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#and one of the first things is specifically only following instruction from Wilds when both captains are around
emry-stars-art · 7 months
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Can I have some royal AU please and thank you
Of course you can dear Maggie 😌
21 feb 2024 ww
Nathaniel looked away from the bookshelves as the lady went to search through one of the crates.
“You are,” he said to Wilds easily. “A captain.”
Wilds laughed softly again. “Not by much. Only to you lot of guards, and only when Day isn’t around.”
Nathaniel shrugged. He’d made it a point to learn the exact lines of authority here, every place they differed from what he was used to. Thankfully Day had been especially patient that afternoon with all of Nathaniel’s questions. As a castle ‘soldier’, Nathaniel was under Day and Wymack’s authority - as a guard to a noble of the castle, he was also directly under Wild’s, as per her place as guard to the head of state.
“And also when he is.”
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jheselbraum · 6 months
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Totk Ganondorf is a departure from other versions of both Ganondorf and Ganon in that he is not a disruptor to the status quo, at least not thematically.
Like, oh no he wants to destroy Hyrule? It was already destroyed, that's the status quo that got changed between botw and totk by Link and Zelda. Ganondorf lifts Hyrule Castle during his big ol earthquake, sure, but he also returns Hyrule Castle to both the state that it was in during botw (red glowy, surrounded by malice) AND to the state that it was in pre-calamity for that one sequence. What about in the ancient past? The civilization of Hyrule didn't exist, the Zonai civilization had been in that region for thousands of years, and it's the Zonai that Ganondorf primarily focuses on.
Totk Ganondorf is fate. This isn't the first time a Legend of Zelda game as presented the villain as tied to fate but Majora's Mask was pretty literal with it all things considered. But the moon falling in majoras mask is presented as just as inevitable as totk Ganondorf's assault on Hyrule, he's fucking fate. He's specifically the fate that fucked Zelda and Link up initially, and there's thematic importance in Zelda's ultimate plan to stop totk Ganondorf. At no point after Link touches down in Hyrule again is he ever truly alone, it's only when Link goes to fight Ganondorf that he loses the ability to summon sages. In fact that happens twice, Link tries to fight Ganondorf alone twice and both times the sages show up anyways to bail him out. Technically this happens three times if you count the opening sequence.
Totk Ganondorf is literally stuck in the past, lost in nostalgia and continuing a war that he doesn't have to and that's why he thinks he can lure Link into a false sense of security by appealing to his sense of nostalgia, because obviously Link's life was super hunky dory when the castle Looked Like That, everything was great and he didn't have an anxiety disorder and Zelda specifically was super friendly and niceys to him during that time. Obviously Link has nostalgia for that era in the first place.Totk Ganondorf is the old way of doing things, he expects Link and Zelda to be working to restore Hyrule Castle when in reality they live in fucking Hateno and never fucking touched the castle until the seal on Ganondorf started weakening and spitting out gloom everywhere.
He's the old Zelda formula. With Ganondorf back we get temples and sages as well, we get bombflowers and like likes and visual callbacks to Ocarina of Time and I think we've collectively forgotten that botwtotk Link and Zelda are a Link and Zelda that are from a different Legend of Zelda game than breath of the wild and that they lost their original Legend of Zelda game. They know the exactly what Ganondorf is and they know their prophesied role in stopping him, they know the loz formula. They also know that following that formula got them all fucking killed.
Ganondorf thrives when Link follows the old Zelda formula of clearing temples, unlocking sages, and going to fight the demon king alone regardless, and Zelda thrives when Link realizes that teamwork makes the dream work to the point where her millenia spanning bond with the ancient sages pays off and, unlike the calamity, there is no expectation that whoever goes to face the demon king will have to do so alone and that's why Zelda and Ganondorf are foils. Totk Zelda represents the new ways, possibly the new Zelda formula since. It's Nintendo. There's gonna be a formula. But at the very least she represents a kingdom that doesn't give a rats ass about fate and prophecy and sending children into battle alone. When we unlock each secret stone, the cutscene we get isn't some divine instruction, it's the previous very mortal and not divine at all sage saying, in essence, "hey I told my friend Zelda that we'd help her friend in the future can you do that since I've been dead for 10,000 years?" And the one time it isn't the sage in question is Mineru who, you know. Is the sage from 10,000 years ago.
Rauru is ancillary, Sonia is ancillary, Link is ancillary, dialogue between Ganondorf and Zelda or lack thereof is fucking ancillary.
The real fight is between Ganondorf and Zelda and it's over what kind of Kingdom Hyrule is going to be moving forward: Ganondorf's where everything 100% dictated by fate and inevitability and an incredible fucking loneliness or Zelda's cool new Hyrule where everyone is the most free from fate and prophecy that they've ever been and the ones that aren't are not alone and have the support of not just their communities but the rest of the world too.
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Oh, love
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Summary: It takes a year of trial and error, of love and heartbreak, for the two to finally realize there's no one else they'd rather be with. Or in which she becomes they're photographer for a summer tour and falls in love with the dark haired drummer.
Word Count: 10.3k
Warnings: swearing, angst, sexual content
A/N: I just want to say a huge thank you to @ethanesimp for proofreading and hyping this fic up, thank you so much amore! This is the first piece I've written for any of the members of maneskin, and also the longest thing I've ever written! Feedback is greatly appreciated!
January
It’s a call in the middle of the day that begins it all. She’s been in a shoot all morning, running around snapping photos of a wanna-be teen idol. She’s been here many times, being hired to do promo shots for someone who never makes it farther than this. But this call, she knows it’s different. She’s heard the name, seen some videos, she knows this won’t be like the rest. She’s instructed to clear her schedule for the week and to be in Rome by the end of the day.
The cold air hits her as she leaves the building, suitcase and camera bag in hand. This is the moment she’s been waiting for since joining the company, the chance to become a permanent fixture instead of hopping from gig to gig. She’s told that they requested her specifically, that one of the band members saw her collection from a festival last summer and was dead set on booking her for their summer tour. It’s all new to her, the feeling of being the first choice and not second best. She barely hears anything that’s said on the plane by their manager, too busy trying not to freak out.
It’s only a few hours plane ride, but it feels like a lifetime. Thoughts run wild in her head as the seconds tick by, she can’t remember the last time she’d been this excited, or nervous, for something. She’s greeted by more people from their team as she steps off the plane, and is quickly ushered to the villa they’ve been staying in. She barely has time to process the beautiful new city she’s in before she’s hidden by walls of an even more beautiful place.
They give her time to relax and unpack, but clear instructions to not leave the property without security. Things have been crazy, she’s told, since their winning last year fans have become more clever with their tactics. She laughs at some of the stories, but heeds the warning all the same. She’s seen quite a few things that have shaken her to her core, so she knows to be careful and wary.
Music floats through the halls and into her room, the band practicing on the other side of the villa. The music fills her veins with a feeling she can’t quite place, but it’s a welcome humming that gets her blood pumping. She grabs her camera and follows the melodies, laughing at the jokes thrown around in english whenever someone messes up. She angles herself behind a corner just right where she can take pictures while still being hidden from the band.
Her heart races at the scene in front of her. It’s a family like she’s never seen. They all seem to orbit around each other, pushing and pulling each other into their atmospheres. She watches Victoria dance around the room, bass in hand, strumming the lines to an old song. Thomas lays on the floor with a notebook reading off words, Damiano repeating them as he draws on eyeliner. And Ethan, who sits at his drum set, twirling the drumsticks in his hand as he observes the scene before him.
She captures picture after picture of their dynamic, taking the most of Ethan, who seems to have a magnetic pull to him. She only pulls herself from the moment when she’s spotted. “Sai, qualcuno chiamerebbe questo strano comportamento.”
The words are warm against her ear, and she jumps at the unexpected presence. She turns around, laughing to hide her embarrassment, trying to translate the words in her head. She freezes when she sees it’s Ethan, trying to figure out when he slipped away from the rest of the group.
“Ah, niente italiano. Er, it’s unusual, what you are doing.”
Another nervous laugh leaves her lips, “Sorry. I didn’t mean to be creepy. There’s something about the way the group is when no one is watching, it’s hard to ignore, it needed to be captured.”
He smiles at that. It’s soft and warm and she feels as if the world has stopped spinning. A song plays between their hearts as a silence falls over them. There’s a beauty about him that makes it hard to focus on anything but him.
A series of crashes followed by loud curses in Italian breaks the spell that they were under and Ethan pulls himself away from her to go and manage his friends. She uses this moment as an excuse to slip away and tour the rest of the house, ending in the kitchen where dinner is being prepared. She snaps a few photos of the chefs cooking, already envisioning the blog post they’ll go along with.
When everyone has made their way to the dining room a toast is made; to new adventures, to new friends, and to family. Sweet wine and light rain makes the time pass faster and the evening flows into night easily. The group parts only moments after midnight, long days ahead calling them to catch up on sleep now.
The month flows by with days and nights blurring together. It seems the studio is really the only place they call home, spending every waking moment in the room that houses their instruments. She stays with them through the long hours, snapping photos of the weird things they get themselves up to. Her hard drive slowly fills with collections of each band member, ones for the public eye and ones she sends to them to make them laugh.
The end of the month brings a party, something small to celebrate sold out tour dates. A night out to a local bar and far too many drinks. She dances with Victoria, who has become her best friend in the few weeks she’s been with them. Damiano and his girlfriend are not far away, but much more caught up in their own world. Thomas has disappeared somewhere, no doubt warming someone's bed for the night. But through all the commotion, she can’t stop watching Ethan.
He’s sitting at a table nursing the only drink he’s had that night, planning to take on the role of babysitter at the end of the night once everyones had too much to drink. He drums his fingers on the table, following the beat of each song that plays. He seems lost in his own world, content with being by himself. She moves away from Victoria, who easily finds another partner, and makes her way to the table.
“Sembri solo,” the words fall from her lips quietly as she takes a seat beside him.
He smiles at her, “Seems your little lessons are paying off.”
She blushes at that, not realizing he’d picked up on her daily lessons with their English tutor. “Only enough to not seem like a tourist.”
A small chuckle escapes his lips, and she wishes she could bottle the sound.
“But don’t change the subject. Tonight was about having fun, celebrating a big accomplishment. Yet you’re sitting here alone.”
He sighs at her insistence, “Sometimes we don’t need to celebrate everything so publicly.”
Something pulls at her heart. She can’t imagine having such a public life, but she understands how it must feel to never have anything to yourself. Before she knows what she’s doing, she places a hand on his arm and gives it a reassuring squeeze, a light tingle shooting between the two of them.
She pulls her hand away quickly, a small blush forming on both their cheeks. He offers her a small smile to make the moment less awkward, and she returns it.
The night ends not too much later, the rest of the crew having decided that warm beds would be much more comfortable than the crowded bar. She helps Ethan herd their friends home, laughing along with him at their drunken antics. Victoria jokingly calls them mom and dad as they help her to bed, and the blush that was plastered on her face earlier that night makes a second appearance.
It’s almost morning by the time she makes it to her own room. Ethan isn’t far behind her, realizing for the first time tonight that they share the same hallway. “Buona notte,” comes his voice from down the hall.
She turns to face him, catching herself stuck in his stare. She can’t quite place the look in his eyes, but it gives her butterflies all the same.
“Buona notte.”
February
February brings more time in the studio and less time outside the walls of the Villa. While winter in Rome is not like the ones you’d experience in colder places, it still brings a chill to her bones. She steals one of Victoria's sweaters after a night spent lounging under the stars, a small break from a busy schedule.
A fire had been lit and a bottle of sweet wine was making its way around the group. She’d set her camera aside for the evening, planning on enjoying a night without the calls of work. She doesn’t know when it happens, but suddenly she’s swaying to a drunken beat in the arms of Damiano who can’t stop giggling at her two left feet. The man had not believed her when she said she couldn’t dance, but was now biting his tongue as they moved around the courtyard.
As the night seemed to come to a lull, a game of truth or dare was proposed and all were in agreement. She finds herself sitting beside Thomas on the floor as Victoria begins the game, a stupid dare aimed towards Damiano that earns him a new haircut. The night drags on in a flurry of laughter and silly dares. By midnight half the group is wearing someone else’s clothes, and the others have barely any on.
She’s moved to be sitting by Ethan, who has an arm casually draped across her shoulder. It shouldn’t feel so electric, his skin touching hers, but it does and it’s the only thing she can focus on. Her heart feels like it’s almost beating out of her chest and the blush on her face isn’t caused by the alcohol in her system.
Damiano is the first to notice her situation, and starts poking fun at her whenever it was his turn to ask her something. It started off innocent enough, small questions aimed towards her love life, but it soon caught the attention of Thomas who was the first one to issue a dare towards the girl. This was how she’d ended up sitting beside Ethan, cuddled into his side. Ethan was oblivious to the things going on around them, until Victoria dared her to kiss him.
It seems as though time stops, the laughter fades and the silence becomes deafening. She turns towards Ethan, a mixture of panic and excitement painted on her face. He smiles at her, “We don’t have to, amore.”
“A dares a dare.” She shrugs at him.
A round of cheers raises up around them as the two lean in. It’s meant to be only a small peck, something good enough to count in the eyes of those around them. But as she goes to pull away his hand reaches up to tangle in her hair and he pulls her closer. Their lips meet again without any hesitation and it’s like the world lights up around them. Blame it on the alcohol, but if she were to die right now she’d be happy.
They pull away a second later, a small laugh leaving both of them, chests rising at an unsteady rhythm.
“Awe, they’re blushing! How cute!” Comes the voice of Damiano, further pulling a blush from the girl.
She grabs one of the pillows beside her and aims it at his head, laughing when she misses terribly.
The night fades into morning and they all climb to the roof to watch the sunrise. It’s a moment she wants tattooed in her memories forever. She’s got her arms wrapped around Victoria and the three boys huddle around them, alcohol still flows through their veins and they’re all singing different versions of the same song.
March
The beginning of spring in Rome is magical. Flowers start to bloom, mornings are coated in a light dusting of rain, and clothing starts to become less of a necessity. She takes photos of the band trapezing the streets. The Villa studio has become too familiar, moving instead to a studio in the city.
By now, a routine has been put in place. Mornings sipping coffee and eating fresh pastries while she laughs at the varying states of wake the band is in. Afternoons in the studio, recording their new album while she collects photos and videos for their ‘making of’. Evenings spent in restaurants and bars, eating some of the best food she’s ever had, and she swears she’ll never eat anything better.
She’s never fallen in love with a city like this before. Maybe it’s the city, or maybe it’s the people she’s with, but she swears she never wants to leave. It suffocates her in the best way possible, the feeling of being home. She hopes that when the tours over and her contracts up, that she’ll move here, maybe even keep these people she’s grown so close to in the past few months.
She’s thrown out of the daydream by Thomas yelling at her in a mix of italian and english for not paying attention. It’s the middle of the afternoon, they’ve taken a lunch break at a restaurant down the block, and Thomas is expressively telling a story. His hands are in the air and he’s almost knocked his wine glass over too many times to count.
Damiano sits across from her, fiddling with her camera, snapping his own photos that he presents to her proudly. She laughs at every one, but never discourages his actions. Victoria is on her left, Ethan on her right, both vying for her approval as they argue over something. She’s overwhelmed by the different directions her brain is being tugged, but the hand that snakes its way into hers calms her.
