#also the more I look at how I did Phoenix’s hair the more I realize how his head is in the middle and his hair makes a goofy helmet

[okartichoke]

ace avian. that’s what we’re calling this 🗣️🗣️🗣️

please let me know if you have any thoughts or suggestions or input or anything! i’m happy to bounce ideas around (i'll post DL-6 someday soon i swear)

link to masterpost || explations below cut

shoutout to the anon who sent in that ask bc i seriously fell in love with blue jay phoenix. SHOUTOUT TO TAKAHE PHOENIX TOO THO takahe phoenix, you will forever be in my heart and im glad you existed <3333,, (maybe in this au he’s got some loving adoptive takahe parents :3) (YKNOW WHAT YEAH that’s canon now)

but yeah, flight-avoidant jay phoenix still lends itself well to the common-man hardworking underdog vibe i want from him. speaking of flight-avoidant...

Phoenix's relationship with flying:

It's a bit complicated. Basically, Phoenix can fly, but he historically chooses not to. From the lack of any practice, he's an INCREDIBLY weak flier. (That hovering is really all he can manage)

For one, he's still afraid of heights. Can't help that. This fear means he was less inclined to practice flying, which made him a weaker flier. And being a weaker flier, in turn, made his fear of heights worse. And so on, in a loop. With flightless parents too (it's canon now it's canon), there's even less of a reason to learn to fly. At some point, not flying might've even become something he stuck with out of stubbornness lol, knowing Phoenix.

(I will soon be making a couple small world building posts, but) flying isn't necessary to get around in their society. Convenient, sure, but Phoenix realized he could make do without, and so he did. Phoenix, you icon. Slay. 💅💅

i know this probably isn't the popular take with wing AUs??, but Phoenix being flightless (or at least semi-flightless) sounded like a really fun take on the idea to me. His name is irony at its peak. I also look forward to exploring how other characters react to him not flying. The prosecutors are going to have so many cheap insult opportunities.

As I mentioned though, he still uses his wings a LOT, though. He's much more emotive with them than most people. His sarcastic inner-dialogue remarks are also betrayed by his wings lmao

I also imagine bird-folk never really invented bikes (riding would just be annoying with their wings, plus bikes aren't fast/efficient enough to outweigh just flying), so instead, Phoenix gets around on a little wing-powered scooter device (like scootaloo lol) (they're usually made for children who can't fly yet, but Phoenix still uses one)

finally, wow, stellar jay’s are quite literally just phoenix wright as a bird lmao? color scheme, hair, it’s uncanny. give it a pink tie and it just is Phoenix Wright, i used a blue jay since they’ve got a bit more striking wings but wow.

(ty again for the support and for reading my essay ! :3)

one more thing, but @kora-kat YES YES YES this. ^^^^ omg THIS. this is still true even though he's a jay now.

[captainamsel]

Ma Xiuying from the Radiant Emperor duology!

Design/research notes under the cut

The characters read 馬秀英 (Pinyin: mǎ xiù yīng), her personal name, and 孝慈高皇后 (xiào cí gāo huáng hòu), her name as Empress.

There's certainly no dearth of material on Chinese clothing history out there. That is, if you can read Chinese, which I can't, so everything I have is from secondary and tertiary sources and/or relies on translation software. Fortunately, we're dealing with historical fantasy here, so some anachronisms are not only allowed but encouraged.

While Shelley Parker-Chan takes many liberties, the books are still set in a very specific time period, which is both a blessing and a curse. Most readily accessible resources will tell you about dynasties, which can span hundreds of years, and the duology takes place in a transitional period. So how to dress a Semu girl from the Yuan dynasty who lives with Nanren rebels wanting to revive the Song dynasty and who later becomes the first Ming empress?

Let's go through them one by one. The best resource was this book which is on the Internet Archive. I disregarded Mongol and Semu influences for the design since clothing is very much political and a way to either stand out or fit in with the surrounding society, see for example Wang Baoxiang wearing a topknot in Khanbaliq. Ma, I imagine, would want to fit in with the Nanren around her, so she's pretty much wearing the attire of Han women under Yuan rule. For the hair I went for something that looks youthful while being plausible, though I found very little on hair in this period, so who's to say.

The next one is from a specific scene in the book, so there is some description to go on: red, long sleeves with gold embroidery, high hair, red and gold ribbons. Since this is the scene where Ma declares herself queen and future empress in front of the Red Turban, it has to be a very deliberate dress. It therefore takes inspiration from Song aristocrats' broad-sleeved gowns as well as from 翟衣 (dí yī), the highest ceremonial gown of both Song and Ming empresses. (Some examples for 翟衣 are in this post, which also features the bird shaped crown I just had to include, and this post.) Her hair still has the loops, but it's much more sculpted.

Finally, Empress Ma! This is mainly based on the two actual portraits I could find of the historical figure that Ma is based on, with elements taken from other portraits and paintings. It includes 凤冠 (fèng guān), the phoenix crown, 霞帔 (xiá pèi), the sash, and 禁步 (jīn bù), the jade belt. This video shows how Ming dynasty layers are worn, but it refers to a much later period so it's not quite the same as Ma's.

(Some additional, historically irrelevant notes: I realized too late that a right-to-left timeline might be more appropriate. Oh well! Also, how the colours photograph frustrates me, I swear I did not make her this deathly pale. And finally, some of the characters look a bit smudged because my cat spilled water on them. I did what I could to save them.)

[jinkiesmariz]

So I did like three more headshots cuz I got sidetracked during a comm Anywaysssss

Presenting Malachi first :33 my beautiful lovely baby boy who is most definitely the prettiest boy in the village. Definitely would be more of a heartbreaker if like. He didn’t accidentally speak like Phoenix Drop’s equivalent of a medieval poet trying to converse with like modern day folks.

Also I gave him a bandana because everyone and their mother has a green scarf and it gets far too confusing and aggravating after awhile

Erm next is Molly :33 I do have a Molly design page I never shared and I won’t ever share cuz I never finished it ♡ anyways to me she definitely is like a waitress/head lady at a tavern with an inn on the second floor in Phoenix Drop, at least I believe she met Dale there and sparks flew between the two or something. Idk I like drawing her holding two big glasses of beer and having some level of charisma even if she’s like overbearing and shit outside of work.

And lastly Yip :3 tbh I looked at my whole doodle sheet and realized I accidentally like drew blondes vs brunettes so I ended it off with yip even tho he technically has black hair and not brown hair I like to think he has a pretty ample amount of body hair and thick wavy hair from the werewolf genes and also just cuz he’s gorgeous or whatever. The town’s big brother and I don’t really remember much sorryyyyy lol

I also think he has sharpened and slightly elongated ears but not in the way elves/half elves do but more of a weird shape idk I’ll draw it better later just guess for now

Oh and like one final thing I accidentally mistook Alexis for having a crush on Malachi and not Yip so I drew this to show how he just effortlessly sparkles before Cal told me I was wrong <\3

My beautiful boy with gorgeous lashes and droopy sparkly eyes or whatever. I would’ve drawn him with his hair tied but he would’ve looked too much like vylad to me and I would’ve gotten mad so unpractical hair it is!!!

Ehe thats all for today and probably the next couple of weeks so toodles ☆

[badgerbl00d]

one piece boys falling in love at first sight

☆ characters: ace, rayleigh, marco

☆ up next: one piece characters with a jealous gf

☆ a/n: my last post generated a lot of new followers and requests! i'm so happy and am excited to start working on all the requests. i also will be posting a master list soon so thank u for being patient with me on that front haha. enjoy! &lt;3

ace

1k words

“Welcome aboard!!”

Cheers erupted from the crew, as they all swarmed the deck.

Joining the Whitebeard Pirates was always celebrated with an enormous party. 

The sun had started to set but it still beat down relentlessly on the ship and Ace craned his neck to try and get a better view.

You were all the crew had been talking about for weeks. 

Some thief who had managed to steal from the Whitebeard Pirates and get away with it. 

He remembers how Whitebeard laughed when Izo and Thatch came moping back from inventory, nearly pissing themselves when they were forced to admit they’d been got by an amateur. 

Whitebeard had ordered that you be tracked down immediately because anyone who stole from him with that much skill and audacity deserved a spot on his crew. 

After a few weeks of searching, Izo came back with you. 

From what he’d heard you weren’t easy to convince. 

There was alcohol being passed around and the spray of champagne bottles being opened left and right misted his neck. 

He pushed through everyone and began making his way toward the front.

He eventually bumped into Marco who’d secured a front-row seat, downing beer as your fellow pirates all came to get a look at you. 

“What’s the big fuss? Can’t get any damn sleep around here,” he groaned. 

Marco laughed, “Jealous that you’re not the shiny new toy anymore?”

“Barely.”

Both men had given up on trying to get a look at you and decided they’d wait for everything to die down.

“Want a beer?” 

Ace nodded and readily accepted the cool can, chugging it within seconds.

“It’s hot as hell out here.”

Marco took another sip of his drink, “If you feel hot how do you think I feel.”

“Well you’re kind of fire too, you know, like- the whole phoenix thing is-”

“Yeah, yeah, but it’s different though.”

“I mean, you could argue that the blue fire is hotter than the red part.”

“Yeah, dumbass, but the point of my devil fruit isn’t fire.”

“Okay well, they’re close enough.”

The heat got the better of the both of them and they gave up their argument, both fairly moody at the heat and the noise. 

“When’s the food part starting.”

“Soon probably, apparently Thatch has the hots for the kid.”

Ace choked a bit on his drink.

“What do you mean? Like he thinks he’s hot?”

“She.”

This caught Ace even more off-guard. 

“She!?”

Now he really wanted to get a look at you.

After another few minutes, the crowd relented, and people started making their way back to the rest of the ship. 

As the group of cheering pirates around you thinned, you felt relief flooding your senses. 

You took a deep breath and walked on board the Moby Dick.

It was massive. Now that you could actually see it, you realized just how intimidating of a ship this really was. Of course, you’d had a general idea since you did rob it blind, but still. It was different when you were a welcome guest. 

Ace took his chance now, and as the last of your welcoming party dissipated he made his way over to you.

As if on cue, you turned to look at him. 

The sun was positioned perfectly behind your head and framed you in a sort of angelic light, it poured up and over your frame from behind you, casting golden hues through your h/c hair. 

He stopped in his tracks, one foot still caught mid-step, trailing behind the other.

You were… pretty.

The slight breeze that had been brought with sunset, swept through your hair, leaving your face completely out in the open.

Your lips were slightly parted, had you been saying something?

He didn’t know, he was too enraptured with everything else. 

You stood tall, it was clear you had pride to spare.

Your tan skin glimmered with the same regal hue as your hair, and never in his life had Ace felt that something- someone had commanded his attention so thoroughly with just their presence. 

You walked toward him, Oh my god she’s walking toward me.

He was proud and he had abundant confidence in his worth but if he’d ever doubted that, it was now that he did. 

You extended a hand towards Ace, and as if moving through honey your movement was gentle and smooth, but certain. 

“Hi! I’m Y/n, I think I’ve seen your wanted posters before. You-”

Whatever else you said wasn’t registered by the freckled boy in front of you. 

His cheeks were red and his eyes set.

He was breathing deeply, hanging onto everything you did, drinking in the magnificent sight of you.

He instinctively reached his hand up toward his head to take off his hat and hold it against his chest.

Your voice was silky and hung in the air like cigarette smoke. 

The way you looked at him, your eyes intensely focused and direct, had his knees feeling shaky. 

Any ounce of ego left in his body from the first sight of you, drained out of him as you spoke.

His brain was flushed with sudden anxieties.

Had he come across as a creep? What if you took to the other guys? He was young and maybe you wanted something else? Maybe you didn’t even want a guy at all and your ambitions involving piracy had nothing to do with men! 

You looked at him with a puzzled look, your nose wrinkled slightly.

“Are you okay?”

Fuck, she’s so cute.

If he had been less out of it, he would have heard Marco’s cackling in the background.

“Real smooth, Ace!” Thatch yelled from the balcony outside the kitchen.

You laughed, She laughed!

Ace blinked back the muddled thoughts and premature anxieties that had started fuzzing his thoughts. 

You were giggling to yourself and seemed nearly ready to try and introduce yourself to the next person. 

Ace had a million things he wanted to say to you, but he had time. You both had all the time in the world. 

So he instead opted to tip his hat and flash you a smile. 

“Hi.”

rayleigh

1k words

A quick stop, Roger had promised.

No more than two days, he’d said.

Everyone knew he was lying, and that they’d be landbound for at least a week, but no one was going to complain.

Almost no one.

“Roger, we should get going,” Rayleigh urged, but the Captain was three beers and ฿3,000 into a game of poker. They wouldn’t be leaving until morning.

Roger laughed loudly, earning stares from the bar's patrons. 

“What’re you in such a rush for?! There’re women and booze all over the island, go find some to your liking and quit complainin’!” He laughed again and Rayleigh gave up and decided he’d just head back to the ship for now. He’d send someone to pick up the captain in the morning. 

He didn’t mind the island itself. It was a spring island, and the clime sat at a gentle temperature, with easy-going winds. Tall grass covered the majority of the island and flowers were in bloom all over. 

Yellow daffodils and pink tulips littered the island, dotting the hills and fields with spots of color. 

He made his way slowly back toward the ship, taking more time than usual to enjoy the scenery. If he was going to be stuck here he may as well enjoy it. 

The sun was just about the set, and vibrant hues of orange colored the sky and with his hands in his pockets, he wandered through the hills back to sea. 

The island had no real port, there was just a bay where ships parked. There weren’t any walkways or built-in passages from which to disembark from the ship, you simply had to drop the anchor and paddle or swim to the rocky shore. The grass grew right up to the edge of the ocean, and he sat down in it, deciding he’d wait until it got dark. 

A soft rustling to his left caught his attention.

Tucked in the grass, was a girl sleeping, a book in her hands. 

She was wearing a white dress, and it moved together with the grass, back and forth, pushed by the wind.

A cool breeze ran through your body and with a slight shiver, you slowly blinked your eyes open, pushing yourself up onto your elbows, rolling onto your stomach. 

You flipped through the pages of your book, going back and forth a few times before deciding to close it altogether. 

You sat up, stretching your arms out over your head, letting your hair fall over your shoulders. 

Rayleigh was, for lack of a better term, entranced. 

He was completely hypnotized by the sight of you. 

He felt as though you’d materialized before him, a beautiful fairy or something similar.

He’d heard stories of sailors coming across women whose beauty stopped them in their tracks. Women that they thought about every night after those initial encounters, held a complete hold on their minds.

He thought that now he felt something similar. 

He felt awkward just sitting and watching you, and thought he might say something. 

A tug in his chest urged him to stand up and try and present himself, but he felt an irritating nervousness spread throughout his body.

C’mon, Rayleigh.

He was usually so… good at this. 

If he saw a pretty girl at a bar or a port or an island he would just talk to her. 

Everything after that came naturally. 

He was a Roger pirate for god’s sake, people around the globe feared him and revered him, and yet… and yet with every breath, he took to try and start a sentence he came up blank. 

The thirty seconds he’d spent trying to speak to you felt like an hour and he thought his heart might stop when you’d turned around to look at him. 

“Oh! Hello!”

He drew in a breath. 

The colored sunset light fell on your face and illuminated your features in soft hues.

Your eyes widened slightly at the man standing before you and you gave him an awkward smile. 

“Have you been standing there a long time?”

An accusatory look settled on your face, and your lips settled into a frustrated pout.

“I, um, yes,” he admitted, a blush creeping onto his face, “I wasn’t- I mean- I had just sat here to enjoy the, um-”

“Yeah, yeah, you creep, I get it.”

You laughed as you said this, and he relaxed a little.

“You’re not from around here are you?” you asked.

“What gave it away?”

“You seem surprised that someone was sleeping outside. It’s normal here, I swear I’m not some weirdo or anything. Our grass is known for being soft.”

He sat back down, slightly closer to you this time.

“What’s that?”

You sat closer to him, pointing to the log pose on his wrist. 

“It’s a compass. Pirates use it on the Grand Line, it works by using the magnetism from each island to route the way toward the next one.”

“You’re a pirate! You don’t look like one! Or act like one.”

“Don’t be so sure.”

You giggled, and he felt completely swept up by your presence. How quickly you started trusting him, the curiosity in your voice that only grew with each question he answered. 

You continued asking him questions, what being a pirate was like, why he was a pirate, and who else did he know that was a pirate. Had he killed anybody?

The more you talked, the more he started feeling like himself. His wittiness and sarcasm started slowly coming back to him, he was able to put aside his awe for your beauty in exchange for his usual flirtiness.

The dynamic between you seemed to shift back and forth between who felt bold and who felt shy. 

“Do you drink?”

“Do I look like I drink?”

Rayleigh laughed, and you joined him. 

Night had set hours ago, yet you kept talking as though you had all the time in the world.

You inched even closer to him, he sat with his legs crossed, and you sat on your knees, feet tucked underneath you. 

You were facing each other and you leaned forward, bringing your lips closer to his.

“When do you leave?”

He tucked some stray pieces of hair behind your ear, trailing a hand down your face.

You rested your head against his palm, looking up at him. 

“Soon.”

“That’s too bad. I like you a lot. You’re more than a pretty face.”

Rayleigh smiled at that, “I haven’t heard that one before!”

In a burst of energy and eagerness you pressed your lips to his, and just as quickly retracted. 

He smiled again, bigger this time, and brought his arms around your waist, holding you in place. 

You pressed another kiss to his lips, still too quickly for him to reciprocate. 

He laughed and you felt proud at the blush you saw coloring his cheeks. 

“Tell me, pirate, are you busy tonight?”

“Not at all, pretty.”

“Would you like to be?”

“Very much.

marco 

1.2k words

“Why can’t you send Ace to do it?”

“‘Cause I sent ‘im to go get fish from the market,” Thatch explained, “And before you ask, I can’t go either ‘cause I’ll be here. Cooking.”

“Alright, alright, I’ll be back soon.”

Marco threw on a sweater and made his way into the town they were staying in. Thatch was all worked up and excited since they’re known for their produce and food quality.

Naturally, everyone had been sent out to get different ingredients for him.

Marco looked down at the short list he was given, ‘Apples’. 

‘Very concise,’ he thought to himself. 

It was midday and the sun was shining. It was fairly warm on the island, and it was covered in trees. 

There were several signs that pointed him towards the location of the apple farm your family owned. 

He found it with ease and walked around for a bit when he didn’t see anyone out front. 

Every tree was teaming with ripe apples of all kinds. Overripe ones littered the floor and there were some chickens walking around. 

