#and has been using this to their advantage after i eat a big meal...

[hattiestgal]

It has been far too long since I've been able to indulge in anything kinky, so I figured why not draw some headspace shenanigans? Riley's such a standup fox…

[bluesidez]

GymRat!Miguel Part 2

content warning: mentions of food because big boys gotta eat, there’s a ref photo for an outfit in here that is unfortunately NOT a plus-size girl 😞 (I couldn’t find a big girl wearing an outfit like that for the life of me, but let’s use our imagination), 18+ towards the end so MDNI!

word count: 1.7k (not very drabble-like, ik) kinda proofread

Prev | Next ✩°｡ ⋆⸜ 🎧✮ Masterlist

GymRat!Miguel who wakes up when his 6 am alarm rings, eyes tired and bleary. His roommate is sound asleep, thank god, and Miguel is just staring at the ceiling for a good 10 minutes before he decides to move. He has an 8 am and he needs some type of breakfast before he heads to class.

GymRat!Miguel who uses the college cafeteria to his full advantage. He made sure that his dad’s money went to the highest meal plan. One free meal plan a day and a loaded campus card for everything else. He stacks his plate high with everything the cafeteria is offering today. Sausages, eggs, 2 bananas, a blueberry muffin, and a protein shake he brought from his room.

GymRat!Miguel who made friends with one of the cafeteria ladies, Ms. Beatrice, by the third week of school. She noticed how much he visited the cafeteria and always snuck him an extra treat from the kitchen when she saw him.

“I missed you last Tuesday!” she says, squeezing his shoulder when she walks up to his table. She slides a wrapped egg sandwich across the table. “I was saving some extra cookies for you, but you were nowhere to be found.”

Miguel thanks her, happy to have something light for later, “Ah, I was stuck in the library doing a group project. Sorry about that, Ms. Beatrice.”

“As long as you’re getting your education, I don’t mind,” she says, hands on her hips. “Don’t go out there skipping class now, ok?”

“You don’t have to worry about that,” Miguel says, waving her goodbye. His mom would kill him if that ever happened. Not that he would tell her, she just had a sixth sense for his “fuck-ups.”

GymRat!Miguel who makes it to his class fifteen minutes early to arrange his part of his desk to his liking. Sometimes he feels so embarrassed when he needs to grab something in the middle of class, his ears hyperfocusing on every little noise he makes in quiet, crowded areas. He always makes sure to get out his laptop, a pen, a pencil, a highlighter, a notebook, some white-out, and a water jug. He prefers to be over-prepared.

GymRat!Miguel who’s feeling anxious when the sorority girls pass by his table, giggling and twirling their hair. They attempt to make conversation with him, speaking ill of the professor. He just nods along for the sake of being a gentleman. He thought the professor’s Millennial attempts at Gen Z jokes were kind of funny, albeit very 2010. He didn’t have the heart to tell them he actually enjoyed the lectures.

GymRat!Miguel who’s never been more excited for a lecture to start in his life. He didn’t know many more “wow”’s snd “that’s crazy”’s he had left in him. The noise of the ice hitting their plastic coffee cups as they struggled to get every drop out was starting to grate against his ears. He missed you and your sticker-covered water bottle. He looked over at his jug and smiled when he saw the ‘Game Over’ sticker you gifted him before the last lab. You noticed his joystick keychain and felt that his water bottle was empty.

GymRat!Miguel who declines the girls’ offer to join them on a morning jog after. He liked to work out in solitude and morning jogs with them would mean conversation. He would also have to be extra conscious about what he wore. No older lady walking her dog needed to spot him jogging with shorts that were too short for his own good and a tank top cut so deep that it was like string on his chest.

GymRat!Miguel who decides to head to the library in between class to kill time. He figured he can see if there are any science fiction he can check out to read in his free time. As he walks there, he opens Instagram to scroll. No, he has not been checking the app since this morning to see if you let him in, he’s not a freak. He stops walking when he checks his notifs to see that you accepted his follow request. He wastes no time to click your page again and is bombarded with tons of photos.

GymRat!Miguel who has to close the app immediately when he sees your first photo. It's a picture of you outside of a restaurant in a knitted two-piece. The top is open just a bit to see your chest and the long skirt is low enough to see a part of your stomach peeking through. Your smile is radiant and the caption is something about congratulating someone. You look delectable and Miguel can’t afford to run back to his dorm to let his mind wander over it right now.

GymRat!Miguel who gets another notification as he steps into his dorm room after his last class of the day and sees that you’ve liked and commented on his most recent post. It’s a mirror picture of him flexing his arm after his last work out. His shorts are riding high on his thighs and the curve of his ass is very noticeable. Gabriel had blew up his phone with voice memos of him cackling after he posted it.

“Looking good!! 🫣 Get those gains Miguel! 💪🏾”

Miguel runs a victory lap in his dorm room, thankful that his roommate wouldn’t be back until that night. He’s jumping and punching the air excitedly as if he were a boxer. If he wasn’t fearful of busting his ass, he’d do a backflip. Take that, Gabri.

GymRat!Miguel who decides to go back to your account, running on the hype of that one compliment from you. He stares at that first photo again, still mesmerized as if he didn’t see it earlier. He gives a like and starts typing.

“Wow…”

No, that’s corny.

“Loving the blue…”

Is he a frat guy?

“You look stunning”

Was that too much? He decides to add on a heart eyes emoji, afraid he might be coming on too strong.

GymRat!Miguel who goes a little further down your page. There’s a photo of you in a crochet cover up, your swimsuit peaking through the material. He groans as he slides to the next picture and the top of your cover up is off and it’s just a view of your back with your bikini string wrapped around it. Your lower half is in the water and if he can imagine it just enough, he can feel himself right behind you, taking in the view of your ass against him.

He’s hard. Again.

He decides to just let everything hang while he has the dorm to himself. His boxers are to his ankles as he sits on the bed, back against the wall. He keeps staring at your swimsuit pictures. Your breasts pushed together while you lean over the boat. Your hips swaying in a clip of you dancing with your friends. Your stomach on display as you lay in the sand, ready for him to squeeze.

He grit his teeth as he played the clips over and over again, his hand moving fast to bring him his relief. He closed his eyes and imagined he was there, watching you swaying before him. He would join you, grab your hips and let you guide him in the dance. He felt faint as he let go, voice shouting and white splattered across his shirt and fist.

He breathes fast, trying to calm down. He decides to like the photo dump and comment some aimless beach emojis under the post. It was the least he could do after using it to get off. How embarrassing.

GymRat!Miguel who jumps when his phone dings again. He was prepping to go to the gym when your response comes flying to his phone. His heart picks up when he sees you replied to his comment.

“That is so sweet of you to say! 🥺 Thank you 🥰”

He doesn’t know if you took it as a friendly gesture or a sign that he wanted you. Either way, he’s over the moon. There’s a pep in his step as he blasts Super Shy in his ears on the way to the gym. He had a new motivation to push harder in his sets.

GymRat!Miguel who tacks on 10 extra pounds during his arm workout. The guys in the gym are eyeing him in wonder and horror as he uses the 70lb weights for tricep extensions. He thinks of seeing you in lab later that week and decides to do some hip thrusts.

He can never be over-prepared.

GymRat!Miguel who decides to take a picture at the end of his work out to post on his story. He’s sweating, hair dripping towards the ends, his chest glistening. The angle is awkward as he moves the camera below him and flexes an arm for the picture. The story was meant for one girl and one girl only, so he didn’t really care how silly it looked to others.

GymRat!Miguel who almost fist pumps on the walk home when you like his story and leave a reply. He checks the private messages, grin on his face before he even reads what you have to say.

“Looks like you had a nice workout. I might have to join you next time and get some tips 🤔”

Miguel swiped the app up and texted Gabriel:

“Don’t ever question my game again”

"? Wtf are you talking about"

Miguel opened up his messages with you again and replied to text him whenever and he’d be happy to help.

GymRat!Miguel who winds down for the night, scrolling on his phone before he closes his eyes. Of course you posted a story and of course he pressed it within record speed.

It was a photo of you laying down all bundled up with a cute ‘good night’ gif moving across the bottom. You had on a spaghetti strap tank top and if your blanket wasn’t in the way, he’s sure he would see more than that.

You looked soft, adorable, kissable.

He liked the story and responded back a “good night” and closed his phone. He wanted you to visit him in his dreams once more.

dividers by: @gigittamic 🩵

a/n: tumblr mobile kept deleting full paragraphs of my draft. not happy about that because I kept losing my flow. 😒 it happened like THREE TIMES 😭

Thanks for reading! Like, comment, reblog, and tell me how you feel! 🩵

Wanna be added to the taglist for GymRat!Miguel? Comment and let me know. 🤗 (PLEASE HAVE YOUR AGE IN YOUR BIO. This series has been and will get even more NSFW!)

taglist: @ghost-lantern 🫶🏾🥺

[devoutekuna]

Matching their father's energy

Includes- Toji, Sukuna, Nanami, Gojo, Geto

Sukuna-

Sukuna's daughter definitely inherited the mouth that can move all around her body, normally her father would use it to bite her whenever she was acting like a brat, and she took that upon herself to do the same, finally mastering the movement of the small mouth, always keeping it on the palm of her hand. Using it to her advantage as she bit anyone she found annoying, especially her father, even trying to sharpen the teeth inside of it so that it would hurt more, but her father didn't even notice that he had been bitten since it was so weak to him. "Did you feel that?" Grinning at him, as her head stuck into his eyesight. "Feel what?" Pushing her head out of his way, he hadn't even noticed that she had bitten it. A distraught look appearing on her face as she heard his question. "But I bit you!" Waving her hand in his face. "Didn't feel a thing" smirking at her as he put her on the floor.

Nanami-

"Thank you love" kissing your cheek as you handed him a coffee. He was sat reading a book at the kitchen table, his daughter sat opposite him,marrying to copy his actions, first by reading a book, staring at it despite not understanding a word it said, it was about finances so of course she didn't get it, even putting on someone's glasses she found. "Can I have one too mummy?" Talking about the coffee as she pointed at it.

"No, I'm not giving you a coffee" a small chuckle being heard as he peered over his book, trying to cover it up with a cough. "Why not!?" Acting shocked as if she hadn't been told repeatedly that she wasn't to have caffeine. "Cause I said so." Defending your point and you poured yourself a cup, gloating in her face. "But dad gets one" mumbling under her breath as she slouched In her chair and crossed her arms over her chest.

Geto-

His daughter has seen him countlessly swallow the balls full of curses, watching her father's disgust appear as he washed it away and put on a smile for him daughter, later she had found out about the minty flavour of chewing gum, always going to the shop to buy some with you. Soon enough she wanted to try do what he was doing, finding a small button in the house and shoving it down her throat only to choke on it and fortunately he was there to save her, even though it ended in tears, she still tried again but with bigger objects.

Gojo-

Gojo has a thing for eating big meals, so when his son was born, he wasn't surprised that he had a big appetite just like him. Scoffing down nearly a full tub of ice-cream, it was 2am and Satoru had just woken up for a drink, walking into the kitchen only to find his 3 year old with a spoon in his mouth and a half empty tub of vanilla ice-cream, sat on the tile flooring. "Hi daddy" smiling at the man as he rook the spoon out of his mouth, going in for another spoonful before realising how rude it was not to offer some. Hand stuck out with a spoon attached to it. "Want some?" Oblivious to the fact that he had just eaten half a tub. Scratching his bare stomach as he wore only sweatpants, pondering if he should take the offer. "I'm good" patting the girl's head as he walked towards the fridge.

Toji-

He has a thing for killing people, that's why he was an assassin fortunately your daughter didn't know how to kill nor use her cursed technique. For her birthday she had been begging for a bat after seeing a group of kids playing with one.

"Hiyahh!" Hitting the man with the wooden bat, you didn't understand why she needed a wooden one and not a plastic one, but then again, it was the same bat that a professional baseball player used. "Go away",grabbing the bag and bringing it to his face. "Go use your ball if you want to use this" he didn't understand why she didn't use the ball that came with it, instead trying to smash up anything in her path, though it was normally just cushions.

[lucilleslore]

oh lord i love your coryo drabbles so much! especiallyyyy the touch-starved one. i would quite literally die just to be able to read a drabble about coryo slowly falling in love with reader (being an average girl from district 12) over the course of being strangers to friends 🤭

➸ coriolanus arrives in twelve with a dark cloud over his head and a mind full of revenge and envy. he hates that he’s here, hates being surrounded by these people who are so below him, hates that his future is so uncertain.

➸ he’s been plagued by these thoughts for his journey, like a nonstop melody in his head but just as he’s leaving the station he spots you. you’re plain by capitol standards, in a dress that’s a few sizes too small and a little discoloured like you’ve had it for years but you’re smiling and when you see him staring at you, you smile more and offer him a sweet little wave.

➸ his lip curls a little in disgust. he doesn’t want to be approached, he just needs to think on how to get back home, that’s all. but he’s intrigued. so intrigued that when he’s eating his first meal he thinks of you, your name, your life, how that stupid smile of yours made his stomach go funny. when he puts his head down that night he wonders where you could be, if you’re with someone. that’s how easily his obsessions can start.

➸ then he starts to see you around, easily beginning to pick you out of crowds no matter how big. how did he ever think you were plain? compared to everyone else you’re a star, a gem in this dull district. you start to give him something else to think about, to mull over in the quiet moments and as much as he hates these feelings he’s having, he’s grateful for that.

➸ he sees you smiling at everyone. the old people who seem pretty useless to him, the men who go off into the mines everyday, the women who sell their items. what have they done to deserve that from you? the jealousy curdles in his stomach when he realises he wants those smiles to himself, doesn’t even want you to look at anyone apart from him. he’s infatuated with you.

➸ honestly he’s that feral he’d probably start using his peacekeeper status to his advantage. to get information from other people about you. it only feeds his obsession more so after a while he just stops you in the street. pretends something suspicious is going on and asks if you’ve seen anything. this little crease forms between your brows and he resists the urge to reach out and touch it. you’re just so genuine, so sweet, so uncorrupted. he wants you all to himself.

➸ it probably goes on like that for a while. he’s patient and the little snippets are enough for now. he busies himself with getting to know you deeper. watching for your little mannerisms and nervous ticks, figuring out what your real laugh sounds like compared to your fake one. stupid, stupid things. it’s a complete waste of time coryo thinks but he still can’t stop.

➸ he will definitely interfere in your life if he has to. you think you’re going out dancing with that cute guy from the mines? no way. not on his watch. he’ll find some way to keep the guy busy and when coryo sees you looking upset the next day he can’t stop thinking about ways to cheer you up. to get you smiling for him.

➸ there are nights though where he’s dragged out by his bunk mates and sajanus and he sees you there too. dancing with your friends, singing and laughing and in those moments if he could wish for one thing, he’d wish to be in your life - properly.

➸ so watching from afar sustains him for a little while but coryo grows desperate with time. you don’t pay much attention to him anymore, he’s merely faded to the background as he’s become more comfortable in twelve. just another peacekeeper who’s handsome but you’d rather avoid.

➸ then maybe one day you’re walking back to your house with a little woven basket of food and someone’s not watching where they’re going and knocks you down. coryo of course is watching and rushes over, he’s not keen on the idea of playing the knight in shining armour but when he saw you on the muddy ground, dirty dress ridden up to expose a slither of thigh; he just had to help. even more so when the idiot who made you fall and knocked your groceries to the ground just turns and leaves you there. he decides he’ll deal with him later.

➸ you’re embarrassed of course, quickly smoothing your dress back down and offering the hand he gives you to help you up. you’re shy but so, so sweet. telling him how much you appreciate the help, giving his hand a little squeeze before you let go, tucking your hair behind your ear. coryo is perceptive though and sees the small disappointed frown that takes over your features when you see what’s happened to your shopping.

➸ and he can’t have that. so before he knows what he’s doing coryo has a hand at the small of your back, turning you around and offering to replace everything you lost. you complain that it’s not necessary, that he doesn’t have to do that but he’s not listening and he buys you double of everything. just to be safe.