She looks down to see Ethan rubbing his thumb along the back of her hand, a soft smile grazing his lips as they make eye contact. She returns it, whispering a small thank you to the boy.
That night, she lays in bed, in the room she’s begun to finally call hers, thinking of the boy with stars in his eyes. She doesn’t know if it’s feeling like she finally belongs somewhere, or the wine that still coats her veins, but there’s something about him that she wishes she could become a part of. She wants to wrap herself in it and never leave. She’s falling for him, hard. Vaffanculo.
April
It is Victoria's birthday and everyone has decided that she must be princess for the day. Ethan and Damiano have been up since dawn making an extravagant breakfast, something that should be put in a five star restaurant. Her and Thomas had disappeared shortly after waking, returning with a stack of presents that was almost as tall as him, and the best bouquet of flowers she could find.
After decorating the patio with anything and everything they could find, it was a mad dash to Victoria's room to wake her up. She protested, claiming that sleep was more important than being awake, but at the mention of presents she was the first one out of the room.
It was a morning of happiness, and a much needed break from their hectic schedule. She recorded the entire day, from the dramatic wake up call to the celebratory sparklers that were set off that night, it was all captured.
After breakfast the princess requested a trip to the beach, and no one would dare refuse her. They found something private, a little hidden oasis an hour's drive from the villa. They spend hours there, switching between swimming and laying in the sun. She finds herself alone on the sand with Ethan at one point, watching the others like proud parents.
She tries not to think about how close his body feels to her, how she can feel the heat his body is radiating seeping into her, the smell of his body wash. He’s invading all of her senses and she’s trying so hard to focus on anything but him. “Let’s go on a walk?”
His voice is warm as the question escapes his lips. She turns to look at him and she’s thankful to be able to blame the sun for the blush on her cheeks. She nods and gets up to follow him, brushing off the sand that’s clinging to her bathing suit and wrapping a towel around her shoulders.
They disappear down the beach, walking side by side, a comfortable silence enveloping them. It’s not till they’re halfway down the beach that either of them speaks. “Are you enjoying your time?”
She doesn’t miss the hint of worry that laces his voice, and she’s quick to reassure him that she is. “Yes, very much. This is probably the best job I’ve had in years.”
He softly chuckles at her words, “Good. Good. We’re trying to make you feel like one of us, don’t want you running away.”
She’s grateful for the confession, glad that they don’t see her as just another person that works for them. “Don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere anytime soon.”
He bumps her shoulder with his, a small smile forming on his face, “Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
They head back to the group soon after, realizing they’ve let the day slip away and need to leave soon if they want to make their dinner reservations.
A small vineyard hidden in the valley, they’ve booked the place so it’s just them, and ordered every bottle of wine on the menu to taste. They laugh away the night, enjoying plates of delicious food and letting their minds wander. A gorgeous cake is brought out at the end, half of which ends up destroyed thanks to an impromptu food fight. More presents are opened and Victoria starts tearing up, blubbering about how much she loves the idiots she’s surrounded with.
They walk through the dark streets of Rome, singing happy birthday loudly in every language they know. It’s unusually cold, but she’s somehow been wrapped in Ethan’s jacket, his arm slung over her shoulder. She’s holding Vic’s hand, Damiano and Thomas taking turns with her camera.
The air surrounding them is electrified, she looks up into the sky and thanks the stars for the life she’s living.
May
The summer tour is fast approaching, and nerves are starting to set in. The already high energy group somehow is bouncing off the walls even more, making for an interesting collection of photos. Nerves are starting to get the better of them, and she often finds one of them wandering around the Villa at odd hours of the night. She’s good at being able to channel her nerves into something else, focusing all of the energy on a new project.
One night though, it gets the better of her. She tosses and turns in her bed for hours before she decides that sleep isn’t coming. Instead of lying in bed willing her brain to shut off, she throws on a pair of shoes and heads for the front door, thinking a walk in the warm spring air will do her some good. What she doesn’t expect to find is Ethan sitting out on the terrace, cigarette in one hand and a book in the other, lost in his own world.
She doesn’t mean to catch his attention, hoping to allow him this little bit of uninterrupted peace, but he spots her anyway. “Buona serata,” He rasps, voice laced with the quietness of the night.
“Buona serata, Ethan.” She returns the greeting.
He motions for her to sit down in the chair beside him, closing the book and placing it on the table. “What’s troubling your mind tonight?”
She’s not used to the way someone can read her so well, but there’s something about Ethan that brings her comfort in the fact that he can. “Nerves, I guess. I’ve never done a gig this big, never spent so much time with one group. I’m used to being moved around a lot, still getting used to being a permanent fixture I guess.”
The words are heavy on her tongue, never having voiced her worries out loud before. He takes a long drag of the cigarette hanging from his lips, “La vita ci dà solo ciò che sa che possiamo gestire.”
“Some would think you were a poet in a past life.”
A small laugh escapes his lips, and he shakes his head. A comfortable silence falls over them and she wishes she could bottle this feeling to keep with her forever. He turns to look at her, and it’s hard to put into words the feeling that washes over him. He’s not sure where it comes from, the urge to kiss her, but it sends him spiralling.
He reaches his hand up to brush a few strands of hair out of her face, “Le stelle brillano più luminose nei tuoi occhi, amore.”
The words and his actions cause her heart to raise and her breath to hitch. They’re close now, the closest they’ve been since that night in February, and all she can think about is that kiss that they shared.
Neither knows who leaned in first, but suddenly their lips are touching and it is everything and nothing like they remembered. While the other kiss had been hesitant and brief, this one was full of purpose. Their noses brush and their breaths tangle together, he bits her lip for a moment and a small moan escapes her. He swears it’s the best sound he’s ever heard.
He grabs at her hips, lifting her from the chair and placing her so she’s straddling his lap. She tangles her fingers in his hair and tugs softly, earning a groan from the man. The sound sends shockwaves through her and she rocks her hips against his almost involuntarily. His lips move from hers to the side of her neck, pulling small whimpers from her as he nips and sucks at the skin. It’s everything she’s ever imagined and more. The feeling of his body pressed to hers, the pleasure he can so easily give to her.
She moves her hands down to fumble with the hem of his shirt and that’s when he pulls away. “While I would normally love to do that here, how about we continue this somewhere more private?”
She nods eagerly and removes herself from his lap. He all but drags her inside the villa and towards his room. She trips over her own feet and they both laugh at her clumsiness, falling into each other as he tries to catch her but trips over his own feet in turn. He leans in to kiss her again as their bodies collide, this one sweeter and softer than the previous one.
The moment passes quickly and soon she’s being dragged through the halls again, only to be met with a half asleep Damiano standing in the doorway of his room. They stop in their tracks, jumping apart, trying to act like nothing was happening. “It’s rude to have a party and not invite everyone, you know.”
She lets out a breath she didn’t know she was holding, glad that he didn’t know what had been happening moments prior. Ethan is quick to explain that they were just having a cup of tea on the terrace and were now heading to bed, and thankfully the lie is believed. Damiano wishes them a goodnight, heading back into his room, and the two are left in silence in the hallway.
“Maybe we should go to bed,” he whispers to her.
Her heart sinks, but she nods her head in agreement and turns to walk back down the hall to her room. She’s not really sure how the night was going to end, but this was definitely not how she wanted it to; walking in silence next to someone her heart aches for, pretending that nothing had happened between them.
He walks her up to her door, still ever the gentleman, and places a gentle kiss on her cheek. “Buona notte, amore.”
The words should not sound as sad as they do, and she tries her hardest to keep the tears welling up in her eyes at bay as she watches him turn and walk away.
June
How do you go back to being just friends after making out with someone? Well, you don’t. At least, not fully. They dance around each other without knowing it, avoiding any contact that could lead to something more or allude to something else, but there are still moments where the world seems to slip away and it’s just the two of them.
The tour kicks off at a festival in Amsterdam. Blue skies and sunny days greet them as they get off the plane. They have a day to explore before their first show, and no one can decide how to spend it. In the end, Victoria drags Thomas off to do some shopping, Damiano plans a trip to a few museums with his girlfriend, and she is left with Ethan.
She’s not truly stuck with him, but she doesn’t feel like wandering a forgein city all by herself. Since the night in the Villa, they haven’t spent longer than a few minutes alone together, both refusing to acknowledge what had happened.
A trip to the beach seems like the best place to be, and within the hour she’s lounging in the sun listening to Ethan read a book. It’s peaceful, the sound of the waves and his voice lulling her into a half sleep. She’s got a drink in her hands, something sweet and fruity, and she’s sharing a cigarette with Ethan. It’s a scene she thinks one would find in a movie.
She rolls herself over so she’s laying on her back, staring up at Ethan who sits beside her. She places her hand on his leg and traces random shapes into his skin. Goosebumps rise in the wake of her fingertips, and he tries to stay focused on the book in his hands but finds it hard to do so. “You are very distracting, amore.”
She looks up at him innocently and she can’t help but admire him. His hair is tucked away in a bun, but a few pieces have fallen out and are flying in the gentle breeze. He’s only wearing a pair of swim trunks, broad chest on full display. He catches her roaming eyes as they make their way back to his face, a smirk slowly forming on his face. “Or maybe I’m the one distracting you, no?”
She smiles shyly and looks away from him, because yes, he is distracting her, and she’s finding it very hard to not kiss him right now. He chuckles at her, reaching his hand towards her face and turning it back towards him. He leans down towards her, “I’m going to kiss you now, okay?”
All she can do is nod, and a second later his lips are on hers. It’s sweet and slow, she can taste the tobacco on his lips and it’s intoxicating. She moves so she’s sitting up, leaning into him more, the world around them fading out until all that is left is them.
A few days later they find themselves in a hotel room in Munich. There’s music playing and everyone’s laughing. Her camera hasn’t left her hands all night, every moment needing to be captured as they ride the after show high.
She’s in the middle of recording Thomas’ one man act when a pair of arms wrap themselves around her waist. She knows exactly who it is by the scent that invades her nostrils and sends her brain into overdrive. She lets out a sudden, loud laugh, as his fingers trace themselves up and down her sides, collapsing into his chest as she struggles to breath.
He picks her up and spins her around, letting out an equally loud laugh at her protests. He’s happy, and it’s something that looks better on him than any designer outfit he could ever buy.
He falls onto one of the beds, pulling her down with him. She lands beside him tangled in his arms, he’s looking at her with a goofy grin on his face. The world seems to silence around them as their eyes lock. Her smile softens and she reaches her hand over to brush an eyelash off his cheek, he catches her hand before she can pull it away and brings it to his lips, kissing it gently.
He looks ethereal in this moment, hair strewn all over the place, a wild look in his eyes. She reaches for her camera and brings it up to capture him, never wanting to forget this moment.
The streets of Prague are empty, save for the two of them walking hand in hand down them. It’s early, almost too early to be considered an acceptable time to be awake, but they continue on nonetheless. A wild craving for something sweet had brought upon their adventure, and with the look she was giving him, he couldn’t say no to accompanying her.
They had been sitting on the balcony of her hotel room, watching the sun starting to peak out over the horizon and sharing a cigarette when she had turned to him with a mischievous look in her eyes. “I want something sweet.”
The comment had earned her an offer to order room service, but she shakes her head at the idea, standing up and walking back into the room. “No. Something real, maybe a coffee too.”
He follows her in, watching her pull on a shirt to cover the bralette she had been sitting in. “È presto, amore. Let’s go to bed. We can order something when the sun is awake also.”
She smiles at his words, but makes no move to stop dressing. She grabs her wallet and room key before heading to the door, stopping to turn and look at him, a question in her eyes.
“Fine, I’ll come with you.” He says after a moment, throwing on his jacket and walking over to her.
It’s 7:30 in the morning, the sun is starting to make it’s daily appearance, and they are happy. The small bakery they stumble into is just opening for the day and they’re greeted by the owner, an older lady with the sweetest smile. She speaks in broken English, an obvious language barrier between the group of them, but no one seems to mind.
She orders herself a poppy strudel and a coffee, Ethan ordering a croissant and an espresso, before sitting down at one of the small tables. He sits beside her, wrapping an arm around her and pulling her into his side. He presses a soft kiss into the crown of her head and she sighs in content.
Moments like this are what she lives for. She might only be here because she works for them, but somewhere along the way she’s become part of their little family. She looks over to Ethan who’s lost in conversation with the owner, and she whispers to herself, “Penso di essermi innamorato di te.”
She doesn’t know that he hears her, his smile spreading wider across his face.
July
The turnover from June to July happens mid concert in Stockholm. She swears she can feel it, the sudden shift, a slight change in the air. She’s running around in front of the stage capturing pictures of the band in what she’s come to call their ‘natural habitat’. There’s an indescribable buzz in the air as they perform, the crowd becoming louder and louder with each song.
She keeps catching Ethans eye and there’s something primal in the way he looks at her. During a song switch, while Damiano rambles to the crowd, he motions her on stage. He tells her to get closer to everyone, promising that they won’t bite, and she giggles at him. She does what he says nonetheless, capturing some up close photos of the band and a few great shots of the crowd.
All too soon the show is ending and everyone’s piling into the car, a small party taking place in the backseat. Damiano has music blasting from his phone, Victoria and Thomas are dancing along to the beat, and Ethan is belting out the lyrics. She watches the group of them, laughing so hard her sides hurt, and she’s never felt more at home.
When they get to the hotel he’s quick to pull her towards his room, thankfully void of a roommate for the night. The second they get into the room, his lips are on hers. He pulls her close to his body and her hands tangle themselves in his hair. It’s nothing like any of their previous kisses, it’s heated and fast, every thought trying to be conveyed by the fever of it. She pulls back slightly to catch her breath and he leans in to whisper in her ear, “Join me in the shower?”
It’s not so much a question as a statement, but she nods her head eagerly, quick to follow him into the bathroom. He strips himself of the few clothes he’s wearing (most having been thrown off during the show), before turning to her. He reaches his arms out towards her, pulling her close to him and tugging on her shirt. She barely registers him pulling off her clothes, too focused on his body in front of her.
She’s never seen him so bare, and she’s having a hard time focussing on anything else. It’s not until her body hits the warm water that she snaps back to reality. He looks wild, eyes blown with lust, a wicked smile on his face. She firmly plants her lips on his, moaning into the kiss as he grabs at her. His hands are skilled and know every way to pull those delicious sounds from her lips.
It’s quick and dirty, and it is everything she has ever imagined it would be.
An hour later, she’s tangled up in the sheets of his bed, his entire being engulfing her as they watch the stars outside the window. She wonders if they are watching them too.
Paris is the city of lights, a statement she’s never been more sure of. The streets are lit with every light, shining brighter than the stars. She’s in a permanent state of bliss, after the night she shared with Ethan. Their relationship is hidden from the public, living in stolen moments and nights in hotel rooms, but she’s never been happier to be someone's dirty secret.
The band is electric on stage, something about the city they’re in taking their performance to a whole new level. The show goes on longer than it should have, but none of them even care when their manager comes over to reprimand them. They hang around to greet fans and take photos with anyone and everyone, and it’s not until security has to kick them out that they finally leave.
