#and if it weren't for her who knows when we'd have gotten any of this out the damn door

[random-introverted-blog]

Shadows of Shar [F!Reader x Selunite!Shadowheart]

NOTE: THIS IS PART 3 and a half TO FLICKERS OF LOSS

Told you it existed

Previously - No More

Intended Audience: Mature [scroll the age requirement wheel until you come to a year where you can bypass the age check, we all know you do]

The Bit: You're learning to sleep again with the help of your patient, cleric lover. But can you learn to live again? Or are the shadows of your past too hungry to resist?

Warnings/Advisories: Implied SA, emotional abuse, torture via magical wounds, mental abuse, gaslighting?, cute but cringey pet name, tickles, a distinct lack of sandcastles (that's in the end half, which I am still working on)

Words, all the word (count): 3,553 baebeee

Dedicated to my bestest bestie who also made and provided and chose the gif - @ethelspetals

MINIMAL EDITING - WE FORGET AND DIE LIKE SHARRANS (ALWAYS - PRAISE OUR DARK GODDESS SHADOWHEART)

Finally delivering (half) of my promise in 3...2...1

-ˋˏ’✄┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈--ˋˏ’✄┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈--ˋˏ’✄┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈-

Chains...

Chains and prayer. Prayer and chains. And ceaseless prodding. All at the hands of an obscene mockery of a god. Eyes remained closed, fixated on perfect, endless darkness. Finding the comfort of her Lady's embrace even on the knees of her failure.

No.

This was many things, but a failure it was not. It was a test. A sacred task bestowed upon her by the Lady of Loss. Even across the vast expanse of stars and time, her goddess would not tolerate derision.

Darkness is where she derives her faith. Darkness is where she thrives her soul.

And it would come. In time.

For now she would withstand the well lit room. She would reach out across the links that represented the bond to her pet, forever bound through the Dark Lady's blessed markings, etched into your flesh. Claimed as hers for eternity. Through them she could remain somewhat vigilant over you. Attempt to keep you from straying so far down those delusions the inferior version of her was poisoning you with.

Sure, you stumbled and struggled in your training... but you still excelled far beyond her expectations. In time, she was convinced you'd make a fine Dark Justiciar... And once she freed herself, well... it would only be a matter of time.

The Nightsinger had plans for both her, and you. And those plans were far from extinguished.

______________________________________________

Sunlight filtered in through the closed curtains, it's warmth on your skin denied by the covers you've been tucked into. It wasn't odd for you to wake up alone and she was trying not to coddle you so much, but that doesn't mean you have to like it. You had begun your ritual of smelling her side of the bed when the sound of the door closing has you perking up and looking down the bed toward it.

Shadowheart, with her hair plaited and already dressed, can't help but huff a small laugh when she sees you. "Just as I left you." She teases, swinging her arms a little as she crosses the room and sits on the edge of the bed, folding her hands on her lap. The twinkle in her eyes accompanied with her soft smile as she watches you makes your belly flutter.

With a curious tilt of her head, Shadowheart lifts her hand to tenderly brush her fingers against your hair. "Time to greet the day, lazy bones..." the words laden with honey. The showering of her affection has your eyes drift closed a moment. "I would let you sleep longer if I could, but we have company arriving soon." She hums, her perfect nails delicately graze your scalp in that way that turns you to putty for her. Even as she reminds you of the trouble, you caused her last night.

There's been an improvement. Some nights you fall asleep easily, but wake up with a lurch, muttering Sharran scripture until she coaxes your mind back to her. Other nights you toss and turn in her arms. The first time she thought it was because you felt... trapped. After all, she shares a face, voice and body with your former "mistress". So that night she encouraged you to sleep on your side of the bed uninhibited by her hands or arms. On your own.

You woke up in the middle of the night, on her lap in the middle of your shared bed. Throat raw and Shadowhearts arms squeezing you against her, pinning yours to your sides while she finessed her soft hands, radiant with divine magic, onto your right one, which burned and stung. Tears were drying on your face, but you couldn't remember why. Shadowheart's voice in your ear alternating between whispering and murmuring promises of love and safety. And you could feel a warm wetness under your fingernails on your left hand. It took too long for you to realize you had apparently clawed your right hand in your sleep. Possibly in an attempt to destroy the markings.

That was the last night she let you sleep without being tucked deep in her arms, the soft lullaby of her heartbeat in your ear and her fingers in your hair. To her credit, that hasn't happened since she's insisted on holding you every night.

But you were finding nights where you slept peacefully, visited by pleasant dreams or dreamless. They were becoming frequent enough you actually felt hopeful. Maybe, little by little, she would regain the confidence to let you sleep outside her protective arms again.

Wait, she mentioned company... what company? Your eyes peel open, reuniting with the tenderness and love in hers she's lavishing you with, and she must read the confusion. "Do you remember? My parents arranged to come by and see us," Shadowheart explains patiently, not once allowing her smile to completely falter.

A white cat that you recognize, Pawtato, hops onto the bed, nudging Shadowhearts arm up to demand attention from her. Lifting her hand from your hair. Apparently, the ridiculous name was your fault. "Come, don't be shy. You may only remember meeting them once, but they care about you almost as much as I do. You made quite the impression... That hasn't changed." She encourages with a knowing smile, pulling the covers off of you to reinforce that going back to sleep wasn't an option for you.

Still, you try. Curling into a ball and burying your face into her pillow. "Oh no, you don't..." Shadowheart warns. You feel her shifting up the bed, shuffling closer...

Then her fingers dig into your ribs, and you cry out in pained laughter. Your arms and legs flail. In a chaotic mess of movement, a playful battle erupts over your shared bed. "I'll tickle you right out of this bed if I have to!" Her laughs blending with your own.

You nod feebly, struggling to use words between gasps and cries, but fate is kind, and she mercifully ceases her assault. As the dust of your short-lived war settles, you realize the position you've inadvertently found yourselves in.

Shadowheart's knee sits between your thighs, effectively straddling your leg. Her hands smooth over your now exposed sides in gentle, soothing circles.

Her knee forces your legs open wider for her, dark hair framing her even darker eyes, "keep these open nice and wide for me, just like I've taught my good girl... you're my good girl, aren't you?"

A kiss. Just beneath your ear. That's all it takes, and you're back in her arms. "You're safe here..." Shadowheart murmurs in your ear, her fingertips drawing circles and hearts on your sides before she uses them to pull you into her. "And loved. So very loved." The gentle sincerity in her voice could almost bring you to tears as your arms slide around her back. Her warmth, the smell of her, how you melt into her embrace... it's intoxicating.

She tenses slightly, pulling her head back to give you a pointed, teasing glare. The tiniest of smirks giving her away.

Then you realize where your hands are. "Cheeky... Part of your scheme to keep us in bed, I presume?" Shadowheart's smirk grows as you blink stupidly at her. Your hands unmoving from her ass.

With a soft laugh that bubbles from her chest, she presses a tender, lingering kiss to your lips before slowly untangling from you. "I'll leave you to get yourself ready, then. They should be here within an hour or so." She smiles as she rises from the bed and departs the room. Pawtato hops onto your chest, and you briefly consider using him as your excuse but know you'd disappoint Shadowheart if you did.

You sigh and gently lift him off of you and at last roll out of bed. Before long, you are cleaned up, dressed, and presentable. You think you made good time when you start down the stairs.

...Until you smell fresh tea and hear the sound of chit chat from the kitchen. "There she is!" Her dad is the first to notice your arrival, rising from his seat at the table in what you recognize is an instinctive move to hug you.

But you tense. And you hate yourself for it.

Clearly, these people know you and care about you, but everything in you is still... jumbled. Confused. Your memories are still foggy at best, and what you do recall is Sharran training. And... obedience.

Let no one close, leave only room for The Blessed Nightsinger in your heart. And your ears pure for your mistress...

Despite everything in you that wants to let that go, it clings to you like moss to a wet rock. Some days, it feels inescapable, deeply ingrained into your very being. Shadowheart has told you before the key to shaking yourself free of those webs, those shackles... is to move forward, no matter how daunting it may feel.

So you do.

Your feet close the rest of the distance where he stopped to provide you space. And force yourself through the motions. Stiff as they may be, the moment you actually embrace the man, it floods back to you.

The last time in your memory you saw him was when you and Shadowheart emerged from the portal. He had been staying in the home and tending to it, and its inhabitants in your absence. And until now, that was all you knew of him and Emmeline. But now you see flashes of times they came over for visits with their beloved daughter, embraced you into their family like you had always been a part of it...

And as you separate from the embrace, it shatters. "Godsdamnit, now?" You barely hear her voice before it dies in your ears to the agony.

Intense, searing, almost all-consuming, your right hand glows deep violet up to your wrist. Strong enough, it buckles your knees, as if a firm hand was pushing you down onto them. Without any indication or clue you knew exactly why, you somehow still understood the reason. It couldn't prevent you from pursuing Shadowheart, though it had tried. But it could still interject with others.

This was punishment.

"By the hells, how can she be this petty?" Shadowheart's voice was barely audible in your ears as the pain persisted. Vaguely, you felt her arms around you.

As suddenly as it came, it vanishes. Leaving behind a faint throbbing ache in its place from your traumatized, trembling nerves. "I'm sorry..."

"Hush, you..." Shadowheart soothes, giving your body a reassuring squeeze in her arms. "I, of all people, understand exactly what you're going through. You have nothing to be sorry for." She continues, moving one hand to tuck some loose hair behind your ear.

Once you seem more composed, she pulls away and helps you to your feet. Guiding you to sit on a chair at the table. A cup of tea waiting for you, right next to hers. Shadowhearts hand clasps to your right under the table. You waste little time swirling the spoon around the rim of your little cup to distract your thoughts

Conversation passes easily after that. While you're more an observer than a participant and your love tries to include you where she can, it's still difficult and not just because you still only barely remember these people.

Every time they talk about Selûne, practicing her faith, visiting her temple, it makes your skin itch and you hate it. Almost every time they opened their mouths about it, you had to bite back a retort from all your time spent studying Sharran scripture, listening to Her teachings.

Selûne's light will penetrate the deepest darkness. Find courage to embrace the truths that lie beyond, for her illumination is a beacon of clarity.

Falsehoods to fattened cattle fit only to be slaughtered. In the Moonwitch's light lies temptation to embrace false hope and misguided paths. For in Shar's dominion, shadows are not deceitful, but honest companions, revealing stark truths that the Moonwitch's light seeks to obscure.

The Moonmaiden's light will guide the way.

Only the blind need guidance. For in Shar's endless dark, one only needs to abide and embrace her wisdom to find their way.

Incredibly, it was like Shadowheart could read your thoughts when this happened. Every time you felt yourself slip, she would give your hand a small squeeze and it would be enough to pull you back.

You weren't so naïve. The weight of the amulet hanging around your neck, a gift as direct from the Moonmaiden as it could be, was the only thing preventing Shar from dragging you back to Her. If your... mistress got free, and you didn't have the amulet... It's like this thing was helping keep your thoughts your own.

Though sometimes it didn't seem that way.

