#and it said a bunch of things were adjustable that aren’t :(

[useless-gremlin]

Not getting scammed by a wheelchair hiring company is harder than I thought

[tmntxthings]

Had a dream where I got to meet the 2012 TMNT and Raph just gave me a big ol hug and wouldn’t let go.

Gave me the idea, what if reader went on a trip for a week or so and as soon as they get back, Raph is all cuddly with them and won’t let go. He’s making sure they aren’t leaving for a while. He’s getting teased for sure, and he’ll try to deny that he missed them that much, but he won’t leave them alone, sooo.

一∑ Proximity ・゜・。

author’s note: i thought this was cute, so yes, here we go c: also what a nice dream!

warnings: fluff, short

—————————————————————————

It was good to be home! Sure traveling was fun and you’d definitely be traveling again. Just not anytime soon. You had definitely gotten a case of homesickness. It was especially tough to be away from your friends. Though thankfully they had kept you company through texts.

You had been surprised at how much Raph had texted you though! In person he wasn’t as talkative with you around, so to have those deeper convos gave you a bit of insight to the turtle in red unlike before! In fact you felt closer to him, and you hoped it could pass over to in-person as well!

Now you hadn’t been gone too long. This wasn’t the longest trip you’ve ever been on by no means! In the past when you were little you had went on road-trips that lasted well over two weeks. So just a week at the beach was nothing in the grand scheme of things.

Yet as you texted the turtles that you were back and heading their way, you were met with a plethora of ‘ Hoorays/ Can’t wait to see ya/ & Hurry over’s. ’ It was heartwarming! So you had a pep in your step down the New York City’s sidewalks. Down the manhole cover you went and as your eyes adjusted to the darkness your footing finally found the sewer floor.

Immediately strong arms wrapped around you. It was a shock no doubt and you couldn’t stop the sudden gasp from leaving you as you practically jumped out of your skin! But you saw green arms and tilting your head everywhich way behind your back to see a flash of red clued you in on who it was.

“Raph! You gave me a flippin’ heart attack!!”

His reply was to only squeeze tighter, and silence enveloped the two of you for a beat.

“I missed you too,” You said softly a smile on your lips. His reply was mumbled into your hair, so low you couldn’t decipher it but you had an inkling.

After a moment or two more his arms relaxed and you slipped out of his grip and started regaling your adventures from the trip! He led the way back to the lair, giving responses when you paused but letting you talk overall.

And then you were met with three more hugs! “Was wondering where you ran off to Raph!!” Mikey drawled with a smug look. To which earned him Raph’s patented glare, a heated look that warned Mikey he was treading on thin ice.

You restarted your tale of adventures, all five of you sitting comfortably around the tv in the living room. Mikey was asking a bunch of question while Leo and Donnie listened politely. Raph sat right next to you, arms going over the back of the couch.

It had been about an hour when your phone started to ring. Your mom needed a grocery run and was asking for your help! With that you relayed the message to the turtles and said you would stop by again soon! “We’ll be here!” Leo smiled. “Do you need help with the groceries?” Donnie asked, to which you thanked him kindly but said you could manage. “Leaving already?!!” Mikey whined giving you a puppy dog stare before crushing you in a hug. “Betcha Raph’s gonna walk you to the manhole!” Mikey said in a sing-song tone. Teasing his red brother once again.

“And if I am??” Raph asked defensively. “Just admit it bro! You missed Y/n sooooooo much. Never left your phone alone, always texting during patr—“ Things started to fly at Mikey’s head before he could finish his sentence. As Raph ground out that he needed to mind his own business or just shut up in general.

It took you calling out a goodbye for Raph to finally let Mikey out of a headlock as he raced towards your side. But not without giving Mikey one last warning to be prepared for when he got back.

“You don’t have to be embarrassed Raph! You know I missed you guys too!!” You tried to say.

But you were met with denials! “Mikey doesn’t know what he’s talking about. I was playing this new game..”

“Ohh..”

“What game?” You questioned. And not to see if he was lying just because you were honestly curious. He sputtered about it being some dumb fighting game and that ended that conversation. The walk was quiet but you were used to it. Raph kept close to you the entire way to the manhole, sometimes his hand would even brush yours as his arms swung slightly as he walked. Surely that had just been a coincidence!

“Well, this is me!” You joked, head nodding up at the manhole above you. “You sure you don’t need help with the errands?” Raph offered. Your heart warmed again, but you shook your head. “I’ve got it! But I promise to be back soon, maybe even later today?”

Raph seemed to like that idea. “Alright, well text me and keep me updated..” he put his hands on his hips as he started rocking slowly back on his heels. “Will do!” And with that you turned your back to him and went to climb to ladder rungs.

Before you could take too many steps away though, it was like déjà vu. Raph’s arms went around your middle. Hugging you for the second time today. This was one quick, almost as if he hadn’t exactly expected himself to move into action. He cleared his throat and called out a goodbye as he left. At the top of the climb you looked out to see he was already out of sight! You still called out for the whole sewer to hear,

“Missed you too Raph!”

Even though he wouldn’t say it. At least not clearly. You would say it just so he knew that for certain.

[ihavemanyhusbands]

NIGHTS AT THE WRANGLER — A DRABBLE

Pairing: Cooper Howard/The Ghoul x Courier!Fem!Reader

WC: 1.4k words

Summary: A little fluffy ficlet/drabble of Courier!Reader and Cooper after he started working as an escort at the Atomic Wrangler <33

Warnings: fluff!!!, flirty cooper, some lovey dovey smut, escort!cooper, based on my inability to understand and play Caravan lmao, budding romance

————-

Nights in the Mojave desert were sweltering and long, but you were able to find some reprieve in one of the small, sparingly decorated rooms at the Atomic Wrangler.

Good company and some drinks certainly helped alleviate your mood as well, despite the additional heat generated. The room was in disarray in the aftermath, but that had been inevitable all along.

The bed sheets had been kicked away and were now bunched up beneath your bare figure. A window was open, though no breeze blew in. A dingy old radio was playing a country song that you found yourself humming along to. Cooper’s hat was perched sideways on your head, lest the wide brim slide down over your eyes.

You and him lay parallel on the bed, facing each other. He was trying to teach you how to play Caravan, but you were still not entirely getting the hang of it. There were a few caps tossed between you to make things interesting, but he’d been the only one collecting the past few rounds.

“This is impossible,” you muttered, staring at your piles of cards.

He laughed. “Darlin’, I’m really startin’ to think you’re hopeless.”

“There’s just so much to take into consideration! And I have so many fucking cards…”

“Don’t get all worked up now,” he said, adding a card to one of his stacks. “At least, not like that.”

You shared a brief look with him before you rolled your eyes, a little smirk tugging at the corners of your lips.

“I thought you said you didn’t do seconds,” you said casually, pretending to look through your own cards.

“I can make an exception here and there,” he said. “After all, you did say I get to choose my clientele. Means I can also choose what I give or don’t give ‘em.”

“I’m sensing some subliminal messaging here.”

He let out an amused grunt. “Oh, you and I both know I don’t need to persuade you into anythin’.”

You hummed noncommittally, not wanting to outright admit he was right. You propped your chin on your hand and observed him for a moment.

“How has it been, by the way?” You asked. “You adapting to this line of work well?”

“It’s been just peachy, the Garretts are real happy with our arrangement,” he said. “Nothin’ to complain about, really, and it ain’t like I’m tied to this place anyway. Nights like this one are always a plus, too.”

“Aw shucks.” You grinned, adjusting his hat on your head. “I am pretty fun, aren’t I?”

“Well, beating you at Caravan sure is fun,” he teased, making you playfully punch his arm.

He grasped your arm and pulled you closer, your torso sliding over the cards and effectively ruining the match. You didn’t mind, especially not as he dipped down to kiss you. His hat slid off your head unceremoniously, falling off the side of the bed.

His tongue dragging against yours brought your earlier activities back to the forefront of your mind and a small, pleasured hum escaped your throat.

He pulled back to look at you, and by the glazed look in his eyes, you could tell he was just as affected. You hummed thoughtfully, reaching up to cup his face gently.

“You’re going sweet on me, aren’t you?” You teased, your fingertips lightly tracing his skin.

“That’s what you think, huh?” He said, one of his calloused hands slowly trailing up your abdomen.

“Far as I can tell,” you countered. “And I’ve been told I’m very perceptive.”

“Hmm…”

His hand passed over your sternum, moving to caress one of your breasts in an intimately casual way. As if he’d been familiar with your body longer than just a handful of nights.

And of course, it responded to his touch, like he knew it would. His grin was lopsided, a slightly smug yet mischievous edge to it.

“Well, as it turns out, I’m pretty perceptive myself,” he rasped, pinching your nipple and rolling it between his fingers.

Your back arched, a small spasm jolting through you as an edge of pain mingled with pleasure. You narrowed your eyes at him.

“You’re just trying to empty my pockets, aren’t you?” You said, breath hitching as you watched him lick his fingers before they resumed their teasing. “Getting me all worked up like this.”

“What makes you say that, sweetheart?” He asked, tilting his head slightly to one side. “I think you just can’t seem to resist me, is all… Why else would you be mewlin’ like that?”

“Oh, I think y-you know why,” you breathed as he leaned down once more, his lips enticingly ghosting over yours. “But I’d argue you can’t resist me either.”

He chuckled a little, moving to your jaw and then your neck, nearly giving you away and making you shudder against him.

“I do like this pussy of yours, I’ll give ya that,” he husked, his hot breath in your ear as he nipped the lobe with his teeth.

As if to emphasize his point, his hand trailed down to where you were aching once more. Palm cupping your already sensitive cunt, which was undeniably wet once again. You couldn’t help a little gasp — perhaps a wordless plea for mercy he wouldn’t heed. Any resolve you had crumbled underneath his nearly expert ministrations, the teasing becoming unbearable.

“Fuck. I-I want you, Cooper. I just…please?” You panted wantonly, the slight humiliation that came with your begging only getting you wetter. “Is that what you wanted to hear?”

“Maybe so.” You could hear the smirk in his voice. “C’mere, I wanna see how pretty you look on top of me.”

He shifted to lie on his back, your mind spinning for a moment as his warmth left you nearly shaking with barely contained desire. Damn he was good. He knew your tells quite well, which buttons to push, where to pinch or prod or caress to elicit different noises. And you were like a bonfire that he set aflame.

You crawled atop him, panther-like, your chest sliding over his. His hips bucked as you reached down to grip his erection, lightly stroking the sensitive head as you kept eye contact with him. You bent down and kissed the corner of his mouth, lightly swiping your tongue over his bottom lip.

His mouth slackened as you lined up his cock and slowly sank down on it, the movement made easy by your wetness. His hands grasped your hips tightly as you rested your palms on his chest. You let out a breathy moan as you readjusted the position of your legs. Your hips began gyrating slowly, teasingly, gauging more of his reactions in turn.

“Pretty as a picture,” he rasped as you pulled back, an emotion you couldn’t quite decipher in his eyes as he looked over you.

You grinned. “Not so bad yourself, cowboy. How’s it feel being ridden for once?”

He chuckled. “Don’t get too smug now, or I’ll have to break ya like a wild bronco.”

You hummed, taking those words as a challenge. His hands aided you as you went faster, finding a rhythm that had you both groaning. One of his hands came to rest on your sternum, wanting to feel your rapid heartbeat. For a moment, you held onto his wrist, head tilting back as you lost yourself to the feeling of him deep inside you.

You heard him murmuring your name, as well as praises of you good you felt. You found an angle where your clit dragged against his pubic mound with each thrust, and soon you were nearing the edge. Your eyes fluttered closed, focusing on all other sensations. Sensing your mounting pleasure, he helped you along. He pulled your hips down to grind against him, his hips canting up.

“O-oh…” was all you could breathe, shuddering piteously, brows furrowed.

And suddenly, without warning, your orgasm spiraled upwards and spread through you. Your legs pressed against his sides as your body tensed. He held you aloft through it, a low groan in his throat as he felt you clench down on him repeatedly. You fell against him once more with a dopey little giggle, his arms encircling you.

“Damn… I’ll never get tired of this,” you said, feeling him chuckle against you.

“All it took to get you going was beating you at Caravan,” he said teasingly, one of his hands trailing up and down your back. “I can work with that.”

You pulled back to frown at him. “You’re so mean to me, you know that?”

“It’s ‘cus you like it, sweetheart.”

————

[yizmiu]

SITUATIONSHIP 〻ᯇ # lee heeseung

003. off the clock | smau + written (519)

IN WHICH ✶ y/n loved the idea of love, simply because she hadn’t experienced it yet. She hoped and prayed that love would come to her at the perfect time of her life where she’s mentally stable and ready for it. So when she suddenly gets attention from Lee Heeseung—she can’t tell if she likes this or not? This sudden attention, he was extremely sweet to her, way too sweet that it was suspicious. Given his reputation, Heeseung wasn’t the type to settle. So why was he all up on Y/n? and just why was Y/n enjoying it? She was confused with herself and her new situationship, maybe she’s just overstimulated by everything and scared to commit.

Y/n was working on her new collection in peace, with NCT blasting through her airpods, unable to hear anything from the outside world.

Meaning she didn’t hear the now familiar loud footsteps walking down the stairs.

Jay sighed as Heeseung was walking slightly faster than him, speed walking his way to greet the girl.

“Hi!” Heeseung said with excitement as he was now in Y/n’s peripheral vision. She shrieked, “You scared me!” her pencil smudged her design as she got scared.

“Sorry,” Heeseung chuckled apologetically. “What are you working on?” He peeked at her sketchpad.

“Something for my new collection—Jay, I need your opinion.” She turned around to meet the others back. “What is it?” Jay turned around, pieces of fabric in his hands.

“What do you think about these sketches? I’m going for something new, a sort of casual but something odd to make it pop.” Y/n showed Jay sketches of finished outfits.

“I like it, the funky socks will definitely make heads turn.” Y/n smiled at his feedback, ever since the two were freshman deep down she’s always admired Jay’s work of art.

“What are you working on?” Y/n asked, she’s been hesitant on asking so, but her curiosity is finally getting the best of her today. You can’t blame her, he’s been coming into the studio after hours with Heeseung following behind.

“New pieces for the fall, Heeseung is my model for the collection.” He nods his head towards Heeseung. “Y’know, Y/n, if you ever decide you want to release clothes for males I am always open to model for you!” Heeseung suggested as he slightly leaned against Jay’s table.

“Thanks, but I’ll probably ask my guy friends.” Y/n chuckles. “And besides, aren’t you always streaming?”

“True…worth a try I guess.” Heeseung smiles at the girl.

Heeseung tried his best not to interrupt the girl as she worked, he was bored out of his mind just standing there as Jay was dressing him up like a doll for hours.

“Y/n, what do you think about this?” Jay asked. Heeseung was wearing a knitted sweater with a bunch of different patches of colors and little details here and there.

“This is new,” Y/n was debating whether she liked it or not. “I know, I’m debating whether or not I like it myself.” Jay sighed. “Mrs. Jeong said I needed to go out of my comfort zone.”

“Well, if it makes you feel better, Heeseung definitely makes it look good.” Y/n chuckled.