They find themselves in a bar, not sure what part of the city they’re in, but no one cares when the night feels like this. They drink expensive drinks that they can’t pronounce the name of, dance to songs they don’t know the words to, and feel more alive than they’ve ever felt. It’s like the world turned itself up to 11 just for them.
She dances with Ethan, not caring who sees because the night is theirs and no one cares. She kisses him in the middle of the dance floor and he pulls her into a vacant bathroom. It’s hot and heavy and the smell of alcohol envelopes them, but they couldn’t care less. Is this love? They don’t care. They’re young and dumb, and well, you only live once.
Back at the hotel they spend the night wrapped in bedsheets on the balcony, a bottle of champagne and a pack of cigarettes shared between the two of them. He points to the stars, a stupid grin on his face, “Le stelle brillano solo per noi.”
She snorts, throwing an abandoned pillow at him. He grabs her arm and pulls her into him, tickling her sides until she’s begging him to stop, tears staining her cheeks but a laugh like no other leaving her lips.
As the night bleeds into morning, and both are hazy with sleep, he whispers to her, “Sei il mio universo.”
They walk down the streets of London, his arm slung over her shoulders as she rambles away, both blissfully unaware of the few fans snapping photos down the street. They don’t notice the group of girls following them, cameras and phones in hand, capturing picture after picture of the couple.
By the time they reach the shop, the photos are already out into the world.
As they order, reposts and comments start flowing, and their phones start lighting up with notifications.
Before they can pay, she’s crying.
Rule number one of being in the public eye; never look at the comments, distance yourself from social media as much as possible, it will never end well.
The final stop in Rome was supposed to be a welcome home. A big celebration was to occur after their last concert, but now, it’s nothing more than finding the quickest way back home. She sits in one of the dressing rooms the entire show, waiting for it to end, scrolling through her social media.
She knows she shouldn’t be, that’ll all it’s doing is hurting her, making her feel worse. But she can’t stop. The comments aimed towards her and the drummer are terrible, and she wishes she could just delete herself from existence. They aren’t even dating, at least not officially, but she’s been deemed the girlfriend from hell. She’s unknowingly stolen something that never belonged to anyone to begin with.
Damianos girlfriend is in the room with her, telling her of her own horror stories dealing with fans, and she knows she’s just trying to help, but she really wishes she would just shut up. She loves the girl to death, she’s been a blessing this entire time, but she feels her mind is too far gone to be saved from the madness.
It’s only a few minutes later that the band wanders in, the usual after show high replaced with a sudden heaviness. Ethan comes to stand by her after putting his things away and pulls her into a tight hug. “Amore mio.”
He’s sweaty and could definitely use a shower, but the hug is comforting. She rubs his back soothingly, knowing this is just as hard on him as it is on her. Their management team has told everyone to remain quiet about it, disappearing from the internet until further notice while they figure out how to manage the situation. It’s maddening, the inability to speak out and protect her. He wishes he could snap his fingers and everything would be fixed, but he knows nothing is ever that easy.
They make their way back to the villa in silence, the car filled with a strangeness. She’s sandwiched between Victoria and Ethan, leaning on the bassist's shoulder, watching her play a game on her phone. It’s not how anyone wanted to end the tour, but the world is a strange and cruel place. Everything good always comes burning down.
August
There’s a party at the villa one night. Things have calmed down enough that she doesn’t spiral every time she looks at her phone, but there’s something in the way Ethan acts around her that makes her uneasy. She’s standing out on the patio, trying to avoid the questioning eyes from everyone in the house. She hasn’t spoken to Ethan all day, and the alcohol coursing through her veins makes her even angrier than she knows she should be.
Out of the corner of her eye she sees him walk out the door beside her, a small scoff leaving her lips as he tries to speak to her.
“Couldn’t be bothered to talk to me all day, what’s changed that you’ve decided to grace me with your presence?”
He looks at her, stunned. “I don’t get what you mean.”
She scoffs again, placing her glass on the table across from her. “Since London you’ve done nothing but ignore me. I get that this wasn’t easy for you, but it wasn’t exactly a cake walk for me. I needed you, Ethan, and you left me.” Her voice is raw and scratchy, the feeling of wanting to cry tickling the back of her throat.
“I don’t know how to do this. I don’t know how Dami does it, how he can deal with the comments and messages. My brain won’t shut off, I can’t stop thinking about how if I had been more careful, I could’ve protected you and none of this would’ve happened. I feel stupid for thinking I could have. I hate seeing you like this, I wish I could take you away from all of this.” His voice slowly lowers, till it’s nothing more than a whisper, words meant only for her.
“I was never what you wanted, was I? This was just all some stupid game to you. I was just someone you could use to get off.” Her voice is laced with pain, a small crack coming out as she speaks.
He shakes his head, laughing slightly, and turns to look away from her. He walks a few steps before turning to face her again, “No. No, you were exactly what I wanted. You were everything to me. We were the same type of crazy.”
“I don’t understand Ethan, then what was the problem? This feels like a confession and a break up all in one.” She crosses her arms and leans against the wall, watching as he pulls a cigarette out from his pocket and lights it.
The familiar sight creates something warm in her chest, memories of summer nights like this flash through her mind. Spending the evening sitting on the balcony of different hotel rooms, sharing a cigarette between the two of them while they let the events of the day soak in. She’d give anything to go back to one of those moments. He blows a breath of smoke out and starts to speak again, “I don’t know, amore. I don’t. I want to tell you I love you, to hold you and call you mine. But I can’t.”
“Can’t, or won’t.” It’s not a question, but a statement.
“No, don’t do that. Don’t turn this into something it’s not. I want to, believe me, I do.” He steps towards her and reaches out his arms, “But we both know we can’t.”
She doesn’t know where the tears come from, but they’re there, pooling in her eyes. It’s only been a few months since they’ve met, there were no promises to be anything more than a summer adventure, but this doesn’t feel right. Her heart should not be breaking at the thought of losing someone she barely even knows.
He stops when he notices her state, reaching out to wipe the tears falling down her cheeks. “Merda. Merda! This wasn’t how this was supposed to go.”
She looks up at him through clouded eyes, “Then how was this supposed to go, Ethan? Breaking my heart wasn’t supposed to hurt me this bad? I was supposed to smile and tell you that I'm not madly in love with you and these past few months meant nothing to me?”
His heart breaks slowly at her words. He never meant for the night to go this way, and he wishes he could just pull her into his arms and tell her he loved her, that everything could be okay. But he can’t, so he pulls away from her, “I’m sorry, I’m so fucking sorry.”
They’re the only words he can manage to get out without breaking down. He takes a second to watch her, memorize all the features of her face, before turning around and walking away. It’s a sight that rips her heart out, watching his form disappear back into the house. She knows this is it, the goodbye she’d been preparing for these past few weeks, but it doesn’t hurt any less.
Before she can help herself, she’s calling after him. “Being in love isn’t a weakness, you know!” But the words fall upon deaf ears.
Vic finds her standing in the same spot an hour later. She’s got a smoke lit in her hand, the third one from the pack. She hasn’t touched her lips to any of them, but the smell and the feeling of holding it brings her comfort. She was never really one to smoke, but she found it entrancing to watch Ethan do it, and right now, it’s the only thing keeping her grounded. It’s silly, how something so small can mean so much.
Her heart aches in the most unbearable way, but she can’t bring herself to do anything about it. Vic doesn’t speak, just stands beside her. She doesn’t need to ask to know that she is well aware of the events that have just unfolded, she’s just grateful for the company.
September
It’s stupidly hot in London for the time of year, but mother nature loves her unexpected heat waves. She’s home now, having left Rome shortly after the fight with Ethan, assuring their manager that she would be able to edit and upload all of the photos and videos from the comfort of her own flat.
Vic and Thomas had driven her to the airport, had walked her all the way to security and hugged her tightly before letting her go. She’d promised to keep in touch and Victoria had made her pinky swear that if she was ever in Rome again, she’d come visit. The flight was short, and she was glad the time difference was only an hour.
Her sister had picked her up and dropped her off at her flat, and she’d immediately collapsed into bed. That was three days ago, she’d barely moved since. Someone had caught her at the airport and the photos were everywhere, articles upon articles had been released, she’d had non stop messages from everyone, but all she could bring herself to do was turn her phone off.
Her photos make it to the front of magazines, her articles getting featured all over the globe, she’s made a name for herself. She gets emails from prospective clients wanting to book her in at shows, her boss sending her information for more high end gigs, but all she can think about is her drummer boy.
Her phone still sits turned off on her desk, she refuses to turn it on for anything, resorting to using only her email, but she knows everything that’s going on with the band. She’d been asked to join them again in a few months, to become a permanent part of their team. She hasn’t been able to reply.
She gets panicky thinking about seeing him again, about the things people will say if she’s caught in the same country as him. She’s stopped receiving death threats, but there’s still comments that creep in, fans thanking whatever gods made them seperate.
Victoria tries to reach out every few days, worried about the state of person she’s become, but she can’t even manage to type out an I’m okay. The world seems to be too fast and too slow, too bright and too dark, too much and not enough. Her heart aches and it’s a pain so deep she thinks she’ll never be okay again. Love is a cruel, cruel creature.
October
She finally brings herself to go back to work at the beginning of the month. She books herself in for a small band, someone no one really knows but she hopes they will one day. She’s in Amsterdam now, trying hard not to think of the memories the place brings. The band is good, the music heavy and the beat strong. They find a way to tell a story that leaves everyone with a soul searching question by the end of the night. Do you know who you are?
She’s only with them for a few nights, a short gig, but something she needed to get the ball rolling, to remember why she was doing this in the first place. After submitting the photos and writing an article that sends another wave of offers her way, she takes a few days to explore the city. It was wonderful before, when the air was warm and it felt like there was magic enveloping the city. But now, with the change of seasons, it’s even more beautiful than she remembers.
She walks the empty streets one night, huddled in the safety of her hoodie, camera in hand, and captures moments. A couple standing under a street light, a cafe closing for the night, kids running. It’s not until she hears a laugh she’s all too familiar with that her heart stops and her blood turns cold. She turns, ever so carefully, hidden behind the side of a building, and sees him.
He’s beautiful, even more than she remembers, and he looks happy. He’s walking with two girls, the resemblance making her sure it’s his sisters, but in this light she can’t be sure. She’s never met them, but he talked about them often, and she felt a pang in her chest for the homesickness he must have felt.
She tries to run, tries her hardest to get away, but she’s in an alley that leads nowhere and he’ll for sure be able to see her no matter what. The voices of the three get closer and she starts to panic, but there’s nowhere to go and she knows she’ll have to pull on her big girl pants and face him. But her heart won’t stop beating so loudly and she’s afraid she’ll break if he looks at her.
She pretends to be busy with her camera, focusing all of her attention on settings she knows are perfect, but a voice carries it’s way to her ears. “Hey stranger.”
It’s soft and it makes her knees weak and she hates herself for it. She looks up at him and his expecting eyes and her heart breaks all over again. She can’t help it, but suddenly there are tears running down her face and she can’t breathe. “Hey, hey. It’s okay.”
He places a hand on her shoulder but she pushes it away, “No it’s not.” She says between breaths.
“I shouldn’t be here, I should not be here. I have to go.”
She turns to leave, but one of his sisters stops her, “Let us walk you home, please. My brother may be a dumbass, but we have good genes. Let us make sure you get back safe.”
She doesn’t know why the words calm her, but she nods her head and lets the girls lead her in the direction of her hotel. The twins, Eleanora and Lucrezia, talk to her in fits of italian and english, trying to keep her brain occupied. But her whole body is on high alert, too aware of the man trailing behind them and how much of a fool she must look like. She feels like a mess, like someone drowning in a foot of water, but she can’t help it.
They walk her into the lobby of her hotel, the girls wish her a goodnight before shoving Ethan towards her. She doesn’t want to talk to him, and he must see it in her eyes because he tries to leave. But his sisters won’t let him, they stand tall and he looks like a child being scolded by his parents.
“Can we sit?” He asks, pointing to a couch.
She doesn’t want to, she wants to run up to her room and cry, but she nods. They sit and it is silent. Her stomach is in her throat, her eyes hurt from trying not to cry, but she sits and she waits. She studies his face, the crease in between his eyebrows that only forms when he’s confused or thinking, she wants to reach over and smooth it out. He turns towards her and catches her staring, a small smile forming on his lips.
He takes her in, allowing himself to really look at her for the first time in months, and something in his heart breaks. How did he ever let her go? Why was he so stupid to ruin something so beautiful?
“I’m sorry.” He blurts out before he can stop himself. “I’m so sorry, amore. I know I can’t say it enough, I know it’s not as easy as that, but I’m sorry and I love you. So much it hurts.”
The words hit her like a truck, they knock the air out of her lungs and the tears she was trying so hard to keep at bay start falling down her cheeks. She stands up so fast she gets light headed, “I can’t do this. I thought I could, but I can’t.”
She turns and starts walking towards the elevators. He calls after her, but she’s determined to leave, to get away. He runs after her, catching her right before the doors of the elevator close, and he wishes she didn’t look so broken. The doors slip close and she is gone and he feels like he could break something.
Her room is cold and she wishes she was home in her flat. She throws herself into the shower, the water burning her skin, and she sobs. She sobs so hard her body shakes, she screams and hopes no one can hear her.
He’s still standing by the elevator, crying now, too. His body aches in a way he’s never felt before and he hates that he isn’t holding her right now. He knows he messed up, he beats himself up for it everyday, but he doesn’t know how to fix it. He can’t just say sorry and expect everything to be okay, but he has to do something.
November
The ground is covered in snow. It is peaceful and quiet. He’s not used to this, the cold and the snow, but he understands the appeal. He’s standing outside her flat, or at least what he hopes is her flat, Victoria wasn’t exactly sure which one was hers. He’s bought her favourite flowers and he’s prepared to pour his soul out to her.
He paces outside her door for what feels like hours, trying to get himself to knock, but before he can, she opens the door. “Ethan?”
Her voice is soft, his heart sings at the sound of it. He turns to face her and the sight before him takes his breath away. She’s wearing a dress that shows off everything he loved about her, a coat thrown over her arm, she looks like an angel on earth. “Do you have a moment?”
She’s running late for dinner with her sister, but she’s afraid if she says no to him, she’ll never see him again. She hasn’t forgotten that night in Amsterdam, wishes she would have been brave enough to stay and talk, but she can’t change the past. “Yes, yes. Come in.”
She lets him into her flat, taking the flowers he hands her, and brings him over to her couch. “So.”
The script he’d had prepared in his head is suddenly gone from his memories. “I’ve thought this through a thousand times, planned this out a million different ways, but I can’t figure out the right words to say. I’m sorry, amore mio. I can’t say that enough. I never should have left you, shouldn’t have let things happen the way they did. Loving you was easy, and I think that scared me.”
She takes a deep breath, not sure what to say. She feels tears bubbling in the back of her throat and she hates that this is her response to everything revolving around him. He notices the shift in her, can tell she’s about to cry, “Amore mio, please don’t cry. I’ll start and then neither of us will be able to do anything else.”
She laughs quietly at his words, “I don’t think there are any tears left inside of me. I cried them all for you.”