➸ so in your head you have to repay him, right? you manage to do some baking with what you had and the next time you see him you’re handing him a little paper bag filled with some treats and he doesn’t know what to say. it’s small, insignificant but he hasn’t had a gift in a long, long time. he’s speechless and he doesn’t like it.

➸ from then on he finds a way to always take you on your errands. will switch shifts if he has to so he’s got the free time. he likes the way people stare at the two of you. the curiosity that plays on their faces when you take his hand and pull him over to look at something. he notices that about you; that you have this basic, unappealing life in twelve but you’re always finding something to be cheery about. you stupefy him sometimes.

➸ coryo begins to imagine putting you on the train and taking you home with him when he goes. showing you what a real life could look like, the glamour and luxury the capitol could offer. you deserve a life like that, you deserve to be spoiled and taken care of. by him, only him. this is when he really starts his scheming because he needs to find a way to get you out of there.

➸ he starts to get closer to you by always showing up for you. you need walked home? he’s there. if you’re out at night he doesn’t just watch anymore, he’ll come over and tell you how pretty you look. he notices you start to walk extra slow, taking longer routes home and he tries to act like you wanting to spend more time with him doesn’t bother him in the slightest.

➸ coryo definitely starts getting in fights. a lot of them. over you. can’t take it when men’s eyes linger too long, when they look you up and down like you’re their next meal. he dreams of getting you to the capitol, even when banished he’s sure they’d show him more respect than he gets in twelve. for gods sake, the men are like animals. he needs to get you out of there.

➸ there’s one day where you invite him to the lake and you see coryo in a different light. where he can be fun and romantic in his own light. he picks you some wild flowers but proceeds to tell you how ugly they are compared to his roses back home. helps you put together a makeshift meal just to screw his face up and tell you how much better the food back home is. you can tell he’s going somewhere with it, you just don’t know where exactly.

➸ your favourite part is when the two of you get in the water. when coryo is a breath away and droplets of water were hanging from his lashes. when the world was quiet and it was just the two of you. you weren’t as naive as he thought you were. there was times you’d look at him and see right through to the darkness of his core. times when you’d want to shrink back when you’d see the empty, hollow expression on his features. he was different, your coryo; but you were determined to love him all the same.

➸ when your lips brushed his coryo tensed up. unprepared for the way it made him feel. the dizzy rush in his head, the way his stomach was rolling. the simplest form of affection and he could hardly breathe, couldn’t think straight even if someone offered him money.

➸ you pulled back, afraid you’d scared him off and he looks terrified. you give him what you hope is a reassuring smile. that smile, coryo thinks as he takes it all in. he’d do anything for that smile. its solidified with that one small kiss that he’ll never let you go. you’re completely and utterly stuck with him <3

[skelliko]

Tokyo revengers |°- random head cannons that I had stored

๑ Hanma ironically and out of nowhere 'sang' twist by Korn next to kisaki to get his reaction which caused kisaki to immediately whip his head over at the doofus with genuine fear in his eyes, he took a step backwards from Hanna, hands up and everything. but after a few seconds of staring at the 'possessed' specimen he just annoyingly does a "what the fuck is wrong with you..."

๑ ran doesn't crack his bones/knuckles often but if someone's around him that absolutely despises the sound of cracking bones he'd do it continuously without a care and finds major enjoyment in watching the person's face scrunch up in discomfort, sometimes he snickers too

๑ while chifuyu was in his 'major delinquent era, thinking he's better than everyone else' he was walking down the school stairs all cool and trying to be intimidating but then slipped on one of the stairs and fell on his butt. only one person saw but the amount of embarrassment he got from that when they made eye contact made him want to disappear from earth -this caused him to always be slow and actually look out for the steps so that it doesn't happen again.

๑ seishu finds it hilarious to fake a laugh at someone's awful joke for a second or two but then immediately go dead silent and just stare at the person with no seen emotion at all

๑ seishu is amazing at cooking, he's like a chef. but where'd he learn all this from? he doesn't answer, it's basically a mystery. but in his room he hides written down recipes that he copied out from books and other places

๑ when Baji was younger he decided to try and cook his own food for himself but accidently set a kitchen towel on fire by mistakingly setting it on top of the wrong oven circle -out of panic he got rid of it by quickly throwing it out the window in a panic making it land on someone's car windshield

๑ kazutora is actually quite close with Baji's mom. at some point he slipped up when calling out for her and accidentally called her 'mom' and sure enough he got embarrassed real quick and by a lot. ryoko took pride into that title tho, knowing that she mistakenly got called mom by someone else other than her own son made her feel oddly happy - although she mentioned that kazu is fine in calling her 'mom' he never did it again cause he still finds it embarrassing

๑ kazutora secretly takes photos of his friends crushes and sniggers about it while showing it to his friend. it's basically his little thing whenever he's told that someone has a crush, he doesn't do it to a big extent but just one of two pictures and it's usually just from the back or the side. he's been told multiple of times to quit and delete them but secretly they all knows he's doing them a favour cause when kazu sends them the photos they don't delete 'em

๑ peh holds grudges against people just for the sake of it, if he met someone and they had accidentally done something like step on peh's shoe then the next time they see eachother he would death stare them until they walk past and out of eye view, sometimes he just randomly feels like making enemies even despite being on 'silent and mutural' terms with someone.

๑ when akkun first had the thought of becoming a hairdresser he attempted in cutting his own hair and it actually turned out pretty good, cause of this he ended up cutting makotos hair however akkun had purposely cut his hair badly out of revenge for leaving 'filthy magazines' in akkuns room where his mom had found- making him to be unintentionally framed by makoto

๑ kisaki has a shit tone of books about manipulation and how to read people, how to carefully plot plans and use everything and anything to his own advantage even if things don't work out

๑ the reason why shion get frequent stomach aces is cause he has a bit of sweet tooth, he doesn't get hungry often so he forgets to actually eat a propper meal sometimes but when he sees something sweet and colourful he can't help but take more than a peck at it.

๑ at some point mitsuya accidentally knocked over a massive jar of beads over at the sowing club and took 2 hours collecting each one

๑ when taiju first started mending to his restaurant he had a bit of a high temper and would crack easily to his new employees if they spilled something or cut up a carrot with incorrect sizes, but after getting used to owning a business he somehow became the 'best boss' and grew to be pretty chill even if someone does a mistake - unless if it's a continuous mistake, then he'll get pissed

๑ taiju had a massive fixation with sharks and cool, colourful looking fish when he was younger. going to aquariums on a daily basis and as a kid he had collected little figurines of sharks, orcas and killer whales that he displayed. up till now he still have one of the shark toys displayed on a shelf since it was his all time favourite.

๑ yazuha hates bugs (cannon) and at some point she saw a weird looking incest in the bathroom and was begging hakkai to kill it or simply get it away for her but even he was disgusted by it so they kept on going back and forth about what to do about it before they both decided to team up and tackle it together. yazuha put a cup over it but while doing so the cup got knocked over from her shaky hands causing the both of them to scream as the bug started to move about but hakkai quickly put the cup back over it. they had to take a small breather and relax a little from the nerves before following through any more.

๑ Hina has a small collection of cute keychains, some of them are small plushies and a few are her favourite characters and others are random, small objects. she has some hanging on many different bags, her keys and a few hanging on thumb tacks that are stuck in a cork board on display

๑ Hina is really confrontational about anything that bothers her for other people's sake, in class most people try not to say anything rude about other people knowing that she'll over hear and they'll get their ear bitten off by her. cause of this she's kinda like the school hero against the bullies.

 ♡---

[xo-cod]

Could you please write some soft!dom headcanons for Konig? That man would be the best soft dom!

he would 🥺🥺 oh i love him so bad :( you didn't specify so i wrote sfw and nsfw headcannons <33 ooc/rushed! hope you enjoy 🤍

soft dom!könig who will use his height to his advantage everytime. he will always reach the top shelf for you. definitely has a size kink but instead of being embarrassed over it, he's learnt to embrace it especially when you look utterly adorable. he likes poking fun at your height bending to your level,"how's the weather down there mein liebling" he speaks with an amused chuckle before raising his arm to grab whatever item you need. or sometimes when he's feeling playful, he'll just lift you up in his arms so you can grab it instead while he holds you with an amused expression. he really just likes to be needed, give him any task and he's putty in your hands. and when you both are in a fight, he'll purposely leave things on the highest shelf to get you to ask him and speaking to him again <33

soft dom!könig who carries your favourite snacks with him. this big bad colonel is a total baby with his beau, he'll always have your favourite snack buried in one of the pockets in his clothes/gear. even on base, when he catches that small hangry frown on your face, he'll reach into one of his many pockets and hand you a snack to eat while he presses a kiss to your forehead for comfort. he's very tender hearted, he might be all bossy and brash on the field but to you, there's a side only you've unlocked. his team will sometimes see him stroking your back whispering sweet nothings in german as he melts the frown away from your face. he really likes babying you, he can't help it. though if anyone mentions it, they'll get an uppercut to the jaw asap <33

soft dom!könig who is very touchstarved and constantly needs to be touching you in some way. sometimes he gets really bad anxiety attacks and he seeks your comfort more than ever. so long as he can feel your touch and hear your voice, it brings him a peace that he'll never be able to describe to you. he loves having you in his lap as you're both cuddled on the couch, watching some movie. he's always fidgeting with some part of your body. whether that's your fingers, legs, clit, he's always touching you whenever you both are alone. it's just become second nature, your scent and the way your skin feels against him is a feeling he always needs to be experiencing. it's extremely hard when he's away on deployment, he just misses you so much. counting the days and the seconds until he can have you back in his arms where you belong, until he can smell your pretty scent and snuggle into your soft skin. it makes him yearn so badly <33

soft dom!könig who writes you cute little love notes in the morning before he heads off. he'll make sure you're eating your meals, already prepared your breakfast so all you need to do is eat it. he'll make a smiley face in your oatmeal or making sure the coffee is ready so all you need to is press the button. and he loves organising dates with you, his favourite are the ones where you're both hand in hand having a picnic or a walk under the moonlight, talking about life and laughing with each other. he always appreciates the small things, there's no need for over the top gestures with him. you both could be in a car but as long as you're by his side, he's already having fun. it's enough for him <33

and soft dom!könig who knows he can become very clingy but you're the first that's been this close with him. he can't help himself when he becomes possessive of you. not only are you someone he now trusts implicitly but you've taken his heart and made it yours. he absolutely loves cockwarming you after he's ravished you for hours. it's not for sexual purposes, more so the feeling of you in his arms and around him. he has a gentle smile on his face, his sweet baby blues gazing at you while he adjusts your positions so you're both on your side. his cock grazes against your sweet spot, making your breath hitch and legs tremble. "how'd i get so lucky with you mein schatz?" his finger strokes your cheek as he pulls you in. you were a beautiful vision, flushed face, perspiration covering your body, eyes half lidded. he can feel you clench around him which makes chuckle softly.

"can you feel me, hm? feel me all the way in?" he looks at the bulge he's created in your stomach, his hand drifting over it gently pressing it. it makes him wants to break you all over again but he respects and appreciate you need a break, so he settles down. your soft whimper makes him groan a little, nuzzling your neck. his eyes flutter close at how good you felt around him, his big hands pulling your body closer for warmth and comfort while his hips roll slowly and methodically over yours. feeling the head of his cock lazily brush against the nerves buried deep inside <33

[pooks]

been working on this for a couple of days now (sleep and meal hours was necessary). i thought that Ichiji, as a straw hat, needed a proper art dump

clear translations;

Scarlet Ichiji (aka straw hat!Ichiji AU)

resting bitch face

gluten intolerant

can cook, but rather eat it

shitty eyesight after a fever nearly boiled him alive

takes his big brother duties super seriuously

escaped Germa with Sanji

always had emotions, he's just too good at hiding them Role; Archivist

writes & archives the Straw Hats' adventues

he really loves writing stories other information;

starburst scar on his covered eye (Judge did it)

(why does he look like Nighteye from "My Hero Academia"?)

fancy sword, most likely stole it

uses swordfighting, but fencing style

dresses with an actual pirate "Sparking Red"

a multi-purpose, light-based power

since unethical human experiments is the cause, sea stone doesn't work

is often mistaken for Devil Fruit powers

enhances all abilities, like speed, strength, etc.

1st image: a full color of Ichiji. he has shoulder length hair and keeps it tied up. without Germa's continuation of unethical experiments, it has turned dark red and is his natural hair color. he has the same eyes as Sanji and he has a pair of glasses. as stated in the art dump, he got shitty eyesight after a fever that almost boiled him alive (he got seriously ill during the five last days he, Sanji and Zeff were on the rock and nearly starved to death). he also have scars across his nose, implying that he has a starburst scar on his covered eye (caused by Judge, when Ichiji rebelled against him)

2nd image: lineart of Ichiji staying up late and writing down the Straw Hats' latest adventures in their chronicles. if it wasn't for Chopper, then Ichiji would stay up all night and write.

3rd image: a fullbody lineart of Ichiji in fighting pose. in battles, be it pirates or marines, he uses both Sparking Red and swordfighting. his swordfighting is more fencing style (his Germa lessons never left him and he's using that to his advantage). Sparking Red has evolved like a power of his own and he can use his sword as a tool to focus his power. and what happens if he doesn't have his sword? easy, he uses kicking just like Zeff taught him and Sanji.

bonus:

this poor lad is one of the few rational ones on the ship and everyday, he asks "why me". he just wants to nap, write his stories and dream.

dw, he's very loyal to Luffy, but he'd like to ask his captain to please go one day without almost drowning and pissing off marines or other pirates

[stillfoodforguys]

It was late at night, and I had a long drive ahead of me returning from visiting my family. I pulled into a nearby truck stop to take a break; already intimidated by all the vehicles parked up that were so much larger than mine, I was even more tense walking past all the drivers who were just as massive. Ignoring their staring and sneering at the puny guy who’d wandered into their territory, I walked straight to the bathroom to freshen up before I continued my journey.

But when I turned towards the exit, it was suddenly blocked by the muscular arm of a tall, rugged stranger who was eyeing me up and down. He took advantage of my hesitation to walk closer, making me instinctively back away from him until I hit the wall behind me. He leaned in close with his arms either side of me, his face mere inches away from mine so that I could feel the warmth of his breath as he spoke to me. “Hey there. Driving around all day has got me hankering for a filing meal. I was wondering if you wanted to help me out with that?”

His large, firm beer belly had my body pinned to the wall, forcing me to submit to the powerful musk that hung in the atmosphere around him, particularly from the dark, damp patches of sweat beneath his pits. I was surprised he didn’t just grab me right away, instead allowing me to struggle gently beneath his weight. I was trying to avoid eye contact at first as I thought it might scare me into giving up entirely, but after a quick glance I noticed his expression had some friendliness mixed into his tough, intimidating expression. “Don’t be scared, little fella. I’m a nice guy, only gonna eat you if you give me permission. But before you answer, just think about how great it would feel sliding down into my warm, cozy stomach.”

After saying that, he began to lick my neck slowly and seductively. He enjoyed toying with me as he patiently waited for me to stop squirming, confident that I would submit to his desires in the end. And he was right. If being swallowed would feel anywhere near as sensual as getting tasted like this, he’d already done enough to convince me. I couldn’t resist rubbing my hands around his belly while I imagined what it would feel like to be inside it.

“So what do you say, will you fulfil your true purpose and become my dinner?” I quietly whimpered the word “yes” in response and allowed him to pull my shirt over my head before it was suddenly engulfed by his maw. Having teased me enough, he quickly swallowed my shoulders so he could get to the good stuff, tasting the nervous sweat soaked into my pits and chest hair as he devoured me. I moaned at the feeling of being massaged by his gullet that was tightly sealed around me, but there was far more pleasure yet to come.

He pulled off my pants and toyed with my hard cock, his wet tongue coiled around my shaft as it stroked the full length over and over until I bust my salty load into his mouth. Using his strength he was able to force my legs down his throat soon after, his stomach only slightly swelling out as my scrawny body curled up inside him. The man let out a thunderous belch as he admired himself in the mirror, letting me know how satisfied he was in a much more aggressive tone now that he knew he didn’t need to befriend me. “Right where you belong, you delicious little fucker. Now be a good piece of meat and stay nice and still while my gut churns you up.”