"Love?" she says softly beside you, pulling your attention from absently swirling your tea with your spoon. "I'd written to my parents about this already and they've agreed... Perhaps some time outside the cottage would accelerate your healing."

Your hand stills and catches the spoon before it can circle the rim of your cup. Though you're not entirely sure why, a sinking feeling nestles deep in your stomach, strong enough you wriggle your right hand free of hers to hold your tea with both hands. This isn't the first time she's suggested the idea and despite her desperate pleas with you to elaborate on why you reacted this way, you didn't answer.

Because you couldn't. You couldn't put it into words and you doubt you ever could.

Little pet, whatever do you think you're doing?

As best you can to stifle your reaction to the intrusive echoes of her words in your ear, you can't hide the slight twitch of your brow, your right hand squeezing the cup. No, you're not letting this happen here. Even Shadowheart is hardly aware of these moments where you hear... this. Urgings of your former mistress to be obedient. Behave. Faint reminders of her teaching.

Still aware of the subtle tingling in the back of your skull like a tangible presence in your mind. The moment you try to push it back and out, your hand flares again. Not for nearly as long, but enough that if the cup weren't on the table, you'd have dropped it.

Relieved when her voice doesn't return, having successfully shut it out. You're starting to worry her voice would haunt you for the rest of your life. How were you supposed to keep it from Shadowheart like this? "Where would we go?" You inquire shyly.

Your favorite cleric flashes you a warm smile. "A little trip down memory lane, nothing overly excessive or taxing." As she lifts her cup and sips from it.

"It really is no trouble." Arnell insists with a gesture of his hand. "Jen—Shadowheart believes getting out into the world would do you good, and I can hardly fault her reasoning."

Blinking awkwardly, and realizing you're outnumbered, you sigh and drop your shoulders. Shadowheart takes this as your silent surrender. Her hand settles on your shoulder, rubbing it soothingly. "I may have already packed some of our belongings for the journey... We can depart at first light." She says with an encouraging, gentle smile.

All of these blatant acts against Shar and your mistress, and you have yet to feel the sting of your marks, demanding your submission.

Has she finally turned her back on you? "I... I'm going to check on the barn." You sputter pathetically and shrug out from under your lover's gentle touch, scurrying toward the door of the cottage. You don't dare to turn around and face their confused, probably disappointed faces.

Are you nothing more than a constant source of disappointment now?

‐–‐–‐–‐–‐–‐–‐–‐–‐–‐–‐–‐–‐–‐–‐–‐–‐–‐–‐–‐–‐–‐–‐–‐–‐

It was a very roundabout way of getting here. You'll give her that. You set your heavy pack of supplies next to hers. Her altered Justiciar armor gleamed in the bright sunlight in contrast to your dark leathers. Better to be safe than sorry, she insisted.

Your feet gently dipped into the soft, shifting sands of the beach. It looked cluttered with a variety of small debris, but otherwise it seemed like any ordinary beach.

But Shadowheart's gaze fixed on a spot in particular. Almost in the center. A smile touched her lips, her eyes distant... in a memory of her own, perhaps. "This is as close as we can get to the beginning." She says in an almost reverent way.

Though you try to ignore the awkwardness, it must still show in your face when her eyes meet yours. With a sigh, she takes your hand and leads you closer to this random spot in the sand.

Like she knows.

More than a little dazed from your own rude awakening, you hesitate over the unconscious cleric. Her dark hair framing her fair face, almost deceptively appearing... at rest. The strange dongle clutched in her hand.

Perhaps you should... gods, what should you do? She had been nothing but a valuable ally so far, but... this half-elf was not all she presented herself to be.

Against your better judgement, you bend down, gingerly rest your hands under the spikey pauldrons of her armor and give her a firm shake.

She stirs almost instantly, eyebrows furrowing until her gaze meets yours. "You're alive." She mutters in surprise, "I'm alive... how is this possible?"

If it weren't for her hand on the small of your back, you'd probably have fallen backward with how abruptly you reenter your body. "This is where it all started, the beginning..." The words fall from your lips, but they don't feel like they belong to you. They taste foreign and strange on your tongue. Shadowheart slowly slides beside you, in your line of sight. You lock your eyes on hers. A brief flicker of the dream you just saw flashes before you, and for a second her hair is dark, she's wearing bangs and a mysterious circlet. "The beginning of what?"

Even if you tried, you couldn't miss the subtle sadness that weakens her smile. As if disappointed. Still, her hand tenderly takes yours. "The beginning of us, love." Her words gentle, careful. Expectant...

She's waiting for your markings too...

After a brief moment, Shadowheart guides you to kneel next to the spot on the sand, and she takes her place opposite you. "Think, Tav. Relax and let it come back..." she says encouraging, sitting on her knees with her palms flat on her legs.

While you're unsure at first, you humor her and take a deep breath. Easing the tension in your shoulders and staring into the warm grains of sand...

"We need each other, and we both know what's at stake." The cleric, Shadowheart states confidently. "I can't think of better company."

Well, when she says it like that, how are you to argue? "Suppose it would make the most practical sense. Two heads are better than one and all that. Very well. We're burning daylight standing around" You nod, once again hating how you're somehow shorter than a half-elf even if only by a few inches.

Her hand catches your arm before you fully turn away. "Before we go... I just want to thank you. For saving me." Shadowheart says, her hand lingering on your arm. "It would have been all too easy for you to run right past my pod. But you didn't." She pauses before she ends with a heartfelt, "I'll remember that." And nods.

"All too easy..." echoed in the distance. Shadowheart paid no mind as she started up the beach beside you, "all too easy to forget yourself, more like."

You watch helplessly as she admires the dark, ominous spear in her hand, before she grips it in both hands and glares at the mysterious Nightsong.

She rears the spear back

You taste blood—

And your hands fly to your skull, jumping backward from anything and everything, pushing back on your hands until the sand scratches your palms raw. Desperately bringing your knees into your chest, hugging them closer to you before burying your face against them. "Talk to me, please." Her voice pleads next to you, her touch on your hand.

All too easy...

You jerk away, her voice worming into your ear trying to find purchase in your mind again but you won't let her... you won't be brought to heel again.

Tense silence falls over you like a blanket, cold, wet, heavy. Suffocating, drowning, your chest coiled tight and ready to implode on itself. "Tav... it's me." The voice is different. Sweet. "Whoever you think I am," she continues, like a warm caress in your ears, "I'm not her."

She tries again to touch your hand and though you twitch; the response is more subdued and so instead she grips your hand. You feel her slowly, carefully moving closer to you, her other hand stroking the top of your head. "You're safe here."

Just like that, the seas calm and the waves subside. Timidly lifting your tear-stained face from the fortress of your knees, and Shadowheart, your Shadowheart wastes no time wiping away the lingering tears. "We'll get through this together, my love. You're not alone. I won't let you face this on your own."

For a moment, you dare to feel a flicker of hope in her words.

-ˋˏ’✄┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈--ˋˏ’✄┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈--ˋˏ’✄┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈-

I'm going to give a shoutout to my bestie who motivated me to write this and my biggest cheerleader and fan @ethelspetals

Go send her lots of love and appreciation and check out her youtube. The gif used here was picked out by her.

[melagnes]

PECSA Weekend: One Bed

Synopsis: You are a teacher at Abbott Elementary and Barb knows Melissa has feelings for you. During PECSA weekend, Barb, being sick of the both of you avoiding your feelings for each other, only booked two hotel rooms, leaving you and Mel to share. It is just your luck that there was only one bed...

Pairing: Melissa Schemmenti x Reader

Word Count: 2.8K

It had been a regular day at Abbott Elementary; a lovely blend of chaos, humour, and heartwarming moments. You had gotten to school an hour early that day, which left you with the much-needed time to prep your classroom for your students, and most importantly, brew a cup of coffee.

Upon entering the breakroom, you noticed that you weren't the only one who arrived early–Melissa's gaze turned away from the news on the television and focused on you. "Ey, Good Morning early bird. How's it going?" she greeted.

"It will be much better when I wake up with some caffeine. How about you?" you replied.

"Ah, you know Tesoro, I'm feeling quite good but maybe it's the anticipation of seeing you."

You blushed profusely–Melissa never failed to make you blush. The attraction you had for her was so strong, she was always on your mind. Contrary to your belief, but obvious to every single teacher at Abbott, Melissa felt the same about you. She loved to make you blush every chance she got. However, Mel had no idea you felt the same way about her, so she just playfully flirted with you; she didn't push any further since she didn't want to ruin your existing friendship.

"Mel, you're such a sweetheart. I hate to cut this short, but I need to head back to my class and prepare for my students. I'll catch you later at lunch," you said, as you left the room with the biggest smile and your cheeks still pink and warm.

As the weekend approached, anticipation buzzed through the halls of Abbott Elementary–the excitement for PECSA weekend was immense. The annual Pennsylvania Educational Conference for the Southeast Area was a time for teachers to come together to discuss their teaching, but truly, veteran teachers Barbara and Melissa were looking forward to the Math-a-ritas.

However, this year was different. Barbara knew you and Melissa were both whipped out of your minds for each other, and this predicament was quite frankly getting on her nerves. She knew she needed to intervene since the two of you would not get your heads out of your asses.

In the breakroom, the three of you were sitting in your usual places for lunch; Barb beside Mel, and you next to Mel, naturally.

"Well, is everyone excited for PECSA weekend?" Barb asks, humming in excitement.

"Of course," you state with a smile.

Barbara directed her attention towards you, "Which got me thinking... Maybe you should join us? It would be a shame to miss out on all the fun together."

"Oh, uh, I don't know..." you glance toward Melissa, a hint of uncertainty in your expression.

"I'd love to have you join us, Piccola. It'll be fun," Melissa adds.

"As long as I wouldn't be intruding," you reply hesitantly.

"Oh, trust me, you wouldn't be intruding at all! We'd be thrilled to have you join us. It's gonna be a blast, and the more, the merrier, right?" Barbara reassures you, "Plus, I've got a feeling Melissa would be thrilled to have you there."

As Barbara finished her sentence, Melissa shot her a playful scowl, her cheeks flushing slightly.

You couldn't help but grin at Melissa's reaction, feeling a flutter of excitement in your chest at the thought of spending more time with her outside of school. "Well, if Melissa insists, who am I to refuse?" you say with a playful wink.

Melissa rolled her eyes, though the smile tugging at her lips betrayed her true feelings.

Barbara knowingly chuckles at the exchange, pleased with herself for putting the beginning stages of her plan in motion. "Great! It's settled then. PECSA weekend, here we come!"

The weekend has commenced and you found yourself packed and ready to go, excitement bubbling in your chest. When you heard a knock at your front door indicating Melissa's arrival to pick you up, you couldn't shake the nervous anticipation that swirled within you. The prospect of spending the weekend with Melissa was both exhilarating and nerve-wracking.

When you opened the door, your breath caught in your throat, "Hey Mel." It was a reflex; whenever you saw her, her mere presence always left you momentarily speechless.

"Ya ready to hit the road?" she asked, her smile infectious.

"Absolutely, thanks for picking me up," you state gratefully.

