a and ends with fterglow (also can somebody put this song over the tied to the skies mv i have a theory they fit together), also roselia, but only for the 'i'm okay (trust me)' part bc i want ako to have the 'trust me' line, 3/5, popipa, harohapi and pasupare together give the song another point

ghost of you: it could very easily be a roselia song, 1/5

jetset life: una otra cancion para roselia to cover por favor 1/5

interlude: it may be a short song but yukina's vocals and roselia's sound would fit it way too well 1/5

venom: realistically, afterglow and roselia would be most likely to cover it, but someting about it says 'cutesy idols should get away with singing it', so I'd want pasupare to cover it, but also popipa or harohapi, 5/5, *please*

hang ‘em high: oh yeah afterglow totaly, but more importantly, harohapi, 2/5

deathwish: nobody will be surprised if I say Roselia and Afterglow would cover this, right? also I just noticed there's lots of christian motives in the three cheers songs, 2/5 + Jesus

cemetery drive: why are most of the songs so fitting for Roselia and/or Afterglow (i mean it's fitting but please give me more to work with mcr), 3/5

never told you: it has strangely popipa and harohapi vibes, and I'd fear for my thumbs if it was a harohapi song and was added to the game, also afterglow 3/5

desert song: this song is too sad. -9293838382/5, or I'll cry

the end.: I mean yeah, afterglow and roselia, but it has Poppin'Party vibes but Dark 3/5

dead!: well since the end. transitions to this one, afterglow, roselia and popipa already have this song rights, but this one also has pasupare and harohapi vibes, and maybe even glitter*green, 5/5 + 1

how i disappear: the intro alone says roselia and the rest of the song keeps and keeps saying roselia. roselia. did i mention roselia? 1/5

sharpest lives: afterglow for this one, and maybe harohapi, 2/5

wttbp: hello happy world is legally required to cover this song, 1/5

i don’t love you: idk this song made me think of pasupare, but more realistically, afterglow or popipa, 3/5

house of wolves: the vibes say pasupare and popipa, the song says afterglow, 3/5 + i spent about 5 minutes trying to roll that R in 'i said ashes to ashes'

cancer: pasupare or roselia but please no. -2/5 I would cry and miss all my notes on the easy difficulty

mama: god. please. hello happy world. 3/5 bc pasupare and popipa also seem like they'd make a great cover

sleep: something about it just say afterglow and nobody else, 1/5

teenagers: there's something about imagining kokoro singing the chorus ... but really any of the bands could do it Well so 5/5 + 2, please

disenchanted: yukina's voice. it's made for this song. please. bushiroad do something about this. roselia/5

famous last words: yes. feels like one for all the vocalists to get together and sing, all/5

blood: fun! hello happy world! 1/5

kill all your friends: it has the afterglow vibes, but I can also see harohapi and popipa cover it what else can I say, 3/5

heaven help us: saying roselia and afterglow gets boring, popipa and harohapi is in, 4/5

my way home is through you: Poppin' Party (also afterglow but really they already have enough songs on this list) 2/5

emily: i got so focused on the comment section on youtube that I almost forgot to think of which band this would fit. most likely pasupare or harohapi, 2/5

party at the end of the world: finally we're getting to the more popipa/pasupare/harohapi vibe songs, also afterglow 4/5

not that kind of girl: i spoke too soon, this clearly has ran vibes, 1/5, afteeglow type of song through and through

all the angels: uh tough one. it sounds nice but has Very Dark lyrics, so popipa and harohapi could both cover it, but like, also roselia vibes? and maybe even pasupare, 4/5

na na na: out of the main bands, harohapi, but really, it has more RAS vibes, 1/5 + 1, let layer say fuck

bulletproof heart: it even has roselia-esque song title, what else is there to say, 1/5 + 1 actually, i feel like it also has guriguri vibe

sing: this has very uplifting vibes actually, and popipa, pasupare and harohapi have very uplifting vibes, ran is made to sing songs like that too, and god knows yukina could sing this so well, another one for all the main bands 5/5 + 2 because also RAS and guriguri

planetary (go!): HELLO HAPPY WORLD/5 AND NOBODY ELSE

the only hope for me is you: definitely a roselia type of song, 1/5

party poison: oh this simply has afterglow + aya vibes, 1.2/5

save yourself, i’ll hold them back: same as the previous one, but yukina instead of aya, 1.2/5

scarecrow: pasupare seem like the band for this song. it also has popipa vibes. maybe collab with ran? ran could honestly sing all the mcr songs. 2.2/5

summertime: the only of the main bands i can't see singing this song is harohapi, 4/5

destroya: just saying afterglow would be boring. it's popipa and harohapi you should worry about. 3/5

kids from yesterday: i mean it would be a good song for roselia or pasupare to cover, but the emotional toll this song would take on me if it was chosen on multi live is not worth it, -2/5

vampire money: listen it has kira kira doki doki vibes of popipa, and cute idols should be allowed to say fuck, and afterglow would clearly do a cover, but really, the best one for this song would be harohapi, but even more really, a 5-way collab between the five bands would be the best, all/5

we don’t need another song about california: my first thought with it was popipa, but it also has pasupare and roselia vibes, 3/5

black dragon fighting society: this song is clearly a job for harohapi and nobody else/5

f.t.w.w.w.: roselia and afterglow and harohapi show up a lot huh, 4/5 for a possible collab between ran, yukina and kokoro

mastas of ravenkroft: well, considering what this song is about, the only band who should do it is popipa, 1/5, kira kira doki doki vibes didn't stop them from covering romeo&cinderella, it won't stop them from covering this song

boy division: another one with harohapi vibes, but also more afterglow vibes (i mean look at them, they're the most emo band in the game), 2/5

tomorrow’s money: afterglow and roselia would definitely cover it, but who i really want to cover it is pasupare, 3/5

ambulance: really any of the main bands could cover this, but especially pasupare or popipa, 5/5

gun.: it has the vibes of every band honestly, and all the bands could make it sound good, 5/5 + 2 for RAS and glitter*green

the world is ugly: i mean they all could, and the covers would be nice, but is crying and eventually dying while playing a live really worth it? -5/5

the light behind your eyes: what is this, songs that would make me die before the fever chance bar showed up from making me cry? -728282/5 I don't want to die in a multi live just bc of crying

kiss the ring: can't see roselia or pasupare cover it, but popipa, afterglow and harohapi definitely could, it has them vibe, 3/5

make room!!!: it doesn't have roselia vibes, but it does have RAS vibes, 4/5 + 1

surrender the night: clearly a roselia vibes song, although afterglow and popipa have a similar vibe too, 3/5

burn bright: can't decide if roselia or afterglow would make a better cover, 3/5, maybe they should do it together

fake your death: 6/5 bc the special band should be the one covering that, even if all the main bands could do it well separately

[coffeecomicsgalore]

Unveiled Love

@smutember​

Ao3

Chapter 9 – Fantasy

“Dude.” Nino exclaimed as he wrapped his arms around Adrien in a bear hug the moment he opened the door to his apartment. Marinette narrowly missed the embrace and ducked between the two men, running over to Alya for safety. “I haven’t seen you in forever! I missed you!”

“Three weeks isn’t that long of a time, bro.” Adrien chuckled as he patted Nino’s back as he pulled away.

Nino wrapped his arm around Adrien’s shoulders and escorted him in, animatedly talking about something in secret. Marinette could see the bright smile on Adrien’s face, no doubt Nino had told him something amazing in secret.

“I’m glad you’re already gossiping with your boyfriend.” Alya chuckled as she pulled a platter of sandwiches from the fridge.

“Ooh. Secrets. Is it juicy?” Marinette asked with a curious and pleading tone.

“Apparently, not juicy enough to tell his girlfriend of ten years,” Alya emphasized the last few words as she increased her voice. “But I guess that’s fine.” She added with a pouty lip.

Adrien and Marinette laughed before Nino defended himself. “Sorry, babe. This secret is for me to know, and for you to find out later.”

“Probably a ring.” Alya stated with a wink and Nino sputtered.

“Not a ring.” Adrien defended his best friend. “Got to land that big job first, remember?”

“Yeah, yeah. I remember.” Alya added with an eyeroll. Alya had been adamant that Nino was not to propose until Alya received word that she got a job at one of the most prestigious papers in Paris. She put in applications everywhere, but only a few smaller companies have taken her under her wing. Doesn’t stop the blogger from trying her best though.

Nino walked up to Alya and squeezed her to his side, placing a sweet kiss to her temple. “Soon babe. You’ll get it. I know you will.”

“Hopefully soon. I have a second interview with Le Monde on Thursday. If I pass, I'll have to give them a journalist entry on a topic of their choosing. If I pass that standard, I’m in.”

“That’s so awesome!” Marinette wrapped her arms around Alya. “Good luck. I know you can do it.”

“Thanks, girl.”

“So, dude. How was your trip to Milan? Was it better than usual?”

“Ugh.” Adrien let his head fall back as he groaned, Nino handing him a beer in commiseration. “It was seriously terrible. Being there was supposed to ‘scare them into place’ as my father put it, but it only gave me headaches. Everyone was so terrified that I managed to get only two or three words at a time from many of the employees.”

