#and is trying to eat 5 other mysteries at once

[charlemane]

honestly sometimes Philip Marlowe seems less like a detective people hire and more like a troublesome spirit that people inadvertently invite into their lives (by trying to hire him as a detective)

[one-piece-aus]

What would marriage life would be like with the seven warlords?

This is an old anon request, I do apologize for not getting to it sooner but here we go

What Marriage Life Would Be Like With the Seven Warlords (Headcanons)

It's pretty chill being married to Mihawk

Y'all just vibe in a mansion on an isolated island

I imagine Mihawk is a person of quality time and acts of service so the two of you would often spend time together

Whether it's reading in your library or cooking dinner for each other, every moment you do together and action you do for him is cherished in Mihawk's heart, even if he doesn't mention it

He makes sure you're healthy and well (eating properly, making sure you get your sleep)

This man will be able to instantly tell if your state is the slightest bit off and will not hesitate to voice his concern

He is not opposed to having children, the idea might amuse him

In fact, after Zoro and Perona had made their appearance, Mihawk grew fond of the idea taking care of his own child, even if they would be irritating at times

Btw, Zoro and Perona think you two act like an old married couple ❤

Only way this would be possible is if you are someone like Luffy

She might not understand exactly what marriage life means but she will do her best to make you happy

She is going to cook for you and feed you

She will bathe you and make sure you have the best clothes to wear

And she will order the best doctors to bring you back to your best health if you get sick

She is taking ✨amazing✨ care of you

The two of you are just living the life of luxury regardless of where you choose to live because you two are together and happy

You will not have kids (for a number of reasons that I will not get into because this is supposed to be a fun post)

Alright, I had no idea what to do for Moria so I asked @ask-the-night-crowl for these headcanons, thank you again Snugs

In a marriage, Moria would totally rely on his partner to fulfill all the duties he has/ should be responsible for. Granted, the other mysterious four already take over most of those, but someone has to keep them all in check.

His spouse better not be aversed by his crew, because for as much as he says he doesn't care about these idiots, he would also face death to protect them.

Unless him and his s/o have known eachother for a pretty long time, he'll try to keep them at an arm's length. Not necessarily because they don't have good enough of a connection, but the idea of loss is always on his mind.

He doesn't mind affection. In fact, he'll back-handedly seek it out by annoying his s/o until they give him attention if he so desires. He's pretty much like an oversized cat.

On the other hand, you'll also have to be prepared not to see him for days on end, because of his sleeping habits (Again, like a cat).

But in that time, cuddling with him is totally fine, because once that man is out, he sleeps like a rock.

His frequent nightmares might lead to the conclusion that comforting him would be the answer. But he hates the idea of being treated as weak as that and would much rather appreaciate the mere presence of his s/o when he wakes up next to them.

In contrast, he'll offer the same to his s/o when they feel down and would have an immediate (even petty) grudge against anyone harming them.

Staying in with him at a fireplace, drinking fancy wines and making fun of the other warlords would be his favorite way to spend time when he's awake for once.

If the spouse is good at cooking, you can bet they'll become his personal chef - after all, love goes through the stomach amirite.

If you're marrying Doffy, his family comes as a package deal, you can't have him without it, that being said, he expects you to get along with them (you can tolerate them instead but just don't let him notice)

Of course, he will expect you to take care of Baby 5, Buffalo, and Dellinger as if they were your children, he is open to making blood offsprings, but never put them before him

Doffy is your number 1 priority, whatever he says goes

But just because he's demanding doesn't mean he won't show you affection, in fact, most of his demands is just him wanting to give or receive affection

You are showed in gifts and luxury, he is the king of Dressrosa afterall, your word has every weight as his own since your are his queen

He is proud to show off his spouse, you are his most prized possession after all

However, you are more than just a trophy, after the loss of his dear mother and brother, he holds you close and tells you how dear you are to him every night

You are often woken up in the middle of the night due to his rustling from nightmares, just hold him to calm him down

Crocodile keeps you in the dark about his work, for all you know, he is a casino owner in Alabasta that keeps the people safe from pirates since he's a warlord

He takes you out for a stroll around in the evening, outside to admire the stars, or in the casino where your every need is met

He doesn't show affection in public but his gestures do show you belong to him and no one else

He keeps you company in bed at night until you fall asleep but when you wake up, he is not there, he's working as always

When see him next, he'll have a gift for you, an apology for not being able to always be around as he is a very busy man, but he'll make it up to you

I imagine it would be comfortable, like little cottage in nature kind of comfy

You both would wake up in the morning with a nice cup of tea

Your place would be clean and organized

You'd receive lots of comforting hugs and cuddles

Life would be peaceful

Until strawhat crew comes knocking on your door

Don't quite have any ideas for Kuma so... This is end, I hope you enjoy anon, and thank you for requesting

[peachy-wolfhard]

dating toge inumaki II

warnings: cuteness, erm plushie incest, toge gets cucked in Stardew Valley, “pretty princess” is used once

word count: 861

These are hopefully sweeter than Part 1

I have way too many thoughts about this freak

Sleepovers are a must and Toge is the number one sleepover planner even if the sleepovers are last minute

Facemasks! Movie night! Mario Kart! EVERYTHING!!!

Absolutely WILL try and sabotage your Mario Kart win. He likes to push, bite, hiss… anything a younger sibling would do

He likes to play the VS races so he can continuously blue-shell you

Toge loves doing every cute couple's tiktok trends. His favorite so far is the matching nail polish to your eyes

“Honey! Honey! Salted salmon cod roe!” as Toge runs up to you pointing and grinning.

“Hold on! Stop jumping!” you giggle taking the phone from his hand. Watching the TikTok he was too excited to show you, it's a couple showing their eyes next to nail polish their partner picked out. Looking up from his phone, Toge frantically points back and forth between the two of you, practically buzzing.

“You wanna do this wi-” “SALMON SALMON SALMON!” the curse speech user cuts you off all while jumping up and down, holding your shoulders

Another trend he likes is painting your partner, he takes all the couple challenges seriously but ESPECIALLY this one

“Ugh, I hate how all these guys never try on these” Toge types and rests on your hip to read.

“Never try on what?” you reply resting your chin atop his head, stroking his hair. Toge swipes to a TikTok of a couple that painted each other and skips to the end, the man shows his painting of his s/o as her face falls, it looks more like an unflattering caricature. 

“Let's do this! Need to paint my pretty princess :3 need the love of my life immortalized in a painting” Toge types giggling into your neck

Speaking of cute couple things! He definitely makes you a highlight on Instagram. Its wither named something like “(your initial) <3333” or “my wet cat :3”

Half of the posts are .5’s of you eating or the most gorgeous images ever taken by a human

FACETIMING!!!! He might not be able to speak BUT Facetime is still fun. He likes it when you give him a haul of all the stuff you bought

Jokingly gets jealous over the fictional characters you like (getting meta here woah)

“The things I'd let that man do should be illegal,” giggling as Toge pouts, arms crossed over his chest like a child.

“Absolutely devious and heinous things,” Toge groans then pretends to cry, throwing his head in between his knees. Ignoring your dramatic boyfriend, you continue the movie.

“WHAT ABOUT ME????? WHAT ABOUT MEEEEEEEEE”

“ILL NEVER BE HIM”

A flurry of messages comes through, all with the overarching theme of “I'll never be him”

“I mean we could dye your hair”

Toge likes to sneak into your dorm after long missions just because. You feel the bed move under his weight. Toge proceeded to wiggle his way closer to you, lifting your waist gently to place his arm under, pulling you somehow even closer. Resting his chin on your shoulder, “Hi”

Toge likes to keep his collar zipped up and mumble so you have to lean closer to him to hear him then pull it down and quickly kiss you

Play fighting is his all-time favorite pastime. Play fighting either means just wrestling around or picking you up and slamming you on any soft surface

Mystery box addict over here. Toge loves all mystery boxes but ESPECIALLY those Tokidoki ponies and the Sanrio ones

100% makes you guys open them together and record it

“Hi chat. We got blind boxes again,” you say holding up one of the many blind boxes you and Toge had purchased that day

“We bought so much today I don't think we have enough for groceries,” “Salmon”

“Which one do you want? I want the onion or corn pony,” Toge leans over and looks at the back of your box, and taps frantically on the pony that looks like a potato. Unfortunately for you two, you both get radish.

Plushie. Demon. Toge either glares at your plushies or makes them kiss and makes them hump each other

“BABY STOP THEYRE SIBLINGS!! YOU'RE MAKING THEM COMMIT INCEST STAWP!!!”

Dinner nights with the rest of your friends are quite common. Most of the time Toge makes dinner and invites your friends

Dinner also (most of the time) morphs into an unexpected sleepover (you guys forgot how late it was and now can't leave the dorm without being seen)

Toge loves playing video games with you. Even if you don’t play the kind of games he plays

“Grrrr,” Toge grows like a dog at your Stardew Valley character.

“Be quiet freak I'm talking to my husband. Go to the mines we need coal,”

“I'm being cucked in my own save file,” Toge texts you before running to the mines

MATCHING EVERYTHING OMG

Matching phone charms, headbands, sleep masks, PLUSHIES!!! Literally everything that can match you guys have it

[y0urm4m]

BIKER CHRIS

(I feel like biker is just Chris coded soo)

Warnings:swearing,suggestive content,fem reader,nickname “ma”,smut,smoking.

:y/n never really found her self getting along with Chris, but she always felt there was something deeper that drew them back to each other and that darn bike.

It was a Friday evening, like any other she was sat at her window with a lit cigarette in her left hand her phone in her right scrolling through instagram. No new notifications she huffed to herself, what is nick doing he hasn’t answered in hours he had messaged her first asking about meeting up and having a night watching films and catching up on stuff. Bear in mind they talked all day everyday so not much was new, so they’d probably just scroll on there phones eat loads of junk and drink some energy drinks. She inhaled the last toke of her cigarette before putting it out, slowly becoming lost in thought her mind wondered to some of the times nick and her had hung out it was usually fun apart from the times Chris had ruined it by being a self centred, obnoxious jackass.

Speak of the devil, y/n’s thoughts were abruptly interrupted by the sound of a motorcycle. Christopher sturniolo’s motorcycle to be in fact. The sound of the accelerator made her stomach do flips and her thighs squeeze together, but the abrupt sound of the motorcycle slowing down outside her house unexpectedly, caught her by surprise. She slowly peeked out the window hoping not to be seen: as she sat in her pyjama shorts and jumper. She finally had caught a clear glimpse of Chris slowly turning the key to his Honda CBR 1000RR: specifically orange and black probably being the only reason Chris bought it in the first place. Chris arose from the bike putting the visor on his helmet up as he began to walk towards y/n’s front door. Instantly y/n jumped up pulling her shorts down as much as she could, although the bottom of her butt still was out for Chris all eyes to see. She slowly made her way towards the door to unlock and see what Chris wanted, she reached her hand for the door handle hastily opening it. As She stood with one leg crossed over the other looking up at Chris, who had finally realised she had answered the door. Before even saying hi he took of his helmet brushing his hand through his hair. Her thighs squeezed together once again but this time Chris was there to catch her in the act, he looked her up and down smirking at the tiny shorts she had on. In response to his smirk she rolled her eyes thinking Chris was just trying to be a funny smartass. “What do you want Chris?”she spoke slightly annoyed. “No need to use that tone with me ma”he replied cockily moving slightly more towards her. “Christopher if you don’t tell me why you’re here I will willingly slam this door right in your face!”she snapped back. He raised his eyebrow at that witty remark. “Fine, fine I’ll tell you why I’m here if you stop being a cynic,” he chuckled. She didn’t look to impressed with that answer so he decided to finally tell her why he was mysteriously at her door at 5:40pm.

“I got forced to come and pick you up by Nick because Matt was out, is that a good answer?” He finally explained. “Right and how comes Nick didn’t tell me this before like he usually does when Matt picks me up, plus I could have walked,” She replied. “And in no way am I ready, so Chris just come in I’ll be like 20 minutes maximum.”she added on sighing, reluctantly opening the door letting the man in. As she turned to walk inside she had merely forgot her back side was on full display for Chris and anyone within a 10 metre range. Chris’ jaw dropped slightly at the free site in front of him, his hormones getting the best of his as his joggers began to tighten and his face flushed a slight red tinge. She turned to look at him. “You alright there Chris?”she asked in confusion. “U..uh yeah.. all good”he stuttered, looking down at the floor. At this point Y/N was confused Chris was never like this he’s usually loud and extremely annoying so she decided to brush it off her shoulder and get on with getting her stuff to head out. That wasn’t even the worst part now they both had to go upstairs so she could get her stuff, y/n was first to walk up the stairs Chris tried his hardest to not look at her ass but he just couldn’t help himself catching a glimpse of her ass and through the side of the shorts the orange panties she had decided to wear. “Fuck..”Chris mumbled to himself. “What was that Chris?”she looked over her shoulder at him. “Nothing.”he replied as they made it to her bedroom. Y/N decided it would be best to switch into some joggers for the ride to the house as it was definitely too cold for shorts. She quickly shoved her cigarettes,phone and some other stuff into a rucksack and made her way to Chris who stood leaning against her hallway wall phone in hand. The air was filled with sexual frustration even if neither of them could tell. “Chris we can go now.”she announced walking downstairs as Chris sheepishly followed behind as he was still painfully hard.

Once they were outside Chris faced towards Y/N. “C’mere ma.” He beckoned her over to him, she looked up at him as he grabbed his helmet slowly sliding it over her head. “Be better if you kept that on ma, can’t have you getting hurt!” He joked. There was that cockiness she remembered, She just nodded, as she slowly sat on the motorcycle behind Chris. “You know your gonna have to put your hands here ma?”he said pointing to around his waist. “I’m not doing that.”she replied shaking her head. “Yes you are or we’re not going anywhere,”he said, she just sat there staring at him obviously not impressed with what she was having to do. He slowly became impatient so instead of asking he just grabbed her hands and placed them on his waist. “Now I suggest you leave them there, ma.” He said, turning on the engine to his motorcycle and he began to drive off towards the house. The start of the trip was quiet Y/N sat in silence her hands still in the same place as they were when they first left, but a sneaky idea had come to mind. She slowly slid her hand down from Chris’ waist to his thigh, moving her index finger is circles. “Y/N?”he said sternly, he never called her by her first name it was always ma every time. But she ignored him still making tiny circles on his thigh, Chris’ cock was awfully hard now to the point who couldn’t take it. He sped up driving as fast as he could to the house slowing down as he got on his street. He pulled into the garage parking but before Y/N could go through the door he stopped her, pressing the button closing the garage door. “Ma, after what you did on the bike I suggest you do something about this.”he whisper spoke, as he pointed down to his boner. All y/n did was squeeze her thighs together she didn’t move almost frozen in place. He walked towards her tucking the loose hair behind her ears pulling her face forwards, her lips meeting his connecting perfectly. The kiss deepened tongues entwined together, this lasted around 2 minutes before chris pulled back his hands rubbing up and down her waist. “You sure you want this ma?”he asked. She nodded. “Words ma, I need words.”he replied. “Yes, Chris im sure.”she whispered, thighs clenched and eyes half open. He smiled a bit before looking at her asking for approval to undress her, she nodded this time he didn’t ask for words he was to impatient and began pulling her sweatpants down and taking her top of. Leaving y/n in her bra and undies, Chris groaned at the sight. “Can I take yours off?”she asked quietly. He just nodded, she began pulling Chris’ top over his head and pulling his joggers down. She bit her lip looking and the obvious bulge in Chris’ boxers. “I can’t wait anymore ma, I want you bent over my bike now.”he told her. She reluctantly bent over the bike her ass facing Chris. He slapped her ass, she moaned quietly in response. “You like that ma?” He asked smirking, but before she could even answer he slapped her ass a bit harder this time cause her to jolt slightly forward. “I’m gonna ask you to be quiet for me ma, can you do that for me yeah!”he whispered into her ear slowly pulling her orange panties down. She spread her legs a bit in response as Chris then pushed his boxers down, spitting on his hand pumping his dick a few times before aligning himself up. “You ready ma?” He whispered in her ear lustfully. She nodded, with that he pushed in leaving no time to adjust to his size. “Chris..fuck.”she moaned out, putting her hand behind her to brush it through the side of chris’ hair. He kept thrusting in her at the semi fast pace. As the garage filled with the sound of skin slapping, Chris’ groans and her moans. The aroma of sex filled the air as well as their noses. “Fuck your so tight ma, gonna make me cum if you keep squeezing me like that.”Chris groaned in her ear. “Chris.. fuck Im gonna.. cum”she cried out as the feeling of her slowly coming undone took over. Her legs shaking slightly and her eyes rolling to the back of her head.