His heart breaks at her confession. He moves closer to her and wraps himself around her. She hates how easy it is for her to melt into his touch, but she enjoys the comfort of it. “Tell me how to fix this. Tell me to stay and I will be here for as long as you’ll have me. I’m yours amore.”
“Please, don’t leave me again.” The words are barely more than a whisper, but he hears them.
He pulls her tight to his chest and holds her. She doesn’t care about anything else but this moment and him.
She wakes up the next morning in her bed. The sun is streaming in through the windows and she can smell Ethans body wash laced in the fibres of her bed sheets. She rolls over, expecting to see him beside her, but is met with an empty bed. Her heart sinks, afraid that everything he’d said was too good to be true, that he’d left her, again. But the sounds coming from her kitchen prove her wrong.
She gets up, quickly changing out of the dress she was wearing the night before, and follows the sound of clinking dishes. She’s greeted by the sight of a shirtless Ethan, back turned to her, hunched over her stove. There’s the smell of coffee brewing and something soft playing from the radio. If she doesn’t think too hard, she can almost imagine this being a daily occurrence.
He turns around when he hears the floorboards creak, a smile on his face, “Buongiorno amore mio.”
“Buongiorno.”
He hands her a cup of coffee and plates the pancakes he’s made. She smiles at the domesticality of it all. He sits down beside her on the couch and they eat in silence, leaning against one another. Afterwards, she washes the dishes and he dries them. Neither one of them says anything until the sun is high in the sky and they are laying in bed together. “I love you.”
It is the first time she’s said it in such a permanent way, she recites it like it is a fact written in history books. He looks down at her, she’s curled up on his chest, a hazy look on her face. He reaches down to tuck her hair behind her ear and leans his head towards her, “Ti voglio bene.” He seals the statement with a soft kiss.
It’s light and barley there, she chases after his lips as he pulls away, and he chuckles in a way that sends butterflies into her stomach. She places herself on his lap, weaving her fingers into his hair as his tether to her waist. “Hi.”
“Hi.”
He stares at her, memorizing all of the features of her face. He loses himself in thoughts of days spent exactly like this, of a life he hopes isn’t just a dream. He flips them over carefully, laying her down on the bed. He hovers over her, arms on either side of her head, “I’m going to show you how much I love you.”
December
“Move in with me.”
It’s early in the morning and they’re sitting in bed sharing a pot of coffee and a pack of cigarettes. His arm is wrapped around her shoulders, she’s leaned into his side, and he whispers those words.
She hasn’t yet told him about the offer from the band's manager, to become their permanent photographer, but it seems like the perfect moment to. “Yes.”
“Really?”
She laughs at his shock, “I was offered to come and work for the band full time, I haven’t replied yet. But I want to take the job.”
A goofy grin makes its way onto his face, “Do it! Right now. Tell them yes, come and stay with us. Be my girlfriend?”
He’s rambling and he doesn’t care. She smiles at him, her heart bursting with love for the man. “Okay, yes! Absolutely!”
Christmas is celebrated in their apartment in Rome. The band is there, her sister flies out and his family comes too. It is a day filled with love and laughter. They eat a grand lunch that they spent the previous day cooking, his mom brings a homemade panettone. They exchange gifts in the evening, and it is everything she’d dreamed of.
On New Year's Eve they make a trip to the villa. They sing songs and drink expensive wine. Fireworks light up the sky brighter than the stars. They sit out on the porch and tell stories of things that seem so far away. He’s sitting beside her, hands intertwined. He tells her about all of the things he wants to do in the new year and she is mesmerized by the way he talks.
There will be a moment in time when the world stops spinning and everything goes quiet, and she thinks that if that were to happen now, it would be the perfect way to go. Surrounded by the people she now calls family and the person she loves most in the world.
Fireworks go off in the distance, someone shouts out a drunken happy new year! and as time flows from one year to the next, she realizes that this is all that will ever matter.
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victorious-villain · 3 years
Text
Calm Fem S/O That Goes Crazy
Mikey x Fem Reader
Fluff
About: You are solid as stone and give Mikey to calm to his chaos. What he doesn't know is that you are not afraid to protect all that he has built. 767 words
Author's Note: This is an interesting take on this I felt would fit Mikey. That being said, enjoy.
Warnings: violence, Mikey trying to be a menace, vulgar language
Whenever someone saw you and Mikey they couldn't help but wonder how it worked. In reality, it was simple. Much like Draken you were a pillar he could lean on and someone who could take care of him when everyday he was lazy. You knew some things from Mikey teaching you but otherwise you'd never been a fighter. You much preferred staying on the sidelines or avoiding confrontation all together which wasn't easy considering you were dating the leader of Toman.
Toman was something Mikey was immensely proud of and you knew it. You'd seen him work late or stress on things he didn't quite need to all for Toman and you found that admirable. Not the type where you viewed him as a god but rather saw that he truly had conviction and a goal for the future. That's what had actually led you to him, that spark of something so earnest and honorable that drew you in quicker than you could have ever thought. This all led to you listening to his rambles about Toman and you'd even met the group and seen where his fondness stemmed from. Having both Mikey's passion for Toman and meeting the members themselves, you had gotten attached as well.
In dating the leader of Toman you got plenty of remarks, all the way from threats if you betray him to bribes to betray him. They'd only gone as far as insulting you, until today that is. You were walking from school on your way to meet Mikey when a idiotic man approached. He was rambling about how you should betray Toman, that was nothing new. He crossed a line when he shouted,
"Toman is just a scummy group of punks who want to cause trouble for everyone else! They don't care about me or you! You'd be doing yourself a favor if you got as far away from them as possible!" Now you stopped. You had honestly been walking away form the wild man before he had shouted those words to you. It made all the memories with Toman (whether you'd been there or heard it from Mikey) and Mikey's goals and wishes form Toman's future flash past you.
Pivoting back, you walked towards that man who was still yammering reasons why Toman was evil but you couldn't hear them since all you were doing was repeating Mikey's words. 'Lift your leg as high as it will go, then twist your body while pulling your leg with it. Like a tornado, push off and go up then crash down in one motion'. That's what Mikey had told you while showing you how to do his high powered kick. While you couldn't do it as well as Mikey could, there was no shortage of power behind your kicks due to his teaching and the overall mechanics of the kick.
Following instructions, you brought the man down in one kick and he looked like he'd seen the afterlife for a moment. "Say that about Toman again. I can't remember what you said" You huffed. He didn't give a response so you walked off, hoping you hadn't kept Mikey too long because you know he'd complain all day and it was not something you specifically sought out.
You had in fact kept Mikey waiting too long so he had come looking for you, worried the worst had happened. He was met with the sight of you using his special kick to drop someone in a slip second. He didn't know what happened but that was a new side of you, hell, you didn't really want to know the move in the first place. When he heard what you said to the man the picture became clear in a heartbeat; he had badmouthed Toman and you had defended it. He couldn't help the blush from painting his cheeks and by the time you found him standing in the path his heart was beating out of his chest.
He was smitten with you before but now you weren't going to be able to get ride of him now (not like you could have earlier). Nonetheless, Mikey tried to tease you about your actions.
"Oh~ was that you defending Toman I see?" You blushed slightly at being caught acting out the normal but you stood your ground, it was now or never.
"Of course, Toman means the world to you so I ought to protect it. After all, you are the world to me so its only right." The only response was Mikey hugging you (hiding a scarlet face), mumbling a muffled "I really do love you."
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inviouswriting · 3 years
Text
Sinful Writings
Kind of specific but I need some things.
Simeon x fem!reader
Smut
Bonding with him over writing is something he looked forward to, Simeon overjoyed that another person shares that same passion for writing. Even more as a hobby, like his is. He invites you over often, you shared with him tame pieces you’ve written. 
As your relationship had grown with the angel, you wondered if he would read your other stories. The ones you keep hidden away from other eyes. Under a special name.
Simeon notes how relaxed you are laying half on his legs with your upper half towards his feet. You had your device of choice in front of you, and he gets curious to see what you are working on. You are dressed down for the night in a shirt and underwear.
One of his hands pokes at your calf to get your attention. You save your progress and look over to him, you had been staring at the page. Your angel realizing you are stuck.
“May I see what you have?” The color in your face reddens, Simeon sees the rapid change as you look like you got caught doing something naughty in the presence of the angel. He catches on quick, and you see his smile widen at catching you.
“Oh? Is this something you can’t share with an angel?” He teases, and straightens up to collect you into his arms. You allow him to change the way you are laying to cuddle with him.
“Um... a little.” You answer him finally. Now he really wanted to see what it is that makes you blush.
“May I?” He asks for your permission, rubbing his face affectionately against yours. You soak his attention up, and find it hard to say no when he uses his eyes and affection to ask nicely.
You hand over the written work you were doing. He takes it and goes to the beginning to read it fully rather than the spot you had just finished writing. You are nervous as he reads it, shifting down to fit more into his side, resting your head to his chest. 
One of his hands rests on top of your head; running through your hair, teasing around an ear. You didn’t chance a glance to his face right now, you know your face is still warm and colored pink from the fact he is reading it. 
The piece you were doing was an internal fantasy you’ve had of the angel. You know he is figuring out that the pair is you and him when that hand that was tracing around an ear moves to the back of your neck. A spot you have written you enjoy when he touches it. His thumb dances over it, mirroring what he is reading. 
You notice a raise in his heartbeat, and he shifts to uncross his legs Simeon was feeling his shorts a little tighter than he’ll admit to. You thrum your fingers along his stomach, teasing him a little with a few delicate pokes along his exposed sides. It isn’t until he sets your writing down on the nightstand that he had finished reading. 
Simeon taps his fingers along your neck, wanting your attention on him now. He had removed his hands briefly but you noticed he isn’t wearing his gloves anymore. You two have been intimate before, having broken that ice on your own when you stayed the night with him.
You look up at him, and see a serene look to his eyes, but also mischief. A little bit of pink on his cheeks, but that look to his eyes is specific, you know that expression. 
“I take you like it?” You chance, and he tugs you up to him to place a kiss to your lips.
“Love it, have you written alot of sinful little things like this and haven’t shown me?” You cast your eyes away, and Simeon has his answer.
“Hmm... you’ve been holding out on me. But what has you stuck where you can’t finish it?” He rubs your side as he shifts you to sit on his waist, on the bulge earning a soft groan out of him. 
“I am stuck on what sort of things to include... I’m sorry for holding out, I didn’t know if you would want to read those stories...” You feel his hands at your waist guiding you to grind on his lap. You can feel him hard against your core, you bite your bottom lip a little at wanting to feel him. Simeon wants to tease, and you can tell from his stare.
“Because of my being an angel?” You nod a little, he lifts one hand up to your face and cups it. 
“If it is about us, I want to read all of it. I’d love to know the thoughts you keep hidden away or are too shy to share with me verbally. I think I know how to help break that mini writer’s block if you’d like some ideas.” You feel the love radiate off him.
“What do you have in mind?” His hands move your hips a little harder on his lap. Simeon enjoying you like this, his hands smooth up to where your shirt just covers the front of your underwear and slips his hands over the front to your breasts. You press closer to his palms when they cup and squeeze them getting a moan out of you. You didn’t worry about volume with how late at night it is. 
“I think you’ll enjoy my surprises. May I ask that you lay on my knees like earlier?” You look at him confused, and how you were with your head towards his feet. You feel his fingers squeeze your nipples gently. Tugging them till you squeeze your thighs on his waist grounding yourself to him. The bump of his cock providing the right feel as you try to ride him through both his shorts and your underwear. He follows your motions, wanting to get that first orgasm out of the way.
Simeon helps arrange you so you feel his cock through your folds as you reach your hands down to part your folds to feel him as close to your entrance as possible even centering him to almost push in. He feels the damp slick as it glides against his shaft. He almost wants to tug both aside to properly feel you, but he had alot in mind for playing with you. 
You center yourself and bounce on him, your hands splay on his abdomen, you bite your lip desperately wanting him inside you, you feel the tip against the hole and push down. You feel even with the fabric separating you two, him barely inside, enough to get you off with. Simeon’s hands are on your waist holding it still as he thrusts up to meet you.
“I need you inside... please...” You plead him, and you see him lick his lips in agreement, the pleasure too addictive. You raise your hips enough for Simeon to tug his shorts down enough and you tug aside your panties. You sigh whenyou line him and slide down his shaft. He throbs nice and twitches wild inside. You see Simeon’s eyes close as you resume bouncing on his lap and he meets you with eager thrusts.
You both are wild, he wanted to do something else before he sank into you, but he thought of some other things to enjoy. Simeon hears you hold your voice low, into small whimpers of pleasure. His hands move to tug off your top throwing it off the bed. 
The angel angles your hips forward and sees you toss your head back in bliss, your mouth parted as sighs escape. You clasp your hands over your mouth when you feel one hand down to slip under your panties to rub at your clit. His other hand tweaks at a nipple till your hips move shakily on his.
Simeon keeps it up, he watches your every move, and nuance you make waiting for that one expression. When he sees your eyes lower and you look down to meet his blue eyes. He sees the haughty stare, the one you make right before you cum for him.
“Feels good right? Go ahead, on my cock and hand.” His words enough to make you shudder and push down to feel every inch, the wide tip close to your cervix. You feel good, very good like heat and pleasure through your spine till it ends on his hand in a mild squirt. You cover your face when you manage it, but Simeon tugs your hands away to see you so lost in pleasure.
Simeon follows after, pushing his hips up and tugging yours down to feel right at your womb separated by that wall. You feel hot cum spill into you from him, you see his face entranced by yours that he had peaked just from how you squeeze so nice on him.
You feel an overwhelming shyness hit you at the way he is staring. Covering your face, only to have both hands seize yours tugging them away gently.
“That felt amazing... Would you be willing to try what I have in store now?” Simeon asks, wanting to know if you want to continue. He wanted you while you are sensitive. 
“Yeah, kiss me first?” The angel leans up and kisses you deep. You feel his lips nibbling on yours as you shift yourself to have him pull out. He tugs the shorts he wears down more. Then breaks the kiss urging you to follow his earlier instructions.
You do, you were about to take off the soaked panties till his hands stop you.
“Leave them on. I can’t do it without them.” You are confused, but leave them in place as you lay over his knees. He props them up so your front is angled down his legs. Simeon reaches over to the nightstand, and tugs out a egg bullet vibrator that he had purchased for one of your wild nights together.
The angle Simeon has you in, you feel the vibrator on your ass as he has it on. You feel him trace circles along the flesh. He tugs the panties up more to expose more flesh to his eyes and ministrations. For a moment he rests the toy on his own abdomen. You feel his fingers as he tugs the soaked crotch of your panties aside and spreads your folds open as wide as he wanted to see. 
You are glad you are facing away from Simeon, you would lose your nerve with him staring at your pussy like this, the hole exposed, and to his delight his seed leaking out. He would be adding to it anyway. You hear a happy hum behind you as he lifts the toy from his own abdomen and brings it up to your pussy. You soon feel the vibration against your clit, the end of it being rubbed in circles around the sensitive nub. 
“Simeon!” You call out his name, feeling him hold the egg there with his palm rocking it against the full of your clit and folds. You feel him tug the panties up and hold the egg in place, even using his knees to keep your legs apart as you fidget and ground down to the toy.