I should have been scared, but something just felt so right about becoming a meal for this big man, perhaps because he’d made it feel like it was my choice. I closed my eyes and surrendered to the sensations of being digested alive, feeling his stomach acid slowly break me down into nourishment for his body.

[munsons-melody]

baby, you’ll be famous

summary: your dad works at one of the biggest record labels in america. your boyfriend eddie has never pushed for you to give your father one of corroded coffins demos, but iron maiden just so happens to be on the lookout for a new opener on their world tour, and you know this is a once in a lifetime chance for him.

pairing: eddie munson x female!reader

warnings: established relationship, implications of sex

a/n: hey y’all! this is my first fanfic/imagine/thing, it’s not proofread but just something i’ve been thinking a lot about

recommended song: paparazzi by lady gaga

masterlist

i do not consent to having any of my works republished, translated, or posted to any other site except here. if you see my works anywhere but tumblr, it has been republished without my knowledge, consent, or permission.

——

Eddie knew his big break with corroded coffin was right around the corner, he just didn’t know that it was going to be because of you.

when you first started dating, you kept mum about yours dad’s profession, scared that Eddie would only use it to his advantage and you’d be left heartbroken.

but month after month of your blossoming relationship, you knew he would never take advantage of you, your relationship, or your dad.

slowly, you opened up to him about your dad being a top executive of one of the biggest record labels in America, and the shock on his face when you told him your dad was able to potentially sign him was a sight you would never forget.

he never pushed, however, for you to give your dad a demo of his band. he didn’t want to push you away or make it seem like he was only going to use the relationship to get to your dad. even when he met your parents for the first time, he only briefly mentioned his band.

corroded coffin continued to play at the hideout, although the crowd contained only a couple people, most of which were just the ones having a few drinks to relax after work.

but he didn’t mind. he loved a crowd, the music, everything about it made him feel like a rock star.

and as much as you loved watching your boyfriend perform with his band in his hometown, you knew he deserved a bigger stage.

and it all started a couple of weeks ago...

you sat at the dinner table, furious. for the past few weeks, your dad had come to a couple of the shows, hoping that he would organically ask them to sign a contract, yet nothing happened.

you sat at the dinner table, while your parents were conversing about the lawn care in the neighborhood, while you were picking at the green beans on your plate, holding your tongue.

"you okay?" your mom asked with concern, and you sucked in a sharp breath.

"dad, why haven't you signed corroded coffin to your label yet?" you asked, but your tone came out snappier than you intended. he looked taken aback, and he sighed.

"sweetheart, i didn't realize they were serious about being signed... i only thought it was some hobby for them" he said. he gave a small smile.

"if they are genuinely serious about being signed and becoming a touring band, i'd be happy to pass along their demo to my colleague, who can actually give them a recording contract" he said, before continuing on with his meal.

your parents continued talking to each other, as you stopped to realize how real this was all becoming. eddie getting signed means you lose your boyfriend, best friend, and love of your life for months.

you quickly finished eating before getting up and putting your plate in the sink, then rushing off to your room. once you arrived at the door, you opened it and closed it quickly behind you, taking in a shaky breath.

the thought of eddie leaving breaks your heart, but the thought of him not getting the big break he deserves would break your heart even more.

you wiped the few tears that fell and opened your bed side drawer. you pulled out one of the cassettes that eddie gave you that served as one of their demos

the whole band had saved up in order to visit the nearest recording studio and record a couple songs, and the one you held in your hand was one eddie gave to you on your birthday, knowing he could trust you with one of the few copies as he considered you the bands number one fan.

you took in a deep breath, gave the cassette a light kiss, and walked out of your room to give it to your dad.

——

a few weeks had passed since you gave your dad corroded coffin's demo, and to be honest, you forgot you did.

things had become so busy at both school and home with being assigned end of the year projects, planning your mom's birthday party, needing to get your car to the mechanic, babysitting the neighbor's kids, and the list went on

you finally got home from a long day of school, back aching from carrying your backpack the two miles it took to walk home since your car was in the shop, but you didn't mind too much since it was a nice day

you walked into your house to see your dad on the phone, he gave you a wave when he noticed you, and kept on talking, saying things like "yeah" and "okay" every few seconds.

you went into the kitchen, grabbing a snack and beginning to eat, when your dad said his goodbyes and hung up the phone, and turned to you with a giant smile on his face

"does that boyfriend of yours like Iron Maiden?" he asked slyly, and you looked up at him

"like them? he loves them!" you said with a confused laugh, and your dad laughed.

"good, because the band is looking for a new opener for their world tour, and the guys at the label love the corroded coffin demo, so they're offering a three album contract along with being the opening band for the tour," he said, and you felt your breath hitch in your throat.

tears pricked your eyes, and you started to laugh. "are you serious?" you squealed, and he nodded "as a heart attack" he said, and you ran to him, giving him the biggest hug.

"can I please borrow your car?" you asked, needing to find Eddie to tell him everything. "sure" he said, handing you the keys

"thank you thank you thank you" you said quickly, giving your dad a kiss on the cheek and running out the door.

——

10 minutes later, you arrived at eddie's trailer, surprised to see his van not parked in his usual spot

you got out of your car and walked up to the door, making sure to knock as to not be rude.

wayne opened the door, meeting your eyes. "hey y/n, eddie isn't home at the moment, i sent him to the store and put him to work" he joked, and you let out a small laugh

"as you should" you responded, and he ushered you in "come on in sweetheart, you can wait in here, i'm sure he'll be back in a few minutes" he said, and you walked in.

"actually, can i talk to you?" you asked him, and he nodded. "anything," he said, closing the door behind him, and walked into the kitchen to get some coffee.

you explained everything to him, the demo, the contract, the tour... everything. he just stood there, baffled. "wow" was all he said for a couple minutes

“he should go” he said, finally making eye contact with you. you nodded agreeing with him, when you noticed a couple tears forming in his eyes

“oh don’t cry” you said, taking a few steps towards him and embracing him in a light hug

“i don’t mean to, i’m just-“ he stopped and pulled away, going to wipe a few fallen tears

“i’m just so happy for that boy, he deserves it, y’know? and i hate to see him leave but he needs to get out of this town sooner or later” wayne said, and you smiled, tears starting to flow in your eyes as well

“and we know he’ll be smart, and they’ll be lots of security to watch them and-“ you were cut off by the door bursting open, eddie holding two bags of groceries

“hey wayne i couldn’t find any of the-“ he stopped mid sentence, seeing the two of you in the kitchen with teary eyes

“oh god what happened? did someone die?” he asked, hurriedly getting through the door and setting the groceries down on the table next to him

“no one died son… why don’t you sit down for this?” wayne told him

everyone walked out of the kitchen and into the small living room, wayne opting for his usual corner chair and eddie and you sitting on the couch

you faced him, and looked at all of his beautiful features, missing him already

“this might be a lot to take in,” you started, grabbing his hands in yours. eddie stared at your stomach for a couple of seconds and then back up at you

“y/n i promise with all my heart and soul that our baby-“

“baby? what are you talking about?” you interjected with a horrified look

“what are you talking about?” he said with wide eyes

you shook your head at the comment and smiled

“eds, a couple weeks ago i gave my dad your corroded coffin demo, and turns out the label loved it… and they said they want to give you guys a three album deal…” you trailed off as he just stared at you

“what?” he said shakily, and you nodded, and couple light tears rolled onto your cheek

eddie brought his hand up to your face, and gently wiped them away with the pad of his thumb

“but also, Iron Maiden was looking for a band to join them their world tour and apparently they want corroded coffin to be the opener…” you told him, looking down at your intertwined hands

he sat there, staring at you in disbelief

“are you serious?” he muttered out and you smiled. “like a heart attack babe”

“oh. my. GOD” he screamed, jumping up, putting his hands on his head and pacing around the room

“wait seriously?” he asked again

“she’s serious boy… you better learn how to pack” wayne said with a smile as he got up to hug eddie who was still in disbelief that his dreams were coming true

“and you did this for me?” eddie asked, engulfing you in this biggest hug you think he’s ever given you

“baby, you deserve this, and i’m so so so proud of you and everything you’ve done so far,” you started,

“and even though it’ll hurt like hell to watch you leave…” your voice started to crack

“i know you’re going to do amazing, and i’m so happy for you baby” at this point the tears flowed

eddie pulled away to look at you, tears in his eyes

“i love you, so so much y/n” he said, gently caressing your face

“but, if the tour’s over the summer then you’re more than welcome to join me babe,” he said with a smirk and you smiled

“i don’t think my dad would like that very much” you laughed

“all the more reason” he whispered, pulling you into a kiss

“alright well, you two love birds have a good evening, i start work in an hour but i reckon you two want to get as much time together as you can” wayne said, picking up his keys from the counter

he patted eddie on the shoulder, “i’m proud of you my boy” he said, before opening the door and walking out, closing it behind him

you stood with eddie in his living room, closely pressed together, arms wrapped around one another

“you didn’t have to do this y’know” he said and you nodded

“it’s selfish of me to keep all this amazing music to myself, so i kinda had to” you joked and he laughed

“i’m gonna miss that” you said

“miss what?” he questioned

“your laugh, your smile,” you said, “your lips” you ran your thumb lightly over his bottom lip before he locked his lips with yours

your lips melted together into the kiss, when you both pulled away for air, foreheads pressed against one another

“i’m serious, you should come with on tour with me, we can visit all the landmarks across the globe… watch the show backstage… we can share a bunk on the tour bus” he said, playing with a strand of your hair

“and what would entail on sharing a bunk with the famous eddie munson of the corroded coffin?” you joked

he shrugged “well we’d cuddle, obviously for safety reasons,” he said “oh yeah cause tour busses are soo dangerous” you rebutted

“and we’d get to share a blanket for warmth,“ he continued, “eds i think they have heating on the bus”

“and lastly, we can be this close every night, and i’m able to do this, whenever i like” he finished, starting to kiss your neck

“oh and what else do you think we’ll be able to do in this bunk?” you questioned, as he trailed the kisses back to your lips

“why don’t i just show you?” he teased, kissing you once more on the lips before picking you causing you to squeal

he carried you into his bed room and shut the door behind him

joining on him on tour sounds like a pretty good damn idea you think to yourself

fin.

[sequinsmile-x]

Acts of Service

She knew it was different with Aaron, that he wasn’t trying to control her like Ian had, but it was hard to get past. Her defences rising every time he did something she had to tell herself was just him being kind. She’d have to stop herself from reacting, her sharp words cutting her tongue so she didn’t hurt him instead.

AKA the one where Emily struggles with Aaron wanting to look after her.

-x-

Hi besties,

Hope you are all okay!

This kind of came into my head a couple of weeks ago when I was thinking about how differently I interpret Emily and Aaron's love languages.

I really enjoyed writing this one, and I am considering writing a series of unrelated one shots of our idiots- one for reach of the love languages. If that's something you'd like to read please let me know!!

As always, let me know what you think of this <3

-x-

Words: 3.7k

Warnings: References to past coercive/controlling relationship

Read over on Ao3, or below the cut

Emily sighs contentedly as she relaxes against Aaron, her resting on his shoulder as she sinks into his embrace, “Thanks for cooking dinner honey,” she says, turning her head to press a kiss to his jaw, smiling as she breathes in the scent of him, his cologne having faded throughout the day, leaving just him behind, “It was delicious.” 

He hums and kisses her forehead, tugging her impossibly closer to him, “You’re welcome sweetheart,” he smiles as he pulls back, “Someone has to make sure you eat actual food every now and again.” 

She narrows her eyes playfully and pulls him in for a kiss, tugging him in by the collar of his shirt as she stamps her lips against his, “I’m not that bad.”

“Em, baby, a few weeks ago all you had in your fridge was expired hot sauce and yoghurt I think might have been milk when you bought it,” he says, his smile getting wider as she shifts to sit in his lap, her hands on his cheeks as she shakes her head at him, “You’re lucky I came along really,” he says, his hands on her back as he holds her in place, “Otherwise you might have starved.” 

She tries to suppress a smile but fails, his dimples appearing under her thumbs as he continues to smile at her, the dents in his cheek the perfect size and placement for when she cupped his face. If she was someone else, if she believed in soulmates and there being one perfect person for everyone, she’d think he was hers. That he’d been made for her, their paths crossing and bringing them here years after they met written in the stars she’d once stared at with her grandfather. 

“Well,” she says, leaning in to kiss him, rubbing her nose against his, “We can’t have that,” she says, her lips ghosting over his, “Got to keep my energy up.” 

They’d only been together for a month, still in the early stages of learning about each other outside of the bonds of the friendship they’d had before. They were insatiable for each other, and had spent every night together since their first date either at his place or, like tonight, at hers. Even when they’d been a case she’d snuck into his room, already used to having him tucked up behind her, his arm heavy and reassuring over her waist. She hadn’t had a nightmare since, something that had become almost nightly in Paris, and she knew it was because she felt safe. 

He chuckles and kisses her, his lips trailing to her cheek, “Why don’t we go take advantage of that big bath of yours?” 

She smiles and nods, her skin already tingling with the promise of what is to come, “I’ll just put the dishes away.”

She stands up and he follows suit, his hand on her lower back, “I can do that sweetheart.” 

She freezes for a moment, annoyance she knows he doesn’t deserve thrumming under her skin. 

It was something she was struggling to get used to. He wanted to do everything for her all of the time. He cooked for her, brought her snacks or coffee at work when they barely had time to stop for a meal. He ran errands for her without her asking - he’d picked up her drying cleaning just because he found the slip on her coffee table just a few days ago and noticed it had been sitting around for almost a week, the gesture turning sour almost immediately because she wasn’t sure how to feel about it. 

Ian had liked to look after her too. He’d buy her clothes and insist she wear them, saying she needed to look good if she was his. He drove her everywhere, always keen to know where she was and what she was doing, as if her world wasn’t just him and Declan by that point anyway. He was the one with the money, her own personal funds not in use when she was undercover, and it meant her options were limited, the situation she’d put herself in getting increasingly dangerous the more she fell into it. 

She knew it was different with Aaron, that he wasn’t trying to control her like Ian had, but it was hard to get past. Her defences rising every time he did something she had to tell herself was just him being kind. She’d have to stop herself from reacting, her sharp words cutting her tongue so she didn’t hurt him instead, the sting of it something that would last far longer than the irritation she felt towards him. It made her wonder in her worst moments if it meant they ultimately wouldn’t work, that no matter how much she loved him, even if she hadn’t told him yet, if she couldn’t accept his love maybe she didn’t deserve it. 

“No, it’s okay,” she says, stamping a kiss against his lips before she steps away, “I’m just going to use the bathroom and then I’ll come back and do it.” 

She makes quick work of going to the bathroom, her gaze fixed on her reflection in the mirror as she washes her hands. She blows out a breath as her eyes land on the scar on her left breast, the top of the clover sticking out from under the cami she is wearing. She plucks at the material of her shirt, trying to cover it up. She was used to it now, almost couldn’t remember what her body looked like without out, but it didn’t mean she liked it. She’d been self-conscious during her first night with Aaron, but he’d simply kissed it, his touch healing more than the wounds Ian had left behind, and she’d done the same for him, trailing her fingers over the scars that Foyet had given him as she marvelled at how beautiful he was. 

She shakes her head at herself, trying to shake off the thought of the man who had killed her, the man who was once supposed to have loved a version of her, and she walks out of the bathroom, wanting nothing more than to spend some time with her boyfriend. She steps back into the kitchen, her smile fading when she sees the side is clear now, the handful of dishes that had been used for dinner gone and out of sight. She tenses when he slips in behind her, his hands on her hips as he squeezes, his warmth overwhelming her, his palms burning her through her clothes. 

“Do you want some wine?” He asks, stamping a kiss to her temple, frowning when she pulls away, her eyebrows furrowing as she turns to look at him, “What’s wrong?” 

“I said I’d put the dishes away,” she says, biting the inside of her cheek, the now familiar irritation rising up in her, filling her lungs as she struggles to breathe. Usually, she can push it away, but it’s chased by the reminder of Ian, and she can’t. She feels trapped, boxed by him in a way she knows is in her head but her instinct is to fight against it. To tear the walls that were closing in on her apart, to break them down so she could run. 