“You think you can cum for me one more time ma?”he asked her softly.She nodded, this time Chris’ pace was a bit faster, y/n becoming even more of a moaning mess at the continuous feeling of Chris’ thrusting into her and the fact she had just came. His pace slowly became messed up as he became closer to his edge. “Fuck.. ma I’m gonna cum,”he groaned out gripping onto her ass. “Gonna fill you up ma”he whispered as he came undone filling y/n up with his cum. As they both stayed in place for a few minutes catching their breath, Chris slowly pulled out. “We should probably head in, before nick thinks something bad has happened.”Chris said putting his clothes back on, leaving y/n getting re-dressed. Y/N grabbed her phone, 1 new notifications from Chris.

Meet me later in my room and we can talk properly

ꜰɪɴɪᴛᴀ

That was honestly so fun to write if people do like it I’m kinda tempted to possibly make a part two or something!

Tiny taglist:

@freshsturns

[willalove75]

Alcina's New Maid. Pt. 5! Lady Dimitrescu x Reader

Summary: Lady Dimitrescu brings you in as one of her maids, at least, that's what you thought she brought you to the castle for.

Warnings: 18+ minors DNI

Tags: flirty, fluff, slow burn, smut.

Notes: Part 5! I had to split part 4 into two because it was getting WAY too long so here ya go💕 I wasn't planning on a certain someone showing up this early but it just worked as I was typing out my stream of consciousness. The plot is getting thiccccc

Click here for the rest of the series

The next morning you wake up and for the first time, Alcina is still in bed with you. She had gotten up at some point and put on a black nightgown, but you wake up the same way you fell asleep, tucked into her with her arm wrapped around you. She feels you stir and looks down at you. You look up at her, her reading glasses perched on the bridge of her nose with a book in her hand.

"Good morning draga." She says.

"Good morning Mis- Alcina." You say sleepily.

"How did you sleep my pet?"

"Really well, how did you sleep?"

"Well, I require very little sleep, so for the 30-45 minutes I was asleep was wonderful."

"What did you do the rest of the night?" You're pretty sure you knew Alcina and the girls were vampires of some sort, or at least not human, but there was still so much about them that was a mystery.

"Well I got up and worked for a few hours, then I had some rare free time so I came back here and continued reading my book."

You smile at her and she pulls you into her.

"I'll have Zina bring you up breakfast this morning."

"She doesn't have to, I can eat in the kitchen, I feel so bad that she's been doing so much extra work just for me." Alcina side-eyes you.

"I'm not sure if that's a good idea my pet, I have, concerns, about the other maidens."

You're disappointed, but nod your head. She's right to be concerned, to be fair you are too, but you're tired of having people waiting on you hand and foot because you're trying to avoid someone.

"I understand Alcina."

She sighs and you look up at her.

"You may go down to the kitchen for breakfast, but you must bring it up here and eat in my chambers. Understand?"

"Yes, thank you Alcina." You say with a smile.

"Before you go, help me get dressed."

She closes her book and tosses her covers off of her and gets out of bed. You follow suit and go to her wardrobe to grab a dress.

"Do you want me to pick anything in particular?" You ask her.

"Just my usual attire is fine dear." She says as she removes her nightgown, revealing a new lacy bra and underwear set.

You grab her dress and bring it to her. She steps into it and slides her arms into the sleeves. She sits on her vanity bench so you can button it.

She touches up her lipstick and slides her gloves on.

"There's a new uniform on the chair over there for you." She says, nodding to one of the chairs in the corner of the room.

You walk over and put your new uniform on and turn back to Alcina who is adjusting her hat on her head.

"Is there anything else you need me to do?"

"That's all, you can head down to the kitchen. Remember, straight back up here with your tray, no gallivanting around, yes?"

"I promise I'll come right back here, no detours." You say with a smile.

"Good girl. Go on." She says, nodding towards the door.

You make your way downstairs and head towards the kitchen. You see Zina just outside the kitchen, surprised to see you.

"Y/n, I was just about to prepare a tray to bring up to you."

"Thank you Zina, but I figured I'd come down and grab breakfast myself and bring it up. I hate that I've been making so much extra work for you."

Zina looks at you a little concerned.

"Does she-"

"Oh, yes, she gave me permission to get breakfast and bring it back up to her chambers."

Her face relaxes into a smile.

"Very well then, enjoy."

You walk into the kitchen and you immediately feel eyes on you. You try your best to ignore them as you wait in line for your meal. Once you get breakfast you grab your tray and make your way back across the kitchen to Alcina's chambers.

All is fine until you feel someone shove you from behind, as you're shoved you see a foot stick out and trip you, your tray goes flying and so do you. You try to brace yourself for the fall but you smack your head into one of the benches at the table and roll onto the floor. You may have blacked out for a moment but you sit up as fast as you can, your head spinning and in pain. You feel your head and look at your hand and see blood, you look up and see Stefana standing over you with an evil smile across her face. You look down and see that she has a knife in her hand, you panic and try to back away from her as you're on the floor, afraid if you turn your back she's just going to kill you.

As Stefana takes a step forward, a loud "BAM" echoes through the kitchen startling everyone, including you. You turn your head to look and see that the kitchen door has been knocked off of it's hinges, a familiar black hat makes its way through the door frame as Alcina steps into the kitchen. She stands up straight and looks at Stefana, the look in her eyes is terrifying, she looks down at you on the floor and her eyes soften with concern, in an instant the rage is back as she walks towards the two of you, more than half of the maids run out of the kitchen through the other door.

You scramble to your feet and step back towards Alcina. Stefana drops the knife, you're not sure if she even realized she did to be honest.

"YOU." She yells, the walls of the kitchen shake. "You disrespectful, insolent worm."

Alcina extends her claws, and slowly walks towards her, she walks past you and gently pushes you behind her.

"What did I tell you last time? If you so even look at her again I will slice you to ribbons. You were properly warned yet you still did not listen." Her tone is cold and angry. "I told you you would regret it."

Stefana stands there, terrified, but also angry.

"Alci-" She begins to say.

"SILENCE." Alcina yells. "I never gave you permission to call me by that name, a name you only learned after prying through my personal belongings! How dare you try and use stolen information to save yourself."

"I deserved to know!" Stefana tells back.

"You deserve nothing." Alcina hisses.

"I love you! You told me you loved me and you threw me aside like I was nothing to you!" She yells through tears.

Alcina laughs out loud, her laughter fills you with terror. "Make no mistake little girl," she growls as she gets closer to her. "I never spoke those words to you. You were nothing to me, and you still are nothing to me. All you are is a nuisance, a disobedient, disrespectful wench and I am THROUGH with giving you repeated warnings to behave yourself."

Alcina slowly pulls her arm back, getting ready to slash Stefana into pieces.

"NO!" You yell, you have no idea what came over you, but you couldn't watch Alcina kill her in front of you, not like this. You run up behind Alcina and grab her wrist before she slashes forward.

Alcina stops and slowly looks down at you, she has an anger in her eyes you never knew was possible for someone to have, even if they weren't human.

"Please, don't, please." You beg. Your entire body is trembling, you didn't even realize you were crying.

She glares into your eyes as your hands tremble around her large wrist, but you don't break eye contact. The anger in her eyes softens, not much, but you notice the slight shift. She growls at you and aggressively retracts her claws, you slowly drop your hands and she breaks the eye contact and looks towards Stefana. She takes another step closing the distance between the two of them.

She raises her hand to her face and you wince, she drags her finger down Stefana's cheek.

"Today is certainly your lucky day." She says sweetly, but almost terrifyingly. When her finger reaches her jaw, Alcina grabs Stefana by the throat and lifts her up to her eye level. "You better be grateful for her kindness because if I had it my way you would be slashed to pieces on this floor right now." She brings Stefana closer to her face. "If you so much as breathe in her direction, it will be the very last breath you take. Next time I will not let her stop me from tearing you to shreds. Do you understand?"

Stefana tries to respond but can't because of the pressure around her throat. Alcina drops her and she hits the ground, hard.

"Now get out of my sight." She growls.

Stefana looks at her for a moment as she gasps for air and another maid comes over and helps her to her feet, guiding her out of the kitchen.

"Let me make one thing very clear to all of you." Alcina says to the maids left in the kitchen. "If anyone lays as much as a finger on her, it will be the last thing you do. Am I clear?" She says angerly.

You hear the maids quietly respond with "yes Lady" and "yes Mistress".

She slowly turns to you and stares at you.

"And you," you swallow hard, worried that you just marked yourself for death. "That was very bold, but very stupid. Do not ever do that again."

"I won't Mistress." You say with a shaking voice.

She kneels down in front of you and brings her knuckle under your chin and lifts your head, she inspects the gash on your head from hitting it on the bench.

"Oh Mother Miranda," she says under her breath. "I think you may need stitches. Come, I'm taking you to the infirmary." She grabs your hand and leads you out of the kitchen to the infirmary.

The stitches pinch a little, but the pain wasn't bad at all, especially compared to the pain you feel when Alcina breaks your skin when she feeds.

"Okay, all finished." The doctor says, cutting the sutures. "You only needed three stitches, the cut wasn't too deep and shouldn't leave much of a scar if you take care of it. You also have a slight concussion, but that should resolve itself in a few days."

"Thank you." You say quietly.

"Is there anything else you need my Lady?" She asks turning to Alcina.

"No, thank you doctor."

The doctor nods her head and leaves the room. You keep your eyes on the floor, not wanting to break the uncomfortable silence. Alcina's anger had subsided, but she still wasn't happy. You feel her eyes on you and you turn and slowly meet them, you feel like a child that's about to be scolded by their mother.

"How are you feeling?" She calmly asks.

"I'm okay." You say quietly.

She brings her knuckle under your chin and lifts your face again, inspecting the stitched up wound.

"Why on earth would you want to me to spare her life?" She says softly, almost like she's talking to herself. "She would have ended yours right then and there with no hesitation." You watch her golden eyes as they scan your stitches, she slowly turns your head back and fourth to examine it from every angle. "Yet, you begged me to spare hers." She drops her hand and looks you in the eyes. "Why?"

"I don't know, I didn't even realize what I was doing when I did that. I just got so scared and I didn't want to watch her die in front of me, I would have felt so guilty, like her death would have been my fault."

Alcina cocks her head to the side and furrows her brows like she's confused.

"And why would that be your fault?"

"Because I'm the one who replaced her, I'm the one she's angry with, if she died because of something she did to me, I'd feel so guilty."

"Her anger is horribly misplaced, I am the one she should be angry with. I brought you here, I was the one who had her replaced, I would have been the one to kill her, you bear none of the guilt or responsibility for what will frankly be her own demise." Your eyes stay focused on the floor. When you don't respond she puts her finger under your chin and lifts your face towards her. "You don't believe me do you?" She says a little flatly.

"It's not that I don't believe you, logically, yes, none of it would be my fault, but my head and my heart can't seem to accept it."

"If she does anything else, do not try and stop me again. Understand?"

"Yes."

"Come, I'm bringing you back to my chambers. I am going to have Zina pack your things from your room in the maids quarters." She says as she grabs your hand and goes to leave the infirmary.

"Wait, why?" You ask as you stop moving.

Alcina stops and turns towards you.

"After that incident I can't trust that you will remain safe in the maids quarters. I am moving you into the room next to mine so I can keep a close eye on you. From now on, unless you are in my chambers or my study, you will not leave my side. You will go where I go and have all of your meals with us in the dining hall. On the rare occasions where I cannot bring you along with me you are to stay with the girls or in one of the designated rooms. Understood?"

You can't help but smile up at her, you shake your head yes accompanied by an "mhm."

She leads you to her chambers and lifts you into her bed. You crawl under the covers and hear a knock at the door.

"Mother?" You hear Bela on the other side of the door.

"Come in." She says and sits on the edge of the bed.

"Mother Miranda is-" Bela looks over and sees your stitches. "WHAT HAPPENED?" She says running over to you. Your head throbs when she yells. Although your concussion was a minor one, it still left you sensitive to bright lights and loud noises.

Out of the three girls Bela is probably the one you're least closest with, seeing her reaction to your injury warmed your heart.

"There was an incident in the kitchen with another maid, it's been handled."

"Is she dead?" Bela asks, angrier than you expected.

"No, but she has been dealt with. Now what about-"

Two swarms of flies appear in the room and Daniela and Cassandra appear.

"What happened?" Daniela asks.

"We heard Bela yell." Cassandra says.

They look over at you and see your stitches at the same time.

"HOW DID YOU GET THAT!?" Daniela yells, your head throbs more when she yells and you wince at the pain.

"Who do I have to kill?" Cassandra says with a darkness in her voice you've never heard before, it honestly scares you a little.

They run over to the bed next to Bela.

"Girls." Alcina says. "Y/n is okay, as I was telling Bela, there was an incident with one of the other maids but it's been handed."

"Why isn't she dead?!" Bela says.

"SHE'S STILL ALIVE?" Daniela and Cassandra yell in unison. You wince again from the sound.

"Girls, volume." Alcina says to the three of them, she looks over at you. "Would you like to tell them why the maid in question isn't currently being made into a fresh bottle of my wine?"

The three girls look at you, both mad and confused.

"Girls, I'm okay, really. Just a few stitches, minor concussion, I'll be fine."

"That doesn't explain why she's still breathing!" Cassandra says.

"Al- your mo- Mistress," You stumble over your words as your head pounds from the concussion. You bring your hands to your face and rub your eyes as your head throbs. "Sorry," You say as you bring your hands down. "I stopped her."

"WHY?!" The three yell.

You wince again, the throbbing in your head increases.

"Girls, she has a concussion, will you please be quiet." Alcina hisses at them as they hang their heads. She gets up and closes the curtains, darkening the room. "Is that better?" She asks, turning towards you.

The darkness helps to ease the pain in your head a little. "Yes, thank you." The three girls stare at you, demanding an answer. "I don't know-"

"Yes you do." Alcina says flatly as she sits back down on the edge of the bed.

The girls look towards Alcina and back to you.

"I- I didn't even know what I was doing until I did it, but I didn't want to see her die in front of me, so I just grabbed her wrist and stopped her from slashing the maid to pieces."

The girls' eyes widen as they look at you.

"And you didn't kill her?" Cassandra asks her mom, gesturing to you.

"No, I did not." Alcina says.

"Woah." Daniela says, staring at you.

"Mom must really like you." Bela says quietly.

Alcina gives her a low growl.

"She's not wrong." Cassandra says to Alcina. "The last time a maid tried to stop you, you gutted her and turned her into a scarecrow as a warning to the rest of them. She's still the only maid out there!"

You swallow hard and watch as Alcina looks at Cassandra.

"Yes, I remember, thank you for the history lesson." She says sarcastically.

"Well I'm happy you didn't kill her." Daniela says, looking up at her mother. "I like y/n, I she's my favorite!"

Alcina smiles and places her hand on Daniela's head, which Daniela nuzzles into.

"So you're just gonna let that maid live?" Bela asks Alcina.

"For now, yes. But if she steps even a centimeter out of place she's finished."

"Can I follow her around so I can kill her the second she messes up?" Cassandra asks eagerly.

"Absolutely not. I will take care of her, I don't want any of you laying a finger or a fly on her, understand?"

"Yes mom." They reply in unison.

"Now, Bela, what were you saying about Mother Miranda?"

"Oh, she needs the lab and some maids to test on."

Alcina pinches the bridge of her nose and furrows her brows.

"I can not afford to keep loosing maids, the village will riot if I take any more girls." She says under her breath and drops her hand.

"We can always give her the one who hurt y/n!" Cassandra says with a devilish smile.

"No, she won't do. I will come up with some solution, did she say when she was coming?" Alcina asks Bela.

"She said she would be here soon."

"Did she say what she needed the lab for?"

"New cadou mutations I think."

"Of course." Alcina says with a sigh. "Alright, thank you girls, you may go. Please try and keep it down."

"Yes mother." They say as they disappear in a swarm.

Alcina turns to you, noticing the confused look on your face.

"You have a lab? Where you test on maids? And what's a cadou?"

"There are many things that go on in this castle that you need not worry about draga, including anything that happens in the dungeon. I must go prepare for Mother Miranda, under no circumstances are you to leave this room. I will make sure your meals are delivered to you. You are to rest until you are fully recovered, understand?"

"Yes."

She drags her finger along your cheek and studies your face for a moment. She drops her hand and stands.

"I must be off, if you need anything before I return have one of the girls or Zina assist you."

"I will." You look up into her eyes as she towers over you. "Thank you for saving me." You say quietly.