“Dude. That’s rough.”

“Yeah, no kidding. I was stressed to the max every night.”

“Couldn't find any Italian chicks to fuck around with?”

Marinette sputtered and Adrien choked on his beer. Nino started to pat Adrien on the back to help him breathe, and Alya stopped setting up the table to turn to the two men.

“Geez, Nino. Could you be any gentler?”

“What? You know what they say... fucking helps release endorphins. Helps relieve stress.”

“Yeah, no.” Adrien finally said once he caught his breath. “Come on, man. You know I'm not looking for anything right now.”

“I didn’t say anything about finding someone to spend time with. Just someone to ease the stress of your manhood.”

“My manhood is fine, thank you very much. Plus, you know I’m not the kind of guy to do that. I find for keeps, not for sleeps.”

“But you’ll be wound up less, dude.”

“Listen, Nino. Things are finally getting settled with the new store in Milan and I just need to focus on that a bit longer. Once the transition is done, then I'll look into finding the perfect girl and settling down.”

Alya smiled at Adrien. She knew the boy loved with his whole heart and wouldn’t mess around with anyone and break theirs. She could see Adrien’s apprehension to the conversation and decided to change targets instead of subjects.

“What about you Marinette? Anyone new on your radar?”

Marinette shook her head as she sipped her drink. “Nope. School is hard as it is. I don’t need to add a boyfriend to that list of crap.”

“Oh, come on. Not even for pleasure?”

“Cobwebs, Alya. Cobwebs.”

“You know what? I know the sex is incredible for me. You two floof balls of stress need to unwind with some good fucking,” she took a sip of her drink, “...besides the ones you do to yourselves, that is. I can set the two of you up with people who could also use some good balls-to-ass action if you want.”

Marinette stared at Alya while Adrien just blushed.  

“No.” They said in tandem; Marinette harsher with her tone than planned while Adrien’s voice cracked.

Alya just shrugged her shoulders. “Fine then. If neither of you want to fuck around and have some fun, then let’s play a game.”

“What kind of game, Al?”

Alya took in another sip as she looked to Marinette. “If you could choose one celebrity or person to sleep with, who would it be? It can be a fantasy fuck for all I care.”

Marinette looked over to Adrien, and she gave him a devilish smirk. “Easy. Adrien Agreste.”

Alya sputtered, Nino gasped, and Adrien choked on his soda. The poor boy was going to die today from the embarrassment.

“Marinette!” Alya yelled.

“What?” She said innocently, before feigning realization. “Oh crap! I completely forgot that the Adrien Agreste is in the room and heard me say everything just now.”

“What the hell, Marinette? What has gotten into you?”

Marinette shrugged before taking a long pull from her cocktail. “What? We’re such good friends that I know I can say that without blushing anymore. Plus, my crush on him is long gone.”

Adrien was bright red, but gave her a devious smirk. “Wait. You used to have a huge crush on me? Where the hell was I?”

“Somewhere. I don’t know. You missed your chance to have all of this.” She said gesturing to herself.

Alya could not believe the confidence coming out of Marinette’s mouth as well as the pondering expression on Adrien’s face.  

“Well. Fuck. Guess I missed my chance then.” Adrien added with a snap to his fingers.  

Nino’s mouth was open, but he didn’t know what to say to this development.  

“Dude? Dudette? Alya?” Nino’s voice croaked as he called for his girlfriend.

“Well, I'll tell you who I would fuck.” Adrien blurted out, interrupting Nino’s thought. “Ladybug. I’d let her tie me down with that yo-yo and let her have her way with me.”

Marinette let out a strangled whimper.  

Alya lifted up her fist in solidarity. “Same, sunshine. Same. Sorry Nino, but I would fuck the ever-living shit out of Ladybug if given the chance. I’d even let her fuck me with a strap on. Just let me get pegged by her.”

“O. M. G.” Adrien said with sheer enthusiasm. “I’d let her do the same to my model ass!”

Marinette let out a choked cough and Adrien turned to her with faked worry. “Marinette. Are you okay?”

“Never better!” She managed to say, her voice hoarse.

“What does she have that I don’t?” Nino questioned to Alya.

“I don’t know. A skin tight suit? A sweet ass? Perky breasts? The list is endless.”

“Huh,” Adrien let out. “A skin tight suit? Don’t worry, bro. You don’t need a skin tight suit. Just your DJ hands would prove yourself worthy to me. Your ass is marvelous, and your pecs are mighty tight.” Adrien finished with a squeeze to his man tits.

“Dude.”

Marinette turned to Alya as Nino gave Adrien a hearty hug. “Alya, you still up to being a lesbian for a day? I need some curves in my life.”

“For your athletic ass? Sure!”

---

“Oh, you like my ass, don’t you?” Ladybug teased as she finished tying Adrien down with her yo-yo. She thanked her lucky stars that Adrien’s king-sized bed had metal slats in the headboard or she would have hung him from the ceiling instead.

“Every day since the day we met.”

“Horndog.”

“Excuse, me. I like the term horn panther, thank you very much.”

Ladybug tightened the cord a little tighter, getting Adrien to grunt. “Hm. Who knew you liked being tied up.” She peered at his gorgeous model ass as he laid on his stomach. She made sure his arms were stretched in front of him, while his legs were folded under him so she could work her magic.

“If you don’t stop talking, you won’t get your treat.”

“You mean, I get a treat? I thought you working my ass was my punishment.” He smirked knowing full well that everything would be a treat for them both.

Ladybug walked up to him, her lips twisting to a devilish smirk as she bent herself down until her face was level with his.

“Last time I checked, this was your fantasy, chaton. I already get to live my fantasy about fucking super gorgeous, Gabriel model, Adrien Agreste.”

“And is he everything you ever dream of?”

Ladybug winked and stood back up, walking back to the edge of the bed until she reached his bare ass. She looked at it as she tilted her head, before smoothing her fingers across his smooth skin until she touched the entrance to his asshole with her finger tip. He shuttered at the feeling.

“I could die and go to heaven with how amazing he is...” Adrien began to turn pink as she started to praise him, “how deliciously amazing his cock is...” she bent down to grab the straps of the toy and slide it up her legs, “how he makes me moan and scream out his name every time he fucks me hard.”

Ladybug grabbed the lube as she praised him with all the love she could give him, and she could see him visibly wiggle with excitement. With her free hand, she slapped his ass, getting him to whimper.

“Someone is excited to live their fantasy and get fucked by his dream girl.”  

Adrien could hear her squeeze out some lube into her hand. He looked over his shoulder and watched as she spread the liquid around the long silicone dildo attached to the strap-on, and he bit his lip to muffle the moans and the words that he wanted to yell out. The straps made her ass so much more juicer and delicious and he couldn’t wait to see what she could do to him.

She poured a bit of lube onto her fingertips and layered it over his asshole, dipping her fingertip into his entrance to prep it completely. She walked back closer to his ass and lined up against his entrance, then clicked on the bullet vibrator on to get the vibrations going.

“Oh, yeah.” Ladybug moaned out, feeling the bullet vibrate against her clit. She looked over to see Adrien still biting his lip, his gaze darkened with desire. She pressed the tip of the dildo into his entrance, then waited for his nod to indicate he was ready.  

Slowly, she pushed the dildo into him, taking her time until the sensations were overwhelming his mind. Moans spilt from his lips, the little gasps as she delved further into him, the praises as she told him how good he was being for taking her all in.

He gasped as she pushed the remaining bit of the strap-on into his ass, and moaned out a fuck as she held it there until he became use to the feeling.  

“Are you okay?” Adrien nodded and let out another breath. “Good. Are you ready?”

“Yes.”

Ladybug began to thrust into him, making his hard cock swollen with delight. She hunched over him, steadying herself with one hand on his hip, while rubbing her fingertips of her free hand up and down his gorgeous, muscular arms. She finally smoothed her fingers over his shoulders and down his chest until she reached his taut pecs, then rubbed her finger against his nipple until it peaked. He mewled at the sensation and she moaned in his ear, causing his mouth to open to an “o”. She did the same to his other nipple, switching her steady arm to make it work.

She then reached down, wrapping her fingers around his hard cock, and began to stroke and tug on it as she continued to thrust. Each time she thrusted into him with the strap-on, she stroked towards the tip of his cock and swirled her thumb against his slit. Then when she pulled out, she stroked him back, caressing his balls within her grasp. Every so often she would thrust into him and hold the base of the dildo to his entrance, allowing him to feel the vibrations of the bullet as she felt it against her clit.

“Fuck.” Adrien moaned out, feeling the coil begin to rattle in his lower belly.

Every time she thrust, she could feel the vibrations rattling her clit, turning her further and further on as she continued. She didn’t want to cum sooner than she planned, but taking control, watching him wither under her as she stroked his hard cock, thrusting the silicone dildo in and out of him, the mewls and moans and swears that spilled from his lips... it was becoming all too much.

She began to slow down as she let the feeling of her orgasm dissipate. She hated herself for doing it to herself, but giving him this fantasy was something on her list of things to do ever since he confessed some deep secrets that he swore he would never tell. Giving him this turned her on, and she would do this anytime he asked her to. He deserved the world, and she wouldn’t deny that seeing his ass this way made her tremble.