“Thank you, Y/n!” Heeseung exclaimed. “How’s your work going?” He asked, standing still as Jay adjusted the sweater on him.

“It’s good, I think I’m gonna head out though, It’s getting late and my friends are all hanging out at Seunghan and Soobin’s place.”

“Tell them we say hi.” Jay said as he picked out a needle from his pin cushion. “Of course.” Y/n said as she packed up her things.

“I’ll see you tomorrow.” Y/n put her backpack on and waved goodbye. “Goodnight!” Y/n smiled as she walked up the stairs.

m.list — previous — next

ᯇ ೀ jayjay note ; ALSO chat this is how i imagine the studio but cutesy light color

ᯇ ೀ taglist ( open ) ; @lilacnini @haechology @heegyuwrld @wonyoungsvirus @enhaz1 @sparklingsjy @skzeyeu @euncsace @hotsforikeu @simjyunnie @yenqa @eleanorheartschishiya @ahnneyong @teddywonss @parkwonbinluvr @k1ttylvr @doulcie @wonifullove @woninluv @ilyjxdz @dimplewonie @grah127 @missychief1404 @eclipse-777 @heelee-01 @aerivrs @amesification @txtbrainrot

[suspensefulpen]

Choice

TW: Wounds, Death

Whumpee winced as he dragged himself across the rubble. He was injured somewhere, but he didn’t care to find out exactly where. He was looking for his team, he’d been out for a couple of minutes and everything had gone silent. 

They hadn’t left him, had they? They couldn’t have abandoned him. There was no way. 

The more Whumpee adjusted himself to get a better look at his surroundings, the more he was convinced otherwise. Absolutely no one was around. At least, no one who was alive. Despite not wanting to believe it, Whumpee couldn’t ignore the rising hurt he felt. And not the hurt from the wounds he was still choosing to ignore. He wasn’t usually one to be emotional but, he suddenly felt the urge to cry. Why had his father figure Team Leader decide to leave him? Didn’t they all care about Whumpee? Didn’t he care about Whumpee? Was anyone going to come back for him? 

Before he could dwell in his thoughts any longer, he heard something behind him. Grabbing the nearest jagged object, he turned to face the source of the sound. He frowned deeply when he faced Carewhumper in all their annoying glory. 

“Don’t worry. I won’t hurt you.” 

He lowered the makeshift weapon and turned his head. “Go away.” 

“Why when you seem lonely out here?” 

“Gee, I wonder why that is.” He rolled his eyes. “Don’t you have something better to do than bother me? Shouldn’t you be with your own team? With Whumper or something?” 

“Oh but I am here for one thing.” Carewhumper’s smirk turned mischievous. “And that’s you.” 

Whumpee quickly turned back to face them. He frowned again, narrowing his eyes. “That sounds like a bunch of crap.” 

“Oh, but Whumpee, remind me why you’re out here alone again?” They mirrored his expression, making him pause to consider their words. He shook his head. 

“I’m not… I’m not alone.” 

“Of course you aren’t.” Carewhumper smiled softly. “You have me.” 

“No I don’t! I have my team! I’ll always have them!” 

They shook their head, almost in disappointment. “Whumpee, you just don’t understand, do you? Your team does not care about you. Your team does not have your back. Your team did not come back for you. But I did.” They said. “And I always will, no matter what happens. That is, if you want that.” They extended their right hand, the left out of his line of vision behind their back. 

He stared at it for several moments. “How do I know you won’t hurt me? You’re not exactly known for not hurting people…” 

“But Whumpee, your team isn’t known for leaving people behind are they?” 

Realization sank deeper into his mind. No. That wasn’t what his team was known for. Yet here he was, all alone in a field of dead bodies. And the person who came back for him wasn’t on his team. 

It was Carewhumper. 

If they were willing to come back for him, they couldn’t possibly want to hurt them in the same way. Would they? Would they hurt them at all? After all, Team Leader told them to give everyone a chance sometimes. 

But he was the reason Whumpee was stuck out here in the first place. Why should he wait for him longer only to bleed out and die? Or even worse, get attacked again. 

He looked up at Carewhumper, seeing the look in their eyes. Eyes like those wouldn’t hurt him. Would they? 

“Okay.” He nodded and took their hand. 

Carewhumper smiled. “Good choice.”

[bearyzdiary]

I've got an idea about simon celebrating midsummer! (It's a Swedish holiday but many other countries in Europe celebrate something similar under diffrent names) Midsummer is about celebrating on the longest day of the year when the sun is out the most and usually people make flower crowns, dance in the sun, make a big bonfire, usually a lot of these happen on an open field so perhaps picnics too. Anyways I thought it would be sweet to see how simon would celebrate it now, maybe being reminded of some childhood memories or going on a trip with his partner in the middle of nature for it!

Flower crowns

Simon x reader

This diary entry contains…Lots of fluff | established relationship | had to do some very good research on this topic🧐 | brief mention of Self harm scars

GIGGLE THANK YOU FOR THE REQUEST😵‍💫🫶🏾 it’s nice to get them even if it overflows my ask box because that means I have ideas for the rest of the month 🥳🥳 tbh this topic sounds really interesting and I was glad while doing research on this event!

Summer is like the best season in most people’s opinion.Ever since you moved to Sweden you learn more and more about it every day.

Simon had explained to you about something called midsummer when you complained how boring it was sitting in the hot house.

You listened carefully as he explained the background for it and things people do and one thing he mentioned caught your eye…making flower crowns.

You always wanted to make one and you used to be an absolute pro at it until you just kinda forget how to do it.you used to make kids on the playground flower crowns in exchange for candy or money if they were willing to pay.

You knew Simon didn’t like going anywhere without his hoodie on mostly because of his scars showing but you reassured him saying you guys could find a quiet spot that might have shade in it.

He was a little worried but agreed anyway.You spent the rest of the morning getting ready.you rambled on to Simon about how excited you were and he just watched with the smallest smile on his face.

Once the both of you felt like you were ready.You left out your shared apartment before you followed Simon as he guided you to a nearby field.The walk was quiet besides the occasional child waving excitedly at you and Simon.

Once you made it to the field you noticed a nice big tree sat next to some pretty flowers.”Most of the flowers aren’t poisonous so you have a lot of options for your flower crown”Simon explained as he grabbed your hand and guided you through the field towards the tree.

“My mother used to take me here and would make me flower crowns.I was never good at them and would just settle on watching her or napping”He added as he stopped in front of the tree before letting go of your hand.”I’ll be sitting here if you need me okay?”Simon added before plopping down on the ground and pulling out his phone.

You turned to look at your choices of flowers before you smiled and got right to work.You remembered a lot but did have to spend most of the morning watching a tutorial.You started with Simon’s first,Occasionally standing up and walking over to him to measure his head size before getting back to work.

He didn’t question you.He just let you do whatever as long as you were happy.The rest of the evening was spent with you making a bunch of flower crowns in different colors,sizes and styles.You smiled at your work as you held up a blue daisy one before shuffling over to Simon.

He looked up at you before smiling and tilting his head down so you could place the flower crown on him.you made some adjustments but it did fit perfectly.You smiled and clapped your hands a little before showing Simon the basket of them you made.

“I was thinking later when we walk back to the apartment I could give them to the little kids!”you say as you pushed some of your hair out of your face.”That would be nice,We can leave whenever your ready”Simon said as you nodded before you sat next to him.

“We can leave in a little I just wanna spend time with you for now…we didn’t do much together so maybe watching the sunset or something could make up for it!”You say as place your head on his shoulder as you nuzzled closer to him.

Simon smiled as wrapped an arm around your waist before going back to doing whatever he was doing.You were quietly watching him as the sun slowly sunk and the sky changed pretty orange and pink colors.Everything felt perfect.

You had fun even if it was mostly silent you and Simon just needed each other and it didn’t matter if you spoke a thousand words to two words,He just needed your company.

[starsomens]

okay we talk about jealous Noah a lot, but jealous wife. Like some girl at the bar is just non stop hitting on him, he’s pointed out his ring a couple times. Trying to be polite and it just isn’t sinking in. The way I would climb that man to prove a point about not touching what doesn’t belong to you

A/N: OH MY GOD AAANNOOONNNNN YWS

Warnings: language.

Cheers and drinks we’re going all around after another successful tour. You had tagged along this time around and it was amazing! But now all you wanted to do was go home with your husband and get some well deserved rest

“Y/N I think you should come on every tour with us, you gave us some really good luck” jolly pointed out

“As fun as that sounds I rlly miss my bed. You know one that isn’t constantly moving” you smile

“Our bed” Noah chimes in wrapping his arm around you

“Hehehe yes our bed baby” you peck his lips. You hear the guys whine like a bunch of little kids telling you both to get a room.

“Oh shut up” you fire back with a smile knowing neither of you would stop soon “if it wasn’t for me kissing your singer here, he wouldn’t have such great shows” you bragged

Which in some ways were true, getting kisses before, between and after the shows honestly gave Noah a lot of energy. Speaking of energy you for some reason felt eyes on you? Looking around you see some girl on the opposite end of the bar. She was looking at Noah but would glare at you from time to time.

Well that’s weird, you thought to yourself. You were never the jealous or worried type knowing Noah like the back of your hand. But the staring made you a hit uncomfortable . Feeling the need to use the bathroom and gather yourself.

“Ima go to the bathroom real quick guys I’ll be back” you said getting out of the booth

“Need me to walk you princess?” Noah offered but you shook your head

“I got it, stay here and enjoy”

“Oh Y/N, we’ll be moving to the pool table in case we aren’t here when you get back” Folio filled you in. You gave him a thumbs up and walked into the rest room. You take the empty stall and as sit to take care of business the other two stall empty. As they wash their hands you couldn’t help but hear the conversation

“Oh my god that guy with all the tattoos is so hot”

“The really tall one right?!” The other asked “Their show was really good tonight too”

“Mhm! I’ve been looking at him all night, but their like assistant or whatever keeps getting in the way” he groaned

“Oh well, I’m gonna go and get his number” the first one spoke as she dried her hands. Your eyebrows furrowed as you figured out she was talking about Noah. Didn’t she know he was married ?? You though to yourself, Ugh, great...you've dealt with some head over heels fans but never to this extent. Were they even fans or did they just find him hot?? Maybe you were over thinking it, Noah wouldn't let that slide....he wouldn't....right? oh shit that was the door!

You finish up in the bathroom and open the door quickly. You round the bend. Your booth was empty aside from Jolly and Matt, which meant the rest were at the pool table. You spin around and follow the sound of pool balls striking each other and laughter. You see your very tall husband take his shot and come up to stand straight, he jumps a bit surprised by the girl standing there, seeming to have appeared out of thin air.

Her smile was big, almost looked too forced, she had even adjusted her shirt to show off more cleavage. Noah had given her a nod and stood next to her while her friend snapped a picture.

okay, maybe they just wanted a picture and you were overthinning it. Now that would be the case if she just left afterwards but next thing you know she turns to him and continues with her exaggerated smile. Your heart was racing and you could feel yourself becoming uncomfortable. He continues with the game seeming very uninterested with what she was saying. She leans on the pool table flutters her eyes and you roll yours.

She then makes a move to touch his arm and come closer to her and you feel your heart drop into your stomach. You felt something in your throat as if you wanted to throw up, cry and scream. Why was she touching him??

Noah pulls back and raises his hand between him and the girl. He points to the silver hoop around his finger, clearly stating

"I'm married"

You start walking before your head could think, as you get closer you can hear her whining like a teenager

"She doesn't have to know" she crosses her arms "besides I don't see her around, come on." you felt your blood boil, you wanted to punch her and yank at her hair

"Well I don't care, I have my wife I wouldn't hook up with you even if I wasn't married to her," he shrugged her shoulder, he was already fed up at this point

"What's one night going to do?" she attempts to reach for his arm again but before she could you slide under his arm and cling to his side.

"Babe, who is this?" you ask looking up at your husband making sure to rest your hand on his chest to showcase your ring.

"Oh just a fan," he answers coming down to kiss your head but you move to capture his lips instead. His hands wrap around you to grab at your ass as he kissed you. Your eye opens to look the girl up and down and smirk into the kiss. You hear her huff and practically stomp away.

"Even at the bar you two? At least wait until we leave" Nick groans as he stood there waiting for Noah to finish with you.

"Sorry guys," you smile at nick, still stay close to Noah, he then bends down slightly to ask

"Are you perhaps" he leans in closer "Jealous princess?" He asked

"What?! No I'm Not!" you defend "I saw you needed help so I stepped in as your wife" he pointed out. Which was actually true but...were you? You were married, he loved you and you him, and you saw how he clearly told her she was married. But looking at him you knew he could have anyone he wanted easily ....you felt a pang in your heart knowing that it was true, maybe you were jealous. Jealous of her speaking with him, touching him, and just pushing for him to go with her.....

Noah saw how you were deep in thought and held your chin in his hand gently and kissed your forehead

"Don't worry baby, you're the only one for me" 「✨Taglist✨」 @lilhobgobbler @cncohshit @vir-tual @tdopomymind @concretenoah @misspygmypie @fvckmeorchokeme @lust-for-sacher @thescarlettvvitch @cind6547 @itsmrsfuentes @purple-lili @ima1986

[inverswayart]

Assorted thoughts on Florianne de Chalons design (and some other stuff)

So in my previous rambings on Orlais fashion I was, among other things, extremely befuddled by how Florianne’s dress stood out from all established trends we saw in Orlais fashion, and in the end left it without much interrogation. But now, once I actually played through WEWH and saw her in action, i think i have some more thoughts about it

So in that post I also complained that dresses somehow went from very high collars with big ass ruffles to plunging necklines without any kind of transitional phase - and now, looking at Florianne big slightly Elizabethan-esque collar, I wonder - is it the trace of that particular fashion? Of course, it’s kinda hard to say since the dress is unique to Florianne - it might as well be her personal fancy or just a costume element (remember, the ball in Halamshiral is supposed to be a masquerade ball, not just any party).

I’m also wondering how exactly it is constructed - the collar itself seems very structured (and it would need to be to stay so upright) but the back of the overdress it’s attached to seems very loose and drapey? And (at least according to concept art) it’s also not supposed to touch her back, so unless there’s some sewing technique I’m not aware off I’ll have to chalk it up to enchantments (tho i guess it would be in-character for such high-ranking Orlesian noble as Florianne)

Another gripe I had with Florianne’s dress were her sleeves - loose and wide with no trace of cuffs we see at almost every kind of Orlesian dresses in-game. It seemed completely out of place, until I noticed that this kind of sleeves does actually appear in-game - just not on dresses, but on mage robes, the kind Grand Enchanter Fiona wears (which is a port of Bethany’s robes from DA2)

So, leaving obvious doylist explanations aside, we are presented with the fact that the Grand Duchess had her very important dress for a very special occasion made so a big part of it would resemble the attire of the current public enemy faction… Which is, no matter how you look at it, is a Statement. Perhaps it’s a subtle way to hint on her alliance with Corypheus? Or, on the contrary, a way to scandalize the court to pull attention away from said alliance? (Either way, I really wish Vivienne had something to say about it…)

And, at last but not least, let’s talk about Florianne’s hair.