After you put your bag in the trunk and crawled into the back seat of the car, your voyage to PECSA commenced. The atmosphere was relaxed as Melissa took the wheel, with Barb in the passenger seat beside her. Without much time at all, the two of them fell into their all too recognizable banter.

Sensing the opportunity, Barbara leaned back in her seat with a glint in her eye. "You know," she began, her voice laced with humour, "I suggest that you all drop your vices and take a hit of my drug of choice — J.E.S.U.S. Street name: Christ" she exclaims.

Melissa raised an eyebrow, feigning offence. "Uh, you've been known to demolish those little bottles of Chardonnay."

"And you snort that liquid marijuana." Barbara countered.

Their teasing sent you into a choke of laughter. Although amusing, their witty remarks settled a familiar ambiance you all appreciated.

As you sank deeper into the back seat, you found yourself stealing glances at Mel in the rearview mirror, unable to resist admiring her effortless beauty. It is unfair that one could look as good as Mel, while simply operating a motor vehicle.

Once you reached the hotel and the car was parked, you and Melissa unloaded the luggage, while Barbara went to the front desk to get your room keys.

When you walk into the hotel, you are met with a concerned-looking Barb, "It seems there's been a mix-up regarding the number of rooms booked, and unfortunately, there are only two rooms available."

In reality, this mix-up was not an accident–it was part of Barb's master plan to push you and Mel beyond the boundary of friendship. "Apologies for the mix-up, everyone. Now, how should we-"

"We can share," Melissa cuts her off while linking arms with you.

You felt your cheeks flush with heat as you exchanged a nervous glance with Melissa. "Yeah, of course."

"Perfect, it's settled then," Barbara handed you the room key and winked knowingly at the two of you before heading off to her room, leaving you and Melissa standing awkwardly in the hallway.

Taking a deep breath, you turned to Melissa with a hesitant smile. "So, I guess we're roommates for the weekend."

Melissa returned your smile, her expression softening. "Yeah, looks like it. Should be interesting."

As your shoulders lightly brushed against each other, you both navigated the hallway, tracing the numbered signs until your room came into view.

As you both stepped into the hotel room, a peculiar realization dawned upon you–there was only one bed. Your heart quickened as your gaze involuntarily shifted towards Melissa.

"So, uh, any preferences on who gets the bed?" you asked, attempting to ease the tension that hung in the air.

Melissa responded with a nonchalant shrug, "Well, there's only one, so I guess we'll have to share. No one wants to sleep on the floor, right?"

Your heart skipped a beat at her words, but you tried to play it cool. "Right, makes sense."

You were doomed.

Melissa broke the silence with a suggestion, "How about we head down to the pool and grab some drinks?"

"I'm in," you replied without hesitation. You knew a drink would be necessary to steady your nerves, especially with the prospect of sharing a bed with the woman you were in love with.

As you descended to the poolside, Barb was already there, greeting you both with a playful smirk adorning her lips. "Well, well, well, look who finally decided to join the party," she teased, raising an eyebrow at the two of you.

After taking a seat beside Barbara, a server approached with a tray of drinks. Melissa swiftly snagged a couple of Math-a-ritas, passing one to you with a wink.

"Here's to PECSA weekend," she declared, raising her glass in a toast.

You clinked your drink against hers, a grin spreading across your face. "To PECSA weekend."

After a couple of drinks in your system, tearing your eyes away from Melissa became an increasingly grueling task. Bathed in the golden hue of the sun, she seemed to exude an otherworldly allure, her features accentuated by the gentle light.

It was as if every glance only served to deepen the spell she unknowingly cast upon you. From the delicate way she brushed a stray lock of hair behind her ear, to the infectious sound of her laughter, each moment spent in her presence seemed to send you further into the depths of your emotions. Melissa was more than just attractive; she was captivating, a force that left you unable to break free from the mesmerizing hold she had over you.

"Hey, you okay?" Mel asked, shaking you out of your trance with a hint of concern in her voice as she noticed your distant expression. She had caught you staring.

"Yeah, sorry about that," you replied, offering her a sheepish smile. "Just lost in thought for a moment."

Melissa grinned, her eyes laced with amusement. "Must have been some pretty deep thoughts," she teased, giving you a playful nudge.

You chuckled, as you felt a flush of embarrassment creep onto your cheeks. "Just admiring the view," you said, gesturing vaguely to the poolside surroundings.

Her laughter rang out, a melodic sound that filled the air. "Well, I can't say I blame you."

The rest of the evening passed in a blur of laughter and conversation between the three of you, but eventually, the time came for you and Melissa to retire to your shared room for the evening.

After preparing for bed, you found yourselves lying side by side under the covers, a palpable tension hanging in the air. Despite the deepening connection between you, there was an unspoken understanding that crossing certain boundaries could jeopardize the precious bond you shared.

Something unbeknownst to you, however, beneath Melissa's tough exterior lay a secret longing for intimacy–a desire to break down the barriers between you and bask in the comfort of your embrace.

To your surprise, as you lay there, you felt Melissa's arm snake around your waist. This caused you to immediately tense up, your heart pounding in your ears as conflicting emotions engulfed you. On one hand, you've always wanted this—longed for the closeness and affection that Melissa's touch promised. But on the other hand, her unexpected move left you feeling confused and uncertain.

As Melissa's warmth seeped into your skin, you couldn't help but wonder about the implications of her actions. Was Mel attracted to you? Or was this simply a gesture of platonic affection? The questions floated in your mind, but before you could voice your thoughts, Melissa shifted closer, her breath ghosting over your ear as she whispered softly, "Is this okay?"

Her words send a shiver down your spine, the tenderness in her voice melted away your doubts and fears. With a hesitant nod and a whispered "yes," you surrendered to her embrace, gently placing your hand atop hers, allowing the warmth and intimacy of the moment to envelop you.

As the night wore on, neither of you could sleep, your feelings occupying your minds and you couldn't take it anymore, in a moment of recklessness, you turned towards Mel so your chests were pressed against each other and your eyes locked. Your breath hitched as you lowered your gaze to her lips, savouring the sight of their softness, their allure drawing you in. When your eyes flick back to meet hers, you're met with dilated pupils, a silent invitation that ignited a firestorm of desire within you.

With a trembling hand, you slowly tangled your fingers into her fiery red hair, relishing the silky texture beneath your touch. Your heart pounded in your ears, the anticipation reaching a peak as you guided your mouths together with a hunger that bordered on desperation.

Melissa tensed at the suddenness of your action, and for a split second, you feared you'd made a mistake.

"Mel, I-I'm so sorry, I didn't mean-" But before you could apologize, she surprised you by pulling you back to her lips with an urgency that matched your own. The kiss was warm and passionate. And as you lost yourself in the intoxicating taste of her lips, you realized that this is where you were always meant to be—wrapped in her arms.

"I've been wanting to do that for so long," Melissa confessed after you broke apart, her voice barely above a whisper.

You couldn't help but smile, the weight of her words lifting a burden from your shoulders. "Me too," you admitted, your heart overflowing with emotion.

And as you lay together, wrapped in each other's embrace, you knew that this was just the beginning of a love that would last a lifetime.

The morning light filtered delicately through the curtains, casting a soft glow upon the tangled sheets where you and Melissa lay intertwined. With a contented sigh, you shifted closer to her, savouring the rhythmic rise and fall of her chest against yours. As if stirred by your movement, her eyes fluttered open.

"Good morning," you whispered softly, brushing a stray strand of auburn hair behind her ear.

"Morning," Mel murmured, her voice husky with sleep as she tightened her embrace around you.

For a fleeting moment, you lay there basking in the intimacy of the morning, the outside world fading into insignificance.

"I could stay like this forever," Mel confessed softly, her breath warm against your neck.

Your heart fluttered at her words, a blush rising to your cheeks as you pressed a gentle kiss to her temple.

"I mean... I wouldn't mind that" you admitted shyly, your lips grazing against her skin. "But we should probably get up soon," you chuckled, the reality of the day's plans creeping back into your consciousness. "Barb will likely be waiting to have breakfast before we head home."

"Yeah, I know," Mel sighed, reluctantly releasing you from her hold.

"But can we stay like this just a little while longer?" she groaned, her voice laden with desire, before drawing you into a kiss that ignited with a slow ecstasy. Your lips traced a path to Mel's neck, planting a series of tender kisses that culminated in a gentle bite, eliciting a whimper from her.

As she trailed kisses down your neck in response, a soft moan escaped your lips prompting her to shift her focus. She captured your mouth with hers, her tongue delving deep into your mouth. Your hand instinctively slid up her back beneath her shirt, caressing and exploring the warmth of her skin. It took every ounce of willpower to pull away from her at that moment. You stare at her, both of your breaths coming ragged as you met Mel's gaze, both of you wide-eyed and flushed with desire.

"Mel... it's time to go to brunch," you managed, your voice strained with longing. "I can guarantee you, there will be more of this later," you added with a suggestive nod toward the tousled sheets.

"Fine," Melissa huffs, playfully rolling her eyes, but a smile still plastered on her lips.

But before she could get out of bed, you grabbed her arm, "I'm glad this happened you know," you confessed, your voice barely above a whisper. "I've seriously had my eyes on you since I started working at Abbott. I was losing it seeing you come into work every day looking so good and I had to pretend as if I didn't notice."

"Is that so... well, I'll be sure to give you something to notice next time we're at work," Mel smirks at you and smacks your ass as she untangles herself from you in favour of getting dressed.

Later, at brunch, Barbara's eyes widened in surprise as she took in the scene before her. Her gaze flicked between you and Melissa, her lips curling into a mischievous smile as she noticed the telltale marks scattered across both of your necks.

"Looks like someone had a good night," she teased, her tone laced with amusement.

Confusion gave way to recognition as you noticed the purple bruises scattered across Mel's neck, and her eyes widened as she noticed similar marks on yours.

A silent understanding passed between the two of you as Melissa chuckled softly, leaning in closer to you as she reached for her coffee. "We may have gotten a little carried away," she admits with a wink.

Barbara laughed, shaking her head in amusement. "Well, I'm glad to see you two are finally getting your act together," she says, her tone affectionate. "It's about time."

[0daylighthours0]

My Mother's Unbiased Byler + Milkvan Opinions - Viewing ST for the 1st Time!

(UPDATE)

My Mama has now witnessed Stranger Things in its entirety. Her favourite season was the third, her favourite characters Hopper and Joyce, her favourite pairing would be those guys too, and her most disliked pairing? Can only assume.

I wanted to write out her thoughts on the second to last episode previously, as she'd held many, but before I knew it we'd finished the whole show and I was forced to an income of NEW opinions which ruled out my memory of any old ones. Shucks. But boy did this lady have much to say. The only way I can break it down is by providing a sample of quotes she'd delivered, in order, a day after having finished the series.

All are just things she said about milkvan and byler, as they're this post's main focus. There's simply much to say about these relationships too, being so up in the air over where they ought be expected to turn out. These are all direct quotes too (as I typed as she talked, unkown to her) so you'll have to excuse the natural way in which some lines come off as unfocused, being written after real time conversations. Let's get into it:

Ok I really don't know whether she likes Mike very much. She actively disliked the guy earlier on, and now her feelings appear to be more mixed. A lot of her discussion was solely around this guy's actions.