“Fuck, milady. I don’t know how much longer I'm going to last.”

Knowing these were his usual words when the feeling of his orgasm was about to burst, she began to thrust harder into him  

She smirked against his ear before licking the shell of it, blowing onto the wet part until he gasped. “Then don’t”

As if the flood gates opened, she could feel his cock swell until it burst, and she continued to thrust into him while stroking his cock until his orgasm spilled out completely. The moment she felt him gasp at the final spurts, she thrust into him a bit further, finally allowing herself to fall over the edge.

She gasped out as she climaxed hard, and Adrien allowed her to thrust into him until she came down from her high. As soon as she did, she fell upon his back, wrapping her arms around his waist and clicking off the bullet.  

“So- good.” Adrien finally said as he heard her breathing level out.  

“Mhm.” She moaned out, then steadied herself to pull the strap-on out of him. Slowly doing so, she heard him grunt at the movement. She then pulled the strap-on off of her, then moved over and began to untie the yo-yo from his wrists.

He laid down onto his stomach as his breathing evened out, and Ladybug called off her transformation, leaving Marinette in her wake. She laid down beside him and rubbed her fingers against his wrists, soothing them from the redness left over by the ties.

“You okay?” She soothed, kissing his inner wrists as she massaged them.

“Mhm.” He moaned out, finally opening his eyes to glare into her blue bell eyes. “That was amazing.”

Marinette agreed with his words and placed a kiss to his lips. “If you ever want to do that again.... oh man, I'll do it.”

Adrien gestured with an “hell yeah” hand motion before falling asleep, ass up. Marinette giggled as she watched him snore, placing a blanket over his naked form, and snuggling up to him and sleeping comfortably beside him.

[themockingcrows]

Companionship Through Circuitry ch. 6: Setbacks

Bro/Hal cw: blood, violence, deathclaws, and a generally bad day in the wasteland

Journeys are never without their inherent dangers. When you're living in the wasteland, it's to be expected. Doesn't make them suck any less, though.

AO3 link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20942408/chapters/64071430

     I spy with my little eye-

     “Hal, pick a new game already.”

     I can assure you this is the best game to play out here.

     “Fine,” Bro said, exhausted. They’d been traveling for days on the remains of the highway by now and there was no sign of a proper township. He smelled, his back and legs hurt, and despite having plenty of food water was always a precious commodity. He also had at least four letters to send by now, including a few sketches and schematics he’d designed after toying with the Furby body some more, in case Dave wanted to get his hands on a little guardian bot of his own. The kid was smart, even he’d be able to handle basic scripting to make a functional system for it. Surely someone else he was buddies with could figure out an AI of sorts for it, too. 

     True, it would have been easier to follow another path by now, but following the main point of the highway just seemed the best, most direct route for him. Who’s to say it was brahmin who made the trodden paths that led further into the wastes, or humans? What if it was mutants, or worse, deathclaws stalking the wastelands? Scuttling parties of mole rats or vicious dogs.

     Would you like to know what I spy or not, Bro.

     “I don’t want to know, but I’ve got a feelin’ you’re gonna tell me anyway aren’t you.”

     Correct! I’ll give you a few hints.

     Bro groaned in irritation.

     “A bloatfly,” he guessed off the bat.

     No, though it is annoying.

     “As annoyin’ as you? Why isn’t there a fuckin’ mute option on these shades..”

     Your second hint is that it’s bipedal.

     That perked him up somewhat. Bro scanned the horizon further off for signs of a city or outpost, a wanderer, a courier. Anyone. Instead what he saw was the lanky, sharply pointed edges of a juvenile deathclaw. A definite pain in the ass, but nothing he couldn’t handle.

     “...And how long have we been in deathclaw territory for, Hal?”

     Uncertain, my saved map mentions shopping centers, not deathclaws.

     “Ooh, shopping centers?” he said. “Put a peg in it, if we find somewhere to trade soon we might do a run back to grab some more supplies for trade and keepin’.”

     The deathclaw is still nearby, you know.

     “I can avoid it if I want,” Bro said, taking out his sword. A juvenile would take some fast work, but he knew he was good for dispatching the monstrosities, and people paid good money for their clawed hands, even the small ones. Hell, even he wanted some bits off of one sometime, though mostly for show. How sick would a deathclaw fang necklace be, after all?

     You appear to be approaching the small one instead of fleeing.

     “Watch and learn, Hal,” Bro said as he shifted his weight and began to run. Aching feet or not, his boots cut into the crisp cooked layer of topsoil and sank ever so slightly with each step. The deathclaw noticed him and turned, beginning to awkwardly run towards him, long limbs ungainly but just as deadly as an adult. They met in the middle, Bro’s sword singing off the armored hide of the creature’s forearms, taking a chunk with it as he went. The deathclaw lunged for his middle with a shrill noise, catching a chunk of shirt on the end of one of its spiky hands, but just missing his tender vitals. He turned, and used the momentum to slice at the space where its behorned head connected to its body, the sword sliding against softer skin. Staggered, the small deathclaw stepped forward, then tottered back unsteadily as it began to bleed out.

     Bro lifted a foot and kicked the creature backwards to its spiny back, then followed with the sword to spear its chest, cranking the blade to the side once it glanced off a rib, forcing downwards till it stopped moving. Planting his boot on its chest, he yanked his sword free and swung it in the air a few times to rid it of blood, and smirked. Fuck, that felt good. Nothing like taking out a little nightmare to give a nice rush of adrenaline and dopamine. Hell, he wouldn’t even say no to a smoke or a drink right now, ride that high long as he could.

     Excellent, now how do you intend to deal with the mother?

     “Mother?” Bro asked, about a half second before he felt something plow into him like a freight train, sending him flying and pain searing through his right shoulder blade. He landed flat on his face and skidded before rolling over, hand on his sword raising it defensively and other hand reaching for his gun.

     Shit. Shit, shit, this was definitely a mother death claw, the hide was darker than usual. He must’ve just killed one of her brood. Not a good look for someone not interested in dying in the middle of nowhere. He fired a quick two shots, missing the first and nailing her in the left eye  with the second, though it only seemed to make her more enraged after a brief second of shaking her head. She raised a hand and slashed downwards where Bro was scooting backwards, forcing him to block with a weakened grip before the second slash sang home across his chest, blood spurting where her claws shredded flesh and fabric alike. One of the straps of Bro’s bags was severed, leaving him half dragging it as he continued to try crawling backwards, firing till his clip was empty.

     Hal was urgently trying to tell him something, but Bro couldn’t hear anymore, couldn’t think, could only focus on the burning in his chest and the taste of copper in his mouth. Things were flashing through his mind as he stared down the deathclaw, who was raising both of her hands for a double slash that he wouldn’t be able to block in the slightest. Things he still wanted to do, to say. Memories.

     Dave the day he left home to travel to the city, bag on his back and barely a look back as he wove past the traps. Dave as a lanky tween, perched by his side on the counter top as he cooked an omelette for them both, telling him a joke that he still didn’t think was funny but that he’d laughed at anyway. Dave at five, sitting on his lap as he fiddled with a new project that would eventually become a birthday present game for him, looking up at him with big red eyes almost full of tears when he refused to tell him what he was working on.

     Dave, still struggling to put weight on as an infant as Bro kept him warm on the sofa through a bout of fever, trying to coax him into eating just a bit more from the bottle, wondering if he should make the trek to find a doctor or keep hunkering down and hoping it would work itself out. Being scared out of his fucking mind about this tiny, sick thing in his arms and on his chest, worried he’d break if he moved wrong.

     This wasn’t fear he felt. It was acceptance. Dave being sick or hurt was fear, even when he’d been the one to hurt him in the preparations he’d run repeatedly over the years. A deathclaw? This was his just rewards for being cocky without backup. He wanted to have time to apologize to Dave, like he always really meant to.

     He wanted to apologize to Hal, too, for not managing to take him to get his body. For getting his hopes up about Dirk and then dying with him in the middle of nowhere. Maybe the shades would get crushed by the deathclaw after he died, spare him much misery. They’d both just go out like a candle in the breeze and nobody would be any the wiser.

     A shot rang out, and blood spurted from the side of the deathclaw’s head. She staggered, stomping her sharp feet on his abdomen and legs as she adjusted her balance and snarled in alarm at the new threat. More shots, each one more precise than the last, till finally one hit the same eye he’d shot earlier, and the beast went down on top of him. Though his ears were still ringing, Bro could feel his pulse slowing down and everything going darker as the feeling of faintness took over.

     Bro. Bro!

     “Sorry, Dave,” he mumbled, blood on his lips and eyes unfocusing as red eyes stared at him. No, wait, not Dave. “Hal..”

     AMBROSE.

     The last thing Bro was aware of was a high pitched repeated beeping pattern ringing out from the shades on his face, a signal he knew so well. Anyone out here could recognize SOS when they heard it, but Bro couldn’t care anymore who did hear it.

     Darkness claimed him.

 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

     “...p. See? I think he’s waking up! Jake, push more fluids!”

     “I’m going as fast as I can, don’t you think he’d bl-........”