Her often modded-away undercut is very prominent feature of her character design, in contrast with both her cousin Celene braids and her brother Gaspard completely shaved head

For some reason, it always stood out to me, even tho it’s just one of the default hairstyles in CC, but I think I kinda figured out why.

So, hear me out.  As per Inquisition in-game presentation, one can observe that Orlais, the higher echelons of power in particular, has a curious aversion to hair - specifically facial and scalp hair, but it wouldn't be a stretch to assume it extends to body hair as well. Throughout the game, we see many nobles and noble-adjusted Orlesians sport big headdresses akin to turbans and chaperons, especially on women’s evening dresses - where headscarfs are neighboring plunging and even risque necklines in a setting where Orlais’ historical counterpart, on contrary, usually allowed and encouraged women to show off their hair in elaborate hairstyles and decorations. 

What’s even more curious, it seems like this fashion is pretty recent - just 10 years ago Leliana was telling us about elaborate hairstyles that could fit an entire birdcage inside, and throughout the DA2 we see that Orlesian nobles and tourists aren’t eager to cover their heads up. So, what could possibly make such a big shift happen in a few years between DA2 and Inquisition? (And yeah, I know that the real reason that both games were developed in terrible crunch and developers didn’t have much time/energy/desire to spend more time on making unique hair for a bunch of npcs who would appear for 1-2 quests max and even with turbans and masks most of vanilla hairs and mustaches would probably clip in one way or another so they left everyone shaved, but, once again, i’m more interested in watsonian explanation rather than doylist one)

What I think happened is that after the DA2 finale (chantry explosion and the whole Kirkwall mess) Chantry had to tighten the screws on its clergy and controlled territory asap as to not allow another blow to its power - and so the Empress’ court had to scramble to show how pious and faithful they are, with one of the more popular ways of doing so being imitating chantry sisters and mothers’ headpieces and general modes of dressing by covering their heads up and abandoning extravagant hairdos of past decade. 

Simultaneously there’s a civil war unfolding, which a) brings military influences into fashion, esp men’s fashion and b) increases Chantry’s standing and influence - if you are unwilling to show loyalty to Celene or Gaspard, you can always turn to Chantry, which makes it’s pressure on especially women’s fashion even stronger. So in the end we have men sporting militaristically smooth shaved scalps and faces and women piously styling their hair flat, with both wearing elaborate scarves and turbans on top of that (because they are still, after all, orlesians)

Ball at Halamshiral is a clear illustration of that - Gaspard, despite once having luscious mustache (as seen in Masked Empire), is completely bare-faced not counting the mask, Celene’s hair are tightly braided but not covered (deliberate move to show how her progressive stance is and close she is to most of the empire in contrast with Gaspard, who’s only backed by a fraction of army)... and then there’s Florianne - with hair cropped short and shaved, but not fully, and also forgoing any head covering - in a sense a middle ground between Celene and Gaspard… And at the same time she literally refuses to conform to either masculine or feminine mode of action (in an in-universe Orlesian sense), showing it off, and, in conjunction with her mage-influenced attire, it creates quite, dare i say, punkish look - at least, for orlesian court standards. If it was intentional, then you might read it as a bit of a foreshadowing on her role in the royal plot, and if not - oh well, I still choose to read it that way since Orlesian fashion is a mess and there’s no one to stop me./hj

(One thing I’m glad didn’t make it to the game from concepts (even tho by itself it’s pretty great) is the train cause there’s literally no other character having it anywhere in all 3 games and i would’ve have no idea how to read it)

[cyten0]

A Symphony In Crimson

Act 2: A Movement in White

Chapter 3-A

▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲

You awaken in a field of Spider Lilies. The sky is filled with stars, but with no moon. Lights shift on the horizon… Where are you?

✸ “Ah. Hello there, Fighter.”

You turn around, and see a single pale tree, with Loop sat upon it’s root, fiddling with a silver coin in their hands.

▲ “Oh, hey! There you are!… Wait, how did I get here?”

✸ “You fell asleep, and instinctively projected your mind into my realm. Due to your wish, it happens a little more easily then it would for most like you.”

Loop seems a little… Out of it? They had this weird chipper demeanor before, even during the fight. It feels odd to see it just… gone?

▲ “You doing okay?”

✸ “… I have no BLINDING idea!... I was privy to that little battle you had with the Empress. Even if only vaguely. Hard to see into each other’s realms!... But let’s just say, my feelings on YOU of all people nearly dying for my sake are… Shall we say, complex~”

Right that… would be complicated. You sit down across from them.

▲ “Sorry about that, Loop, couldn’t just let you sit alone for eternity!”

✸ “Sigh Stubborn one, aren’t you?… Regardless of all that, I’m also still grappling with my new nature. And… Minor personality shift?”

▲ “Personality shift?”

✸ “Right. Before, Loop- I was a puppet for the Fool Arcana. My or their representation. But after all that… Now, We’re the same being. I, as the Fool, decided to just. Fully incorporate ‘Loop’ into my persona. Didn’t have much of one before. But now… Neither side of it is fully adjusted to it?”

Ah, you get it. Reminds you of your days back at Jouvente’s house.

▲ “Yeah, changing is tough, huh? Bet the name confusion doesn’t help things.”

✸ “… Name confusion?”

▲ “Well yeah, you got a name for who you were, two actually in your case, but you don’t yet have a name for who you’re becoming? Hard to aim for a change when you don’t got a goal!”

Loop, or the Fool, just stares at you for a bit. Before bursting into laughter!

✸ “HAHAHA!!! Stars, it can’t be that simple, can it?!?”

▲ “Course not, but it helps to do little things like that!”

They laugh for a bit more before calming down.

✸ “Hah… Thank you, Fighter… Hm. A name…”

They think for a bit, before plucking a single spider lily from the ground, and holding it up.

✸ “… Equinox. That sounds good.”

▲ “Nice! Equinox it is then!”

It’s a really nice name. Think you’ll call them Quin for short.

✸ “Now then. Please, catch me up to speed on what’s happening in the real world?”

You nod, You’re more then glad to. Maybe they can help give some advice…

▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲

You wake up next to Sif. It was nice talking to Equinox. Gonna have to let the others know about the new name. But maybe after breakfast!

Oh right. You are testing that thing Equinox told you. You ruffle Sif’s hair, making sure to get the spot right at the base of their horn. Right on cue, they start purring! Oh crab, that’s REALLY adorable!! You keep going till… There it is! The horn lights up completely lightless! Equinox said that this would help them relax a bunch. Sif’s purring up a storm, so that sounds about right!

You hop out of bed, only for Sif to hop awake. Were they awake beforehand?… Also why are their eyes so wide? Their pupils are practically round with how much their slits have widened.

▲ “Morning. You good there?”

Sif just makes a little mrp noise? Are they not awake?

▲ “Uh? Sif?”

They shake their head.

✦ “Fa”

▲ “Ah, wanna go by that name? Sounds good!”

✦ “Happy.”

They cozy up to you, nuzzling into your side. Oh. Oh they are REALLY out of it… Why are… Crab, you’ve been pranked, haven't you? Change, you hope this doesn’t last too long. Even if it is utterly adorable… Your heart feels very conflicted right now!!!

✦ “Isa. Happy.”

Okay, Isa, relax. S-Fa. You quickly swap names the names out in your head, like you learned back in Jouvente. FA is acting like a little critter. What to do now?

… Okay. Food first. But Start analyzing. You head downstairs. Fa starts following you like a puppy. But also they have solid movement tracking, noticing your movements before you've even fully made them. Perhaps allocating conscious thought into instinctive?

You see the others surrounding the table. All your stuff is mostly moved out to that cart you managed to get. You all still need to get a horse, but only after breakfast!

✦ “Food!”

Right, and that. Wonder what Bonnie’s made today? You take a seat with Mira and Odile on the table, and Fa just sort of stands there, looking around.

◆ “Morning? Are they alright? Their horn’s glowing and their eyes...”

▲ “They seem a bit out of it. Had a chat with the local starlit expert last night, they're now going by Equinox. Did a thing, cause Quin said it’d help them relax. Think they pranked me.”

Fa starts batting at your sleeve. Highly attracted to movement. Likely due to increased senses and decreased inhibitions. You wonder if that's how their feral stance works? Is it tied to this?

◉ “Um. Are you. Okay Siffrin?”

✦ “Fa!”

◉ “Oh, Okay! Going with that name officially?”

They nod, before going back to batting your sleeve. Hm. They are having a rather easy time with this. You'd think they'd have more anxiety? Unless this clears it? Might be useful...

Nope. Bad idea Isa. You don't want to be manipulative like that.

Bonnie walks out of the kitchen with a collection of fried wraps? Oh this ought to be interesting! Fa's eyes lock onto the tray and stare the whole way over. They still have priorities, clearly.

✿ “New recipe. Somethin called Jan-big.”

◆ “Jianbing?”

✿ “Yeah, that. Not from Ka bue, but like. A Neighbor? Filled it with chicken and stuff.”

The smell is fantastic as always!

◆ “The way Si- Fa is eyeing up those, we’d best grab our share now.”

✦ “Want.”

▲ “… Yep, better get our share fast.”

You all grab a wrap, and dig in. Crab YEAH, Bonnie really knows what their doing, as always!!

◉ “Oh this is so good!”

◆ “Thank you Boniface.”

✿ “… Thanks.”

Hm… Yeah, your sure of it, Bonnie’s not doing good. They’ve had this odd face the whole time, and keep glancing at Fa. And it's clearly not about the new mindstate, given their expression. Some form of Upset.

Speaking of which, after you all grab some, Fa didn’t do anything. Maybe waiting for permission? You quietly push the tray over to them.

✦ “Have?”

You nod, and they instantly faceplant into one, eating it in one move, before falling backwards? WOW they're out of it!

They suddenly jolt upright! And their horn and eyes returned to normal!

✦ “Huh? Wha- what happened?”

▲ “You were a bit out of it. How much do you remember?”

✦ “Um… I was really cozy. And… Loop’s Equinox now… Foods called Jianbing? Don’t… remember the details.”

◆ “Well, that’s the important parts.”

And useful to know they can snap out of it easily! Plus decent memory retention, given the lack of focus.

Bonnie just keeps looking at Fa, then looking away when they think their looking back. Right, Time to do the friendly Isa thing!

▲ “Everything alright, Bonbon?”

Bonnie just stares for a bit. Then turns to Fa.

✿ “… You didn’t say you died in the time stuff.”

!!! They WHAT?!? Holy crab?! Also how did- Crab the wish! Of course!!

✿ “I remembered a few of them last night. Guess my wish is doin stuff. But. You crabbing died! In front of me! First you got crushed by a trap, then you got frozen, and then you took a hit from a sadness! You didn’t say THAT would happen!”

◉ “I-Is that true?! You actually DIED?!”

Fa just stares off. Refusing to make eye contact with any of you. They did, didn’t they?

✦ “… yeah. Most of the time that’s… How I had to go back.”

◆ “Gems… In hindsight, it makes sense, but… That’s horrific!”

Crab. They actually, legitimately died for you all. With how unfazed they are, almost certainly a LOT. They shouldn’t have had to do that at all!

✦ “I honestly didn’t mind too much. If someone had to die, better me then one of you.”

You hear them mumble something under their breath.

▲ “What was that?”

Fa just looks away. Yeah, no, You all know better then to just let that slide after all this.

▲ “… Fa. Why do you think it'd be better that way?”

✦ “… I figured… I figured it’s what I deserved.”

What the! Crabbing!!!!

◉ “Change, No talking like that! You don’t deserve anything like that!”

Fa doesn’t respond to that. They don’t even meet your gaze. They clearly don’t believe it. Crab it. You give them a big hug.

▲ “Fa… Sorry we couldn't have been there for you earlier.”

Fa still looks upset. But you get it. You get stuff like that isn’t easily gotten over. They must have all sorts of complicated feelings.

✿ “… Does that mean… I’m gonna see you die a lot more?”

✦ “Yeah. I’m afraid so.”

✿ “Is that what you were gonna warn me of, yesterday?”

Fa doesn’t answer for a bit. Change, there was WORSE?!... Crab, of course there was worse. Quin's proof it could be SO much worse.

✦ “...I… There were two loops where... I didn’t die first. One where everyone else died, cause I wasn’t there. But… But the other… I… The King… You...”

Fa starts gagging!?! Crab!!! It’s just like last time with Quin! What in Change happened that makes them react this badly?!

▲ “Fa? Fa! Take it easy!”

◆ “Gems, what happened?!”

Fa leaps up and bolts it out the door! You rush after, hoping their alright! They get out the front door, and start heavily breathing as soon as they reach fresh air.

Fresh air? Wait- Crab!!!!

▲ “Anyone got a way to cover smells?”

Odile gets that look on her face. Seems it just clicked with her too.

◆ “Bonnie, that thing we purchased, now might be a good time.”

Bonnie, still a bit shocked, nods and runs over to their bag, and pulls out… Perfume bottles? They start spraying, and the room is filled with a floral scent. Fa’s gagging subsides, but they still look bad.

As Fa sits down, barely moving. Odile speaks up.

◆ “… During that fight, Lo- Equinox mentioned the king was involved the last time you tasted blood. I presume it's related?”

Fa doesn’t move. But slowly nods.

◉ “I-It’s okay, you don’t have to talk about it. N-Not until your ready.”

✦ “...Yeah. It’s… Bonnie won’t see that one for… a while…”

Fa takes some slow breaths. You hold them close for comfort. But it'd be best to change topics, so they don't have to dwell on it.

▲ “Why don’t we go get on the road? Take our mind off things?”

Fa just quietly nods. Alright, time to get that horse!

>>>

You drop by the stables, cart planted nearby. The guy in charge pops out to greet you.

“Ah, saviors! Heard you’d be by! Need of a horse?”

◆ “Correct. Any in mind?”

“Come on, let’s see which of them likes you!”

You all walk in, seeing various horses. You don't have a lot of experience with this, given your city upbringing. But, These animals seem pretty happy! This person must take very good care of them!

Oh. Well. Most of them. A near lightless horse sits in their stable, laying down. Crab this one’s lost a leg… Still tries to pick themselves up to see you all though. Their super friendly, what happened to them?

“Ah, yeah. Poor boy got hit by a sadness, protecting the others. Missing leg is a bad thing for a horse, the other legs will start breaking under the strain before long. I’ll have to put him down soon…”

▲ “Ah.”

Crab, right. You remember reading that at some point. Everyone seems a little bummed out. He reaches his head over the gate, and Fa caresses it. He seems to like you all too… Crab, your poor heart.

✦ “Could?… No, no.”

▲ “What’s up, Fa?”

✦ “Nothing, it’s nothing.”

Well now you GOTTA ask.

▲ “It’s alright, you can say what your thinking.”

Fa just looks at you. Then takes a deep breath, in and out. Before speaking, in the most quite and timid voice you’ve ever heard from them. Barely audible, like a light breeze could overtake them.

✦ “I… If I changed them… It could save them. Maybe. But it’s a bad idea and not okay and-”

“Huh? You could save them?”