"No need to thank me my pet." she cups her hand under your face. She goes to speak but stops herself and purses her lips. You gently smile at her and she smiles back at you and drops her hand.

She opens the door and you see her stop.

"Oh, Mother Miranda, I wasn't expecting you so soon." Alcina says.

"I don't understand why, I did tell your daughter I would be arriving soon." You hear an unamused voice outside of the door but can't see her with Alcinas dress blocking your view. "What do you have in here?" The woman asks.

"Oh, it's nothing im-"

She pushes past Alcina and walks into the room. You see a woman dressed in all black, wearing a gold mask with a black feathered hood on her head. Her mask nearly resembling a birds beak, the hood attached to a floor length robe, also covered in black feathers. She removes the hood revealing her blond hair, slicked back and tucked into her robe.

"And what do we have here?" She says, almost amused.

"Mother Miranda, this is my new handmaiden, y/n."

Alcina's demeanor has completely shifted since she opened the door, usually she commands every room she walks into. As soon as Mother Miranda entered, her usual large presence seems to have shrunk. You're not sure what it exactly is, if Alcina is being submissive, if she just very, very highly respects her, of if she fears her, or if it's a combination of all of the above, but she's not her usual self.

"Your handmaiden resting in your chambers?" Mother Miranda says, as if she's mocking Alcina.

Your eyes shift to Alcina, you can almost see a desperation in her eyes, like a child looking for praise and acceptance from their neglectful parent. It's something you've never witnessed with Alcina before, you're not sure how you feel about it, but you gut doesn't have a good feeling.

"Yes, she had an altercation with another one of the maids leaving her injured. For her own safety I am having her stay in my chambers until I can make other arrangements."

"I can see," Mother Miranda says as she walks up to you and examines you. You notice she has bright yellow eyes, similar to Alcina's. "Such a pretty young thing." She says as she caresses your cheek with her finger.

You meekly smile at her. "Thank you." You say quietly. You look over at Alcina and you see a shift in her eyes as Mother Miranda touches you, her jaw clenches and she bites the inside of her lip, trying to keep her emotions in check. She doesn't look happy.

"And why is this maiden not being utilized in my lab? She may be a fine specimen for the cadou."

You see fear and anger flare in Alcina's eyes as she takes a few steps towards you both. Mother Miranda turns to look at Alcina and she tries her best to hide her emotions.

"With all due respect Mother Miranda, I don't believe she would handle the cadou well. Her small body would crumble, it would kill her, I'm certain of it. She is quite useful, one of my best maids, I have other maidens that would take to the cadou much better than she will, and they will be much more useful in your experiments." Alcina's eyes shift to you and back to Mother Miranda. You get the feeling she's trying to protect you, but you're not sure from what, Mother Miranda, the lab, the cadou, all of it?

"Alcina, are you prioritizing one of your pathetic employees over my work? You do understand the importance of these experiments don't you?"

You never thought you'd see the day where Alcina was intimidated by someone, but Mother Miranda certainly does it.

"No Mother Miranda, not at all." Alcina quickly replies, her tone apologetic. "I absolutely understand the importance of it-"

"Then stop prioritizing a simple maid over my work." Mother Miranda growls.

You see fear in Alcina's eyes, she's not fearful for her, she's fearful for you. You don't know what experiments they're talking about, or even what a cadou is, but from Alcina's reaction to the potential of subjecting you to it, it can't be good.

Mother Miranda turns towards you again and looks at you.

"You may be a wonderful specimen for the cadou," she says, stroking your hair. "Or it may kill you, there's only one true way to find out." She says with an evil smile. You're not sure if she's being serious, or just trying to get a rise out of Alcina, because if she's trying to get a rise out of her, it's certainly working. You see the anger bubbling in Alcina, you've heard of Mother Miranda before and if the rumors are true, her powers are strong, and terrifying.

"If I may," you quietly say, hoping to diffuse the situation. Alcina's eyes snap towards you, before you can gauge her reaction Mother Miranda's bright yellow eyes capture your attention as she stares intensely into your eyes. "Well first, it's an honor to meet you Mother Miranda." Mother Miranda's stare doesn't falter. The tension in the air thickens, you're not sure if you're about to seal your fate to the dungeon or save yourself, but it's too late to back out now. "But, um, I'm not an employee, technically." You break eye contact with Mother Miranda for a moment to look at Alcina, who looks both worried and unsure of what you're doing, your eyes meet Mother Miranda's once again.

"Are you a maiden?" Mother Miranda asks, her voice cold and aggravated.

"Yes ma'am."

"Do you clean the castle?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Do you wear a maids uniform?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Do you stay in the maids quarters?"

"I did ma'am."

"Then explain to me, how are you not an employee?" Her bright eyes burning into yours.

"Lady Dimitrescu purchased me." You pause for a moment, slowly and carefully selecting each word that comes out of your mouth. "She paid my uncle in exchange for me. So, although I have the same duties as the employees here, I believe I am technically her property. Right?" You look over at Alcina, you see her relax a bit and she gives you a tiny nod.

"She is correct Mother Miranda," Alcina says as she takes a step forward. "I paid a large sum of money to take possession of her. Aside from knowing she would not react well to the cadou, as other experiments similar to her physique have, I would like to make my investment worthwhile."

"You must be very special then if Alcina was willing to purchase you. Although I'm not surprised, you are very beautiful." She says, stroking you cheek again, she almost sounds like she's flirting with you. You see Alcina stiffen, Mother Miranda is toying with her, trying to provoke her. "Such a shame you'll have a hideous scar, tainting your beautiful face." She says as her finger slides down your jawline and she flicks her finger as she reaches under your chin, her sharp talon grazing your skin.

Your eyes shift to Alcina, her jaw clenched again, anger in her eyes, Mother Miranda turns to face her and she tries her best to soften her eyes. Mother Miranda chuckles.

"Very well Alcina, I will respect your property. I will meet you in the lab." She says as she stands up. In a flash she disappears in a burst of black feathers.

Alcina exhales in relief and closes her eyes, putting her hands over her chest. She takes a breath in to ground herself and regains her composure, when she opens her eyes, it's like she's back to normal. She looks over at you and you're worried about her, relieved, and fucking confused.

"What the fuck was that?"

"Language." She says, scolding you.

"Sorry."

She cups your face in her hand and you close your eyes and lean into her. She bends down and when you open your eyes you realize she's eye level with you.

"You are extremely lucky. Your boldness will no doubt be your downfall." She says looking into your eyes. "Don't push your luck." You nod your head in her hand. She kisses you on your forehead, you're both surprised when you feel her lips on you. Alcina pulls away and stands up and heads towards the door. "Since you are my property, I very well may have to get you a collar, my little pet." She says almost flirtatiously as she smirks, turning towards you before she opens the door.

"If that's what you want, Mistress." You say with a smile.

She cocks an eyebrow at you and leaves the room, closing the door behind her.

"Holy shit." You say to yourself as you lay back into the pillows. Not realizing how anxious you really were that entire time, you feel like a huge weight was lifted off of your chest as your anxiety fades away.

"Why was Alcina so afraid for me? What the fuck did Mother Miranda do to have so much power over her? What experiments are they performing on maids in the dungeon or lab or whatever the hell they have in the basement? What the fuck is a cadou? What else happens here that I don't know about?!" Thoughts and questions flood your mind, you were hoping to try and relax and maybe get some sleep but that's definitely not happening anymore.

Alcina leaves her chambers and closes the door behind her. She leans back against the wall and takes a long, shaky breath in and slowly exhales. It's not even noon and she's already had the most stressful day she's had in years, all she wants right now is a cigarette and a drink. The last thing she wants to do right now is work on experiments in the lab with Mother Miranda. She knew letting you go down to the kitchen was a bad idea, but the disappointment in your face crushed her so she gave in without a second thought. She decided to quietly follow you to the kitchen, just to make sure you were safe, and she was grateful she followed her instincts.

She was worried when she heard what sounded like a tray falling, a small thud and a soft yelp, but she was hoping it wasn't you. It wasn't until she heard your heartbeat increase rapidly that she knew you were in trouble. She didn't mean to knock the door off of it's hinges, but you were in danger and she needed to get to you as fast as possible. She was completely blinded by anger, seeing you on the floor, bleeding from your head, Stefana standing over you with a knife in her hand, ready to take her revenge. She was ready to kill Stefana, she was almost excited about it. She was only pulled out of her searing anger when she felt hands around her wrist and seeing you there when she looked down. Bleeding, crying, terrified and trembling like a leaf, she was pissed that you got in her way, but she couldn't stand seeing you like that more than she wanted to kill Stefana.

Then in her chambers, where she thought you were finally safe, Mother Miranda shows up and tries to take you to the lab and experiment on you. This terrified her far more than the threat of Stefana. Normally she would bend to any request Mother Miranda asked of her, she's given Mother Miranda her personal handmaids to experiment on before. Most of them either dying or turning into moroaicas, but she desperately fought to keep you out of the dungeon; even if that meant going against Mother Miranda's wishes, something she's never even considered before. She felt jealousy for the first time in years when Mother Miranda dangled you in front of her like a toy, she knew what she was doing and she did it purposefully. It scared her that she felt so much anger when Mother Miranda stroked your cheek and complimented you, flirted with you; and it angered her even more when she insulted you, saying that your beautiful face was tainted from the wound.

She was terrified to her core when you spoke up, worried that Mother Miranda would deem you disrespectful and just kill you right in front of her. She felt a wave of relief wash over her when you mentioned that you were her property, a point she never even thought to bring up. She never looked at you as her property, but technically, you were, and that might be the only reason you weren't being dragged to the lab right this second.

Before Mother Miranda showed up, she almost said "I will always protect you." but stopped herself. She didn't want to be that vulnerable with someone else, she was worried she was getting too attached, afraid to express the feelings she had deep down she's been trying to suppress. Impulse took control when she kissed you on the forehead before she left, it's been decades since she's shown someone other than her daughters that kind of affection, and it scared her. It's been decades since she's felt so strongly for someone like this, it's something she's actively tried to avoid in all honesty.

"I'm becoming too attached." She thinks to herself. If she's learned anything in her 100 plus years of living, it's how to shove things into a box and put it to the back of her mind to hopefully be forgotten. "I must distance myself." She thinks of how heartbroken you would be and how sad it would make her to see you like that, but she quickly pushes that thought aside. Her fears greater than her guilt, she stands up straight, takes in a deep breath, exhales, and shoves all of her feelings towards you into a box and into the darkest corner of her mind. She has work to do, experiments to work on with Mother Miranda, a business to run, she has no time for these silly feelings. She adjusts her hat, smooths out her dress and makes her way to the lab to continue working towards Mother Miranda's goal.

[inawickedlittletown]

It's A Love Story (BuckTommy) - one-shot

Summary: You saw all kinds of things working at a restaurant. First dates. Failed dates. Proposals. Arguments. Break ups. The passing of secrets.

Or, the waitress at the restaurant Tommy and Buck go to for their first date likes to people watch.

BuckTommy Positivity Week Day 5: outsider perspective

Rated: G

Words: 2.9k

@bucktommypositivityweek

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Read on Ao3

You saw all kinds of things working at a restaurant. First dates. Failed dates. Proposals. Arguments. Break ups. The passing of secrets. People watching almost made up for the meager pay and the nights when few dine-ins meant less tips. Rachel was only working there until she managed to get the right role. That was something she’d been saying for years and she’d landed her fair share of commercials and done a few background characters here or there. Her boss was at least very understanding of her goals and willing to work around her auditions. It was better than she could have ever expected. 

People watching was fun too, especially for someone that was trying to hone the craft of emoting emotions well on film. The best people to watch were the regulars. On them you could see the human condition. A good day or a bad day played out differently. You got to see how things changed from a change in partner or family that grew or got smaller. A small insight into their lives. 

One guy, a guy that Rachel and her coworker, Casey, had named David after the Michelangelo statue, came in almost only a week. It was never on the same day, but he always ordered a medium pizza. It was always just the single pizza pie. It was always ordered over the phone and he paid in cash and nearly always left a tip in the jar. 

David was a bit of a mystery, but he was so hot that she, Casey, some of the other girls, and William tried to make conversation with him if they spotted him. Sometimes, when they knew it was his order, they made the kitchen wait to put it into the oven so they could get a bit more time with him. 

The problem with David was that he was hot and nice. He was tall, kinda built in a way that meant he could probably pick Rachel up without breaking a sweat. His jaw looked like it could cut glass and his cheeks were perfectly chiseled. He had an aquiline nose and on him it made absolute sense. What made it worse were his blue eyes and how sometimes his dark hair curled just a bit. 

He was always friendly, greeting them with a polite hello and a smile. He was always on his own and nothing about him gave away what he did. Casey thought he was or had been military. No ring on his finger told them he was unmarried. William had once gotten the courage to ask if he was seeing anyone. 

He’d gotten a crisp, “no” for his trouble. 

Casey had gotten him talking sports one night and since Rachel knew nothing about sports she hadn’t been able to tell if his opinions were good or not. 

Years went on like that and there was something absolutely lonely about the guy. The few times he ate in it was always on his own. 

On Wednesday afternoon when it was quiet enough that even William had gotten bored enough to start rearranging the shelves under the counter, David walked in. 

“Hi, how are you,” Rachel said at once. “Did you put in an order?” 

“Oh. No. Last minute decision,” he said. “I almost forgot I don’t have anything to eat at home. Can I just get a medium veggie?”

“Sure,” she said. “Fifteen minutes?” 

He gave a nod and took a seat at the counter. Rachel hated the counter seats because it meant having customers right within hearing distance, but she was changing her mind having David there. 

He propped his head on his hand. 

“Long morning?” Rachel asked. 

“Yes. Very,” he said. “I was supposed to get off work — at this point — ten hours ago. So now all I want is food and sleep.” 

He blinked lazily and left as soon as his food was ready. 

Rachel didn’t see him again for a few more weeks and then to her surprise when he next showed up on a Saturday night, he entered with another guy. He looked like he’d put a little more effort into his clothes than usual, not that he ever showed up looking like a slob. His friend was probably equally as hot as him. He had an interesting marking over his left eye and he was cute in a more approachable way than David. 

“It’s a date,” William said. “Haven’t I been saying for ages that David is gay?”

There was actually no telling if it was a date or not. Rachel hadn’t been lucky enough to have them sit in her section, but Casey was willing to recount everything she heard from the table. 

So in the kitchen they all got to hear about how the not-David guy was a bit of a rambler and was giving David a lecture on sea turtles of all things. David, according to Casey, didn’t seem to mind a bit. He seemed to encourage it. So far there was no telling if they were just good friends or on a date, but one thing was for certain, they seemed to be enjoying each other’s company. They drank almost two pitchers of beer between them by the time they asked for the check. 

“Rachel, he’s paying for the whole thing and he’s paying with card,” Casey whispered to her. 

“They’re on a date,” William threw in. “Also, look at his name on the card.” 

Rachel had to go deliver drinks to her table, so she returned after Casey had already processed the payment and returned the card to David. 

“Thomas,” Casey told her. “His name is Thomas Kinard.” 

Something weird did happen, then. Thomas’ friend seemed to get spooked for some reason, glancing around like everyone in the restaurant was looking at them. It wasn’t the other dinners as much as the wait staff but he didn’t seem to get clued into that. David — Thomas — was suddenly looking a bit more serious. 

Rachel went to lead a couple to their table when halfway there, the guy stopped in front of David’s — Thomas’ — table and he called out, “ Tommy!” 

So he went by Tommy. Rachel thought it fit him. His companion was named Buck apparently and Buck only managed to stiffen even more. Rachel didn’t hear everything that was said over the din of plates, cutlery, and conversation, but she could see that Tommy had gone a little flat. His companion looked even more panicked. They didn’t look like they even said another word to each other and then they got up to leave. 

“What is happening?” William asked. 

Rachel was taking care of her own table. The couple looked happy and the guy actually informed her that they’d just decided to move in together. 

“That’s nice,” Rachel said distracted by watching David — damn it, his name was Tommy — walk out with Buck. 

Rachel managed to sneak closer to the window to look out there and she saw them share a few words before Tommy, shoulders squared, got into a car and left his companion behind. Buck seemed frustrated by being left behind. He didn’t waste too long before he too departed. 

“If it was a date,” Rachel told William and Casey later, “I don’t think it ended well.” 

They saw Tommy again two weeks later. He wasn’t picking up his single pie, but two pizza pies, garlic knots, and an order of wings. He was all smiles and talked to William about having spent the day at the zoo. 

“Well that was unusual,” William said. 