     “...ver if we don’t. Sometimes you have to do dangerous things in a time of crisis, just pu-...”

     “...rry chap, we’re doing our best. Why were you playing with a deathclaw mot-...”

     “...’s going under again, God damn it why don’t we have more gauze!”

     “...aid last time we wouldn’t need that many, let me check his ba-...”

     “....tting sick, stupid coat, ugh! Hand me a clo-...”

     “...ehozaphat he’s rolling in meds and chems! Lookit all this, it’s a kings ran-...”

     “...ab whatever you can, inject him with at least two, and hand the alcohol to me so I ca-...”

     “...nk he’ll make it? He’s in an awful way, Jade. We’re still at least a few miles out fro-...”

     “...re he’ll make it, we just need to hur-...”

     ...ve him. Please. Pulse is falling at an alarming ra-...

     “...re trying our best, believe me, it’s up to him if we ca-...”

     ...n’t lose him to-...

 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

     When Ambrose woke, it was to clean sheets and a bright light coming from a window. He reached up to touch his face and panicked to realize the shades weren’t on him any longer, looking around as he tried to sit stark upright to look around. Tried being the correct term, considering when he got a few inches upright his abdomen and chest sang with burning pain and forced him to lay back on an aching shoulder. Sighing an exhale, Bro took the room and himself into account.

     The room itself looked to be a standard medical setup for a scap town, shelves of supplies and a few more beds shoved into the same room with him, a shabby gray curtain sectioning the space off from another area. He was laying on a cot with the aforementioned clean sheets, which were a hell of a commodity, and wrapped what felt like head to toe in bandages. His chest had padding underneath that seemed fresh enough, as well as his abdomen, and another bandage seemed to be wrapping his shoulder. His forearms had bandages, a shift of his legs revealed smaller areas of wrappings and-

     Bro snatched the sheets and lifted them upwards, looking down towards his groin in worry. Okay. Phew. Dick still there and in one piece, no need to panic. Thank fuck.

     Were you honestly more concerned for your dick than me? Came a voice from the top of the shelves, arms folded in and tucked at an angle to not get damaged or in the way.

     “To be fair, I’ve been attached to my dick longer than you,” Bro said, giving another try at this standing thing and getting as far as sitting upright before he had to stop, dizzy. He was also connected to an IV he realized, two bags half drained already and the tether attached to his arm carefully with another bandage and some tape to keep it from moving. One of the bags was unmistakably blood. “Where’s my stuff.”

     I’m fine, thank you for asking. I can really tell you were concerned for my safety after being nearly disemboweled. I can also tell you’re just dying to know how you went about not dying.

     “My stuff, Hal.”

     In the other room, safe and fucking sound.

     “Thank you. Gimme a second and I’ll come get you,” Bro said, running a hand through his hair. He realized with surprise that it was clean instead of gritty with sand and dust and blood, freshly washed like the rest of him. Someone had taken care to wash him thoroughly it seemed. Hell, even his fingernails were spotless. Shocking. He couldn’t recall the last time he’d been this squeaky clean, it was almost a shame he didn’t remember it. “How long have I been out?”

     Almost a week.

     “Jesus,” Bro rasped as he finally stood up on shaky fawn legs, reaching for the IV stand for balance before making his way over to the shelf, naked as the day he was born save for the bandages. He groped for the shades hurriedly when he started feeling faint again, and had just grabbed them when the curtain pulled back.

     A tall girl with dark skin, shocking green eyes and long wild hair tied back into evenly sectioned ponytails stood owl eyed behind large round glasses with a single crack in the left lens, a stethoscope around her neck and familiar leftover military gear covering her from head to toe. She frowned, and immediately rushed forward to grab Bro by the elbow and middle of his back, steering him back to bed.

     “How long have you been awake!” she asked. “Why didn’t you wait till someone came to help you? Are you in pain? Do you need any water? Food?”

     “Few minutes,” Bro said, more than a little startled. He sat and covered himself soon as he could, but the young woman didn’t back off in the slightest, swooping close to shine a pocket light in his eyes, checking his pupils.

     “Has there been any bleeding? Any night terrors? Do you have any numbness or weaknesses?”

     “I feel like shit, but otherwise,” Bro said, grimacing and jerking his head back from her grasp as she turned the light off.

     “I’ll get Jake to bring some lunch in for you, I’m glad you’re not running on glucose anymore. Actually, I’m glad you’re running at all,” she said with a grin. Her canines were strangely sharp looking. “My name is Jade Harley, and I’m half of the reason you’re alive right now.”

     “Is the chap who tried to cuddle the wrong end of a mother deathclaw awake yet?” asked another voice from beyond the open curtain.

     “He is! Get some of those mirelurk cakes and mac and cheese, please?”

     “I’ll bring some of that slackjaw jerky too, I imagine he’s half starved for real food,” said the male out of sight, before Bro heard distant sounds of dishes and metal scraping metal.

     “...So what, you a doctor?” he guessed.

     “We both are, in our own right. My cousin, Jake English, is the one who spotted you first out there. The primary reason you’re alive, however, is because we’re both sharpshooters! There wouldn’t have been much left to save if we hadn’t pegged that bitch into the dirt,” she said enthusiastically.

     Bro’s lip twitched in amusement. This person couldn’t have been older than her early twenties, but she was a doctor? And a sharpshooter?

     “So who really saved me?”

     Jade’s smile sharpened somewhat, looking predatory. “I don’t think I’d tease like that when you’re still so weak. All it’d take is a cushion to take you out right now, I bet.”

     “Sorry, just. You’re so young…” he trailed off as another figure entered the room with a dinner tray. This person didn’t look much older than Jade if he was a day, face clean shaven and hair styled but messy, standing at about the same height. He looked much more solid, though, shoulders broad and chest straining a little at the fatigues shirt he wore, and his demeanor seemed much sweeter than his cousin at first glance. More innocent somehow, or somehow less aware of the intensity of their surroundings.

     “Here you are, I’ll get some juice for you as well in a few ticks. First time I’m seeing this much of your outside as opposed to your inside since we got you scrubbed down!” he laughed, setting the tray on Bro’s lap. The food smelled fresh and was warm on his thighs beneath the sheet, mirelurk cakes looking greasy and delicious, mac and cheese that smelled plenty creamy from the box, and some kind of soft looking jerky rubbed with spices that made his mouth water as much as the fresh stuff before him

     “Try to eat slow,” Jade warned him as Jake trotted back out of view for a moment and came back with juice as promised. “Hope apple’s okay! It’s what we’ve got.”

     “Apple’s fine,” Bro promised, tucking into the mac and cheese first, eyes closing in bliss. Salty, creamy, rich. He could feel it flooding his system already, a body starved for nutrients beyond the bare minimum of functioning and safety. Once he shoveled a second bite into his mouth, he slid the shades onto his face and grinned a bit when haughty red eyes looked at him. Hal was clearly annoyed, angry even, but those eyes were full of concern too.

     “We’ve got tea too, though not everyone enjoys what we brew,” Jake chuckled.

     “Their loss, it’s delicious,” said Jade with a shake of her head.

     Scans show temperature readings as normal. Pulse normal. Pupils overly reactive to light, but not abnormal.

     “I hope he didn’t talk your leg off,” Bro said. “He’s kind of annoyin’.”

     You have terminal stupidity, I propose an immediate lobotomy to put you out of my misery.

     “Will you knock it off for ten seconds and let me eat before rippin’ me a new one?”

     It’s true. The doctor said so. You’re just stupid.

     “You were snuck up on by a creature twice your size in the wasteland,” Jade pointed out with a smirk. “Though I’m glad Hal’s giving you a positive reading. He was quite useful while we were saving you.”

     “How much did he talk,” Bro wondered aloud.

     “A bit,” she admitted. “We discussed why you were traveling, though he wasn’t that talkative about details. He let us know about Dave when you kept saying his name, in case you didn’t make it. He wanted us to be sure to let him know, and to send your other letters.”

     “You’re a long way from home,” Jake chimed in, taking a seat on the nearest bed to talk while Bro shook his head and went back to eating. “But it’s all fine now. Er.. mostly.”

     “How much do I owe you,” Bro said almost immediately, breaking a mirelurk cake in half with his fork before stuffing it into his mouth. He’d worry about manners when he wasn’t sitting in a room with two strangers who’d apparently saved his life and seen him in more detail naked than anyone else had in years.

     “We’ll figure out caps in a little bit,” Jade said. “You’re going to need to stay here a while longer either way, and we had to use a lot of your medical supplies.”

     “Helped ourselves to a little bit of your food as well, but mostly it was the chems and supplies we needed at the moment. Lucky for us you were damn near carrying a medics inventory on your back!”

     “Yeah, I just got through a vault,” Bro said. “Place hadn’t been looted yet till I got there.”

     “A vault!” Jake interjected excitedly. “Was it like they say, all sterile and eerily perfect?”

     “It was full of the people who used to live there, and they weren’t human anymore,” Bro said simply.

     It was quite a show to see that many feral ghouls get put down in one go.

     “Oh, that doesn’t sound very dapper.”