“Okay,” he says, confusion drawing his eyebrows together, tying them in a knot as he places his hands on his hips, “I’m sorry, I was just trying to help.” 

She scoffs and shakes her head at him, her arms crossed over her chest as she puts more space between them, “I don’t need your help. I don’t need you doing everything for me. I’m perfectly capable.” 

He frowns, “I know you’re capable,” he says, “You’re more than capable. You’re my girlfriend I want to…I want to look after you.” 

She clenches her teeth, the fire inside of her already raging, his explanation barely stoking it, and she grips her arms so tightly her nails dig into her skin, “I don’t need you to,” she says, repeating her previous words, “And I certainly don’t need someone controlling me. I’ve spent my whole life being controlled. By my mother, by my career, by Ian…” she shakes her head as she abruptly stops, her body practically vibrating with fury, “I refuse to be controlled by you too.” 

She stares at him, her teeth tightly clenched as a desperate attempt to stop herself from saying anything else, from pushing him too far. Her body fighting against her mind, pulling her in different directions as she physically feels drawn to him as if on instinct, a direct contradiction to her conscious attempts to get away, to stop herself from getting too used to being happy. 

“Aren’t you going to say anything?” She asks, the silence getting to her as it stretches out between them, her boyfriend seemingly frozen in place. 

He looks at her, his expression unreadable, and he shakes his head, “No.” 

“No?” She repeats incredulously, crossing her arms over her chest, “What do you mean no?” 

He steps closer to her, his endless patience irritating, her skin itching with the need to argue as he does nothing but smile at her, as if he’d seen this coming. As if he’d predicted she’d lose it over something small. 

“I mean I won’t be drawn into an argument you’ve decided you want to have,” he says, his smile soft and loving, “You deserve to be happy, Em. That’s true no matter how much you don’t trust it or how much you try and destroy it before you can be hurt.” 

His honesty disarms her, the fight draining out of her so quickly she feels her shoulders sag, taking a step back from him as she physically sinks into herself. She rarely hated that he was so good at his job, his intelligence one of the many things she was attracted to, but in this moment she does. She hates that he knows her so well, that the walls she’d put up around her when she was young, built with the tools her mother had given her when she should have given her toys, might as well not be there. She feels exposed, raw like a nerve, sparking with the pain she’s always anticipating. 

She also feels empowered in a way she hadn’t expected, as if someone is seeing her as she actually is for the first time ever. As if someone is accepting her for who she actually is for the first time. She releases a shaky breath, her eyes closing as she tries to re-centre herself, his unrelenting love for her almost knocking her off her feet. A feeling she knew the name of even if they hadn’t put a name to it yet, the words hanging in the air around them, waiting to be caught and said outloud. 

“That’s not…” she drifts off, her defence dying in her throat as she avoids his eye contact, his casual assessment of her behaviour that she hadn’t even seen through herself still making her feel unsteady. 

“Unless you really are passionate about putting the dishes away,” he says, stepping towards her to close the gap she’d created between them. He reaches out and tucks some of her hair behind her ear, relief spreading through him when she doesn’t pull away this time, “It’s an adjustment being in a relationship with someone new, Em. I show that I care by doing things, I don’t even think about it half the time I just do it. You show you care by touching,” he says, and she looks up, her eyes narrowing as he carries on, “We both are still getting used to what it means to be with each other.” 

She licks her lips and clears her throat, “Are you saying you don’t like it when I touch you?” She asks, somehow sounding less hurt than she feels, wracking her brain for any time he’d flinched or tried to put some distance between them when she’d reach out for him, her skin drawn to his, any space between them too much. 

“No, I’m not saying that,” he says, wrapping his arms around her, “What I’m saying is before you, the only person who ever touched me for years was Jack. It took a little bit of time to get used to being in a relationship with someone again,” he leans forward and kisses the tip of her nose, smiling when she scrunches it up, “I love it.” 

He’d always known Emily was tactile. He’d watched for years as she placed her hand on Penelope or JJ’s shoulder when a case hit them a little too hard. She was a hugger when she’d had a few drinks, her arm around Derek’s shoulder as she tried to play his wingman. He’d wondered for a long time what it would feel like to have her skin pressed against his, and the reality was so much more than he could have ever imagined. 

It was strange at first, getting used to someone being in close proximity again, the intimacy of it something he hadn’t realised he’d missed so much since his divorce. It was more than just the sex, it was everything. She touched him all the time. Her hand brushing against his as she passed him a cup of coffee or a case file., She’d press her face into his neck, her breath skipping over his skin as she’d tangle her fingers with him, the gaps between his the perfect size for hers. She’d hold him close when he woke from a nightmare, her forehead pressed against his, her hand on the back of his neck as she drew him back to her. Her presence and reassurance the safe place he’d been searching for and found right in front of him. 

“Good,” she says, her smile fleetingly turning mischievous, “Because you’re far too comfortable to sleep on top of to give it up.” 

He chuckles and kisses her, and when he pulls back his smile slips from his face, something she’d said lingering in his head, making his skin itch in a way he can’t ignore.” 

“I’m not trying to control you, sweetheart,” he says, cupping her neck, his thumb tracing her jawline, “I do all those things for you because I love you. I’ll try and be more mindful-”

“No,” she says, cutting him off, shaking her head before she turns to kiss his palm, “Please don’t. I don’t want you to change it’s my issue,” she says, her hands on his back as she presses her chest against his, “I’ve just…never had someone want to do those things for me before just because, not because they want something in return.” 

He smiles, “Okay,” he says, kissing her softly before he pulls her in for a hug, his hand running up and down her back, “Shall I go run us a bath?” He asks, and she hums and nods against him but makes no move to pull away, sinking further into his embrace more than anything. 

“Aaron?” 

He rests his cheek on the top of her head, enveloping her entirely, as he replies, “Yes, Em?” 

She pulls back and looks at him, her smile wide, a beautiful thing he wants to see every day for the rest of his life. All of a sudden, the words she’s been avoiding, choking them down every time she almost says them because she tells herself that it's too soon, break free. Happy and unbidden, and, probably for the first time in her life, entirely true. 

“I love you too.” 

___

5 Years Later

The house was almost too quiet. 

It’s the first thing she notices as she walks out of the bedroom, her bed regretfully empty of her husband who she’s sure is somewhere in the depths of their home wrangling one of the boys. Jack was always the first awake, always keen to get the day started, and she was sure he was currently trying to convince Aaron that they all needed to go to the zoo. 

She yawns as she walks down the stairs, stretching her arms and trying to ease the ache in her shoulder, something that seemed ever-present these days if she slept only just slightly wrong. She comes to a stop in the entryway to the kitchen, a mix of alarm and amusement chasing away any residual sleepiness when she’s met with the sight in front of her, her son’s smile wide as he spots her in the doorway. 

A stool had been dragged from the breakfast bar over to the sink. Her three-year-old had clearly used it to get up on the counter, and he was dangerously close to the drying rack with the two wine glasses she and Aaron had drunk from last night.

The crystal wine glasses her mother had got them as a moving in gift when they bought this house four years ago. 

“Elliot, what are you doing, sweetie?” she asks, walking over and hoisting him up into her arms, settling him on her hip before he can even think about trying to touch one of the glasses, “You shouldn’t be up here you could hurt yourself.”

She didn’t care about the glasses themselves, she could replace them a dozen times or more if she needed to, but just the idea of him cutting himself if he dropped one, or hurting his head if he fell off the counter makes her hold him a little tighter. 

“I try to help like Jacky helps,” he says, his hands on her chest as he pushes himself back to look at her. His hair was rumbled from sleep, the cowlick in the back that he’d inherited from Aaron making itself known as his hair stuck up in every direction. He was her husband’s double, right down to the way he was frowning at her, and she wouldn’t have it any other way. 

She leans in and kisses his cheek, his kindness and soft nature something she hopes he keeps. She’d set the world on fire to protect it, to make sure he didn’t go through what she, Aaron and even Jack had endured, “That’s sweet baby, but Jack is 9, he’s supposed to have chores. You’re still too little.” 

He pouts, something she knows Aaron would say is all her, and she has to stop herself from laughing, her lips pressed together as she desperately tries to make a mental note of this. Committing it to memory so when he was a teenager who resisted helping out in the house she could picture this clear as day, so she could remind him of when he was a sweet little toddler who was sad he wasn’t allowed to help. It makes her heart ache, and she hears Aaron’s footsteps in the hallway, giving her an idea. 

“You could probably help Daddy with making pancakes though,” she says, kissing his cheek, blowing a raspberry against his skin until he giggles, the sound a higher version of Aaron’s. She turns just as Aaron walks into the kitchen, his smile wide as he spots them, “Right Daddy?”

He walks over and presses a kiss to her forehead and then her lips before he leans in to kiss Elliot’s cheek, running his fingers through their son’s dark hair, “Are you going to help with breakfast, buddy?” 

“Mama says I am too small for dishes,” he says, and Aaron furrows his brows curiously as he takes Elliot from Emily, resting the little boy on his hip as he looks at his wife. 

She smiles at the sight of them and turns to the coffee machine, “I came in to find him trying to put the wine glasses away,” she says, nodding towards where the stoll still was by the counter, “He climbed up and if I was just a couple minutes later I think we would have started the day with broken glass.”

Aaron laughs and turns his attention to his son, bouncing the toddler on his hip ever so slightly, “You’ve got to be careful Eli,” he says, his smile becoming mischievous as he looks over at his wife, “Mommy is very particular about who can put away dishes.” 

She’s shaking her head at him before he even says it, well aware that he would bring it up the moment she’d told him what Elliot had done. It was strange to look back on now, how uncomfortable the man she loved looking after her had made her. It had helped them grow together, an early turning point in their relationship where she learned she wouldn’t be able to put him off of her, his love for her too strong to be deterred by tactics she’d had in the past to keep people at arm's length. 

It was something he gently made fun of her for every now and again, his smile nothing more than soft and full of love as he’d wink at her, the memory somehow a good one despite her insecurities at the time. 

She rolls her eyes and walks over, abandoning her task of making coffee for now, “Are you ever going to stop bringing that up?” 

“No,” he says, adjusting his hold on Elliot so he can slip an arm around her waist, “You yelled at me-”

“I wouldn’t say yelled-”

“You yelled at me for putting away two plates and some cutlery,” he says, smiling as he carries on as if she hasn’t interrupted, “I’m going to bring it up for the rest of our lives.” 

She smiles despite herself and she leans in to stamp her lips against his, “I guess I can live with that.” 

Jack bursts into the room before they can say anything else, his excitement palpable as he practically bounces up and down, “Mom! Dad said we can go to the zoo.”

She feels Aaron squeeze her hip and she briefly leans into him before she walks over to Jack and hugs him, dropping a kiss on the top of his head, “Then we’d better have breakfast. Dad and Eli are making pancakes,” she says, turning to flash her husband a look before she looks back down at her eldest, “Want to help me empty the dishwasher?” 

Aaron smiles when she winks at him and he steps around Jack as he walks over to help Emily, and then he looks at his youngest. 

“Right, buddy, what kind of pancakes shall we make?” 

“Chocolate chip!” Emily, Jack and Elliot reply at the same time, and he laughs as he opens the door to the pantry. 

“Chocolate chip it is.” 

-x-

Tag List:

@ssa-sparks, @ptrckjcne, @lyds102, @glockleveledatyourcrotch, @hotchnissenthusiast, @danadeservesadrink, @ssamorganhotchner, @emilyprentissisgod, @notagentprentiss, @freesiasandfics, @emilyshotchniss, @thecharmingart, @paulitalblond, @hancydrewfan, @camille093, @whitecrossgirl, @moonlight-2-6, @rawr-jess, @florenceremingtonthethird, @jareauswife, @ms-black-a, @beebeelank, @aubreyprc, @zipzapboingg, @psychopath-at-heart, @criminalmindsgonewrong, @fionaloover, @kinqslcys, @prentissinred, @ccmattis-22, @denvivale317, @thrindis, @hotchsguccitie, @cmfouatslota77, @alexblakegf, @aliensaurusrex, @prentissxhotch, @emobabeyy, @victoiregranger, @stormyweatherth, @wanderingdreamer009, @ssablackbird, @luhwithah, @lex13cm, @prentiss-theorem, @dont-emily-me, @mrs-ssa-hotch, @jocyycreation, @itsmytimetoodream, @hotchnissgroupie, @controversialpooh, @capsshinyshield, @canuck-eh

Join my tag list here!

[nkn0va]

Chie, Yukiko, and Wagner being surprised by their S/O for their birthday and them also finding out their S/O is a master at cooking and baking? (Honestly they need an s/o who can cook since canonically they all suck at it.)

Fun fact, I almost had this ask finished by but my fucking browser crashed and I lost everything. God fucking dammit.

-Chie's cooking had...improved a bit at least, though that would be rather generous. People weren't in danger of going catatonic from it, but it was just bland.

-She tended to end up using so many flavors at once that they all cancelled each other out and made something completely flavorless, almost like eating water.

-You thankfully were not nearly as helpless, so much so that you ended up being assigned to making the cake for her party that the rest of the IT were throwing for her. Yukiko and Rise were rather disappointed they couldn't do it but the boys all breathed a collective sigh of relief.

-What you end up making isn't good, it's really good. The aforementioned ladies weren't even mad about it anymore once they had a taste of it for themselves. Chie especially was happy about it, and proud to call herself your girlfriend in that moment.

-She definitely knows who she's relinquishing cooking duty to when you eventually get a place together.

-Until that time comes though, expect to get a lot more requests from her to make her lunch most days. It'd be a reason for her to look forward to school now.

-Yukiko was in a similar situation to Chie in regards to her cooking skills, or lack thereof. Thankfully she's pretty aware of it and is trying to improve, as much of a mixed bag as that is sometimes.

-You'd suggested spending a day at the Amagi inn together to celebrate her birthday, let her relax and take advantage of it's services for once and not have to worry about taking care of guests.

-Naturally given your hobby, you end up doing some cooking beforehand, making a nice homemade dinner for both of you to enjoy. Yukiko had known you were a cook but hadn't yet had the chance to try for herself.

-The moment Yukiko puts the fork to her mouth she instantly gushes about how good it is, quite the contrast to her own skills. She very quickly scarfs if down despite her attempts to control herself.

-She then has the spontaneous idea to make a date out baking cookies together using the inn's kitchen with you teaching her how along the way.

-She has some...interesting ideas to say the least. Mostly not in a good way. Odd ideas for ingredients/flavors to use, wrong ideas about how to use kitchen equipment, and everything in between.

-You nearly have a heart attack when she suggests setting the oven to a higher temperature so that they bake faster. You just barely manage to talk her out of it so that she doesn't start a fire, knowing damn well what she would do if left unchecked.

-Wagner had been fully aware for a while now that cooking was not her forte, after several failed attempts. She knew it was for the better not to try again as well.

-Despite her snide attitude, she learned to be grateful for anyone who provides food for her, and an S/O who can cook quality scratch meals is definitely an important box to be checked for her in a relationship.

-Her birthday rolled around and you decided to make something a little extra special for her. Using your experience you used an entire week taking what you learned cooking in general and about what she liked best in a dish to make what you felt would be her new favorite food.

-Wagner was a big fan of tempura in particular so that was your focus. Opening up the box with the food inside, she could feel her stomach rumbling as she looked at it.

-She'd heard many times before that cooking was a labor of love. An activity that one continued to get better at when they cooked for the people they cared about. By that logic how much you loved her was practically palpable in every bite.

-As you go about the rest of the day together celebrating her special day, she still can't get that food off her mind. She's not exactly one to admit things out loud too much of the time, but she does sincerely admit how grateful she is.

-What she can't seem to figure out how to communicate though is that it might just be the best damn thing she's eaten in her life, and that really says something considering the type of lifestyle she was born into. She's absolutely going to request you recreate that recipe more often.