He had been walking for no more than five minutes before he saw you.  

You were reaching up to try and grab the apples that were up on the higher branches of the tree.

You strained your arms upward, using the trunk of the tree as support, your long legs balancing on the tips of your toes. 

Your short dress slid up against your thighs, revealing a soft tan line. 

A few beads of sweat formed on your forehead and after your third reach with no success, you gave up. 

He could feel the pace of his heartbeat start to pick up slightly. 

You looked so calm and at ease. The line of your body as you stretched upward was tantalizing and he couldn’t look away. 

He didn’t want to scare you so he gently cleared his throat.

You turned around in a panic, knocking over a few of the apples in the full baskets that were on the floor next to you.

“Oh! Welcome! Sorry! Sorry- I’m the only one in today and I was trying to get a few more baskets full,” you explained to him. 

“No worries,” Marco said. His voice was deep and he sounded so laid back. 

You were still a bit too far to converse at a normal volume so you walked to him, caught off-guard by how handsome he was. 

He wasn’t wearing anything surprising, nor was he doing anything that was out of the ordinary but you could tell that he wasn’t from around here. 

His hands were calloused and he had a few visible scars spread across the visible parts of his skin.

“What can I get for you today,” you smiled at him. 

“I was sent out for apples! I suppose I’ll take two baskets pleas-”

Marco’s voice trailed off and he cut off his own sentence as he looked and actually made eye contact with you. 

Oh, god. 

He knew you’d probably be hot based on what he’d seen earlier but you were… unspeakably beautiful. 

Your cheeks were full and bright.

Your lips were a lively pink and your eyes caught the shifting glimmers of sunlight in them.

Your hair was pulled back into two messy braids and your loose strands of hair swept back and forth over your face. 

You were unbelievably flattered. 

Naive as you were to love and its complications, you knew what a tempted man looked like. 

An unfamiliar sensation tugged at your chest. You felt like the tendons and muscles around your heart were opening and contracting wildly. 

Your breath hitched in your throat and settled itself right on your vocal cords, you couldn’t say anything. 

You both held a hilariously awkward form of eye contact for several moments. 

Marco swallowed and cleared his mind, regaining his composure to the best of his ability.

“Two of these,�� he said again, blinking his gaze down toward the floor as he gestured down toward the basket. 

You took a deep breath and nodded, grabbing another basket for him. 

They were heavier than they looked and after watching your two failed tries at lifting the baskets, Marco offered some help. “Oh, y-yes, please! Thanks,” you said, stepping back as he walked over and picked up the baskets with ease.

“How much do I owe ya?”

“Um.. j-just ฿15.”

“Fifteen?! That’s it?”

“We have, um, a discount going on right now... For handsome travelers.”

Why would I say that? Oh my god, why would I say that!? your cheeks started to rapidly heat up and you shuffled your feet nervously.

Your heart started beating faster against your chest when Marco responded, “How sweet. Take this as a tip then.”

He had a devilishly handsome smile on his face, and you looked at the money he was handing you. “Oh fifty is way too much- I can’t accept that, that’s more than the two baskets would normally be anyway.”

“Well, this is what I always tip beautiful girls.”

You laughed, trying to ignore the rising temperature of your face. 

How embarrassing to be this easily flustered. 

He smiled at you, clearly enjoying himself. 

“C’mon, I insist,” he closed your hand around the money and gently guided your hand back toward your chest. 

You pouted, feeling guilty that he gave you so much money.

“You’re sure?”

“Sweetheart, I’m a pirate,” he said, “There’s a lot more where this came from.”

His voice was full of confidence but he was so relaxed. 

It made your stomach twist.

The way he carried himself- you could tell he was dangerous, but he was so laid back. 

“A pirate?”

He nodded.

You put the money away, and played with the ends of your braids, unsure of what to say to him. 

He bent down, one arm on each side of you.

Your breath caught in your throat and you stood frozen still.

He picked up the baskets, one in each hand, from your sides.

“As much as I’d love to spend the rest of my day here, I’m afraid I have to report back soon.”

You nodded, sheepishly looking down at the floor. 

He smiled at you again, winking this time. 

He turned and started walking back toward the entrance.

You knew you’d probably never see him again and a kind of unknown anxiety made its way to your chest. 

“Wait!” you called out, running after him.

He turned around.

“Will... Will I see you again?”

This time a less nonchalant smile spread across the Commander’s face. 

“Oh, absolutely,” he teased, “I’ve got wanted posters in every town from here to North Blue.”

You pouted again.

So cute! Marco thought to himself.

“You know what I mean.”

“I can work something out.”

“What’s your name?” you asked.

“Marco,” he answered, “What’s yours?”

“Y/n.”

“Pretty name for a pretty face.”

You smiled. 

He couldn’t help but stare. 

It suddenly dawned on Marco the Phoenix, First Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates, that he was positively, undoubtedly fucked. 

You stood in front of him, waiting for him to say something else. 

“You’ll see me again,” he said, this time with unwavering certainty,

“I’ll pick you up tomorrow at 6. Don’t make plans for the next morning.”

[seresinsbabe]

Drunk Words Are Sober Thoughts

Pairing: Jake "Hangman" Seresin x f!reader

Synopsis: You're just trying to enjoy a quiet night at home when a less than sober pilot is dropped off at your doorstep. And he's spilling all his sober thoughts in drunk words.

Word count: 2.5k

Warnings: Alcohol, swearing, fluff, drunk jake. Nothing else I can think of. A/N: This is not my first fic, but it is my first fic on here. If this one doesn't flop there will definitely be more! Otherwise I will just retreat into the reader shadows xD

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“And those…god those eyes…” Hangman slurred slightly, a combination of his Texas upbringing and the whiskey in his system.

“Okay! We fucking get it Seresin!” Rooster groaned out in frustration. Frustration that Jake Seresin didn’t seem to notice in his drunken state even with Bradley’s use of his last name. It was supposed to have been guys' night out and to Jake’s defense it had started that way. Only the more liquor he consumed the more his thoughts were consumed by you. And thus had led to Rooster’s frustration when all Jake could talk about was you.

You were the only woman he’d ever gone after that had turned him down for reasons other than having a man. The only one that hadn’t fallen for his southern drawl and charming smile. Jake wasn’t used to that, but he also wasn’t used to the way it made him want you. Relationships had never been his forte. Sure, he’d had one or two, but mostly in high school and college. Nothing serious since he’d joined the navy. But you? The sweet middle school teacher with your perfect smile, curves in all the right places and sweet voice that could make the devil give up his sinful ways? All Jake Seresin could think about was making you his and only his.

Bradley knew from Phoenix that you were more into Jake than you were willing to let the man know. He knew you’d had your heart broken by one too many military men and that you were damned if you were going to let a silver tongued devil with pretty green eyes break it all over again. Normally Brad would have agreed, he would have supported you in your decision to keep Hangman at an arm's length. At first he had, then it became apparent that Hangman didn’t look at you the way he looked at all the other women. In all the years he’d known the Texan playboy he’d never seen him like this over someone. 

So by the first hour of Jake drunkenly babbling about how perfect you were he formulated a plan.

It was a typical Thursday night for you. Work had been long and you’d already decided that morning that tonight would be a self care night. Which for you included binge watching New Girl with a stuffed crust pizza and a bottle of wine.

You were giggling uncontrollably as you watched Nick and Schmidt argue over a towel when the first thunk came. It was loud and scared both you and your cat that was curled up in your lap. The time on your phone read 10:41, way too late for anyone to be coming over unannounced. You felt your heart rate increase and as another thunk sounded out you stood up, grabbing the baseball bat you kept stashed by your door for emergencies. Holding the bat in your right hand, up high and ready to swing, with your left you reached out and unlocked the door. Only when you opened it did you realize it wasn’t an intruder at all. 

“Jake?” The sandy haired pilot stood at your door and you could smell the whiskey on his breath from here. 

He grinned lazily at you and damn if it didn’t make you swoon just the littlest bit. Why was his drunk ass here, though? You knew it had been guys' night, but never before had any of the guys been dumped at your doorstep while drunk. 

 “Hi sweets,” he lurched forward, losing his stability against your door frame and you reached out, catching him. 

“Jesus! How did you get here?” Your eyes searched outside and you didn’t see his truck, but surely he hadn’t walked here. That would have been one hell of a walk from the Hard Deck to your little bungalow. 

“Cock-a- cock-a-doodle whooo,” you let out a soft giggle at his attempt to crow. You took that as he meant Rooster had been the one to declare you babysitter. You made a mental note to rip Rooster a new one come morning.

Jake stumbled a bit more and you grunted as you tried to keep the man up. He was much larger than you, taller by at least six inches and definitely carried more mass. “Okay, okay,” you huffed as you slung his arm around your shoulder. “Let’s get you into bed.” It was a struggle but eventually you got him to your guest bedroom. You helped him collapse on the bed and then left in search of water and ibuprofen. Lucky for Jake you still had some packets of pedialyte powder in your pantry from the last time Nix needed a GNO. 

When you got back to the room Jake had somehow managed to strip down to his boxers. You were thankful that his eyes were closed because had they not been he definitely would have caught you admiring him. It was like he’d been carved out of marble by Gods. This wasn’t the first time you’d seen him shirtless, but it was the first time you’d seen him in nothing but boxers in your house. 

“Sweets,” the Texan drawled out, calling for you. He’d always called you that, from the day he met you, it had never really had much of an affect on you before. Hearing it with that drunken tone of desperation made it hit differently. Your feet carried you over to him and before you had time to react he’d reached out, pulling you to him by the oversized t-shirt you had on. 

You let out a surprised squeak as he wrapped his arms around you. The bottle of pedialyte mixture and ibuprofen is still in your hands as he nuzzles his face into the crook of your neck. A familiar heat pools in your cheek and tints them pink. “Jake, come on you’re drunk. You need to drink this and take some medicine.” This was probably the nicest you’d ever talked to Jake. Though every other conversation you’d had revolved around you rejecting him to protect your own heart from his philandering ways. 

Jake harrumphed when he felt you trying to pry yourself out of his arms and just tightened his grip on you. It would be a lie to tell yourself it didn’t feel nice, that you couldn’t get used to being held by him, but Jake wasn’t that kind of guy and you knew that. “Mm want you,” he murmured into your neck.

“Jake, I am not going to hook up with you,” you rolled your eyes so hard he could probably hear it. “Especially not when you’re drunk.” You tried to push yourself out of his arms again, but again his arms tightened around you.

“No sweets, wanna make you mine.” You froze, the pills and water bottle slipping out of your hand. “Wanna be with you, my girl.” He slurred softly into your neck. “So pretty…perfect…be a good mama to our babies.” If you were a cartoon you were sure your heart would burst out of your chest with as hard as it was beating right now. There was no way Jake Seresin was drunkenly telling you he wanted to make a family with you. This had to be just the liquor talking. You wanted to get away, to go have this mini panic attack by yourself, but every time you tried his hold on you just tightened. So you waited it out and once he was in a deep enough sleep you slipped out of his arms. 

With two fingers on each hand you rubbed your temples and paced in your living room. Your mind was spinning so fast that you just had to convince yourself that it was all the liquor. Jake Seresin didn’t date and he definitely didn’t marry women, least of all you. So far you've been able to keep yourself from falling for his charm by telling yourself that all you are to him is another conquest. Another notch on his long belt. What he’d just said had meant nothing and come the morning he’d be back to his despicable self. 

After chugging the rest of the wine in your glass you locked back up. Your self care night had effectively been ruined and it seemed like the best thing to do now was go to bed. Before you settled down in your bed you made sure to send Rooster a not so nice text. To which he just responded with a sequence of mocking emojis.

Jake was still asleep when you woke up the next morning. You just hoped he didn’t sleep the whole day away. It would be much harder to get what he said last night out of your head if he was in your house all day long. Maybe it would be best if you just left to avoid any and all awkward contact. You had some errands to run that day anyway.

“Sweets?” You winced as you heard his voice, thick with sleep in a way that had your stomach flipping. “Not that I’m upset I woke up at your place, but how did I get here?” Finally you turned from where you stood in front of the stove, bacon frying up in a pan. How the hell did he look this good hungover?

“Rooster dropped you off,” you hummed in a slightly irritated tone as you pushed water and pills over to him. “Not sure why I was the one chosen to take care of your drunk ass and listen to you admit fake feelings for me.” You mused, turning back towards the food cooking on the stove. 

You expected Jake to chuckle and make some comment about how his lines hadn’t worked on you yet again, but that one day they would. He was sober now and sober Jake was far different than drunk Jake. 

“Sweets,” there was a tone in his voice. A tone that you couldn’t quite place but it wasn’t his normal arrogant one. “What did I say to you last night?” You squeezed your eyes shut tightly. This was the last kind of conversation you wanted to have. It was one thing for you to decide in your own head that Jake wanted you for nothing more than your body, but it would be an entirely different thing for you to hear it out of his own mouth. It would solidify that you were just a conquest for him, that you were like every other woman he chased.

You shrugged, trying to continue acting like it was really no big deal. “Nothing I took to heart, just told me you wanted to make me your girl and that I’d make a good mama to our babies.” Saying the words out loud made your stomach fill with butterflies. “You were drunk though, I’m sure it was just the whiskey talking.”

A thick silence hung in the air as you plated the food for him. You’d made enough in case he woke up. With as nice as his physique was you weren’t even sure he ate greasy breakfast like this, but you know they always made you feel better after a night out. With as quiet as everything was right now you didn’t have much of an appetite. Again you had expected him to laugh it off but he didn’t. Instead he looked at you with these sweet eyes. Looking both like your brush off of his admittal had hurt him and made him realize he wasn’t trying hard enough. 

Jake swallowed hard and you watched his Adam’s apple bob. “It wasn’t the whiskey talking sweets.” Your hand froze mid air, a piece of perfectly cooked bacon between your fingers. 

“Jake you don’t date. You wham, bam, thank you ma’am.” You swallowed just as hard as he had a second ago.

“Those women weren’t you, Y/N.” He used your actual name and you felt your heart skip a beat. Jake never called you by your real name. Hell, he called you sweets so much you sometimes wondered if he had forgotten your actual name. In a few strides he’d moved around to the side of the kitchen island you were on. His hand came up and with his index finger he tilted your head up to look at him. “I don’t remember saying it to you last night, but just know I meant every word.” His tone was so sincere, how could you not believe him? But how could you at the same time?

You turned away from him, trying to settle your mind and your heart at the same time. There was no way this was happening. Thank god you had the day off work, because you would need it to recover from whatever the fuck was happening right now. 

“Hey, look at me sweets,” his hands landed on your hips, turning you to fully face him. “Tell me what’s going on in that pretty head of yours.” Resistance felt futile at this point, but you were still trying hard to resist. 

“Jake, you can’t be serious?” The aviator cocked an eyebrow at you, coaxing you to continue. “You could have your pick of available women out here and you want me?” 

He started to laugh and you felt sick to your stomach. You knew it was too good to be true, Jake didn’t want you in that way. The notion wasn’t as comforting as you thought it would have been and you wished he would stop laughing at the whole thing. 

Jake finally took notice of the pained look on your face and his laughter was cut short. One of his arms snaked around your waist and the other hand came up to brush a stray lock of hair behind your ear. “Sweets, you don’t see yourself properly and I promise if you give me a chance I will spend the rest of my life showing you just how fuckin’ special you are.” You searched his eyes, looking for any hint that this was all fake. Though, you hadn’t found one yet so you weren’t sure why you thought you’d find one now. 

On its own accord your head started to nod up and down. It took your brain a moment to catch up and by the time it did you knew you couldn’t take it back. Jake looked like it was Christmas morning and he got the bike he’d been begging for all year long. He looked so happy, there was no way you could take this away from him. 

“I’ll give you a chance, but Jake Seresin I swear the second you hurt me even a little it’s over.” You wouldn’t let another pretty boy military man break your heart again. Not after how bad the last one had been.

Jake’s grin only grew and he lifted you up, spinning you around in the kitchen. The action made you giggle and the pilot had to fight to keep himself from getting down on one knee.

“Don’t worry sweets, I got lots of plans for us.” He hummed, pressing a kiss to your forehead and you felt like you could melt right then and there.

[it-meant-nothing]

I have so many Dadneto wips at the moment. I have no idea how this happened. But I just want to know which one you think is the most interesting… then maybe I’ll work on that first?

The gist of the stories:

A.

Actually… this fic, I think has the least dadneto. It focuses on Peter and Wanda’s relationship. Peter gets imprisoned in an anti-mutant facility and realizes later on, it was the place his sister was held in almost a decade ago. It was where his sister died. In the end, Erik saves him (of course?) but Peter doesn’t think he deserves to be rescued when his sister didn’t get the same.

B.

Erik wonders what the purpose of his powers really is when all it brings is death and destruction, which isn’t surprising since it came from his rage. But then, his son came along, with similar power to his. And instead of thinking it was a curse, Pietro loved his power. He fiddled with metal with his little hands, and every time he did it, he did so with a smile. He doesn’t carry with him the rage and grief the way his father did. But then Pietro died. In a fire. Erik failed to save him.

Decades later, with Erik’s hands bound and a inhibitor around his neck, he watched as the white-haired boy with broken leg stiffly warp his fingers as he tears the metallic floor off the ground and haul it at the guards charging at him. At this moment, Erik starts to realize… that maybe his son never died at all.

By the way, that was the train scene in Dark Phoenix. Didn’t watch it so I have no idea how it went. Mystique and Jean never died because I said so.

C.

Apocalypse never resurrected. In this story, Magda is both Nina and Peter’s mother. Magda thought her twins had died; while Peter thought his mother died with his twin sister. Magda never told Erik about the twins. Instead of dying, Erik brought Magda and Nina to the mansion when Nina’s mutation manifested. He wanted Charles’ help. When Peter went to the mansion looking for the professor, he didn’t expect Erik to be there. But he decides to stay anyway, because hello, that’s his dad! He wants to know him. But what he doesn’t realize is that his mother, is also getting to know him and figuring the pieces out the he is, indeed, one of her twins.

D.