     “Vaults rarely are. They’re either fulla deadly shit, full of a shit load’a nothin’, or fulla people who don’t want you to bother them because you’re all gross from bein’ outside and they know you just want the goodies they’ve got.”

     “My grandpa was from a vault,” Jade said with a grin. “He’s the one who raised both of us, taught us everything we know.”

     They traded conversation for a time while Bro continued to eat, though it waned when he finished and looked exhausted, surprised that the very act of eating took so much energy out of him. Jake took the tray away and Jade performed a followup examination as Bro settled back tiredly on the pillows. Before she left, he requested his belongings, or what was left of them.

     He had an important letter to write.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

     Bro’s head ached sickly by the time he finished writing the letter, nearly as much as his heart, and his eyes were wet. He didn’t dare to rub at them, nor to even draaw attention to them, but the fact he’d cried while pouring his fucking soul out onto the page wasn’t something he’d admit to anyone. Hal, bless him, remained quiet aside from occasionally offering a correction on a phrase to make it sound better. At first Bro had resented the dictation, but found the changes in wording to be a positive thing, eliminating double meanings. What he ended up with was the letter he’d envisioned sending Dave when the deathclaw was about to do the killing strike, and the fewer mistakes and misunderstandings that could arise from it was for the better.

     It took another few days of resting, eating, and conversing with the doctors before Bro was strong enough to go for walks around the town. First thing was first: he paid express for his letter bundle to be sent to Dave along with some money, the most recently written one marked URGENT in bright red stamped letters. Secondly, he got himself a cola and drank the entire thing in one go. The doctors had been kind enough to spot him some clothes, since his shirt was ruined and his pants were scrapped in the moment by bloodshed and emergency bandage use on top of their general wear and tear. The down side was he hated fatigues… but hey, beggars couldn’t be choosers.

     He was settled with another soda at the little bar and grill early one morning, having shared breakfast with Jade and Jake once more (his own recipe this time, which only Jake seemed enthusiastic about once they’d tasted the product), but wanting to just sit outside and enjoy the early morning before the sun really got going on cooking everything in the wasteland to death. Hal was quiet, watching as well he presumed based on the little target viewers moving around every time someone moved.

     What do you plan to do if you don’t get a reply?

     “Keep goin’,” he said with a shrug, taking a sip. “I’m not expecting a reply to any of my letters, but he knows which way we’re headed if he wants to write back. Kid knows how to use a map of settlements to send ahead of the curb if he wants to.”

     ...I was worried I lost you too, back there. But you’ve never once apologized to me yet.

     “Apologized for what?”

     For nearly making me watch someone I care about die. At least the first one had the decency to not die while wearinng me on his fucking face.

     Bro was pensive and stretched his long legs out from his seat before tipping it back on its hind legs, balancing in place as he took another sip.

     “I promise I won’t die while wearin’ you, then.”

     You f-

     “I wouldn’t wanna hurt you at all.”

     … That is acceptable I guess.

[fedonciadale]

I'm sorry to say this. I was a Jonsa Stan but you do realize (if the story had any coherent sense to it) Jon can and should be considered a WAR CRIMINAL for taking part in that horror. He may have indeed been frightened of Dany to the point of selling his soul and morals, but he sold it all the way into a massacre that can only be considered as a WAR CRIMES. Think of what Ned Stark would think? I think he'll either voluntarily go to the Wall because he can not forgive himself (rightly so) or

(2) he’ll be sent to the wall as punishment for being a war criminal (as what SHOULD happen). In real life someone like Jon who found himself on the wrong side the VERY WRONG side and someone who vocally supported a tyrant right up until she began reigning fire on their own troops should be a war criminal and punished severely ( I think its safe to say that’s what any decent person would what). That’s another thing, Jon backed away only AFTER D@ny fired on their troops, not when she reigned fire on   

(3) on innocents, not when he witnessed rape and murder. Ned would NOT have gone as far as Jon, Robb would have rather died, he would have risked the Norths and fought with North the Tyrant so that they would not be on the wrong side of history. I don’t think that if Jon kills D@ny that would redeem him, and apperantly even THAT, even after seeing the burned bodies of children he will still feel conflicted and pained about killing D@ny! I really hope Sansa realizes that he’s not the man she thought      

(4) he was when she sees KL and get over him on the spot. Even if this was a result of Jon knowing nothing aka being stupid, or his fear for his ‘family’ whatever that means to him, or his pitiful attempt at playing the game. He did it horribly, he did not know when to stop, when to muster his courage and the morals Ned taught, he did not know when to listen, he even did not know when to abandon his tyrant. In real life a person like him should be punished but this is D&D so nothing makes sense.   

Dear nonny,

I must admit that I think you judge rather harshly. There are layers. First of all, Jon has been reduced of his agency since he went to Dragonstone. Last episode he wanted Daenerys away from Winterfell as fast as possible.

Yes, he could have consipired with Varys, but he does not know Varys. We know, that Varys wanted a good ruler, but Jon does not really know this. It could be a trap for all he knows. That is the problem with conspiracies against a tyrant, you never know whom to trust. And Jon has nobody he trusts in the South.

He walks on thin ice as it is. He is already part of a campaign that is built on a lie, built on the lie that Daenerys has a claim to the Iron Throne. Daenerys is the attacker in an unjustified war, so any military action she does is in a way unjustified. But Cersei‘s rule is also unjustifiable really. Cersei just usurped the throne. It is one usurper against the other.

I think Jon knows that Daenerys is a tyrant, he might have deluded himself into misjudging how far she would go - and he would not be the first person to misjudge the willingness of a tyrant to commit crimes. Remember that there was an agreement that the troops would stop if the city surrendered.

Up to that point it was in a way normal warfare: Sure, Daenerys had the upper hand, because she managed to destroy the “anti-aircraft guns” aka the scorpions, but she destroyed the walls, attacked the GC etc. It was awful, but it was an attack helped by ‘air force’. It was unbalanced but not yet a war crime. Then the bells rang and Jon was visibly relieved.

Daenerys went into full dracarys mode and ignored the ringing bells and this was the moment, her war crimes began. Instead of directly flying to the Red Keep she rained terror on King’s Landing. And her troops, Greyworm at the head, followed. They attacked soldiers who had already surrendered, and this is when all hell broke lose. The dragon in the air, fire everywhere, the troops going nuts, raping and pillaging. And Jon in the midst of it. He tried to tell his people to fall back, he saved individuals, but he was caught in the middle.

I know it is risky to make comparisons to modern wars, but imagine being a general in an army under a tyrant, a tyrant that encourages war crimes, by showing that he himself does not care for war rules. Imagine being a general in Hitler’s army….. There were men who became monsters, commited war crimes themselves, ordered war crimes, some (unfortunately only very few) tried to dodge participating in actualy crimes, but they still served in that army and fought for it. All in all there is no way you can live in times like that and go through it and remain innocent. It is not possible. Living under a tyranny your hands will become dirty, but I would still maintain that there are layers.

I do think that Jon falls into the later category of people trying not to participate, with the difference that he did not as yet know how bad it really was when the actual battle started. I do think that one thing was made pretty clear, that battle, war and bloodlust take on a life of their own and that there comes a point where everything spirals out of control. If you want to blame someone for that, blame Daenerys. She was the person who ignored the bells of surrender.

I might have been mistaken, but I thought it was made clear, that everything before the bells was ‘normal warfare’. After that Dany did not differentiatte between foe and friend, and it all became a mess, but that was also the moment Jon tried his best. I would have to watch the episode again - which I am not going to do - but this is what I made of the chaos. He tried to call back his troops, but in war you do not have control in situations like that. Would it have made a difference if he would have turned on the people who participated in the plunder of KL? I doubt it. Not with dragonfire everywhere. And the tyrant herself was out of reach.

So, even if Jon would be tried in a modern court, he would be judged differently than Greyworm (who attacked people who had surrendered) and especially Daenerys. That probably does not lessen his personal guilt.

Now, to address another point: Could Jon have prevented that? It is easy to judge in hindsight. The difference between Jaime and Jon is, that Aerys clearly stated his intention to “burn them all” while there was an agreement with Daenerys to stop the fighting once the city surrendered. You could argue that she has broken promises before, but we know that, Jon doesn’t. Could he have foreseen that she would go full dracarys? Maybe. But Jon was not on tumblr and had no opportunity to read all our DarkDany metas. His personal experience with Dany is a bit different: She came to save him beyond the wall and she was true to her word to help with the WW. Do you kill someone because that person might become a mass murderer? Do you kill someone because she threatens your family? Jon has reasons to at least suspect that Daenerys is dead serious about her threat to Sansa, but again is that enough to justify murder with no way out for himself? Kill Daenerys and then what?  What about her armies? Will they just disband? What about that dragon, that volatile weapon of mass destruction?