"It's almost like he's [Mike] forcing himself like- ok Hopper he was kind of very passionate and kissing, you know he sort of instantly- with Mike, from being obsessed and spending so much time with her [El], suddenly he starts cooling off more and more and suddenly- they even separated right? I mean yeah that was out of his control but he, but he didn't really seem like he missed her you know it's like he just got on with it."

This point caught me off guard. I don't know how much I agree with my mother on this. It made me realize that during Mike and El's separation, there weren't many quiet Mike moments in which he expressed worry for her, beyond a couple that blend into him simply having breakup concerns. Any time Mike mentions distress for her whilst she's away, his talk evolves into him simply anxious over the state of their relationship. As a group, everyone in our Cali gang clearly wanted to save Eleven, but Mike really should have gotten more heartfelt moments in solitude (that means without Will you suffer bros) in which it is demonstrated to the audience that he really does miss her, as someone who is in love. Her being away shouldn't simply come off as a writing excuse for him to vent to Will. There wasn't enough of that tenderness milkvan desperately needs, and if anything I watched was an attempt then it really wasn't translated well - never trumping everyone else's familial or close frienship-like fret for El, never showcasing his concern to come from a more personal place. I mean how hard is it to have him in her room, staring longingly at a photo of hers, with a background composed of soft music. Then literally leaving it at that. I mean that is it. No Will rushing in there to insist, "you can tell her that thing when you see her k? It'll all work out trust me ight, you're the heart you're the HEART!" que affectionate gazes, constructs a byler scene for no reason I guess .

"I mean how do we know that he missed Will? He articulated it. Why didn't he articulate this the same way to El?"

True. I mean the fact that I can't remember a moment after they find El in which milkvan ask oneanother how they are, and communicate how much they missed eachother, does indeed say something. They shared a hug and touch when they first reunited, which was gladly interrupted by Will. That pineapple + pizza thing was not long enough, or sensitive enough, to be their moment. There was clear bonding, but it didn't breach a level of romance and chemistry nearly decently. It's good that they got at least that, I mean we need to know that these guys are at LEAST really close friends. And then the camera just felt like panning over to Will about to burst into tears in a corner. Like huh? Bruv you've now made it so that milkvan's pizza bit leaves a bad taste in our mouths. If I were a milkvan I'd be furious.

"You know what, I think it's done purposefully to create that sort of cold, distant, confused, you know they wanted to make people say he's [Mike] bisexual. For people to question. They want to get people to think that."

My Mama believes writers intentionally soured milkvan for viewers to "confuse" audiences, build up anticipation, make them question milkvan's relationship and wonder if our main man will spin to Will. I agree. They want that good ol' triangle comeuppance.

"They really are trying to bring that across- so that people start thinking Mike, you know he doesn't love El, he loves Will. They're really trying to, make people think that. Giving them [milkvan] a really nitty gritty relationship."

Yup.

"When you're gay. Coming out like that it's- it's terrifying. You have to be very careful. And Will could, he could tell. You know when someone is attracted to you. I think, things became sort of- sort of complicated. And Will sensed, he could feel that Mike is attracted to him. And that's why he could open up like that. Because you can always tell. You know, you just know, so that's why Will was able to confess these things to him [she sees painting scene as a confession, whether Mike realized it or not, and so do I]."

Well damn Mama. And there you have it folks. My.. I'm not gonna call her the h word but.. my- notabigfanofgaythingsandwouldbehappytopretendtheydon'texist mother, perceives Mike as a homosexual kid, and just that. Well bloomin heck that's all the confirmation I need.

I didn't expect this as a turnout, I mean so particularly. My Mama actually didn't like byler - I think. Well. Bloomin heck. She actually enjoyed Vickie x Robin, and this shocked me to my core. I don't know whether this is simply due to her being a fan of Vickie's actress (recognizing her from Anne With an 'E'), but I do know that my mother has a bias in gay relationships and sees ones involving females as more "pure" than that of two males. So her language when describing Will has changed since her realization that he loves Mike for sure (which became undeniable in the van scene). She describes him as being 'obsessed' with Mike, and says writers really wanted to get that obsession across. I agree with Will having been one note during season 4, him hopefully having more time to shine in the approaching season, but I thoroughly disagree with him coming off as obsessive. I suppose our camera man displayed the guy's little glances at Mike so often that my Mama felt it was overdone, and unable to be ignored. I also think she's just avoiding use of the word 'love' when describing anything homosexual.

She still doesn't think Mike demonstrates how much he loves El enough to leave no room for debate. According to her, his moments with her seem surface level. Just as a reminder she does not know my thoughts. She watched that entire 'I love you' thing and still isn't secure in any genuineness of the guy. I believe she supposes that we're intended to acknowledge milkvan's romance, but also probe it.

I now wonder whether my Mama was good enough representation for the average audience, because she actually does own a bias - this being that she usually actively dislikes gay things. So I puzzle over whether her brain overanalyzed any of the boys' highlights, wanting to "expose" their homo intentions. At first things were up in the air, but it became clear that Mike did not pass her gaydar, he was simply too intimate with Will to make that pass. And this wasn't the case in other seasons, she never questioned their friendship til now. She also hasn't acknowledged any supposedly queer relationships besides rickie (vobin?) and byler, meaning that other fan favourites such as elmax, steddie, ronance and such else didn't stand out as gay to her. This doesn't signify those other relationships to not have a chance, I'm elmax's personal cheersquad, it's plainly clear that my mother didn't have a tendency to point at every same sex relationship and yell suspicious. Byler was purely undeniable. You can thank Will's love being canoned for this, otherwise noone would have a need to read into Mike.

I don't know whether she supposes byler to have a chance moreso than the milk in the van, even with Mike's ambiguity. It would seem that as of right now her guess is that watchers are intended to second guess both relationships in order to build up interest. However, she doesn't know how unlikely Will's love life is to turn out negatively seeing as those damn writers manipulated crowds into consistently sympathizing for him. Dunno about the rest of you but that sounds like good news to me.

I have no idea how to close this analysis. Is it an analysis? There's much more I want to say, much more she said, but I fear this to be too jam-packed and aimless as is. I'm writing a third part to my most recent milkthevan failing relationship deep dive, and that'll possibly consist of thoughts I wish to input after gathering so much data from my mother.

[slut4milesteller]

──── is that all i'll ever be ? ۶ৎ

matt sturniolo x fem!reader

summary — unrequited love.

wc — 1.2k+

warnings — none.

a/n — english is NOT my first language. please excuse any grammatical/spelling errors.

i met the triplets, and justin, when i was just four years old — they were five, and justin was twelve. the one that stood out to me, you may ask? matthew — the "weird", scrawny kid who helped me collect the lizards in our backyards.

my whole life, i was told that me and matthew would end up together. of course, as kids, neither of us wanted to believe it, nor did we want to feed into our parents' delusions. we attended the same schools our whole lives, then high school started. matt, being a year older than me, went to high school first. in his freshman year, he met her — aubrey.

naturally, the pair being in the same class, they started talking. he asked her for her number when they had a maths class together, and from there on out, they were practically inseparable. i felt so left out, because the boy i'd been best friends with for most of my life was suddenly replacing me with another, newer girl. and it hurt. way more than it should've.

i don't really know how, or when, or why i started developing a crush on him. i think it was way back when i was about eleven or so, when his dad made a joke about me being "matt's girl" and my cheeks flushed bright, crimson red. everywhere i went, for years, i was known as exactly that. matt's girl. and though it felt good to hear it, it hurt me because i wasn't actually his girl. aubrey was. with perfect, dark brown hair and pretty, doll-like eyes to match, matt must've fallen in love with those eyes that weren't mine. a voice that wasn't mine. a heart that wasn't mine.

i've tried getting over the stupid, blue-eyed boy, for years. but truthfully? i can't. it feels impossible. it is impossible.

when i started high school, i got attention from boys that i hadn't ever gotten before. older boys, specifically. me and matt would still hang out, our families together for a dinner at some restaurant downtown, at least once a month.

slowly but surely, as the years passed, those hangouts died down and became less frequent. i'd always hear about aubrey this and aubrey that. but never once was there heard about me having a special someone in my life. and when i talked about a boy i was seeing at the time, it'd only last a week tops.

in the tenth grade, when the triplets were in eleventh, i had a boyfriend. he was kind, sweet, and my parents adored him. shit hit the fan the night, after months of not seeing matt, he decided to show up at my bedroom window. saying he 'missed me in his life'.

and it went downhill from there. just when i thought i was finally getting over this embarrassingly hopeless crush, he had to show up — to maneuver his way back into my heart. but, really, the question stands: did he ever really leave?

we talked for hours that night, about all the detours life has taken us on in the time we'd been out of touch with each other. he told me about school, his plans for after he graduated, and of course, his girlfriend.

and, don't get me wrong, i was happy for him, really, i was. seeing him smile made me smile, regardless of it breaking my heart to know that i wasn't the girl he loved.

sometimes it felt like he loved me, though. when he'd hug me, it wasn't a quick, brushed-off, side-hug. it was a real, tight hug that lasted for more than just two seconds on end.

the way he'd get all protective when i mentioned a boy at school, acting as if it was his duty to protect me from all evil in the world. the way i'd catch him staring at me, under the starry night sky when we sat by the lake, like i was the one living rent free in his heart.

it was confusing, i'll be honest. i never really knew where we stood with each other. he was hard to read, but god, i would give anything just to understand him.

it's like he kept me on this line, on a hook, because he knew i liked him. loved him, even. he had to, right? because there's no way he couldn't see the way my eyes lit up everytime i saw him. there's no way he couldn't feel my heart pounding against my ribcage everytime he gave me a hug. the way my hands would shake when we parted from said hug. the way my cheeks always burned brighter than a stoplight when people teased us about liking each other, and i had to play it off and say that we were just friends.

because that's all i'll ever be, right? just a friend to him.

it can't be, though. i refuse to let it be that way. he has to love me. at least just a little bit.

i mean, c'mon. he doesn't even look happy with his girlfriend.

he doesn't laugh until he can't breathe when he's with her.

he can't be silly around her without being made fun of.

he can't be himself when she's around.

so, another question that stands: why is he with her, pretending to be this man, when he's really still a naive, eighteen year old boy?

i saw him again today, for the first time in almost a year. and god, my heart ached. seeing his stupid, toothy grin made me smile so dumbly. i hugged him when i saw him, wanting to never let him go again, but... he didn't reciprocate the hug. his hug was cold and rushed, as if he wanted me to get away from him. my face dropped, and my heart sank. but, i understood. he had a girlfriend now, a pretty girl at that, and hasn't seen me in ages.

it felt like i was a stranger to the kid. as if he'd never met me before. as if we hadn't grown up together, and spent most of our lives glued to each other's sides.

i thought that, at seventeen years old and after six pathetic years of a dumb, childhood crush, my feelings would've vanished. but no, not really. i don't think it ever will, if i'm being honest. he's the thing i keep coming back to, no matter how hard i try to stay away.

the countless nights i've spent balling my eyes out suddenly felt like it wasn't enough. the countless nights we've spent under the stars, laughing until our tummies hurt and we cried of joy felt like it wasn't... even real. like it had never happened. the countless nights we'd spent in each other's arms, watching silly movies or tv shows, singing karaoke or playing call of duty... was it all a lie? was i so stupid, young and naive that i thought it meant more?

when play-fighting turned into almost-kisses and his hands all over my body... it had to have meant something, right? otherwise it wouldn't have happened so many times. countless nights our faces were millimeters apart, yet to me, it felt like he was lightyears away. he was there, but not really. so close, yet so far.

still, the last question that stands: is this really all i'll ever be?