A young woman appeared at the mansion one day, and said in front of everyone that she was Magneto’s daughter. The information was fast to disseminate. Everyone knew it instantly— including Peter. Peter internally evaluated his sister and realized how beautiful she was. She had Erik’s eyes and even his stern gaze. She held herself with such confidence and elegance. And this made Peter doubt himself even more if he was worthy of being called Magneto’s son when Magneto’s daughter literally looked like the epitome of a goddess. So he decided, he would never ever tell Erik the truth even if he died. Erik got along with his daughter. Everyone also loved her. But in truth, she was lonely. She sought her father because she wanted a family, and even when she did get a family, she still felt a hole in her heart. Just like how Nina would always have a space in Erik’s heart, Pietro would always have a space in Wanda’s heart that would never be filled by someone else. Wanda decided to tell Erik that she is a twin. She and her twin brother got separated as kids. And that her twin was somewhere out there in the world and she wants to find him.

I have to cut this one short, it was getting too long 😅 For those who thought this was Lorna, I’m sorry! I can’t write her yet. Maybe next time!

[sciencelings-arts]

Apollo but with more sun god symbolism because he deserves it

Rambles and lore under the cut, as is routine

Slight close up, I love the hc that he got scars from the courtroom bombing and that his eyes get a little red when perceiving. I also legally couldn’t make his hair too short and gelled back I can’t do that to the little rat man, making his horns look normal in my style was hard enough, I wasn’t made to draw anime men. Also his clothes/colors are partially based on concept art of Dhurke and I really wanted to add the blues from Clays jacket.

Maybe it’s also a thematic reference to Phoenix too idk I think beyond canon they get along more bc within canon so much shit is happening constantly that they’re set up to be at odds more often. He accepts getting found familied eventually…

SUN SYMBOLISM! Like the other members of the WAA, he’s got that celestial bodies swag. Also I made that one doodle of the sun and liked it so much that I had to put it everywhere. Originally his earrings had a design that both mimicked the scales of Justice and upside down riding suns but I realized they already did that kind of thing in AAI so I did what I did best and mindlessly doodled. Also this version mimics how Athena’s moon earrings turned out so I’m not mad lol.

[ell0ra-br3kk3r-writes]

The Phoenix and the Crow

part five

pairing: (in the making) kaz brekker x fem!reader

genre: neutural

el's thoughts: this one has a lot of action haha and was a bit harder to get through, but here it is! hope y'all like it! please remember to reblog and comment :)

series masterlist

The inferni rushed over to the brunette and wrapped her in a tight hug, “Oh, I’ve missed you!” Nina gasped in surprise, “Y/N! What in Saint’s sake are you doing here of all places?” Y/N chuckled, “I thought I needed a vacation. Look where and with who I’ve ended up.” 

Kaz looked between the two grisha. “And how do you two know each other?” 

“The little palace.” They replied together.

Wylan shuffled his feet once the silence settled in the workshop. “Can I get anyone some tea?”

Kaz rolled his eyes at Wylan and turned back to Nina, “You worked with Arken.”

“It was more of a limited partnership.” Nina shrugged while she kept an arm wrapped around Y/N’s shoulders. 

“Did you trust him?” Kaz was expecting a certain answer.

Nina scoffed, “That turncoat? Not on your life. He was shadier than an oak at three bells.”

Kaz looked satisfied, “What’s your price?”

“I’ve expended the legal avenues on my problem. Every clerk in the city says the same thing. ‘The judge will see you in six months.’” Nina’s voice grew frustrated at the reminder of being turned down and away time and time again.

“And so you’re looking for the not-so-legal route on… What, exactly?”

“I’m told you could free someone from Hellgate.”

Kaz looked towards Inej and she stood there unmoving, both their eyes were calculating, but one pair was colder than the other. 

“Hellgate? Who do you need from Hellgate?” Y/N asked.

“Someone, I say as if he’s anyone, and in truth, he’s the love of my life,” Nina spoke while looking between Y/N and Kaz. The inferni smiled with pride at the thought of her good friend finding love. Kaz on the other hand pursed his lips in thought and tilted his head, “I can’t get you a release from Hellgate.” Nina nodded in acceptance before he spoke up again, “But I can get you a visit. In exchange for your services.”

“What do you need me for?”

“The aftermath.”

Everyone stared at him as he walked up the steps, “Follow me.” Y/N and Nina stood in place for a moment before Inej spoke up. “He does this.” She turned to follow the others as the two grisha women shared a look, “Does he?”

The group of six walked up and out onto the roof now having a great view of the city. Continuing to follow him, they all lined up beside each other waiting expectantly for Kaz to say something. “Brick by brick.”

Inej looked up at Jesper beside her with furrowed eyebrows seconds before an explosion went off. The large puff of fire and smoke seemed almost unreal as the screams of citizens could barely be heard over the distance.

“What was that?” Jesper’s voice was shaken as he spoke.

“The Crow Club.”

The zemini turned to Wylan, “Was that yours?” The brown-haired boy didn’t respond but looked down in guilt as he realized what he’d helped Kaz do.

Y/N spoke, starting hesitantly, “I take it we’re now in the aftermath?”

“This doesn’t help us clear our name, Kaz. This is war with Pekka Rollins, the King of the Barrel.”

Kaz’s face had no emotion written across it, he held his composer well. “The Barrel doesn’t belong to kings.” He turned on his heel and walked back to the door they came from, “It belongs to bastards.”

~

Crows symbolize prophecy, transformation, change, and freedom. They also remember faces, the people who’ve wronged them, and the people who’ve shown them kindness. ‘It makes sense.’ Y/N thought to herself. Revenge was something that seemed to plague Kaz’s mind, while that alone would be pure danger in a shot glass… He had Inej and Jesper to balance him out. Together they’re still dangerous but more sensible if only Kaz was able to sit and hear his crew out. Their feelings and thoughts, if everything was on the table and sorted properly, would be a well-shaken cocktail.

Y/N walked through the door of the restaurant and quickly found the table her group was seated at. Nina, Wylan, and Inej sat on one side of the booth while Jesper and Kaz sat on the other. “Sorry, I’m late. I got distracted.” She looked at Kaz expectantly, waiting for him to stand or slide into the booth to make room for her. He scowled before he stood up and let her slide in next to Jesper. 

“Move closer,” Jesper muttered in her ear causing her to glance at him confused but she moved either way, leaving more space for Kaz.

“Back to topic. If you hate him so much, why not just hire me to kill him?” Nina asked, “Or why hire me at all? Your sharpshooter or your Wraith could take him out, easy.”

“It’s not enough to kill him.” Kaz’s voice was rough as if it was difficult to speak.

Inej and Jesper shared a look while Nina and Y/N did the same. 

“Killing him doesn’t help clear our names. That’s why I need all of you, so I can hang everything back on him.”

Y/N hummed as Inej responded. “And we are the pawns who enact your personal vendetta?”

“The three of us are under equal jeopardy. And if they catch us, we can’t protect you.” His coffee-brown eyes bore into Wylan before he shifted his gaze to Nina. “And you’ll have to turn to Pekka to see your man. No doubt with some very unappealing conditions attached.”

“All of that in mind,” Jesper spoke. “I mean, Inej and I need to know the plan.”

Wylan nodded, “Um, yes, I… I, too, would like to know the plan.” He crossed his arms over his chest after speaking. The inferni and bastard’s eyes moved in sync down to his crossed arms and back to his face. One pair was filled with amusement and endearment while the other was filled with the exact opposite.

Kaz scanned the restaurant quickly before shifting his body to the side, “To get leverage on him, I need to know the scope of his business, inside-out. There are two easy to learn this. This first is by following his private driver, and tracking his schedule. Second, his accountant, Henrik Van Poel. If I get access to Pekka’s books, it’ll tell me everything I need to know. So, we need to get into that building.”

Inej pulled the small curtain open and everyone turned to look at the building across the street. 

“It’s where his accountant works. Although, there’s no way of knowing which office.” Nina stood from the table, took the menu, and walked away. Kaz paid no mind and continued, “That’s the mission. It looks like a typical office building, but it has a number of subtle features.”

Y/N zoned out of the conversation. ‘How’d I get from being a soldier to being a thief?’ Nina came back and sat down with a waffle on her plate. Kaz stared at her in disbelief, “I need you with me while I copy Henrik’s books.” He turned to face the girl beside him, “You as well. Gunfire will only draw attention, but a Heartrender-” 

“Has many skills. Yes, like this.” Nina finished swallowing her bite of waffle. “Second floor, second-last door on the left.” Everyone stared at her in confusion. 

After a moment Kaz asked, “What?”

“Henrik's office.” She replied in an obvious tone and turned to Inej, “Do you mind?” She nodded at the empty glass and pitcher of water. “How do you know this?” Inej asked as she passed the water. “I asked the waitress.”

“How did she know?” Jesper asked in utter shock.

“People who work in places like that, they eat in places like this. And sometimes they get meals delivered.” Y/N spoke up this time.

Nina nodded, “Yes, exactly. So I said, ‘Um, excuse me, but I have a delivery and I can’t read the directions.’ Ta-da.”

Jesper chuckled, “I like having her around.”

“And I like truth. You said you’d get me in to see Matthias.”

Kaz nodded his head slowly, clearly impressed with her skills. “You’ll get your visit to Hellgate.”

~

Y/N climbed up the stairs to the roof where Jesper said Kaz was waiting. She had gone with Inej to scope out the building so they have a basic idea of what they were getting themselves into. 

“What did you find?” 

His voice startled her a bit since his back was facing her. “There’s a doorman even after hours, and a pair of roving guards in the halls. But Inej can get you in through a window as long as Nina and myself watch the front.”

“If this goes sideways, tell the others to regroup at the Black Veil. Get the Heartrender. We leave in ten.”

She hesitated and sighed, “Her name is Nina.” She walked closer to him, “Does your crew know what happened between you and Rollins?” She didn’t quite know his full story, but she did know that the two had a history. That was what was fueling his thirst for revenge.

He looked back at her, “All they need to know is that I have a reason. And you need to know even less.”

She rolled her eyes, “There’s enough secrecy in the crew as is, Brekker.”

“Secrecy is the only way to survive the Barrel, Y/L/N.” His voice was harsh, getting on her last nerve.

“So keeping us, keeping your friends in the dark is about survival?”

“Now you’re getting it.”

She hummed, “Their survival or yours?” She received only silence as an answer. “Trust is the other side of secrecy, Kaz. I know I’ve done nothing to earn your trust, but they do. Especially Inej and Jesper, but you’ve instilled such fear into them that they can’t even talk to you about it.” She quickly reined in her tone and temper, “It’d do you good to remember that.” She quickly turned back to the door and walked back down the stairs. 

~

Nina leaned against the wall as Y/N looked around her up and down the street. “Clear.” The pair walked slowly across the street. “Why must I be the drunk one?” Y/N whined quietly. 

“‘Cause I’m the one who’s gonna knock him out.” 

“Doesn’t explain why-” 

Nina yanked the inferni’s arm over her shoulder and kicked her leg out just a little so she was leaning into her side. They made it to the front steps when the doorman stopped in front of them.

“Ooh. Closed up for the night.”

Nina chuckled, “Uh, We’ll just be a minute. I, uh, need to use the loo.”

“You can go down the street to Manny’s pub. They’re open.” He pointed to a building down the road where the lights shined brighter.

“They won’t let us back in there… Not since we drank the barkeep under the table.” She chuckled as Y/N giggled and let a hiccup slip through her lips.

The doorman laughed and looked the Heartrender up and down, “I do like a woman who can hold her liquor.”

“Oh, well, I, uh, can’t hold it everywhere.” She said in a sing-song voice. Y/N giggled again and started humming. “So, do you mind?” She finished.

He cleared his throat, “Not tonight. Sorry, love.”

Nina rolled her eyes and threw up her hands, quickly slowing his heart down. Y/N stood up as the man fell forward onto Nina. “Oof, okay.” She placed him down on the steps. 

“Sorry, love.” The inferni mocked as the pair walked to the door and slipped through.

They made it to the second floor in a hurry, their heels causing a slight echo in the otherwise silent halls. “I thought there were guards in the halls,” Nina asked. Y/N nodded, “There were supposed to be.” The brunette shrugged, “Down that side.” Y/N walked to the office door and pushed it open slowly finding the room empty for just a moment before Kaz appeared in the window.

They were silently sorted through files and heavy books when a heavily accented voice spoke from behind them.

“Fine night, ain’t it, Brekker?”

Kaz slowly looked up as Pekka Rollins turned on an oil lamp on the desk. Guards stood on the other side of the door. ‘We’re trapped.’ “Burning the midnight oil, are we?” Kaz asked.

“I thought I’d cut to the chase.” Pekka ignored Y/N entirely, keeping his attention solely on Kaz. “You can’t show your faces at my clubs and my brothels to pull threads on me, so where would you go?” Kaz stayed silent. “Step away from the desk.”

“Why?”

“I don’t want blood on my furniture. My numbers man’ll bill me for it, and, well, you’ve already cost me enough money by blowing up my club.”

Kaz’s fist clenched as he leaned forward, “My club.”

Pekka hummed in amusement, “Before I kill you, I want you to know that I brought in a madman to capture your Wraith. Sorry. My Wraith.”

Both Y/N and Kaz turned to the window and saw a man in a fur mask climb up the rope that lead to Inej. A low groan was heard from the back of her throat. 

“I fixed up the cellar at the Menagerie, got the best shackles that money can buy.” 

Kaz’s face dropped as anger boiled in the pit of Y/N’s stomach.

“Oh, and I got my man to lay a trap for your gunslinger.”

‘He was outnumbered and outsmarted… Again.’

Kaz only clenched his fist and tightened his grip on his cane.

“Clean sweep, Brekker. All that will be left will be my little spider, back in her cage. Ooh, I’m going to sleep well.”

The door was pushed open and Y/N saw Nina down the hall. Pekka saw her through the glass on the door. “Heartrender!”

“Meet the newest member of my crew.” Kaz held the door still so Nina could see Pekka clearly through the glass as well. The guard on the floor gathered enough strength when Rollins fell to the floor to raise his arm and fire at Nina. She fell backward when the bullet hit her arm. Kaz dived behind the desk and Y/N fell down beside him when gunshots were fired at them.

“Kaz, let me-”

“No.”

The gunshots didn’t let up as grunts were barely heard from the hall. “It’s over, Brekker!” Pekka shouted over the gunfire. Kaz pulled out two small bombs from his pocket and a lighter. He tried to start the lighter but no flicker of fire came from it. He cursed under his breath before Y/N scoffed, “Oh, hand it over.” She pulled the bombs from his hands, snapped her fingers, and lit the fuses before throwing them over to the other side of the desk. Kaz stared at her as she brought her hands over her ears. “Ears!” She shouted at him and he quickly covered his ears right before the bombs went off.

~

“Black Veil is a cemetery?” 

No one answered Y/N’s question as they kept walking, crossing paths with Jesper and Wylan.

“Assuming you got ambushed too?” Jesper asked.

“Oh, yeah, so many of them, I lost count,” Nina said, slightly out of breath. 

“I got what I needed, and Wylan’s bombs took take of the rest.”

Y/N scoffed at him as they followed and waited while he pushed open a large tomb, Inej was leaning on her heavily. “Get her inside,” Kaz instructed. Nina followed the other two girls inside without question. The clicking of the crow cane was familiar at this point and brought a weird sense of peace to Y/N as she lead the group blindly through the tomb.

~*~*~*~

taglist: @rachelcarroll1819 @xcharlottemikaelsonx @khaleesihavilliard @simrah1012 @foulkryptonitepeanut @astridyoo15 @queenofshinigamis @peakyispunk @jahayla-parker @maliciousbrekker @writingmysanity @brekkershadowsinger @winstonthecow22 @lee-says-things

[bread-squid-uwu]

THANK YOU @dizzybevvie LMAO 🩵🩵

So, just a DISCLAIMER that I'm talking about my rewrite with some splashes of canon influence but I'm mostly just ignoring canon Dante for this, anyway

The main songs I associate with Dante are:

I'm A Natural Blue.

Obviously because of the title being a reference to Awstens blue hair, and the associations of blue with negative types of emotions and such. In my head, Dante has naturally black hair but despises that - so he dyes EVERYTHING blue and hopes it's convincing enough. He wants to look as different from his brother as possible.

The lines about seeing that your idols aren't who you once assumed them to be, seeing the truth rather than seeing someone to admire.. everyone knows Dante really really admired and looked up to Gene, who was never the best person. I see this as Dante recognizing that, finally seeing that his big brother was actually cruel and even dangerous.

Dante going through that world shattering realization that the person he trusted the most, looked up to, and even based himself off of for so long.. was horrible. And, perhaps, going off of that - looking at how he had tried so hard to copy and be like Gene, perhaps he too had done horrible things.

The struggles of trying to break from these ideas, having seen the reality of everything happening. The struggles of trying to figure out who he is without trying to base himself on who he thinks of as cool or popular.

The frustrations of realizing he was so blind to it all for so long, the ways that idolizing and loving Gene must've looked to people who knew everything Gene had done.

I could go so much more in depth, line by line, but I'll stop here for now!! I love this song in this context.

We Need To Talk.

Clover. - a danvis fic written by me, based on this song.

It Follows.

Dante canonically has a lot of anxiety around actually getting into relationships, we see this multiple times. Obviously this was very different back in Phoenix Drop High, but we also know that Dante hasn't been in a relationship since he was in high school - said by Garroth.

"I think with my heart, and love with my head." Seems like a very fitting line for this fact.

"Kiss me like nobody would when I was fifteen." We know in high school he was never very genuine with his relationships and, I think as an adult he wants something real - something genuine, where they can actually care about each other. Instead of the "haha player😎" he was before.

Looking at S2? Well...

"I've spent some years rewinding, but I'm still just me." This line I feel like is about finding himself relapsing into those previous non-genuine behaviors from high school, finding himself repeating those mistakes. I'm not talking about the situation with Nicole and Jenna, he was never actually dating Nicole, he did not cheat on her. I'm talking about him going around and flirting with many different girls on the beach. Eventually, I think he'd pull himself from this and realize that he slipped backwards, and feel guilty over finding himself repeating the mistakes that defined a version of him he previously tried so hard to bury - which is going back to the ideas from "I'm a natural blue" - when I describe this as a relapse I'm not exaggerating. Knowing those behaviors stem from Gene? I think it warrants being called a relapse.

The rest of the lines, however, I do think are about Nicole.

With the context of him struggling with his past, his sense of self, the guilt, and of course.. Gene being around? I think the situation between Nicole and Jenna would get to him on a much deeper level.

"If I could find my something to burn out these feelings, I'd cut them out completely and I'd stop this reeling. I think with my heart, and love with my head. Do you see the problem here? You rip me to shreds. I think with my heart, you fuck with my head." I see about him feeling like he's never truly changed from high school. With Nicole making the claims that he was cheating, etcetera, it gets into his head.