[bllsbailey]

Government Overreach Run Amok: NY State Kills Peanut the Squirrel

I admit it; I’ve grown especially fond of squirrels. They’re devious little brats, as they should be because they’re just trying to survive in a Charles Darwin world of survival. 

I have a bunch of them in my yard, and they are absolutely ingenious at stealing the bird food that I’ve set up for my feathered friends—they eventually figure out almost any device or measure I put out to stop them. (I finally found one that works: a reverse cone set up on the bird feeder that prevents them from jumping up on it. Thank me later.)

But don't tell that to the odious bureaucrats in Gov. Kathy Hochul's New York. They felt the need to take out Peanut:

Squirrels have earned my hard-earned respect, and when I open my office door in the morning as I get to work, and they're outside in the yard giving me that little cute-eyed stare, I'm man enough to admit that I’m kinda touched.

It is understood that, for some, squirrels are pests and must be eliminated. I get it—I had family members back in the day who lived in Wyoming, and although the myriad gophers, or "picket pins" as we used to call them, were cute, they were negatively contributing to the situation and had to be taken out.

So we did what needed to be done, and we took care of that. Sometimes reality is hard.

But was there any need for NY State to step in and kill this guy’s pet? You be the judge:

Peanut the Squirrel, of internet fame, has been euthanized after the pet was seized by New York state earlier this week, according to the Department of Environmental Conservation. The seven-year-old gray rescue squirrel, commonly referred to as “P’Nut” on Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok, was put to death, along with Fred the raccoon, so that the animals could be tested for the presence of rabies, according to a statement from the agency obtained by WETM.  

Literally – why?!

After all, he was here legally, unlike so many other interlopers under the Harris-Biden regime:

Was this necessary? No.

“RIP MY BEST FRIEND. Thank you for the best 7 years of my life. Thank you for bringing so much joy to us and the world. I’m sorry I failed you but thank you for everything,” Longo wrote in a caption to the post announcing Peanut’s death.

Listen, I’m no snowflake, and I get that we are carnivores (or omnivores if you so choose), and I love my pork, my steak, and my chicken. And I’ve worked on a ranch—I have no illusions about how meat gets to our table. I once was tasked on a farm with getting the chickens ready for eating, and I admit, it was a sobering process. Taking a live chicken and making it ready for your fried hot wings does wake you up to some harsh realities. But there is a little thing called evolution that made us this way, and you can’t chuck it away based on a slogan. The reality is we are the ultimate predator, and we were made to eat flesh as at least part of our diet.

But somehow, that same evolutionary force bred kindness into our hearts, and many of us pray for the sacrifices of the animals that provide us our meals. We do not wantonly torture animals or hurt them for no reason, and in fact, we take millions of them into our homes and consider them family.

Was Peanut a threat to you, me, or anybody else? It certainly doesn’t seem like it.

What it does seem like it is a gross big government overkill that seems right out of Orwell’s "1984." I love my little squirrel family that dominates my backyard, and if anybody comes to try to say otherwise, be advised that I will take full advantage of my Second Amendment Rights.

[myherochedaia]

Camping fluff? In this economy?

Yes because I said so.

It takes a few tries before the smoke of the campfire doesn't trigger anyone, but this is going to be fluffy so I'll overlook the trauma for now.

Inko fusses for hours before Izuku leaves. He's never gone on a trip with friends like this and as happy as she is to see her son being accepted and cherished, she still worries over his safety.

Izuku finds a hero grade taser in his duffel bag.

Jiro's parents sent her with nearly a gallon of sun screen and bear repelent.

Momo has never been camping before but she's read loads of books and has over prepared to the extreme. She warns everyone several times that bear repelent is NOT like misquito repelent, you spray the bear, not yourself.

Kaminari accidentally sprays himself anyway.

Kaminari hates camping, but the bugs leave him alone since he's a human bug zapper. This makes him a very desirable picnic bench companion come meal time.

He loves the attention.

Tsuyu, Shoji, and Ojiro race up the trees and play tag up in them.

Kirishima is practically glued to Katsuki's side the whole time.

Katsuki does not appreciate that at all. Nope. Not even a little.

Shinso has a bright yellow sleeping bag that he definitely didn't buy to imitate Mr. Aizawa.

Sero, for unknown reasons, is a master at making s'mores. He takes full advantage of this.

Sato, dessert master, can't make a s'more to save his life. He eats raw marshmallows like a heathen because they keep catching on fire.

Shoto uses a little of his fire to let his tent mates roast s'mores even after lights out.

Toshinori LOVES camping. He shows everyone the best places to set up their tents and how to make tin foil dinners. He ever teaches everyone a game he learned in America, Horseshoes.

Jiro leads every one in campfire songs at Momo's insistence. Mina sings the loudest, followed only by Dark Shadow.

Koda is so at home in the mountains. He's a bit more outgoing that usual, joining Kirishima, Bakugo, and Uraraka for their many, many hikes.

Iida is much a hovering big brother for the whole trip. Making sure everyone reapplies sun screen and bug spray every few hours and is drinking plenty of water. He also makes sure the buddy rule is strictly enforced.

[sammytheotakunerd]

𝑴𝑪 𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒐𝒐 𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒅 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒔𝒘𝒂𝒑?

Chapter 1: Part 3: "Mentality and grades"

A/N: I'm so sorry I haven't posted anything, just had a tough week, that's all.

Summary: What if MC from MC is too kind and MC from the original universe swap souls? Would it be a blessing in disguise? Or would it be just blatant disaster?

๑ ⋆˚₊⋆────ʚ˚ɞ────⋆˚₊⋆ ๑[~start of chapter 1: part 3 "Mentality and grades"~]

Another day with the brothers ignoring you. It's ok. You tell yourself. Nothing was ok. Nothing was normal at all! But you're dead set on your goal as of now.

You needed to fix your reputation while figuring out how to switch back to your original alternate universe.

To be at least truthful here, you were uncomfortable the whole time at class yesterday. If this is what your version has to deal with every day, then you really would need a medal.

A medal for being the kindest, patient, and nice person in this cruel world. Maybe they really are an angel.

But do they really know that I'm Lilith's descendant? Maybe they don't judging from their faces.

You ate your food, but the portion was big. You were also getting full, and you didn't want to be bloated before going to RAD. "Hey Beel, do you want some?" You asked the orange haired man to which he excitedly nods and pulled your plate away from you.

You noticed Belphie staring disgustingly at you. He was looking as if you just fed poison to his twin. Now what. You pretended to not notice Belphie's weird stare and just smiled as 'usual'.

"Th-mfgh-ank-" Beel said in between eating. "Pls refrain from eating and talking Beel." You lightly scolded Beel. You tried to sneak a look at Belphie.

But would you look at that. he's sleeping. I should've expected this.. You thought disappointedly. Not at him but for yourself.

But there's no time for this. You've always hated miscommunications troupes. Maybe he thought you're bad..?

Probably You're really thinking too hard about this. You have your first plan and that was to save your reputation first. Problems with the brothers can be fixed later on.

How can you fix it without proving yourselves first? It would take a really long time, but Simeon and Luke are here. You know that with them you'll have your sanity back. At least for a bit.

The angels are like refreshers while the brothers are the salty asf meals.

"MC some with me to my office." Lucifer's voice was too damn cold. But it was effective on having his words ring consistently in your mind.

What the fuck. This was the first time you're going to talk to Lucifer after you swapped. "Right.." You can only obey.

・ ─ ・ ⋯ ・ ─ ⊹ ♡₊˚๑

Lucifer's office gives you nostalgia. The way the both of you drink tea, you calling him nicknames, and YOU being the absolute favorite. The one that almost never gets scolded as much because of the famous words: ✨Favoritism✨

You know that you're the favorite and take full on advantage on it. Just not as much. Lucifer is kinda like a ticking time bomb, so you hopefully didn't want to get caught in his bad times.

"I hope you know why you're here MC." Lucifer said so disappointingly. "Huh?" Woops, wrong move, Yikes! He looks pissed! SHIT You may look calm, but on the inside, you're practically screaming at yourself.

It was instinct, ok?

"Let me remind you again on why you're here, MC L/N." Oooooohh, he's using the FULL NAME tactic! You're a bit taken a back. Maybe this is to get poison on your wounds, or was it salt? But anyways, you've never been scolded by Lucifer. Not like this.

He'll give you your punishment and that's it. Maybe I've been spoiled too much, AUGH Mentally groaning won't help.

"You're here because as of late-" Fancy words, I like it~ Cheesy words while saying it mentally isn't going to help. But you can't help but wonder what did this version do to annoy Lucifer, WHO, quote on quote, "Loves you (And that's why he spoils you-)".

"-Your grades are declining." What. That's it? You've never really had a hard time about this. Sure, you had a hard time in the beginning. But a thought crossed your mind. Oh? Maybe it was because Solomon was teaching me magic the same time. But if we're looking at the Solomon here.. Yea no. Poor you.

You had to be patient with their attitudes, and you also needed to maintain your grades. You in this world sure has it rough. You could say that you're lucky.

"How are you this stupid?" Your focus is on Lucifer now. You were shocked but the muscles in your face won't move. You really had adjusted so much.

You pretended to look shock at the next, looking so shocked at what he said too. "W-what?" You said, purposely stuttering so you can give out that your 'shell' shocked.

Lucifer stared at you in disbelief. "You had all the time in the world to do this! I will give you one more chance. Don't mess up Lord Diavolo's reputation." you don't know what to say. Maybe; "Ok."? No, that'll be a too straightforward answer. It'll blow your cover.

You decided to be confident. "I can make my grade higher than Satan's." Straightforward and you don't like it. And it's pretty obvious Lucifer didn't like it too.

"You've been saying that for the last month and there are still no improvements." Ok, bad part on your version in this alternate universe. You can understand Lucifer's annoyance but why now? Talk about bad timing.

Lucifer turned away and just sighed. He really looks so tired. "Then fine. I'm giving you one last chance to fix your grade at the end of the quarter." He turned to look at you. "Fix it now or else." You could only think about what he would do to you.

But getting afraid when you've already made it this far is just.. annoying.

๑ ⋆˚₊⋆────ʚ˚ɞ────⋆˚₊⋆ ๑[~start of chapter 1: part 3 "Mentality and grades"~]

Taglist: @candydreamer122

[exquisitesimp]

Caring for Kunikida after a tough day at work

A/N: Hello to everybody reading this! I'm back with a Bungo Stray Dogs short story for the Kunikida lovers (he's so underrated imo)! This time, the reader (F) is taking care of her favourite blond after a difficult and exhausting day of work at the agency. Sweet, with a hint of comedy. Thank you so much for reading and liking my post, it means a lot to me! Stay healthy, eat well and drink plenty of water! - Sam

Tags: Bungo Stray Dogs, Kunikida Doppo, Comfort, Fluff, SFW

Word Count: 2k approx.

Your relationship with Kunikida has been stable and secure since day one. It was obvious from the very beginning that he was taking what the two of you shared seriously, and making it last was something he truly wished for. And when he suggested that you moved in together, it became evident how much he wanted to keep you in his life.

Kunikida is one logical man, which is why you found it strange at first. He’s not the type of person to wear his heart on his sleeve and put such an idea forward just because he’s lovestruck. Besides, at the time, it seemed to you that your relationship was in a stage too early for this.

“Are you sure about this?”, you remember asking in uncertainty over lunch that day. “I mean, we’ve spent the night together many times, but actually living together… I don’t know, isn’t that quite a big step?”

“It’s a decision that would be beneficial to both of us”, the man replied, opening “The Ideals” and searching through his notes.

He then proceeded to read out a gigantic list of advantages, which he had prepared beforehand and took up a good amount of pages of the notebook. You didn’t need such…extensive reasoning to be convinced, but you found it endearing how much effort he put into it.

Many of his points made sense too, like cutting down on living expenses, helping each other out, keeping the home and the workplace separate, and most importantly, not being under the same roof as Dazai - he insisted that the latter would grant him a particular sense of relief. 

You ended up moving together shortly after in an apartment close to the Armed Detective Agency. It’s been a couple of months now and things were great, just as you expected. Both of you lead busy lives - Kunikida more so than you, and you were each other’s support system on difficult days, and today was one of them. 

You happened to leave work a little earlier than usual, so you decided to spend the rest of the afternoon cooking a nice meal for dinner. You dropped by the supermarket, bought all the ingredients you needed and headed straight home. It was just 18:00, which gave you some time to have a quick shower, change into your homewear and get some rest before hitting the kitchen.

You got some relaxing tunes playing, put your hair up with a hair clip and started cooking. Since you had the luxury to be home early, you decided to prepare a more traditional japanese dinner, which included a variety of smaller plates. While cooking, you softly swayed to the music, thinking to yourself that you couldn’t wait to treat your hard-working partner to some nice, warm food. 

The hours passed. It was 21:40, dinner was almost ready, but Kunikida was not back and you were still alone. Slightly concerned, tired, and no longer in the happiest mood, you turned off the music. The sizzling of the pork cutlet in the frying pot was the only sound filling the silence of what felt like an empty home without him.

You respect his work immensely, and you understand that there are gonna be days he’ll be home late. His job is very difficult and dangerous after all, and he is especially responsible and serious about it. You tried to reassure yourself that it could be an emergency and that things like that happen all the time, but your worries got the best of you.

“He never comes home later than 20:30. Did something bad happen to him? What if the Agency is under attack? What if he got hurt as he was investigating? No, it can’t be… But if he’s fine, why hasn’t he texted or called at all? How do I know if he’s safe? If something bad happens to him I don’t know what I’m gonna do-”

Your inner paranoid monologue got interrupted as you heard footsteps from outside and the turning of keys in your door. 

“Honey, I’m home”, you heard his deep, exhausted voice from across the hall. 

You sighed, relieved that your love was finally back

“Welcome back, darling”, you shouted, trying to make yourself heard over the sound of the burning oil on the kitchen counter. “I’m so glad you’re back! It’s so late, you scared me to death! Is everything okay?”

There was no reply from him. 

“Darling?”

It’s okay, perhaps the oil was louder after all and he couldn’t hear you. 

“Dinner’s almost ready! Have a seat and I’ll serve you once it’s done” 

Moments later, you felt his warm embrace softly surround you from behind.

“Darling, is everything okay-” you were about to ask, turning to face him, but he held you tighter.

“Can I hold you like this for a minute and not say much… please…?”, he whispered. 

“Mhm” you nodded. It was the first time you saw Kunikida this tired. 

You felt his chest gently press against your back in intervals as he took some slow, deep breaths. You lovingly caressed his forearms, which were tightly wrapped around your waist, while his chin rested on top of your head. 

You cherished this sweet moment you two were sharing. Being held in his arms was so calming, it made you forget how late it was getting and how worried you were. Kunikida probably felt the same way, you noticed that his tense body was slowly relaxing.

“Thank you”, he said after a while, leaning his head down to kiss your cheek. 

“Long day, darling?”, you asked. 

“Mhm”

“Wanna talk about it?” 

“Not before dinner”

“Alright then”

“Is that Tonkatsu you’re making?”

“Yup”

“It smells so good…”

“I’ve prepared may other side dishes as well”

“Perfect. I’m so hungry...” 

“I can also prepare a warm bath for you while you’re eating”

“No thanks, let’s have dinner together. I’ll shower afterwards”

“As you wish”

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t do this. I’ve been wearing these clothes all day”, he said, relaxing his hold on your waist.

“Don’t worry about it”, you replied, turning around and untying the red ribbon on this collar. “Let me just… get you a little bit more comfortable…”, you added, undoing the buttons of his beige waistcoat and the ones on the collar of his black shirt. 

“There you go”, you said with a soft smile.

“Thank you”, 

“Now, take these off, have a seat, and I’ll join you with the food shortly, okay?”. You gently cupped his face with both your hands.

“Okay”, he replied, before turning to leave, then coming back to hold your shoulders and plant a small kiss on the back of your neck.

“You look beautiful with your hair on a claw clip”, he whispered, making you subtly blush at the spontaneity of the compliment.

“Thank you darling, I’ll be there shortly”

“How do you like it?”, you inquired.

“It’s delicious”, he responded with his mouth half-full. You quietly giggled, you found it so cute.

“So, how was work?”

"Difficult..."

"Why did you have to stay so late?"