You moan freely, your hands gripping his ankles while his hands moved away to hold your legs from trying to move the toy off where he has you. 
“My lamb, you’re so soaked now.” He watches you as another smaller orgasm rocks your body from the vibrator. You ache for something inside you again, that you try shifting to get the egg closer, but Simeon holds you still to keep you from doing so.
“Hmmm, not yet my love. You can use my knee.” You feel his hands again, on your rear, tugging your underwear up so the egg sits right, and he moves his knee to hold it in place centering the vibrator right against your clit. You squirm and sigh in need of him. 
Simeon enjoys the sight of you like this, your head down on your arms as you muffle your moans into his leg. The angel tugs your panties enough to see how your hole drips with slick, he presses two fingers inside and you squeeze them. You want to feel them deeper, but he tugs his fingers back to just play with the ring of the hole.
You felt like you were about to cum again, Simeon could tell from the way your walls grip his fingers when he pushes them inside. He licks his lips as he wants to bring you over that edge again and again. 
You feel your thighs shake as you try hard to hold back, but Simeon curls his fingers towards your belly, and thrusts his fingers against a spot he knows, that has you undone and combined with the egg against your soaked folds you bury your face into your arms as you cum hard again. Simeon keeps his hand moving to feel the gush against his hand. He did not care about being soaked, he even chuckles at the way you try to hold your moans back.
“Let it all out for me. Keep cumming for me.” Simeon is addicted to making you like this, legs shaking with need that only he can relieve. That mindless bliss he sends you into that your head is fuzzy and you absolutely ache for him. So much you sigh in relief when his fingers tug out after you unclench them. He moves the egg from your clit when you squirm away from it when he teases the end at your clit again.
“My angel... I need you...” You look over your shoulder to him.
“I know you do. Patience for now, trust me. Let me have my fun and I’ll keep giving you one orgasm after the next.” He says it so sweet, and you nod to his request. The egg vibrator he has, he moves it to the entrance of your pussy and rolls it along your folds till he presses the narrow end inside. You jolt a little feeling it being pushed inside at his gentle urging.
“This is okay right?” He checks with you, and you nod, letting him push the device in. He uses his fingers to guide it in as deep he wanted it to be, he enjoys the view of your pussy stretched around the egg. With your position still, it gave the perfect angle to rest right against your g-spot. 
Simeon begins to tug your panties off, he had his fun with them and now he wants them entirely off of you. He tosses them off along with his own shorts after arranging you off of him momentarily. Simeon arranges you towards the edge of the bed, and he kneels down to have your legs draped over his shoulders.
The angel wastes little time after you had two orgasms and kisses your folds. You jolt up when you feel his fingers push back inside bumping the vibrator against your spot, making sure to please you well. His other hand wraps around his own cock and pumps himself. 
You are a mess of pleasure, from his mouth on you, to his fingers pushing that vibrator just right. Your hands go into Simeon’s hair and rubs through it earning happy moans. You realize he is pleasing himself, and you want to return the pleasure he has given you.
“Simeon... can I suck on you?” You ask him, you see a blue eye peek up, he looks cute as his tongue circles your clit. He thinks of how you can do it so he can continue to play with you like this. 
“Yeah. Do you want me to be over you or under you?” He leaves the position up to you as he gives another loving kiss to your folds and disentangles himself. He wants your mouth too.
“Over me, my legs are a little sore from kneeling.” He nods and guides you to lay back on his bed, your head down towards the foot of the bed again. Simeon grabs his pillows and shoves off the blankets to one side to not soil them. Once you are situated, you moan out when you shift your hips up to how Simeon wants them, the egg pushing down towards the entrance. You do your best to keep it inside while Simeon crawls over you.
You relax with your angel over the top of you, and he guides his cock down to your lips. You feel the plush head against them and part your lips for him. You tease the tip with the end of your tongue sweeping it around to feel the flared swollen edge of his glands. He fit so well and had a perfect cock to suck on.
You bring your hands up finally to touch him, the skin of his shaft a bit darker than the rest of his body except the very tip was a faint pinkish red. From the moment your mouth engulfed his aching cock you felt it twitch as he gently thrusts into your mouth. 
Simeon busies his mouth back down on your folds, devouring them like he is starved for you, listening to your pleas for more around his dick in your mouth. Pressure was building in your belly again, and you push up to his mouth, Simeon swirls his tongue over the hard nub of your clit dragging it back and forth to circles leaving no spot untouched or untasted by him.
One of his hands moves to push the egg that was peeking out of your hole back in, he feels mild resistance with you on verge of another orgasm, he feels your thighs move closer to him and he keeps them apart as he pleases you full.
You continue to suck on him, you relaxed your throat enough to allow him to thrust into your mouth freely without choking or gagging you. You have one hand just above your nose playing with his balls squeezing them and rolling them with your fingers earning timed moans when you squeeze at the base of his cock.
Simeon feels your tongue swirl around the tip, delving the very end against the slit there to coax more precum out tasting sweet yet salty. The angel repeats your ministration with your clit before moving his mouth down to run his tongue around the stretched ring of your pussy. 
Your mind muddles with more pleasure feeling Simeon ease the egg almost out of you. He keeps it halfway in holding it with his palm as he focuses it there at an angle. You shudder and feel his mouth back on your clit rapidly licking at it till your legs shake again and the orgasm he had been building in you overtakes you. 
Your angel is there placing his mouth to taste the fluid you let out. You moan and whine around his cock as he tugs himself free from your mouth. He grips his own base to prevent himself from cumming right there a loud groan out of him as he pumps himself to ease the sensation down, but grips his base. You see precum mixed with cum dribble out, and you edge him on by pressing your tongue to the tip to catch it. 
This move makes him lose the control he had, and ropes of white cover your face. Simeon sighs and had let all he had pent up out, some of it catching into your waiting mouth, the rest either on your cheeks where you rub it against his cock or lips as you milk him of more. You place a kiss at the end of the tip before resting your head on the bed itself to breathe.
Simeon sits up and looks down at you covered in his seed, his face flushes pink at seeing you with it on your face. You move to sit up, but Simeon playfully pushes you back down. You question him with a stare until he moves to settle between your legs. He pulls off his own top he still had on.
You understand without words that he isn’t done yet, and he begins to tease your clit again, you wriggle from him assisting removing the egg out of you and turns it off. He didn’t need anymore help from the device to make you have one more orgasm he will give you. He does that well on his own.
Simeon’s mood changes from that playful demeanor he had earlier to much sweeter and loving. He is softer in his touch on your pussy rubbing gentle circles and coaxing your body to relax and be ready for him. 
There is always a little anxiety when he lines himself to you, though he has been within you plenty of times, it never erased that one feeling as he pushes in. The stretch he does different than the egg ever did. Simeon is thicker all around, and long enough that even when you felt him earlier it didn’t change how it felt in this moment.
One of his hands seeks yours and holds it above your head lacing his fingers with yours. Simeon begins to move with you, and thrusts slow at first. Always slow at first despite all his teasing and playing with you, you could handle him rough right now but he didn’t want to be rough.
You feel a change in his affection to soft kisses on your face that makes a gasp leave you at how sweet he is being. When he angles his hips right he brushes that one spot, your hand tightens on his, telling him he found it along with your wide eyes pleading for him to move more.
“Simeon... please.” You plea for him to move, pushing your hips to meet his, and he gives into your whim thrusting a bit faster. Still at a teasing pace till your free hand runs through his hair and scratches light at the nape of his neck. 
“My lamb, you know what that does to me.” Was your only cue, you could have him sweet and loving, or passionate and wild like earlier. You bite your lip, and he sees you do so knowing your answer is going to be one he loves too. You hook your hand again to the nape of his neck and drag down from it to the middle of his back earning a moan out of him. Specially when you touch along his shoulder blades.
Simeon leans over you and lifts your waist with him, he holds your waist as he begins to move harder and faster. How you want him to move, and see the look in his blue eyes as he searches your eyes. You keen out his name, your hands scramble up his back where you can reach leaving fine lines behind as he repeatedly hits your g-spot. The angle has him in deep that you even feel his balls hit as he pushes deeper trying to get as much into you that you accept. 
You marvel at the flush on his face, and his wild eyes lock with yours. His dark skin shines under the faint light from sweat and he takes in the way you look glossy too. It isn’t until you feel that climbing pleasure race through your body again from your head to his thrusts into you. You moan out underneath him, your hands going to your mouth when he lets go to grip your waist better. 
“Let me hear you. I love your voice.” You nod uncovering your mouth and let him hear every sigh and cry as you cum again. Simeon holds you close to him as he buries deep, following you afterwards pushing deep to fill you full of his cum. He is careful as he lays on top of you, panting for breath like you are. You kiss the side of his face and he seeks you out to kiss you deeply.
You feel satisfied from everything you two did, your limbs jelly except your hands combing through his hair. You lay together like that a little while longer till Simeon lifts his hips to pull out from you, having enjoyed you too much. He begins to collect you into his arms for a much needed bath.
“I’ll let you sit in the water first before I join you so I can put fresh sheets on.” He explains and you nod in agreement. 
“I hope this helped you with inspiration for your story. I can’t wait to read it when it is done.” Simeon reminds you of your story, and you smile.
“I had a great muse.” You tease him, and he presses his forehead to yours lovingly. Soon enough after a bath with him and fresh sheets you cuddle up with him worn out from all his attention on you that you fall asleep listening to his heart.
He’d have to ask you to let him read more of your works. Maybe he’ll be able to act on them like what he had read. Maybe he’ll let you read his hidden away books he has of you two.  
For now he enjoys the soft sound of you asleep in his arms.
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ughdontbeboring · 3 years
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Highway to heaven
ok so uh…this is my first time posting something I’ve written, idk why this particular one keeps begging to be posted it’s antsy af and I hurt my own feeling, I wrote it monthsssss ago and just went back to add to it sooooo here yall go 😩 also no permission giving for anyone to reuse this in any form, but please reblog, like, leave nice comments all that good shit 😘
also written with PoC in mind (though the only mention of something specific is hair) and not really sure what warnings to tag so if any just let me know!
now let me go hide 😁😁😁
x
She stretched one of her arms out the window, Feeling the air rushed past it, pushing her arm up and down. Her smile completely contagious. She was the happiest she had been in the past few weeks and August knew it. He didn’t need to be around her that whole time to know, he always seen it the moment she saw him and her mind could process he was alive and back with her.
Since he came home less then 24hrs ago from his most recent mission, he hadn’t seen the smile drop from her face, he knew she could say the same about him.
Usually he drove but he couldn’t resist when she begged him to let her drive his super expensive white sports car. He obviously didn’t get to drive it much as he was always away, and when he was home he mostly spent it trapping her in their bed or away on a surprise vacation, like today. After hours of catching up and fucking her on every surface of their shared home he surprised her with a week away in a cabin. The cabin was his own and was well equipped to deal with anything that may arise, completely secured.
He knew he could be called back into work at any moment but he had good insight that he’d have at least a week where he wouldn’t have to leave her or the cabin. Maybe just for more champagne and her favorite dairy free ice cream depending on her mood during their stay but that was it about the only thing that could get August to leave.
Her laughter brought him back to the present moment. He smiled as he turned to her.
“Yes?”
“I asked if you like what you see Walker” she said throwing him a quick flirty look over her shoulder before focusing on the road. “Your staring at me all doe eyed” she giggled.
He laughed and shook his head, he was completely smitten and they both knew it. Anyone who spent time around them could see it was mutual. For as hard and cruel of a man as August was and seen as, she was his weakness. His weakness and strength actually, because he would do any and everything for her and that could be used in either way. She was the light in his life and she loved him completely, wholly.
“I love what I see actually” He answered staring at her again, watching her bite her lip as a smile took over her face. Her eyes caught his for a moment as she ran her hand down the side of his face, nails and fingertips leaving a tingling trail behind, as he stored this moment and everything about her in his memory, he would need it for when he left on this next mission. Bringing anything personal or that would lead anyone back to her was not an option for him. She was well aware of what he did and why she couldn’t call, only wait for his calls. He pushed it from his mind, praying it would be a while before he had to leave her again.
She hummed to the music as they noticed the traffic up ahead, must be road work August thought. His fingers tapped the car door as his arm lazily hung half in and half out. He noticed her head snap down causing her long box braids to sway. She looked toward her feet, her face confused when she looked back up ahead of them.
“Love, what’s wrong?”
Her stomach dropped and her skin turned to ice as she her eyes went back and forth between her foot and the traffic coming closer up ahead. She was unable to form words to tell him, her mind raced with what to do. Her face turned to him completely in fear, mouth slightly parted in a silent cry. August body went tense, rigid as a steel rod as he slowly grasped what he thought was happening, it can’t be.
The brakes
Someone cut the breaks
August looked up at the traffic in the distance that they were speeding towards, he had to push back the thought who and of when someone would have had the opportunity and focus on what was happening. His mind snapped out the fog when he heard her.
“August!”
She was trying to pump the break, willing it to start working as tears ran down her face.
“August it isn’t working!” She yelled.
August scanned the scene in front of them. Up ahead was dead stop traffic, and on their sides, woods and then metal railings dividing it from the other on coming traffic. There was no clear opening to drive into. The traffic would cause head on collision which had a high chance of death and the railing along the left sides of them also had a high death rate surprisingly. The trees and boulders of the right side weren’t an option either. He couldn’t eject them out of the car at this speed, especially with the traffic that’s following further behind them. Cars wouldn’t have enough time to stop if they didn’t notice their body’s on the pavement. Another sure death.
He looked up at her as her own eyes searched looking for an exit, an out point. Her face slowly succumbing to grief as she realized they had none. Every option a high chance of death with the speed they were going.
The knot in August stomach was a feeling he had never felt before. He had been so careful with her, to keep her out of the line of danger. Some how he had missed something and literally put her in the front seat of danger.
“Turn the steering wheel towards me and get down! By the time we make impact-“
“No!....No!” She yelled through her tears and sobs, she had realized what he was trying to do. He wanted to take the impact, he wanted his life on the line not hers.
“Please August! There must be another-“
“There isn’t!! Turn the wheel now!! We don’t have time!” He yelled as the traffic got closer. Their speed closing the distance fast.
Her eyes danced over his face for a moment, a dreadful feeling growing in her stomach and spreading through her body, it was completely unbearable. She couldn’t live life without him. It wasn’t possible, she loved him too much. She would die for him.
“I’m so sorry August, I love you” she said as she stared into his eyes, praying he seen everything she wouldn’t have time to say to him again. Her words were a wrecking ball into his very existence, it shattered his world.
His hands shot out to grab the wheel, as the understanding what she was saying hit him. It was too late though, she was turning the wheel and swinging the car in the opposite direction from what he instructed. If he tired to grab the wheel now he’d only cause the car to flip into traffic. He had no doubt her side would make impacted as the car swung and headed to slam into traffic.
She couldn’t take her eyes off him, she wouldn’t. She wanted him to be the last thing she saw even if it meant watching his desperate fight to save her. His eyes wild and full of fear, tears falling freely as he looked back and forth frantically before they finally landed on hers. Defeated.
She was a lively young woman she loved life before August BUT life with August was unmatched. So when she smiled at August, the kind of smile that told him she had been happier in the last 4 years with him then she had been her whole life, he felt his blood go cold.