Really looking at the situation, he was already struggling with himself - and he was already struggling with Nicole as well. Knowing his apprehension towards relationships, his anxiety towards Nicole, and the fact that the two were never official on top of him desperately wanting to end the flirting and such with her? Well, "So tear into my heart, and love with my head. Do you see the problem here? You rip me to shreds. I've fallen apart, I'm missing your breath. Can we stand to break the fingers pointing the blame, Or will they always follow me?"

Stupid For You.

Danvis.

"I'm color-coding my moods, you're yellow, I'm natural blue

Let's get together and be green like my insides

At least I'll match your eyes, jealous and hypnotized

Let's match our faces and be equally in love. "

I don't think I need to say anything else lmao

THANK YOU BEV FOR THE EXCUSE TO POST THIS,,,

i'm always open to waterparks dante questions so uhm, feel free to ask for more or ask about this or something!!!!

[bradshawsbaby]

Hi!!! I Hope the beginning of the school year has been treating you well!

If you get a chance can I please request : melting because they just look so cute all bundled up in blankets with Hannix 💗

I am Forever in awe of how you write them together!

Thank you so much! It’s been exhausting, but good! And you’re so sweet! I hope you enjoy! 💕

With how much time the Dagger Squad spent in each other’s company—both on base and off—it was no surprise that if one member got sick, everyone else was sure to follow soon after. This time around, it had been Bob who had come down with the flu first, passing it on to Phoenix, who then passed it on to Bradley, who passed it on to Fanboy, who gave it to Payback, who then passed it along to Coyote.

Jake, meanwhile, had appeared immune, even while nursing Natasha back to health. He teased them all mercilessly about it, bragging that his immune system was more elite than all of theirs put together. The last time he had gotten the flu, he claimed, was when he was in the sixth grade.

Which was why no one was more surprised than Jake himself when he woke up one morning feeling like someone had dropped a ton of bricks onto his skull, his body alternating between aches and chills as his teeth chattered miserably.

He’d been home for three days now, and he was growing frustrated by how long recovery seemed to be taking. He was even more frustrated that his wife had taken to sleeping in their guest bedroom, insisting that he needed their bed to himself to rest and recuperate.

As much as she enjoyed poking fun at his “elite immune system,” Phoenix did feel bad about how miserable her husband was. She’d had the flu just a few weeks earlier, and she knew firsthand how much it could kick your butt. That was why, on her way home from work, she swung by the diner that she and Jake liked to go to on Saturday mornings and picked up a container of homemade chicken noodle soup for him.

It was growing late by the time she finally made it back home, and she was surprised to see that she had no missed calls or texts from Jake wondering where she was or checking to see if she was okay. She was hoping to take that as a good sign. He’d been having such a hard time sleeping these past few days, so maybe he’d finally managed to knock out.

“Bagman, I’m home,” Phoenix called out as she stepped through the front door, dropping her things in the living room before heading to the kitchen to put down the soup.

When there was no response, she frowned slightly and immediately made her way to their bedroom. Pushing open the door, it took her a moment to realize that the giant lump in the middle of the bed was, in fact, the man she had married. Stepping closer, she put a hand over her mouth to keep from laughing out loud.

Jake must have gotten cold while trying to take a nap because he was not only wrapped in their comforter, but also in the throw blanket they kept at the foot of the bed, as well as a spare blanket they kept in a chest in the corner or the room. He had bundled himself up tightly, hardly any part of him visible at all except for his forehead and nose.

Phoenix’s heart melted as she gazed at him. It was so rare that she got to see him like this, looking so innocent and vulnerable and almost fragile. It made her stop and take stock of just how much she loved him.

Kicking off the sneakers that she’d forgotten to leave on the shoe rack near the front door, she slowly climbed onto the bed and wrapped her arms around her swaddled husband, brushing his hair away from his forehead and pressing her wrist to his skin to gauge his temperature.

“Mmm,” Jake moaned softly, shifting slightly so that his cocoon loosened a fraction. Blinking his eyes open, he smiled tiredly at her. “I fall asleep alone and wake up with a gorgeous woman in my bed. Lucky me. Don’t tell me you’re a hallucination.”

Laughing, Phoenix kissed the top of his head and held him closer. “Nope. I’m the real deal,” she teased, loosening his blankets a little more to keep him from overheating. “How are you feeling?”

“Better now that you’re here,” he murmured in a low voice, freeing his arms from the mound of blankets and wrapping them around her waist. “Stay here with me.”

“But I got you some soup,” she grinned, running her fingers through his sweaty hair. “Don’t you want me to go get it for you?”

Jake shook his head stubbornly, clinging to her even tighter. “Just stay.”

“So much for that rock solid immune system, huh?” Phoenix laughed, her amusement growing as her husband groaned against her side.

“I’m never going to live that one down, am I, Minx?” he asked with a sigh.

She grinned, her dark eyes twinkling as she looked down at him. “Not as long as I’m around.”

cozy and content prompts

[callsign-phoenix]

I wrote this for @rv-ca I hope you like it!

It is a Natasha ‘Phoenix’ Trace x female!reader imagine.

Thank you @footprintsinthesxnd for proofreading!

Warnings: bad relationship between reader and her family, Dagger squad fluff, a hint of social anxiety

Graduating from university was something you were looking forward to, and yet no one from your family could attend the event.

You had been so excited for graduation but when you realized they wouldn’t be there that excitement vanished, and a general sadness took its place.

When your girlfriend Nat saw you upset she did everything to make you feel better and she asked what was wrong.

You didn’t want to bother her at first but she could detect even the smallest bit of sadness so you ultimately caved.

“I won’t be walking the stage on my graduation,” you answered her, your head finding its place in her lap on the couch you were sitting on and her fingers immediately went to caress your hair.

“Why don’t you want to, baby?” She asked carefully, her fingers tracing the sides of your face to comfort you.

“My family isn’t coming. I can’t stand the polite and restrained clapping of strangers while everyone else gets cheers and enthusiastic applause. So I’m not going,” you told her, but she quickly shook her head.

“Oh no. No, no, no. You’re going,” she answered you, leaning down to bring her face closer to yours.

“You’ll go, and you’ll get the most cheers out of all of them,” she whispered before she pressed her lips to yours.

Nat made sure that the day of your graduation was one of the best days you had ever had.

She had taken the day off work for you and had scheduled your day, waking you up with breakfast in bed and giving you time to shower before she once again demanded your attention.

She was up and ready before you and her dress was hanging cleaned and ironed from a hanger by the door.

She was quick to straddle you, reaching for the makeup on the vanity and working on your face, wearing a wide smile and voicing praises on how clever you were.

She had also ironed your dress and it seemed like she was more excited for the day than you were.

You loved her even more for it and couldn’t wait to walk the stage.

You got your robe and cap and showed her to her seat before walking to where you were needed.

The speeches droned on and on and you were almost asleep when they finally started calling people up to the stage.

As soon as they did the nervousness hit you and your head ran through different scenarios of you tripping up the stairs or falling over your robe while going in for a handshake.

When your name was called your mouth went dry and you stood up, making your way over and towards your teachers and the dean.

The moment you stepped on stage the people started clapping, and you heard a choir of cheers coming from the spectators.

When you turned around with the diploma in hand you let your eyes wander over the people, but they found Nat and your friends quickly.

They were stood there clapping more enthusiastically than anyone had done before, giving you a standing ovation while also cheering loudly.

Nat looked extraordinarily proud, and your eyes slowly filled up with tears.

You hadn’t known that your other friends were coming, but Jake, Bradley, Javy, Bob and Mickey were all standing there to cheer for you.

The moment the ceremony ended you rushed to meet your friends, who all pulled you into tight hugs the moment you arrived.

Nat was the proudest one of them all, barely letting go of your hips to let the others hug you too.

You were already overjoyed but they had made dinner reservations as well to celebrate.

Jake and Bradley even bought presents for the occasion.

Your girlfriend Nat’s present came later that night, and what a surprise it was.

tagging: @wildbornsiren @mayhem24-7forever @green-socks @glowingtree @letsfvckingdance @shadeds-library @a-reader-and-a-writer @yespolkadotkitty @whateverbagman @neptunes-curse @sweetheartlizzie07 @top-gun-rooster @iloveprettyboysblog @ateliefloresdaprimavera @imjess-themess @littlebadariell @angstyjellybean @marchingicenotes7 @midget713 @supernaturaldawning @gspenc @adorephina @gigisimsonmars @pansexualwitchwhoneedstherapy @bespinnn @softromantist @malindacath @oliviah-25 @kwanimations @18crazybutcutealsopsycho @marvelandotherfandomimagines @natasharomanoffisbaebby @simping4wanda @starkleila @tamix44 @ycarlii @katesmadness @eggscrambler84 @d0ingitwithpassi0n @mavericksicybabe @kendra-rose @desert-fern @rhettabbotts @mavrellover91 @allivingstone01 @withakindheartx @trikigirl271 @cherrycola27

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[hazyla]

Woah woah, okay. So I just finished spirit of justic except for the special episode. Current thoughts from a foggy memory:

realizing this post is super long so it’s under the break, also soj spoilers

Implied that Phoenix and gumshoe correspond on their own when Phoenix mentions something to Edgeworth. When he’s questioned about it he just says something like “I have my sources…” and Edgeworth tells him to inform his source of a paycheck cut.

Even though Athena got a case of her own to do I feel like she didn’t have as strong of a presence and idk man balancing three lawyers kind of a crazy move

I found rayfa oddly charming because of her silly insults

Not utter dogshit but I see why people generally dont like dual Destinies and spirit of justice as much

My mom misses gumshoe

I did not call the queen being powerless like at all

if there’s another ace attorney game I want a dedicated scene about Apollo and Trucy getting told the truth

Hard to pick a favorite case but I think I liked case 2 and turnabout storyteller just bc it was pretty fun. Also can not believe Athena’s case was the super short filler one!

would’ve appreciated more Maya

cannot believe they just added on characters that were never previously mentioned. Oh yeah, there’s a secret fourth group gramarye member. Apollo? He actually has a brother and was left behind by his foster father at about fifteen or so.

Did the archaeologist guy just… steal a bunch of shit from Adrian’s exhibit? He had literally everything. Good god I wonder how he felt about that scroll having gravy on it

on the plane ride back why did Trucy sit (and fall asleep on) Edgeworth instead of idk her father. What did Athena really want to sit there or something. It’s very cute but also why

Actually Maya and Edgeworth should’ve sat next to eachother on the plane so they can debate about plumed punisher. “You gave away your one of a kind steal samurai themed watch FOR A RIPOFF KEYCHAIN” and then he throws her off the plane (personally, of the belief he would throttle ms inmee [not actually])

about that, it’s so funny to me that he ranted about the show to Datz, a guy he just met and is a revolutionary

Need to mention that Edgeworth’s cravat gets attacked by a dog, I don’t even have a comment I just need to iterate that fact

The breakdown scenes were fun and dynamic but idk I didn’t care for them that much

kind of thought they were gonna channel Apollo’s dad Jove fucking justice

It was funnier when I, for a split second, assumed that since nobody knew the name of his father that Apollo chose his last name to be Justice.

just now realizing that Apollo who shares a namesake with the god of music has two musician parents now

I am so happy that the 3d sprites look better than in dual destinies I don’t know if I could take it if they looked like that again

My mom’s favorite character design is Rayfa’s (but her favorite character is Susato who has nothing to do with soj)

Maya should get an “I survived TWO kidnapping” shirt because everyone wants leverage over Phoenix.

From what I saw online before playing the game I thought nahyuta would be super insanely awful, and then they introduce him as a level headed guy. Then I think oh he seems okay, and then he tells Apollo to go to the depths of hell and that he’ll be reincarnated as a piece of shit

When investigating phoenix tells Edgeworth that he think’s he’d like a gaudy house, to which Edgeworth is offended. And then Phoenix makes fun of him for his bright red sports car in his mind.

Would’ve loved a reference to some older characters, like Iris who is just like never brought up again. Anyways, what’s with spirit channeling families and being super fucked up

i am so sorry to say that Apollo looked like really good in that one cg with his hair antenna down (the one where he almost drowned) (not my best moment)

How in the world did Apollo survive as a teenager? If dhurke left him 10 or so years before this he’d be about fifteen? Did he just get dropped off at a boarding school, who the hell took care of him and how did he become a lawyer.

Why didn’t Amara just resume the throne herself? Idk if I totally missed something but isn’t she still a rightful heir

Khura’in spent EIGHT HUNDRED MILLION DOLLARS ON A LIE. THEY WERE DONATIONS. AND FIVE YEARS OF LABOR (Amara’s tomb)

So funny to me that nahyuta drags Ema around everywhere like a little ragdoll back and forth country to country

The pun names in this one were wild 🤪 (suggested emoji)

oh god what if Edgeworth and rayfa were to talk about plumed punisher

Yeah we’re back to this, edgey’s sitting in a rebel hideout with lizards hanging from the ceiling and he watches the plumed punisher??? I kinda forgot the timeline but either Maya is currently kidnapped or dhurke’s in jail “oh okay I’ll stay behind” “let’s turn on the tv” “what the fucj is this”

One time phoenix’s phone went off and I jumped out of my seat because I also have the steal samurai theme as my damn ringtone

I get that it’s just fun sprite stuff but where does nahyuta get all his necklaces? How does his floating ribbon work?

In aa4 with my vague recollection, there’s a scene that kind of made me assume Ace attorney definitely took place in some weird fantasy land that coexisted with real world. (It was something that had to do with the founding fathers? And apollo “yes I know what America is” justice, like they currently don’t live there. It was some exchange during the case where klavier’s guitar blows up). Guess how surprised I was when oh golly now they’re full blown Americans!

since I mentioned aa4 and I already got off track everytime my mom hears that song (which Apollo made his ringtone) she complains about it and gets bad flashbacks. She told me everytime she hears a piano arrangement she thinks about the case. Maybe it wore off by now but it was her version of blue badger

Uendo was my favorite witness

Yeah I don’t think I have anything else to say, what a nice note to it on.

Nope I remembered something, queen ga’ran made me want to use the royal we.

[alexiafeyblogpost]

I, Trucy, want to be a defense attorney!! (Alexia AU)

One ordinary day, Trucy was looking at one of her dad's many lawyer business cards on the desk. The golden gleam of the letters and the engraved name, "Wright & Co. Law Office," fascinated her more than usual today.

“Daddy... what was it like when you decided to become a lawyer?”

Phoenix turned toward her; a bit surprised by the question. “Oh, well… it wasn’t something I decided on at a young age. In fact, it was something that happened a bit by ‘accident.’ But when it did, I figured it was the right thing for me.”

Trucy crossed her arms, thoughtful. “What made you realize that?”

“Hm… I think it was the desire to help others. Knowing that I could defend innocent people who had no one else on their side to defend them. That motivated me…” Phoenix replied, before glancing to the side with a slight blush on his cheeks. “And… a few other things…”

She nodded slowly, processing the answer. “And what has your life as a defense attorney been like so far?”

He raised an eyebrow. “Why are you interested in that?”

“Curiosity, I guess.”

“Hm… I suppose I can tell you a few things…”

Trucy was showing a strong interest in the life he had led as a defense attorney so far, and Phoenix was more than happy to reminisce with her about his old cases, from circuses to kidnappings… In retrospect, Phoenix admitted he probably shouldn’t have been talking about murder cases with a girl her age… or with Alexia and Pearls a few years earlier, for that matter… But at that moment, he was just happy to see her so engaged.

Finally, Phoenix remembered something. Trials are usually recorded, aren’t they? The next day, he met with Miles and asked him a favor. He wanted a copy of the recording of his first trial, and if possible, those of his other trials as well.

Miles wasn’t thrilled about the idea of going to the courthouse to request something like that, but he did it for Phoenix, as he still felt he owed the lawyer for everything he had done for him and his adoptive sister… and besides, is not like he haven't done the same for his own daughter...

That night, Phoenix and Trucy watched as many recordings as they could together, laughing at how things were back then. But Phoenix noticed something in her eyes… something in these recordings had sparked a fire in her gaze.

For the rest of the night, Trucy was very cheerful and excited. Phoenix loved seeing her so happy, but he couldn’t help but wonder what it was about these recordings that had inspired her so much…

One morning, while Phoenix was trying to wake up, he heard banging and Trucy’s voice. If there was one thing Trucy definitely wasn’t, it was noisy. She was quite cheerful, but not loud. In general, although it didn’t seem like it, she was a very calm child. So something was definitely off.

He left his room to investigate and found Trucy pounding her hands on the coffee table and pointing to the walls, whispering things like, “OBJECTION!” “HOLD IT!” “TAKE THAT!”

Amused by her behavior, Phoenix asked what she was doing. She turned to him and, without hesitation, declared, “I think I finally understand, Daddy! I know what my new goal is! I’m going to become a defense attorney, just like you!”

Phoenix smiled and ruffled her hair. “You’re saying you want to be a defense attorney like me? Really?”

Trucy nodded quickly. “Yes. I don’t want to continue with magic, like my birth family.”

He straightened up, surprised by what he’d heard, and asked, “Are you sure? Don’t you want to continue the Gramarye legacy?”

She sighed, tired. “No. I don’t want to carry on the legacy of that group of selfish traitors,” she looked to the side. “If I want people to remember what I do and what my predecessors did, I don’t want there to be such a dark past. And also… if I can help people avoid what I went through in court… I want to help those people… I want to defend them…”

Silence filled the room as Phoenix took in Trucy’s words. He hadn’t expected his daughter to make such a decision so soon. He wouldn’t deny he felt incredibly proud of Trucy, though he could already feel his wallet hurting at the thought of paying for her studies at Themis Law Academy… Even so, he encouraged her and said he could teach her all his old tricks, which she eagerly accepted.

From that day on, Phoenix never saw her act as if the world was just a game, without worries or consequences. It was now clear to him. She had a firm goal in mind. And he was going to be by her side every step of the way.

Over the years, Trucy’s interest in becoming a defense attorney remained strong, and thanks to the cases she’d been working on with Alexia and his new protege, Justice Apollo, it probably grew even stronger. And finally, one day, it happened. Phoenix told her joyfully that he had saved up enough money. She was going to become a defense attorney. Trucy was very excited and thanked him endlessly, starting to “practice” once again right away.

Before Phoenix knew it, he was finding her in blue suits, dress pants, and red ties, looking like a Phoenix Wright cosplayer. Alexia had said she looked spectacular, and he and Apollo agreed, but they encouraged her to put her own spin on the role of defense attorney and not limit herself to being his shadow.