Again I would like to do a modern comparison as difficult as that is. There have been 42 assasination attempts directed against Hitler. The people who tried had very different motivations, there were lone wolfs and full-blown conspiracies, and yet they all failed. Some did not care for what would become of them personally as long as the tyrant was dead, some cared very much, some tried to combine an assasination and a coup - and these were the ones that came closest. Many of these attempts were too late, half-assed, stupid .... take your pick. But at least they tried. One thing they have in common though: They all tried after they knew what he was. I think this is what we will see next episode. I think we will see Arya and Jon trying to kill the tyrant, very possibly without any consideration for their personal well-being. I do think this is very brave. If I have learned one thing from being German it is that I try not to assume that it would be easy to do the right thing living in a tyranny. I think it is easy to know what the right thing is in a tyranny - easier than in a democracy where you have to choose which party to vote for, and there is no clear cut way to say which party is the lesser evil. It is not easy to do the right thing in a tyranny, not if your own life in in danger, not if the moral scales have been disrupted for years, not if you know that you might get away when you just duck your head. Remember that Sansa did that in King’s Landing. She ducked her head - with the occasional snark - and survived. She managed to do that without becoming an accomplice - which is a rare achievement. Jon did not manage without becoming an accomplice. And remember that we are just at the beginning of a tyranny.

As to how this will affect Jon’s personal life I have no idea. I do think that he probably will feel guilty, but not necesssarily for killing Daenerys but for failing to foresee what would happen, for failing to have any control over the troops, for failing to save even a single soul in KL, maybe even for failing to take Varys on his offer. I doubt he will feel sorry for Daenerys. As to how this will affect his relationship to his cousins we will have to see.

I am sorry, that I do not agree with you anon, but I do think that the spirit of GRRM’s work is that he wants us to differentiate, to see the good and the bad, the moral dilemma etc. It is easy to see what is good and bad in a war with Ice Zombies: Cersei and Lord Glover were the bad ones there, opting out in a war for humanity. But now? It is not that easy, that is what humanity is about. It is never easy and all we can do is try. And I think Jon did try.

He doesn’t come over as exceptionally clever, especially because he could have talked with his family about all of his dilemmas. He might have tried a leap of faith and trusted Varys, but remember where he landed the last time he made a leap of faith and came to Dragonstone to negotiate with Daenerys. They took his ship and contained him on the island, and Tyrion and Varys were accomplices. And he ended up placating a tyrant to save the North.

Thanks for the ask!

[fernwehbookworm]

Your Side of the Bed

The sun was shining down and the park was perfectly warm, a breeze blowing just right to keep the heat of early summer from settling. Light filtered through the tree their picnic blanket was spread under and Lena looked over from where she was propped against the trunk to see Kara’s beautiful face. Her eyes closed and arms crossed behind her head with a soft smile playing on her lips. It was all picture-perfect. Then the ground shook. A red and blue blur lands in front of the couple.

“It’s time Kara,” Supergirl says. Kara shoots to her feet next to Lena and Lena struggles to her own.

“No! Not yet!’ Kara cries.

“ It’s them or her. You can’t have both.” Lena looks to where Supergirl pointed and sees National City falling apart. Screams of the dead and dying rise along with the smoke and fire. Kara looks around with conflict on her face, she looks physically pained. Then Kara turns back to Lena, tears in her eyes.

“ I’m sorry Lee. I thought… I don’t know what I thought. That I could have a normal life. We could have a normal life.”

Before Lena can even respond, Kara reaches out to Supergirl and Supergirl stretches out her own hand. In a flash of bright light, suddenly only one woman stands before Lena, and she knows, she just knows that Kara is Supergirl. Then the hero takes off to the sky. Lena stands there staring after the hero has disappeared. Suddenly the ground rumbles a crevice opens swallowing Lena into darkness.

Lena sits up in a cold sweat. She almost reaches out to the warm body next to her to seek the familiar comfort of Kara’s arms. Then she catches the silhouette of James in the moonlight and stops her hand. Instead, Lena stands, puts on her slippers and robe and grabs her phone. She goes to the kitchen to perch on a stool and pour scotch to sooth her shaking hands. She picks up her phone and her thumb hovers over Kara’s contact before she shakes her head and scrolls down to Sam. A quick calculation and Lena is sure Sam would be up by now from visiting the London office.

“Lena? What’s wrong? Is it the dream again?” Lena chuckles at how knowing her friend is.

“Yeah. I just can’t get her out of my head. I thought… I thought we could move past this. Be friends again. But everything is still hers. His clothes are on her side of the closet, he sits in her chair. He sleeps on her side of the bed. I tried getting all new furniture but it didn’t work.”

“Maybe because it's not supposed to. Maybe because it still should be hers.” That hurts Lena right where it would do the most damage.

“We’ve been over this. We both said things that we shouldn’t have. And being together is dangerous for both of us. Because of my family, and her secret identity.”

“Then why the hell did you start dating James?”

“Because I couldn’t stay away from her. And I was seeing her less and less. And James was there and one drunken night turned to two and then I was being invited to game nights again and how could I give that up?”

“Lena, do I have to point out how wrong that is?”

“No. I just… I’m so tired. Every time I close my eyes I see her. And I wake up and he’s there but he is my only connection to her.”

“Lena, this is the only time I am going to say this. And it’s the last time I will listen to you talk about James like this. He is not my favorite person but he is still a human being. Go to Kara. Fuck your family, forget her secret, if anyone can keep it a secret it is you. You two were meant to be together. Everything between her cousin and your brother was just the universe's way of making you two meet. Now hang up and go over there.” Sam says with a tone that would rival Lena’s own mother before hanging up. Lena sits there and stares at her phone until the screen goes black.

Her kitchen clock ticks away in the background as the night grows longer. Lena is finally stirred from her stupor when the clock chimes softly, indicating three o’clock. With a start, Lena stands and follows her best friends instructions. She grabs her keys from the hook beside the door and practically runs to her car. Everything felt like it was pressing down, crushing her at the same time pushing her forward. It feels like the world is standing still and she can’t get there fast enough. But suddenly, Lena is standing outside of Kara’s door, hand poised to knock, but then the door is ripped open and a red-eyed Kara is standing in front of her. Her cheeks are red and face a little swollen. She has definitely been crying, or not sleeping, or both like Lena.

“Lena,” She says almost too softly to hear. Lena decides to just go for it and say everything.

“I can’t do it anymore. I can’t pretend that I don’t need you. I know we both said things that we can’t take back, and honestly, I am still so hurt that you lied to me for the entire year we were together, but I can move past that. I will move past that If you just tell me you still love me and we can do this again.”

“Lena...I... What? What are you saying? What about James?”

Lena laughs through the tears she doesn't remember shedding.

“James? He isn’t you. I tried so hard to move on. To just be friends with you but then we weren’t friends. The only time I saw you was when Snapper would send you for interviews and even then you would barely ask twenty questions before leaving. And then James was there one night at the bar. And then again another night, and before I knew it I was being invited to game night again and you were there, you were smiling. God, I would sell everything just to see that smile. So I stayed with James because I am an idiot who's only excuse for not being with you was trying to protect the ‘Girl of Steel’ from my family. The same family who already knows who you are and has also tried to kill me multiple times. Kara, I can’t sleep. I haven't slept in months because he’s on your side of the bed. He is getting dinner dates and the presents that I want to be giving you. No matter what I do, it’s all still yours; the sectional of the couch where we would watch movies, the closet space, my fucking heart. It’s all yours. I know your sister probably hates me but…”

Lena’s thought is cut off as Kara yanks her forward by her robe. Kara’s lips are rough and chapped but just as sweet as Lena remembers. She’s in the apartment that had started to feel like home two years ago. Hands are wandering over clothes and layers are being shed. Kara’s lips are on Lena’s throat and it all feels like a dream.

“I am so sorry I pushed you away. I used your brother against you, I used your name against you and it is the one thing I said I would never do. I just thought it would be better to be alone because I’ve seen the heartache Kal has gone through with Louis and I didn’t want that to be you.” Kara says as she picks Lena up and carries her to the bed.

“All I ever do is think of you though. I had to leave those interviews or else I would have just taken you on that desk.” The mental image of that causes Lena to gasp.

“At least at game nights you were with James so I couldn’t do anything rash.”

James? Fuck...James. Lena thinks. Kara drops her on the bed

“Kara wait.” And bless Kara's Kryptonian reflexes because she immediately pulls away, giving Lena the room she needs to think clearly.

“Kara I'm still with James. He's at my apartment in my bed, God, I can't do this to him. He doesn't deserve it.”

“He's… in your bed?” Kara takes another step back.

“We haven't had sex in weeks, Kara. I just can't sleep alone, the nightmares are worse then.”

Kara sits down next to Lena and laces their fingers together.

“Your still having nightmares? Same ones?”

“Yes. And a new one featuring you. It's like the day I found out about you. I mean a little distorted because it's a dream. But when you had to go save those people and didn't have time to lie to me. And then my brother's men kidnapped me while you were gone. It ends after you fly off but I always wake up.” Kara squeezes Lena's hand.

“Lena? Will you stay here tonight? Just to sleep. It's late and I don't like the idea of you leaving right now. Then we can talk more in the morning.”

“I would like that.”

They lay down in a position that is all too familiar but also all too foreign. Kara wraps her arms securely around Lena and places a soft kiss on them. Back of her head. Lena sinks into the warm embrace and lets' sleep find her more quickly than it has in over a year.