After that he just kind of disappeared. He had either found a better pizza place or he’d given it up altogether. So, it was shocking when Tommy returned one Thursday night. He wasn’t alone. Buck, the guy he’d been eating with that one time was with him. They stood close to each other at the counter and Buck laid his hand on Tommy’s forearm. Tommy smiled at him. 

Tommy smiling made him look even more gorgeous. The skin around his eyes crinkled and he had the straightest, whitest teeth. No one had ever managed to get his job out of him and Rachel was starting to wonder if he was maybe some kind of model or actor. 

“So I suppose I have to thank you,” Buck was saying. 

“How do you figure that?” Tommy asked. 

“I think the muay thai helped a little.” 

Tommy laughed. “I doubt that. But I’m glad you were quick on your feet.” 

“The whole thing was nuts. Chim really saved the day catching the baby. I like when everything gets resolved in one shift.” 

“I know what you mean. You’re not left wondering.” 

“Exactly.” 

Rachel caught Tommy’s attention. He went to pay, but Buck pushed him back and extended his card to her. 

“Evan,” Tommy said. 

She looked between them as Tommy finally gave a nod. Evan looked a little smug and as he signed the slip he shot her a smile. 

“My boyfriend here is always trying to pay for everything,” he said. 

Boyfriend, he said. So William was right and it had been a date that time they were in before. And, clearly whatever happened at the end of the last date had been resolved. 

“That’s not a bad thing,” Rachel said. 

“Exactly,” Tommy said. 

“I’m not saying I don’t appreciate it,” Evan said and he glanced back at Tommy. “I’m just saying that you deserve to be taken care of too.” 

The look that Tommy settled on Evan was one that Rachel wanted to take and keep into her back pocket because it was infatuation and fondness and maybe even love rolled into one. 

They left still talking to each other and Tommy opened the door for Evan who carried their food. 

After that Tommy started showing up on his own again, but there was no telling if it was because he wasn’t dating Evan anymore or what. After all, sometimes he still did pick up a single pizza pie, but other times it was two or other things from the menu. Casey did report that she’d seen Evan stop by to pick up take out once or twice and that he was nearly always distracted by his phone when he did. 

It did take a while for Tommy and Evan to return together. It was, of course, on the night before Rachel’s big audition. It was for a new tv-show and for some reason they were looking for complete unknowns for the main cast. Rachel was hoping it’d be her big break. Her agent seemed to think she had a shot. 

So, she was a little distracted and running lines as much as she could. She was also lucky that Casey and William were both on shift because as long as it wasn’t busy they were willing to let her take up a table and just go over the lines again. Rachel would pay them back when William needed to sit and write whatever had popped into his head or when he needed to revise something he was turning in and Casey when she had a big test or finals to study for. 

Casey, as a lark, even sat them at the table next to her and winked at her. She rolled her eyes, but that didn’t stop her from eavesdropping. 

“It’s horrible,” Evan said in a tone that was almost whining. “Like I expected the worst, but it’s worse than that. But we can…we can talk about something else because I don’t even want to think about Gerrard anymore. He already takes up too much of my time. Can you tell me about your day?” 

“Lucy and Melton are feuding,” Tommy said. “I think he ate her sandwich by mistake a few days ago and she’s not letting it go. That’s as exciting as it gets around Harbor.” 

“Other than when you’re flying a helicopter. Maybe I really should think about transferring. After all the lessons have paid off.” 

“Uh…I’m not saying it’s not an option, but they kinda need you over there right now.” 

Evan laughed. “I know. I know. I think Eddie is growing a mustache and I don’t know if it’s in response to Gerrard or Chris. Either way, it’s weird.” 

“Evan, you can’t just say that and not have pictures.” 

“He’ll probably still have it when you see him for basketball tomorrow.” 

When the restaurant started getting a bit busy she had to get up and help with the takeout orders. So Tommy flew helicopters? She added that to the lore and passed the information on to William and Casey. 

It was almost a week after the audition when she heard back about a call back. A chemistry read. Two more auditions and then right in the middle of grabbing a take out order to pass to a customer her phone began to ring. 

“Casey, I gotta take this one.” 

Considering how noisy it was inside, she ran out to the front. It was twilight, the sky shot with a bunch of different colors as the sun went down. 

“Hello?” 

She paced the sidewalk in front of the restaurant and listened as her agent said a lot of things that lead up to, “you got it, Rach. You got the job.” 

Rachel didn’t know what noise she made, but her agent was laughing and Rachel was laughing. There may have even been some jumping up and down. 

“Thank you sooo much,” Rachel said into the phone. “I can’t believe it.” 

When she turned around, she saw Tommy and Evan walking out of the restaurant. They were smiling at each other, completely caught up in each other. 

“I didn’t think I’d ever want to come back here,” Evan said. “It was…it was an awful first date.” 

“It was not and I have no regrets.” 

“Still,” Evan said. 

Rachel smiled to herself as she watched them go. 

Rachel didn’t think about Tommy or Evan again after that. She had finally gotten a role on an actual tv-show. Her boss at the restaurant was cool about it and let her know she could come back if she needed to. Rachel didn’t wind up needing to even if that particular tv-show lasted all of one season. The doors had been opened to her, at least, and she had steady work. 

It was almost a full three years later before she stepped foot there again. William, and Casey had agreed to meet up for dinner and they decided it may as well happen where they had met and become friends in the first place.  

Soon after Rachel left, Casey had finished her degree and gotten a different job. William had stuck around a little longer until the script he’d been working on for years was finally picked up. They’d always kept in contact and William had kept them informed on the regulars that he still saw right up until he left. 

“Oh my god,” Casey said twenty minutes after they arrived. 

“What?” 

“Guess who just came in?”

Rachel almost didn’t even have to, but she turned anyway and there they were. Tommy and Evan. 

They were sat a few tables away which meant they couldn’t actually listen in, but they both still looked amazing. Both were smiling easily and didn’t seem to run out of things to say to each other. There was actually something sickening in how in love they looked. 

“What are the odds,” William said. 

“I know,” Rachel said. “But maybe we shouldn’t be creepily watching them all night.” 

Casey laughed. “I guess you know about that now.”

Rachel rolled her eyes. “I’ll die if anyone ever recognizes me from that show. One eight episode season and it was over. Haven’t had anything that big since.” 

Not that she was complaining, really. She was, after all, a working actor and she’d gone to a few auditions that seemed promising. One might mean having to live in Canada for a while, but she was at a stage in her career where she wouldn’t be passing anything up. 

“You will,” William said. “You’ll be the first I call if I ever get backing for my latest script.” 

They were catching up and Casey was giving them the gossip at her new job when silence seemed to fall over the restaurant. 

“Holy shit,” William said. 

At the same time, Tommy said, “Evan, I can’t believe you. Of course. Of course, yes.” 

Rachel turned at once. Evan was down on one knee next to the table and Tommy looked like he was going to start crying in his seat. In the next moment they were hugging and kissing and maybe even crying. 

“Now that is a love story right there,” Casey said. 

Rachel couldn’t help but think about Tommy back when they had named him David and how he had been such a constant every week or two. Always on his own, always ordering take out for one. How there had always existed a loneliness in him even while he was always kind, tipped well, and looked insanely hot. For years that had just been the norm. He never shared much about himself and small talk with him just always resulted in conversation about sports or a movie and nothing about himself. 

Bringing Evan that first time had shocked them because it was outside the norm, but looking at them with their big smiles, holding hands across the table, she was happy to have witnessed even a tiny bit of their story. She was sure there was a lot more. 

[writerofjourneys]

Hi! If requests are still open, could I request Akira/Joker with a female reader who's a phenomenal cook?

Making him lunches, snacks, and occasionally breakfast and dinner too. Boy's bout to be spoiled.

Cooking for Joker

Fandom(s): Persona 5

P5 Protagonist/Joker x Fem Reader

Headcanon

Content: Fluff, romance, food, established relationship, marriage, married life, aged up characters, cooking, domesticity, soft Joker, taking care of each other, affection, declarations of love.

Warnings: None.

Main List | 𝐉𝐨𝐤𝐞𝐫

As the leader of the Phantom Thieves, Akira is busy preparing for heists and fighting Shadows. But not just for being a leader of a mysterious infamous group, he’s busy everywhere. Ranking up confidants, fusing Personas, stocking supplies, studying, Akira’s been dealt with a lot of responsibilities since he got to Tokyo.

Eating at Big Bang Burger all the time and doing those challenges isn’t healthy on a regular basis. He does eat out with the team and his confidants sometimes. And Sojiro does cook breakfast for him on occasion.

But he will have a tendency to overwork himself and forget his own needs. He’s also taking care of Morgana, another mouth to feed besides himself. During lunchtime, Akira would either share his meal or just give it to Morgana.

Though since Morgana is known to keep track of his bedtime, the cat will make reminders for him to eat. The talking feline does pride himself for being responsible.

But you making food for him will send his heart soaring. He’s a lanky male, not too thin, but not so muscular, so he could still go for some more meat in his bones. It’s not only a sweet gesture but also an efficient way to help feed your hardworking boyfriend. He may even blush a little from the adoring sentiment.

Making bentos for him? Touching. Making matching bentos for the two of you? Adorable. Especially if you’re putting great details in the lunches, like making cute faces in the shape of animals and such. Akira will tease that it looks far better to admire, but he’ll happily finish the bento until there’s nothing left. He’s never been a picky eater so he’s open to try anything you make.

Learning about your cooking skills definitely impresses him. Akira likes to improve his own culinary abilities. Working with Sojiro behind the counter helped him discover that passion. So being a phenomenal cook, he’d gladly ask for tips and advice once in a while.

Akira finds himself astounded that someone like him, someone carrying a false criminal record serving probation in an unfamiliar place alone, could have such a loving girlfriend caring for him. He always makes sure to not let you forget his own affections and how much everything you do means.

It becomes a routine for you two to meet up at lunchtime and eat together. Sitting side by side closely, across with legs touching. There’s no doubt that Akira will happily reciprocate in taking turns making meals for you both. A good way to practice his cooking skills despite his busy schedule. If you were to ever be unable to make it, Akira will feel your absence greatly.

Breakfast? Probably best to have something easier to eat as you walk to Shujin side by side on weekdays. It is true as they say that to a person’s heart in general is through the stomach. If you stopped by carrying food filled containers to eat at LeBlanc, Sojiro has no problem with it. He does agree that Akira should be mindful of eating. Depending on if said containers are washable, he’ll let you keep them at the café until you take them back.

Feeding each other is a thing in private. When no one is there, Akira will offer a piece of food to your lips, expression cheeky. It’s something you’d only do behind closed doors.

And in reverse, he’s happy to welcome a spoonful from you. Wiping a stain on his mouth gets him a bit bashful. A napkin? Cute. Your own tongue? Now his face got even redder.

But beware, the leader of the Phantom Thieves has tricks up his sleeve. He’ll reciprocate the action in a sneaky way to tease back.

Dates spent cooking and eating together is very domestic and wholesome. Trying new recipes, sharing some, it’s a lovely way to spend time with one another. Though you’d probably spend that in your home rather than his. Because as nice as the coffee and curry is at the café, you’d have more privacy and space to work on. Akira always has a look in his eyes when he gazes upon you, so much so it makes you bashful every time you see it.

Food turns into a new love language between you.

And once you become adults? Naturally, living together is expected after the deepening of your relationship growing from being high school sweethearts. Cooking together becomes a real staple in your household. Working different jobs may not always let you cook together, but having the thoughtfulness of making food for the other is still as meaningful.

[noras-dc-shenanigans]

Mute Billy Batson

Billy (age 6) is with his parents when they die in a plane crash on the way back from a dig, and while he survives, he gets several large cuts from parts of the plane slicing into him. One of them hits his throat, permanently damaging his larynx (vocal cords).

Obviously, Awful Uncle Ebenezer doesn’t want to deal with a weepy mute kid who also has trouble swallowing and breathing properly, so as soon as he gets the inheritance he kicks him out. Billy gets picked up a few days later, is too scared to tell them his name, so he gives them a fake. They investigate, find nothing, see the scars and assume he’s one of those kids that was born outside a hospital and raised on the street.

Put him in the system under the new name, he goes through a lot of homes that also don’t want to deal with a mute kid who has eating/drinking/breathing problems. The last few before he runs away take advantage of him not being able to speak and only knowing a tiny bit of sign language. He runs away, gets caught, next home is the same, runs away and makes sure to stay un-caught this time.

He meets a deaf homeless person, they teach him sign language, he manages to get by with doing odd jobs and getting help from people in the area (other homeless people, prostitutes with soft spots, older people with no grandkids of their own).

Age 10 gets chosen by the Wizard because Black Adam will be arriving sooner than he anticipated, and I figure there are two ways for this to go:

A- Because he can’t speak the word, Billy is now permanently stuck as Captain Marvel, much like Black Adam is. This is the more angsty version cause the Wisdom of Solomon would warn him against being seen close to the people he used to know—it’ll likely get them targeted. So poor Billy is stuck all by his lonesome until hero/es come along.

B- Billy discovers he can use sign language to change by creating a special sign just for SHAZAM and thinking it while doing the sign with both hands. It mostly only works because as Champion of Magic it’ll do a lot of stuff for him that just flat out wouldn’t work for literally any other magic user.

(Later, Zatanna just gets so frustrated watching him do magic and Constantine just stares, drinks, and walks away with a very firm “F*ck that.”)

But either way, eventually, maybe a year later (Billy now 11), the Justice League has noticed this new, mysterious hero that never says anything and pretty much vanishes once the heroing is done.

(I think the League should only be 2/3 years old, and Batman & Superman had been heroing for maybe 5 years before that. Any other Leaguers you decide to include are newer and started up 1-2 years before whatever caused the League to be formed. Diana only just left Themyscira for the Event too. So they’re new enough not everyone immediately goes “Hey it’s you!” but organized enough to be able to find/recruit other heroes now.)

So of course, Batman and Superman decide to come introduce themselves. They find the new hero taking down a massive robot and lifting the man inside of it out by the collar like a misbehaving cat and manage to get close to him while he’s handing the villain off to the police.

They introduce themselves, ask if they can have a bit of the hero’s time, he blinks but nods and then points up at the tallest building in the city. They agree, Supes gives Batman a lift, and a few minutes later the other hero joins them after having moved the giant robot to an empty lot so that the city can deal with it out of the way.

Cue the JLers trying to ask the guy questions, and he automatically starts to answer in sign language but grimaces and stops because Billy has rarely met anyone who knows enough to understand him. But, of course, this is Batman we’re talking about, who even if he doesn’t have Cassandra yet still knows basic ASL. He asks what his name is aloud and in sign, and the other hero just lights up, huge grin, and starts signing away at rapid speed.

They learn his name is Captain Marvel, and he was chosen to be the new Champion of Magic to replace the old one who went evil right before the guy who gave him the powers died of extreme old age. (They really wish they could say they consider this strange, but they’ve met/worked with Constantine. They’ll believe pretty much anything if you put ‘magic’ in front of it.)

They chat for a while, then decide to invite him up to the Watchtower, so that, if he’s interested, he can meet the other Leaguers (they’d only be the originals and a few more they’d recruited so far) and they can have an official interview to join the Justice League. Cap agrees, gives a little wave, then zooms off to finish helping with the clean-up.

A few days later, Superman escorts Marvel to a zeta tube in Metropolis and up they go. They introduce Marvel to the other Leaguers, Batman translating, before Martian Manhunter offers to mind link them all so that they can understand Marvel himself. Cap agrees. Then they get this:

“Uh, hi, can you hear me? Oh, wow, is that how I’d sound out loud? Cool! I haven’t talked to anyone in years! Not many people know sign and most people aren’t willing to stand there waiting for me to write stuff out so I don’t get a whole lotta conversation. Anyway what did you guys wanna know?”

And all the Leaguers just, like, have theirs hearts squeeze in their chest because here’s a young man, can’t be older than 25 at most, just so happy to be able to talk to people. Who doesn’t know the sound of his own voice. Who despite that, still remains so chipper and friendly.

They don’t need a telepathic link to unanimously decide that Marvel is joining them.

Besides, having a magic user that isn’t either a young women who’s busy performing or a middle-aged alcoholic is very much welcome.