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

AITA for being a ....homewrecker? (🏝 for later)

I'm not sure that's the right word, but whatever. Basically, I (FtM) met this guy (cis M, we'll call him M) over a year ago and we hit it off pretty quick. It was under extremely unusual circumstances, but for the sake of anonymity, I'll be vague and just say: it was 3 AM, Denny's, T.E Lawrence was involved. Now, I'm pretty wary of most guys who go to my school, given I'm trans and unfit to defend myself for various would-break-anonymity reasons, but M is just the best and is incredibly sweet. Days are easier when he's around, even if it's just through a Discord call playing video games. I started harboring feelings for him pretty much immediately, but didn't plan on acting on them for two reasons:

1) I've yet to be in an actual committed relationship (nobody's wanted to stick around, or we both realized quickly we weren't dating material) and I'm terrified of fucking anything up. 2) ....M has a girlfriend. A super long-term one, at that. Like, they met when they were kids, he's been romancing her for ages, they're going to get married and both openly agree they'd be shells of people without each other. Soulmate shit. She's awesome. She's the sweetest, too. Very thoughtful, and soft-spoken, and so so smart. So, no, I didn't plan on doing anything about my feelings. I'm not the type to hide who I am, so I wasn't going to hide anything, but I certainly wasn't going to DO anything either. That's not my place.

Until, one school break, M comes to me and admits he has feelings. And he's wrecked about it. Tells me I'm the only other person he's really had this for, because it's always been his girlfriend. He's a mess. I thought we communicated pretty well, and we'd both made it clear that nothing was going to happen unless Girlfriend knew about it and approved, because she comes first above all else. (I was the one to say this before him, and he was relieved that I understood.) She is priority. She will always be priority, and I totally get that. I'm just some guy, you know? But the conversation ended with me telling him he should probably let her know about this, regardless of how scary that was, because he's an incredibly touchy-feely guy and if I was her I'd like if this was on my radar. New player: M's best friend. very by the book christian guy. Not at all stuck up, but he abstains from worldly pleasures or something like that! He's cool, we're cool.

Except after break, M's best friend makes a few confusing comments, and suddenly, there's now never been a time when just me and M have hung out since. Girlfriend hasn't acted any differently and is still incredibly warm and wonderful, so I'm pretty sure she still doesn't know. I'm a very giving person and like to shower my friends in gifts, so I was undeterred in giving them both valentine's gifts I had bought them months in advance (extra hand wringing on my part.) Girlfriend was ecstatic, loved her gift, and M loved his too. But then he left to go Cry??? Because he hadn't gotten her anything (I'm the only one with a min $ job). I'm not sure where I stand with him or with either of them, and i'm just so confused. I'm 🤷‍♂️ about poly, but with the way they were raised (see M's best friend for reference), their feelings are more muddy about it. I want to talk to M, but being alone in the same room is impossible. I don't know if M has been intentionally making sure we're never alone together, I don't know if Girlfriend knows, or what M wants, what Girlfriend would want or even what I want, because I don't know what's on the table. I don't even know if we're in the same restaurant. Girlfriend is going to find out. M is way too touchy feely even with "supervision". (Granted, he is with everyone, I'm pretty sure I'm just the only person who lets him get away with it.) At this rate, somethings going to give, and i'm honestly just waiting for it to happen now. 🤷‍♂️

[peepism]

Stitches // Levi x Reader

A top a snowy mountain lay a few small cabins, each designed for separate uses just like the ones back at training camp. Although the storm was raging on, morales were high as the cadets rambled on, each telling stories to pass time. Though their superiors were watching on, they didn't bother quieting the troupe down as they figured they needed to let them be kids in this cruel world. 

"SASHA, quit eating all our rations! We don't have a whole lot! We're here for a few more days" screamed a decently tall boy. Even though he wasn't the tallest of the group, he still had some fire in him. Which is why he was currently in a wrestling match with the brunette. This wasn't the first time they had gotten in quarrels over her ravenous hunger. 

"Forget it Connie. Just let her finish it." Another quipped up, a boy named Jean. His palm dragging across his face with a roll of his eyes. 

This is how it typically went with the 104th trainee's. They'd get along for a few minutes before hell seemed to break loose. It was a wonder Shadis, or even Erwin wouldn't decide to just forget about all of them and find better listening teens. Was it the military or a damn daycare? Levi often wondered. 

He stood among the logged walls of the cabin, watching each scene unfold with sharp steel eyes, no form of amusment to be seen. Why the hell did the commander decide it was a good idea for him to be watching over them? Something about 'building trust'? What a load of bullshit in his mind. He couldn't trust them to clean properly, nonetheless to free humanity. Not just that, they were too idiotic at times to see just how horrible their existence was- not in the way most would think. Maybe the tiniest part of him hated to see how hopeful they were, sure, some of them were there when the first wall fell, and they each had seen their fair share of things, but they weren't fully tainted just yet. They were teens, just babies. It killed him to know that within any moment their joyous sparks would be smothered out, the same way a fire extinguishes without oxygen. 

Now Hange on the other hand seemed to be letting loose as well, encouraging some of the arguments between Jean and Eren. To which earned hard glares from the Ackermans. 

"What if we... told stories..?" Squeaked out a an angelic voice, belonging to the name of Krista Lenz, which earned a loud obnoxious laugh from Ymir. "ARE YOU KIDDING ME? STORIES? My dear Krista, you really think we'd all sit around like children? Who's going to be the one reading it to us, nonetheless making up one on the spot seeing as we have no books in the vicinity?" 

This earned the girl to have her face flush with red out of embarrassment. For someone who couldn't leave her alone, Ymir definitely wasn't the nicest at times. 

"OH, I know! Levi! Why don't you get involved? Tell us a memory of yours, huh? At least make it this once, you mysterious hunk of meat!" Chortled Hange, her hand colliding into Levi's shoulder which made a loud smack that reviberated across the room causing everyone to stop dead in their tracks, faces filled with horror.  

The wind blowing outside that caused the windows to occasionally shake was all that could be heard, as utter silence fell upon them, various gazes directing to the short Captain as they awaited to hear his booming voice or possibly to watch him beat the living shit out of the section commander for even laying a finger on him, but nothing. No one dared to make a move, until a soft sigh left his parted lips. "Very well." Shock soon became present, even from the mad scientist, although she was mainly joking around she didn't quite expect him to actually agree. Yet she definitely wasn't going to pass this opportunity down as she had never heard anything from the man before her. He was mysterious, closed off- 

"If I share my background as a story, then I expect you all to tune up on your disgusting cleaning habits. Even you, shitty glasses." 

Without any thoughts, feet scrambled causing the floors to creek, earning an even bigger sigh of annoyance from Levi.

"My tale starts with Y/n Gibbs."

"Squad Leader Gibbs?!" 

Inquired Armin.

"Yes, now can all of you shut the fuck up and let me get this over with?" Levi grumbled with arms crossed, as he peered down at all the sitting cadets (and Hange) who all seemed to be way too excited.

God, he really was becoming some form of a father figure it would seem, not that he knew what that was really like. But that didn't matter, he knew you would be glad he'd be sharing this part of him, and he'd be sure to tell you when they all got back from the freezing mountain point. 

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

For those interested in reading more, feel free to find the other chapters on AO3!

[moyokeansimblr]

Moyo life update

Hey friends so yeah uhm... Well after our old man kitty Zook passed on the 4th my dad decided pretty much immediately that we'd be getting kittens because he thought we needed kitten therapy. Initially the plan was only to get 1-2 because we do still have Sophie (Zook's sister) and while she adores the pants off me she's admittedly a grouchy old lady towards everyone else so we weren't sure how she'd do with a kitten. She's also 15.5 so that's why my dad wanted more than one kitten because Sophie doesn't play much.

My brother's girlfriend knew a family that had a litter of 4 kittens and the plan was for us to take 2 so as to not overwhelm Soph. But get this: on the 4th while my mom and brother were saying goodbye to Zook at our vet... a 12 week old kitten just waltzes up to the door! One of the vet techs grabbed him and was like omg he's here for them! But the other tech wouldn't let her interrupt my mom & brother so she took him home with the plan to tell us about him when we were slightly less sad. When my mom called the vet Friday morning to settle our account she told us about him and he was ours an hour later. My brother named him Waffle (short for wunderwaffe dg2, idk spelling I don't play cod).

But we still wanted Waffle to have someone who wasn't 15 years older than him so Saturday morning we went to meet the litter of 4 kittens my brother's girlfriend's mom's friend had. It was pretty easy, two of them clearly liked us most right away. So by mid day Saturday had two more kittens. They're 8 weeks, and named Pez and Cooper. Cooper is the runt and the first thing my brother's girlfriend said when she saw him was oh my god he's so derpy. 😹 But my dad said he thinks Pez knows Cooper is a little behind and looks out for him.

So far they're all separate. Waffle has his space, Pez and Cooper have a space, and then Sophie has reign of the house. They've had a few supervised meetings that have gone well. Sophie's gave her warning hisses if they've gotten too close but otherwise has just watched them. Pez and Cooper aren't scared at all because they came from a house full of other animals but Waffle is pretty scared. He gets all poofy and growls both at Sophie and the other kittens but we don't think he's had experience with other cats since nobody knows where he came from. So we're working on him so he'll be less scared.

ANYWAYS, because I work part time and from home I am the primary cat carer. Between all the cleaning/kitten proofing, giving Sophie ample attention, and acclimating all three kittens I'm utterly brain fried. I've been trying to work on some CC but I've not been able to sit down and actually play sims at all in weeks what with how sick Zook was and now kittens. I did have a sims 2 birthday gift planned but there's no way I'll get to finish it or any of the other CC I've got in progress by that date. I really just want to play but I'm in cat mode so it's what it is. But in the meantime while I can't play I've been watching a lot of sims YouTube content instead (like sammy sundog's service area videos) so that I can still get my sims fix until whenever I get to play again.

I'll end this post with a pic of my good old girl Sophie because she's handling all of these changes pretty damn great so far. But yeah long story short basically I don't have anything sims to contribute to Tumblr right now. Hopefully soon.