Trucy took that very seriously, and soon Phoenix was seeing her in new and stylish outfits every day, trying to find the one that she felt truly represented her and her legacy…

Finally, one day, she found it and excitedly presented her new look to her adoptive father.

Her outfit consisted of an unbuttoned white tailored coat over a black dress with golden diamonds reaching mid-calf, tucked into pants the same color as the coat. She also wore a bluish cape with hearts and clubs, held in place by a green diamond with silver edges and a red scarf around her neck. She wore earrings that were golden diamonds, short white gloves, and brown boots.

Phoenix looked curiously at her cape. So he asked her about it, making Trucy sigh: “Well… you could say that over time… I was able to think things over about the Gramaryes… Don’t get me wrong. I never plan to return to magic, let alone continue Shadi and Magnifi’s legacy… But I thought… my birth mother has nothing to do with them. In fact, she died because of them…”

She took her cape. “So I thought of wearing something that was hers so she could be remembered by someone… at least she deserves to be remembered…”

It was an answer that surprised the lawyer a bit, but he understood that if that was her wish, then so be it. After all, Alexia wore a cream scarf to honor her own biological mother; why couldn’t Trucy do the same for hers?

In conclusion, Phoenix loved her new look, and it was clear that Trucy did too. After showing it to Alexia and Apollo, both quickly agreed that the brunette looked amazing in her attire.

The day she enthusiastically headed to Themis Law Academy; Phoenix knew she had a bright future ahead of her… Or, who knows? After all, a certain brunette wanted to have the girl as her apprentice. So the future was quite uncertain, but it looked like it would be quite entertaining.

[nottoofondofgaypeople]

Can we have the scene from the baby showers with Laurance, Garroth and Aphmau in the street Laurance has fake proposed to Aphmau to get Zane off their backs as gay as humanly possible.

Also if I can be greedy can we have Zoey coming to fetch them from the Irene dimension as gay as humanly possible

A 2 for 1 deal huh? I'll be real with you, I was gonna make these be in the same post, but upon going back to the first episode of season 2 I have so much to do with that scene that it's going to need to be its own post. You'll still get both scenes, but the second one needs more time to cook the delicious angst I know you feral beasts all crave.

scene takes place in episode 56 before the polycule has gotten together and is much more a moment of realization for all three of them (largely Garroth). All of them know Laurance loves Irena, and she gave him a very hesitant answer in response. So they aren't together, but aren't not together? I don't get it either.

Silence lingered as Zane walked past. All three of them waited for the sound of his door closing. Laurance waited a second later before he spoke.

"I'm sorry," He finally whispered, but the final sound came out like a laugh. "I'm so sorry--"

"Don't," Garroth started, letting out an uneasy breath. He glanced up at Laurance and... Smiled. It felt really nice to smile like this. "You saved Lord Irena's life, again."

"Yeah, you did," She muttered. She was never more grateful that Laurance was blind and unable to see how much she was blushing. And how shaky her hands were. The silver bracelets on her wrists clanking together might have given it away. "I-I'm amazed you thought of that."

"I just heard him threatening you, and I couldn't stop myself. I'm sorry if it made you uncomfortable."

"No, no, Laurance you were perfect!" Irena reached forward, placing her hand on his shoulder. It was like second nature. She was never physical with him before, but knowing he was blind made it easy to just fall into the habit of having a hand on him. "It worked, right? You bought us some time."

"Yeah..." Garroth let out a sigh as he glanced between them. There was a thumping of his heart, but it didn't feel like jealousy, as he expected. It was the same kind of feeling he got when looking at Laurance in the academy. The same kind of feeling he got when Irena put on a flower crown. At the same time. "I would have never thought of that."

"I've heard Zane's voice before, but I had no idea the High Priest of O'Khasis was so..." Laurance looked to where he thought Garroth was. He was wrong but it's the thought that counts. "Cruel."

"It's okay. You acted when my anger got in the way of my judgement and saved my lords life." Garroth looked up to Laurance, the sound of his helmet the only indication to the blind man that he'd moved. "I can't even begin to express my thanks to you, Laurance." Warmth spread across Laurance's cheeks, a rush of life he desperately needed. Even if he was blushing and grinning like an idiot, even if it was the most obvious thing in the world, he made it known how much Garroth's words meant to him.

"Me too," Irena cut in, her left hand nervously twirling loose strands of her hair. "I'm really sorry you had to be in this situation at all, but you saved my ass. Again."

"That's just what I do for you, my love." Irena rolled her eyes and gave Laurance a slight smack on the shoulder, but it only made him start laughing again. Garroth expected something still, some sense of envy. The only envy he felt was that he didn't know enough about flirting to join then. But he wanted to.

"I honestly wish he had done something to directly harm a member of Phoenix Drop," Garroth admitted almost sheepishly. He took a deep breath, and instead leaned against his shield and tried to take on a cooler demeanor. "Then I would have really done something to shut him up." Laurance gasped in a sort of fake horror, in a way that Irena had heard Cadenza do before. It made her giggle, and that made Laurance giggle in turn. It did not make either one of them want to kiss the other, definitely not.

"Careful Garroth, you know what happens to villages that step out of line. We're lucky we stayed small enough that O'Khasis just took notice."

"Right. I'm not seriously thinking of doing anything that rash. Just wishing for it."

"Can't fault you for that," Irena agreed with a breathy laugh. An uneasy feeling started to settle in, one Laurance was determined to fight off.

"I feel I should make it clear, I have no intentions of marrying Lady Irena, either. That was just a ruse to get Zane off our backs."

"Aw, that's too bad!" Irena pouted out her lip and spoke in an exaggerated tone. "And here I was about to plan and decorate the entire thing."

"Oh really? And who would officiate it?"

"Not Zane, that's for certain."

"Y'know, Castor is a shaman. He might have the power to officiate." That earned Laurance a smack on the shoulder that made all three of them burst out into giggles. And now it was Laurance's turn to be absolutely elated to hear the sound of their laughter. To hear it come from a genuine and wholesome moment, compared to the cruel mocking laughter he became used to in the Nether. To remember that he was loved.

"Keep up with those suggestions and we'll get divorced before we can get married!"

"Oh, my love, you wound my heart with your cruel words. Whatever can a poor, blind poet do to recapture your love?"

"Quit being such a romantic might be a good start," Garroth shot in playfully. The words could have come off harsh, jealous, even biting, but his tone was loving. His tone was practically dripping with love. Garroth didn't realize it, but Laurance sure did.

"I can't help it."

"He really can't. But it's fine, because I can always get back at him."

"And how do you plan on doing that, my love?" Irena reached up and ruffled his shaggy hair.

"I could always have Cadenza dye your hair again. She'd just say she's redoing your roots, but maybe it's a completely different color and you wouldn't even know."

"She would do it too," Garroth agreed.

"Don't egg her on!" Laurance defended. "My darling fiance already threatened to dye my hair blue."

"And what if Cadenza actually took my suggestion?" Irena's sing songy tone made Laurance raise an eyebrow as he tried to look down at the likely smug expression of the woman leaning onto him.

"She didn't."

"She did." He tried to look to Garroth.

"She did." Laurance's eyes widened in fear, and his hand suddenly went to his hair, bringing it in front of him before he pouted slightly. Right. He still can't see.

"Please tell me you're joking." Unbeknownst to Laurance both Irena and Garroth glanced at each other, and even if his face was hidden, she could practically see the goofy grin plastered across his face. She really wished she could see him. Irena gave him a raised eyebrow, and Garroth just shrugged his shoulders, leaving it up to her how far they would take this bit.

Laurance's hand reached for Irena in a more desperate manner than she expected, which was enough for her to break. The moment Laurance held her hand, she burst out laughing, not blind to the way his fingers danced over the pulse point on her wrist. Seconds later Laurance and Garroth were laughing with her, all three of them simple elevated into the feeling my one another. It was a genuine moment of sincerity and peace, desperately needed after the events of the past few days, and the anxiety Zane had brought.

It was an honor in Garroth's eyes to help in making Irena and Laurance laugh. He was overwhelmed by their love, clear and obvious for anyone to see, even more so that they allowed him to be a part of it in some way. Some perhaps foolish part of him wondered if he could truly love them both, and if he could love them in turn. For now, Irena swept around Laurance and hooked her arm in his.

"How about we get back to the party, my oh so charming fiance and his dashing blue hair?" Irena suggested, though the final comment earned her a groan from Laurance.

"You two better be joking about that or this marriage might actually end before it begins," He shot back.

"Don't worry Laurance, she didn't actually dye your hair blue," Garroth assured him. Irena fully pouted, sticking out her tongue.

"Thank you Garroth."

"Yeah, thanks Garroth for ruining my joke!" For a second he couldn't tell if her anger was sincere or not. Until she reached for him, grabbing at his elbow and dragging him so he was also arm in arm with her. "As a punishment, you're now required to come into Kiki's barn with us and enjoy the festivities yourself." Garroth looked down at those amber eyes and... he couldn't ever say no to them.

"Whatever you say, my lady."

[z-iridest]

My Hero Academia- I Am Phoenix:

Chapter 23- Trouble's Storm:

The morning of our second day of the training camp began bright and early… At 5:30 in the morning. Most of us were still pretty tired, with Ochaco and Kaminari’s hair being disheveled, Kyoka and Tsu looking like they were gonna fall asleep on their feet any second, but Tokoyami seemed to be wide awake. Ochaco stretched a bit before Mr Aizawa greeted us. “Good morning, class. Today, we begin a training camp that will increase your strength. Our goal is to increase your skills exponentially, so that each of you earns a provisional license. This will allow you to face the dangers that continue to fester in the darkness. Proceed carefully.” He then turned to me. “Look alive, Yagi.” I easily caught the softball, though I was half asleep. “Try throwing that for me.”

“Got it, just like the fitness test.” I realized.

“That’s right. When you first started school, your record was 789.2 meters… Let’s see if you’ve improved.” Mr Aizawa challenged as I stepped forward to get clear of my classmates. 

“Oh, I get it! We’re checking our progress!” Mina exclaimed. 

“A lot’s happened to us the last three months. Maybe she can throw it a whole mile now.” Sero guessed.

“Come on, get it, Yagi!” Kirishima cheered for me. I tossed it up in the air a bit as I took my stance before I threw it as hard as I could, using my flames once again to rocket it into the air. 

“That was 790.6 meters.” Mr Aizawa informed me. 

“Wait, what?!” I asked, looking at my teacher.

“That’s it? Kinda disappointing.” Sero mumbled. 

“You’ve had a single semester at UA, and due to your various experiences, all of you have definitely improved. But, those improvements have mostly been limited to mental prowess and technical skill with a slight increase in stamina thrown in along the way. Your Quirks really haven’t grown that much stronger, not on a fundamental level.” Mr Aizawa informed us.

“That’s the reason for the training camp, right? To increase the strength of our Quirks.” I asked, getting a nod of affirmation from our teacher. 

“The goal of this training camp is to focus on improving your powers.” Our teacher grinned then, putting every last one of us on edge. “This’ll be so hard, you’ll feel like you’re dying. Let’s hope you all survive.” With that, our training began. I decided to work more with my fire since that was the weaker part of my Quirk, and try to figure out my mobility without using my wings… I started by maintaining my flames around me. I closed my eyes, listening to the sounds around me. I could hear Shoto training his quirk by switching between his fire and ice, Bakugo’s explosions going off every so often, and Iida’s engines speeding by every few minutes, though it got drowned out by Bakugo’s explosions every other time he passed me. After a few hours, I switched gears and did combat training with Tiger. But, for some reason, he had me do it blindfolded.

“In situations where you can’t see your opponent, most heroes gain a fatal disadvantage over the villain they’re facing. You, little bird, are an excellent fighter, but that will mean next to nothing if you can’t fight while your opponent isn't within your sights. Rather than rely on your sight, use your other senses to find your opponent and wait for the right time to counterattack.” Tiger told me. I could practically imagine him off to the side, his arms crossed over his chest as he watched. I hadn’t been told who my opponent would be, so I listened for any sign of who it might be. A sound came from my left, and I was able to block an attack that felt familiar. I ignited my hand, and a whine told me it was Dark Shadow. 

“Aww, how did you know it was me? Fumi and I were so quiet.” Dark Shadow asked me.

“I’d never forget how your touch feels, Dark Shadow.” I informed him before Tokoyami and I sparred for a bit.

“This is not only to help you with fighting when you’re not able to see, Yagi, but also to help Tokoyami strengthen Dark Shadow in the light. After lunch, the two of you will spar in a cave, that way Tokoyami can have a way to practice controlling Dark Shadow in the darkness as well.” Tiger told us, and we kept going until lunch. After we ate, Tokoyami and I sparred in darkness, with me not using my flames unless absolutely necessary, but….

Lemme tell you, while I was expecting Dark Shadow to be stronger in darkness, what I wasn’t expecting was for how damn scary that Quirk would look. Dark Shadow practically blended into the darkness except for his eyes being red, which worked as a way to track him, but still… It was kind of jarring. After a while, Dark Shadow started fighting with his eyes closed, making it harder except for the sounds coming from him, which were pretty much non-existent. I had a few close calls, but it only ended when the time to start dinner was called. 

“Now, remember what I said? We’re not serving your food anymore!” PIxie Bob reminded us.

“If you guys wanna eat, you’ll have to make your own meals! Starting with curry!” Ragdoll told us. By that point, we were all pretty tired.

“Yes, ma’am.” Most of us gave a lackluster response due to our exhaustion. Ragdoll giggled.

“Oh man, do you guys look exhausted! But, that doesn’t mean you can coast by making sloppy cat food.” Ragdoll warned.

“Oh! I see. An important part of saving someone recovering from a disaster is providing for their physical needs as well as spiritual. Ah! This is a great opportunity! Let’s make the most delicious curry in the world, everyone!” Iida immediately jumped back to his normal energy.

“How the hell are you even human?!” I snapped in my exhaustion.

“Yeah, okay.” Everyone else replied. I ignited the grill I was at, seeing Shoto doing the same with his group’s.

“Hey, Todoroki, can we get some fire over here too?” Mina asked him. On my other side, Sero turned to Bakugo.

“Bakugo, use an explosion to light that.” Sero told him.

“Uh, that’s a bad…” I started to warn, only to get cut off by Bakugo.

“This is so beneath me!” Bakugo snapped, doing it anyway and ended up destroying the grill altogether.

“Too much!” Tokoyami exclaimed, while I sighed.

“Rely on others and you’ll never learn to start a fire yourself.” Yaomomo put in before using her Quirk to make a lighter. “We should focus on acquiring new skills.” I snorted at the look on Kyoka’s face before I noticed Shoto walking over to Mina to help them.

“Here. Let me.” Shoto created a small flame with his left hand before using it to ignite the grill Mina and Ochaco were working off of. 

“Wow! Thank you so much!” Ochaco thanked him.

“Burn, baby, burn!” Mina cheered.

“But not too hot, okay?” Ochaco asked. The smile that crossed his face made my heart melt. I’d never seen him smile like that as a result of his fire. After the cooking, everyone sat down to eat.

“If I got this at a restaurant, I’d send it back, but after today, I’ll eat every bite!” Kirishima spoke as he scarfed down his food. 

“Don’t say that!” Sero told him. 

“Whoa, you’re scarfing, Momo!” Mina observed.

“Yes. My Quirk transforms lipids into brand new atoms to create inorganic materials. That means, the more I eat, the more I can make.” Yaomomo explained.

“Like how poop works.” Sero pointed out, making Kyoka, Yaomomo and I stop eating. My hair flared as I jumped out of my seat, poor Yaomomo embarrassed as hell, but Kyoka punched Sero and beat me to it.

“APOLOGIZE!” We both yelled at him.

“Okay, I’m sorry!” Sero whined. My anger didn’t last long, because I noticed Kota walking away as Mandalay called for him. I thought about going after him since I was finished eating, but I thought better of it. I wouldn't even know what to say and besides, a little while after Kota left, I saw Izuku leave with a plate to go after him. I decided to leave it to him, though knowing how Kota felt at that age, I knew Kota wouldn't listen to anything that was said. Actions spoke a hell of a lot louder than words… Same time the next morning, we kept at it, with me pretty much blasting with my flames all over the place to maintain airtime… Even though it hurt like absolute hell. By the time lunchtime hit, my hands were practically blistered from burns. Well… At least the training is strengthening my skin against my fire. I thought.

“I really gotta find a different way of doing this…” I mumbled.

“Oh man, those look pretty nasty.” Kirishima commented, though half asleep. According to Mina, they didn’t get back from their remedial lessons until nearly two in the morning, which explained Kirishima’s tired state.

“I’ll be fine.” I waved it off, washing my hands under lukewarm water. By now, I knew better than to run my burnt hands under freezing cold water. The cold water had just made things worse the day before… After lunch, we kept going, Tokoyami and I fighting in the darkness of the cave again. I barely used my flames except for small little bursts. The training though made me wonder why Tokoyami had said that Dark Shadow’s harder to control at night. Yeah, he’s more powerful and more aggressive in his attacks, but not once did Dark Shadow seem out of control. It made me wonder if there was more to it than just the darkness to release Dark Shadow’s darker tendencies…

After a hardcore training day that second day, Yaomomo and I ended up warning the girls of Class B about Mineta and his pervy tendencies, and sure as shit, he tried peeking on them. Mina, the girls and I had stationed ourselves to catch him in the act and the second he tried, Kyoka got him with her earphone Jack and Mina melted the wall. He tried to make a break for it, but I used my wings to get ahead of him. “Not so fast, pipsqueak!” I barked, making him stop in his tracks and scream, running right into the trap we’d set for him.

“Gotcha, ya little perv!” Toru exclaimed.

“Why the hell are you guys all clothed! This is a bathhouse, you should be naked!” The look on his face turned disgusting. “I can strip down too…”

“Kendo.” Kairi spoke the Class B president’s name and without a word, Kendo knocked Mineta the hell out. I groaned. 

“This is starting to get on my last nerve already.” I snapped.

“He really is the worst.” Ochaco agreed.

“Thanks for the heads up, girls.” Kendo thanked us.

“It’s not trouble at all.” Yaomomo replied.

“We knew he’d try something like he did last night.” I shrugged, waving off the thank you from her. I remained quiet as Kendo and the girls from Class 1-B gave us a bag of snacks as a thank you, Toru’s reply being that we should have a sleepover type deal to chow down and eat it all. I just listened to everyone as we went back to our dorm room. After Kendo and the girls got their stuff, they joined us in our room. The girls debated what to talk about before Toru brought up the dreaded subject… Love.