✦ “No I! I… It’s not natural, they’d be a monster and-”

...You know this is a bit manipulative. They clearly have reservations. But-

▲ “But they’d get to live. Even if you have to keep an eye on them. Y-Y-You don’t have to if you don’t want but...”

◆ “It’s basically what you did to the sadnesses in the house, right? In that case, this might be a good way to get a finer control over that ability, maybe find some uses for it?”

Exactly! Fa's been avoiding their monster stuff for a while now. Maybe getting to do something good could help them a little?

“I can’t say I fully understand what’s happening but… Tell you what, if you can save them, their all yours. I was already gonna lend them out cheap, savior discount and all but. They're on deaths door. You’ve got my go ahead to try at least.”

Fa looks at you all for a bit, then turns towards the horse.

✦ “...Okay. But. I’m gonna ask him first… What’s their name?”

“Bayard. Was the Best horse here.”

Fa nods and opens the door, going into the pen. They start to caress his mane.

✦ “Okay there. Relax. This will pinch a bit.”

Their hand stops, and you hear a sound of pierced flesh, right as the horse jolts, before relaxing. Fa seems to close their eyes, and focus, as they start to speak.

✦ “It’s okay. It’s okay. Steady. You're badly hurt. You might not make it…. Your legs can’t hold like this, you know that… Because I want to help. But it’ll change you a lot... You won’t be the same. Are you okay with that?"

✦ “…. Yes, they’ll be fine. You might have to come with us, but your master can take care of them… They’ll be fine too… Most of those are gone right now…"

✦ “Okay. You’re sure your ready for this?… Okay then.”

As Fa finishes talking, something starts to move under the Bayard’s skin. The surrounding horses back away in fear.

Then something starts to emerge from the stump of their missing leg with the sound of tearing flesh! Thousands of tiny strands of black flesh twisting and forming, bones ripping out of their body then secured in place, coalesce into the rough shape of a new leg. Dark bone-like flesh pierces out from it, like jagged plates of armor. It’s flesh continues to pulse, even after it’s made.

✦ “There, how does it feel?”

The horse gets up, moving it’s new leg and testing it. Well, that was... slightly worrying, but it looks like it worked!

✦ “Oh thank the Universe. Just tell me if anythings wrong, and I’ll do my best!”

“… I can’t tell if I just saw a miracle of the change god, or something out of a horror story.”

◆ “It’s certainly something, that’s for sure.”

They really are! And you guess you've got a new companion!

▲ “Welcome to the team Bayard!”

>>>

Bayard seems to have no trouble with the cart, and has been taking you off to the next town with ease. Fa’s been making constant checkups on them, but has relaxed a bit after Mira suggested they do some tinkering. Odile has been reading that book, Mira has been watching the road, and Bonnie has been trying their hand at paper cranes.

Hm. Fa. You’re curious about that change. Quin mentioned this might happen, so you guess it’s been on both their minds for a while, even before they had a name to aim for...

Well, if their changing, you want to help! Might as well ask more!

▲ “So Fa. Is that the full name or…?”

✦ “Oh! Um. I was thinking... Fantasia? It’s a style of music. I… thought it would be nice.”

◉ “Oh! I like it!”

◆ “More effeminate then I was expecting, but It certainly works.”

◉ “Madame!”

◆ “Ah, sorry? Was that an overstep? I’m not as used to this. Less common in Ka Bue.”

Huh, you'd heard about that. Something about bodycraft? You pretend not to know anything.

✦ “Right, that makes sense. I imagine the ban on bodycraft doesn’t help.”

Oh! That's convienent!

✿ “What! That's a thing?! Crabbing Weird!”

◆ “Yes, officials in Ka Bue have some paranoia about it, figuring it could get out of hand. Meaning those looking to change themselves like that need to go under the radar. I’m more used to it then most there, but It’s still fairly uncommon.”

✦ “Yeah. I get the feeling it wasn’t common back on the Island either, they were a lot more strict on stuff like this. So I’m. Still figuring a lot of this out?"

Huh. So they really havn't had a lot of time to figure this out at all. You'll have to be careful not to influence the too hard.

✦ “I just… knew I couldn’t be Siffrin anymore… Sorry if that makes things weird…”

▲ “Course it’s not weird. This IS Vaugarde! If you need any advice for anything, just ask! I’m looking forwards to seeing how exactly you change, Fantasia!”

Fa blushes a bit at that. Change, you really love them. You hope they get to be more comfortable with themselves! You'll just have to make sure they do it on their own terms.

But then their expression goes sad again.

✦ “I just… I know I’ve been putting you all through a lot lately…”

◆ “While I admit, there’s a lot to take in, it doesn’t change that we are still sticking together.”

Fa still looks nervous about it. Then, Mirabelle perks up, and turns to you all with this strangely cheerful and calm look on her face?

◉ “I think So once said to you ’When everything changes, Nothing changes! In the end, you're still you!’ So even when all this is happening, that much will stay! They know in the end, you’re still you!

ヽ(￣ω￣)ゝ”

Mira quickly shakes herself, acting like herself again.

◉ “Oh! Change, that feels so weird!”

Another possession. Well, who are you to refute the words of Change itself on their own domain?

▲ “Wise and accurate words though! We care about you Fa, and we know that you’ll still be you, no matter how you want to do that! So yeah, we’re gonna help you! You’ve done the same for us more then once!”

✿ “Yeah! Even if you are a dumb crab sometimes!”

Fa smiles at that, and chuckles a bit.

◆ “Agreed. Also, may I remark Fantasia is a far better name then the original version.”

Wait, original version? Was Fa short for something beforehand?

✦ “What’s that mean?”

◆ “Apparently Song and Siffrin’s father liked to give nicknames based on the musical scale. Re, Mi, Fa, So, La. Rather interesting, I suppose. However, Siffrin combined it with a bad pun... FA-llen star.”

Pffftt Crab that’s actually really funny. You can’t help laughing!!!

◉ “Guess the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, huh? Even if So was the only one to officially call themselves your parent… Wait what!?!”

Huh!?!!! Wait, that So character was Fa’s PARENT?!?!!! They looked pretty young for that!!! That shocks you out of your laughing! Oh Crab, you hope you made a good impression!!!

▲ “OH!!!”

✿ “Cool!!!”

◆ “Huh. Well, that’s good to know.”

Fa just stares blankly… Not sure how to process that information… Yeah, that makes sense, finding out that someone you just met actually raised you as their own kid! And Fa doesn't even have memories of them!

Well, better catch up on lost time!

▲ "We better get to know them more, then! Maybe we should take them up on that offer for a call?”

✦ “Oh! Right! I wanna see how their doing!”

Fa pulls out their device. Quin said it was called a console? Either way, it’s time to chat more with them!

[yellow-computer-mouse]

Chapter Four - Killer

Killer was brought back to consciousness kicking and screaming by his alarm’s sharp beeping. Instead of getting up, he flopped around dramatically on the floor. Dust, lying next to him, sat up slowly. They rubbed their eyes and blinked sleepily.

“G’morning, Dusty!” Killer chirped, punching them lightly in the shoulder. Dust made a pitiful squeak and flopped forward into their blankets. Killer grabbed them under the arms and stood them up, patting them on the head. “There you go!”

“You already know each other, right?” asked the other skeleton in the room. When Killer nodded, he continued with, “Is this an everyday thing?”

“Yeah, pretty much,” he shrugged. He shook Dust violently and pushed them towards their luggage. “Off ya go!” He got up and went to his stuff, grabbed a random outfit, and headed toward the door. After a couple of steps, he paused and turned back around.

“What’s up?” the other guy asked.

“D’you know if there’s, like, a changing room? Or something?” The other guy- fuck, what was his name?- pointed down the hall to the showers, which Killer commented on. “Uh, that’s a shower, big guy.”

“Yeah, and a bathroom. There’s a bunch of individual ones with showers,” he explained, gathering his own clothes under his arm.

“Gotcha.” Killer stepped out of his dorm and headed down the hall. He noticed another student- specifically, the one who had made everyone do introductions. Violet, his brain supplied helpfully. But Vio for short. He pushed open a door, leading to a small room with a toilet and a shower. He had passed a sink on the way in. He started getting changed, slipping on a thick black T-shirt and jeans. He debated whether to accessorize before relenting and slipping on bedazzled wrist cuffs. He soon left and started brushing his teeth. One of the other students- Geno- walked up next to him and started adjusting their outfit. Killer watched him as he slipped padding down the front of his shirt. He mumbled around his toothbrush and gestured to the gauze strip Geno had pulled it from.

“Oh, I have a problem with my chest. It’s a weird eternally bleeding thing, so I’ve gotta pad it. That’s why I wear white shirts; I can tell if it reopened.” Killer gave a hum of acknowledgment, spitting out the toothpaste residue. He walked out of the crowded bathroom and nodded to Dust, who was leaning against the wall with their phone in hand. They looked up at Killer’s approach, dull eyelights barely visible under the shadow of their hood. Silently turning their phone off, they shoved their phone (and, by extension, their hand) into their hoodie pocket and stepped in stride with Killer. They both made their way downstairs, where they were met with the curious faces of three other students; Vio, who had somehow made his way downstairs before Killer, a quiet student Killer couldn’t remember the name of- was it Nightmare?- and one he definitely knew the name of: overly energetic Blue. He stuck his hand up in a casual greeting before sharply turning the corner and heading into the kitchen. He thrust open the cabinets, grateful that the twins had picked up some off-brand cereals on their excursion. He slid one off the shelf and spun back around, preparing to search for a bowl, when he almost ran smack-dab into the stuck-up student from introductions who was on his phone the whole time.

“Heya, Crosswalk,” he sneered, giving him a good-natured kick to the shin. He stiffened at the contact and glared up at Killer- huh, they were almost the same height. “Whoa, don’t take it so personal. Just my way of sayin’ hi. Hi!”

“Good morning and greetings to you as well,” he replied impersonally, brushing past Killer with a little more contact than strictly necessary and reaching for a different box of cereal. He took it down and began carefully examining the label.

“Hey,” Killer said, a little worried for this guy’s health. “Nutrition facts aren’t that important, kay?”

“I have a deadly soy allergy,” he replied, voice still stone-cold. He seemed satisfied with the “may contain” and moved on to reading the actual ingredients. “Damn.”

“Damn what?” Vio inquired, sidling up next to him. Cross pointed to an ingredient on the list that Killer couldn’t see from where he was standing.

“They tried to sneak one in again,” Cross replied, sounding much more alive. “See? There’s no soy in the may contain but it lists canola or soybean oil here.” Vio let out a small noise of disapproval.

“That’s low,” she said. “What are they doing, trying to kill off their customers?” Cross let out a small laugh and shrugged, putting the box back.

“Whatever. I’ll just have toast. You want some?” Vio agreed with a smile. Killer watched as the two moved fluidly through the kitchen. Why wouldn’t they talk to him like that?

Dust elbowed him and started dragging him into the other room, where there was a stack of (seemingly) clean dishes on the table. Killer snagged a bowl and spoon, poured his cereal inside it, and started scarfing it dry.

“C0uldn’t w41t 30 s3c0nd5 to 4dd 50m3 m1lk?” inquired a short, glitched-out skeleton from the other side of the room.

“Nah, I like rawdogging my cereal,” Killer replied, scaring a laugh out of him. Nightmare looked up from the other room with a concerned expression, blinked a few times, and turned his attention back to his book. Book? This early? Weirdo. “You heard me.”

Geno, fully clad in a white zip-up hoodie and khakis, slammed a folder down on the table.

“I compiled a list of all our schedules as well as a map of the entire campus, showing personalized maps of where our classes are, the fastest routes to them, where our lockers are, and where we’re not allowed to go.”

“Th4nk5, G3n,” Error spoke up, sliding his papers out of the folder and reviewing them. “Th4t’5 n1c3 0f y0u.” Geno nodded, smiling.

“Well, it’s only fair. As the oldest, I should be trying to help you.” He organized the rest of the papers as he spoke, marking each one with a nice little nametag that was clipped to their student IDs. It was honestly a lot of work that Killer thought was kind of suck-up-y. Despite himself, he reached across the table and snatched his papers, reviewing them.

“Hey, Dust.” The shorter skeleton looked up, meeting his eyes with a deadpan stare. “What’s your schedule?” Without a word, they shoved over the paper. Killer compared the two, mumbling under his breath as he did. He set the schedule down, frowning.

“Dustyyyy… we have no classes together!”

They cleared their throat. “All six plus homeroom, actually,” they mumbled.

“You did not just ‘um, actually’ me. That’s so toxic.”

Dust grinned. “Gaslight, gatekeep, girlboss.”

“Jail. Immediately.”

Geno thwacked the folder on the table again, staring the others down.

“Like I was saying, we need to leave now. It’s a bit of a trek, and I want to make sure those of us who actually care about getting to school on time can.” Killer saw Cross smile appreciatively, although he quickly tried to hide it. Too many emotions for Emo Boy, he thought.

“Thank you.” the closed-off student replied.

“You’re welcome. And it’s Geno.”

“Geno, huh?” Killer said. “Geeno. Nice.”

“No, it’s just-”

“Geeeeeeno.” The older student sighed, rubbing his temples. He just nodded as Cross stood, packing his bag with a stoic expression. Most of the others followed suit, and Killer soon found himself walking through a grassy meadow toward the school building. He wasn’t there at orientation the day before, so he figured he’d just follow the crowd. Seemed like it would be a pretty good first day, all in all.

[eepyuii]

frostbite — pt. 8

pairing ; childe x gender neutral! reader

content ; childhood friends to “rivals” to lovers, slowburn-ish

cw ; none

notes ; listen guys. i can explain. rly tho, i’ve been horribly busy with school stuff and for a long time i wasn’t rly inspired to write but i got SOME free time now and managed to finish this bad boy up!

sadly, kind of a boring chapter imo, just a LOT of continuing childe’s story quest. i’ve mentioned a bunch of times before how i hate writing by the quest dialogue and how tedious it is and i believe that’s partially why i couldn’t continue writing for a bit. anyway, i promise i’ll try to get the next chapter out sooner as next chapter WILL have some things i’m looking forward to writing LOL

previous | next | masterlist

the bright high noon sun shines against the blades of grass in the hills of qingxu pool, making the greenery seem like shards of vibrant emerald. the very same sun, unfortunately, nearly causes you to melt right then and there- with impossible steep peaks to cross and a whole child in your arms to carry. teucer had fallen asleep in your arms somewhere along the trip and he still snores soundly as you round up to the location childe had referred to earlier and where you immediately spot him, as well as some other men.

“found him! there’s childe!” paimon exclaims as she floats on ahead, effectively waking up teucer at the mention. he tries to move around and gather in his surroundings within your hold, sleepy eyes adjusting to the light once more.

as you get closer to the group, you find that the men childe is speaking to are… treasure hoarders. and it certainly didn’t look like the friendliest of exchanges, some kind debt collecting that lunatic does. you hear half of a taunt coming from childe when you approach earshot.

“…i suppose i should forgive you country bumpkins for your ignorance, for i am-“

“brother!” teucer yells excitedly and the harbinger freezes in his tracks the next second.