No. He couldn’t give up. Not ever, especially not when she smiled at him like she was willing to lose it all to save him. She already saved August everyday of his life since he’s meet her. Saved him over and over again without even knowing it. When she snuggled into his chest late at night, barely awake, running her fingers through the lite fur of his chest hairs and lazily kissing the same spot she saved August, save him from night terrors of all the horrible things he’s done. When they swam naked in the Caribbean ocean off a secluded beach on that one vacation early on in their relationship and her wet body pressed into his begging for more kisses under the moonlight she saved him from ever wondering what life without love was like. What could life ever be without her? That kinda of world didn’t make sense to August.
August grabbed at her to pull her closer to his side, but her seatbelt prevented him from shielding her body with his when they felt the impact and then instantly the loud crash and breaking of glass completely over taking his senses before everything went black..
part 2 unknown
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existslikepristin · 3 years
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Just my ultimate bias doing ultimate bias things. This is just the intro. There will be more to come. Thanks also to worldsover and EhBeeSeeDih for most excellent editing help!
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Tags: TheLounge, Dreamcatcher, Gahyeon, Siyeon, Yoohyeon, other members all referenced, some unnamed male, lots of butt stuff, very light bondage, brief watersports (pee), various other kinks referenced, I just want everyone to know Gahyeon is the best human
Gahyeon observed the consistency of the lube that dripped, nice and slowly, from the fingertips of her black latex glove. She only wore the one, leaving her other hand bare. Besides the glove, all she wore was an oversized baggy tee shirt and a pair of panties that weren't her own. From behind her, the up-close-yet-distant sound of amateur porn moans reached her ears. It made her smile.
Not long after Gahyeon had revealed her desire to dominate to the rest of Dreamcatcher, she’d first been approached by Dami. Dami initially showed a similar interest in dominating others, but was equally interested in being a pet.
Gahyeon hesitated for some time, but eventually agreed to give it a try. It wasn’t much of a surprise that Dami made a pleasant, calm, obedient pet. Gahyeon never really had many ideas for commands to give to a panda, though, so perhaps her perspective was a bit skewed.
Some time later, the two got involved in a bit of role playing as well. Dami would be the prince, and Gahyeon would be one of a variety of higher-ranking royalty that Dami would then have to satisfy. Gahyeon would certainly never admit that this was one of her favorite roles to play in her escapades with her members. Mostly because it meant she received lots of massages from Dami’s delightfully delicate hands.
Dami was a grunter.
Gahyeon’s situations with Jiu and Handong were quite similar to each other in the sense that neither of them really expressed a major interest in being dominated.
Jiu was more of a standard, every day, give-and-take type of lover, but just happened to enjoy a bit of pain. Gahyeon was always happy to provide that little extra sadistic touch that would push Jiu over the edge of climax.
Jiu was a lip-biter.
Handong didn’t need a dom. She wanted somebody with a dick she could wreck herself with. Gahyeon had a growing collection of dildos and strap-ons to choose from. It was as simple as that between them.
Handong was a shouter.
Sua was, as expected, the most difficult to work with. She was a switch. But while domming, she was often excessively overpowering, demanding that her subs participate in her kinks, rather than compromising with them or catering to their desires. She had serious negotiation issues. All of which meant that Gahyeon was the go-to option when the other members wanted to be dominated.
Of course, Sua would reach out to Gahyeon to be dominated as well. But she was a bit of a back seat driver. Or a severe brat. Or uncooperative. It depended on the day. Gahyeon would often just suggest they do something less kinky. Of course, she wasn’t about to cut Sua out of her sex life entirely, given their friendship and Sua’s rocking body.
Sua was a screamer.
Yoohyeon, on the other hand, was quite the fun submissive. She was willing to try anything at least once, up to and including the most depraved acts Gahyeon could come up with. Once or twice, Gahyeon had even directed her to do some things sarcastically, but Yoohyeon complied immediately, no questions asked, resulting in both of them discovering some kinks that neither of them realized they had.
One of Gahyeon’s favorite aspects to domming Yoohyeon was her eagerness to be filmed. Gahyeon’s SD card case was an absolute treasure trove of videos. It didn’t matter if she was far from her members, because she could always count on some long-distance submission from Yoohyeon. And it never hurt to have something to watch when she just wanted to be alone and masturbate.
Yoohyeon was a moaner.
But as much fun as Gahyeon could have with those five women, Siyeon stood out from the pack as Gahyeon’s favorite. She had a hard time fully explaining the favoritism, but as far as she was concerned, it was undeniable.
Siyeon presented herself outwardly as confident, bold, even. Gahyeon expected in the beginning that Siyeon would have no interest at all in submitting to her, or anyone else for that matter. She quite literally wore the pants.
One hot summer night, however, Siyeon sheepishly asked Gahyeon to spank her. It seemed innocent enough, as far as sex acts went, but it escalated gradually. Over the course of several months, Siyeon’s outer shell melted away. She became Gahyeon’s clay to mold.
Everybody else let Gahyeon dominate them because she gave them what they wanted.
Siyeon begged Gahyeon to dominate her because she wanted to serve and please.
That wasn’t to say Siyeon wasn’t getting what she wanted out of the action of course. Just that what she wanted happened to be whatever Gahyeon wanted. It was the perfect match.
Siyeon was an instrument that Gahyeon knew exactly how to play.
The sexual activities of the members weren’t obvious to the average viewer, except some of the wild shit Sua would do, but that was easy to pass off as “girl group popularity-mandated gay bait.” Every once in a while though, Gahyeon would get the itch to break Siyeon’s façade down in public. The lightest brush of the fingertips, a sidelong glare, anything could be the trigger if Gahyeon did it with the proper intention.
She’d even gotten so bold once as to do it on live video, streaming to their fans with Jiu and Sua to either side. Siyeon nearly collapsed before Gahyeon let her go. That same night, Sua practically molested Siyeon, but Gahyeon was vindictively proud to see that it didn’t have the same effect.
Gahyeon watched as one last drop of lube fell from her fingers back into the bowl she'd poured it into for easy access. It was just viscous enough to stay on a surface, but wasn’t tacky. Rather, it was slick, as if there were no friction at all between her digits.
“How are you feeling, my wolf?”
“I-I’m excited, Gahyeon.”
Gahyeon preferred hearing her own name falling out of Siyeon’s mouth. The sound gave her a twisted sense of romance, as opposed to the supposedly traditional “Mistress” or “Ma’am.”
Gahyeon turned to look for the first time since getting lost in her thoughts. Siyeon was tied up, albeit only with the shirt and pants she had been wearing earlier in the day, rather than a rope. The knots that her sleeves formed were weak and could fall apart with the slightest force, but Siyeon was much too good of a girl for that. It wasn't her physical bonds that held her still.
There was a twinge of disappointment amidst Gahyeon’s glee at seeing that Siyeon was looking, entranced, back at her. She had, after all, dictated that Siyeon watch the video that was playing on her tablet.
“Just what do you think you’re doing?”
Siyeon gulped nervously, but Gahyeon could see the slightest, quivering smile touch the corners of her lips. “Sorry, Gahyeon. It’s just… I think I’m extra struck by your beauty today.”
Gahyeon smiled and placed her ungloved, unlubed hand on top of Siyeon’s head, stroking her hair softly. “Oh babe. You know flattery isn’t going to get you anywhere. It’s just going to get my fingers deeper inside you. And you'd better watch out, because you're getting close to the knuckles.”
Her gentle hair stroking turned into a rough grip, which she used to turn Siyeon's gaze away, back to the tablet.
"Don't you want to learn from this video, Siyeon? I made it just for you."
"Yes, I do."
"Then you should be watching. Look, or you're going to miss the best part."
Siyeon's eyes slowly refocused themselves onto the video. It was Yoohyeon, all but limp in a full-nelson-under-the-legs hold. Whoever was holding her up, slamming their cock repeatedly up her asshole, they weren't fully visible, but it was easy to guess their identity. Yoohyeon's eyes rolled up so far, they looked like they might do a full three-sixty at any moment. Anyone viewing the video might have been concerned for her well-being if not for her dopey smile.
"See, my wolf? She's such a good little slut. Keep watching and you might learn something."
Gahyeon let go of Siyeon's head, confident she'd follow instructions this time, and reached around to feel how ready she was. As expected from her favorite toy, and the hours of teasing Gahyeon had subjected her to up to this point, she was so wet that Gahyeon could have gone swimming inside her.
Her gloved hand dipped into the lube again, then made its way down the cleft of Siyeon's ass, coating the entirety. If she didn't already have very specific plans, Gahyeon would have considered using it as massage oil and kneading Siyeon’s beautiful butt cheeks until the bright red hand prints on them disappeared.
A series of moans came from the tablet speakers again, and Gahyeon smirked at what she knew was coming next, which was Yoohyeon.
"Eyes open, Siyeon. You really don't want to miss this."
Gahyeon watched Siyeon’s fingers wiggle beneath their impromptu bonds. Yoohyeon's moans shifted into a long, guttural shout, and a stream of pale yellow liquid shot out of her. Siyeon’s butt visibly clenched.
"What a fantastic slut she is, hm? Cumming so hard from her ass being used as a fuck hole that she can't even control herself, pissing all over like an idiot."
Even from behind her, Gahyeon could sense Siyeon’s devious smile forming. "Well that's rude to say about her," Siyeon said, risking life and limb.
Gahyeon responded with a series of powerful smacks, leaving the handprints already on Siyeon’s ass glowing red, as well as a haphazard smattering of lube. "Shut uuup," she whined, "She got fucked stupid and pissed herself. You know what I mean."
Siyeon turned back over her shoulder to show Gahyeon her smile. Fresh tears flowed from her eyes. "Yoohyeon's always a fool though," she managed to joke through the pain.
One last, full-motion spank made Siyeon’s smile briefly turn into a grimace.
"Is that what you're going to do to me too?"
Gahyeon resumed her steady lubrication of Siyeon’s entire backside. "Someday, maybe. But we have a long way to go before you'll be able to experience that level of pleasure without pain. And trust me, the inside of your ass is not the part of your body where you want to be feeling pain. We'll build you up to it."
There was minimal resistance against Gahyeon’s middle finger as it slipped fully into Siyeon’s butt. Siyeon hissed and her toes curled. Gahyeon kissed her neck, shushed into her ear, and used her ungloved hand to stroke from Siyeon’s breasts down to her clit and back.
After a moment of calming down, Siyeon whispered, "If anybody can get me there, Gahyeon, it's you."
Gahyeon struggled to hold back her cutesy giggle, even though she knew that it wouldn't make her seem like less of a dom to Siyeon. "We're going to do, at most, two fingers today. I don't want you masturbating with anything bigger than that on your own, okay? It might feel like you can do more, but we're not taking any chances. Understood?"
Siyeon’s shoulders flexed and toes spread as Gahyeon wiggled her inserted finger. "Y-yes Gahyeon," she stuttered.
"Good. Now, let's practice your safe word, shall we?"
Siyeon hesitated, but relented anyway. “Apricot…”
Gahyeon slowly removed her finger. “Perfect,” she said ever-so-softly, reveling in the goosebumps rising on Siyeon’s arms. “Was that okay? Nothing hurting?”
“It was perfect.” Siyeon used the same word Gahyeon had.
“Well then, let’s get started.”
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caffernnn · 3 years
Note
Final stroke spoilers: ⚠️‼️
I just saw a post on Twitter about the Haru and Rin scene and how they didn’t feel that it was that ooc of Haru. I thought I was the only one who felt that it was kind of justified on Haru’s end. Because both Rin and Ikuya put Haru and their friends through so much when they were lost and wanted to swim with Haru again. And I get that professional swimming is entirely different than what they’re used to, but it really sucks that as soon as the competition got a little hard they decided to just drop free and only swim their preferred styles. That’s got to be a slap in the face to Haru, because what was all of that other stuff about? Like Rin wanted for YEARS for Haru to swim on the world stage and after the first race is like “you’re on your own.” He honestly deserves it to be honest even if Haru would’ve never said anything to protect their friendship he was clearly thinking or thought these thoughts. For a show where Haru is the mc we rarely get to see how he feels about things. I wish we can see the movie soon, cause I really wanna see how that whole sequence takes place.
⚠️ Talking about Free! Final Stroke spoilers below the cut ⚠️
It’s wild to me (it probably shouldn’t be surprising; idk) how even going off of just spoilers, there is a clear divide in the reactions people are having to Haru’s actions in the movie, especially in reference to the sudden shift leading up to the fight with Rin. I can see why people are surprised by it on a base level because so much of his successes in DttF, paired with the camaraderie everyone seems to have for a majority of the movie, leads you to believe Haru has emotionally matured and stabilized since high school, which is true! He’s more open to change and examining his emotions, especially as he starts to grapple with a high-stakes long-term goal for what feels like the first time. With that said, all of this can be true at the same time Haru is going through a steady breakdown that can/will likely lead to burnout. So many people who’ve been put through rigorous academic programs or career training or anything else equally as intensive can attest to the frustration of feeling like every few steps forward (gaining experiential knowledge, making connections, learning more about your identity in reference to x goal, etc) are followed by a step back (exhaustion, plateaus, expectations you can’t meet, mistakes spilling out when you can’t keep repressing the negatives in the name of “productivity”). Haru was able to make it this far because he has grown and started to heal some of the cracks in his support group, but the sheer amount of pressure makes it easier for him to break, and old wounds that never fully healed have time to fester.
I probably sound like a broken record in these movie-related posts when talking about Haru getting obsessed with becoming stronger and not knowing what to do with that fairly new and overwhelming drive. I can’t be mad at Haru completely for his choices here (can’t wait to be called a Haru apologist when the movie comes out in more places jfjdjd) because he partially fell victim to circumstance. This is one of the first times Haru takes the expectations of him being a “hero” or “prodigy” into consideration, and now he’s trying to navigate the expectations of success that come with those titles while not being sure 1) what exactly they are beyond winning, and 2) not being sure if they’re actually attainable for him. Along with that, he’s putting faith in Ryuuji’s instruction and guidance because he needs someone with any sort of credibility or experience with the pro circuit to show him how to get to the top. Even though from an outside standpoint it’s easier to discredit and reject Ryuuji’s assertion that everyone at the top has to give something up to get there, there are a number of reasons Haru reconsiders the notion with everything he’s seeing. He’s seeing his newest rivals reach crazy success and strength through isolation, and Ryuuji is dangling a golden opportunity in front of his face by going to Haru in the moments where he’s most vulnerable and saying “yes, that strength you crave is possible for you, but only if you pay this specific price for it.” Nobody should bear the weight of “saving” Haru from his circumstances (especially not his friends on their own journeys… Ryuuji and other mentors watching this trainwreck can eat my shorts tho), but dealing with this ultimatum while his core support group is pushing forward through their own challenges and/or busy in another country, I can’t be too surprised when he starts to overextend himself and burst at the seams.