[svaints]

Seeing your rules for Rollo, I am genuinely interested of a Rollo x baker reader, especially with trying to befriend him, I just find the idea cute-

Like- what if reader tries to befriend friends him by giving him some bake goods as a gift ( especially croissants )

|𝑇ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝐼𝑆 𝑠𝑢𝑐ℎ 𝑎 𝑐𝑢𝑡𝑒 𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑎. 𝐴𝑙𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ 𝑖𝑡 𝑤𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 𝑟𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑟𝑒 𝑝𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑒 ℎ𝑒 𝑑𝑜𝑒𝑠𝑛'𝑡 𝑜𝑝𝑒𝑛 𝑠𝑜 𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑖𝑙𝑦 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑠𝑙𝑜𝑤𝑙𝑦 𝑝𝑒𝑒𝑙 𝑜𝑓𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑒𝑥𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑜𝑟.

𝕽𝖔𝖑𝖑𝖔 𝕱𝖑𝖆𝖒𝖒𝖊 | 𝖘𝖋𝖜

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫: 𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐍𝐞𝐮𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐥

𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬: 𝐟𝐥𝐮𝐟𝐟, 𝐅𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩

𝐖𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: 𝐍𝐨𝐧𝐞

I couldn't tell if he was ignoring or disliked me in some way or form. Was it because he was annoyed or bothered? I wouldn't know, not ever. Everytime I made an approach he's 'busy' with a book, his assignments, a letter, talking to the staff or his vice president and assistant, it's always something.

The thing was I wanted to be his friend, he was alone when I'd see him anywhere. Everyone said he was rude at times but appreciate some traits of his such as being the smartest student and being helpful at times...but what else is what I'm saying.

He's mysterious to me, I'd like to know him better than knowing him based off people speaking about him.

Therefore, around 5 am I woke up early enough to bake.

Every time we're outside for lunch, I see him eating the same thing. Grapes and bread.

"Would he like any bread though? What if he doesn't like banana bread?" I thought.

So I began making plain croissants.

1/4 cups warm milk

2 tablespoons active dry yeast

1/4 cup granulated sugar

3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 cups unsalted butter, chilled

Mixing was majority of the process to say the least...In a large bowl I combine flour and salt before adding the yeast mixture, then added everything else but butter and mixed enough till it formed into dough.

Rolling out the dough into a rectangle was fairly easy, I placed the butter in the center and folded the dough over it then again before folding it into thirds, repeating it a few more times.

The final dough was cut into triangles and rolled them into croissants, finally, I prepared a baking pan with the butter and placed them carefully onto the pan.

Meanwhile, I looked around for a spare basket i wouldn't be using anymore but that wasn't damaged either. I found one after a min or two and placed a small towel with elegant prints thinking it would suit his style more.

I placed a few fruits such as grapes of green and purple as well as daffodil from the fresh blooming garden close to the school that I started thinking it would hint the friendship I wanted to build with him.

Come to think of it, what if he doesn't accept my request? Like the other times he turned me away before I even got close to him. He didn't even speak he just left before attending something/someone.

It was worth the try.

After 20 mins then I pulled the croissants out to chill and got another small towel to wrap them all up before placing them in the middle of the basket.

The way it looked with the grapes around and small flowers on the side looked lovely, especially with how the baskets outer layer was decorated.

It was 6:34 am once I made my way to the school grounds and towards the student council office. It was a lovely morning sorta cold, but the view made up for the golden sky mixed in blue on my left.

I walked further into the school grounds and to the office before trying to open the door knowing Rollo may be awake during these hours, he always is to clean and kept the school tidy. I try opening the door again but it was locked.

I sighed setting the basket down beside me and began pulling it open again thinking because I had my hands full I must've not twisted the door knob enough.

"What are doing up so early?"

The sudden question snapped me out and I looked over my shoulder seeing Rollo looking a bit suspicious. He looked down at the basket and then at me. "So?"

I sighed picking it up, "It's unfortunate we get to talk for the first time with me trying to get into the council room but I probably wouldn't have any other opportunity to so I made this for you. It's small but the intention for this is a lot more than what you think..."

His expression was blank showing a hint of concern. He took the basket inspecting it, noticing the daffodil staring at what seemed every detail of it and the grapes before the croissants wrapped up the fresh smell filling his senses.

"I apologize for my actions. I take my responsibilitys serious...Honestly, I have seen you from the corner of my eye and everytime my attention is set to you, something comes up or I'm busy, but please don't take it personally. I don't mean to purposely stray away."

Rollo smiled a bit opening the door for us. I walked in before him as I replied to him. After we cleared the misunderstandings, he invited me for a cup of tea later after school to hand him the recipe for the croissants since he loved them so much.

He was a bit quiet letting me do most of the talking but I'm sure he just wants to know me first before opening himself to me and I was fine with that.

[squiddy-god]

Mmmmmm more twst x hsr thoughts but this time

Twst mc/yuu getting transported into hsr

Imagine it's after graduation, Crowley after years finally finds the best solution for everyone! You can travel back and forth between your world and twisted wonderland, amazing right? Wrong because the moment you step through the mirror your tumbling face first onto the floor of... A train? Huh? And staring back at you is 5- no 6 very confused faces a tall older man with brow hair that seems to be starting to grey, a beautiful woman with red hair, a cute girl with pink hair- a guy with black hair and another person with grey hair- and of course the most adorable bunny thing you have ever seen

The older man- welt- is immediately asking your business and where you came from- cane and black hole at the ready

You try to quickly explain that you came from the mirror- now mysteriously in the corner of the astral express lobby. And that you were just trying to get to your home world- rather home universe

You are confirmed not a threat and allowed to stay on the astral express, therefore becoming a nameless

When you aren't helping with trailblazing you travel back to twisted wonderland, telling the others about your adventures in this new world (deja vu anyone?)

The shenanigans are crazy, trying to explain that you went from a modern world, to medieval wizard BS, to the future is a harrowing experience already

Even funnier if you end up getting some kind of elemental ability/blessings from a aeon because now you finally have a leg to stand on

Whether or not the blessings work in twst is up to you

Some funny things I can see happening :

Welt being truly horrified at Crowley and his negligence

You/yuu managing to drink himekos coffee because you have suffered lilia's... Everything tbh

Showing March your magic camera (I feel like the camera isn't talked about enough in the twst fandom) and all the pictures you have taken

Grimm being jealous of the cat cakes because every time you come back you smell like them and also have pictures with them

Grim getting jealous of pompom (vise versa)

Being unfazed by the stellaron much to everyone's shock and dismay ("grim would probably try to eat it")

Being unfazed by boss fights and explaining that at least 8 people have tried to kill you and that's being on the low side

Seeing silver-wolf and thinking "ah shit not again" because it reminds you of idia

Being on the loufu and meeting Jin Yuan like "if I had a nickel for every :3 general I met with a sword son I'd have two nickels"

Seeing dang heng in his IL form and immediately blurting out "HORNTON?!" because Obviously

Telling malleus you met two new dragon

This interaction :

Twst!nameless : *completely unfazed by entering the dreamscape, honestly a little on edge*

Sunday : you seem on edge despite also seemingly being unfazed by entering the dreamscape for the first time, is something perhaps bothering you?

Twst! Nameless : well I've been in a dreamscape before- long story with a dragon- and the last time I was in one I fought in a war-

Sunday : WHAT????

Alternatively twst! Nameless being suspicious of Sunday for the entire time and once he reveals everything its just "see! Never trust a traumatised religious man with grey hair!" Rollo flash backs are real

Or twst! Nameless going "the last time I attended a important singing event/competition with a beautiful singer someone turned into a monster and everyone almost got poisoned and died, the whole place was wrecked... Thankfully we had a dragon to help but-" *the entire penacony quest happens* "I spoke to soon and cursed us"

Just another chaos maker on the astral express

[endofradio]

FRAGMENTS OF FEAR — CHAPTER 7: TREASON

PROLOGUE | CHAPTER 1 | CHAPTER 2 | CHAPTER 3 | CHAPTER 4 | CHAPTER 5 | CHAPTER 6

WARNINGS: gore mentions

NOTES: i lowkey locked in with this chapter WHY IS IT SO LONG. i also decided to spice things up a bit by having sylvie talk to abigail instead of joey doing it (when abigail says that frank is valdez). i am VERY excited to write the scene where abigail exposes everybody because the drama is going to be REAL.

SUMMARY: now that everyone’s locked inside, sylvie decides to make the decision to talk to abigail herself, something that she regrets. after rickles dies next, sylvie confronts frank, which only leaves her feeling more confused and frightened than she already is.

WORD COUNT: 3,290

TAGLIST: @reclaimedbythesea @creelmalfoylaufeyson69 @that-one-gay-aew-enthusiast @evildarliing @maggotmommys @maggotssmichael @13th-floor-in-moonstone @vampireheist @xashleyo03x @blackwolfstabs @atcarpenter

shoot me a message if you’d like to be added to my taglist! and… seriously — reblogs and comments are heavily appreciated. don’t just leave a like! it helps keep me motivated. 🙏

“Come on, Rickles. Hey!”

Rickles was storming straight for the front door, adamant on his decision to leave. Even with Joey calling for him and following after him, he didn’t change his mind one bit. Once he reached the door, he attempted to open it.

Well, unfortunately for him, the door was completely locked. There was no way to get out. In fact, as Rickles attempted to open the door, some sort of silver gate rose up, blocking the door from any sort of access. It was completely shielded by the gate. Everyone stared at the door in confusion. How the hell did that happen?

“Where the fuck did that come from?” Peter asked. He figured that since he was the strongest of the entire group, he probably had a chance at unlocking the door. It was worth a try, at least.

Turns out, being 6’5” and over 200 pounds doesn’t always make somebody the strongest. No matter how hard Peter strained as he tried to break the door free, nothing happened.

Confused, Peter looked up at the door. “What the fuck?”

He turned around to look at Rickles. “Rickles, stand back.”

Rickles took a few steps back, and then Peter threw himself at the gate, trying to use all of his strength in an attempt to successfully break through it. Still, nothing happened. It only resulted in some physical pain that definitely hadn’t been worth it.

“It’s locked,” Peter announced, disappointed.

Frank rolled his eyes. “Thanks, Peter. It’s obviously fuckin’ locked.”

Sylvie and the others watched as Peter still tried to unlock the door. Great, so now everyone was stuck here. Dean had mysteriously been killed, and now the front door was completely unusable. It almost seemed like this entire place was just one big trap.

Frank sauntered over to Sylvie with a shit-eating grin plastered on his face. “Looks like you’re stuck with me, then.”

Sylvie looked up at Frank, a half-annoyed expression on her face. Seeing that infuriatingly smug grin on his face made her want to just smack him, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it. Maybe she was a coward, maybe it was something else. Either way, the fact she couldn’t make herself do anything about it was bothering her. It was as though her feelings toward Frank were slowly beginning to do a complete 180° in the span of just a few hours.

“And I bet you’re just happy about that, aren’t you?” She asked, trying to sound like a total smart-ass. A snarky response was the most Sylvie could do.

Frank’s smirk grew at Sylvie’s response. He only looked cockier. “Well, I’m certainly not complaining.”

“This whole thing is a trap.”

Frank and Sylvie looked to see Rickles walking away in an obvious hurry. If the front door wasn’t going to be any use, then he figured he’d keep looking. He was determined to get out of this place somehow.

Peter watched as Rickles disappeared. “Rickles! Where’s… hey. Where’s Rickles going?”

“Goddamnit.” Frank hissed under his breath. “Don’t worry about it, Peter. I’ll go after him.”

Peter sighed. “Alright.”

Joey then had an idea. “If Valdez is here, perhaps he checked on the girl and left her there to throw us off…” she speculated.

“I’ll go talk to her.” Sylvie then offered. Right as Joey was about to speak, she was already making her way back up the stairs to the kid’s room.

“Wait—”

Sylvie paused, turning around to look at Joey, who was trying to catch up with her.

“You can’t go in there, Ava.”

“She’s already seen my face. It doesn’t matter.”

Before Joey could say anything else to try and stop Sylvie, she continued on her way.

When Sylvie carefully opened the door, Abigail looked up at her, fearfully clutching a blanket. The sight made Sylvie’s heart clench. She felt really, really bad for the kid. None of this was right at all. She should be at home right now, not locked up in some mansion in the middle of nowhere in Massachusetts.

“What do you… want?” The girl croaked, her voice trembling. “Where’s Joey?”

Sylvie sighed, carefully taking a seat on the edge of the bed, making sure to keep her distance. The last thing she wanted was to make the kid even more afraid than she already was.

“I just need to ask you something,” Sylvie explained, trying to sound as gentle as possible. “I’m not gonna hurt you. I just need to talk to you, okay?”

Reluctantly, the girl slowly nodded. She still seemed wary of Sylvie, but not as much. Well, that was a good sign at least.

“Has anyone else been in this room?” Sylvie then asked.

Abigail paused, then shook her head. “N-no… just you and… Joey… and the man with the glasses…”

Sylvie slowly nodded. Only her, Joey, and Frank had been in the room, apparently. Just to make sure that Abigail was being honest, she decided to press a little more. She knew how scared kids could lie, speaking from her own experience. Sylvie had personally lied a lot as a child to protect herself. If Valdez had come in here, there was the possibility that he could’ve threatened Abigail into keeping his name out of her mouth. Hopefully, that wasn’t the case.

“Are you sure?” Sylvie asked, slowly raising an eyebrow.

Abigail gave a quick nod.

Sylvie sighed. “Nobody else has been in this room, is that correct? By the way, you can be honest. Nobody’s going to hurt you.”

Abigail shook her head. Sylvie tried to search her expression for any sign of hesitation, but… she appeared to be telling the truth. Sylvie couldn’t detect a single sign of dishonesty.

She was about to get up and leave the room when Abigail suddenly spoke up.

“He’s gonna hurt me.”

Sylvie turned around to look at her, noticing how the girl seemed to be completely frightened again. She paused, feeling her chest begin to tighten with concern.

“What do you mean? Who’s gonna hurt you?”

“The man with the glasses.” Abigail continued, her voice growing more panicked. “He said he’s gonna hurt me.”

Sylvie could feel her chest start to tighten even more. “Wait, hold on. Are you telling me the truth?”

Abigail frantically nodded. “Yes! I’m serious… I’m serious. Please… please believe me. I’m really scared. He said I need to keep a secret, or… or he’d hurt me.”

“What secret?”

What she said next made Sylvie’s heart just about drop to her stomach.

“He said he works for my father… he said his name’s… Valdez.”

Fuck.

Sylvie didn’t know what to believe. Sure, Frank was a cold-hearted bastard in all honesty… but a ruthless murderer? Maybe she was just in denial, but she couldn’t picture him doing what had been done to Dean. She wasn’t sure if he was that sadistic, that cruel. The idea of Frank working for Lazar and being a brutal killer was enough to make Sylvie sick to her stomach.

If it was all true… then what else did Sylvie not know about Frank?

“You’re not just saying that, right?” She carefully asked.

Abigail looked so afraid that she seemed as though she was about to break down in tears. She fervently nodded again. “I’m telling the truth, I promise!”

Sylvie had to get out of there. She couldn’t bring herself to hear anything else. She didn’t want to hear anything else.

But, as she started to head for the door, Abigail spoke up again.

“Why are you surprised?”

Sylvie was starting to feel increasingly agitated. She turned around again, suddenly sick of hearing the child’s voice. “What the hell do you mean?” She asked, sounding almost irritated. She instantly regretted it.

“He’s a very bad man. I think you know that.”

Sylvie had enough. Quickly, she rushed out of the room and shut the door, her mind struggling to process everything she had just heard. None of it made sense. None of it seemed… real. She leaned against the door, trying to steady her breathing.

What am I supposed to do now?

As Sylvie remained there, her back pressed against the door, she tried to think. As she reflected on Abigail’s words, she thought about what she said about Frank working for Lazar. As she thought about it… she reluctantly realized that it made sense. She remembered back to when she and Frank were talking earlier, how he had admitted to leaving his old life behind.

What if he had been referring to working for Lazar?

The more Sylvie thought about it, the more sick she felt. She didn’t want to think about it anymore. Maybe the kid’s just lying because she’s scared.

But… why would she say something like that?

Why are you surprised? He’s a very bad man. Those words kept repeating in Sylvie’s brain. But… what confused her the most was Abigail’s next words after that, “I think you know that.” What the hell had she meant by that? I think you know that? Sylvie didn’t even know who the fuck the girl was.

What was even worse was that she was right — Sylvie knew that Frank wasn’t a good person. But… “a very bad man?” What the fuck— nevermind. She was done thinking about this bullshit. The more she thought, the more confused she became.

As Sylvie continued to lean against the door, she heard voices coming from one of the rooms down the hall — Joey and Rickles. Quickly, she hurried down the hall and into the room, clearly interrupting a conversation. Upon seeing the worry on Sylvie’s face, though, Joey and Rickles both became concerned.

“What is it?” She asked.

Sylvie drew in a shaky breath. “Something is really fucking wrong.”