“you’re selling them toys, aren’t you, brother? that’s so cool, i’ve always wanted to watch you work!”

childe stammers. “w-why yes, of course! for i am, uh…

…the greatest toy salesman in snezhnaya!”

oh, for the tsaritsa’s sake. this time, you truly cannot fight the involuntary reaction within your muscles to facepalm at his half-assed save, if you can even call it that. though, what makes it worse is when he raises his fists triumphantly, clapping as if there was nothing wrong with what he said.

“so cool!”

“…huh?” says one of the treasure hoarders.

“you playin’ games, pretty boy?” goes another and you snort at the nickname.

“so, will you buy, or not? the toys that snezhnaya produced three months ago will run you.. yes, six hundred thousand mora- to be paid in full.”

another treasure hoarder chokes on his breath. “t-toys..? a-and how much mora…?”

“wow, is that what it’s gonna cost to fix that head of yours?”

the three hoarders bark out in mocking laughter. childe doesn’t seem to be dissuaded in the slightest, in fact his eyes drop into a lethally serious glare.

“i’ll say it again- toys from snezhnaya. three months prior. six hundred thousand mora. paid in full.”

“yeah… no, sorry, salesboy. the same joke isn’t funny twice. or were you always cruisin’ for a bruisin’?”

the harbinger sighs. “alright then, i’ll make things a little easier for you- i’ll join the treasure hoarders. perhaps you’ll be more willing to pay when we’re brothers-in-arms?”

you frown, slightly skeptical of childe’s methods of negotiation. however, you know better than anyone that childe, for all that he seems, is not an idiot. he’s just as aware of the means as he is of the ends and he wouldn’t be making statements like those with such certainty for nothing.

“hah- would you listen t’yourself?! you think we just let any old person into the treasure hoarders? i’m not so sure you could hack it…”

“heh, well then, why don’t you put me to the test, dear seniors? i like to think of myself as quite talented in the field of treasure hunting.”

“hmm.. looks like you’re not gonna pack it up until someone packs you in. alright then, show us what you got.”

the leading treasure hoarder proceeds with the proposition of a challenge where childe would have to collect some loot on a nearby hill within a time limit set by them. while you could see the hill from where you were, it was impossibly far to reach on foot in such a short amount of time. a tinge of worry creeps into the back of your neck and you shoot childe a concerned look, which he receives like he’s perfectly understood your silent doubts.

in return, he only cheekily winks to you and takes off.

he expertly uses the powerful gusts of wind shooting nearby to cut the path toward the hill in short and before you can even think of keeping track of his movements, he’s back with a small chest in hand- nonchalantly brushing dust off his uniform.

“well, i have the goods, here you go. so how’d i do? pretty well, i’d say.” childe smirks.

one of the other treasure hoarders starts sweating and whispers worryingly over to his fellow bandit. the leader turns back to childe, somewhat containing his shock.

“please… hold on a moment, sir. we need to discuss something amongst ourselves.”

the three turn to a small circle, where they mutter back and forth to each other, unintelligibly to you. periodically, one of the hoarders throws childe a quick, fearful look to ensure that he’s not becoming impatient- lest something freakier than his show of inhuman speed happens. finally, the leader turns back.

“so, mister.. salesman. my apologies but we can’t have you joining us.”

“oh? i didn’t pass? i must say i never imagined that the treasure hoarders would have such strict entry requirements…” childe replies unimpressed.

“no, i-it’s not that- ..what we mean is you’re too big a fish for our little pond. but we fully understand the situation with the uh… toys, sir. we’ll fetch that six hundred thousand mora for you right away.”

you scoff, shaking your head incredulously at how… somehow childe managed to get his way with such a ridiculous front to impress his brother. teucer, on the other hand, could not be happier with the outcome.

“that’s my brother for you! toy sellers are so cool!”

some rustling of grass from behind you grabs your attention and you instinctively tense your shoulders, hand ready and reaching out towards teucer if you had to protect him from an unexpected ambush by the sour treasure hoarders. fortunately, the arriving individual turns out to be a familiar fatui employee, felix. he recognizes your presence with a curt bow-like gesture before directing himself towards the harbinger.

“ah, master childe, you’re here. a new batch of fresh recruits have just-“

“hey now, keep your voice down. can’t you see i’m entertaining some clients over here?”

“clients? well uh… the motherland has dispatched a new batch of recruits to liyue. they’ve just arrived and i’m afraid we must ask you to speak to them.”

“ugh, do i have to? now is hardly the best time…”

you decide to interject with a suggestion. “couldn’t signora give them the initiation? she’s also an acting superior here in liyue.”

felix shakes his head. “i’m afraid the fair lady has already returned to the palace to attend to other affairs.”

dammit, you really couldn’t keep track of that woman. both you and childe seem to simultaneously deflate slightly at the news, as if you’d both imagined at the same time how hard it’d be to keep teucer satisfied and ignorant towards the truth with so many predicaments.

“i truly must apologize for troubling you, master childe, but they are already waiting for you south of lingju pass. every new batch of recruits must be baptized by the tsaritsa’s will through the words of her harbingers. this has always been our rule.”

childe groans and rolls his eyes petulantly.

“well, alright then, i’ll go. just give me a moment to catch up with my brother and i’ll be right with you.”

“do you have to keep working?” teucer finally speaks up, with his saddened tone from earlier returning.

“yes teucer, we have a group of new toy sellers fresh from the motherland and i need to go teach them the ropes.”

“that’s great! when i grow up, i wanna be a toy seller too. can i go listen?”

you stammer to answer quickly. “ah- maybe not now, teuce’. you’re still a little too young for that, bud.”

childe nods in agreement. “besides, most of it is rather boring. why don’t you go play with y/n and the traveler instead? sound good?”

teucer shoots out the most impossibly heart wrenching combo of big eyes and a pout towards his brother. “b-but.. but…”

“i really do have to go, teucer. a lot of people are waiting to see me. i’ll see you around, alright?”

the boy sighs melancholically and for a moment you do understand his side of the situation, but again you’re reminded of the harsh reality of the fatui and how hard it must be, no- how hard it has been to keep such a young, adventurous kid oblivious to all of it. it truly has not been easy for childe for his little brother to show up so absurdly unannounced.

the traveler and paimon are a few feet away, whispering to each other while teucer still sulks, and you catch a bit of their conversation.

“to think he’d go this far just to prevent his family from seeing his… dark side.”

“i wonder how much longer he can hide it from teucer…” the traveler responds.

“paimon wonders too. but hey, let’s at least help him

out while we’re out in liyue…

wait- where’s teucer?”

panic shoots up your spine chillingly and you turn around to where he just was, to find nothing. the few seconds you’d kept your eye off him he disappears. you scan the grasslands for teucer almost involuntarily, but no sign of him at all.

“ugh.. we were too busy chatting! where’d he go?”

you sigh frustratedly and stomp down the hill, eyes still vigilant. “dammit, i shouldn’t have taken my eyes off of him while he was still upset. not even for one second… of course he’s going after childe.”

—

“…from this day forward, you will honor the oaths you have made to her majesty the tsaritsa and you will stop at nothing to bring snezhnaya victory.”

you can still taste the very same oath you swore years ago on your tongue. you still remember how tense your shoulders stayed and shaky the fist held to your heart was, how harsh and vile the words of the fatui initiation sounded coming out of dottore’s mouth. and now, they sound just as sharp coming from childe- you find that it gives you an unpleasant feeling in your chest.

teucer and childe, and consequently the new recruits, were not at all hard to find. you approach the gathering to see teucer propped up on a nearby rock, head held in his hands as he attentively watched the ceremony. you truly wish you’d kept your eye on teucer before and stopped him from coming here. it’s hard to be reminded of childe’s cold and devoted demeanor when it came to the tsaritsa- though, cold and devoted is what you could call any of her followers.

for some reason, the occasion causes you to pause and watch a bit of the procedure yourself, but you don’t focus on how intense the harbinger’s words are, nor on how the recruits react to it. no, instead you focus on childe’s scars.

they’re so evenly distributed throughout his body, or at least what you can see of it, that it almost seems intentional. at any other time, you would’ve thought them to be artistic and beautif- but err, uhm… but now they only look like glaring reminders of childe’s nature as the tsaritsa’s weapon of war. you’ve always thought that was a baffling title to have.

you notice teucer stand up to wave to his brother in the distance.

“…for the trials that we face are harsh, and the enemies are like- ..ehm,”

childe also looks over to where you were at that very second, catching onto teucer’s excited movements. his eyes asses your group, then they trail over to you and the seconds where your eyes meet seems to last longer than it should- there’s a shocked shift in his gaze and it’s then that you realize you’d been frowning this whole time. the harbinger then regards his brother’s presence and he stutters on his sentence.

“a-ahem, like… kites a-and rattle drums.. who shall become redoubtable foes of mr. cyclops in the marketplaces of liyue..!”

you hear teucer approve of his message right next to you, although the recruits don’t seem entirely sold.

“this is, of course, an analogy. as they say, ‘the marketplace, too, is a battlefield.’”

nobody says that.

“so, as your… sales manager here in liyue, i demand that you obey my every order! a refusal shall be considered a betrayal, and the price for betrayal is to be dishonorably discharged from.. a-ahem, the institute of toy research.”

this time, he can’t stupidly get away with this, as both teucer and the recruits seem queasy about the statement- much to childe’s dismay. he looks down for a moment as if to consider his options and shoots up again.

“eh.. uh… forget it! perhaps a round of hands-on training will suit us better!”

just how in teyvat is this guy your superior?

as if everything could not become any more absurd, childe’s proposal seemed to utterly please the new recruits- they whisper and rave to each other about the huge honor that it would be to fight with the eleventh harbinger. you could see the duels’ ends before they even began, with all of these poor newbies licking the dirt as they’re kicked into ground by childe with minimal effort.

just as expected, it’s over rather quickly- though the recruits do hold up their own for longer than you anticipated against someone like childe.

“well then, do you all understand what i said earlier?” childe interrogates with nonchalant confidence, as if he wasn’t slipping up and stumbling on his own words earlier.

“yes, sir!” the recruits heave out exhaustedly.

“excellent, and you all almost managed to get me limbered up. in other words, you’ve done well- for new recruits.”

“thank you, lord harbinger!”

childe gives the recruits some more encouragement before dismissing them as soon as possible. once they take off, teucer takes the opportunity to run up and tell his brother how amazing he was just then.

“teucer- what in the world are you doing here? there i was thinking that these three had taken you to play at wangshu inn, aha!” childe says, the latter sentence is pointed, much like his subtle glare up at the three of you.

“you really did get stronger.” the traveler admits with dignity and childe’s ego, as if it hadn’t been inflated enough by the drooling recruits just now, seems to swell.

“hah, i told you, didn’t it? i never pass on an opportunity to improve my strength. i’m not the

man i was when we first met.”

“you didn’t go all out, though.” she teases.

“by that, i assume you mean i didn’t use foul legacy transformation, yes?”

“it puts a great strain on my body, so it’s best saved for crucial moments.”

your eyes lower into a warning glare, thought playful one. “as if i’d ever let you use it in a situation like this.”

childe laughs with his full chest, amused at your quip.

“ahaha! yes, that much is true. if it hadn’t been for y/n’s medical prowess, i’d still be ways in recovery from the injuries i sustained back at the golden house. and they wouldn’t be a very good medic if they just let me slow down my own healing process, now, would they?”

you two share a knowing look and you give him an approving nod- and as everyone follows suit to look over to you, you fold your arms and pose out proudly, fully drinking up the praise towards your skill.

“anyway, i’m no signora. i don’t use lethal force against recruits, come on now…”

teucer scratches his chin in confusion. “the foul legacy transformation? does it make you stronger than mr. cyclops?”

“ahah… you could say that.” paimon laughs awkwardly.

“i wanna learn how to fight too! i wanna be cool like you!”

“now teucer, fighting isn’t about looking cool. you can only continue to get stronger if you know the reason why you’re fighting.” childe gestures to his younger brother in a lecturing manner.

“i can teach you. but think carefully first- why do you want to fight?”

“i…”

“hm?”

“..i want to protect sister tonia.”

the breath is taken from your chest for a moment. you don’t know what exactly you were expecting teucer’s answer to be but it was certainly not that. it’s so noble and honest and so… ajax, in a sense. you can’t describe what it is, but it sends you back to the times where you and ajax would have late-night deep talks inside pillow forts, whenever he slept over at your house. you’d deliberate about your lives and ambitions and you’d hear ajax express how much he aspired to become like the heroes in his father’s tales. courageous and selfless, so he could brace his fears and protect his loved ones. it’s uncertain if childe recalls the same memory as you, but he’s just as visibly pleased with teucer’s answer.

he pats the younger boy on the top of his head tenderly. “that’s a good answer teucer. when i return to snezhnaya, i will start teaching you fighting techniques.

then, you’ll have to protect tonia for me- how does that sound?”

“hehe, leave it to me!”

“you’ve had a nice long time here in liyue, haven’t you? isn’t it about time you took the boat back home?”

teucer pouts. “but, but… but you’ve been so busy, and we didn’t get any time to play together yet..”

“teucer, you know i’m very busy at work.. and hasn’t it been fun traveling all over the place with y/n and two proper travelers?”

you can tell childe feels like he hasn’t spent enough time with his brother either, but his worry about keeping up the toy seller appearance to protect teucer overcomes him. today has been nothing but close calls for him.

“w-well, how ‘bout this? if you just do one little thing for me, i’ll be a good boy and go back home!”

“oh dear, who taught this little devil to bargain.. alright, what’ll it be?” childe chuckles.

“take me to visit the institute of toy research!”

what? surely he doesn’t mean the research lab… once again, childe seems to have the same thought as you and you take the opportunity to throw him an incredulous, threatening look- as if to tell him ‘this might be your most gods awful idea yet if you take him there..’, but seemingly to no avail.

“done deal. after all, you’ve come all this way for me, teucer…”

childe persuades the traveler and paimon into taking teucer back to the facility at lingju pass and they take off soon after. you decide to stay behind and hopefully steer the harbinger away from the idea and he only faces you in waiting, like he already expects you to reprimand him. you cross your arms disappointedly and sigh.

“you know what i’m about to say to you, right?”

“hm, i might have an idea or two but just-“

“childe, that’s not just some abandoned facility for tourists to frolic inside- it’s dottore’s research lab and it’s active! if the machines inside that place don’t crush us all the second we walk inside, then surely my boss will do worse to us if we put anything out of place. i mean, this whole ordeal started because i had to go regulate the lab, then we found teucer and had to take him elsewhere so nothing bad would happen, who in their right mind-“

two strong, gloved hands come up to hold either side of your face.

the touch is somehow firm enough to effectively shut you up and hold up your head as to fully face childe, but still gentle enough as to not hurt or startle you. the committer of the act stares you right in the eyes, a doting look is apparent on his own azure gaze.

“y/n. answer this simply, do you trust me?”

there’s a pause as you process the development of the literal last 3 seconds and think of an answer- though the distracting, fluttering sensation in your chest also factors in the time you take to actually speak.