As far as the blow-up with Rin, I won’t say it’s fully justified, but it’s understandable. The way Haru has had to make peace with his hardships with Ikuya and Rin has largely been by atoning for his own involvement in those rifts and trying to turn over a new leaf without expecting much in return. He took the opportunities of swimming with both of them again to replace any apologies on their parts and largely made peace with it. As much as it’s going to hurt to watch, I’m interested to see this fight play out because it sounds like it addresses a problem we bring up a lot in meta analyses posts: there needs to be more explicit conversations and apologies between characters, or the closure feels flimsy and temporary at best. This fight isn’t about closure (it’s about a lot of things both involving and excluding Rin, but I ranted about that in the other spoiler post) but it’s acknowledgement after all of this time that there’s still a need for it. Having Rin back in his life as a rival and friend has held the caveat in the back of his mind that Rin will leave his side again if Haru’s friendship/rivalry stops serving all of his interests. Haru’s ultimate fear of being abandoned by people, of people using him without understanding him and then throwing him aside for someone/something else, is drastically coming back to the surface in all of his stress. Rin and Ikuya choosing to continue their pro careers with strokes that better suit their strengths isn’t abandonment, just like Makoto choosing a university in Tokyo wasn’t, but Haru is so lost in his own stress and despair that he can’t see these choices as anything but personal attacks in the moment. These choices don’t have to do with Haru and we’re never meant to hurt him (which he comes to realize by the end of each fight), but the unresolved issues mixed with his fears make him explode.
It’s not a black and white situation where only one side is in the right, and I hope whatever resolution comes in the second movie acknowledges that. Rin didn’t deserve Haru’s taunting and wrath in that moment, but I do want him to reflect on the whole mess and recognize that Haru’s in a desperate place not unlike the one he was in when he first went to Australia and seemingly cut everyone off. I want them both to consider that avoiding airing out those insecurities because it’d be uncomfortable or embarrassing ultimately led them back here, unsure how to talk about changes and concerns without first having one of them explode or hit rock bottom. They can be friends outside of swimming, I’d want them to be friends outside of swimming, but I think Haru isn’t blind to how much of their connection is reliant on intrigue in the water, and a part of him is scared that Rin won’t have a reason to stick around if they aren’t rivaling each other in the same stroke anymore.
All of this can make for a great chance of resolution in the second movie, if done well. There’s opportunity for Haru to realize that the trajectory of dreams can change, and just like Rin changing his stroke or Makoto changing his training emphasis, you can honor the parts of the dream that first inspired you while finding a path that honors the person you’ve become. There’s opportunity for Haru to break from the dangerous echo chamber he’s currently in telling him he has to do this all alone in a few ways. Maybe he’ll have a moment where he’s like “I gave up everything and still couldn’t get stronger, so now I need to get back to finding what gives me strength personally.” Maybe he’ll have a moment where he’s like “if my only option is a path paved in loneliness, I need to find a new dream.” There are so many directions the story can go in at this point, and I’m excited to see what happens next (and maybe write about the paths they don’t choose lol).
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wishingicouldfly · 3 years
Text
I've been actively blogging for more than six months, even though I've had a tumblr account for ten years. I started reading One Direction (specifically Larry) fanfiction about the same time.
Originally, I read exclusively canon compliant fiction--I was hungry for industry insider, what-could-have-happened narratives. But I've slowly branched out into other genres. I find fanfic--good fanfic--super calming. When I've had too much stunting, too much noise, I grab a fanfic and immerse myself. So I thought it was time to do a post about my favorites. Keep in mind, I'm terrible at cataloging, and I have over 150 bookmarks on my A03 Account, so this is by no means an exhaustive list.
I'm not including the classics like Tired, Tired Sea and Escapade. While I do love both of those (so well written), because a lot of people know about those already.
My all time favorites are by @helloamhere
1. The Multipicity of Powers - https://archiveofourown.org/works/28580229
Maybe in another universe he isn’t different. Maybe he hadn’t been given an impossible choice. Maybe he wouldn’t have lost everything and broken everything and then fallen impossibly, irrevocably in love with the first next thing that was kind. Maybe in that universe he doesn’t feel like he’s never breathing, always pretending, teaching the kids even though they all have to learn alone, trying hard not to read the headlines, and so afraid, every day, that he won’t be a good enough teammate to the superhero he can’t live without. He knows that love isn’t supposed to feel this way, slid secret under your skin like a surgical razor, an invisible war held close over the tender vein that keeps you alive. On the other hand, Louis wonders, had he ever known how to do it any other way?
Maybe there’s a universe where he doesn’t have to keep all his secrets on the inside.
But this isn’t that universe.
//an X-Men AU.
Me: I never thought I'd love a super hero 1D cross over, but this is so well done. The backstory, the pacing, the characterization, the friendship. Read it.
2. Saving Symphony Hall and it's prequel Night Out - https://archiveofourown.org/works/12633921
“I think I have an idea,” Louis said. Slowly, and reluctantly, but with a growing sense of the inevitable. “God damnit, I think I have a really good idea.”
“Oh christ, that's the problem-solving face,” Babs said. “Last time we saw that face, he sold a company.”
“Wait, what?” Zayn asked.
“Right place, right time,” Louis said. “Also, fuck my life,”
“What?” Zayn repeated. Niall patted his hand.
“I usually just roll with whatever Louis is about to do,” he said. “It’s better for us all.”
“That’s the attitude,” said Louis, “I’ll tell you tomorrow. Tonight, I need to do some research. Zayn, give me your number. I’m gonna save our symphony.”
Me: The best sex scene I've ever read is in the prequel Night Out. Sexy, but tender. I love the characterizations in this duo--ABO but not traditional. Doesn't feel out of character.
3. Just Let Me -https://archiveofourown.org/works/11695350
The party was going well. So well, Niall had already sworn undying love to one multi-tiered chocolate cake, two friendly corgi-poodle mixes, Zayn’s hair, and the entire population of Los Angeles. So well, Zayn had only laughed and ruffled Niall’s hair and not even twitched towards a cigarette. So well, nearly everyone had spilled far past the boundaries of the night’s original plans, extracting bottles of vodka from the cabinets and losing a lot of clothes. Harry had proclaimed that he was finally going to throw a small and very grownup dinner party and of course here they were three hours later, fifty people half-naked in the pool. Soon to be full-naked, if Louis had to guess. Everybody in LA loved a heated pool. Everybody loved Harry.
Me: I love love love this. Harry is so gentle, and Louis is so stubborn and needy. It's ABO but subtle. I'll read this one again and again. It's comforting.
@HelloAmHere is one of the best writers I know--amazing stuff. I also love their werewolf story, but it's not finished, so I won't link it here.
Other favorites:
1. Seven Up by cherrystreet - https://archiveofourown.org/works/5828539
Very loosely based on the British TV show "The Up Series" and somewhat inspired by the song “Something I Need” by Onerepublic, we follow the lives of Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson in an interview setting every seven years. They fall apart and come together, their lives and emotions recorded. Harry calls it a time capsule. Louis calls it a pain in the arse.
Me: Trigger Warning, major character death. I literally SOBBED through the end of this. It was lovely and devastating. So good. But be warned.
2. Light, Spark and Fire series by @greenfeelings
Life’s pretty ordinary for Harry. He lives with his best friend, got into university just like he’s planned, and manages to support himself just fine for an unbonded omega. If he sustains that lifestyle by getting paid to help alphas through their rut every now and then, that’s nothing to be hung up on. Until he’s hired by an alpha that turns everything upside down.
Or, Louis and Zayn run a music label, Liam is Britain’s up-and-coming pop star, Harry’s working on taking Louis’ walls down until he builds his own up, and Niall holds them all together without realising he does.
Me: A nice healthy three-parter. Characters you just want to live with for a while.
3. Relief Next to Me by dolce_piccante - https://archiveofourown.org/works/1117942
AU. What happens when a baker and a graphic designer meet via a very specific Craigslist post? Fate, friendship, food, and maybe more.
Me: This one is super long, so be prepared when you dive in. It's got a lot of lovely bits, and some great smut.
4. 2012 'Verse by ashavahishta - https://archiveofourown.org/series/27601
Me: This is a five-parter and satisfies my love of canon compliant stories. It spans most of 2012 and into 2013, and illustrates the difficulties of Harry and Louis' relationship amid the band success and management disapproval.
5. Love After the End of the World by mercurial-madhouse (writing_practice) - https://archiveofourown.org/works/31251434/chapters/77248901
Society shattered when all electricity suddenly cut off across the globe, plunging the world into darkness. Now, Prometheus Industries is the sole remaining supply of power, a saving grace to those who survived Lights Out. As fugitives in no-man’s land struggling to break into Prometheus HQ, death lurks around every corner for Louis and Zayn. Things get complicated when a routine recon falls apart and Louis collides with Harry and his mates Niall and Liam, survivors with their own agenda.
When staying alive is already a constant battle, the deadliest weakness is to be in love. For Harry and Louis, finding each other sits on top of the endless list of What Else Could Go Wrong.
Me: Really unusual (as far as I can tell) end of the world story. I loved the characterizations of soul mates here at the end of the world.
6. Flightless Bird by audreyhheart - https://archiveofourown.org/works/6401653/chapters/14656807
AU where Louis Tomlinson is a principal dancer with The Royal Ballet. When his rival from ballet school, moody dance prodigy Harry Styles joins the company, old wounds are reopened and old passions reignited. During the company's production of Swan Lake the secret that doomed their love is finally revealed, but will it be too late?
Me: Trigger Warning, sexual assault (by an original character to a major character). This was a little brutal because I hated to see a broken Harry, but it was well written and has a happy ending.
7. Wear It Like A Crown by zarah5 - https://archiveofourown.org/works/1816771/chapters/3900322
AU. As part of a team of fixers hired to handle a gay scandal in Buckingham Palace, Louis expects Prince Harry to be a lot of things—most notably a royally spoilt brat. Never mind that the very same Prince Harry used to star in quite a number of Louis' teenage fantasies.
Me: I loved Louis in this one--actually they are both pretty great. Scratch that, they are ALL pretty great.
8. Shake Me Down by AGreatPerhaps12 - https://archiveofourown.org/works/3331958/chapters/7285322
Harry's new to college, fresh out of Catholic school and conversion therapy camp, and Louis runs the campus LGBTQIA organization.
Me: I don't like the self-hate here, but it was necessary for the story and H comes around. Found family vibe.
9. Gods & Monsters by Velvetoscar - https://archiveofourown.org/works/2090982/chapters/4550871
The instructions were simple: seduce and destroy Harry Styles. Not once did they discuss the option of Louis actually falling in love. So, naturally, that's exactly what he did.
Me: I loved Harry in this one. Louis gets there. I don't like Liam, but I don't think you're supposed to. Zayn is great.
10. Own the Scars by crinkle-eyed-boo (KimmieRocks) - https://archiveofourown.org/series/1010796
Louis has never felt like he was good enough: for his stepdad, for his life-long best friend, for the life he's supposed to want. After an accident that nearly costs him his life, Louis' parents send him to rehab where he’s forced to face his demons. On the long and difficult road to recovery, Louis must confront the truths he’s been avoiding about his future, his relationships, and his sense of self-worth. Because before he can love anyone else, he’s got to learn how to love himself first.
Me: Harry is lovely in this one. Trigger warning, substance abuse and near death.
11. Wild Love by purpledaisy - https://archiveofourown.org/series/1030904
AU: Two best friends try to date each other for forty days. It's supposed to be fun until emotions make it complicated.
Me: I loved this way more than I thought I would. It's lovely and messy and I love it.
12. Victorian Boy by audreyhheart - https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rosann1986/readings?page=6
Victorian AU. Harry the virgin Duke of Somerset knows little of love, while Louis the sly Duke of Warwick knows too much. When the two dukes come together for the Bilsdale fox hunt in York, Harry finds himself drawn into Louis' bed. But when secrets from Louis' dark past come to light, Harry fears that the fox isn't the only one being hunted.
Me: Historical fiction I didn't intend to love. I LOVE Harry in this one. LOTS of smut, so be warned.
13. Keep Me Closer by zanni_scaramouche - https://archiveofourown.org/works/30752633
Louis expects Harry to react poorly, maybe even file a formal complaint and that’s gonna suck ass but Louis won’t say shit cause he knows he deserves it, so he prepares an apology before Harry’s even turned around.
What he doesn’t expect is Harry to fucking drop.
Me: lovely, protective Louis just trying to do the right thing.
14. Turning Page by purpledaisy for SockstheDog
https://archiveofourown.org/works/11826345
AU: Harry Styles tries to get lost in a place he’s never been.  Louis Tomlinson has been perfecting the art of being lost for years. What they don’t expect to find is each other.
Me: sweet love story. Niall owns a bar, and is pretty great.
15. Freedom Always Comes With a Price by Cyantific - https://archiveofourown.org/works/30278514/chapters/74624262
A shared dream brings them together onto the X-factor stage, but one decision changes Harry and Louis’ lives overnight. Thrust into a world of instant stardom, they're forced to live a lie to sustain their dreams, but years of living in the shadows and under strict management takes its toll.
With the bands impending hiatus, there’s no better time for change, so they think.
Desperate for a solution, they turn to an unlikely source with a radical plan. An unfortunate accident sets everything in motion, but not how they intended, leaving Louis’ memories altered, Harry broken-hearted and full of regret.
Can Harry figure out a way to fix everything? Will he even want to once he sees how Louis moved on after the hiatus? Will Louis ever find out the truth of their past and can he forgive Harry after all this time?
In the end, two friends find out that memories are elusive, trust is everything and love is the only antidote.
Me: Heartbreaking when they lose each other, but really good in the end.
16. Little Technicolor Things by scary_crow - https://archiveofourown.org/works/6025519/chapters/13821628
Louis is a poor writer and recent university graduate, depressed, anxious, and living in London when he meets Harry, an artist with a secret who likes to paint sunrises and pretty boys from California.
17. Hold You Now by solvetheminourdreams - https://archiveofourown.org/works/30253536/chapters/74556744
Three years ago, Harry Styles said goodbye to communications consultancy firm McQuiston Worldwide, leaving a life of travel and agency PR behind. When he accompanies his best friend to a family wedding across the Atlantic, he'll be forced to reopen old wounds and face his past—one that no one wants to hash out, but may just have to.
Me: Niall is great. They almost miss each other in this one, and you just want to bash them over the head. But they figure it out.
18. At Risk, I Fold by clare328 - https://archiveofourown.org/works/26542480
2015 is a stream of hotel rooms and whisky on the rocks, tired glances and touching hands under tables. It’s the bears and the bees under a rainbow sky, and Harry and Louis have to figure out how to grow up together, instead of apart.
Me: A canon compliant fic that feels like it could have really happened. Set in 2015. Lovely first chapter and scene where Harry writes If I Could Fly--i could read that chapter over and over.
19. Into The Blue by zarah5 - https://archiveofourown.org/works/1035822/chapters/2065499
AU. In which Louis is Harry's scuba instructor and quite happy to provide the requested special treatment, pun fully intended. It can't be all that difficult to convince Harry that they're on the same page, right? Also, Niall and Liam may or may not be dating, and Zayn is surrounded by emotionally stunted idiots. He bears it with dignity.
Me: AKA the Scuba fic.
20. Tie Your Heart by ArcadianMaggie - https://archiveofourown.org/works/546688/chapters/973236
Harry grows wings.
Me: How can you not love a fic where Harry grows wings? Trigger warning: injury of a major character.