Joey narrowed her eyes. “What do you mean?”

Sylvie couldn’t bring herself to explain. “If you want to know, go talk to the girl yourself. I don’t… I don’t know if she’s being serious or not.”

Joey and Rickles exchanged a disconcerted glance before looking back at Sylvie. Joey slowly nodded. “Alright. I’ll… be right back.”

Once Joey disappeared, Rickles glanced at Sylvie again. “You look like you’ve seen a fucking ghost.” He commented. “The hell happened?”

Sylvie shook her head. “I don’t… I don’t want to talk about it. If she tells Joey the same thing she told me, I swear to God…”

Now, Rickles just seemed confused. “What are you talking about?”

“Look. Are you sure there’s no other way out of here? I need to get out of here. I… I want to go home.”

Rickles sighed, crossing his arms. “Trust me, I wish there was. As far as I know, we’re all locked up in here for who knows how much goddamn longer. I’m not buying the ‘twenty-four hours’ bullshit. I guarantee this is a trap.”

Sylvie nervously tapped her foot against the floor, her eyes darting around anxiously as she waited for Joey to return, anticipating what she would say. Seconds ticked by, and they were starting to seem like hours at this point.

“You believe Valdez is real, right?” Sylvie then asked.

Rickles slowly nodded. “I’ve heard too much shit about him for him not to be.” He answered, his voice taking on a grave tone.

“Do you really think it’s possible he’s here right now? Like, one of us is actually him?”

“Dean’s head was ripped clean off. That’s some bullshit that only Valdez is capable of,” Rickles explained, “and if the girl’s Lazar’s daughter… gives him more of a reason to be here.”

“Have you two seen Frank?”

Sylvie and Rickles turned around to see Joey briskly walking towards them. Her expression was difficult to read, but she did seem rather pissed. At least, that’s what her tone of voice suggested.

“I can go look for him.” Rickles then offered. “Why? He the next victim?”

Joey scoffed. “No. Actually, he might be the killer.”

Rickles’ eyes narrowed in a mixture of confusion and shock. “Wait, what?”

Sylvie felt like she was going to vomit right then and there.

“Frank is Valdez.” Joey continued, her voice cold. “He told the girl.”

Rickles wasn’t exactly buying it. “He wanted to leave. That doesn’t make any sense.”

He had a good point, Sylvie thought. If Frank was really Valdez, then why the hell did he seem so adamant about leaving after talking to Abigail?

“He acted like he wanted to leave.” Joey then said.

“If he’s Valdez and Lazar’s his boss, then why kidnap his kid?” Rickles questioned.

Sylvie was relieved that at least Rickles was skeptical… but at the same time, if Frank wasn’t Valdez, then who was? Jesus Christ… none of this was making any sense.

“Maybe he and Lambert are planning a power play.” Joey suggested.

Rickles let out a sigh. “You’re telling me that skinny motherfucker rips people apart?” He scoffed. “Something doesn’t add up.”

Sylvie decided that she might as well offer her opinion. “I know he’s an asshole, but I can’t picture him doing some gruesome shit like that, y’know?”

Joey seemed reluctant to believe Rickles and Sylvie, her expression wary. “All I know is that Frank definitely isn’t an amateur. Something about him doesn’t sit right with me.” She spoke. “If Frank really is Valdez, then he definitely knows how to get out of here, which means so would I if I spend about six minutes with him.”

“So… what’s the plan?” Sylvie asked.

Joey sighed, clicking her tongue as she tried to think of something. “You two split up and take the main staircase. I’ll go south. We’ll meet in the middle.”

Reluctantly, Sylvie slowly nodded. “Alright.”

Rickles tried to offer a small, reassuring smile. “We gonna get through this.”

“I have to.”

“You have a kid?” He asked.

Joey nodded. Sylvie felt a pang in her chest. God… she definitely did not belong here. Silently, Sylvie hoped that Joey’s son was safe and well back at home.

Rickles placed a comforting hand on Joey’s shoulder. “We’ll make sure you get home.”

As Sylvie wandered through the mansion, she started to feel unsafe now that she had lost sight of Rickles. Now, she was by herself, and suddenly… everything seemed eerily quiet. Where was he, anyway?

Sylvie stood there in the hallway, her eyes anxiously darting around as she tried to see if she could hear or spot any sign of him. Yet, there was nothing.

And then, she heard what sounded like gurgling coming from the distance. Her heart starting to race with worry, Sylvie dashed toward the direction of where the sound was coming from, leading her to another room. As she stood in the doorway, she saw Rickles standing there, his back turned.

“Hey, is everything okay?” Sylvie asked, her voice cautious.

Then, Rickles suddenly collapsed, and that was when Sylvie caught sight of his face — it was horribly mutilated and looked as though a fucking dog had ripped through his face. His cheek was torn open, and she could see his teeth through the gaping, bloody hole. The wound went all the way down his neck, dark blood staining his shirt.

Covering her mouth, Sylvie took a few steps back, desperately fighting the urge to vomit. She immediately wanted to break down and cry right there, just… scream. “What the fuck…? No, no, no…”

Two people had just brutally died in this mansion. Already, two people were gone in only a brief span of time. Sylvie didn’t know how much more she could handle. Who was going to be next? That was all she could think about.

Quickly, Sylvie ran to the nearest bathroom, opening the toilet seat as she retched. Nothing came up, so all she could do was let out painful dry heaves. Once she was done, she closed the seat and staggered to her feet. Suddenly feeling a rush of anger, she slammed her fists against the wall, as though she was trying to knock some sense into herself. Maybe this was just a nightmare, and she’d wake up from it.

“Wake up… fucking WAKE UP!”

She continued to punch the wall, but nothing happened. She only felt pain… which meant this was either real or a hyper-realistic nightmare. Unfortunately, it was beginning to seem like it was… real.

“Hey, what the fuck’s the matter with you?”

Sylvie whipped her head around, her senses on high alert. Any movement, sound, or voice was enough to make her jump out of her skin at this point.

When she turned around, Sylvie saw Frank standing there, looking at her with a mixture of annoyance and… perhaps a bit of concern, which was rather rare to see from him. It seemed more like an annoyed type of concern, whatever the hell that meant.

Upon seeing Frank’s face, Sylvie didn’t know how to react. One thing was for sure — she didn’t feel good.

“Get… get away from me.”

Frank narrowed his eyes, his annoyance growing. Instead of listening to Sylvie and backing away from her, he only stepped closer to her. She flinched as he moved towards her, almost as if she was expecting him to hurt her.

Frank let out an irritated scoff. “Jesus Christ, would you calm the fuck down? I’m not gonna hurt you.”

“Why don’t you have any… blood on you?” Sylvie asked, her voice shaking.

Frank looked taken aback by the question, his eyes widening slightly in a genuine expression of shock. “The fuck are you talkin’ about?”

“You… you’re Valdez. The girl… the girl told me.”

Frank went from shocked to annoyed in seconds. “Are you fuckin’ kidding me? You’re seriously listening to her?”

“Rickles just… Rickles just died. Rickles and Dean are both dead. You…”

Frank rolled his eyes, letting out an exasperated sigh. “Sylvie, for the love of God. You don’t have a single clue what you’re fuckin’ talking about, do you? I know you’re smarter than this.”

“Well, can you please tell me what the fuck is going on? I just saw two people die. I’m scared. I want to get out of here.”

“What’s going on?” Frank repeated. “That’s what I’m trying to figure out.”

“Please tell me the truth. The girl said the same thing to me and Joey, that you’re… that you’re Valdez.”

Frank let out an annoyed huff. “Did she, now? Well, I don’t appreciate people trying to tarnish my fuckin’ reputation.”

Sylvie swallowed, trying to steady her breathing. “So… she’s lying?”

Frank chuckled, the sound devoid of any humor. “No fuckin’ shit. Children love to lie… but lying about something like this? I’d say that somebody needs to be put in their goddamn place.”

“But then… who did it? Who’s… killing everybody?”

“I don’t fuckin’ know. That’s what we’re all trying to figure out, right?”

Letting out an annoyed grumble, Frank turned around to walk away. Just as he was about to leave, Sylvie spoke.

“You’re not going to let anything happen to me, right? Just… tell me everything’s going to be okay. I don’t… I really don’t want to die. Not here.”

Frank paused, looking back at Sylvie for a moment. His expression was unreadable, but he seemed slightly caught off-guard by her sudden vulnerability. In the time that he knew her, he never once heard her ask him for reassurance. Frank had always known Sylvie as a defiant, feisty little brat… yet, here she was, frightened to death because she didn’t want to die. It was a side of her that he had never seen before.

No, don’t let her get to you.

Frank remained silent for a few moments, trying to think of how he would respond.

“You’re not gonna die.” He simply answered, his voice matter-of-fact. Cold. Emotionless.

And then, he left.

[lastoneout]

We're currently switch my cat's food and litter to try to figure out what's causing this weird mystery allergy she's had for the last like 5 years and I was kinda worried she wouldn't like the new food bcs you never know, but actually she likes it so much it's actually ridiculous. Cuz like when you switch a cat(or dog's) food you have to taper it like a medication, you keep giving them the old food but slowly mix in more and more of the new food while mixing in less of the old, cuz if you don't you can make them sick, and she is SO SO SO mad that I keep giving her ANY of the old food.

Whenever I go to fill up her bowl I first add in the old food and then mix in the new, and while she used to just immediately start eating when I'd pour her food now she just watches me do the first one, sniffs the bowl, and then sits back and stares at me like "uh mother it appears there's been an error" and then when I reach for the other food she looses her MIND and starts shoving her face in my way and meowing and getting all excited and she only starts eating once it's mixed in.

So like, glad she enjoys the new stuff at least!

[maxislvt]

https://www.tumblr.com/maxislvt/720434423402807296/httpswwwtumblrcommaxislvt720433685821849600?source=share

DROP IT!!!!!

warnings: horny thoughts towards the end, no specific genitals

you're so proud of yourself for buying your first house and moving out. it's definitely not your dream home, but it's a start so you go out of your way to keep it up. the lawn stays mowed, walls get repainted, and the house is always clean.

the garage is strangely difficult though. you don't know how to fix the garage door so you hire someone else but narrowly avoid a freak accident fixing it. all your friends get sick after trying to help you clean, so you just brave it alone after that.

it takes weeks to get it clean and usable again. after enough cleaning you realize there's an attic of some sort in it. you make the choice to open the hatch and climb up only to immediately climb back down once you see the rune and the altar. Maybe you believe in witchcraft, maybe you don't but you know better than to touch mysterious shit you don't know the origin of

for a few days you consider just ignoring it and going on about your life without the extra space. unfortunately, whatever is trapped in that had other plans because it keeps appearing in your dreams and it's accompanied by a voice that makes you feel....odd to say the very least.

after like 3 weeks of weird dreams and getting wet/hard over a disembodied voice you climb back up to the attic and try to figure out what to do and you spend like 30 minutes looking around trying to find some sort of instructions only for the portal to randomly spark up and Wanda crawls out

Wanda can't even explain anything because you spend 5 minutes just screaming your fucking head off 😭

Eventually she manages to explain her whole situation. don't ask me what the situation is but she's bonded to the house and can only leave for so long

I'm not sure if I want her to be a horny demon or one you can sympathize with. either way, I imagine that you two are roommates for a bit.

Wanda still needs to eat and uses normal human amenities so she covers her half of the rent with cursed and strange objects you can pawn at the local occult shop

I meant for this just to be funny but she fucks hard!!!

maybe she isn't immediately focused on having sex with you but once she gets the idea she can't let it go. if Wanda was normal and respectful then, she certainly isn't now. Wanda gets a lot weirder. she doesn't force anything but she's definitely messing with your dreams and thoughts again!!

Wanda plays all innocent and unassuming at first. She acts like she's so confused why you're too shy to even look at her or aren't as comfortable cuddling as usual.

you don't know if you've gone off the deep end and are suddenly okay fucking a demon or if Wanda is fucking with you, but eventually it gets to be to much and well 🥴

she's as rough or gentle as you prefer, assuming you give up easy. if she has to spend a long time chasing you, she definitely goes a little overboard regardless

she tries to start out slow so you can get adjusted, but eventually she gets really needy and is just as whiny as you are. Wanda overstimulates both of you because she doesn't wanna stop.

despite being a demon, she's very praise heavy. even if you're just laying there, whining, and taking whatever Wanda is kind enough to give you. she won't shut up about how adorable you are or how good it feels inside of you.

if you're not loud, she's going to make you loud! Wanda knows she's doing a good job but she wants to hear you beg and whine like a needy little pet

oral is her go to. if Wanda could live between your legs, she would. sometimes she does it to tease you. she does whatever to make you cum as hard as possible and you have to keep going on with your work or watching your show

also you make a joke along the lines of "this isn't going to bond my soul to you or anything is it?" and Wanda gets really quiet 😭

[ransprang]

thank you to anon for your support <3

if anyone else wants a match up this is our ko-fi

your dmc 5 match up is..... V!!

SFW

V is as unique as they get being that the others find him a bit weird and mysterious. He’ll spit out haikus randomly. Like once you both went to an archery range and before starting he goes, “The eye sees target. Breathe, let the mind feel the shot. Arrow flies to spot”

Your foreign accent is very attractive to V. He gazes at your lips often as you speak (which is a rarity he cherishes) and gives you kisses when you’re done.

Partakes in all of your hobbies with you happily since they are peaceful. Many of your dates together will be relaxing and calming, be it walking around and taking in the landscape or painting.

V was walking around when he was drawn to a lovely street performer, playing a melancholic song. The lyrics spoke to him and he stopped by to listen. You were nearby, and were intrigued by this performer’s song as well. When the song ended, you both went to tip the musician. Your eyes met briefly, and he smiled. “Beautiful song, who is it by?” He asked, looking towards the musician. You blurted out the answer before the singer could, thanks to your wide expertise. V nodded appreciatively, and walked with you as you both turned away from the musician, engaging you in conversation about music. You found it easy to talk to him since the topic was of your interest but soon the conversation flowed to personal topics and you became fast friends with the man. After a few months of hanging out as friends, neither of you could deny your budding feelings for each other and soon began dating.

V would appreciate your art, he is introspective and a poet. You would be inspired by his poetry and he would be inspired by your art. 

"Your art captures the essence of the shadows, Y/N," V sometimes remarked while you were deep in thought sketching, his eyes fixed on your drawing. You were caught off guard by the unexpected compliment, blushed but managed a shy grin. "Th-thank you, V. I, uh, try my best." Leaning against the bookshelf with an air of nonchalant elegance, V responded with a dry chuckle. "Well, your 'best' is quite the masterpiece, a symphony of shadows and silence. Almost as poetic as my familiars." More at ease now, you laughed softly. "I'll take that as a compliment, considering your familiars are the embodiment of your aesthetic."

You and V are both quiet. You both would spend hours listening to music together, while you draw and he sits by you with his head buried in a book, lifting his head once in a while to make a witty remark on the music choice, gently enjoying each other’s companionship.

V is a tall boy although not a strong boy. When he would misplace his walking stick, he would use your head as a handrest for balance since its the perfect height.

V gives off a mystical vibe, he would definitely burn some sage and light some candles with you while wearing his little hippie sandals.

V would advise you to not bottle up your emotions too much and try to deal with them as they come and go. He is an introspective man with the wisdom of the poets. He knows to appreciate the beauty of emotions as a part of his humanity.

NSFW

At first, V would not be that amazing at painting, but he is talented for sure. As you both paint, he keeps getting better. He’d totally paint you naked and hang it in your shared bedroom as a memento.

You can always tell V is horny by how heavy his breathing gets, you can watch his chest rise and fall rapidly. His pants also visibly grow tighter as he trembles to stand, that man is after a part of Vergil waiting to go feral.

⁠He puts your pleasure first before his, and loves eating you out. He eats you like he’s never had a meal before, he loves licking your clit and sucking on your folds with his thick lips.

V loves restraining you using his walking stick, he pulls you closer unexpectedly using it. And sometimes teases your entrance with it by positioning it between your legs when you’re standing next to him.

V likes it when you trace his tattoos after sex, the beads of sweat along with the thick lines of the patterns on his body. It soothes him, as he would subtly place your hand on his flaccid cock leading to a handjob.

V cums a lot, he always pulls out and likes to cum on your chest. He doesn’t want to risk having children, especially with his weak state. He enjoys watching strings of semen land on your breasts and stomach.

Sometimes V would make Griffon scout an area before getting down on his knee to ask you to have sex with him in public. It probably be a park behind a tree where you ride him and he humps you from beneath, to not put stress on his legs.