Lena wakes to sunshine streaming in and warmth wrapped around her. Kara's perfume faintly filling her nostrils. It feels so safe and Lena has woken up actually refreshed. Lena is relaxing back into the bed when her phone rings in the robe she discarded on the floor. She disentangles herself from Kara who stirs and blinks sleepily at her. Lena fumbles with the cloth until she frees the phone and sees James’ contact photo. With a sigh, she plasters on a fake smile in hopes of having her voice sound cheerier.

“James! Hi.”

“Lena? Is everything okay? You were gone when I woke up.” Kara hears James’ voice and scowls.

“I just had an emergency to deal with. I'm fine. Listen, can I meet you for lunch? I need to talk to you about something.”

“Yeah sure, there was something I needed to talk to you about too. The usual place?”

“Yes. One o'clock.”

“I'll see you then, Lena.”

“Bye, James.”

Lena sighs and hangs up. She crawls back into bed and into Kara's waiting arms.

“Does this mean…”

“Yes, I'm going to break up with him. I was stupid to even date him in the first place. It was only so I could be near you and I realize how cruel that was and how selfish it was.”

“Is it selfish that I'm kind of glad you did? I got to see you  more because I didn't know how to invite you as a friend anymore.”

“We are a mess aren't we?” Lena buries her nose into Kara's neck.

“Yeah, but we can clean this mess up, together.”

“Together.”

“El Mayarah. It's my family's motto. It means stronger together.”

“Really? I didn't know. I guess I didn't stick around long enough to learn about Krypton.”

“Would you want to.”.

Lena's eyes light up at the prospect of learning something new.

“More than anything.”

Lena spent another hour listening to Kara talk about her home before returning to her apartment to change for her lunch with James. She was nervous for sure. She didn't even like this man as more than a friend’s friend but breaking up with someone was not something she did. She usually disappeared to a new city or into work until they gave up. She sat at the outside cafe table of the sub-par bistro she convened James she loved so they wouldn't go anywhere that held memories of Kara.

“Hey,” James says. Ducking down to kiss her cheek. Lena struggles not to cringe away. He sits across from her and takes a drink of the water Lena had already order for him.

“Hey, James. Thanks for meeting me.”

“Of course Lena.”

“Look I'm just going to come right out and say this because I'm not good at this. I don't think we should see each other anymore. I know we shouldn't see each other anymore.”

James sits there, mouth slightly open, shock clear on his face. Then he laughs. It's just as shocking for Lena.

“I'm sorry.” He manages as he catches his breath.

“I’m sorry. I came here to tell you I'm moving back to Metropolis. I was going to break up with you too. Lucy wants to try again and this time the other woman I'm interested in clearly is in love with someone else.” Now it's Lena's turn to be shocked.

“How long have you known.”

“Since the first night. You told me, but I kept thinking that maybe since you kept coming around you would learn to love me. But every time I saw you with Kara I knew you would never love anyone else.”

“I'm sorry James. I used you and you didn't deserve it.”

“And I knew I was being used but I went with it. You have nothing to apologize for. I hope that you and Kara can work this out between you two. Goodbye Lena.”

Lena watches as he stands and walks away, hailing a taxi halfway down the block. That went better than I could ever imagine. Lena is interrupted by the waiter coming back for her order. She throws a twenty on the table for the man's troubles and leaves, heading straight back to Kara's apartment. She knocks and is pulled in almost immediately. A blonde mass is all she sees before lips are on hers and Kara is tugging off her jacket. She feels Kara everywhere and she’s desperate for it.

“Over?” Kara manages.

“Over,” Lena confirms. Kara easily picks Lena up and Lena wraps her arms and legs around her. Lena feels a rush of wind and then she is flat on her back on Kara’s bed. Superspeed, Lena thinks. Kara is kissing down her throat and Lena tangles her fingers in Kara’s hair.

“Shouldn’t we talk about this?” Lena asks breathlessly.

“Do you want to be with me?”

“Yes.”

“Then we can work out the details later.”

A sharp chirp comes from Kara’s phone, she groans and drops her head onto Lena’s chest.

“Supergirl emergency?”

“Yes,” Kara mumbles into Lena’s breasts. Lena laughs.

“Well go on then.”

With much grumbling, Kara climbs off Lena and super speeds into her suit. She pauses back at the foot of the bed, looking at Lena with apprehension.

“You will still be here when I get back?”

“I am not going anywhere, Kara Zor-El. Just come back to me.”

Kara smiles and is gone in a blink of an eye. Lena settles back onto Kara’s side of the bed and everything is starting to feel right again.

[astrangerthingsblog]

Can it be angst or hurt comfort for the prompts? I kinda want mike to be saying the stuff about not being a kid to will, realizing that will didnt get to grow up like they did and then apologize

WILL

Sitting on the edge of his bed, Will studies every inch of his bedroom closely, as if he’s never going to see it again. Which isn’t true, exactly, because according to his mom, they will be living there until the end of summer. But since she broke the news to him last night, he can’t help but already miss the life he knows. His bedroom, the house, Hawkins – despite everything they’ve been through here.

Everything that makes his mom want to leave: his time missing in the Upside Down, him being possessed by the Shadowmonster, the trauma they both suffer because of it.

But also, everything that makes Will want to stay: all of his friends, D&D, Castle Byers. Even if all his suffering happened in Hawkins, all of his happiness is rooted here, too.

And now they’re moving away.

Will stands up and walks over to his desk, looking down on the drawings scattered across it. Lately, the subjects he has been drawing has been less happy things. Since he got taken into the Upside Down, most of his drawings have been pretty sinister. He picks up one of his older ones, tainted by childish skill, but brighter in a way he can’t draw now.

He feels a surge of anger for the life he has lost. He hasn’t felt like himself ever since everything started going down in ’83, and now, two years later, things are so different it’s like living a different life entirely. Before was about friends, play and adventure, now is about getting through each day one by one, and making sure his mom is there with him.

It hits him then, like a light switch being turned on; he’s only got one last summer. The past few years have been tainted by the aftermath of everything he’s been through. He has not appreciated being with his friends as much as he should have, and now it’s come to bite him in the ass.

The best way to spend this summer is to make sure he enjoys every last bit of it. He’ll put away his trauma, and temporarily put away the fact that he won’t be here anymore come fall. It can be the best last summer with his friends, if he puts his mind to it.

That night, after a long day by the lake, Will suggests something they haven’t made the time for in a long while:

“Guys, wouldn’t it be fun if we did a D&D campaign this week? For old time’s sake?”

“Hell yes!” Dustin exclaims. “It’s been so long since we last did. What do you say, Dungeon Master?”

Everyone turns towards Mike, who looks a little confused. His eyes meet Will’s, and he gives a small smile accompanied by a tiny shrug: “I mean, yeah, sure, that sounds fun,”

Which is how, four days later, they find themselves back in Mike’s basement around a table they haven’t sat around in a while, two new players among their midst.

Mike spends a long time explaining the game to El and Max, the first looking intrigued and fascinated by the premise, the latter looking as if she doesn’t really care too much but listening closely none the less.

When they finally get started, it’s fairly obvious that Mike hasn’t put a lot of work into the campaign planning. Will doesn’t really care, he was mostly just excited about playing again for the chance to hang out like old times, losing themselves in the game. Dustin, however, seems to be more unimpressed.

“Seriously? Mike, that was so predictable!” he exclaims.

“You’re just pissed cause you didn’t see it coming before I did,” Lucas taunts him.

“Am not. I’m just saying because it was almost identical to one of the campaigns we did last fall,” Dustin points out, leaning back in his chair and glowering at Mike. Mike rolls his eyes.

“I didn’t have much time to prepare it, I’m sorry it’s not living up to your high standards, Dustin,” he says sarcastically. They get back into the game for maybe 20 minutes before Max groans and puts her head on the table.

“This blows,” she proclaims. “It’s 90 degrees outside and we’re sitting in a sweaty basement doing this, rather than cooling off at the pool or lake?”

“Yeah, I’m kind of not feeling it either,” Lucas agrees with her, and Will feels an irk of annoyance. He says nothing, watching the situation.

“Seriously? Now you’re just pissed because you’re doing worse than me,”

“Actually, Dustin, I want to go swimming,” Lucas protests.

“El,” Mike says, turning towards El who’s looking a little confused at the turn of events. “You want to go swim or continue the game?”

El considers this for a moment, then apparently decides she wants to go where Max is going, and responds: “The lake sounds good,”

“Yeah, I agree. Let’s go to the lake,” Mike announces, and it just spills over for Will.

Standing up, he says loudly: “Seriously?! How many times this week have we gone swimming? Six times! And it’s only Thursday! I thought maybe, for once, we could do something else. Maybe it’s too much to ask that we do something we all used to enjoy. But all you ever have time for nowadays is going to the pool or the lake and chilling…”

Everyone looks at him and there’s a horrible moment of silence where Will has to process his outburst and replay his own words in his mind on full volume. Then, it all becomes much worse as Mike speaks up.

“We’re not kids anymore.” He states, and Will’s stomach sinks with the realisation that he wasn’t really aware of that fact until just now. “I mean, what did you think? That we’re just going to sit in my basement all day playing games for the rest of our lives?”