“We should talk about love! Has anyone had a boyfriend?” Toru asked. Everybody was dead quiet, although Kairi looked at me. She knew my history already, and I knew that she was dating Tetsutetsu. But we weren't about to say shit about the other… Kairi suddenly looked worried.

“Hino… I think it might be time to tell them.” Kairi hesitantly told me. I just looked at her. I really didn't want to relive the nightmare that was my relationship with Akako.

“Wait, about what?” Kyoka asked. Kairi waited for me, looking apologetic but unbudging.

“Before I got to UA, I had a boyfriend. But…” I sighed deeply. “It wasn’t a good relationship.” I turned my back to the girls and lifted my hair off my neck. On the back of my neck were scars from Yūgure’s Bloodwork quirk. I could hear gasps of horror coming from the girls as soon as the scars were shown. “I don’t talk about it a lot, but the scars on the back of my neck are from his quirk. He… Used it to make me do things he wanted me to… One of which being my first kiss.”

“What?!” All the girls except for Kairi exclaimed, sounding completely horrified.

“Nu-uh, that shouldn't count!” Mina shouted.

“Wait, so, he used his quirk to hurt you?” Ochaco asked.

“I get it now…” Kyoka murmured after a minute. “After all that, why would you want to date just to get hurt again?” When I turned around again, Kyoka looked worried too.

“Exactly. Besides, training to be a hero is more important right now.” I replied, albeit a bit gravely. It was dead silent.

“Well, that went depressing in three point five seconds." Toru grumbled.

“Sorry, guys.” I shrugged. Kairi spoke up then.

“Well… With training and all, there’s barely any time, but…” Kairi blushed. “Tetsutetsu and I are dating.” Mina instantly turned on Kairi, hounding her with questions. Kairi was blushing as she recounted the story of how Tetsutetsu had asked her to eat lunch with him at the Sports Festival, and how they’d pretty much hit it off and started going on dates on Sundays ever since. They did homework together, had lunch together and usually finished it off by going on a walk together. The girls swooned after the story, her classmates hugging her. I had to say, it was nice to hear that Tetsutetsu was making Kairi happy. She deserved it. 

“Okay, well, what about crushes?” Mina asked. I looked at Ochaco, who looked extremely red. I grinned, wanting to blurt it out, but decided against it. I was, after all, a hero and heroes didn't blurt out friends’ secrets. I listened as the girls debated about who would make the best boyfriend, each getting shut down for one reason or another, Bakugo being shot down for his obvious temper and Shoto getting shot down because of his Dad, and all of us agreeing that anyone was better than Mineta. The topic then shifted to who’s Quirks we’d wanna try out. Ochaco said Bakugo right off the bat, and I noticed that the other girls quickly followed suit.

“Kinda funny how it’s easier to talk about guys when the topic is off romance, isn’t it?” I pointed out after a second of silence.

“Well, you can’t help when you fall in love. It’s something that naturally happens. When that happens, we can talk about romance again.” Tsu chimed in.

“True.” I agreed.

“Wait, what’d you think makes a good boyfriend, Hino?” Mina asked me.

“I thought we’d jumped off the romance train already.” I reminded her, raising an eyebrow.

“Come on, please.” Ochaco begged. I leaned back against the wall, thinking for a minute as I looked up at the ceiling. 

“Someone who inspires you to be better, and not just in the hero aspect. Someone you can be your genuine self with and it comes naturally…” I shrugged. “That’s how it was for my Mom, though she never did get the chance to do anything about it.” I relented. When I turned my attention back to the girls, they had all gathered around me and were smiling like idiots. “What?” I pressed.

“For someone who avoids romance, you seem to think about it a lot.” Mina teased.

“I don’t, I just know what I want in a relationship.” As much as I like Bakugo and Shoto, I’m not ready… I added in my head. The girls strayed away from the romance topic again while I listened in, smiling a bit at the girls. I really was lucky to have them all as friends, as annoying as they could be...

The past couple nights, the nightmares had been going but then, that particular night, the nightmares suddenly stopped. Honestly, it felt more concerning to me than the nightmare itself. From the moment I woke up, I had a sense of dread, like something was bound to happen… I tried to shake it off as I trained that day, but things seemed off.

“Don’t lose focus! Each of you can move faster, and no matter what you’re doing, just remember where you started from. Don’t forget who you were before UA. Always keep in mind why you’re sweating, and why your limits keep getting tested. That’s what it means to improve.” Mr Aizawa told us.

“Hey, that reminds me… Mr Aizawa, it’s already the third day of camp.” Izuku stopped what he was doing to approach our teacher as I lost focus for a second and fell to the dirt. As I dusted myself, I listened to the conversation that was going on.

“Weren’t you listening? Stay focused.” Mr Aizawa told him, jumping down from his spot to be level with Izuku.

“I was just wondering if All Might-I mean, the other teachers from UA will be joining us.” Izuku wondered. 

“Like I said before we came out here, to keep the camp a secret from the villains, hardly anyone knows where we are.” Mr Aizawa answered.

“That’s why you get to work out with us four pussycats!” Ragdoll chimed in from an upper part of the training area, specifically where Mr Aizawa had jumped down from. 

“And think about it… We believe All Might’s one of the League’s targets, so we can’t have him here.” Mr Aizawa continued. “It’s for your own safety. For better or for worse, that’s what he gets for standing out so much.” Mr Aizawa snickered a bit after speaking. Seems like it's mostly for worse these days... I thought as I got back to training.

“More importantly, tonight’s gonna be fun! We’re pitting classes against each other in a test of courage. I know you’ve been training hard today, and later, you’ll get to play hard! How’s that for a reward?!” Pixie Bob informed us. 

“It just sounds like more training.” I heard Kendo say as I tried while firing off flames from my feet to try flying that way, though honestly I knew that way was more levitating in the air with my flames coming out of my feet like rocket boosters… 

“And training in the dark, no less.” Kyoka followed Kendo’s lead. 

“Revelry in the dark…” I definitely should have known something was up when Tokoyami started that weird stuff…

“How much can we do in one day?” I heard one of the Class B boys question.

“At least we’ll get to beat Class A, am I right?” Monoma replied.

“Not likely!” I sing-songed chaotically as I flew past them from overhead. 

“Don’t slack now! Make sure you keep pushing yourself as you work!” Pixie Bob told us.

“Yes ma’am!” We all exclaimed in return. After lunch, I went to the usual training with Tokoyami in the darkness of the cave again. After a few minutes, the attacks from Dark Shadow suddenly stopped.

“You seem unfocused, Yagi, what’s troubling you?” Tokoyami asked.

“It’s that obvious?” I asked, surprised that Tokoyami had caught that something was up.

“Call it instinct.” I could practically hear him shrugging. I sighed, putting down my guard for a second.

“It’s just… I’ve been having these nightmares lately… But all of a sudden, last night, they just… Stopped.” I told him.

“That would be a good thing then, should it not?” Tokoyami sounded confused.

“Normally, yeah, but… I don’t know, ever since this morning, I’ve just had this sense of dread…” I trailed off.

“There’s no sense dwelling on what could happen, it’s wiser to stay in the present moment and to take things one step at a time.” Tokoyami advised. I smiled a bit.

“Thanks, Tokoyami.” I thanked him before we went at it again. That night at dinner, I was carrying firewood over to my group’s grill when I noticed Bakugo cutting some vegetables… Quick and efficient. “Whoa, you’re pretty good with that knife, Bakugo.” I complimented him.

“It’s kinda weird…” Ochaco trailed off, having noticed too.

“WHADDYA MEAN, IT’S WEIRD?! HOW CAN YOU PEOPLE BE SO DAMN BAD AT EVERYTHING?!” Bakugo blew up, making me roll my eyes as I walked away.

“Look at that, he’s not blowing stuff up.” Kaminari commented as he passed by.

“I’m too tired for this…” I heard Kirishima murmur, looking fed up. That, my friend, is a complete mood. I thought as I set the wood down at my group’s grill.

“Did you need All Might for a particular reason?” I heard Shoto ask Izuku. “You asked Mr Aizawa about him.”

“Yeah… Um, I did… Because of Kota.” Izuku replied.

“Kota? Who’s that?” Shoto asked.

“He’s Mandalay’s nephew.” I answered his question.

“He’s right over…” Izuku tried to point him out, but the kid had already taken off to his hideout again. “Anyway, Kota doesn’t like heroes. Actually, he hates the whole concept of superhumans, Quirks and everything. I tried to talk to him, but I think I just made things worse. I was just wondering what All Might would have done to help him if he’d been here.” I mean, what would you say to him, Todoroki?” Izuku asked. Shoto seemed to think about it for a minute.

“It depends…” Todoroki trailed off.

“Of course! Sorry I asked!” Izuku apologized. 

“To have a complete stranger try to change your mindset sounds like a pretty irritating conversation. What matters are actions. You have to show him what you’re trying to prove, right? If you’re going to rely on words alone, then they’d better be incredibly powerful. What you say doesn’t matter near as much as what you actually do.” Shoto told him. I smiled a bit.

“Couldn’t have said it better myself.” I told him.

“You’re right. I went about this the wrong way… How can I, a stranger, say anything to him?” Izuku questioned.

“I don’t know what your goal is when it comes to this child, but it sounds to me like you shouldn’t be sticking your nose in a delicate situation. You tend to cut to the heart of people’s feelings… It can be annoying…”

“Right, sorry about that.” Izuku apologized again, making me snort. 

“You guys! Your hands aren’t moving! We’ll never make the best stew if you stop now.” Iida scolded. After I finished dinner, I decided to go see how Kota was doing and make sure he got something to eat. To be honest, finding him wasn’t all that hard. His hideout was a cliffside with a cave at the back of it, and a trail led right to him. He was scowling over everything when I reached him. When I landed and tucked my wings away, I could hear his stomach growling.

“I heard that, Spunky.” I told him, making his attention turn toward me. “I’m sure you worked up an appetite today.”

“How the heck do you guys keep finding me?!” Kota hissed, jumping up and looking like a cat that was growling with its fur on end. I set the bowl of stew next to him, sitting on the other side of it as I pointed upward toward the sky.

“Sometimes it’s worth it to get a bird’s eye view of everything.” I told him.

“I don’t believe you! You don’t even have wings!” Kota snapped.

“Some people have Quirks that allow them to fly without wings, but..” I let my wings out just then, letting him see them. “I don’t keep mine out most of the time.” I then turned my attention to the stars as I tucked my wings away again. “I can see why you keep coming up here, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a more beautiful view of the stars than up here.” Kota was quiet then, but another growl of his stomach sounded off, followed by the sound of a spoon hitting the bowl I'd brought him. I didn’t look, just smiled a bit as I let him dig in. I hoped that we would never get in a situation where we could prove to Kota what a real hero was all about, but for now, I couldn’t really say anything. Like Shoto had said, and I knew extremely well, actions spoke a lot louder than words. You could say something all you wanted, but without actions to prove it… It was no use. Once the sounds of him eating stopped, I spoke up again. “It’s getting late, we should head back to the others.” I told him, looking at him.

“And hang around a bunch of wannabe losers? No thanks.” Kota snarled, stubborn as ever. I shrugged a bit. 

“Okay, but you’ll miss out on seeing those wannabes wet their pants in a test of courage.” I grinned a bit, though it faltered when he didn’t budge. I sighed a bit, letting my wings out to take off, but getting an idea. I took a loose feather off my left wing and gave it to him.

“What’s this for?” Kota asked, and honestly, I was surprised he didn't just drop it down the cliff.

“Just in case you get into trouble or just don’t wanna walk back, you can tap it three times and I’ll feel it.” I told him. He gave me another look that screamed he didn’t believe me. “Try it.” I told him. That was when the little shit decided to pull on a piece of it. My wings flinched in response. “Ow, hey!” I laughed a bit. He looked intrigued. “Seriously, if you need help, use that to let me know and I’ll come flying to help you… Literally.” I grinned before taking the empty bowl back to camp and washing it just as everyone else finished with the dishes.

“There you are, where’d you end up going?” Shoto asked.

“I made sure Kota got something to eat. I’d hoped I’d be able to get him to come back with me, but no such luck.” I answered.

“Brat’ll be fine, you worry too much.” Bakugo growled as he stormed past us.

“It’s not like I entirely have nothing to worry about, idiot. There’s still wildlife out and about.” I told him.

“I’m sure he’ll be fine.” Shoto tried to reassure me, but the dread just kept building up. Something was completely wrong, but I couldn’t sense any taps on the feather I gave him, so at least he was safe for now. I tried to shrug it off, gathering with the others as we were brought to a clearing in the forest a bit ways away from the main building. 

“Perfect! We’ve filled our bellies and cleaned the dishes. It’s time for….” Pixie Bob started to announce. 

“A totally awesome test of courage!” Mina squealed in excitement, finishing for our mentor of the week.

“We’re gonna win!” Sero, Kirishima, Sato and Kaminari all chimed in.

“Not so fast. It pains me to say it, but the remedial class will be having lessons with me tonight instead.” Mr. Aizawa corrected.

“You’ve gotta be kidding me!” Mina exclaimed, her excitement instantly deflated.

“Sorry. Your training during the day didn’t impress me, so I’ll be using this time too.” Mr Aizawa wrapped his scarf around the four boys and Mina and dragged them back.

“Aw, give me a break!” Sero, Kaminari and Mina protested.

“I just wanna test my courage!” Sato and Kirishima added in.

“Okay, so,” And we’re just gonna gloss over that like it didn’t happen? “Class B is gonna start out as our scarers. When they’re in place, Class A will leave in pairs every three minutes. There are tags with your names on them at the far end of the route. Your goal is to collect those.” Pixie Bob explained.

“Revelry in the dark…” Tokoyami muttered again. Why does he keep saying that?! I thought. 

“Now, those who are scarers aren’t allowed to make physical contact. Use your Quirks to terrify the others. Got it?”

“The winners are the creative students who make the most people piss their pants!” Tiger finished.

“Did we really need that visual?” Kyoka and I wondered at the same time. 

“I see! They’re encouraging us to stoke our imaginations as we compete with each other, all while showing us more uses for our Quirks in the process. As expected of UA!” Iida passionately exclaimed, making me facepalm.

“All right! Everyone, draw to see who your partner will be.” Pixie Bob told us. Shouji ended up paired with Tokoyami, Bakugo- funny enough- ended up with Shoto, Kyoka ended up paired with Toru, Yaomomo ended up paired with Aoyama, Ochaco ended up paired with Tsu, Ojiro ended up being paired with Mineta, Iida ended up paired with Koda, and I ended up paired with Izuku as the last group.

“Okay, so we’re together in this one…” I trailed off before I heard Bakugo.

“Listen up, Tail. Trade with me.” Bakugo demanded, jabbing his thumb at Shoto over his shoulder. 

“Aoyama….” I recoiled when I saw Mineta practically salivating with an aura of pervertedness around him as he stalked toward poor Yaomomo and Aoyama. “Please switch me partners, I should be with her!” Aoyama pretty much kept Yaomomo blocked from Mineta and kept his hands up, shaking his head. During the chaos, Tokoyami gave out another,

“Revelry in the dark.” The sense of dread seemed to get worse every time he said that…

“Next team! That’s you two kittens, Ribbity and Miss Floater.” Pixie Bob called to the next team about 12 minutes later. After a minute, though, I noticed a blue glow and the sense of dread got even worse. She suddenly sniffed the air.

“Huh… What’s that weird smell in the air?” Pixie Bob asked.

“Guys…” I trailed off, pointing toward where it was coming from. 

“Black smoke…” Mandalay observed.

“Has something been set ablaze?” Iida asked. 

“Maybe a fire on the mountain?” Ojiro added.

“No fire I know burns blue… Something’s up.” I answered. All of a sudden, Pixie Bob levitated into the air. 

“Hey, what’s happening?!” She exclaimed.

“Pixie Bob!” Mandalay called out to her. Before long, she was on the ground, bleeding from her head.

“First, let’s get rid of these feral cats.”

“What? No way!” Mineta backed up, looking as horrified as I felt. “I thought they made sure no one could find us! So why the heck are villains attacking this place?!” He shrieked. There were two people in front of us. The first was a woman (to be honest, she looked and sounded like a man to me) with quite a wide, muscular build. Her shoulder-length hair was smooth, and a reddish magenta color, her rather square jaw was also thinly covered in facial hair. Her lips were notably big, kinda like Sato’s except more pink. She wore triangular, white-framed sunglasses, obscuring her eyes. Along with these, she also wore a dark orange shirt, which was unbuttoned revealing the white v-neck she had on underneath, blue jeans with a belt, and plain dark brown espadrilles on her feet. The second was a man with a reptile-like appearance, with green scales for skin and a face shaped like that of a gecko. His hair was very long pink-purple hair and swept backwards, which stood out. He wore clothes that reminded me of Stain, the same mask, red scarf… Except his outfit was different: sleeveless shirt with blue spots and dark, baggy pants, along with black shoes and pale, metallic knee guards. He also had bandages wrapped around his arms and goggles on his head. The woman’s eyes seemed to turn toward me and I felt the feeling get worse…

“Pixie Bob!” Izuku shouted, but got stopped by Tiger and Mandalay. 

“This is bad…” Mandalay murmured. That’s when I realized Kota was still missing.

“Where’s Kota?!” Izuku asked, realizing Kita's absence too.

“He’s still at his hideout, I think…” I went quiet when I felt a sensation. My eyes widened when I realized that it was coming from the spot I had pulled my feather from… Three taps, quick, panicked… Kota was in trouble… “Oh shit…” I trailed off.

“What’s wrong?” Izuku asked.

“I gave Kota one of my feathers, told him to tap it three times if he ever needed help… I just felt it.” I told him. “We need to get to him…”

“Well, that’s a stroke of luck. One of the kids we need is right there.” The woman interrupted, and when I turned my attention to her, she was pointing right at me. Wait, one of the kids? I thought. 

“So? Use your Quirk and get her!" The male replied.

“If I do, it could hurt her, and our orders were clear. She’s not to be harmed, not even a scratch.” The female told him.

Attention, everyone! Mandalay’s voice suddenly sounded in my head, and I knew she was using her Quirk to let everyone know what was going on. Two villains attacked us. It’s possible that there are more coming. Everyone, return to camp immediately. We’re regrouping. Do not engage any enemies. 

“How are you this evening, UA High School? We are part of the Vanguard Action Squad of the League of Villains.” The male informed us. Shigaraki must be calling in that private talk he was talking about last time we met… Shit, this is bad. I thought.

“The League of Villains? What are those guys doing here?” Ojiro asked.