V loves to suck on your breasts and kiss you during sex. It brings him a sense of intimacy and he gets to be close to you aside from his cock penetrating. 

He can feel very weak and tired after ejaculating. The strenuous activity itself leaves him feeling like he’s fading, so he relies on you to cuddle him and get him up and about again. 

V loves it when you moan his name out loud and in pleasure, it makes him feel remembered knowing he is going to be gone soon and become one with his other half. But even then he reassures you that as Vergil he will never forget you and your memories and will come back.

[oleander-nin]

The Weight of a Letter(5)

A/N: It's a bit stupid, but it's done. Sorry for the gross writing, I'm just tired and had to write this in advance so I didn't have to worry over my trip. Any criticism is welcome, constructive or not. This is supposed to be a gender neutral reader, so if I screwed up somewhere, please tell me.

Taglist? If you want to be added or removed, just say so: @ssak-i @sinister-things @ancreativename @t0ta11y-n0t-cup1d @idiotreblogger @whygz

Part 1 - Previous - Next

Words: 3387

Content warnings: Stalking, Paranoia, dark themes, breaking and entering, throwing up

Chapter 5: A Silent Act

I shovel the school made mac n’ cheese into my mouth, watching the other kids in the cafeteria move by. Scanning the crowd as I try my best to not spit up my food, I tap on the envelope sitting in my lap. It was another letter from the mysterious ‘Othello Von Ryan’, having survived its journey into my locker once more. I huff, chewing on my cheek and I poke at my food with my spork. The more I thought about it, the more it didn’t make sense.

I had gotten five letters so far, each one accompanied with flowers, and up until now, a box of chocolates. My eyes drift to the pink flower I had set on the table, my hand moving to softly touch its petals. Out of everything given, I liked the flowers the most. The red tulip, a red carnation, a small bundle of baby’s breath, a gardenia, and now, a pink flower, layered in petals. 

I twist a petal of the light pink flower in between two fingers, admiring its full bloom. It was gorgeous, and completely undamaged. I couldn’t help but admire its beauty. But how had it made its way into my locker, completely unharmed? Me and Irma had been trying to solve this mystery since the first letter arrived, but we were nowhere near figuring it out.

I look up when I feel the table shift, Irma taking her spot across from me. I marveled at her uncanny ability to appear as soon as I started thinking of her. Irma smiles at me, pushing her lunch tray away. I don’t blame her, I was already regretting eating the provided food. I pass her my apple, Irma taking it gleefully as she eyes the flower. Taking a bite, she chews for a bit while tapping her finger next to the petals.

“Huh, no chocolates this time. Is that the new one?” I nod at Irma’s words, pulling out the letter and offering it out to her. Irma takes the envelope, opening it carefully. Her pointer finger and thumb rest on the paper, not pulling it out yet. “It was still sealed, (Y/n). Did you not read it yet?”

“I wanted to wait for you.” I shove another spoonful of my mac ‘n cheese into my mouth, trying to gag on the mush as I wait for Irma to pull out the letter and read it. In all honesty, I was starting to hate the letters. It was all too much as of late, and me and Irma were nowhere near figuring out who was sending them. My eyes glance around the cafeteria, on the lookout for shadows. They were getting more and more frequent, closer and less concealed. I hated it, hated the way I was barely able to live without the fear of some stupid figure my imagination made up. Hated the way my pulse spiked at every little thing crossing my vision.

Irma’s eyes rake over my face, taking in the details she had probably memorized by this point. I take another bite of my food and dust off my hands to the side, Irma clearing her throat before starting to read the letter out loud.

“Dear (Y/n),” She starts in a dramatized voice. I snort, shaking my head as I grin. She puts on a fake accent, eyeing me with a small smile. Every letter started with the same normal opening before diving into sappy madness as the writer described their love. Irma tried to make the letter seem as regal as possible, reading them becoming one of her favorite things. “You’ve continued to breach my thoughts even though we have barely talked. Everything I create I now do in your name. In my brother’s words, you’ve become my muse.”

Irma pauses for a moment, taking another bite of her apple. She quickly chews before swallowing, continuing her theatrical telling of the letter. “You’re breathtaking, completely astonishing. You complete me, and I am truly the only thing you need.” Irma grimaces a bit at that statement, fake gagging to make me laugh before continuing on. “I promise I will reveal myself soon, seeing as I don’t think I can go without you much longer.”

“Ooo,” I say, tapping the table. “Looks like they might just tell us instead of us having to play the detective.”

Irma rolls her eyes, hushing me. I pretend to zip my lips shut, earning a snicker from my friend. “I cannot wait until you're mine, until we are together. Nothing will come between us, that I promise you. These letters are not enough to suffice my need to be by your side, to love and care for you as you deserve. I will be the best thing that ever happened to you. Until the time comes, forever yours, Othello Von Ryan.”

Irma sets the letter down, sliding it over to me. I pick it up and scan the writing, shaking my head in disbelief. “Well, we know one thing for certain. The writer sure thinks highly of himself.”

Irma tries to stop her grin from forming, her hand moving over her mouth to muffle her laugh. She reaches over and picks up the flower twirling it in between her fingers. “Have you checked to see what it is yet?”

I shake my head, looking at the flower in her hands. It really was beautiful, as were all the flowers I had been gifted. “You have the app. I don’t.”

Irma sighs dramatically as she pulls out her phone, taking a picture of the flower and uploading it to one of her plant identification apps. Considering neither of us knew much about plants, Irma came up with the idea of checking what plant it was through an app in case they were poisonous or rash inducing. Which would be a great idea if I hadn’t completely manhandled each flower before we checked. Irma glances up at me, showing me her phone screen. “It’s a camellia, one of the pink variety, as you can obviously see.”

I nod, taking the flower back as Irma continues to eat her lunch. I admire the flowers' delicate beauty, its soft pink petals layered atop one another make the flower full. This flower, like all the others, had not been damaged when it was put into my locker. I didn’t know how I felt about this. Sure, the letters were sweet, the flowers romantic, and the previous chocolates delicious, but did all that really make the fact someone might be breaking into my locker null and void? I chew on the inside of my cheek, thinking about it. I didn’t want the letters or flowers to stop, that was for sure. Receiving these gifts made me feel special, like I mattered. As selfish as that was, I didn’t want to give it up.

The chatter of the teenagers around me reverberates in my head, my eyes scanning the room. Any one of these people could be the writer, I just had to figure out who. I hoped it wasn’t some mean trick, some prank to fool me into loving someone. I just wanted to matter to someone. Having a special someone in light of all my trouble sounded great. Irma grabs my hand, bringing me back into the now, the sound around me quieting down once more. She taps my knuckles with her thumb, her brown eyes staring deep into my own. I feel slight guilt for my thoughts at her stare. Even if the letters weren’t real, Irma was. She was my friend, she cared. I knew I would never lose her.

“What’s going on in that head of yours?” She asks softly, letting go of my hand now that she pulled me back out of the clouds. I rub the heel of my hand against my eyes, frowning slightly. I didn’t want to have to bother Irma with this, she already helped me with so much. It felt like I was just taking and never giving her anything in return.

“Just… worried about the letters, I guess.” I admit. I lean into my arms, hoping Irma wouldn’t press. To my relief, she doesn’t. Irma pats my arm, a hopeful grin on her face.

“Yeah, I’ve been worried as well. We can mess around with your locker before leaving school, okay?”

“We’ve been messing with it.” I point out.

“Well maybe we missed something. Plus, if it doesn’t work, we can just go to the front office and ask for a new locker.” Irma says, picking up both of our trays and going to throw them away. I stand up, glancing at the clock. We had one minute before lunch ended. I nod, conceding.

“Sure. One more time.”

—

Irma punched my locker now that the halls were desolate, the sound of Irma’s fist colliding with the steel echoing through the halls. 

“Careful tiger, you might just bust it open.” A dopey grin stretches across my face, Irma turning to me in annoyance.

“I just. I don’t get how someone could get in! Try opening it again, maybe there’s a mechanic in the lock you can exploit.” Irma throws her hands the air, a strangled noise sounding from her throat. Her neck was flushed red, frustration shining through her usual relaxed demeanor. It was hard for her to not understand something, especially when it came to matters like this. I was glad Irma wasn’t the one getting the letters. She’d interrogate the entire school trying to find them.

I push off from the wall I was leaning against, standing in front of my locker and putting in the code. I pull up the lock’s trigger and yank, groaning when nothing happens. I yank on the grip in frustration, wanting to kick the darn thing myself. I move to put in the code again, but I get startled by a loud gasp from behind me. I whip my head around to look at Irma, her eyes trained on the top corner of my locker. The basketball star moves in between me and the metal, her fingers gripping the top corner and pulling. It comes loose, the metal bending until the lock catches it.

My mouth gapes at the sight. The locker opened enough to fit someone’s hand through before the metal refused to bend. Irma let the locker snap back into place, looking at me proudly. “We found the exploit!”

I straighten up a bit at her proud announcement, shaking my head as I grin. Irma claps her hands, her face morphing into a scary grin. “Oh ho ho, we can so use this to our advantage.”

I look at Irma, confused. What did that even mean, was she planning on hurting the writer? “What?”

Irma picks up both of our bags that were on the ground, dragging me towards the exit. I stumble a bit before regaining my balance. I toddle alongside her, Irma starting to ramble on about her idea. 

“We now know how they get into your locker, which means we can totally set a trap! They most likely stick their hand into the opening to set everything down, so if we put a bag of colored stain there, their hand will get stained! We can literally catch them red handed!” Irma grins widely, letting go of my hand to rub hers together. “Oh, this will be so fun.”

I shake my head, laughing softly. I didn’t mind not knowing yet. Sure, some of the letters had been a bit… Odd, but none had been too dangerous so far. The person writing them was probably just awkward.

“Are we sure we want to do that? It feels… Mean.” I say, rubbing my arm awkwardly. It rubbed me the wrong way to do something like that, especially since they had been mostly sweet thus far. Irma huffs, sticking out her tongue at me.

“You never let me have any fun.”

I lightly shove her to the side, blowing air from my nose. “Oh you do not get to say that. Who’s the one who banned me from playing hide and seek in the apartments when we were seven?”

“You completely totaled poor Ms. Fitzgerald’s plants! And I only made the rule of no going into the halls!” Irma laughs, shoving me back. I chuckle to myself, a wide grin on my face. Everything was perfect right now, I never wanted this to end. If I could stop time, it’d be right now. Just us laughing, reminiscing on our old games. We exit the school and head to our shared complex, joking on the way. I absentmindedly scan the rooftops, humming softly as I look for the ever-present shadows.

I feel my stomach drop when I see the familiar figure on the rooftop across the road, leaning against an AC unit. It was half shrouded in the shadows, produced by the building to its right. I stop in my tracks, staring at it. I couldn’t move, my blood running cold. A flash of purple was seen before it backed away, my eyes glued to the spot it stood.

“(Y/n)?” Irma’s voice snaps me out of it as I whip my head around to face her. I try to school my face back into my usual smile, but Irma doesn’t buy it. Her face pinches in worry, her eyes shining in sympathy. My throat closes slightly as I look at her, my heart aching. She didn't deserve this, she shouldn’t have to worry. My eyes flick back to the spot I saw the figure. I chew on my lip, conflicted. How much should I tell her?

“Just saw something.” I mumble, moving to continue walking. I don’t elaborate, and Irma doesn’t push, knowing what I was referencing already. I shrink slightly, frowning. I was tired of having everything wrong with me. Irma moves her hand to my shoulder, squeezing it comfortingly and I let out a small sigh. It would all be fine, Irma was here with me. Nothing would happen while we were together.

We walk side by side the rest of the way, neither of us speaking much. I keep my eyes off the rooftops, not wanting to possibly see the figure again. When we enter the complex, the building is silent. Irma lets out a loud groan before yanking me towards the stairs when we see the ‘Out of Order’ sign on the elevator. Irma passes me my bag as we start up the stairs together. I glance at Irma, shifting my bag onto my shoulder. The building seemed much emptier, dead. I wondered if Irma noticed it too.

Irma sees my discomfort and grabs my hand, holding it as we walk up. Our footsteps echo, bouncing off the concrete walls. I flinch slightly when I hear another pair of footsteps in the stairwell, Irma squeezing my hand again.

“Calm down, it’s okay.” Her voice was low and she was mumbling, her eyes looking straight ahead. I dart my eyes across the narrow walkway, my hand moving to grip the rail. Irma squeezes my hand again, rubbing at the knuckle. “You don’t need to be so jumpy, it’s all going to be okay.”

I nod, rubbing my free palm on my shorts. My hands were clammy, my hair on end. I harshly exhale through my nose, closing my eyes. Irma was right, everything would be fine. The shadows were outside, far away from me. They couldn’t get me in here, I was safe. Nothing could touch me. My eyes flicker back and forth between the stairs and the entranceway to Irma’s floor, our feet lightly thudding across the carpeted hall. I pat my hands on my thighs, shifting awkwardly. Irma opens her door and steps inside, waving to me before closing her door.

I stand there for a moment more, barely breathing. I close my eyes, trying to ignore the way my body is shaking. I pull at my shirt as I walk back to the stairwell. I just had to walk up two more flights, and then I was safe. It was okay. Everything would be okay. Nothing can hurt me. My eyes drift to the cameras, trying to memorize where they sit. There was one at every platform, but none on the actual stairs. I speed up, running up the stairs. I would be safe if I could just get to my room.

I run up one flight, then two, bolting to my apartment door. I slide my backpack over in front of me, my eyes darting back and forth between the ends of the hallway and my bag as I look for my keys. My heart pounds in my ears, my hands shake and my body tenses as I search. Where were my keys? Why couldn’t I find them? I open more pouches in my bag, dumping things to the floor as I look. I almost cry in relief when the cool metal of my keys hits my hand, picking them up and jamming them into the door. 

I open the door and shove my dropped objects inside with my foot, locking the door behind me once I close it. I let my bag drop to the ground as I breath out in relief, my brain buzzing loudly. I spin around and lean backwards, sliding to the floor. I was okay. It was okay. Irma made it to her apartment, and I made it to mine. I was safe.

I lean my head back against the door, my eyes shining with panicked tears that never shed. I could still feel my heart pounding in my chest, warning me of a danger that was never there. I couldn’t help but feel stupid at my actions. I shake my head, pushing off the door and grabbing my backpack by one of the straps. I start to drag it to my room, feeling too overwhelmed to pick it up. I push open my door, shoving my backpack next to my desk. I lift my arms over my head, popping my back. It was over. I was okay. 

I continue to repeat this to myself as I run my fingers through my hair, letting myself calm down a bit. I turn to my bed, feeling exhausted. I wanted nothing more than to collapse onto my mattress and sleep. My eyes land on the disheveled covers, my heart stopping. I know I made my bed this morning. I stand there, staring at my bed.

Did someone break in? Was I in danger? What if they’re still here, I need to run, I need to-

No. No, I’m not doing this. 

I take a deep breath, closing my eyes and trying to relax my trembling body as I exhale. Everything was fine. I just… Misremembered. Yeah, that’s it. I must have made my bed yesterday, not today. I nod my head, ignoring the way my desk looks as if it had been rifled through, how the flowers that should be dead in my vase seemed fresh. I dig through my backpack for the camellia, humming to myself in desperation to convince myself everything would be just fine. Nothing was wrong, I was just stressed. My school work was getting to me, and I was just being overworked. Everything was normal.

I set the crushed flower in the vase, not looking at the other flowers. To admit they were new was to admit something was wrong. Nothing was wrong. I turn back to my bed and flop down, staring at the ceiling. The fan thrummed above me, its white blades a blur from its movement. I turn to face the window, scanning the skyline of the apartments across the road. My eyes travel to a small piece of fabric fluttering on my window, stuck between the frame and the glass. I slowly get up, inching towards the material. Did I open my window and get a jacket caught? I pick up the black wrapping stuck to my window, it’s fabric rough and the tear jagged. It looked like wrappings someone would use for fighting, something I very much did not own. Someone had been here. I run to the bathroom, my stomach heaving as I spill my lunch into the toilet. 

Everything was not okay.