“Dazai and I were responsible for arranging the agency’s archives for the new season. Tons of paperwork, basically…”

“Dazai’s not very good with that, is he?”

“Oh don’t get me started on HIM…”

“Was he the one that threw you off schedule?”

“Obviously… Half of the work was on paper; old cases, and very confidential ones that we couldn’t afford to reveal in case a hacker attacked the agency”

“Okay, and the other half was digital, right?”

“Exactly, that’s how we work with new cases now. We decided to split things like that and work at the same time to make the process faster. And Dazai insisted on taking the digital ones”

“Mhm”

“‘I pRoOoOoMiSe, KuNiKiDa-KuUuUuNnNn, I’ll gEt iT aAaAaAaLL DoNe, I wOn’T gEt DiStRacTed!’”

You laughed at the accuracy of that. It’s true, Kunikida is very good at making people’s impressions.

“That fool got zero work done. When I looked at his computer screen, I found exactly 67 open tabs”, he ranted, as he took out his notebook, “including, but not limited to:”

“Oh my god…” you mumbled, knowing you were about to hear some very ridiculous things.

“A reddit post on how to download Goat Simulator for free, an ugly picture of me in high school - I have no idea how he accessed it - , and - stop laughing, it gets worse - his newly set up dating profile on Tinder, with his bio stating that he is ‘looking for a beautiful lady to commit double suicide with’”

This was just too funny not to laugh at.

“Poor thing…” you said, actually feeling sorry for the fact that he has to put up with Dazai’s antics, but still laughing. “I do wonder what that picture looks like though”.

“As you can probably tell, I ended up doing everything by myself, which is why I came home so late”, masterfully avoiding the remark on the high school picture.

“Yeah I can tell… It must have been exhausting”

“Yes it was… It gave me a terrible headache, but I took some aspirin before leaving the agency, so I’m fine now”

“Okay, I’m glad to hear that…”, you said, reaching out for his hand and warming it in your palms. You locked your eyes in his, making sure that he listened to every word you were about to say.

“I want you to know that I am very proud of you and the effort you’re putting in. You are very responsible, and I really admire your dedication. Rough days are expected, I’m sure you know that better than I do. It’s on days like this that I’m gonna be here for you, no matter what, and do everything I can to make it easier”

Kunikida’s expression softened. His eyes and eyebrows were now relaxed, and a little smile appeared on his lips. 

“Thank you so much… It’s very important to have someone during difficult times. You might make dinner for someone every day, but on a rough day, that dinner will matter a hundred times more. I’m so grateful for your care and everything you did for me tonight”, he responded sweetly, still holding his gentle gaze. 

After finishing your meal, you went back to the kitchen to do the dishes, while Kunikida was taking a shower and getting ready to go to sleep. Once you were done and went to your shared bedroom, you found Kunikida waiting for you in the futon, reading some notes from his notebook. 

“How long have you been waiting for me?”

“About a quarter”

“Why? You really need to rest. Tomorrow is a brand new day”

“There’s one thing you’re forgetting about”, he pointed out, taking off his glasses and leaving them on the floor next to him

You shook your head in confusion as you lay down next to him. You were tired too, something must have slipped your mind.

“Goodnight kiss. Seven seconds on the lips every night. Releases oxytocin and reinforces feelings of connection and bonding”

“Oh, that’s right. I thought we were skipping that because you’re exhausted”

“The rules are rules”, he proclaimed as he turned to face you and show you the importance of staying disciplined.

Kunikida merged your lips together in a slow, tender, loving kiss, which slightly exceeded its assigned duration. You found it incredibly sweet that he remembered it despite his fatigue. 

“Thank you for everything once again. I’m so lucky to have you by my side”, he said, pecking your forehead. 

“Goodnight honey”

“Sweet dreams darling”, you whispered, gently stroking his head. Just a few moment have passed, and Kunikida was already drifting to sleep.

“Darling?”

“Hm?”

“About this high school picture of yours…”

Blunt and expressionless, he didn’t even bother to open his eyes.

“Not happening.”

A/N: The image of Kunikida wearing his black shirt with its buttons undone (especially if it's all the way down) is fueling my dirty little mind, but I'll keep it for a future piece heheh

[scribblertown]

Fates of the Fateless Ch. 6: New Faces New Places and a Horse

The gang grows a little bigger and you get to know others a little more.

ao3

wattpad

“The life at sea is a grand and hard. Harder than anything we’ve faced here on land.” Pearson was going off on one of his sailor tangents again. Every time he did you couldn’t help thinking of an old man desperate to relive his glory years. “The fear in your gut wondering if you’ll have enough to last you till next port is beyond imagining.” You’ve heard this story before, more than once actually. Next, he’s going to bring up eating seal meat. “The waters up north are absolutely teaming with seals.” Yep, here we go. “Their meat is real’ greasy you know, has a certain flavor to it. Like a mix of duck and veal.” As he reminisced on his voyages you were stuck cutting and peeling vegetables, nothing you haven’t done before. But the amount to be prepped today was more than usual. Like, an exceptionally larger amount. “I still get cravings for the stuff, can’t find it anywhere ‘round here.”

 His droning tales began to fade away as your mind wondered. Your eyes drifting back and forth to the Juniper tree that sat just behind your tent. The fixation of your attention for the past couple of weeks.

 Peel, peel, peel. A glance at the tree. Chop, chop, chop. A glance at the tree. Peel, peel. A glance. Chop, chop. A glance. It had become an obsession at this point. Every time someone would drift a little too close to the tree, you’d feel yourself tense up, unable to look away until they finally move onto another part of camp. You weren’t sure what would happen if anyone stumbled upon your little secret hidden away in the winding tangled roots of the grand and old juniper. But after witnessing Arthur’s more than adequate show of putting down a man three times your size, you couldn’t help but snatch up that precious pistol. It almost seemed like life had deliberately sent it in your direction, right there at your feet for the taking. At least, if it really came down to it, you had a chance at defending yourself.

 “Once you’re done with those potatoes, throw them in that pot of water. Give the skins to the chickens.” Pearson had swung around with his freshly skinned and cleaved rabbits, the choice meat around these parts apparently. He then does a quick count on his fingers muttering softly under his breath. A gradual scowl crosses his face as his brow furrows, his mustache consumes his mouth in a frown. “Hmm… we’re not gonna have enough for the next week at this rate.” That didn’t seem right.

 “This seems like a lot of food for just us.” Sure, you may be new to the ways of life in the 1800’s, but your pretty sure meal prepping wasn’t a concept of the time beyond canning.

 “It ain’t, Dutch made some connections with some of the mining men up in Bingham. Should be here by nightfall.” Oh great, more strange men. “Rigorous work like that, tends to give one quite the appetite.” He’s quick to grab what carrots and onions you have done before tossing them into the cast iron with a big glob of some sort of animal fat. The smell of it was always a little gamey. “I’m hoping this means more money. More money means better eatin’.” Pearson was nice enough; he had a sweet face and a nice singing voice. You got the impression he was desperate to socialize. Which might work to your advantage.

 “What kind of work does Dutch do?” Maybe you’d get a different piece to the puzzle. “I hear he does dangerous work.”

 “All work is dangerous in this day and age.” Damn it.

 “Have you been traveling long? No place to call home?”

 “Dutch and couple of the others have been out on the road a lot longer than me. I only just joined up maybe… four years ago.”

 “Four years?!” You gaped at him flabbergasted. Four years of this same boring routine of grueling work, of never having a roof over their head, and rarely socializing outside of the camp circle. Is that what your future would be with these people? “And you never left?”

 “No, and I’m not sure I ever want to.” He collects another batch of vegetables from you. “I had made some desperate money decisions, borrowed from a few fellers thinking I’d manage to make up what I owed and some extra to get back on my feet. I didn’t, not even close and some real mean-spirited men were sent after me. Forced me to marry a woman and took everything I had to my name. I’m sure they would’ve taken my life as well had Dutch and Hosea not stepped in.” A smile began to slowly build on his lips, and his eyes became misty and soft. “They paid my debts. Some lowly, good for nothing-nobody they knew shit about. But they saved me anyway.” His eyes then drifted to yours, his brow was tightly furrowed and his gaze suddenly bold and serious. “Everyone here has a similar story, many of them worse than mine.” His voice is deep and breathy. “This world is a cruel and unforgivable place, one that don’t want folk like us. People will do what they have to for survival, but folk like Dutch. Like Hosea. They do what they have to for more than just themselves. They do what they have to for us.” He didn’t say much after that. Leaving you with a new worry in your gut.

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

 When the sun had begun to paint the sky a plethora of warm colors, the men came. Talking loudly and cheerfully. Lead by Dutch, Arthur, and William on horseback. Five new dark silhouettes grew closer before they dismounted their horses just outside of the camps main grounds. You tried to keep yourself from staring, pretending to be all too focused on redoing the seams on a jacket arm. Settled just a few feet from the cooking pot accompanied by Tilly with her own sewing project. The smell of the rabbit and vegetable stew you’d prepped drifting from its large confines of black iron as the two of you observed in silence.

 “Mmmm! Something smells damn good!” The voice that cried out was an unfamiliar one, a bit shrill. His voice sounded quite young.

 “It’s been so long since I’ve had a decent meal…” An older man, rough and worn.

 “Gentlemen, as the first day of our partnership, I would ask you eat to your hearts content knowing that your lives are now you’re own.” Dutch led the line of men towards the large pot, striking a match on his boot. The quick flicker of flame illuminating his face for a quick second before fluttering into a soft glow as he lit a pipe. The group hooping and hollering as they swarmed the area. Two straggled behind a bit. A man and a woman.

 “I’ll getchu a bowl Agatha, you just take a seat and rest a spell.” The man donned bright red hair, swept to the side and styled with some sort of hair grease. His face was angular and skinny, with a decoration of freckles that covered his pale face. He cradled the woman in a gentle and intimate manner.  

 “Alright, but I want you to get yourself a bowl first.” The woman spoke in a broken and course voice. A dark bruise around her left eye, barely hidden behind her dark locks that draped freely down her back and shoulders. They bickered softly for a moment before she finally took a seat on a spare crate near the chicken coop as he joined the rest of the men. A deep sigh fell from her lips as she practically melted into her seat.

 “I certainly hope that bruise isn’t from one of these boys…” Tilly commented under her breath, watching the new group like a hawk with critical eyes scanning every little exchange and movement. You replied with a hum. Out of the corner of your eye Arthur could be seen slipping away into the shadows with a fat saddle bag hefted over his shoulder with a rambunctious William at his tail. Your eyes curiously trailed them as they ventured towards the camps outskirts before your view was cut off by a large figure.  

 “Well well, I wasn’t expectin’ lovely ladies in your band of gunslingers Mr. Van der Linde.” This man was the tallest of the lot, taller than even Arthur or Dutch. Stocky in build with an equally round and stocky face, short salt and pepper hair without a single strand out of place parted down the middle, a thin pencil mustache sat upon his upper lip and sunken light brown eyes that had that familiar predatory stare. An all too happy smirk on his face as his eyes openly wandered your bodies. You unconsciously leaned towards Tilly to block her from his view, before sending him a death glare from under your lashes. “Oooo… Now you don’t wanna go ruinin’ that pretty little face of yours with such an ugly scowl hm?” He chuckled teasingly before bringing another scoop of stew to his mouth full of rotten and crooked teeth. You could just smell the infection on his breath. “Not very lady like.” Bits of food flung out as he spoke.

 “Can’t you be a dumb hunk of shit somewhere else?” Tilly snapped at him brandishing an equally fiery scowl. The rest of the men let out an explosion of laughter. The man’s face quickly became red and tense. Gripping his spoon with enough force to almost bend it in his meaty sausage fingers.

 “Stupid bitch I oughta-” He begins to swing his arm back preparing to strike, you tense spreading your body around Tilly as much as you can awaiting the blow but before he can get enough momentum Dutch is quick to slip between you and dickhead.

 “Wow now Mr. Samson!” His hands are up and his posture relaxed in a mock surrender, “I’ve got rules in my camp, and that includes causin’ trouble for the girls.” His hand drifts to his hip, sweeping aside his jacket flaps exposing his lavish pistol. “You don’t wanna go ruinin’ a beautiful friendship before it even starts.” Samson stares at the pistol a moment before returning to Dutch’s face. “Do you, Mr. Samson?” His face twists before he let out an angry huff, marching off to no doubt sulk in the shadows.

 Hosea then emerges seemingly out of nowhere with John, Arthur, Grimshaw, and William in tow. The saddle bag nowhere to be seen.

 “Been awhile since we’ve had this many people.” Hosea’s eyes wonder over the group of newcomers, rubbing his chin with a small smile. “Guess I better go say hello.” In a matter of seconds of him entering the circle, the men fall under the sweet old man’s charming spell.

 “Just more mouths to feed, and smaller shares for us.” John sulks with a scowl on his face, clearly not happy with the change in guard.

 William has a similar distasteful look, “More like sheep dan men if ya ask me.”

 Dutch comes up behind the two, his hands coming down onto their shoulders with a fierce grip, his pipe nestled between his teeth. “Ooh you boys were just like those poor souls once upon a time.” He spoke through his teeth with a smile. “In fact, I recall you two being a lot more pathetic.”  

 Grimshaw then steps forward, “Dutch I take it you still want us to be packing up to move soon?”

 “Mmhm, after tonight’s haul I imagine word will get out sooner than later. Rather not be so close to town.”

 “What? We’re moving already?” You were just beginning to settle in. “Why?”

 The look of surprise on Dutch’s face made you wonder if he hadn’t realized you were still lingering. “Miss (y/n)! I almost forgot you could talk!”

 “No kiddin’, she’s a real bore.” William shrugs Dutch off his shoulder. “All work ‘nd no play.” That puts a frown on your face knowing full well William’s idea of fun is hassling anyone and everyone he can. “Don’t even know how ta ride a horse. Can ya believe dat?” He’s still going on about that?!

 “At least I don’t smell like one…” you mutter.

 “Dat’s another ting! I know ya go down to the creek for your precious baths princess. Every day!” Your face immediately goes flush and hot. “No one should bathe dat much.”

 “Have you been spying on me?!” You’re standing now, hands clenched in tight fists glaring him in his good eye. He just grins. Which is quickly wiped off his face as Grimshaw swoops in to tug at his ear with a harsh pull.

 “Ooowowowow!” He cries out as she twists him downwards, casually turning to you.

 “Why don’t you girls get yerself something to eat and call it a night. I’m going to have a word with Mr. O’brien.” She gives another hard tug, leading herself and William away. “Goodnight gentlemen.”

 “Ow! What’re ya doin’ ya crazy old hag!” William’s cries of protest fading with each step. Dutch and the other boys simply laugh at his expense.

 “C’mon (y/n) let’s grab some stew and sit by the fire.” Tilly tosses her fabric to the side, quick to jump on her feet and excitedly veer towards the pot.

 Thankfully there was still a decent amount of stew left sticking to the bottom of the cast iron pot, bubbling on the brink of being caramelized and burnt. The two of you quickly found a spot around the main fire where the other men had collected, Uncle balancing a banjo on his knee as he laughs and plays a familiar tune. Out of the corner of your eye you spot John awkwardly standing a decent distance away from you before finally deciding to sit down in the spot to your right.

 “Hi John.”

 “Hi…” He’s not looking at you as he watches his spoon lazily push around a hunk of rabbit. Soon Arthur appears to take up the spot next to him with a hunk of bread in his mouth. “I-I could teach you.”

 “Huh?” John was still staring down at his food, his eyes darting back and forth from his bowl to you, his mouth opening and closing like a fish as he struggled to speak his next words.

 “To ride a horse.” He turns his head to make brief eye contact before they divert to anything but you. “I could teach you how.” You’ve only ever gotten a hello out of the guy and now he’s suddenly offering you free riding lessons.

 “I don’t have a horse.”

 “You can ride mine, or… one of the spare work horses.” He clears his throat before shoveling a large spoonful into his mouth. Just past him you can see Arthur giving him a strange side eye. “Y-yeah, I think… I think you should learn how to ride is all.” He takes another huge mouthful.