“I could crush this kitty’s head so easily. How about it, dears, should I?” The woman asked.

“Leave her alone!” I shouted. I wanted to do something about it so badly, but I knew I couldn’t. 

“You get away from her!” Tiger shouted the same time I yelled. 

“Now, now, hold on Big Sis Mag. You too, Tiger, calm down. When deciding if someone should live or die, we must be careful that we’re abiding by Stain’s principles.” The male interrupted.

“Stain?” Izuku and I murmured at the same time.

“So, you’re the ones he ended up inspiring.” Iida snarled.

“At your service. That’s us.” The male spread his arms out. “And you, four eyes, I believe I recognize you. You’re one of the self righteous brats who attacked Stain in Hosu City. Let me introduce myself.” He drew a huge sword that was mainly composed of a shit ton of knives and blades belted and taped together as one. “Call me Spinner. I’m here to make Stain’s dreams a reality.” I felt the three taps again, more urgent this time. I should have gone with the first three…

“I’m sorry, Mandalay, but I have to go find Kota before he gets hurt!” I apologized to her as I took off, flying as fast as I could towards the hideout. Kota, please be okay! I thought, my heart racing hard in my chest. When I finally found him at his hideout, someone had gotten there first, and it was the last person I expected to see there… Wendigo. "NO!" I roared, flying faster and praying my wings would get me there faster than Wendigo could move. Just as Wendigo brought his claw down to attack Kota, I got there, landing in front of Kota and stopping the attack mid-swing. “Kota, get out of here! Run!” I yelled at him.

“But…”

“Kota, I know you’re scared, but I can’t take this guy down if you’re within range of getting burned by my flames. I can’t take the risk of you getting hurt, just run!” I pleaded with him, struggling to hold back Wendigo. He’d gotten stronger, but I just had to hold off Wendigo until Kota got back to camp… I couldn’t let Wendigo get to the others, so many could die if I let it happen… No. I wouldn’t let it happen! I yelled as I burned Wendigo, shoving him and causing him to slide back. “Come on, ya son of a bitch!” I taunted, creating a fire whip and cracking it at him. He gave a blood curdling screech, but I was ready for him. I whipped him a couple times before he figured out how to dodge it and lunged for me. I quickly blasted him with my other hand, fighting as best as I could against a human with basically animal-like tendencies.

There was no pattern, and I could barely see him. But, I knew Wendigo could only see me if I moved, and I only moved when he did. I could only hope that Kota had gotten to safety in the nick of time. I fought as hard as I could, glancing over my shoulder every now and then to check where Kota had run off to. I felt a cut and cried out in pain as an attack, one that I wasn't paying attention to in my worry for Kota, hit and caused my old scars reopening like in my nightmare. But after a while, I spotted Kota poking his head out of hiding. Wendigo lunged for him, but that gave me an opening. “Get back here!” I was able to crack my whip and yank him back into me, giving a yell as I slammed him into the ground and burned him so much that he passed the hell out. By the time the fight between Wendigo and I was over, I was exhausted, and the skin on my palms was starting to scar. Just as I felt like I was about to collapse, I felt a force knock into me and small arms around my waist. Once I was steady, I looked down to see Kota, hugging me tightly.

“You came.” Kota sniffled. I knelt to his height and hugged him back.

“You called. I’m so sorry I wasn’t able to get here sooner, are you hurt?” I asked. He silently shook his head. I sighed in relief. “Good, that was too close of a call. We need to get you back to camp and fast…” He suddenly looked extremely pale, looking behind me. When I turned, I shielded him with my body as a tall figure cloaked in a black robe with a hood and some type of mask covering his face, my wings coming out wrap around him protectively.

“Well, well, I came up here scouting for a nice vantage point, and here I find someone on our list and another someone not on it. By the way, nice hat, kid. I like it.” He pointed to the mask covering his face. “Why don’t ya trade me for this lame mask, huh? They made me wear it because I’m new, said they couldn’t get a shipment of the good ones in time.” He took the mask off and tossed it to the side. “Ah well…”

“Kota, run!” I shoved the kid behind me and, this time, he listened to me. The cloaked man moved to get in front of him and I was just barely fast enough to get between the two again. “STAY AWAY FROM HIM!” I yelled, slamming my flames down to create a wall. He only laughed though.

“Feisty, huh? It’s been a while since I had a good fight! Why don’t you and I have some fun up here, kid? Ready?” His arm suddenly warped until the muscles in his body were covering all of his upper body except his neck. I thought the fight with Wendigo was hard, but this? I could tell this guy was way stronger… The guy was a large, bulky, and highly muscular man set wide with short, spiky, sandy blond hair and tiny black eyes. He has a large scar across the left side of his face, his left eye replaced with a prosthetic one, and another, smaller scar on the right side of his forehead. Underneath the black cloak was a red tank top, a dark jacket that hangs around his waist, dark green pants, and black knee-high boots.

“Papa! Mama!” Kota cried out, tears running down his face. His cry confirmed that this was, indeed, the man who had taken out his parents. My instincts were going crazy with a need to protect the boy behind me. As the villain punched downward, creating a trench and causing rocks to go flying, I dodged the attack, grabbing Kota and wrapping my wings around him as I hit the ground hard and rolled to my feet, placing Kota behind me again as I let my wings extend behind me, making me appear bigger. It did nothing to intimidate him though, the villain just laughed at me.

“You wanna rumble, little bird? Let's rumble!” The villain yelled as I charged, the two of us locking in the middle. I was tired as hell, bleeding out from my reopened scars… I knew I wouldn't be able to last long in this fight, but I had to try to protect Kota… I couldn't let what happened to his parents happen to him…

I just couldn't!

(Tag list: @qweenexplosionmurder13 @iheartbarbie)

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[inviouswriting]

Dragon and Phoenix chapter 5.

Finally! Got it to work! Here is chapter 5 and a bit more dynamic development. I hope this is to the liking of those who do read it.

Warnings include - anal play and sex, blow jobs, oral sex heavy, afab! character, married couple, graphic depictions of sex. Ongoing story.

She doesn’t know how long she fell asleep for, when Aserla finally wakes up she registers arms around her. Blue eyes open and blink sleep bleary from them; she feels Zhongli’s head resting on top of hers, his chin resting at the crown of her head. She smells something good in the air and begins to slowly sit up. Aserla looks up to her husband’s sleeping face and realizes she had slept a good portion of the morning after their morning proved to be adventurous. Aserla begins to touch his face while seeing him stir awake when he feels her hand on his cheek. Zhongli feels the way she touches his face, feeling the contours of his jaw and cheek. He opens his eyes and looks down to his wife nestled in his arms with a warm smile to his lips and love towards her easily shown.  “Did you get enough rest?” His voice is low to not disturb the peace too much. Aserla nods and shares that smile he has.  “I did, didn’t realize how tired I was till I laid down.” She says sheepish and hints that he wore her out in the morning. A rumbling chuckle comes from his chest and Zhongli pulls her in close to him to hug her tight while pressing a kiss to the top of her head.  “Expected as this is our second day married. We’ll build that stamina together and soon enough even on passionate mornings you’ll have energy through the day.” Gold eyes almost glow at his words seeing the way her face reddens when he’s blunt about wanting her more often. Aserla touches the collar of his top seeing he had chosen to wear a lounging hanfu outfit like she saw the other day. Like the rest of his clothing he has dragon scales through it that glitters gold with the rise and fall of his chest. His hair in it’s usual tail and she sees he has put a different earring in to go with what he wears.  “I really liked what you did for me earlier. It felt really good.” Aserla dwells on the morning and how he took care of her pleasure more than seeing his own. It makes her look up at him and realize she hasn’t done anything for him.  “I’m glad you are enjoying it. You were mesmerizing; a sight I can’t wait to see again.” Zhongli starts to get up from the couch they’re on and stretches remembering he has things he was cooking. Aserla follows him in getting up to follow him into the kitchen, she still feels amazed at how beautiful their home is and knowing he built it himself before relinquishing his power sits at the back of her head.  “How did you know to do all that stuff?” Aserla’s question can be taken in two directions. Zhongli looks over to her trying to figure out what she is asking. If he has some experience she isn’t aware of, or about his powers. He takes in a breath as he answers the question in two ways.

 “For sex? I read a lot of books, also applied what I knew in acupressure to certain parts of you, and listened to your body to find out what touch you liked or didn’t. Some of the books I’ve read are sexual health and I do have those if you are curious to read them. As for if you mean how I built this place. I carved out the inside first then built around it, hired some hands who kept the secrets well.” Zhongli checks the kettle and pours his tea into a gold goblet and selects another tea for her to try. He settles on one for her health with the way they’ve been active he gives her one that is used as a contraceptive.  “I see, I didn’t mean to sound accusing if it came off that way.” She realizes her mistake in her wording. A soft smile is shown her way after Zhongli sets their table with bowls of his soup he makes and supplies her rice and the tea. Aserla sits down next to him and takes up her spoon to take up some of the broth enjoying the flavor of it along with how tender the meat is after cooking for six to eight hours.  “Is it hard to believe that a six-thousand year old man to be celibate his entire life?” Zhongli asks her, his eyes soft as he wants to assure her that he isn’t lying to her about important things of his past.  “A little hard to believe, specially with one who was a former archon. You must have had a bevy of women, there were always the sordid stories that made their way into Mondstadt’s library. Ones where you engaged in things from accepting “offerings” to just taking someone on a whim.” As Aserla speaks she sees there is pain behind his eyes at hearing such things about him, specially from the lips of someone he loves. He knew this might have been a problem, and he nips it all quickly before it takes more root in her mind than it needs to be.  “And after being with me, what do you take of these theories and tales you found?” Aserla lifts her head as she takes up her tea and looks into his eyes. She feels guilty for talking about them seeing that there is pain in his eyes at how someone he loves can not see the truth for herself. That what she came across in those is nothing but pure fiction.  “I shouldn’t believe them.” She says out loud and he agrees.  “Do I really seem like the type that would casually have sex with others and not give care to their feelings? Or even with this so called “bevy of women” at my disposal. Did it feel like I’d just use another person willing or not to satisfy my own needs? I had time for it, believe me. I simply didn’t want to. I believed that love is as sacred as a contract and to use someone even in fleeting would have gone against my principles as a deity. The common people came to me for whatever they needed help with, they would leave offerings at my statues, or try to buy my affection during the Rite of Descents, when I was just there to give my reports for the coming year of how they should prepare and trade. I had a region to watch over and while the occasional brothel entertained my mind to “get it out of my system” I would never be able to look at those who held me in high regards the same if I went as low to use another being just to satisfy my lust.” Zhongli says this in a tone that borders on scolding but in that gentle form he does when correcting someone close to him.  “Those pieces of fiction in those libraries, nothing more than cheap smut made by people who had nothing better to do and parchment at their disposal. The women that I surrounded myself with, were close adepti who are to this day very respectable faces of Liyue. I’d never tarnish their image as “the ones who slept with Rex Lapis” or let their shine be diminished because of my shadow.” Aserla feels tears creep into her eyes at how he not only tore down every rumor about him and his past, but also made it clear that he never wants the adepti around him to have their achievements covered that way again.

 “I’m sorry, if my words were insensitive.” Zhongli hears the waver in her voice and sets down his chopsticks to take her left hand in his to bring it to his lips so he can kiss her wedding band.

 “You were misinformed by people who do not know me, or cared to know me. These are the same people who ran wild with the speculations about the kind of relationship I had with Guizhong. All you need to do is ask me, and I’ll gladly tell you everything. Please promise me, you won’t let a dark thought that stains our relationship grow when I can blight it off. Each of my adepti are special to my heart. I loved each of them as much as close friends could be and that love is special in its way. The love I have for you is growing into something I don’t want tainted by thoughts of jealousy or insecurity. So please my love, always come to me so I can lay to rest these kinds of thoughts.” Zhongli takes Aserla into his arms to console her seeing her starting to cry over the worry of offending him but it was the complete opposite of that. He just wants her to be open with him as much as he is with her.

 “I’m sorry, they were silly thoughts and I’ll try not to dwell on them.” Aserla is still in defensive mode regarding the scolding she got, and Zhongli understands this, he’s seen it numerous times when someone reprimands another for needless gossip. He instead of letting her remain in that thought tilts her head to press a soft kiss to her lips and holds it there. Aserla feels sheepish for her thoughts and glances up into his eyes as he kisses her. She feels her face flushed and lets him hold her to himself. When their kiss ends he rubs his hands through her hair.  “There isn’t anything wrong with that they’ve written either, or fabricated. They just used tools to toss some fantasy off and others enjoyed their ideas enough to make books or scrolls from it. What is important to me, is that you know fact from fabrication. I am telling you what is fact, they’re false. You are the one who answered my call for love out of many who ignored it. I treasure you in the short time I’ve grown to know you. You even said you would not have answered my call if I was such a womanizer because you knew deep down the truth.” Zhongli holds the back of Aserla’s head in a comforting way but ensures she can’t look away from his molten gaze.

“All I ask is you trust me and I’ll trust you in return. The moment we allow deceit to rule our hearts is the moment our relationship is over. I’ll never see that genuine smile you hold for me because there is always that cloying sense in the back of your mind “is he unfaithful” and you of all know. I’ll never break a contract as important as the bond I make with a loved and cherished one.” Aserla listens to him speak and assure her that he’s serious about her along with maintaining his honor and the honor of those around him. Aserla sits there quietly as she takes in everything he has said to her. She keeps eye contact with him for as long as he holds her there. She tries to look away but his gentle hold on her keeps her from breaking their connection. There are tears in her eyes more from embarrassment of misunderstanding her husband and afraid she had offended him. Yet that kind smile remains on his face and that burning love he possesses in those eyes.  Soft is the kiss he presses onto her lips, and full is her heart from how she feels from his kiss. Zhongli lets go of the back of her head and wraps his arms around her; rubbing her back and making up for his tone with softness and reassuring her he’s not mad at her.  “We still have a long way to learn each other. I love you, my phoenix.” Zhongli murmurs after breaking the kiss to touch the edge of her ear with his teeth. Showing his interest but also to let her feel her emotions. He smiles warm to her and finally gets a smile back from her. He lets her return to her seat to finish eating her soup before it gets cold.

 “I’ll do my best to not doubt you and trust you more. Thank you for reaffirming my feelings. A bit blunt this time but I love you.” Aserla finally speaks more and takes his right hand in her left to squeeze it. Zhongli brings her hand to his lips to kiss her ring and fingers.  “I know you will. Now, let us finish our meal so we can relax together? Your tea is best while it is hot. It doesn’t taste good cold and will be slightly bitter.” He informs her and she takes up her cup to drink it along with his urging her to do so. Aserla’s blue eyes glance up towards Zhongli when they both finish their bowls. She takes his and goes to clean their dishes.

Aserla goes through her thoughts and finds herself smiling as she washes their utensils and cups. She feels arms around her from behind and Zhongli resting his head on top of hers. ”Those can wait till later. Forgive me if I’m a bit pushy, but I meant what I said earlier in wanting you a lot more today.” There is a slip of his hand under the slit of her skirt and his fingers dip along the crease of her sex eager to see if she responds to him like this.  “Zhongli.. I… want it too.” A smirk against her ear as the former archon presses his fingers in to wet them with her slick then rubs the pads of his fingers over her clit slowly. He knew what he was doing when he provided his wife this dress and how easy it would be to slide the front aside and do this was on his mind.  “Good, you’ve awakened something inside me, and I long to feel you around me again.” Zhongli tilts Aserla’s head up and claims her lips in a deep kiss; his tongue pressing into her mouth and is met with hers ready to dance around his. She moans softly into his kiss while feeling his left hand palm her breast through the silk of the top. His hand busy with her folds rubs more steadily to get her to open her legs more for him to insert two of his fingers into her and curls them towards her belly.

 “Ah! Zhongli! Please!” Her voice is something he can’t get enough of, and he guides her towards the wall just near the hallway towards the bath where he drops to his knees in front of her and slips the skirt over his shoulder so he can look at her pussy wrapped around his fingers.  “Please what? Tell me. You are incredibly wet and hot inside. Does it make you feel that good?” Zhongli smirks as he thrusts his fingers gently into her opening. His eyes trained on the soft pink as he keeps her spread so he can watch the small nub of her clit hardening under the pleasure.

 “Y-you’re a menace… saying things like that to me!” Aserla blushes as soft panted moans come off her lips feeling him add another finger and his thumb brushes her clit. He’s amused while seeing the way she pushes her hips down to meet his fingers working their magic on her. Reaching far deeper than her own could and just as she teeters on the edge of release. He stops and withdraws his hand from her leaving her to sob in frustration at being denied an orgasm.

 “Indulge my whims and you’ll experience something really nice.” Zhongli says as he stands up, and once again guides her into the bathroom itself. They’d end up in there after they’re done anyways with what he intends to do. His fingers find the clasps of her dress and swiftly pops them open till his hands push the dress down off her skin and has her step out.

 “Sit down on the edge of the bath please? I’ll join you after I take care of our clothes.” Zhongli says with a smile and Aserla is eager to feel that pleasure again. She aches to feel him and sits down where he instructs her towards the bath pool. She watches him disrobe slowly; taking his time to put their clothes away in bins where they’ll wear them later if they remember.  Aserla’s eyes graze over his nude form and takes in everything. From his torso toned from the years of training he’s done, and how this privilege to look at his nude form is hers alone. She travels her eyes lower on his waist when he turns towards her, she can see him aroused with the raise of his penis and how the skin gives a peek of the sensitive head. Her curiosity gets to her as she learns more about her husband’s body as a man, let alone getting use to seeing male anatomy closer.

 “It looks comfortable.” Aserla says as she reaches a hand to his waist to touch him. Zhongli smirks as he sees her curious about the foreskin and looks down at himself after approaching her enough so she can touch him.

 “I trust I’m the only one you’ve ever seen like this.” Aserla lets her face flush before she tells him.

“For sex yes, but not the first penis I’ve seen. I use to work at the Angel Share in Mondstadt. It… wasn’t uncommon to come across a guy urinating in the alleyways… Or was flashed because someone was too drunk.” Aserla rests her hand on his forming erection and begins to touch him gently enough that he emits a sigh from her soft hands touching him like this.

 “A bit repulsive, but most men would find ways to do it without a care to who is around them.” Zhongli’s eyes close as they have this conversation. He feels a little mix in his feelings but it did come with the territory of working in a tavern. Zhongli soon lets the thoughts leave him in favor to guide her hands as she learns to touch him.