[kyndredravenstories]

Eyes of Infinity: Delirium Chapter 7

Hello, I have been posting my work on AO3 and recently decided to venture here to Tumblr. Please note: This story is 18+. No minors. Please read tags carefully. Link to AO3 below but I will also be posting the chapters here.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/53564641/chapters/148839892#workskin

Pairing: Sylus/Female MC with some elements of Xavier/Female MC

Genre: Romance, Drama, Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Angst, Adventure, Smut, Porn with Big Plot and Big Feelings

Content Warning (For the entire fic): Explicit sexual content, spoilers and alterations to existing lore and cards/memories/tender moments/secret times, size kink, size difference, vaginal sex, cunnilingus, anal sex, fingering, all kinds of fingering, elements of consensual somno, dom!Sylus, jealousy, possessive!Sylus, Mephisto stalking, typical game violence, battle and combat

Summary: To love him meant stepping over the threshold and crossing into darkness. To be with him meant accepting the lure of the shadows. And to protect him from betrayal meant sacrifice. I knew not how, only that I would not let time sever our paths ever again.

Previous Chapters: Ch 1 / Ch 2 / Ch 3 / Ch 4 / Ch 5 / Ch 6

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It's dark in the N109.

Always.

Even though the windows in the mansion have no curtains, the only lights here are false ones. No matter what hour of the day it is, only the warm amber lamplight illuminates the rooms around me. The city lights from outside peek through the glass here and there, flashing red, green, or a frigid blue.

It's always cold in the mansion; it's how Sylus prefers it. Not surprising, really, considering how his body always feels as hot as a simmering furnace. Unlike me. I'm always freezing, it seems, and I definitely prefer a warmer setting.

Wandering around in this falsely lit, cold, and absolutely silent home makes me feel like I am trapped in some kind of bunker during an apocalypse. I miss going on missions in the city. I miss the warmth and humidity of the afternoon haze in Linkon. I miss the sun and the fresh air. I miss waking to my alarm in the morning, and I miss the raucous sounds of city life.

On my fourth day here, I start to lose the concept of night and day, and my body begins to protest the maltreatment. I'm still recovering from my injuries, and that makes it worse. Exhaustion finds me at the most unpredictable times. I start falling asleep while standing, sitting, even talking. A few times, Luke and Kieran - now acting as my escorts around the mansion - have to prop me up to keep me from falling over. This lasts most of the day. I float in and out of awareness, limping from room to room and dozing in-between.

I wake from one such nap when I hear motion upstairs and wonder if Sylus is up and about. I check the phone he gave me for the time.

1:14 PM

While I wait for him to come down, I stop by the dining room to pick at the table of food there. Though I've never seen anyone in the mansion other than Luke and Kieran, somehow the food and drink here is always replenished and fresh. Once, Sylus hinted at there being a chef on the payroll, but thus far I haven't met anyone else who works here. Another mystery that gives this mansion a kind of haunted vibe. 

Eventually, Sylus emerges from his bedroom and approaches me wearing his full leather riding gear. My eyes rove over the knee high black boots, stylish jacket, and half gloves. He looks incredible, and I can't help but appreciate the way these clothes accent his broad shoulders, slim waist, and exquisite ass. He notices me looking of course, and I quickly look away with my ears on fire.

"Good morning," I say even though it's the middle of the day. He grabs a plate and drops a few tasty looking items onto it. We sit down to eat together, neither one of us speaking for a time. It's a pleasant, companionable, silence in which I try to reconcile why I am feeling so anxious about Xavier coming to pick me up tonight.

In the end, I must be honest and admit that I don't want to leave yet. But, I have to. The investigation must continue. We must stop Noxis and find an antidote for LUMINIS. Not to mention, I'm still a Hunter. I have duties I must fulfill to protect Linkon. I'd left the city to attend a symposium and disappeared. I needed to report to Captain Jenna, maybe even come clean about what Xavier and I had been up to for the last several months.

Just when I start worrying about how I'm going to accomplish all of this, a large gloved hand appears in my line of vision.

"Come for a joy ride with me," Sylus says, his expression unreadable. I take his hand, letting him pull me up out of my chair.

"Where?" I ask, rubbing at my eyes. Damn it, the exhaustion is about to hit me again.

"Does it matter?"

Not really. I'd go anywhere if it's with him. Especially when he asks me anything while the corners of his eyes crinkle into a special kind of smile I've only seen him direct my way.

"I'd love to go, but I'm not exactly dressed for it." I point to my sweats - or his, rather. "And I'm pretty tired. Not sure how I'll manage to hang onto you."

Sylus tilts his head, running his hand over the bandages on my shoulder and arm. He tilts up my chin. "You look pale," he observes.

I can't reconcile a Sylus that's actually worried about me. It's too surreal. But, his frown during these moments speaks for itself. No matter how naïve I might be, there's no way I'm misreading his intent.

"But, you'll be fine," he ruffles the hair at the top of my head, careful not to touch my wound. "Just cling to me like you did yesterday." His voice drops, and he leans in to murmur in my ear. "Use your thighs. You remember how that felt, right?"

I take a few steps back, my whole face catching fire. His words bring on flashbacks that I've been trying to keep at bay for a while.

"But, I'm still not dressed for it."

He runs his hand through his hair with a smirk then holds it out to me again. Still sheepish, I take it. As we walk upstairs, I ask about Xavier and how he plans to have him pick me up. As frequently happens, Sylus doesn't answer me. By the time I'm ready to pinch him in frustration, we make it to his bedroom. An organized grouping of dark red boxes and unmarked paper bags rest on the floor in front of the bed.

Sylus gestures for me to go to them. As I step in that direction, he settles comfortably on the leather armchair in front of his work desk, crossing one leg over the other. Mephisto, who's been sleeping on his perch, caws and flutters to his master's shoulder. Sylus rests one elbow on the chair and looks at me expectantly. Confused, I look towards the boxes and begin opening them one by one.

Shirts, pants, winter gear, boots, guns, a belt and holster, a large gray duffel bag, and...I can't help but gasp when I open the final box.

"Oh," I breathe, completely taken aback. It's a black floor length silk dress with crisscrossing straps and a thick elegant skirt. On the front is a stitching of the night sky. Stars and planets twinkle up at me in the form of precious gems - diamonds, rubies, sapphires, and emeralds. Below the stars, a shimmering river flows off into a distant horizon. It's quite possibly the most beautiful dress I've ever seen.

I glance at Sylus. His eyes are intent, expectant.

"Try it on," he says.

"Now?"

His silence is confirmation of his wishes. When I hesitate, he smiles behind his hand. "Do you need me to help you?"

I straighten my shoulders, carefully putting the dress back in the box. "I thought you wanted to go for a ride."

He chuckles then stands up. I resist backing up as he approaches me, his hands in his pockets. "Raincheck," he teases, stopping right in front of me.

I nod.

"Go get ready, then. Don't keep me waiting."

Picking up one of the boxes, I rush to sidestep around Sylus and go into the bathroom. Though I know it's absolutely pointless to do so, I lock the door. Once inside, I lean on the sink and take a deep breath. After calming my racing heart, I start getting dressed. I pull on some black leather pants and a thick knitted top. Over it, I don a warm leather jacket. My hair is a royal mess, so I borrow one of Sylus's combs to tame it into a single braid.

By the time I'm finished, the exhaustion is hitting me again. I sit down to put on a pair of boots, hoping the dizziness will pass soon.

Someone calls my name.

The next thing I know I'm waking up. I'm still sitting on the bench in the bathroom, but Sylus is now kneeling in front of me, stroking the side of my face. His lovely mouth is marred with a frown.

"Oh, sorry," I mumble. "I didn't mean to doze off."

He helps me to my feet, steadying me when I stumble.

"The darkness can be difficult to get used to for some," he says. "Ready to go?"

I nod, and we make our way to the front door. It occurs to me that I'd never stepped outside of the mansion. Somehow, I'd never been curious to see where we actually were. I let Sylus lead me down an expansive concrete driveway to where his bike awaits. My eyes go wide when I recognize the vehicle.

"Is that...?"

Sylus raises a brow at the surprise in my voice.

"It's not a 380HM...no way..."

A Hunter bike. Not just that, but a prototype model that not even UNICORNS could afford to equip their Hunters with.

Sylus huffs. "Don't lump me in with such low class mediocrity."

I don't question that statement, but excitement buzzes through me. I've driven a Hunter bike once or twice, and it was a thrilling experience. If this is something even more advanced, I can't wait to experience it, especially since I trust that Sylus is more than capable of handling it as a driver.

I smile when he hands me an onyx helmet. I mount up behind him, and as I try to figure out the best way to hang onto him without aggravating my injuries, his dark Evol wraps around my back, my knees, and my torso. I gasp when it presses me against him. It's as though something is tying us together.

"Don't worry, kitten, I won't let you fall," comes his promise, much clearer than I expect. The helmets are radio linked so we can hear each other without issue. Experimentally, I try to relax. Even when I'm not putting much strength into holding on, his Evol keeps me steady. I lean against him, then, releasing all my anxieties from earlier. We have mere hours left together, and I want to enjoy every minute I have.

The bike roars to life beneath us and Sylus guns it into overdrive without preamble. In a single breath, we are skyrocketing through the darkness at a speed I can barely process. Lights blur into multi-colored streaks as we soar down the highway. I feel every rise and fall - every thrill, every twist and turn - without fear, knowing that Sylus's Evol holds me firmly in place. I let his body heat melt into me, relishing the feeling of gliding through the wind like a fledgling hawk learning to fly.

We wing past skyscrapers of every shape and size, ascending higher and higher up a natural slope until we reach a bald hill. We skid to a stop, and as we take off our helmets I smell burned rubber. A massive radio tower spears into the ground before us, extending high into the sky well above the clouds. It's seen better decades. It's body is worn and tired, the metal eroded after years of weathering Metaflux storms.

"Where are we?" I ask.

"Just a good view." He gestures around us to the panorama. The Underworld, a city with no sunlight and no moonlight.

On this hill, we sit like eagles perched above the sprawling buildings and towers of N109. In this endless night, the glass and polymer looks like a myriad of shining mirrors, reflecting a world that's a kaleidoscope of colors. Signs, brands, and advertisements compete for real estate and blaze against the shadows, so bright they give off their own blinding aura. A few high tech nightclubs flash and rave among the rooftops, the illuminated canopies above them blinking in time with booming melodies. Silhouettes of people ebb and flow behind the tinted windows. The conflicting rhythm of the music pulses against the silence of the streets, a heartbeat of this lonely and frozen cityscape.

Sylus observes all this with an aloof and ruthless gaze, ever searching, ever calculating. His breathtaking silver hair reflects the ever changing colors of the city. A King examining his domain. He'd brought me here for the view, but there is no enjoyment in his eyes. They dart from building to building, his pupils narrowed as though he can see through all the glass to the happenings behind the walls. Rooting out all secrets, all dealings that would seek to take power from him.

It's a degree of control I can't fathom. It seems harsh to be at the top of all this. Lonely.

I call his name without meaning to.

When he turns to look at me, his pupils dilate again and his expression softens. It's a surreal transformation I can hardly comprehend. We don't speak, but a wealth of something passes between us as we stare into each other's eyes. I reach out to him, and he helps me turn to hop off the motorcycle. His hands grasp my waist, and he lifts me up. His forearm settles under me, holding me up and in place so my face is above his.

There's so much that I want to say, but no words come. I press my hand to the side of his face, moving some strands of his hair away from his cheeks. At last, the line of his lips softens into his special smile.

"If I asked you to stay out of the dealings with Noxis, would you?"

I take a deep steadying breath. "I can't."

"Then make me a promise."

I nod, and the wings of his brows lower over hard ruby orbs.

"Prioritize your vengeance. Show no mercy. You're not fighting Wanderers. These are humans, and the depth of human cruelty is immeasurable."

"I'm not a killer," I whisper.

"You are. Everyone is. Whether you admit it or not." The lights around us shift and churn, lighting up his eyes. They seem to glow as he speaks, and goosebumps break out all over my arms and shoulders. "It's simple. When someone would take from you, you must take double. When someone would betray you, you rip their treachery out at the root."

"I understand that's how it is here, but in Linkon it's--"

"Different?" He makes a sound of bitter amusement. "No, sweetie. A little sunshine doesn't change human nature. The monsters just wear masks."

I shudder at his words.

"When someone shoots at you, you shoot them in the head. Not the arm. When someone tries to capture you, you break their neck. Not their leg." His free hand twines into the hair at my nape, fingers squeezing until he has a firm grip. "Do you understand, Ellara?"

"Yes."

I can't promise to be ruthless. I've never had to be. But, the message is clear. This is no longer just an investigation or a side project. The night at the Mythe made it clear that these people weren't playing around. If I don't take a stronger stance, I'm going to lose my life. And if there's something I realized as I was writhing in pain and agony from the LUMINIS, it's that I don't want to die.

I must be stronger. I must be more clever. I can't continue being reckless.

Sylus lets my body slide down to the ground, but he doesn't let go of me when I'm standing. He looks down at me from above, his expression once again a complete mystery. My arms wrap around his waist underneath his leather jacket. It's like slipping into a hot bath. Biting the corner of my lower lip, I tug him down towards me.

Our lips meet and meld, our tongues reuniting soon after. Pleasure zings through my nerve endings as he tugs on my hair to deepen our kiss. His tongue circles and circles then pushes, deeper and deeper. I can't breathe, and I don't care. He can take my last breath if that's what he wants. As long as he keeps touching me, caressing me, driving me to new heights of bliss.

We hit a single wavelength both in mind and body. As he pulls me back up against him, my legs wrap around his waist. He gives a growl of approval and draws my bottom lip into his mouth. I graze my teeth against his tongue as his hips thrust against me. He rests my butt up on the bike seat so his hands are free to lift up my top.

We're all alone now on this abandoned hill. The world, the lights, the sounds all fall away as I drown in this man. I gasp his name when he grinds against me. He laughs against my skin, pressing a kiss against my breast. Our joining is far from elegant or romantic. It's frenzied and rushed, like a pair of beasts in rut. It's a dizzying mess of fumbling to take off clothes and undo buckles; a hurried need for oneness that won't be put off or denied.

He bites and I scratch, though he's always careful not to go too far. Always holding back, just enough to make me wonder if I'll ever be able to handle him when he loses that unyielding self-control. A fire, unchecked. I yearn to burn in it.

After the haze of lust is spent, he helps me back into my clothes. Once again, the ruthless King is a sweet and doting lover. He checks my bandages, brushing silken lips against the swollen stitches on my shoulder. I buckle his belt, adjusting the holstered guns against his hips.

A sudden rush of anxiety and sadness makes my head spin.

My time with him is ending.

I have to let him go, and this time I really have absolutely no idea when we will see each other again.

"Sylus," I whisper, not trusting my voice not to break. "I...do I have to...leave?"

I never could have imagined that I would be so bold. Bold and foolish. Clingy.

Shame fills me, but it cannot override my sadness.

"Can't I fight Noxis by your side?"

He observes me from above, and I wonder if I am just another piece of the King's domain. My words are heavy and full of feeling, yet his eyes remain a hard glimmering ruby. Unwavering. Unmoved.

My pride rebels. But, what good is pride when I am being separated from someone that I...

That I...what?

The answer comes to me, yet I deny it. Completely. Entirely.

The truth my heart reveals is something that can never come to pass.

Not ever.

My hands ball into fists.

"What is it that you want from me, Sylus?"

I'm about to try to back out of the trap I've just stepped into when suddenly he moves forward and pulls me into a tight hug. I hear his heart beating against my ear. Steady as always. Controlled. Yet when he nuzzles into my neck, his voice is strained.

"What do I want?" he echoes. His words thin out into a whisper. "You should already know."

I shiver, and my heart screams.

Screams and screams.

My resolve shatters.

I hug him back, my arms shaking.

"I don't want to leave," I say in a rush. My eyes sting. "You want to fight them alone? You want me to stay out of this? Are you crazy? Are you mad?" My hand slaps his arm. "You frustrating, infuriating, impossible asshole! Can't you see how worried I am about you?"

He gives a low, exasperated chuckle. "Finally honest, kitten? Took you long enough." He tightens his embrace, catching my wrist in his large hand. "Yes, yes. Being tied to a bad man like me is beyond reasonable."

"It's completely unreasonable!" I shout at him, tears running waterfalls down my cheeks.

When he backs away, his eyes are soft, twinkling with mischief and something else, something I haven't seen there before. He thumbs away my tears.

"Shedding tears now? How endearing."

"Don't treat me like a child," I pout, knowing that I'm the one really being unreasonable now. "Or a kitten. Or a dove. Or whatever the hell else you come up with."

He holds me as I calm down, and when I can think straight, he asks, "So? Do you still not know what I want from you?"

I shake my head, stubborn. I don't want to rely on assumptions. I want to hear him say it. Clearly. So I can't doubt my sanity when we're apart.

He chuckles and presses a kiss to my forehead. "You should know that I adore you," he murmurs, the red in his eyes languid and his voice a tender caress. "There is no love purer than mine."