 “Alright. That would be very helpful actually.” You sit up a little straighter, turning your body towards him with a small hint of a smile. He visibly freezes hunched over; eyes downcast before he quickly shovels the rest of his food down as fast as he can. He then bolts from his seat, walking almost fast enough to have to break out into a slight jog shouting over his shoulder.

 “Alright I’ll see you later then!”

 “Ok…” a bit baffled at the blunt and brief conversation.

 Arthur scoffs out a slight chuckle, “I would find a different teacher if I were you.”

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

 You were grateful for the early bedtime rest as it seemed Grimshaw felt the need to wake you up earlier than usual.  

 “Up up up! It’s time we start packin’!” another swift, sharp kick to your shins only increasing your rising annoyance to such a rude awakening.

 “Alright alright!” you take a second to rub the lingering sleep from your eyes. Blinking slowly to find it was still relatively dark out. Grimshaw who was somehow fully dressed, hair done, and with a pep in her step marched off to wake her next victim. “What time is it?”

 “Is it gonna make you get up faster if I tell you?” Tilly is somehow already on her feet and messing with her hair pins. “I’d get going now if I were you, don’t want that pig from last night getting a glimpse at us in our undergarments.” She moves like lighting twisting and readjusting the pins in her hair before she’s rummaging in your shared chest for her skirt, she grabs yours as well and throws it in your face. “Well? Hurry up!”

 “Hold on, I gotta wash my face first.” You crumble the bunch of clothes in your arms and unhappily get to your feet. Nights in the desert were surprisingly cold, only made getting up all the more difficult. It left any and all the water ice cold, a splash to the face was enough to finally bring you out of your groggy state. Shaking your hands to rid yourself of the lingering drops of chilled water you spotted the woman from last night timidly approaching you. “Good morning.” Your sleepy voice coming out deep and low.

 “Good morning.” She gave a small smile, reaching for the ladle that hung off the lip of the barrels opening and taking a gracious drink. You stood there a little awkwardly unsure if it would be more rude to just leave or start some sort of petty small talk.

 “I’m (y/n).” You seemed to have made the right decision as her eyes lit up with a smile.

 “My name is Agatha.” She gave a brief pause, hands tucked neatly in front of her, “I’m happy to see there are other women here.”

 “Oh, believe me, I thought the same thing when I first joined up.”

 “Have you been here long?”

 “Well…. Not really, only about 3ish months.” I think… “I wasn’t expecting a woman to come from Bingham mine. I figured we’d just be getting men.”

 “Oh, I’d follow Joseph to the ends of the earth. But I’m happy to be away from that place. They were working him to death.” You couldn’t help but stare at the bruise on her eye, she seemed to notice. “This was a parting gift from my previous employer.” She touched the purpling skin delicately. “Joseph was sure to give him twice the beating.”

 “Sounds like you picked a good one.” Just past Agatha you could see Grimshaw prowling about. You’ve been taking up too much time. “Uh, I gotta get to work but let’s chat some more later, ok?” You start to walk backwards as you spoke.

 “Of course! It was nice to meet you.”

 “Nice to meet you too!” You shouted over your shoulder before bolting back to your tent. Tilly had already rolled up your sleeping pads, thankfully leaving the chest and tent up for you. You glance around to find no one else was nearby. You quickly slipped to the Juniper tree crouching down and delving into the roots, fiddling around blindly until the cold steel met your fingertips. Swiftly wrapping the pistol in the change of clothes you had engulfed in your arms. Acting nonchalant as you pretended you were simply packing away your belongings. Careful to bury it at the bottom of the chest where only your belongings laid. Quick to actually get dressed and begin the grueling process of carefully taking down the tent, folding it properly and playing a game of tetris fitting it all into the wagon. Next came everything else that wasn’t absolutely needed. Tables, clothes, personal belongings, most of Pearson’s dry goods and cooking ware. If it wasn’t nailed down or on a horse, it goes in the wagons.

 “Careful vith my equipment! It’s very fragile!”

 “Relax Strauss, I know how glass works.” The camp was bare and empty now with only remnants of footprints and the old campfire among the red sand. The sun was now only just starting to come up as you hefted the last bit of supplies into its rightful spot. “You want me to take your bag too?” you reached out a hand, eyeing his medical bag that he carried around. He cradled it close to his chest with a distasteful look.

 “No, it stays vith me.”

 “Alright well… I guess pick your ride and we can get out of here.” You keep yourself from rolling your eyes and dropped your hand, he hadn’t lifted a finger to help out, didn’t even take down his own tent. “And William calls me princess…” you mutter under your breath as you settle onto a pile of fabric tightly rolled together just outside of the wagon opening. Strauss hesitates a moment before also climbing aboard, sitting adjacent to you, cradling his bag in his lap. Your eyes wandered to find most everyone else has loaded up and found their respective spots to travel. The wagon just in front of you holds Agatha and the red head you now know as Joseph, feet dangling off the edge, their horse tied just in front of them with their personal belongings on its back. You gave her a wave; she gave one back. Thankfully it seemed Samson wasn’t around, along with the regular bread winners. Arthur wasn’t around, nor were John or William. You took some comfort in that.

“Good morning!” Pearson’s chipper chubby face appears as he hops up onto the coach, scooching over as a young man takes the spot next to him.

 “Hello.” His voice was hushed and smooth. Kind dark brown eyes, clean shaven with long silky black hair tied in a braid down his back and donning a simple looking leather hat to keep the sun out of his deep tan face.

 “Ah Guten Morgen Mr. Pearson.”

 “Have you met Jay yet?” Pearson glances over his shoulder at the two of you, the reins resting limply in his hands as you all await the caravan to move along.

 “It’s Jie, Mr. Pearson.” The man corrects him with a smile, he meets your eyes again, “Jie Liu. It’s nice to meet you.” His face carved deep lines up from his jaw and into his cheeks when he smiled.

 “Hallo, Jee-eh, I am Doctor Leopold Strauss.” The poor man’s names get butchered again mixed with Strauss’ heavy European accent, it makes you cringe a little. But Jie just smiles and nods at him seemingly unbothered. Turning to you next.

 “And I already know who you are. Your little confrontation with Mr. O’brien was enough for us to quickly learn your name.” He has a slight accent, it’s very subtle, though it’s noticeable with certain words. “What’s the saying? Cleanliness is close to Godliness!” He laughs. You feel a little embarrassed to remember you had an audience watching your little fight last night.

 “You know I’m pretty sure that’s the most emotion I’ve seen you show since you’ve gotten here.” Pearson has a sly glint in his eye. “Seems some of Grimshaw’s charm is rubbing off on you.”

 You roll your eyes. He just laughs. The wagon in front of you starts to move. You all jolt forward slightly as Pearson snaps the reins.

 “Jee-eh, I take it you’re an immigrant, yes?” Strauss is holding a book in his hands now jotting something down as he speaks.

 “Yes, I am originally from Hong Kong. I take it you are also an immigrant Mr. Strauss?”

 “Austrian. But like everything about this country, I’ve been consumed into the American masses.”

 Jie gives a chipper response. “It is quite the country.”

 “Hong Kong huh? That’s so far away, how and why did you come here?” You ask.

 “My home, the little neighborhood I grew up in wasn’t exactly a good one. Big cities like that tend to attract a lot of… bad people.” He pauses a moment before picking back up again. “I lived their most of my adolescent life but… there’s nothing left for me there.” There’s a sadness in his voice, and the implications of what that might mean makes you wish you didn’t ask.

 “I’m sorry to hear that…” You spoke softly, awaiting his next words with reverence. The other two remain silent.

 He lets out a long sigh, “So, I ended up leaving the country to come here. I was swept up into the work most migrants end up doing. I met a friend who got me into the mining business at Bingham, lost him in the cave ins and now I’m here.”

 “Agatha mentioned something about the mine almost working Joseph to death.”

 “It’s definitely work I hope to never have to fall into again. It paid decently but when you take into account how much goes into food, housing, and medicine, you lose it just as quickly as you gained it.”

 “I haven’t had the chance to talk to the other new recruits. I take it they left under similar circumstances?” Pearson asks curiously.

 “To be honest, I am not very familiar with the others beyond their names. But yes, considering the recent cave in and other issues arising from poor work conditions, I’m actually surprised we didn’t have more men take up Mr. Van der Linde’s offer.”

 “They vere fools not to.”

 “Oh, Strauss you can be a very cold man sometimes you know that?” Pearson lets out a holler, “We got a lot of miles to cover and so much to talk about. You know I was a sailor on the seas once upon a time. Back when I was far younger and had a little more on my head and a little less on my stomach, AHAHA!”

 Dear God no… Not again…

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

 This was by far the farthest and longest you’ve traveled so far. It was a shift in driving wagons, sleeping when night fell, and getting back on the road before the sun even came up. Swapping places here and there so you weren’t stuck with some of the more miserable members of your mysterious caravan. Encountering the two other men you hadn’t had a chance to talk to. The oldest of the bunch was an aged and worn man by the name of Crisoforo Abadiano. His skin was dark and sun damaged, deep lines in his face from years of wear and tear. He was the older than even Hosea it seemed. His dark eyes framed by heavy lashes and a sad distant look to them. Hair short and combed back with slivers of silver amongst his jet-black hair, covered by a large brimmed hat. He never really talked much and when he did it was usually single word responses. While very quiet he was the type you could be comfortable in silence with.

 “You have any hobbies Mr. Abadiano?”

 “No.”

 “Really, nothing at all?”

 “Cards.” He was fantastic at ending conversations before they really began.

  And of course, Joseph with Agatha practically attached at his hip. He was quite young, younger than you at least. Both ambitious and optimistic, excited to exchange stories and meet new people.

 “How did you two meet anyway?”

 “Well, I was working at the mining town’s saloon as a waitress and card dealer, you get good commission when all the men want to do after work is drink and gamble all they’re earnings away, sometimes they’d forget I’d already been paid.” Agatha gives a giggle. “Well one night, I was having particular trouble with a tenet who’d pulled a knife on me, accusing me of cheating him out of his winnin’s. I thought I was ‘bout to be gutted when a strapping,” Agatha breathes in a hushed voice as if just the memory of this incident left her breathless, looking dreamily at Joseph, “strong, young, and handsome hero stepped in to save me.” She lets out a long sigh as her lashes flutter in a half-lidded look. “I knew he was the one for me.”

 “Oh Agatha, you’ll never know what joy your words bring to my foolish heart.” Joseph, whose face was red as a tomato and clearly flustered was now cradling Agatha in his arms with a similar look of intense love in his eyes. “I love you, Agatha.”

 “I love you too, Joseph.” The two then shared a chaste kiss leading to another and another until they were holding each other long and tender. Leaving you to uncomfortably look around at anything but the spontaneous make out session you had the misfortune of being an audience for. They were cute and easy to talk to but… they were just too… lovey dovey.

 Other than the small talk, watching the scenery slooowly pass by and napping were your pastimes. (That and avoiding Mr. Samson like the plague personified). It was so incredibly boring to be traveling at a snail’s pace with nothing to occupy yourself. You started to pick up on some of the mannerisms of many of the others.

 Uncle at any point you were caught in his presence was buzzed 9 times out of 10. Bessie had impeccable posture seemingly always sitting straight as a plank. Hosea never seemed hot, even on the hottest of days, you’ve never seen him break a sweat. In more ways than one. Dutch and Annabelle were usually resting against each other, shoulder to shoulder, whispering and giggling to each other. You even managed to catch some poetry from Dutch. It actually wasn’t half bad.

 The bread winners had returned during the night on one of your rest stops, suddenly just there one morning around the coffee pot after having been missing for so long, it had caught you off guard. John was as awkward as ever giving a small hello without looking you in the eyes, Arthur was a bit grumpy and just grunted, and William had that distinct sneer he’d always give you, not saying a word. The stupid bastard.

 They led the rest of the way to a secluded canyon, the jagged red and pink sand rocks speckled with an assortment of desert trees and shrubbery, towering on both sides of a large level bed of rock with two openings that split off into two different directions and a third that you all entered through. It was shaded and cool, quiet and untouched.

 Dutch and Annabelle were excitedly taking in the view of the grand open space, as the rest of you began to unpack. “Quiet, secluded, no nosey neighbors. This place is perfect Arthur!”

 “Thought you’d like it.” Arthur gave a smirk, pulling up a match to light a cigarette perched on his lips. You assisted Pearson with unloading, watching Tilly curiously survey the campsite before boldly stomping up a cloud of dust.

 “I’m claiming this spot for the women!” She announces with wide smile. The area just to the right of the opening to the north.

 “Oh? And where will you be sleeping?” Uncle teases her, he had a box in his arms seemingly pitching in with the labor before realizing it was full of liquor.

Back and forth, back and forth. The camp slowly came to life. Dutch’s tent went up first, next was Bessie’s and Hosea’s, and then Arthur’s and so on and so forth until only yours was left.

 Only problem is it was smothered under an unfamiliar large wooden chest. Sun bleached in places and chipped in others. Barred by rusted iron hinges and simple looking. Only issue was how unexpectedly heavy it was. Even with both hands you barely managed to scoot it an inch.

 “Hmpphh!” You give a harsh pull, causing whatever’s inside to slide and tumble.  

 “Wow, there miss.” Arthur slides into view, hands quick to find the handles, his calloused fingers grazing yours slightly, tickling the little hairs on the back of your hands. His hat shrouds his face from you. “Let me get this out of your way.” He picks it up like it weighs nothing, and heads off towards Dutch’s tent. You watch as Dutch’s eyes light up at the sight of him. Quick to swoop him into his tent and draw back the canvas curtains, shrouding them from view.

 Odd. Very odd.

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

  You could feel eyes on your back as you awkwardly finish ramming the final stake into the ground. Giving the twine a good tug before making yourself recognize the presence.

 “Hi John,” you toss the hammer back into the wooden tool box, wiping sand from your hands. “You uh… need something?”

 “Let’s go riding.”

 “Oh, you wanna do the lessons now?” your eyes wander around looking for Grimshaw, you’d rather not wander off without her approval. Not worth the scolding you think.

 “Yes.” He’s quick to start a march towards the horses looking back at you, still unmoved from your spot. “Come on then!” He yells in haste. You stand there hesitantly shifting your weight from one foot to the other. Taking a moment to consider if John is someone you want to be alone with. I mean he’s just a kid, but…

 “But Grimshaw won’t like it if I ditch work!”

 “Your chores will still be here when you get back.” He lets out a huff, clearly anxious to get going, “Now come on!”

 “Can Tilly come?”

 “Huh?” Tilly juggling an arm full of pots and pans shoots you a look of absolute confusion. “I got stuff to do around here!”

 “But I don’t-“ You step a foot closer to her, voice low enough only she can hear. “I don’t want to be alone with a strange man er-boy!”

 “John ain’t gonna do nothin’. He’s as dumb as a bag of dirt but he ain’t bad.” Her hand jumps to catch a cast iron pan that was slipping from underneath her elbow, snagging painfully on her finger. You relieve her of the heavy pan and find it a more convenient place in her jumbled arms. “You’ll be fine. Although I’m not sure you’ll actually learn anything.”

 You can see his horse patiently awaiting its rider, a big and burly warm brown stallion already harnessed. Next to it was one of the driving horses, even bigger than John’s horse and rippling with muscle. Black and white like a cow, towering over everything and everyone else.

 “Uum, isn’t he a little big?” Your eyes scan the big beast, just how in the hell are you even supposed to get on this giant?

 “Horses are for riding. He’s a horse, so ride him.” A blanket is tossed onto the curved slope of the horse’s back before a saddle follows. He’s quick and efficient as he pulls and ties the various leather straps into place, clearly very familiar with his way around a horse. “Alright, hop on up.” You’re a bit hesitant as you nervously approach.

 Please don’t kick me, Mr. Horse.

 Your first instinct is to grab the saddle horn, which is barely within your reach. Next you pick up your foot to awkwardly sit in the stirrup leaving you hanging off of the side like a monkey.

 “You’re doing it wrong.”

 “Huh?” you peek over at John, fidgeting with his suspenders. “How?”