“w-well, it’s- it’s not about trusting you or-“

“do. you. trust. me?”

another pause. you look into his eyes as deep as you can and search for anything that says that maybe there’s an off-chance you shouldn’t trust him, but there’s nothing. he’s shown himself more than capable of steering situations back in his control today and it doesn’t need to be spoken how serious he is about protecting his family, even a scratch on teucer’s cheek would be a last case scenario to him. you sigh.

“i trust you, ajax.”

taglist ; @kentply @osaemu @rain-and-a-nice-nap @koichirana

[apomaro-mellow]

S2E01: Halloween Special

S1 Finale

“So what’re we doing this year for Halloween?”, Max asked as she went through the rack of costumes.

“What do you mean what’re we doing?”, Will asked in return.

“I mean are you guys really not going to go to the party?”

“You mean Jason Carver’s party? Pass? He’s already been a jerk and it’s only been a month”, Mike frowned, though it was hard to see from behind the Batman mask.

“Yeah, but he’s not gonna be the only one there”, Lucas pointed out, tying a vampire cape to his neck.

“His friends and the jerks on the team aren’t that much better”, Will argued.

“I thought we were going trick and treating?”, El asked, holding a ballgown to herself and seeing how it looked on her.

Dustin burst through the doors of the costume shop, ignoring Steve’s protests as he ran to his friends. “Guys! I know what we’re doing this Halloween!”

“This oughta be good”, Max nudged El.

Dustin was like a firework as he spoke. “Four words! Real. Life. Haunted house!”

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

“Holy shit Nance! What’re you supposed to be?”, Steve’s shout could be heard over the music.

“Get a clue, detective, I’m Carrie.” She had the tiara and dress and was covered head to toe in fake blood. 

“That’s inspector to you”, Steve said, tipping his hat. 

“Never expected Harrington himself to dress up for Halloween”, Eddie grinned, decked out in a crazy suit and top hat.

“I thought El was gonna go trick or treating and I’m usually on chaperone duty. So I grabbed this from the shop”, Steve said.

“So she was gonna be the Penny to your Inspector Gadget?”, Robin asked, adjusting her eyepatch.

Steve nodded, then looked over at Jonathan. “And what’re you supposed to be?”

“The guy who showed up uninvited”, Jonathan deadpanned.

“Ahh, what’s a party without a few of those? Especially on the most haunting night of all~”, Eddie winked.

“Yeah, it’s not a real party until someone dies”, Steve said, just as a blood curdling scream was heard.

A girl in an angel costume ran into the living room and turned off the music. “Jason’s dead!”

Robin pursed her lips. “You were saying, Steve?”

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

Flashlight illuminated the facade of the house. “Are we really going in there?”, Will asked.

“It’s an actual haunted house”, Dustin said.

“How do you know?”, Max asked.

Dustin led the way forward. “I heard a bunch of guys from AV talking about it. They came here to film something and heard a bunch of noises. Then, they ran into Chrissy Cunningham. They said she looked totally freaked out.”

“Chrissy Cunningham? The head cheerleader?”, Mike said in disbelief.

“Geez Mike, I thought you didn’t care about popularity”, Max rolled her eyes.

“Everyone knows who she is”, Mike said in his defense. “And besides, why would she be in a place like this?”

“Maybe an unknown force from beyond called out to her~”, Lucas teased, putting on a scary voice.

El tried to hide her shiver. “Like a ghost?”

“Time for us to find out”, Dustin said, going through the unlocked door.

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

“Jason’s dead!”

“Fuck!”

“Shit! How’d it happen?!”

“Is someone gonna call the cops?”

“No fuzz, we got booze here!”

“Where is he?”, Nancy asked.

The girl pointed a shaking finger to the bathroom and Nancy pushed on, the others behind her. Sure enough, when they got there, Jason was in the bathroom, in an Indiana Hoosiers uniform, knife sticking out from his chest.

“I’m gonna puke”, Eddie said.

“Good thing we’re in a bathroom”, Robin pointed out.

Nancy reached out towards Jason and Steve had to pull her back. “Hey hey whoa whoa, don’t just go touchin’ dead bodies.”

“I’m trying to figure out what happened.”

“Okay, counter - when the cops show up, your prints would be all over this. Let’s think.”

“It had to be someone from the party”, Nancy said. “No one leaves. Start gathering suspects.”

“Shouldn’t I be the one in charge here? I’m the inspector”, Steve pointed out.

“You’re about as qualified to do that as I am to sail a ship”, Robin said, adjusting the fake parrot on her shoulder.

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

“Are we allowed to be here?”, El asked, nose twitching at the dust in the air.

“If they didn’t want kids coming in, they would’ve boarded up the doors and windows”, Dustin reasoned.

Will turned his flashlight up to the ceiling. “Or maybe they figured only stupid kids would go inside an abandoned house.”

There was a clattering sound from upstairs and they all froze. All had expressions of fear while Dustin’s mouth was open in a wide grin.

“I told you guys!”, he whispered. “Real life apparitions!”

“Hey, what exactly was the plan here?”, Lucas asked. “I don’t see any ghost hunting equipment on you.”

“If I get possessed, I’m suing you”, Max threatened.

“We’re not here to hunt, and they have no reason to hurt us either”, Dustin said. “This is purely a mission of exploration and first contact.”

“Wait”, Mike suddenly looked all around. “Is this the Creel House? Dude, this is a murder house!”

“Sshhh! You’re gonna scare the ghost.”

“Murder house?”, El questioned, moving closer to Mike.

“Some guy offed his wife and kids. Dustin, this is serious, even Nancy’s told me not to ever come here”, Mike said.

There was another sound from upstairs and Dustin tightened his cap in determination. He started up the stairs, the others slowly following behind but disgruntled about it.

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

Making people stay after there’d been a murder was easier said than done. But most of the basketball team had stayed, as well as the cheerleaders. 

“Alright, time to do some questioning”, Nancy said, pacing back and forth in the living room. Although, since she was covered in blood, it was more like she was stalking after having already killed her prey.

“No need”, Steve said. “I’ve got it all figured out.”

Jonathan crossed his arms. “This oughta be good.”

“Well, out with it inspector”, Robin urged.

“Jason must’ve had an enemy with it out for him. And who else would that be but Andy!”, he pointed a gloved finger at him.

“You’re crazy!”, Andy glared.

“Oh we’re all mad here”, Eddie slung an arm over Steve’s shoulders. “But go ahead and explain, inspector.”

“With Jason gone, Andy would get to become the captain of the team.”

“I wouldn’t do that. But Patrick might.”

“Where’s Patrick?”, Jonathan asked.

The scream from the kitchen took their attention away. The girl in the angel costume, Heather, was staring at Patrick’s dead body. There was a puddle of blood on the floor, but no obvious weapon or wound. 

Nancy bent over, ignoring Steve and Robin’s combined protests. Her eyes narrowed. 

“Something’s not right.”

The light shut off.

There were screams, and scuffled and by the time Eddie found the lights and turned them back on, both Nancy and Patrick’s body were gone.

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

Dustin led the way, with Lucas was right behind him with Max clinging to the back of his shirt while also pretending not to. El was flanking Mike and holding his free hand while Will brought up the rear.

Every little sound and creak had them freezing, including the ones that came from their own steps.

“Is this place even up to code?”, Max asked.

“Yeah, it’s not gonna be a ghost that gets us, but tetanus”, Lucas quipped.

Then they heard something fall and shatter in one of the rooms and all joking stopped.

“Okay, something’s up”, Jonathan said.

“You’re damn right Byers! Nancy’s gone!”, Eddie shouted.

“Wait, what about Jason’s body?”, Robin reminded them all and they were back in the bathroom. 

Sure enough, Jason’s body was gone too. Just a few drops of blood left on the surface of the tub. 

“Okay I think I really am gonna be sick”, Eddie said.

“None of this adds up”, Jonathan said. “The killer left bodies the first two times. If they killed Nancy, where’s her body?”

“Hey! Does the trench coat and hat mean nothing to you people?”, Steve asked, frustrated. “Round up the suspects!”

But by the time they returned to the living room, everyone else was gone. Thunder roared and the lights went out again. When they came back on, Robin was gone.

“Wait, I think I know what’s going on”, Eddie said, just as the lights went out again and then HE was gone.

“Okay, this is serious”, Jonathan said. 

“You’re tellin’ me. People sure are gonna talk about how much of a dud this party was”, Steve pointed out, popping some candy in his mouth from a bowl.

Jonathan looked at him in disbelief. “Are you seriously talking about the crap they’re gonna gossip about?! Can’t you tell what’s happening her-”

The thunder roared again. And it went dark again. And just as the previous times, Jonathan was nowhere to be found when the lights came back on. Steve looked around, finding himself completely alone in Jason Carver’s house.

“Hmmm.”

“I’VE COME FOR YOUR SOUL HARRINGTON!”, a maniac in black robes and a clown mask came out at him with a knife.

Steve’s eyes widened and he delivered a punch to their jaw.

“Ow! Dammit! What the hell?!”

“Yeah, what the hell?!”, Steve shouted back. “This is the best prank you could’ve thought of?”

Jason took the mask off, glaring at him. “You’re a freak, Harrington.”

“Then I’m in good company. Now let the others go so we can get on with this night.”

Steve walked out with the rest, the basketball team and cheer squad all frowning at them as they left.

“Worst. Party. Ever”, Eddie said.

“Next time, we should just hang out with your sister and her friends”, Robin suggested.

Nancy nodded. “Their night had to be better than ours.”

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

The kids crept to the door they’d heard the sound from. Their footsteps were nearly silent now. And it sounded like whispering on the other side of the door. Dustin took a breath before throwing it open and six flashlights illuminated the room. They were met with the screams of two teens and they in turn screamed.

“What’re you kids doing here?!”

“What are YOU doing here?”

“We’re not kids, we’re freshmen!”

“Are you ghosts?!”

“Seriously, what the hell!”, the girl screamed, buttoning her shirt back up.

“Dude!”, Mike shoved Dustin. “This is a makeout spot!”

“So you guys aren’t like the-the living dead or anything?”, Dustin asked, dejected.

“Hell no!”, the guy shouted.

“Why are you making out in a creepy old house?”, Max asked.

“Is it how you get romantic?”, El pressed.

“Munson told us about it.”

Now that got them all to go silent for an unnerving amount of time. Eddie? Eddie had secret makeout spots? The idea made them all shiver with fright and they were sufficiently shooed off home.

“I think that’s enough horror for one night”, Lucas said.

Will nodded. “Seconded.”

“Why would Eddie know anything about makeout spots? He’s a virgin”, Dustin shook his head. “It doesn’t make any sense. And why would Chrissy be here?”

“Can we all just agree to never speak of this again?”, Mike suggested but it was more like an order.

“Yeah.” “Sure.” “Don’t need to tell me twice.”

[felidacy]

Vampire!Tim early Robin days

A little more about the idea I had without any context to what happened before or after. Maybe someday I get enough motivation to actually write and post it. 

The first few months of being Robin for Batman –Batman only never Bruce Wayne, because they aren’t close and beyond nightly activities they do not interact– are a harsh adjustment for Tim. However, not in the way that Agent A, Nightwing, or Batman assume. The training is hard, Tim will not deny that when he bears bruises and broken bones from the sessions they hold, but it is his morals that have the hardest time adjusting. 

Now Tim does not believe in killing when it’s avoidable or else he would have never considered himself a possible candidate for Batman, whom he blackmailed so the man had no option to begin with when it was Agent A who gave him the suit to save Nightwing and Batman. So Tim can’t take all of the blame. Tim had become the cuckoo that snuck into the nest even though both parties denied themselves getting closer to each other. The thing is, Tim even before being Robin or following the pair of vigilantes was desensitized to a more gruesome degree of violence, and quite honestly he couldn’t understand why you should hold back when they are the bad guys. ( Not that any of them knew about the secret of his and he didn’t plan on ever revealing it as well. )

Batman was all about punishing the bad guys, but he never truly committed to the cause of it. He called himself the justice of Gotham, the vengeance that the people needed, and yet he never truly stops them. He is too soft in Tim’s eyes. 

This is why Tim finds himself standing face-to-face with a bunch of asshole goons. Alone even though he shouldn’t be on solo patrols yet, what the bats didn’t know couldn’t hurt them. Batman thought that Tim seriously went home already? To that cold mansion where the silence persists at all times? Safe to say that Tim prefers working in the shadows instead. That belief of Batman makes the man incredibly naive. 

(It hurts less than the alternative of the man knowing, but not caring enough about Tim to make him stop. Tim always cared too much about those that didn’t feel the same way about him and he only realized that when he was dropped by them. So far Batman didn’t so Tim hoped desperately that for once someone could start caring about him the same way.)

“Look at that boys! A little birdy dropped in on us.” The front and biggest man grinned and that earned laughter from his fellow comrades. 

Tim’s eyes went past the four men to the little blonde girl that was held down by another one of them. He had only stopped when Tim intercepted. It was a sickening feeling that began bubbling up in Tim as he took in the disgusting men and what they were about to do, could still do because Tim has yet to free her. Gritting his teeth he can feel the sharp fangs start to dig into his own lips and the taste of blood rushes through his mouth. That is when the familiar greed to get more, to still his hunger, comes over him. Batman should be far away enough by now. Hurriedly Tim glances around to make sure that neither cameras are in the alleyway they are currently in. Satisfied when he spies none of them, Tim retracts his Bo-staff and gets into a fighting stance. 

“You underestimate us if you think you can beat us with those thin arms of yours, Robin! Where is your daddy bats, huh?!” Spats another one of them. 

Of course, that is a true statement when one looks at his physique. Watching as the men spout more poor jokes, he tilts his head to the side much like a curious bird would do. None of them know yet of the danger that will befall them any moment as the eyes behind the mask slowly change to an unsettling dark void. Tim was always more slender, small, and light to the point even Agent A doubted he could put on muscles or grow in size. When the old butler looked at Tim it was as if he was looking at someone else. The pained expression said it all and Tim knew that he was just an awful reminder of a boy that was forever gone. Tim was used to those looks ever since his parents presented him to high society and they wondered if he would even live long. As a result, Tim learned to live off of spite as he began to hate looks of pity just because the human eye was too shallow to see beyond. 

They saw him as a weak human, not anyone but his parents being aware that he couldn’t be any less human. 

He was quite literally the monster. And right now, alone in this alleyway with the goons and a girl that will forget because she’s in too much of a shock, Tim feels like being a monster again instead of being Robin. 

“You are wrong,” Tim states, which makes the goons snarl at him in return and throw swear words at him he isn’t impressed by. “You are underestimating me.” 

It all happens so fast from that point on. The goons pull out their weapons, guns and knives respectively, in their anger and that is what makes them predictable. Tim flashes his bloody teeth at them while the moonlight reflects off of his fangs and lets out an incredibly chilling, hollow laugh that is so unlike the cheery laughter he normally has as Robin. 

But right now he isn’t Robin after all. Being the monster, not acting on the morals of Batman, that is when Tim is the most comfortable. Sadly for them, that also just brings greater danger to them. 