[david-talks-sw]

It's a shame that the multi-media franchise of star wars have twisted the original narrative of the Jedi. I really love the sequel trilogy, I love season 7 of TCW, and Dave Filoni is amazing storyteller. But over the years, it's gotten to the point where the Jedi are being criticized to such a degree that now some people believe the Jedi should've changed their entire belief system. It's great to criticize the Jedi. They are flawed and not perfect. But now because they are now being framed negatively over the past 2-3 years and so now, some justify their genocide, disrespect their belief system, and believe Anakin was a poor victim who got caught up in everything. Lucasfilm or any writer is to blame for this, but I think people need to look a little more deeper into the media literacy behind star wars, and consider the fact that a child is going to love the Jedi despite their flaws and will be sad when they see them get killed. Because star wars is made for children who can look up to the Jedi as role models.

All of this.

I frankly don't know what else to add, @thecenturyofmusic said it all.

I also think there's an argument to be made for shifting global values.

I don't know about how it was in the U.S. specifically, but I don't remember there being as much of an emphasis on mental health back in the early 2000s as there is today.

Back then, I remember many fans sorta getting the core story but hating it, which resulted in a lot of them just bashing the Prequels.

Nowadays, a spin has been put on the Prequels wherein Anakin is the poster boy for the mental illness, he's just a victim:

he grew up a slave which gave him severe PTSD,

then was ripped away from the arms of his mother by

an elite order of emotionless monks whose emotionally-repressing teachings are the perfect representation of toxic masculinity and force you to never get emotionally attached,

who berated and rejected him at every turn,

he also doesn't have a father figure except for the Chancellor, who grooms him and isolates him,

and instead of supporting him in his hour of need, the Jedi hurt Anakin psychologically to a degree where at some point he just loses it and kills them all, because as far as he's concerned they were evil to him.

And... yeah. It can be interpreted that way. It resonates more to people when seen that way.

But it wasn't meant to be seen that way.

If it was, then we'd have seen very different Prequels.

Watto would have physically abused Anakin left and right like he's DiCaprio in Django: Unchained, instead of joking around about humans with him.

Shmi would've been on the ground crying, holding Anakin's leg and screaming "please no give me back my babyyyy!!!"

Literally every shot of the Jedi emoting, screaming, chuckling, being worried would be absent and they'd all speak with a monotonous voice, including Yoda, Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan.

If we were supposed to feel like Anakin is in the right and the Jedi are in the wrong then we'd be shown an Anakin who isn't petulant, arrogant and overly emotional. We'd see a normal person who gets berated by a group of unfeeling old men.

Anakin wouldn't call Obi-Wan his father twice (which is admittedly a nuanced situation because while Anakin may see Obi-Wan as a father, Obi-Wan sees Anakin as a little brother so hey).

We'd see Anakin explicitly state that he's afraid of his wife dying, maybe carrying her unconscious body to the temple steps begging for help only for someone to reject him at the door because "it goes against protocol" and that's when Palpatine swoops in.

Y'know, more explicit, emotion-eliciting stuff?

But we didn't see any of that. Because it wasn't about any of that. If it was, then it goes about delivering its message in the weakest way possible.

While nowadays, the popular take is that Anakin's downfall is the fault of everyone around him, the intended take was that Anakin's fall was his own fault. Anakin is a victim of his own flaws.

The Prequels weren't meant to show you what happens when you keep pushing a mentally unstable person, they were about cautioning children about not giving in to their own fear and greed.

"How does a good kid become a bad man?" He let his inner demons - fear, anger, greed - get the better of him.

And that's not necessarily a take most people agree with these days, but that takes us back to how much importance you actually give to GL's original vision.

[thatonebirdwrites]

As I write ficlets here, I dump them in my Books of Destiny. Newest chapter is the idea for the Fallout AU. I wanted to keep Kara feeling alien, and the best way to do that is for her to be a vault dweller who ventures into the wastelands for the first time. This puts Lena as a wastelander (secretly with the Railroad but working as a scavenger). I'm mixing the plots of Fallout 3 and 4 because I liked Fallout 3's plot better, but I prefer Fallout 4's setting and factions. (Have played these games dozens of times.) What is the Fallout Universe?

If Fusion Power was invented and became commonplace in the 1950s, where even cars are run on fusion, only for a nuclear war to break out. Two hundred years after the War, the character leaves their vault knowing little to nothing about the wasteland. It's a dark satire with ridiculous elements. As a fun easter egg, in Fallout 3, you can find Bethseda's offices. Yes, they put their offices in the game.

Year 2278, May 12 - 200 Years After the War

Two days after leaving the vault, Kara realized that the world did not fit what the overseer had described. In fact, everything she'd been told about the world seemed to be terribly wrong.

The giant cockroaches and mosquitoes? They weren't supposed to be that big! When she saw the furless mongrel dogs and cows with two heads, she quickly realized that the Vault's biology book was utterly useless for this wasteland. The land itself mostly dried grass, vine-drenched trees, and over-sized, glowing mushrooms.

How was Kara supposed to find a clean source of water and better foodstuff to replace their lost stores? The wasteland looked so inhospitable, and nearly all the water sources held far too much radioactivity. Her Geiger counter kept bouncing up to warn her away from the more dangerous areas -- her vault suit didn't quite protect against the radiation, she should have worn a hazmat suit -- but in other areas that did harbor life, none matched her biology vaultbooks. So she had no idea what was edible.

Up ahead, Kara sighted three figures. She darted behind a rock. Last thing she needed was a fight. The last one with that creepy, fur-less and rabid dog had nearly gotten her killed. Her arm still ached from the dog's claws. She'd had to use three stimpacks before the injury began to slowly repair itself.

So she huddled behind a rock and watched the approach of humans. The first she'd seen since leaving the vault. She had a knife with her, canned food and water, and some tech from the vault. The gun she'd found in a rundown shack yesterday was out of ammo. Not that she was any good at it. Shooting wasn't part of the vault curriculum.

Two of the humans were dressed in leather coats, black pants with knee pads, and a hard helmet. A giant, hulking robot walked next to them, but a human voice emanated from it. It looked like one of the power armors Kara had seen in the textbooks from the war.

One of the humans looked like a woman. She held a device in her hand and moved it back and forth over the ground. Her skin was sun-burned, her black hair tied back in a loose ponytail, but her eyes were so, so green. As green as the tree drawings in Kara's vault textbooks. She was gorgeous.

The trio walked closer, and their voices drifted over the broken trees and shattered road. "Jack, are you certain this was the coordinates? Because I'm not picking up any signals." Even the woman's voice sounded beautiful.

"We've been over this, Lena. The triangulation pinpointed the crash to this location," Jack said, his deeper voice held an accent Kara didn't recognize. "We simply need to cover more area."

"Perhaps we should split up?" The power armor person said. Their voice was a low alto. "Cover more ground?"

"Bloody hell, Sam, we'd be easy pickings for any enemy then," Jack said with a dramatic flourish of his hand.

"You would be fine, Sam," Lena said with a roll of her eyes. "You got the power armor. Besides, the idea isn't feasible. I have the scanner. Without it, you're looking for a cap in a lake."

Kara blinked as their words filtered through her. Wait. A crash? She'd seen lots of crashes since leaving the Vault. In fact, one had been still smoking. It resembled the Vertibirds from her textbooks of the war. She'd passed by it yesterday when she'd sighted the giant cockroach and almost fell off a cliff in her eagerness to escape it.

Without thinking it through, she darted to her feet. "Hey! I saw a crash!"

And soon found herself facing three weapons -- a flamethrower in Sam's hands, a hunting rifle in Jack's, and a laser gun in Lena's.

Kara threw up her hands. "Please don't shoot! I don't mean any harm. I just heard you talking about a crash, and I saw one."

Lena lowered her weapon first. One eyebrow rose as her gaze swept over Kara. "You're wearing a vault jumpsuit."

"Yes?" Kara looked down at the blue and yellow suit. The number 101 was emblazoned across the front. Was it a bad thing to be a vault-dweller? She wondered if maybe she should have lied. Too late now. "I left it two days ago."

"Wait, you're a vault dweller?" Jack slid the rifle over his shoulder and grinned. "Our luck is in! Can you take us to it?"

Kara lowered her hands, confused. "Why?"

"Most vaults are powered by fusion," Lena explained, "and we're low on fusion cores. Is your power still functioning?"

Kara shifted uneasily back toward her rock. "I'm not sure." She'd left the vault intact, meaning her family was still there. Leading these people to it just for them to take the vault's power? That would put them all in danger.

"What do you mean you're not sure?" Sam asked. She had lowered her weapon, but her voice was still intimidating due to the power armor. "Come on, you just left it, didn't you?"

"I can take you to the crash," Kara said, firmly. Alex and the others relied on her mission to find a better water source. Leading strangers there to steal power was not part of the mission. "And maybe we can negotiate if you help me find a clean source of water."

"Now see here," Jack started to say, but Lena held up her hand to stop him.

"Negotiate we definitely can. So what's your name?" With a smile, Lena stepped in front of the others and held out her hand to Kara. "I'm Lena, this is Jack, and that's Sam."

"Kara from Vault 111." Kara shook Lena's hand with a smile. "Pleasure to meet you."

[rvby]

do you see? by the stars...

i remember... i know, it's so rare for us to remember anything nowadays. but the stars...

`sometimes it's just nice to look up and watch them. bright stars against a dark, moonless night. filling the sky to the point where it doesn't seem so dark anymore, does it.`

she was still learning english. `a pause.` we had to teach her, when we first took her in. it was a lot of motioning to get points across back then. we figured... just enough to get by.

`a small laugh.` you know, soldiers aren't great role models. it wasn't long before she was swearing like it was normal to say. i guess it was, for us. trying to tell her not to swear was its own challenge. she didn't get it. it was all just words to her.

so i tried to get her things to study in her off time. requesting supplies for her while she was out there with me. she was always bright. caught onto things real quick.

she would- `he almost stutters it out, as if shy. sheepish.` she would- i wasn't all that good at it. the whole teaching thing. never went to school myself. took some lessons eventually but... you know, i- `he opts to sit up now.` i'm not all that smart. so it'd become a group thing for the whole unit. helping her out. answering questions. they all loved her. if they didn't, i'd've killed 'em, but, `well. he can neither confirm nor deny if he has. memory loss is funny like that.`

`he waves his hand dismissively.` and i'd try to listen. we'd- `he shakes his head.` yeah. i'd try to listen. learn something. `he looks down at the snow.` not that i'd remember much of that either.

but there was one thing. and i remember this because she took us outside one night, when i wasn't sleeping and she- we'd try to sleep, because she needed to, and she always had a hard time sleeping without us around. but both of us that night, we couldn't sleep at all.

so she took us outside with one of the books we'd gotten for her and she sat us down. she sat us down, and instead of reading out of it like she liked to do with all her other books, she started pointing up at the stars.

there was... we knew some things. but when she started, `he smiles, amused in equal parts at the memory itself.` we had no idea what she was talking about. she'd point at one star and then another and she'd tell us to connect them but none of it made any sense to me. because what we knew was different.

and we'd- it was hard not to want to correct her. half of the ones she mentioned weren't ones we ever paid attention to. because we didn't need to. and i'll tell you, it took us... she had to have been doing that for a while. just pointing at stars and naming them before we realized there wasn't a point to it at all. we didn't get that at first. she didn't usually read things like that. things she couldn't learn or study from. there wasn't a point to it. she just wanted to show me what the book said was up there. and the book said it all for fun.