 “Well, uh, you’re just getting on wrong.” You look down at your right foot twisted in the stirrup at an angle, then at your hands tangled together before looking at him quizzically. “You hafta swing your leg over… so you gotta…” He’s at a loss of words, mind clearly working overtime, his face beginning to redden. “Just watch me! Ok?” He places his left foot into the horse’s left stirrup before swinging his right over and finding his perfect perch atop his horse. “Like that.”

 “Ooh.” You readjust yourself to place the correct foot in the stirrup before hopping once, twice, and thrice heaving yourself up and your leg over the seat of the saddle. “Oomph!” your leg only hooks itself at the knee, leaving you to depend on your arms to pull the rest of your body upwards, hands barely having enough room to hold onto the tiny saddle horn before finally getting into your seat. Already looking like an idiot. You scoop the reins into your hands gingerly, actively making sure they are lax in your grip afraid you might cause the horse to move before you’re ready. “Now what?” you ask.

 “Now, we get a move on.” He clicks his tongue and turns his horse out toward the open desert. He gets a ways out before realizing you’re not following. “Are you coming!?” He yells.

 You’re digging your heels into the horse’s sides, clicking your tongue, pulling on the reins trying to get the thing to move, but he remains still. “How do I get him to move!?” you call back.

 “Squeeze his chest!”

 “Squeeze his chest?” pondering for a second, you almost give the big guy a hug before it clicked in your brain to use your legs, he moves almost immediately. “He’s doing it!” Your smiling, excited with your small little accomplishment. “Good boy.” Caressing his long wispy mane as you slowly make your way toward John.

 “There we go, now try and keep up with me.” John goes from a simple walk into a trot. You give his chest another squeeze with your legs, your pace remains the same, you then give a go at digging your heels in. That gets him going a little faster. John goes from a trot to a sort of jog, so you follow suit. Your lower back and bottom bouncing up and down on the saddle uncomfortably.

 “Aren’t we going a little fast?” You cry out. John peeks over his shoulder with a blank confused look.

 “Uh, no? We can go way faster.” His eyes drift off before looking back at you, “Did you wanna go faster?”

 “No, I think that would be a bad idea. I don’t even know how to stop this thing.” Oh my lord, Tilly wasn’t exaggerating. John pulls to the side and slows down, keeping pace on your right. His horse was a considerable amount shorter than yours, causing his head to only reach as high as your shoulder. He sits up a little taller.  

 “You know, I’m the one who found the spot.”

 “Hm? The campsite?”

 “Yeah, I’m the one who found it. Not Arthur.” He spits out Arthur’s name with some disdain.

 “It’s nice.” A pocket of silence fills the air.

 “The foods been better, and I noticed my shirts are not so full of holes.” He clears his throat. “You do good work.”

 “Why are your shirts so fond of holes anyhow?” Your mind drifts to that notorious green shirt. “I swear some of the clothes have had blood on them too.” You watch him carefully from the corner of your eye. Trying to keep a casual, calm air about yourself. “You ought to be more careful.”

 “We uh- get into fights sometimes.” His response isn’t very confident. “But! I mean- we don’t start ‘em.” He steers his horse into yours, “Lets take a left up here.”

 Just what kind of fights are you getting into?

 “Arthur’s good in a fight. I got to see that first hand.” John gets quiet.  You dared a peek to see his face was in a scowl. “Where we goin’ anyway?”

 “There’s another spot I found, thought you’d like it.”

 “So that’s where you boys went? Sight-seeing?”

 “It ain’t like that, someone’s gotta make sure the way ahead is safe.”

 Safe from what?

 “Can’t say I’m not jealous. A break from camp would be nice every once in a while.”

 “Well, we can go riding anytime you want.”

 “I’m sure Grimshaw would not be too keen on the idea.” Another round of silence. The area around you is beginning to become much greener, blooming cactus, flourishing sage brush and a particular earthy smell permeates the air like a delicate perfume. Each step forward becomes an oasis of thriving plant life, and just as your about to ask how, you see it.

 A great pool of water extends the majority of the horizon, reflecting the bright light of the sun and creating a perfect mirror image of the surrounding environment. A small group of Big Horned Sheep could be seen taking a gracious drink off the tranquil water’s surface. Various kinds of birds nesting in the blooms of the Joshua trees providing a sweet melody. Everything was flourishing.

 John’s horse maneuvers itself in front of yours, bringing you to a stop and putting said riders face right in your line of view. “I figured you could come here when you need to… ya know.” His face flushes red. “Bathe.”

 You let out a huff of a laugh and a smirk. “You know, bathing isn’t my whole personality. But I appreciate it.” You both sit in silence as you take it all in. It actually began to make you emotional, tears brimming to the surface of your eyes. You attempt to keep composure but it’s in vain as John clearly notices.

 “A-are you ok?” He sounds almost frightened. No doubt caught off guard by your sudden decent into sadness.

 “I-I’m sorry.” You turn away from him, dabbing away at your eyes. Face scrunched painfully as you try your hardest to hold back the sob desperately trying to come up your throat. “I-I don’t know what’s come over me.” Your voice cracks as you speak. It’s an awkward silence as you fail to keep your feelings at bay. You almost don’t feel the couple soft taps on your shoulder.

 “It’ll be okay…” John attempts say comfortingly, though it comes out sounding more like a question. It was… very sweet of him.

 Your horse seems to dislike the change in mood as he winnies in agitation, swaying side to side before moving suddenly.

 “WHoawhoa-WHOA!!” You shriek in surprise as your horse bolts forward with vigor, your hands yanking on the reins causing him to simply jerk his head and rip them from your grip. “Ah!” your hands desperately grab for his neck, looping around the large and taught muscle before you feel your legs turn cold. Your horse had felt the sudden need to plunge himself directly into the water taking you with him. Your wide eyes meet John’s still in shock.

 “Guess he was hot.” John remarks. The horse let’s out a long grunty sigh that vibrates from underneath you. You’re up to your shoulders in water, soaking you from your socks to your underwear.

 And you laugh.

 A long joyous slip of bliss from your lips, the first in a long time. And it goes on and on and on. Leaving you breathless as you pitter down to little giggles, only to rev back into a fit. Slapping the horse gently on his side.

 “You-hoohoo silly horse- ahahaha!” You can hear John letting loose a few laughs as well.

 “Well, lookie here!” A new voice arises from the shoreline. It’s Arthur. Basking down at you from atop his trusty mare, leaning forward and a twinkle in his eye.

 “What’re you doin’ here?” John doesn’t look happy, eyeing Arthur up with a challenging look in his eyes.

 “Lookin’ for you two.” He attempts to smack John, who swerves harshly out the way nearly falling off his saddle. “You’ve got night watch.”

 “So do you!” John retorts in annoyance.

 “Yeah, and you better not fall asleep on me!” Arthur goes for another swing, this time landing upside John’s head with a smack.

 “Ow!” John’s face scrunches up into a scowl, he retaliates with a smack of his own that causes Arthur’s hat to fall forward into his face. You let out a soft giggle at the sight.

 Like a couple of toddlers.

 Arthur adjusts his hat back into place, clearing his throat before speaking to you in a much more tender tone.

 “You need some help there, ma’am?”

 “uhh…” you grab for the reins floating just on the water’s surface, giving them a pull upwards, backwards and to the side. But the horse simply remains submerged and relaxed. You swing yourself off it’s back, now soaking every inch of you completely. Wading towards the bank as both young men dismount to meet you. Arthur has his hands extended before John practically shoves him out of the way causing Arthur to exclaim an irritated “Hey!”. You’re assisted up and out of the pond, John’s hand lingering in yours long after your clearly on dry solid land.

 “Thanks.”

 John nods with an eager smile. “Course!”

 “You can let go of my hand now…”  

 “Oh uh! Yeah…” He stammers a bit, looking at your intwined hands before finally releasing you from his grip.

 “What about him?” You motion to the large horse still sitting unmoved.

 Arthur looks to John and nods his head towards the water. “You get him.”

 “What!? No way, you do it!”

 “I know you chose the horse. So, you get to pull him out.” Arthur corrals you to follow him back to Boadicea, throwing in one last remark to John before placing you just behind him.  “Maybe you’ll finally learn to swim!”

 John flips him off leaving Arthur to laugh as the two of you ride away.

 “He can’t swim?” You ask genuinely worried.

 “Yeah, so don’t go askin’ for lessons.”

 “Is he gonna be ok?” I mean you did just leave him all alone surrounded by a large body of water.

 “Little John knows how to take care of himself. Drowning won’t be what kills him.” You look back to see John hollering and waving a carrot around trying to get the horse’s attention.

 You only give an uncertain hum, falling quiet. You try not to get too close, for both personal space and to not soak his entire back with your still sopping wet clothes.

 You’d be lying if you said Arthur didn’t scare you. Out of everyone in camp, you knew the least about him. And with his clearly appropriate label as the muscle of camp, it worried you to think if and when he’d use that muscle on you.

 “We haven’t really had a chance to talk much, you and I.” Arthur speaks.

 “Well-“ You exhale, “-it’s been a strange couple of months. Not like I’ve been in the mood to talk anyway.”

 He responds with a hum. “How ya holdin’ up?”

 “I don’t know… I’ll feel ok for a while and then out of nowhere I’m having a mental breakdown.” You fidget with the sleeve of your blouse. “I’m not sure holding on is something I can do for too much longer.”

 “Well… it hasn’t been that long ago since… ya know. But things will get better miss. These things just take time.” He perks up a bit, “And hey, being able to laugh in your situation, I’d say you’re well on your way to healin’.”

 Your lips twitch into an almost small smile. “I sure hope so, it’s a lot to adjust to… And I can’t say how much I appreciate you all taking me in and giving me so much.”

 “What happened to you? If you don’t mind me askin’?”

 “I…I got lost…”

 “Lost?” He sounds confused.

 “But I can never go back home. I can never…” Your throat constricts with the thought of people you once knew flash across your mind. “I-I don’t want to talk about it…”  

 “Sorry, I shouldn’t have brought it up.” And you both fall back into the awkward silence. The only sound being the muffled trotting of Boadicea’s hooves on soft sand.

 Arthur suddenly pulls Boadicea to a stop, causing you to squeeze his waist extra hard and smooshing your face against his broad back. Catching a whiff of cigarettes and… Oh god he needs a bath.

 “What? What’s wrong? Why are we stopping?” you quickly slip your arms away as he dismounts, grabbing a rifle from the saddle. You freeze up in fear as he meets your eyes and puts his finger to his lips.

 “Sshh…” he shushes softly. He lowers himself to the ground. Soft careful steps in the direction of a large cluster of brush. Your eyes scan the area finding nothing, fixing back to Arthur confused as to what in the world he’s doing.  

 He stops, stock still. Lifting the rifle to his shoulder before BANG and then another BANG. Making you jump each time. He proceeds to jog over to whatever he decided needed to die. His face is a light with a smile, rifle over one shoulder and two rabbits dangling from his hand held up with triumph.

 “Dinner!” he calls out. Swinging the carcasses over his shoulder. Making his way back to you, you spot dark splotches beginning to form on his shirt.

 Oh my god. It’s animal blood!

 A wave of relief falls over you, hand at your chest as you let go of so much stress and anxiety over that damned bloody shirt.

 “I was wondering where that blood came from.”  He looks at his now red stained shoulder as he ties a rabbit to each side of the saddle.

 “Oh yeah… sorry about that.” He attempts to wipe the blood off his hands before remounting, his hands now a bright pink. “I’ll wash this one, don’t worry about it.”

 “Oh? You know how to do your own laundry?”

 He laughs, “Yes, I know how to do laundry. Susan made sure of that.”

 “And you’re on a first name basis with her too it seems.” You notice the damp imprint you made on his back and can’t help but distance yourself from him a little more.

 “We’ve known each other a long time. I mean she practically raised me.”

 Raised him, so he was a kid when he joined up. My god that’s a long time.

 “Did you know your parents?”

 “I don’t remember much of my Mama, but my Daddy… I wish I didn’t remember much of him.” A bad father figure, not much of a surprise.

 “Must have been hard…”

 “Hard for everyone isn’t it?”

 “Yeah but… doesn’t mean it hurts any less.”

 He stays quiet for a moment before he speaks again, softly this time. “Your right… it don’t.” The conversation dies down after that. You make no effort to change that.

 You start to descend where the camp lies, completely hidden from view until you were basically walking in the front door. Once on the ground you utter a small “thank you” to Arthur. Turning to his horse

 “Thank you, girl.” You stroke her side gently; she eyes you with curiosity as if waiting for something. “Sorry I don’t have a treat for you.”

 “Here, give her this.” Arthur fishes around his bag before pulling out a round pale thing. You take it in your hand, inspecting it a moment. It was light and delicate. A rice cake without the rice. You offer it to Boadicea, palm open as she plucks it up with her big whiskery lips. And you let out an air of a laugh through your nose as she tickles your hand.

 “It was nice talking to you miss.” Arthur speaks with a smile, eyes shrouded by his hat, but you can still see the bright glint of his eyes. The two rabbits hanging over his shoulder.

 “It was nice talking to you too. I hope you sleep well.” You both awkwardly nod a goodbye as he departs.

   The second Arthur leaves your side, a new body takes his place. Samson towers over you and far too close for your liking. Taking two steps back, only for him to take two steps forward.

 “I’ve been meaning to talk to you.” He utters with a far too innocent look.

 “What do you want?” you blurt out your question with no effort in sounding in the least bit interested in what he has to say.

 “I want to apologize for the terrible first impression I left on you that first night.” He waits for a response from you, you don’t give him one. “I don’t want us to start off on bad terms, I’m really not a bad fella.” You roll your eyes, it’s the stupid nice guy bullshit even in this era. Turning to leave before you feel his disgusting giant meaty paw clamp onto your forearm like a vice. “Wow wow! I’m not done talking!” He barks angrily, yanking you back to your spot right in front of him causing you to yelp. “I think we could be real good friends. But it takes two my dear.”

 “I don’t want to be your friend!” You spit out at him, yanking your arm only causing him to grip it even tighter. He smiles wide.

 “Good. Neither do I.” Your stomach twists at the way his eyes linger in intimate places as they rave up your body before they fall behind you. Smile dropping and hand quick to release, causing you to stumble back. Gentle hands find themselves cradling your shoulder, pushing you behind a body.

 “What the hell do you think you’re doin’?!” Arthur’s voice comes out deep and low. Eyes staring daggers into Samson as your hidden from view. His shoulders taught and raised like the hackles of a cat. In the moment Arthur seemed to tower over Samson.

 “Nothing, just a friendly chat.” Samson feigns ignorance. “Not like it’s your business anyhow.”

 “When it comes to the safety of the women, it’s my business.” Arthur barks loud and gruff. Samson seems to notice the little exchange is drawing attention, eyes from others peeking around corners and watching. He fidgets.

 “She’s fine, ain’t no hair out of place or bruise on her.” He dares to meet your eyes again, but his view is blocked by Arthur’s body once more. “Like I said, it was just a friendly chat.” And with his final statement he finally leaves.

 Only once he’s out of sight does Arthur relax. “You alright?” His voice no longer holding the animosity he had only seconds ago. Now soft and hushed. You cradle the arm, no marks or bruising. But the feeling of that dirty hand lingers like a burn.

 “Yeah… I’m ok.” Your eyes remain fixated on your hand now rubbing your forearm. “Thank you for stepping in…” Despite the tense situation, you didn’t feel uncomfortable. You felt safe, secure, calm. You can see him fidget in your peripheral. Shifting from foot to foot.

 “If he gives you trouble, you come to me, Alright?” You finally look up into his eyes, kind and concerned. Nothing like the way Samson was looking at you. You nod slowly.

 “I’ll come to you…” His eyes drift from each of your eyes a moment more, before he nods his head.

 “Ok… You be well Ma’am.” You watch as he leaves, hands twitching and shoulders adjusting themselves. He approaches Dutch and Hosea who were sitting and chatting away with cups of coffee. There smiles dissipate as Arthur speaks. Their gaze looking off in the direction of Samson and then they turn to you. Your eyes meet there’s for a split second before you turn away quickly. Wondering off to find a nice sunny spot to dry off and lie low for a while.