The men are taken by surprise as they stumble back and that is all Tim needs. Flexing his jaw, Tim launches at them. They hardly have a chance to scream as his fangs and hands that sharpened to claws rip at their flesh. Blood splatters against the walls and their cries for help are drowned out by gurgling until they fall silent. One by one he stalks them like a predator, unforgiving just like they had been towards the girl. (Tim would like to say he does it for justice. He is a liar.) Any attacks of them are in the end meaningless as the wounds heal again when the sweet elixir of life for Tim runs down his throat. 

He is exhilarated, the best kind of drug for his kind making him ecstatic. 

- - - -

Only one of the men gets to live long enough to run and spread the word that Robin is dangerous and slaughtered them all. Of course, none of them believed the man. Along with a certain blonde girl that saw more than she was supposed to, but unlike the man she was smarter and held on to the secret. It is Robin, after all, not even Rogues would assume that a child would be capable of such a massacre. 

But then over time, more bodies pile up along with the initial survivor and a warning to them all. Robin would always be close by and show a seemingly sweet smile and act innocent next to Batman and Nightwing, but whenever neither of them was close the teeth behind it were sharp on occasion and the voice was cold whenever directed at them. 

None ever disclosed the older vigilantes about their little Robin that hid in the shadows and held a dangerous edge to himself. They believed that the two were turning a blind eye to the young one (wrong) or that Robin was talented enough to hide it from the two and was barely kept on the good side because the bats had a tight leash on him (right). 

Nobody ever dared to voice out loud that they were thankful the feral child –if one could call him that– was not killing all of them. The underworld of Rogues began fearing Robin to an unreasonable amount and began working on a ‘feral Robin safety measures’ warning system in secret because of his unpredictable behavior. They began to fear for their lives when the boy got more regular solo patrols or even later on when none of the other bats were in Gotham. It was a red alert and not even one breakout would happen then. The bats would always wonder about it and make quips, unaware of the truth. 

(Red Robins paired with the Red Hood nights were the most silent.)

[victorluvsalice]

Hi everyone – welcome to another "I updated the Chill Valicer Save farmhouse a bit" update! Because the trio had money and I had some stuff that I wanted to do to their home – specifically, making the new barn basement area nicer; making the kitchen a little bigger to fit more stuff in it yet AGAIN; and updating the séance room above the kitchen because if the kitchen got wider, that had to get wider as well. How did this all go? Let me take you through it room by room:

-->Kitchen – I did indeed manage to make the kitchen wider! I mentioned last week that my attempt to widen it by making the back porch bigger and then trying to pull the room out toward the greenhouse was stymied by the fact that this would screw up a bunch of stuff upstairs (notably both the séance room and the upstairs hallway, where the stairs are) – but that I thought that if I instead widened it into the gap where the pet obstacle course was, I might be able to pull it off successfully. So that’s what I did –

And it worked pretty well! Had to move a few objects temporarily to keep them from getting dumped into the household inventory (for example, part of the egg collection on the hallway wall outside tried to yeet themselves because I had to place them with MOO), but once I got them out of the way, the widening went off without a hitch. :) So now the kitchen is two tiles wider on the right side! :D How did I fill that space, you ask? Well –

I. I added in more counters and cabinets, natch – which included replacing two of the full-tile wall cabinets with two half-tile ones so I could fit a really nice Cottage Living kitchen shelf (with a cutting board and various large metal kitchen utensils hanging under it) under them beside the oven! What can I say, I thought it looked really great and added a touch of realism. :)

II. I added in some more fun clutter around the oven – the salt and pepper shakers and the Home Chef Hustle spice rack got put upon the new shelf (though I had to use “move objects on” for the spice rack, because for SOME REASON the damn thing doesn’t fit up there normally. It totally fucking SHOULD, I shouldn’t have had to use MOO and then fiddle around with raising and lowering it until I got it onto the shelf in a way that actually looked good, even if it was partially sunken into said shelf, but that is not the world we live in); the big fork and spoon wall decorations that I BELIEVE are base game (may be Dine Out, though) got put over the stove top; and the Horse Ranch and Cottage Living utensil-holder clutter got stuck on the counter beside the fridge, and some Cottage Living canisters underneath the new shelf (so they were all on either side of the stove "within easy reach"). Oh, and I put some canisters of tea by the tea machine in the corner, a cookie jar on the counter near the sink, and made sure Gino the pizza chef was still in a good spot next to the pizza over on the expanded kitchen island. :) It's always nice to clutter up a kitchen and make it feel like it's truly lived in!

III. Speaking of the kitchen island, in addition to making it bigger, I moved it in slightly so it wasn’t crowding the dining table (there’s still plenty of room to maneuver between it and the side counters, fortunately). Gotta make sure there's room for everything!

IV. Along those lines, I ended up fiddling with the placement of a lot of things in this room:

a) I scooched the dining table over so it’s more in line with both the center of the new longer kitchen island and the archway in (gotta make sure things aren’t off-kilter!)

b) I adjusted the placement of the windows on either side of the room slightly so they were a bit farther apart (to match the windows that I adjusted upstairs on the séance room to better accommodate the side tables in there -- see below)

c) I adjusted the placement of the side table with the fruit bowl, ghost candy jar, and picnic basket in front of the window and the plant in the corner accordingly (the old “press ALT to freely place items” tip came in handy there)

d) And I swapped the placement of Alice’s “Lady and Tramp” flirty painting with the photographs of Smiler at the food stand during the first sale (the painting is now with the other cute cat-and-dog painting she made a little while back above the pet bowls, while the photographs are now on the wall with the side table and the plant)

V. Speaking of the pet bowls, I bought two more pet feeders in yellow and pink after being unable to line the original two up like I wanted against the wall thanks to the newly-adjusted window, and then thinking “hang on, we have four pets anyway, why not just get more to fill in the gaps?”

VI. And, finally, I bought the trio a popcorn maker, a second ice cream maker, and a dishwasher, because the whole point of making the room bigger was to fit in a couple more small appliances for them to use at their leisure! The popcorn maker is on the kitchen island next to the waffle maker, while the ice cream maker is on the counter next to the sink, above the new dishwasher. I’m not sure if the popcorn maker will stay in the kitchen or end up in Smiler’s inventory, as my primary use for it would be for food sales, but I wanted them to have one just in case! Maybe I should make them have a movie night with popcorn one day. :)

-->Séance Room – Of course, widening the kitchen meant widening the séance room above it – I briefly considered just putting a chunk of roof on the new little “lip,” but I thought it might look weird, and I didn’t want to lose the windows on that side of the room. So I had to rejigger that a bit to make sure the séance table was nice and centered in the middle of the room – which meant adjusting the position of the door into the room (so it opened up with a good view of the séance table) and the windows on either side (so I could then scoot the sideboard over slightly and make sure THAT was properly lined up with the table as well). Which also meant fussing with the fossil display out in the upstairs hallway, as it didn't quite fit properly into its usual spot anymore when I moved the door. I ended up swapping Alice's apple painting that was next to the cat tree with the Island Living shelves containing their little Sulani shell collection that were next to the stairs and the ladder up to the attic so I could move the fossil shelves over closer to the cat tree, then put the Sulani shelves on the other side of the doorway since that felt more “balanced” to me. *shrug* I mean, I think it works!

Anyway, once that was done, I added in more candle chandeliers to the séance room to make sure the space was adequately lit (when we’re not using the sacred candles for “the vibes” anyway) and moved over Victor’s curio cabinet with his unused familiar orbs to line it up better with the table. And then I started redecorating the new, larger space, which... *grimace* Oh, cripes, it took SOOO much time, especially with me trying to figure out what I wanted to do with Alice's crystal collection and how I wanted to display the specter gifts the gang have gotten (like Soul Scraps and Specter Sips) and what other cool knickknacks I wanted to put in there. But, after a looot of fiddling, I FINALLY got the room into a state I like. Or at least that I’m reasonably happy with for now. Going clockwise around the room from the door, we have –

I. Alice’s mediation corner with her stool, the fancy Werewolves moon mirror, and the three pictures she took of one of the gang’s trips into the Magic Realm in the left corner

II. A Paranormal Stuff sideboard between the two windows with the fancy palmistry hand that keeps Guidry away, a Vampires bird skull under glass, and a cute Werewolves multicolored mushroom terrarium on it, with a Vampires Gothic shelf over it with the Werewolves crescent-moon salt lamp and two Specter Sips upon it (one empty, one full – unfortunately the Paranormal Stuff bohemian shelf that was previously there no longer fit above the sideboard when I started fiddling and adding new stuff to display, so I had to change it out)

III. A display wall along the back consisting of two fancy Vampires urns (in the two black-and-white swatches) atop Paranormal Stuff accent tables (in blue and gold) in each corner, then two white fancy display cabinets from Crystal Creations containing the Soul Scraps the gang have collected flanking the spare broom Victor got and the Realm of Magic curio cabinet with Victor’s collected familiar orbs in the center. What can I say – I liked the look of the Crystal Creations cabinets, and they seemed to contain the Soul Scraps the best! (Though I did have to MOO one of the cabinets into place, because FOR SOME REASON the game kept insisting it was intersecting with another object ON A BLANK WALL. *huff* Sims 4 sometimes, I swear...)

IV. The painting Alice did on one of their trips into the Magic Realm on the right-hand wall, next to another sideboard-and-shelf combo mirroring the one on the left-hand wall – the shelf on this side is empty, but the sideboard has the cool Crystal Creations terrarium, one of the Bizarre Idols the gang has picked up, and the Paranormal Stuff mini-cowplant terrarium. I thought they were cute and gave the right vibes!

V. And then in the right-hand corner by the door is the display shelves for the special Werewolves artifacts collection, as before

*nods* I think this all looks good and gives the right vibes for the room. Though you probably noticed something missing from the séance room now – the crystal collection! What did I do with that? Well…

[paldean-ranger-brandy]

Hi Ms Brandy!!! Well I'm not a ranger yet but because I want to know what are the different types of rangers and what do they do?

Heya Saf, good question. I thought I answered something similar to this not too long ago, but I can’t seem to find it so I guess I’ll just answer again lol. There are a few different types of rangers, I’ll give ya a quick and dirty break down;

Area Rangers: The ones people think of most often when someone says to ‘call the rangers’. These are the ones that are stationed in a specific area, and help out with things like wild pokemon disturbances, relocation requests (i.e. there is a pokemon where there should not be a pokemon), search n rescue for lost mons or sometimes people, and disaster relief or control. They don’t typically have a capture styler, usually they just use their own teams of pokemon, but sometimes if a region is just getting set up with rangers and all the union rangers are from out of the country they will be issued stylers to help get the rangers get to know the wild pokemon in that area.

Field Op/Special Op Rangers: C’est moi. Typically these rangers stay in a home base, but they can be deployed elsewhere to take on special missions. Things that require a bit more coordination between multiple departments, or have to do with law enforcement fall to field op rangers. Busting smuggling rings or putting a stop to operations that are causing major ecological damage are pretty typical missions. Field op rangers have the authority to place people under arrest, which is where the impression that rangers = cops came from. Which is annoying, especially since some rangers are now gunning for this role to get that kind of power. I don’t like it one bit, I’ll tell you that for free, but I’m not gonna go on one of my radical leftist rants right now. Field ops get capture stylers to help them adjust to new environments and tackle the bigger, stronger foes they usually have to take on. When they aren’t on special missions, field ops typically take on a leadership role at their home base. I, for example, manage the team of area rangers responsible for tagtree thicket. I love my team soso much, they are all little rock stars.

Specialty class rangers: Some habitats require special equipment in order for us to patrol them properly. Think like deep sea, mountain top, volcanic, or aerial habitats. There are rangers that are given special training and equipment in order to monitor these highly specialized environments. Deep sea habitats are monitored by marine rangers, who are given special aquatic stylers and diving gear, for example. Aerial rangers are typically partnered with flying pokemon, and also are maybe the coolest subclass of rangers. There are a bunch of specialty class rangers, all with their own specialized gear and training.

Top Rangers: These are the union’s pets. They have blanket authority to do pretty much whatever they want, and will most often set their own missions rather than having them assigned. They have the highest quality stylers, the “fine styler”, are allowed to pull pokemon out of their natural habitats to aid in missions, and often bounce around internationally doing basically whatever it is they feel like doing. Despite this, most of them spend the majority of their time in Almia at ranger union HQ so that they can maximize their time spent sucking up to the folks in head office. Quite frankly I don’t think anyone should have as much blanket authority as they do, but that’s neither here nor there.

Its important to note that everyone starts out as an area ranger, and from there you get the opportunity to work with field op and specialty class rangers to see if it’s a career path you’re interested in taking. You don’t have to move into a different class to rank up though, most of the ranger base leaders never were anything but area rangers. Plenty of opportunity to advance without switching to a specialty, but the options are definitely there.

You said you were doing volunteer work with the Galar ranger union, yeah? If you’re certain this is a career path you wanna follow, I’d recommend enrolling in a ranger school. Most regions with a ranger union will have one, but honestly I’m always an advocate for branching out and studying abroad. But also don’t stress about going to ranger school right away – most of the reason why I’m a good ranger is because I did a fuckton of other stuff before even enrolling in ranger school. Get that rich, rich life experience doing whatever tickles your fancy.

//ooc also a shoutout to @freerangeranger, whose headcanons about field vs area rangers informed a bunch of the above 🖤

[spnhunter4life]

So Long Version 2 Chapter 3

Word Count: 3.6k

A/N: A little bit of a shorter one this time. This is the first thing I wrote for this story. Here's the day Jenna turned 16. Enjoy!

Series Masterlist

Ages 16 and 17 June 25, 1996

I woke up, not exactly expecting to feel different, but maybe hoping. Today I would find out who my soulmate was. At least, I’d get a first name. Even though I knew it was stupid to get my hopes up, I couldn’t help but secretly want it to be Dean’s name. I was also nervous. Did I really want to know? If it wasn’t Dean, how would I deal with the disappointment? But if it was Dean, how could I possibly approach a subject like that? And even then, it wouldn’t mean it was Dean Winchester I was meant to be with. There were other Deans in the world. And wouldn’t he have said something by now if my name was tattooed on him somewhere?

Taking a deep breath, I looked over all of the skin currently exposed by my pajamas. Nothing on my arms or legs from the knees down. I looked at the clock and saw that it was already 9:30. I couldn’t believe I’d slept that long, that my dad had let me!

I jumped out of bed, grabbing my towel and clothes for the day, heading straight for the shower. I’d made one friend in this small Louisiana town, a very outgoing girl I’d bumped into while getting groceries with Sam and Dean. She’d been excited to meet someone new, saying all of her friends were on vacation for the summer, and she and I were supposed to meet up soon to spend the day together.

I started the shower to let the temperature adjust and then started the process of removing my clothes, checking each inch of revealed skin for a name. Nothing yet, then. Supposedly, the name showed up around the time of day you were born. I had no idea what time that was, so I would let Alyssa distract me for the day and check again tonight.

When I came out of the bathroom wearing shorts and a t-shirt with my hair in a ponytail to combat some of the summer heat, my dad, Ben, was just closing the door, chocolate chip muffins, my favorite breakfast food, in his hand.

“Happy birthday,” he smiled. “How does it feel to be 16?” He asked this question every year, but this was the big year, and it held a little more weight behind it. 