by then, we were... she really wanted to push the limits of what we could get for her. she was- she's a genius, you know. you'd think it, watching her read everything and learn it front to back and repeat it back like she knew what it was all about. i sure didn't, and most of us didn't, so it was something impressive from a kid who was learning everything on the fly.

she must've been working hard on it too. like she knew even then that she had to learn everything she could if she wanted to make it out of there. makes sense she'd end up in health and all that.

but this- this didn't have to do with any of that. it was just... nonsense. we didn't get that. names and stories. she never liked make-believe growing up. all the things other kids her age should read, she didn't care about. but this was different, i think. because it was real too. she could point at it and it'd be out there, even if all the stuff connecting it wasn't real.

i don't, no i don't remember any of the things she was telling me. we were all worked up about how learning the wrong things could get her killed and trying to figure out what she was talking about and arguing about it. not- you know. with us. she just kept on reading while we watched. and when she got tired of looking up she laid back on the dirt and pulled us back down with her. so we were laying on the ground while she kept going, squinting at the pictures and words in her little book in the dark while pointing at the stars she could connect.

i think the only thing that stuck out, though. which i remember because it was the only sense she made, was connecting two of the stars she saw up there. `and he points to them, where they're at in the sky.` and then she called them spoons. i thought she was crazy, but if you look, you can see 'em. right up there all the time. spoons. `he traces the constellations, connecting them at the ends of their handles.`

and i mean, i laughed. i did. because whoever came up with the spoons must have been even crazier. but i couldn't look at them afterward without thinking about the spoons and finding them. it'd- `he stops himself. shakes his head again.` yeah. spoons.

`he lies back down, now, his story having been told.` i don't even know if she remembers. i don't think she's needed to. you know, after school and everything. but she was a tough kid. she's always been. i just wish she could have had more of that. `a sigh.` more time to get to think about nonsense things and not have to worry about learning everything there is to know. but i don't know if she would've liked that either. that's just the kind of kid she is. was.

...all grown up now. time really does fly. `he turns to shove his helmet in the body of the husky he'd been talking to all this time. careful, as always, aware acutely of the cold metal, but the dog hardly seems to care. it just rolls over happily in its late night laziness.` all grown up and taking care of herself. `he's accepted for himself by now that she wasn't getting out of the war industry, having made her choice to get into it herself, but he can still wish, in the quiet hours that he's left to wonder how she's doing all the way across the country. he's left her countless times for work, but suddenly, the space between feels different. it's hard, being on the other side of it. he groans into the dog's fur. maybe it'll stop being his problem in the morning. maybe. hopefully. it'd better. god, it'd better.`

[nikkiitalks]

Race Baiting - A thoughtument by Nikkiitalks.

Okay.. Here we go.

Firstly, for the sake of absolute transparency, when I was first contacted by @olivaraofrph in a tirade of a novel of a response, my skimming through it had me starting to be swayed in her favour, mostly because of the depths of which her privacy was invaded for the sake of the allegations against her. And in that moment, I prematurely forgave her. Told her I understood. But it turns out, after much more has come to light, that I in fact do not understand. And in turn my forgiveness is recanted.

I did not have all the information. Hell, I had a fraction of it. Natalie and I, we were friendly, but not close. We don't talk every day and we never did. We had, though, stood arm in arm against that moment's hot button issue that I had felt strongly about, and so had she. It seemed. We'd held each other in places of mutual respect, shouting each other out and praising each other's advocacy.

Now, it all feels so... silly. This performative display that I so willingly let be pulled over my eyes. But that's beside the point. That was all I knew of her, really. There are others in this tiny niche of our already tiny community, that were far closer. Those that ran servers, indigenous servers, with her. They weren't even afforded the respect of being given an explanation to, but I did?

I was the one, who when I it was brought to my attention, when I was urged to send a DM which I already had, that was deemed the one to get that? A novel, let me be clear, the contents of which I won't make public upon request. A lot of it had nothing to do, truly, with the issue at hand but served to distract from it in a wall of text. It was overwhelming, and it felt just a teeny, tiny bit, manipulative.

There's so much evidence now, even evidence regretfully obtained, that the only place her advocacy extends to is Tumblr. None of your public, irl facing socials having anything there about it. Your own admission of percentage, (how that had been confirmed as she claims I can't speculate), and other things that don't line up. Those of us in the community affected haven gotten together to compare and talk through our feelings toward it all and there is a consensus.

It fucking sucks.

Just the fact that this needs to be brought up absolutely sucks. It detracts from the credibility of other indigenous creators in the space. Not all press is good press, and Natalie right now, is bad press. Beyond myself and the others being lied to. Beyond the personal offense I take to that. This is what bothers me the most. For all the posturing and all the 'talking in wrong and confusing ways' it makes us all look bad. And for what?

The other personal and religious or spiritual beliefs she believes doesn't mean anything to me. The other racism claims about her I can't confirm, whatever. Talking shit about a beloved creator, real or not. Doesn't matter.

What matters is there is damage done to the indigenous community here on the rpc, and before we came together to discuss it, it was distressing to all of us. There is no such thing as clout on tumblr and I don't know why people can't seem to get that through their heads? What need is there to claim to be something you're not, even through insinuations, half truths and vague details? I don't understand.

Yes, the indigenous community is so willing to accept anyone with any indigenous blood, and it's the fact that this is what was taken advantage of by someone... that really gets me. That's what really makes it sting. It's a blow to every white passing Native out there, in my opinion. That's where my hurt is. It's the fact that there is question of the validity of the claims toward a shared familial and generational trauma to myself. That still impacts my father's side of the family to this day.

I don't even know where I'm going with all this, and I feel like I'm typing myself in circles, but it's all to say that I don't care about all the other stuff that serves to muddy the waters of the real issue. Race baiting does nothing but end up hurting those who's real life experiences you're roleplaying.

[tsudelune]

Hi! May I request reader comforting An? I feel like she needs to be comforted after what happened to her at the recent event on JP :( If you're not aware about it it's fine you can just make reader comfort An, thanks!

'' blend my song with the colors of this world ,,

- an shiraishi x reader

a/n : you're so true for this, anon. i really wanted to create something along the lines of your request, but i wasn't too solid on the idea. the recent event was so sudden...i couldn't believe it. i skipped my old requests for now because i was eager to finish this request. my poor girl an...hopefully i did this request justice.

warnings : light up the fire event story spoilers, an lore spoilers, panic attacks, angst/comfort, sad an :(

style : oneshot

it was a pretty afternoon around vivid street, with the sunset directly in your view. if it weren't for the past few days, you would've admired the sunset a bit more.

seeing crase cafe in the view, you stopped walking and silently mulled over ken's story from two days ago.

"nagi quietly drew her last breath."

you couldn't believe it yourself. as someone who watched RAD WEEKEND, witnessing the glory of the event with two other kids you didn't know would become your friends, one of them becoming your girlfriend...it was all too surreal.

an was devastated. you had never seen her cry harder than she did the other day. seeing her cry made your eyes teary. but the storytelling was over, along with the years of lies.

you drew a quick breath before entering crase cafe, seeing an alone, washing a few dishes with an unreadable expression. she completely ignored the chime of the bell.

"...an, i'm here." you quietly said, announcing your presence. the said girl withdrew from washing the dishes and made her way to you. she wasn't wearing the usual outfit, and instead had the outfit wore when working.

"thanks for coming by, y/n." an smiled. her smile had weight. so did her words. "I was a bit bored alone, so i had to hit you up." she wiped her wet hands on her apron. "i could make you your favorite."

you immediately shook your head, denying any work from an. "no, an. i need you to tell me the truth." you said sternly, creasing your eyebrows. "that chat with ken and vivid bad squad the other day...about nagi." you held her hand gently, squeezing it. "...you haven't gotten over it, have you?"

you could feel an tense over your question, biting her lip as she tried to make an excuse. "i...i don't know what you're talking about." she denied, with a shaky voice. "i already let out my feelings then, you know. you saw me, you know, um..." she paused as she let out a soft sigh, looking away. "cry."

you nod. "i know, but that doesn't mean you've let out everything. your still stressed over it." you continue, pressing on. "i can hear it in your voice, you-"

"just stop, y/n." you look at an closely to see that her eyes are glossy again, with tears brimming at her eyes. "stop telling me how i'm acting, stop it!" she cried, letting go of your hands to frantically wipe her tears.

you reached in to remove her hands from her face, wiping her tears gently with your thumb. "so i'm telling you, let it out. i'm here for you." you whisper, wrapping your arms around her figure. at that, she completely breaks down in your embrace.

"y/n...nagi agreed with me, that we'd be singing on the stage together!" an sobbed in your shoulder, her hands weakly gripping your shirt.

"first, dad lied to me, but made it up because nagi was there for me," an rambled on. "nagi told me...that she'd never lie to me...i hoped that we'd have steak together...we'd practice singing...play games..." an breathed heavily, crying in the crook of your neck. "everyone kept it a secret from me, even my dad...i hate this feeling, y/n. what do i do...?" an trembled, her broken voice resounding through the cafe.

"an, breathe." you softly rubbed circles on her back, hoping to calm her down. "it'll be okay, an."

an buried her face in your shoulder, sniffling and holding you tightly. you chuckled and pat her head. "you've been holding in a lot, huh?"

"shut up." you heard her grumble, making you smile. she raised her head from the embrace, with creased eyebrows and puffy face. but you still loved her anyway.

"i love you lots, an." you gently confessed, rubbing her cheek with your thumb. "don't you ever forget that."

"i love you more, y/n." an gave a small but radiant smile, with admiration flickering across her face. "do you think i'm meant to understand, all those actions that nagi did?"

you shrug lightly, and smile back. "maybe we're not meant to understand yet. why don't we try to untie the knots one by one?"

an nods, with a sigh of relief. "mhm. let's."

gazing at the rainy window, you widen your eyes. "shoot...i didn't bring an umbrella, and it's raining outside..."

an sighed, but giggled. "then why don't we talk until the rain is gone?"

"sure." you agree, letting an take your hand to lead you.

in eachother's eyes, both of you see someone to love. though, you see adoration in an's eyes, as if to say, "thanks."

~

i live for the tale

of life and joy, so don't forget

it's not goodbye yet.

[enchanted-lightning-aes]

Hmm what about a dynamic where A is reckless and rushes into danger trying to save everyone while B always worries about A's safety and is there to catch them when they fall

ahh, here ya go, kly. hope i did this short well enough for ya. no names for the characters, tho. . . 😔

send me a prompt request featuring any character or dynamic + one word?

Word Count: 662 T.W/C.W: mentions of bruises, some crashing buildings, idk what else that slipped by me

***

Sometimes, they wondered where would they be if they didn't dedicate themself to their cause. If they took up a profession, where they didn't have to deal with immense dangers involved. Perhaps, plenty of things would go differently.

However, they wouldn't regret any of it. Sure, they had gotten trapped or kidnapped yet they always made it through. Saw it through no matter how tough their situation could get.