 Aserla follows the motions his hands guide hers on, and has her peel back the skin and he stands a bit closer as if understanding what she wants to try and do. She keeps stroking him feeling how surprisingly soft the skin is there and looks up at him to see if he’s enjoying her touch.

Zhongli has his eyes closed and mouth parted in a light pant feeling his wife touch him this way. Even his face has a rare blush that she’s taken it on herself to please him. His eyes snap open wide when he feels wet heat against the tip of his erection and glances down to see equally flushed cheeks from Aserla.

 “My love, you don’t have to.” Aserla looks up at him for that and pulls back with her lips barely touching him. She tests rubbing her tongue against the tip and can feel him twitch in her hands and against her mouth.

 “I want to. You’re always pleasing me, it’s only fair.” A soft smile is shown his way and Zhongli cards his fingers through her hair. When Aserla presses her lips back to the head of his cock she encounters a little bit of a saltiness from tasting precum and feels more of it seeping out from him. Blue eyes cast up to see a blissful expression on her husband’s face and the fingers in her hair grip just a bit tighter.

 “You are good to me.” Zhongli lets out as he guides her in taking him into her mouth slowly. Aserla opens her mouth and fits enough of him in that she uses both of her hands to stroke the rest of his shaft as she figures out how to suck around him. She does and breathes in as she pulls up then exhales as she goes down onto him. She feels awkward trying to find her rhythm then figures out when he guides her.

 Aserla rubs her tongue around the head, swirling just right that he bucks his hips forward sending more of his shaft into her mouth and she pulls off suddenly to cough from him hitting the back of her throat.

 “Aserla? Are you alright? You’re struggling with it. I think that is enough.” Zhongli smiles to her and cups her face to keep her from trying again. She blushes even more when he is focused on her face and assuring her she doesn’t have to continue.

 “I’d like to try again.” She feels a little disappointed in herself at not being able to please him the way he does to her. She leans forward and at least rubs the head of his penis against her tongue. She tugs the skin down to expose the glands enough to tease him at least this way.

 “You can later. I would like to continue what I was doing earlier. You did great for a first attempt. I did enjoy it.” Zhongli cups her face again and lifts her enough to press a kiss to her lips. He delves his tongue into her mouth and begins to guide her to sit back against the stone seats that lead to the pool of water. He holds her there as he kneels in front of her to return the pleasure to her now. Aserla sees molten gold eyes staring up at her as Zhongli drapes her legs over his shoulder so he can be closer to her folds.

 “What are you about to do to me?” Aserla whispers her question and Zhongli only smiles to her as he hooks his arms underneath her hips and moves so his arms encircle around to hold her in place. His eyes have a hunger to them and uses his hands to open her slit to his eyes. He sees the inner lips glistening from her arousal and feels his mouth water from seeing and smelling something sweet from her.

 “Make you scream my name.” The former archon wets his lips before he closes the distance and with his mouth opened he encloses around her pussy completely. His tongue immediately going to her clit and uses his lips to suck on it while his tongue sweeps around it in slow circles.

“Ah! Zhongli!” Blue eyes go wide and a much more erotic moan falls from her lips feeling his mouth working on her like this. She feels his tongue working in circles around the sensitive nub feeling it throb and respond to his suckling. He’s careful about grazing his teeth on it but hears his wife keen out. His fingers hold open her folds at the bottom of her pussy to keep her entrance open as he slips his tongue down and into it going as deep as it can reach.

 “You are very sweet… you taste like sweet flower nectar.” Zhongli says when he comes up for air and presses his tongue around the hole, enjoying how it looks trying to clench around his tongue before he pushes it back in. Aserla is mortified that he relates her to something like that. She breathes harder when he returns to her clit and focuses a series of suckling licks on it each growing in intensity to feel her quivering. His position between her legs keeps them apart that she barely feels his tongue dipping lower on her opening.

 “This feels very good… I feel so hot inside.” Aserla lets out a breathed sigh while Zhongli keeps her attention on feeling good. His fingers slip in along with his tongue and feels the bottom wall of her pussy for something noting the last time she’s gone to the restroom before they began. He keeps up the ministrations of using his tongue to thrust into her walls while drinking in her juices as they dribble out of her.

 “Do you trust me?” The question is random to her and Aserla looks down to Zhongli who has stopped putting his tongue inside her to gain her consent for something. He presses a kiss to her folds, a soft one to her clit and her lips with another flick of his tongue.

 “Yes, of course I trust you.” Aserla worries this is about earlier, but her thoughts change when she sees him lower his mouth to another spot of hers. Her eyes go wide when she feels him kiss along the perineum going down till he has spread open her ass more and tests a run of his tongue along the hole there. She soon understands what permission he is asking for, and she blushes.

 “Are you sure you want to do that? Isn’t it a dirty spot?” Aserla asks him and is met with him running his tongue along the bridge between her pussy towards her ass. He looks unbothered by what he is doing and touches her to open her folds to see just how she is dripping wet.

 “It’s fine, you’re empty right now anyway and this is the best time to. We don’t have to if it weirds you out. I did want to try it with you.” Aserla looks at him as he kisses her thigh and mouths kisses along her to wait for her decision. She gives it thought and it does make her curious to explore these feelings with him and she can only find out if she dislikes it by doing it.

 “I trust you. One way to find out if I like or don’t like it.” Zhongli smiles to her before he inspects her for anything and is satisfied with how clean she is. He presses his tongue to the sensitive ring and begins to press into it. Aserla lets out a moan feeling him do this and already feels her folds leaking more as she does enjoy it. There is gentle prodding with his tongue till the sensitive muscle gives and his tongue pushes pass it.

 Zhongli keeps going till his wife can feel a steady sensation of his tongue moving in and out of her at a firm but gentle pace. She feels more aroused that she misses his hands slipping up to her breasts to squeeze them in his hands earning her voice echoing out. Aserla focuses on the sensation that feels good instead of the odd one of something wet and wiggling inside.

 “It feels… so different.” Aserla says as she holds back from an orgasm just yet. She feels more of her juices dribbling down while he keeps his attention on her like this. She doesn’t see the way he is pumping his cock listening to her moan and writhe from what he is doing.

 Aserla soon feels him withdraw his mouth and immediately grabs some water to clean his mouth to prevent any smells she dislikes or transferring something to the other spot. Zhongli pushes his fingers back into her pussy fully and works his wife into a heated frenzy while he moves up her torso. He places a kiss to her neck before he reaches next to them for two specific things he needs for her. The first being a condom he glides that onto himself after fitting it just right and the second is a vial of sweet smelling oil.

“Do you have any objections to trying anal?” He leaves it up to her, and Zhongli begins to coat his fingers with the oil along with drizzling a good amount of it onto her vagina and ass letting the warming effect make her sensitive. He’ll use the condom in either spot to keep their preference for no children right now secure.

 “I’ll try it, I like what you are doing so far.” Zhongli smiles to her as he slips his fingers into her ass with mild resistance. His toying with her from his mouth did help loosen her, but he takes good care to properly stretch her knowing his penis is a lot larger than his tongue and fingers.

 Aserla takes in a breath of air feeling him push his fingers into her and moans out as a result of the pressure she feels. She holds still feeling his free hand move onto her pussy to rub her clit and pump his fingers into her to get her to relax better. Another moan sounds out when he adds a second then a third and begins to move those fingers around in her ass to get her use to the sensation.

 “Good girl. Very good girl. You’re taking them well. Does it feel uncomfortable and pain at all?” Zhongli checks on his wife and is greeted to her eyes pleading for more and mouth parted as she pants.

 “No pain, just feels strangely full and familiar.” Blue eyes regard his amber eyes seeing them light up almost glowing with how proud of her in trying out these things with him. Zhongli soon withdraws his fingers and cleans them off after applying that oil to his erection. He glides himself into her and hears her breath hitch from the stretch he causes.

There is an exhale from him at how she feels around him and gold eyes regard her as he holds still to let her adjust much like when he first took her. Zhongli rubs his hands on her body to feel her, she’s a vision of health to him and seeing her take him in different ways makes him excited to see how much he can get her to enjoy on their path to sexual exploration.

“Good. It means I prepared you right.” Aserla feels him slide further till he’s centered to her and he can’t go any further. He only goes to a certain point to not cause her pain or discomfort. He moves slowly in rhythmic motions to keep her heightened.

“I feel like I am ready… I still don’t know what to make of this. It feels different.” Zhongli regards her and moves to embrace her to get her to follow him to lay her down on the warm tiled floor. He lifts her hips towards his and glances down to see how he’s seated inside of her this way. Stretched a bit more than he thought she would, he begins to pull back then moves back in. His thrusts are slow but he is in heaven with how tight she is and how she squeezes at the intrusion.

“Does it feel good?” Zhongli asks her hoping she is getting pleasure from this at all. He keeps his movements doing long and slow draw backs then push ins. He sees her eyes go wide as she relaxes and gets use to the feeling. He slips his fingers along her pussy to rub her clit along with pressing his fingers into her curling them towards her belly. He can feel the slide he does inside but he focuses on pleasuring her.

“I do feel good. I, AH!” Aserla’s thoughts leave her when he bumps into her g-spot with his fingers and combined with his thrusts into her ass it creates a sensation of pleasurable heat down her spine that makes her legs shake. She feels him thrust a lot faster seeing her starting to enjoy it thoroughly and moan wantonly.

“There we go! That’s my girl. Just “feel” me. Endure it a little longer my love. I’ll make you feel really good here when your body stops tensing up.” He hints for her to relax and Aserla isn’t sure how she is suppose to relax. Zhongli drops his gaze from his wife’s face towards her pussy and sees how she is trying to clench on anything while she dribbles more of her juices down to make it more fluid in his movements into her.

Aserla soon lets go and the moment she relaxes he slides in deeper and her voice comes out in a cacophony of cries and moans as she loses her control of herself. She feels good to the point her moans are sweet and erotic as they fall from her lips. Zhongli sees the transformation of uneasiness into pure pleasure on her face and he is enjoying himself seeing her lost to pleasure.

“You look so good.. you feel good around me. My love… we’re not done after this.” He murmurs into her ear as he leans over her to embrace his wife in his arms. He uses the position to make her a little tighter to himself and hear her scream his name as he promised he’d make her do. She babbles incoherently as she feels tears of pleasure fall from her eyes. She has never felt anything like this and begins to get more specific in her moans as they change in pitch to signal she is close to her first orgasm.

“Let go whenever you are ready to. I look forward to seeing you be undone and cum for me.” Zhongli murmurs into his beloved’s ear till she squirms. He raises up a lot more so he can press his fingers back into her slick folds and pumps them to his hips. His free hand keeps her folds open so he can rapidly rub her clit. He keeps her teetering on edge and hears her babbling again as she lets go.

“Such a beautiful woman. There you go… just like that.” Amber eyes watch his wife as she reaches her orgasm and squirts out her juices from the combined pleasure of his fingers teasing her and his cock burying deep into her ass to feel her twitching. He is satisfied with spreading her open to watch the small spot where her fluids spray from with enjoyment in his lips at seeing such a sight before him.

Aserla feels her senses gone and barely feels him as he came shortly after her. He tugs the condom off and sits back to look at his wife completely debauched and panting from the way she feels all tingly and like the best sensations. He inspects her to be sure he didn’t hurt her, or caused any unpleasant things to happen to her.

Zhongli strokes himself as he wants her again and feels himself getting addicted to her. He leans over her to kiss her deeply and get her to respond to him. He presses soft kisses to her face and murmurs in her ear to try and get a conscious response. Aserla feels her senses coming back and feels an ache in her core like she is still unsatisfied.

 “May I love? Be inside you? I can’t stop at just that my dear. I need you. I see that look in your eyes. You want it too?” Zhongli nearly pleads with her and Aserla nods she meets him for the kiss and starts to return his kisses as she gives her consent to him.

 “Please! One more!” Aserla is kissed again as the former archon pushes inside of her and sighs with relief at feeling her wet heat around himself. He thrusts with ease and keeps going with her. She is intensely wetter than he recalls her being when he used his mouth on her earlier. She feels good around him and he focuses on thrusting deep and in long but fast rhythms. He hears her soft pants and moans as she is dizzy with pleasure feeling the way he thrusts into her like it’s all that mattered.

“Zhongli! Zhongli! Please! I feel so hot!” Aserla’s eyes lock onto his, they’re glossy from the tears she has, and he kisses her again till he has her in the throes of ecstasy again. He tugs her hips up to allow himself deeper almost like he’s trying to be at a specific spot inside of her. She keens out again and he feels the gush of another squirt against his abdomen along with the delicious way she clenches around him causing him to fill her womb with his cum in a breathed sigh and moan of his own.

They remain together for a little longer till Zhongli feels she needs her aftercare started. He pulls from her and enjoys the sight of the strand of cum connecting them. He smirks to himself at seeing her full of it and for now knows it won’t take from the tea he gave her earlier to prolong their wedded bliss longer.

“You did good my love. Just lay there and I’ll take care of you.” Zhongli presses another kiss to his wife before setting her down onto the heated floor. He sits back to regain his own strength while she pants and moans softly from her body feeling everything he did to her. She is trembling from aftershocks and still babbling incoherently. He chuckles and pets through her damp hair to give her a sensation of being petted. He even draws her over to him and rests her head on his lap so he can comfort her. His fingers through her long brownish blonde hair and admires how she has a lot of strength for someone so tiny.

 Zhongli leans down to kiss her face then begins to clean her body up. He focuses on her waist with cleaning her from the oil he used to making sure she hasn’t done more than her orgasm. He smiles to himself as he prepares a wash for her with silk flower essence to make the soap he uses on her linger longer. He’s thorough in his care and gives her kisses when she asks for them. He runs cooler water on her privates to get her to relieve herself for her health. He keeps a mental checklist of what her body needs to do to maintain its health along with his own.

He cleans himself up after securing her comfort letting her enjoy the cooler tiles from spending too long on the heated ones. He doesn’t do his usual routine with his hair not needing to this round. He just washes his form with the same sandalwood solution he used for her. Zhongli dries both of them off and picks her up to take her to their bed to lay her down on a towel at her waist for now.

 Aserla sighs as she feels good and focuses on basking in the afterglow of pleasure. She laughs and curls closer to him when he lays next to her. The back of Zhongli’s fingers touching her cheek with affection. He kisses her face while she cuddles in close to his arms.

“That felt amazing… I didn’t know it’d feel that good to…” Aserla feels her thoughts returning and smooths her hands onto his chest. A soft scoff comes from him and he presses his teeth against her neck earning a squeak out of her. Gold eyes glow in amusement towards her and he leans his head onto one of his hands watching her. Zhongli smirks towards her and kisses her cheek again.

“Like I’d make it hurt for you. I’m glad you enjoyed it. I only want you to feel good. You looked beautiful.” There is a shared look between them as they’ve only spent the last few days learning each other, and the last twenty-four hours married and chasing each other for pleasure.

 “You looked handsome.” Zhongli grins a bit hearing her say that then leans in to nuzzle her face with his own. He breathes in her scent to nibble on her neck then cheek. He takes her into his arms and holds her tighter.

 “Now you’re being cute.” Aserla giggles while held in his arms against him. She moves her head to rest her chin on his shoulder. She pulls back and meets his eyes in that soft gaze they have for each other. They share a meaningful kiss that has him bringing her underneath him to hold her.

“I love you.” Aserla says to him and feels a gentle kiss on her ear as he smiles into it.

“And I love you too.” Zhongli says to her, he caresses her face while seeing her look up into his face with that tired expression from the exertion they both used.

 “When do you have to return to work?” Aserla breaks the silence after what felt a while of just listening to each other breathe.

 “Let’s see… I believe day after tomorrow. I could push it one more day. If you would feel lonely without me.” A twist of his lips earns a blush out of her and she buries her face into his chest.

 “Why do you ask?” She looks up at him as he pries to wonder about his work schedule. He runs his hands on her back to feel how soft her skin is.

“I remembered you said you took five days off work so you could sort things out. If this was a success or not. I might feel lonely.” Aserla puffs her cheeks from his words.

 “Oh? What is on your mind?” His hands cup her face to get her to look up at him. Zhongli regards his wife’s face with interest to try and read her demeanor as they settle down together.

 “Just… most newlyweds go on a honeymoon. I’d like to go somewhere with you.” A soft chuckle escapes him as she keeps surprising him. He smiles towards her and leans in and kisses her again softly.

 “Where would you like to go? Anywhere in Liyue that has your attention? I know of many places we can visit. Luhua Pools could be a romantic getaway.” Zhongli is already looking forward to showing her the different places that hold meaning to him.

 “I would like to go there.” Aserla has heard stories about the pools being pretty and she has the best guide ever to take her to all the secret locations throughout Liyue itself. Zhongli smiles more to her as he cards his fingers through her hair to get her to relax more around him. He does think about her suggestion to a proper honeymoon. All he has to do is tell Hu Tao he’s going on one of his excursions. He has no other obligations and she is aware of his new marriage .

“Then it would be my honor to take you there and maybe show you what lays underneath the structures.” Zhongli speaks as if he knows secrets no one else is privy to. Aserla rests her head into his hand when he cups the side of her face. He is enamored by her soft features and thankful she is a calm and quiet spirit, matching his own.

Aserla feels her eyes getting heavy from laying there with him and being petted by him. Zhongli notes that she is falling asleep again and blows on her face to keep her awake with him. He doesn’t want to see her eyes close yet and does small annoyances to keep her eyes on him.

 “Not yet. Stay with me.” Gold eyes regard her blue ones as she tries to stay awake after all the exertions and comfort she feels around her. There is a hand exploring how soft her skin is and a smirk off his lips seeing how well her skin takes to the silk flower essence. His lips find the dip next to her neck to leave a love bite there. Aserla feels her tiredness winning out what he wants and much to his chagrin she can’t stop from drifting into that sleep as it claims her.

“Perhaps I did tire you out today.” The former archon muses as he continues to travel over her skin. Feeling the curves of her body resting them around her and tugging her into his own form. It is late and he acknowledges she has yet to gain that kind of stamina. He has boundless from his years of war and staying awake night and day because of the need to. He relents on his wife and lets her sleep.

 “You are my most precious gem to me.” Zhongli murmurs into her neck while tracing his symbol over her heart as his way to bless and protect her while she does drift off. He listens to her soft breathing and is done with his exploration of her; preferring to do that while she is conscious to enjoy her embarrassed remarks.

 Aserla turns on her side towards him and it makes him smile more when he pulls the covers over their forms to chase off the cold. He soon feels his own body call for rest and lets himself drift to sleep with her well in his arms.