“It feels… pretty much the same as every other year I guess,” I told him honestly. Other than my nerves being slightly on edge with the upcoming soulmate reveal, it felt like any other day. “What are you still doing here? I thought you and John would’ve left by now.”

“That was the original plan, but I couldn’t leave without seeing my daughter on her birthday. I wanted to have the chance to eat breakfast together. The case can wait a couple hours,” he told me, sitting down at the table.

“Where are those two shadows of yours?” He teased as I took a seat across from him and grabbed a muffin. I knew he wouldn’t ask about my tattoo. He didn’t like people prying into his life and he didn’t pry into mine. He knew I’d tell him if I wanted to.

“I have no idea,” I replied as I peeled the wrapper off my muffin. “I haven’t seen either of them, but I just got up. Thanks for letting me sleep in by the way.”

“I figured one day can’t hurt. But don’t think you can go slacking off. It’s back to morning runs and training after this,” he said before taking a bite of his own muffin. “I still don’t understand why those boys aren’t here. You three make such a big deal out of each other’s birthdays, I half expected them to break down the door,” he mused.

“Maybe they forgot. And we don’t make ‘such a big deal’. One present and a movie night isn’t too much to ask. Besides, it’s mostly Sam. Dean always made a big deal about his birthdays growing up and so Sam learned to do the same for us,” I told him.

“Yeah but a bunch of kids scrounging up enough money to get those presents for each other is a big deal,” he said with a fond smile. Taking the last bite of his muffin, he stood and grabbed something off of the counter. “Speaking of presents,” he said as he handed it to me.

“Dad, you didn’t have to,” I told him as I grabbed it. 

“I know I didn’t, but it’s not every day your baby girl turns 16. It’s not much, but I thought you would enjoy it,” he replied a little awkwardly.

I grinned and wrapped my arms around him, Backstreet Boys CD clutched in my hand. I had found them on accident really. It was all Alyssa’s fault. I generally enjoyed the same music as Dean, but she had showed me one of their songs and I couldn’t get it out of my head. Dad had heard me humming it one day which led to an embarrassing confession.

“Don’t tell Dean,” I pleaded, knowing the endless teasing and likely judgment I would be on the receiving end of if he found out. “Oh, I wouldn’t dare,” Dad laughed, pulling away from the hug.

“I should probably go find him though,” I said, glancing at the clock. “I’m supposed to meet Alyssa soon and he said he’d drive me.”

“Have fun!” I heard him shout as I left our motel room. I saw the Impala parked by the room next door, so I knew he was here at least. Since Dean has legally been able to drive, John gave it to Dean and the two of them take either my dad’s truck or the one John had purchased after gifting Dean the Impala. As I raised my hand to knock, the door flew open.

“Oh!” John said, startled. “I was just going to tell your dad we need to get going. I’m glad you’re up.” Then he was in the motel room I’d just abandoned, not waiting for my response.

“Hi to you too.” I mumbled under my breath as I walked through the door John had left open to see Dean sprawled out on the couch. He turned to me when I closed the door and grinned.

“Hey, there’s the birthday girl!” He exclaimed, prompting Sam to run out of the bathroom, dressed and looking fresh from the shower, toothbrush in his mouth.

“Jenna! You’re here! I wanted to go to your room a while ago, but Dean told me to let you sleep. Were you sleeping?” Before I could answer him, he rushed on. “He told me you’re going to spend the day with your friend, but we’re still going to have our movie night, right? We have to have our movie night. It’s our tradition!”

“Breathe, Sam." I chuckled. “Of course we’re having movie night. It wouldn’t be a birthday without it. Now how about you go finish brushing your teeth before you start drooling on the floor.” Content with my answer, he hurried back to the bathroom, hand cupped under his chin where toothpaste bubbles were trying to drip down.

“So,” Dean drawled, getting up off the couch. “The big 16. How’s it feel?” He walked over to stand next to me and, not for the first time, I was struck with how effortlessly gorgeous he was. His hair was tousled and still slightly damp from the shower he must have taken this morning. He wore his usual jeans, t-shirt, flannel, and boots, the amulet Sam had given him hanging around his neck, but somehow, he was the most attractive guy I had ever seen. I knew it wasn’t a biased opinion, every girl in every school always drooled after him.

“I assume it feels the same as you felt a year ago.” I replied once my brain started functioning again. “You still good to take me to meet Alyssa?” I asked.

“Sweetheart, have I ever bailed on you?” He asked, mock offended.

“Well…” I trailed off, remembering the handful of times Sam and I had been left to fend for ourselves while he was off with a girl. When I saw him looking at me expectantly, I sighed. “Not when it really counted, no.” I relented.

“Did you ask her yet?” Sam questioned, reappearing from the bathroom and heading for Dean. Dean sighed and looked at me. “Is it ok with you if Sam comes with to drop you off? I don’t know why he’s even asking. I know you don’t care, but he wouldn’t leave me alone about it this morning.”

“That’s not true!” Sam denied. “He told me I could come if you said yes, and I know you usually don’t care, but since you’re 16 today I thought you might want to talk.” He stated matter-of-factly.

“Talk about what?” I asked, brow wrinkled in confusion. There’s not much Dean and I didn’t talk about in front of the kid. I don’t know why he thought there was suddenly a need for privacy or what being 16 had to do with it. “About-” he started, but then cut himself off. “I don’t know.” He continued, head down and shuffling his feet. “Just… being 16?”

I looked to Dean, hoping for some kind of explanation, but he just shrugged his shoulders, although he seemed a little annoyed. I wasn’t in the mood to press the issue though.

“Ok…. Well I don’t have any super-secret conversations that need to be had with your brother, so if you want to come along, that’s fine.” I assured Sam. 

“Good! When are we leaving?” He asked excitedly.

“If Dean’s ready, then right now would be good.” I replied, looking to Dean. He answered by shrugging on his leather jacket, plucking the keys off the table and holding the door open for me.

With everyone piled in the car, Dean started toward the mall where I was supposed to meet Alyssa. It was a typical car ride, Sam chattering away in the back, and Dean humming along to Led Zeppelin. I told Dean where to park. Alyssa wasn’t there yet, but I was content to sit and wait with the boys.

“I thought we might have to wait until tonight to give this to you, but I’m glad we don’t have to.” Sam said excitedly, pulling a box out of his jacket pocket. “It was my idea to get this kind of present for you, but Dean helped me pick it out.” He looked to his brother with a proud smile before handing the box to me.

I was a little nervous to open it. Sam was so excited that I really wanted to like whatever it was. Although he’d never say anything, I could tell Dean was a little nervous too by the way he tensed his shoulders and bit his lip. I carefully opened the box and gasped.

Inside was a bracelet made from ribbons of silk. It was twisted around so that it looked like four different strands. The top and bottom of each ribbon was an olive green while the middle was mulberry. One of the ribbons wrapped through a gold button that was used to adjust the size. I couldn’t believe something so beautiful was for me.

“I love it!” I told them as I took it out of the box to place on my left wrist. I noticed Dean’s quiet, relieved exhale and turned to hug him. “Thank you.” I whispered. He wrapped his arms around me before mumbling a quiet “You’re welcome,” into my hair.

“And thank you too!” I said, pulling away from Dean to face a fidgety, giddy looking Sam in the back. He flung his upper body over the seat to get a hug of his own. “You’re gonna have a pretty hard time topping this one.” I informed him as I sat back. Sam just grinned.

“My friend at the last school had a bracelet that she wore all the time and I asked her if that was a good idea for a 16th birthday present for you,” he explained. “She said if you like jewelry it was a good idea, and I know you like Dean's amulet, so I told him about my idea and he said we’d keep an eye out for anything you might like. There was a lot of stuff I thought you would like, but Dean kept saying they weren’t right.” I glanced at Dean and saw a slight blush gracing his freckled cheeks.

“He liked that one as soon as he saw it. I didn’t know why you’d like it any better than any of the ones I pointed out, but I know you guys know each other really well so I just told him to make sure you knew getting a bracelet was my idea,” he finished, slightly out of breath.

Before I could say anything to assure Sam I appreciated his efforts and relieve Dean of his embarrassment, there was a knock on my window. Startled, I jumped a little before facing the window where Alyssa stood waiting. Turning to look at the boys, I thanked them again for the amazing present and then opened the door to get out of the car and say hi to her. As I was closing the door, I heard Dean say my name.

“Just a second.” I said to Alyssa before opening the door again and sticking my head in. “What’s up?” I asked.

“I was just wondering when and where I should be picking you up,” he replied. “Oh, right. I didn’t even think about that.” I said, turning to Alyssa to figure out the details. “Clearly.” He teased. I looked back at him, sarcastic comment at the ready, but I saw the twinkle in his eye and knew he was just joking. I shushed him and closed the door, turning to once again face Alyssa.

“I can drive you back, it’s no problem,” she assured me. 

“Are you sure? Dean doesn’t have anything else he needs to be doing, and I know he likes to do it anyway. He’s a bit protective like that. The first time we dropped Sam off at a friend’s I thought he was going to sit outside the house the whole time.” I told her, smiling at the memory.

“It’s really no problem. I don’t have any definite plans for the day so I wouldn’t know what to tell him anyway,” she said. 

“Ok…” I trailed off, giving her one last chance to change her mind. She gave me a look, clearly stating that she wouldn’t so I passed the information on to Dean.

“You don’t even have a guess about when you’ll be done?” He asked. I knew he liked to have a timeline so if someone wasn’t back when they were expected he would know something was wrong. If he didn’t have any schedule to follow, he’d spend the whole time worrying, unsure if something had happened or we just weren’t done yet. 

“Well I have to be back in time for movie night,” I reminded him with a wink in Sam’s direction, “so I won’t be gone any later than… say 8:30? That should give us time to watch a couple of movies before Sam passes out.”

“Yeah, ok.” Dean relented, slightly less on edge. “Have fun,” he smiled. I closed the door and watched them drive off.

“Are you ready to do some shopping?” Alyssa asked with a grin.

~~~~~

“You have to have a swimsuit!” Alyssa insisted as we walked by racks of them at Kohl’s. 

“Not if you never go swimming, you don’t.” I countered.

“But what if you do go swimming? What are you going to wear then?” She argued. 

“I don’t know. I’m sure if the opportunity came up, I’d just go buy one.” I told her. 

“Then why not buy one now?” She asked.

“Because,” I sighed. “We move around a lot. We’re not exactly hitting up five-star hotels with pools or renting homes that have one. I think the last time I went swimming was when I was 12 and the house we were renting had a pond.”

“Ok, well I have a pool, it’s the middle of summer in Louisiana, and I might invite you over to swim sometime. Besides, I’m buying so you can’t really argue that much.” She said, flipping her strawberry blonde hair as she turned and pulled me towards the swimwear.

“That’s a nice bracelet,” she commented, looking at my wrist where I was half-heartedly searching through a rack of one-piece swimsuits. 

“Yeah,” I smiled. “Sam and Dean gave it to me for my birthday.”

“It’s pretty. I didn’t think boys were any good at finding decent jewelry.” She said as she moved on to the next rack. She didn’t like the one-pieces anyway and had only been humoring me, ironic since I was only humoring her about the swimsuits in general. 

“I swear Dean has some sort of sixth sense for what people will like. Well,” I corrected, “not people. But me and Sam.”

“This one! You have to try this one!” Alyssa said excitedly, breaking me out of my thoughts. I looked to where she was holding a white and blue two-piece. “I know you didn’t want a two-piece, but this isn’t a bikini. It doesn’t show much more than a one-piece would.” Seeing my hesitation, she continued. “Just try it on. If you hate it, we’ll put it back.”

“Yes!” She cheered, seeing my resignation. She handed the suit to me and led the way to the changing rooms.

It was definitely a nice-looking suit, I’d give her that much. The top piece was thick enough all the way through that there was no danger of anything showing. It had a clasp in the back and three strings to tie around my neck, two white and one robin’s egg blue. The bottom piece started like a normal bikini bottom, but thicker. Above the hips it cut in to cover only the front of my torso, leaving my back and sides exposed, and went up to the bottom of my ribs. There were three strings encircling my back, keeping the material up. It was decorated with flowers in shades of blue, and as much as I liked it – although I’d never admit it to Alyssa – I didn’t think I would be comfortable wearing it in public.

“Are you ready yet?” I heard her ask through the door.

“Kind of. I have it on, but I don’t know if I want to come out,” I admitted. 

“Come on, you can’t look that bad,” she said.

“It’s not that.” I told her. “I’m just not comfortable showing this much skin. I live in jeans, you know. The only reason I’m wearing shorts is because I might actually die from this heat.”

“Just come out. No one’s going to see you. I promise there’s no one else around,” she encouraged.

I sighed before opening the door and peering my head around. I was met with an unimpressed look. “Alright, I’m coming.” I relented. I stepped out of the changing stall and was greeted with a wolf whistle from Alyssa. “Cut it out!” I blushed.

“Why? You look great!” she exclaimed. “As much as I like that bracelet, it really doesn’t match the-” she cut off. 

“What?” I asked nervously.

“Umm… did you find your tattoo yet?”

I was a little shocked. It was an awfully personal question to be asking someone you’d only known for a couple of weeks. “No. Why?” I asked a little defensively. She nodded toward my left side where my hand was hanging by my hip. I impulsively lifted it to my face, scanning for the name. 

“Not your hand," she said.

I slowly looked down to my left side just above my hip where, just as she said, I could see the top of thick black letters peeking over the swimsuit.

~~~~~

“Alright, what’s wrong?” Dean asked, pausing the movie. We were halfway through our second movie of the night, Mission Impossible, and while I was enjoying it, I couldn’t seem to sit still. I was sat between the two boys, Dean’s arm resting on the back of the couch behind my head, our usual seating situation on movie nights. Sam was slouched over, starting to drift off. He could never seem to stay awake for more than one movie.

“What? Nothing’s wrong. Why do you think something’s wrong?” I asked him. 

“Well, you haven’t sat still for more than five minutes at a time and I can see the wheels spinning in your head. You know you can talk to me about anything right?” He sounded genuinely concerned. 

“I know,” I sighed.

“Nothing happened, right? You’ve seemed a little off since you got back.” He pushed, not for the information he knew I wasn’t ready to give, but for assurance that I was alright. 

“I’m fine,” I told him honestly. “It’s just… I found my tattoo while we were trying on clothes. I’m still trying to wrap my head around it, figure out how I feel,” I confessed.

“Oh.” Was his only response. I could tell he wanted to press for more information, but he stayed quiet.

~~~~~

“I can’t look at it. I don’t want to know what it says. What do I do?” I asked. My breath was coming faster and I was starting to panic.

“Hey. Hey! Jenna! Look at me. Deep breath.” Alyssa calmly instructed, demonstrating and breathing with me until my breathing was back to normal. “You’re going to have to see it sometime. It’s unavoidable. Right now, it doesn’t change anything. It just gives you a name. You can do whatever you want with that name once you have it. It doesn’t decide anything for you.”

I knew she was right and steeled myself to look at it, Alyssa waiting patiently. Carefully, I pushed the swimsuit strap down just enough to reveal the name underneath.

DEAN

Chapter 4