The air feels thick, almost too thick for Will to be able to breathe it properly. Dustin’s eyeing the wall awkwardly, Lucas is looking at his feet, Max is fading into the background and El is switching between looking at Will and Mike, seeming as if she can’t comprehend what is happening between them right now. Will can’t really comprehend it either.

Finally, he finds his voice again, swallowing with difficulty: “No,” Pause. “I guess I just hoped we all still had things in common,”

And with that, he leaves, with the others all too stunned to stop him.

MIKE

“Um,” Max says when Will has left. “Should we go after him?”

“He probably wants to be alone right now,” Lucas says. “We can try talking to him about it tomorrow, when he’s cooled off.”

“Yeah, okay,” she says, looking unsure.

Mike is unsure himself about what the hell just happened. One moment they were cool, the next Will was shouting at them, something Mike knows for a fact has never happened before. Will doesn’t really shout, it’s really not his thing.

“Mike,” El says, and Mike slowly manages to pull some of his attention to her, the rest still stuck on whatever just happened. “Why did you say that to him?”

“Huh?” Mike utters. “I… He was being ridiculous! Shouting at us like that as if we’re doing something wrong! We tried playing, and it was obvious none of us were enjoying it, neither was he.”

“Yes, but now he’s sad. You hurt him.” El says somberly.

Mike’s stomach twists hearing that. He shakes it off. “Let’s go to the lake. We’ll see him tomorrow.”

They do go to the lake but are all mostly quiet all the way there. It’s never a good thing fighting with a friend, but it’s like they all share this mutual feeling that arguing with Will is even worse. It’s not something that happens a lot, because Will is usually very easy going and always willing to let the others get their way. It tugs on Mike’s mind all afternoon.

They eventually start getting their mind off it, swimming and finding a beach volleyball. After a few hours, things seem mostly like usual, but the absence of Will is still obvious.

“Children!” a familiar voice cries, making the group all face the source. Steve Harrington strolls towards them with swimming trunks on, a thick layer of sunscreen on his chest and an oversized, pink inflatable donut under one arm and a towel in the other.

“Where’d you get that monstrosity?” Dustin asks, pointing to the swim ring. Steve ignores the question and instead joins their extremely amateur game of beach volleyball.

“Where’s Little Byers?” he asks eventually, and they all falter a little bit. “Something happen?”

“He’s behaving really weirdly. He got super mad at us for not wanting to play D&D and just ran off.” Lucas explains.

“Oh, well, he’s probably just upset cause he’s moving,” Steve shrugs, then serves the ball straight into Dustin’s face. “Jeez, Dustin! You okay? Pay attention!”

“He’s moving?!” Mike exclaims, his head spinning. “What are you talking about?”

“Yeah Jonathan said – wait… he hasn’t told you? Shit. I take it back! No one’s moving. Please don’t tell him I told you….”

Mike feels cold all over, never mind the 90-degree weather and sun baking his back. He looks hopelessly to his friends, hoping they have an answer to this, but they all look equally shocked and confused.

“I gotta - ” he stutters. “I gotta go.”

“Mike,” Lucas says. “Should we come too?”

Mike shakes his head, shoving his stuff into his backpack without care. “No, I need to apologize to him. If he wants, we’ll find you guys later, okay?”

“Yeah, sure. Tell him we’re sorry, too, okay?” Dustin says.

Nodding absentmindedly, Mike gets on his bike and gets out of there before anyone can add anything to the conversation.

His mind is spinning. Will can’t be moving, he just can’t. They’ve been friends since the first day of kindergarten. Will is the one person Mike knows he can count on for absolutely anything. Mike had even noticed something was a little off with Will the past couple of days, but he’d written it off because Will sometimes gets into a mood which passes after a few days.

Since when had Mike stopped letting Will know he was there for him?

He knows first hand how hard these past years have been for Will. After the disappearance, things had been different. For a while they’d all tried pretending like they weren’t, but it’s impossible to come back from an alternate dimension and be the same. But at least, Mike had been there for Will. For an entire year he was always there for him, no matter how hard things got.

Then, El came back. And it hurts to admit, but Mike knows he hasn’t been there for Will as much after that.

A part of him probably thought that things were better now, because hey, El came back, and that was the root of all their problems, wasn’t it? He sees now how stupid he’s been. El might have come back but that doesn’t magically erase everything that happened, everything Will went through.

And now, Will is moving and Mike hasn’t even been a real friend to him for the past half-year.

He only realizes he’s been crying when he jumps off his bike outside Will’s house and throws it to the ground in his rush to get to the door. He knocks, almost frantically, and jumps when it’s thrown open by none other than an annoyed Chief Hopper.

“The hell, kid?” he grumbles, but his eyes soften as he takes in Mike’s undoubtedly wild appearance. He opens the door wide. “He’s in his room,”

Mike walks quickly through the house, but pauses outside Will’s door, unsure all of a sudden. He’d been too busy thinking about everything that’s happened and beating himself up about it, and forgot to think of what to say to Will. Hesitantly, he reaches up and knocks softly on the familiar door. He wouldn’t usually knock, but it feels strangely inappropriate to just come barging in after messing up so badly.

“Come in,” a muffled voice speaks from behind the door, and Mike lets himself in, shutting the door quietly behind him.

Will is lying on his stomach, hugging his pillow and facing the other way, not even looking up to see who it is.

“Uh, hey,” Mike says awkwardly, and that gets Will moving. He sits up and looks at Mike with genuine surprise, like it’s so crazy that he would come and talk to Will. Mike wants to slap himself. “Can we talk?”

“Yeah,” Will breathes, then makes space for Mike on the bed, shuffling up to sit against the headboard and looking at his hands as they fiddle with the pillow. Mike watches his hands, too, scared to speak. Finally, he looks up at Will’s face.

“Will, I’m sorry,” he says shakily. “I was an ass,”

Will looks up, his eyes a little shiny. “No, you weren’t,”

“Yeah, I was,” Mike insists. “What I said to you was really stupid. Just because we’re not kids doesn’t mean we can’t play D&D anymore. I should’ve tried harder planning the campaign,”

“It’s okay, Mike,” Will mumbles. “I don’t even know why I got so mad. It’s okay that we do different things now than before,”

“Yeah, but you have a right to be upset when we were being so stupid about it,”

Will looks thoughtful, then looks up and meets Mike’s eyes finally. “I think I only really got upset because it feels like I never really got to say goodbye to it, you know? Or… that doesn’t make sense,”

“Tell me what you mean,” Mike urges him, scooting a little closer.

“I mean… after I got back from the Upside Down, we still played some. And I wanted to enjoy it and lose myself in it like we used to, but it was so hard when everything was weighing on my mind. The last time I really enjoyed playing was the night I got taken,” Will explains, and Mike’s heart sinks. “I guess what I mean is that it feels like I never got closure on my childhood, stupid as it sounds,”

“It’s not stupid,” Mike whispers, his eyes stinging. “Will, I should have realized. I’ve been so stupid. And such a bad friend. Ever since El came back it’s like I just forgot, because I was so happy she was home again. But that’s not fair to you,”

Will sighs. “You shouldn’t feel like you have to take care of me,”

“I don’t,” Mike says determinedly. “Will, I’m supposed to be your best friend, but I haven’t really been that. I’ve been selfish. I’m sorry,”

Will smiles, a small quirked smile. “You already said that,” he meets Mike’s eyes again, and Mike can see Will’s eyes are glassy too. “I forgive you. If you forgive me for being an ass, too,”

“What?” Mike is confused. What could Will possibly be sorry for?

“That thing I said about us not having things in common anymore? It’s not true at all. I was just upset about… something, and I took it out on all of you. I do actually like spending time with you guys, it doesn’t matter what we do,”

Mike smiles, which in turn has Will smiling back. Then, Mike looks down and hesitates again before asking. “When were you gonna tell us you’re moving?”

Will’s face falls, and he frowns sadly, fumbling with the pillow again. “I don’t know. I think I just wanted to pretend it wasn’t happening and have one last summer of us just doing what we usually do,”

“Are you moving far?” Mike asks, voice raspy, afraid of what the answer may be.

“Somewhere in Maine, Mom said.”

“What?!” Mike erupts. “Will, that’s so far away,”

“I know,” Will says miserably.

Mike starts crying again, then, and Will looks up in surprise when he does. Mike apologizes and buries his face in his hands.

“You can’t move. I don’t know what I’ll do without you here. We need you.”

Suddenly, he feels skinny arms enveloping him, and it takes less than a second for him to return the hug with all his might. They cry together like that for a while, though Mike couldn’t tell you how long.

They make promises about staying friends, no matter what. They’ll call every day, because how could they possibly go from seeing each other every day to rarely talking? And they are gonna visit each other on as many occasions possible. And they say that, in a few years, when they’re done with high school, they’ll apply for the same college and go there together.

It won’t be the same, but God help him if Mike can’t keep Will Byers as his best friend. It’s just out of the question.

-

In the end, the Byers don’t move. While it could probably have brought some peace of mind, getting away from the places where their worst memories reside, how could they ever leave their extended family behind? Joyce couldn’t leave Hopper, and she would never take Will away from his friends or Mike.

-

This got really out of hand. I asked for prompts like 3 months ago and never got to them, I’m sorry! Hope you enjoyed though<3