And maybe they could be a little foolish for doing what they do. But hey if they managed to help people. . . their safety was negligent. After all: it proved to be a simple price, which they would pay over and over again.

Back in their apartment, their ally tended to their wounds. Dabbing a wet cloth over wounded spots, cleaning it up as much as she could.

"You know," she said, grabbing a piece of gauze. "We'd have more nights of leisure if you didn't get back bleeding. I thought you'd have learned to lessen it by now."

"If those people didn't insist on stabbing or shooting at me," they replied with a heavy sigh. "I'm sure I wouldn't be stuck with it. But hey, they believe draining blood outta my system is gonna stop me."

She snorted, shaking her head. "I swear, you're just finding an excuse to be a martyr, eh."

"Then why bother sticking around?" they asked, arching a brow. They rubbed a hand over a gauze wrapped around a bruise on their elbow. "I mean if you got a problem with it, you can walk out."

They tried making it sound like a joke yet some seriousness slipped out. She lowered her arm, bowing her head. She gulped and set the cloth down onto a table.

Crap, they thought as regret engulfed them. They probably shouldn't have said. . .

When she peered up at them, her lips tilted into a small grin.

"Because I don't have much better to do," she answered dryly with a brief shrug. "Besides. . . who else can I stop from making bad decisions? Don't think I can find anyone else like you."

With a roll of their eyes, they threw a light punch at her upper arm. She burst out cackling

Even if they keep crashing down, a pair of arms were prepared to catch them. Keeping them. . . secured and reassured. That they weren't alone and they had an ally, who would be there for them. Whether they fell apart or get torn at the seams, they knew they wouldn't have to be alone. And damn, they were so lucky to have someone, steadfast and loyal, by their side.

It happened to be pivotal to them especially since they had to get people out of a building. It had been hit by a laser beam and they had to evacuate most of those who had been in it. If they didn't have a team, they wouldn't have done the job at all.

However, they had been slow at escaping themself. But the sound of concrete cracking set them on edge, freezing them on where they stood.

Before it could crumble on them, a whirlwind of a silhouette shoved them to the other side. Rolling along with them.

They tried catching their breath, turning their head at the person beside them. Only for their eyes to widen at their ally, who propped herself up on an elbow.

"You dumbass," she hissed, scowling. Her face crumpled. "You ought to be more careful, you know!"

"Sorry," they murmured, wincing at sharp sensation searing at their sides. "I would. . . I would have. . . but. . . thank you."

"Don't thank me just yet." She scrambled to her feet, dusting her jacket and t-shirt. She stretched a hand out. "C'mon. . . you got a job to finish. After that, you're required to rest. No complaints."

Their lips quirked up at the corners. "Yeah. . . no problem."

As her posture relaxed, she reached for their elbow. Guiding them to where those civilians had been brought to safety.

***

[proton-selfships]

1, 2, 9, and 19 for Laurel with the self ship asks —Nic

Couples Questions

Thank you, @me-myself-and-my-fos!

1. Who makes the other blush all the time and who finds it adorable?

Usually, it's Laurel getting me all flustered and then acting all smug about how adorable I am. But when it's the reverse, oh man, it's the cutest thing in the universe when she starts blushing and looking down at the floor all sheepishly!

2. Who sings in the shower?

Laurel! There's nothing like hearing her sweet, childlike singing voice coming from the bathroom. It's positively ethereal.

Meanwhile, I just take my showers in silence. Gotta focus on giving my thick, oily mop of hair a good scrubbing and I don't want any soap getting in my mouth, lol

9. How did they know they were right for each other?

Obviously, we only really knew for sure after spending time living together in her family's old mansion, realizing we were mostly compatible and working on compromises for the ways that our routines weren't, etc. etc.

But the moment when we both realized that we were inevitable and that nothing could truly keep us apart was when she saved me from being completely subsumed by my own powers. Because for both of us, it represented us realizing how similar we truly were and consciously deciding that the other was worth saving.

In my case, I saw how both she and Tyler had been unfairly cast aside and ignored by the world in similar ways to me, and I wanted to stop them from harming anyone else but had no desire to harm them further; that was why I overextended my powers trying to fight Tyler without taking the easy route by snapping his neck or something. And then for Laurel, saving me represented her consciously and definitively choosing me over her past lifetime of anti-outcast programming, after dancing around the issue for so long when it was clear to onlookers like Tyler that she truly did have a soft spot for me all along.

Next to that? Tiny things like differences in what foods we like and other such disagreements that come up when you live with someone didn't take much effort to figure out. And we already knew we'd have plenty to talk about when it came to our respective interests we're passionate about! So yeah, soulmates. ;w;

19. Who's the better dancer?

I'm gonna say Laurel just because I hardly ever dance, so I feel like she'd have to be a pretty bad dancer to be worse than someone with near zero experience.

Though come to think of it, I don't think she'd have much experience given her life up to that point, either. But at least she'd clearly gotten more exercise given how much muscle she's got hiding under her sleeves!

[4-trenchcoat-cats]

Long Post. TW Pet Loss.

Today we made the difficult decision to let Jack go. I've been meaning to do an introduction post for a while complete with pictures, but I hadn't gotten around to it. Jack is the cat in my icon at least, so there's one of the cutest pics I have of him. Most of the other cute ones are from when he was asleep or didn't know I was photographing him. He was very protective of his image, and it helped that he was born during a time when cameras still couldn't capture the void essence very well.

He was the king of the house, ruler of the roost, and grade-A asshole that controlled our lives (in the best way possible of course). There really aren't words to describe what our lives are going to be like now because we have no idea. He's the one who determined meal times for the entire house, snuggles VS no snuggles, and when I should actually wake up when it wasn't a work day. He would regularly take over my bed in his later years, and he spent the bulk of his earlier ones being kept out of places (unsuccessfully).

There are so many stories I could tell about him, but since this is my first time talking about the actual 4-trenchcoat-cats, I'll give everyone his introduction to us. It's only fitting folks see how it all began.

Picture it, 2009. We still had our larger dog then, and she spent her days sunning in our front yard whenever it was cool enough (and hoping we'd forget her when it rained). She was our ruler back then, and one day we noticed her eying our wood pile with considerable interest. There was no getting her away from it.

Then we heard it, sharp meows that could only come from the tiniest of kittens. He was the shade of the shadows and blended in well, but we spotted him, and knowing he couldn't fend for himself, we brought him inside.

We were a dogs-only household, firmly dog people. We'd started feeding some outside cats, but we'd never had one indoors. And now this little black menace was demanding food and attention, and well, we fell for it. I guess he always knew this was where he was supposed to be, and it's also one of the best origin stories of the lot seeing that the others just sort of showed up.

It's also only fitting he passed now. We lost that dog the following Thanksgiving, and now we've said goodbye to him just short of Christmas. I think the two of them wanted to be remembered, and I'm grateful for that. If it weren't for Facebook memories, I wouldn't be able to keep up.

He'll be our first that we cremate. It's only fitting that his final resting place be where he can watch us and judge us for our poor life choices, watch over our mealtimes with a hawk-like eye, and probably haunt us a little because why not? A guy has to have hobbies.

He leaves behind a sissy who doesn't know what to do with herself at. all., but I'm managing. Our two human parents who are also at a state of What Now? after so many years of trying to keep him alive, this was not a short journey. Lastly, the now three trenchcoat cats are going to do their best to honor his memory, but I just know they'll come up a little short. A new era is beginning, and I don't think it's hit them yet. I don't think it ever will if I'm being honest. How do you move on after a purricane/clawnado/meowquake rattles your life for so long?

I'm off from work so I already was planning on spending less time here (thank you satellite internet), but I don't see things changing much when I do get good browsing time again. I will forever see black cats as #jack jack cats, and any antics I come across with #jack jack energy need to be noted dutifully. I will honor his memory by pretending to carry on like something earth-shattering hasn't hit us at full force.

And, for good measure because every obituary should have a good picture, here's a proper picture of my boy taking over my bed and living his best life.

Goodbye, Sir Jack. I can't wait to see you again<3

[gregorygerwitz]

Hurt/comfort prompt number 10 (“it’s okay to cry, you know.”) for Scream AU ❤️❤️❤️😱

10. "It's okay to cry, you know."

Mouse was glaring at the door, his leg bouncing while he fought the urge to pick at the nails of his fingers. Maybe it was unreasonable, half expecting to see that mask again in some hospital hallway, coming to finish them all off while they were together and in one easy to find spot. He wouldn't put it past them, whoever was behind it this time, to figure out where they were and strike while they were vulnerable. That was what any rational person would do - then again, in his experience, the people behind those masks weren't exactly rational.

Still, he took up the same role he'd had when he was a teenager. Guard the door, make sure no one got through but the police they trusted, don't let anyone get close enough to Jay or Hailey to hurt them again. He'd done it before, and he could do it again, even if he couldn't be armed.

The sound of a chair scraping over the laminated tile floor made him look over. Hailey was perched by the edge of the bed, doing her best to avoid getting in the way of the wires and monitors set up nearby. One hand was clinging to one of Jay's, too still even with the reassurance from multiple doctors that surgery went well and he was stable, just resting and healing from what happened that afternoon. No one should have gotten close enough to touch him, let alone do as much damage as they did, and Mouse had to bite his tongue to keep from saying as much out loud - again.

He didn't think his frustration and fear was that obvious, but he wasn't stupid, either. Hailey watched him for too long, met his gaze in that steady, knowing way she always did, even when Jay didn't notice or chose to ignore any bumps in the road. She always looked too closely, noticed the little details he tried to cover up. She probably knew exactly what he'd been up to the night of the attack on those poor teenagers, and was too polite to call him out on it. Maybe, if she had, things wouldn't have gotten as bad as they did. They could have been working together before this happened, instead of being so on edge and suspicious of each other.

"You look tired." The words came in a whisper, gentle and worried, as if there weren't a million more important things to concern herself with right there in the room. "When's the last time you slept?"

Mouse frowned while he stopped, thinking about the question and what the truthful answer actually was. There had been too much going on, too many thoughts inside his head, too many familiar images whenever he closed his eyes for as long as a blink. That wasn't a good sign, and he knew it, but it didn't feel relevant. He would have plenty of time to sleep when this was all over. "Jay is the one who got stabbed today. Worry about him, not me."

"You're doing what you did last time." She wasn't as careful, then, her words firmer. The worry was still there, but time had passed. They weren't the same scared teenagers they used to be. They had grown up. It was just more obvious in her. "You're putting on this brave face like you're our last line of defense against this guy, like all of this falls on your shoulders. It doesn't. And when you did it fifteen years ago, it broke you. And it almost got you killed."

"Hailey, I'm fi-"

"It's okay to cry, you know. It's okay to be scared and show it. This is... terrifying. We never thought we'd have to do this again, but we do. And you're allowed to be affected by it. None of us want to lose another friend, and I refuse to be the one to tell Jay that we lost you when he wakes up."

Maybe she was right, but old habits were too easy to fall back into. There was a time to cry, and a time to be scared, and this wasn't the time for either one.

[ hurt/comfort prompts ]