21. I think I'll end this here. My last and probably first favorite (read it more than once) is...
my heart is breathing for this moment in time by usedtothebeach - https://archiveofourown.org/works/934996/chapters/1820282
When Louis first saw Harry at the 2010 X Factor Auditions, he thought he was watching a peculiarly special stranger. But Harry has known Louis ever since he was five years old.
Because Louis has a rare genetic disorder that causes him to Time Travel to important moments in his past and in his future - and to Harry, always to Harry. When they're put into a band together, it seems like everything Harry has been waiting and wishing for has finally come true. Except for the small fact that Louis doesn't know that Harry is in love with him- that Harry's always been in love with him. Fate, it would seem, is just getting started.
A story about growing up and growing together, and the impossible love that makes it all worthwhile.
Me: I LOVED the Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger, and I'm a huge fan of time travel, so this is right up my alley. It's really well done, weaving canon into fantasy and then going years forward in tme. I love everything about it. Great character development. Really good smut. Trigger warning, there's a little underage sex, so be aware. Anyway, LOVE this one so much.
I'll add to this but it's already longer than I meant it to be.
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reversemoon255 · 3 years
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Zenryoku Zenkai Cannon / Zenryoku Zenkai-Oh
And we’re at the final Zenkai machine! While I’m not the biggest fan of the roleplay toy turned Zord, especially when lacking an individual robot mode, I can’t argue that the final results and combination this time around are exceptional. No loose parts, doesn’t fall apart, good balance, some posability, and it doesn’t look like a hot mess. I honestly can’t think of another final combo that even comes close to it. Spoilers, but it’s worth the price of admission alone.
The Good: While this may only be a five-Zord combination, for a final combined machine consisting of two Megazords and a large Aux Zord, this thing is remarkably solid. I can literally pick ZenZen up by the waist with one hand, without fear of it falling apart, which is something combinations like Wild Tousai Dodeca King or Good Cool Kaiser VSX have a lot of issue with. And it’s just about the same size as those combinations, too.
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And while Zenkai Cannon itself isn’t very complex, the actual combination sequence hits that sweet spot of just complicated enough. Disassembling everyone only requires removing their arms, and the places each hook back into are very solid since they use ratchets as their connections.
Also, for as massive a combination as it is, it’s surprisingly posable from the waist up. It only has 3 positions for each arm naturally (down and 45° front and back), but the transformation joints in Juran and Gaon allow for some inward bend, hands, and a few other things. I’ve even gotten it to hold its sword a few times. I’m normally cautious about displaying combos or having any mech hold a heavier weapon, but the way everything works here, I’m not concerned about that at all.
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While I’m not as big a fan of Zenkai Cannon or Zenryoku Eagle as I am ZenZen, they’re both serviceable. The weapon combination adapter is the only odd piece, but has multiple locations in which it can be stored in either mode which was an issue the Zenkai-Oh Special adapter had. There’re also quite a few different sounds it can spew out, with 11 finishers in gun mode, and you can cycle through them by holding the trigger.
And as a quick aside, the dial is only perfectly straight when the Machine (car) and Beast (lion) are at 12 and 6, and the tiny gear gears are at 3 and 9. I also haven’t figured out what is pointing at what to determine which finisher is triggered in gun mode, only that spinning it a lot triggers the All Sentai finisher.
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The Bad: My biggest issue is a lack of instructions. If I hadn’t seen a video of how this guy is assembled before it showed up, I can’t help but feel that I would have been very frustrated staring at the one picture of it on the box and trying to figure out where everything goes. I did get somewhat frustrated trying to figure out what goes where on the combined weapon. Had to Google that since there’re no clear pictures of it.
Also, with Zenkryoku Eagle, the gear chest (specifically its gold chrome and painted emblems) are about a millimeter off the ground, so I can imagine it getting very easily scuffed or scratched if you’re not careful. Apart from that, I wish it had an individual robot mode, but I’m also extremely happy with the final combo, so it’s a give and take.
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Overall, if you have the two Zenkai-Ohs, I’d say this is a must. ZenZen is such a fantastic combination, and a lot easier to get all the pieces for than something like Dodeca King or Samurai Ha-Oh. On its own, however, I’d give it a pass. It’s only interesting as a combination piece, and is very lacking outside of that.
I’m sad this is our last new mold, but not our last new toy as we’ve gotten confirmation of our first Artisan release in a while (preordered). As the season closes, another opens. Haven’t seen anything about what the next season will be like, and I think it’ll be hard following Zenkaiger, but that could mean we get a weird season, and those tend to be my favorites.
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sound-of-the-cosmos · 4 years
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Demon Slayer; Tanjiro x Reader: “You don’t leave the one you love when they need you the most.”
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Genre: Heavy angst!!
Fandom: Kimetsu no Yaiba (Demon Slayer)
Paring: Kamado Tanjiro x Reader
Summary: After Tanjiro asks you to accompany him on a mission, you accept and travel with him. Once arriving at the Red Light District, you both come into contact with an upper moon named Daki- and you run into the people you never thought you’d see again.
Warnings: Major historical inaccuracies (the demon’s name, personality and appearance are from the manga- everything else is purely fictional), violence, blood, PTSD, mentions/implications of rape
Word count: 2.2k
“Get away from them before I break every bone in your body!” “It’s alright; I’m right here, ok? I’m not going anywhere.”
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Third Person P.O.V
Originally, the mission was meant to be his, with only a Hashira with him. However, once coming to the realization that all of them were gone on their own missions, a sense of dread began to fill his senses. Would he have to ask Inosuke, or Zenitsu? They were currently on their own mission, so that wouldn’t work..
He let out a sigh, thinking over his options on the roof of the Butterfly Manor. A soft tap of the ceramic tiles alerted his mind, while your scent had already flooded his senses. 
For some reason, you always smelled of Lavender and Rain. It was a clean, pleasant scent, but the connotations always concerned Tanjiro. You sit gingerly beside him, your haori fluttering ever so lightly in the wind. Odd how at dusk, the light seemed to highlight his eyes and features so gently. 
“Something wrong?” Your voice was always soft and silvery, now being no exception. Your gentle e/c eyes gazed into his, and he smiles a little, grateful for the company. 
“I have a mission I have to leave for soon, but I don’t have anyone to accompany me. The Flame Hashira was supposed to meet me here, but I was told he left 3 days ago for another mission.” As per usual, his voice was modulated and kind. He glanced your way, before returning his gaze to the skies. 
“I currently don’t have any; I may not be as strong as a Hashira, but I can accompany you, if you’d like,” A gentle smile danced across your lips, and Tanjiro’s cheeks felt heated, his gaze and expression mirroring your own.
“Yeah- that would be great!” With a nod, you stand and walked down the side of the roof, taking a step off the edge. A startled noise escaped his lips, before you laughed softly, staring up in bemusement. “We’ll leave tomorrow at dawn, then?” He questioned, and you hummed. 
“Tomorrow at dawn.”
__________________________________________________
~Slight time skip to morning~
__________________________________________________
A crow cawed in the window, speaking in its usual shrill tones. “Today’s mission is in the Red Light District! Deaths in the Kyogoku House have been reported! The owner is missing! Head North at once!”
Groaning, you sat up and rubbed your eyes, glancing at the spot where the crow had once been. You throw your legs over the side of the bed, before getting freshened up. After changing into your (freshly cleaned) uniform, you find your dragon haori folded neatly on a chair. 
A ghost of a smile flashed across your face as you shrug it over your shoulders. As you pick up your Nichirin sword, the familiar coolness of the hilt eased your troubled mind. Adjusting it so you can walk with it attached to your hip, your hand raised to open the sliding door.
However, moments before you can, another hand beats you to it. Tanjiro’s eyes meet your own, and the gentle pink dusts over his cheeks once more. He stepped back, raising his hands as a type of surrender. “I wasn’t going to do anything- I just wanted to make sure you were awake with the crow and all-” 
Then, you did something that surprised him. You laughed. 
“Ah- Tanjiro, it’s alright, I woke up when I heard it. Thank you for deciding to check on me though,” You flashed him a quick smile, noticing that once again, he had the wooden box attached to his back. While you sensed there was a demon inside, he would’ve told you if it was something to worry about.
His expression melted a little, smiling along with you, though he made a mental note to ask you as to why that yours disappeared so quickly. 
As the two of you waved goodbye to the people from the house, sunlight finally streamed through the trees and illuminated the path ahead. Tanjiro cast a grin your way, but you didn’t respond, instead looking into the trees the opposite way. He frowned a little, confused, before humming. “What do you make of the mission?”  
You swallow a small lump in your throat. The Red Light district was known for housing brothels, and that made your stomach churn. “I think we need to keep our senses sharp. I have a really, really bad feeling about this.” He nodded slightly, before sniffing a little. The smell of sage was radiating around you, which he supposed was understandable. 
“If you don’t mind my asking,” you began, and his body tensed. He knew the question coming, “Why do you carry a demon with you? Is it family?” He and the box had a similar aura, a gentle teal mixed with blues or purple tones. Nervously sweating, he opens his mouth to try to deflect, but you stop him. “If  you don’t want to tell me, that’s alright too. I trust your judgement.” 
You stopped a few paces in front of him, the District not far from your sight. Your blood ran cold before he responded. “It’s my sister.” He finally spoke, and you nodded lightly, crossing your arms across your chest. He smiled a little, unbeknownst to you. A gentle scent of sandalwood mixed with the sage. 
Placing a hand on the hilt of your sword, you began to walk once more. “I want to get this over with- not because I dislike you, but I don’t like this place. Something isn’t right.” He nodded, taking in a small breath. 
“I know what you mean. Something doesn’t smell right here- there’s a lot more fear than there should be.” The scent of ash filled the air, and his senses were on high alert. You pull your haori just a little further over your shoulders- while the uniform Demon Slayers were given was fully covering, there was still a sense of nudity that had you unnerved. 
The house in question stood in front of you, lights flashing and the sliding door open. A beautiful woman with dark hair stood in the entryway, greeting the both of you as you enter. “Welcome to the Kyogoku House. Who is your appointment scheduled with?” Her aura wasn’t right, you noted. Sickly green, with dark purple tendrils here and there. What was she? Who was she?
“We don’t have an appointment. I was wondering if you could tell us who the woman was that disappeared from here?” Your voice was somewhat friendly, but you didn’t miss the flash of understanding in her eyes. They looked like pools of honey.. 
“Ah, yes- the last owner of the establishment didn’t go missing. Instead, she committed suicide, jumping off the roof of this place. I tried to stop her, but,” She sighed, shaking her head, “I didn’t reach her in time.” There was a forced tremor in her voice, and by that alone you could tell she was lying. But you couldn’t call her out quite yet. 
“Is there anyone else we could talk to, to try and understand what happened?” Tanjiro questioned, and from his voice, you could tell he believed her. Then again, you had met more than your fair share of manipulative people. Tanjiro could smell the sage stronger now, mixed with the rain. 
“You could talk to Himari- though she’s with a client as of right now.” That snake-like smirk didn’t miss your gaze. You swallowed the bitter words you were dying to say, and asked a question you knew you would hate yourself for. 
“Would you mind showing us around while we wait?” 
As you would expect, the brothel was as filthy as you thought it would be. Your gut screamed to leave, but there you sat, drinking tea with the woman and Tanjiro. His gaze fell on you every so often- how your hair framed your face, how your voice was so soft and gentle- everything about you entranced him. The scent of Sage and Rain were still present, and stronger than ever. 
You raised slowly, bowing as respectfully as you could to the lady in front of you. “Excuse me, but would you mind directing me to your washroom?” It was a lie simply so you could look around on your own, but she didn’t seem to catch that. 
With a nod, her dainty hand raised to point to your right. “Down that hallway, down the stairs and the 4th door to your left.” Oddly specific. You bowed once again, turning around and leaving the room. You follow her instructions to the floor she directed, before opening the first door. 
A storage closet, with cleaning supplies and extra uniforms meets your gaze. A soft sigh of relief escaped your lips, and you close it. You continue to do this up until the 4th door on the left- the room she’d instructed you to go to. 
Your heart pounded in your chest, like a wild animal trying to escape it’s confines. You slowly open the door, and 3 men pounce on you, slapping their hand over your mouth before you can cry out. “She didn’t lie, this one is pretty. This the one with the rape fantasy, right?” Your eyes widened, and they grinned wickedly. 
A rush of wind behind you is the only warning you receive before you’re out cold. 
Everything hurt.
Your head pounds, and you feel nauseous. A slap across your face wakes you up, and you find yourself tied to a chair, nude, and... 
“No...” you managed to whimper, shaking violently. Not only was this the same thing, but these men- they were the same as all those years ago. You thought you’d become strong enough that you wouldn’t have to be afraid anymore.
“When Daki told us she had demon slayers comin’, we never thought you’d be one of them. Guess that’s lucky for us then, eh?” The largest one laughed, grabbing your hair and forcing your gaze up. Your whole body shook violently, your mind trying to force itself to shut down. 
“Screw you,” you spat, your voice trembling too much for it to be taken seriously. A harsh punch to your stomach sent the chair backwards, and you land on your back, the wind knocked out of your lungs.
Their dirty hands all over you, defiling you, touching you, grabbing at you-
“What was that, sweetheart?”
Not again. Not again. Not again- A loud thud and muffled screaming of a woman echoed from upstairs, not that it mattered to you. Your scream joined hers as a knife entered your shoulder, tears streaming down your face. “You like that, eh?” He licked the wound, grinning like a madman. As his hand reached towards your most intimate region, the door slammed open, Tanjiro standing there looking as livid as ever.
“Get away from them before I break every bone in your body!” His sword still bloodied from what could only be presumed to be a demon, the men laughed, cracking their knuckles. Their hands morphed into claws, and the man- demon?- beside you growled angrily at him. Within mere moments, each of their heads lie on the floor as they disintegrated. 
Tanjiro was instantly beside you, untying you and wrapping his haori around you. The room smelled of sage and rain, with only a few traces of demon blood making their way through it. Simply by your scent, his heart broke as he tried to help you calm down. You couldn’t breath, you couldn’t think- 
Your fear and sorrow filled the room with a scent so strong Tanjiro found himself fighting tears. He wrapped his arms around you slowly, and you clung to him, burying your face into his shoulder. 
“It’s alright; I’m right here, ok? I’m not going anywhere.”
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~Slight time skip to  when they arrive at the Wisteria estate~
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You were in a daze, and unresponsive. Tanjiro felt fear pulse through his veins as he sits your fragile form onto a chair in a bathroom to get you cleaned up. Once you were clean, he helped you change into nightwear, your being too dazed to respond. It was as if you were dead to the world.
After taking you to your own separate room, he guided you to the bed and sat beside you, taking in a shaky breath. “If you need anything, come and get me, alright?” He tried to smile, but your expression remained blank. He stood up, turning out the lights and leaving the room. 
That night, and the next week, Tanjiro didn’t sleep well. You were unresponsive, not matter how hard he tried to make you laugh, no matter how hard he tried to make you smile, to make you speak- nothing.
As the usual had become, he guided you to your room, telling you that you could come and get him if you needed him, and shutting the door after. This time, however, Tanjiro sat outside the door, and placed his head in his hands. “I should’ve told her.. I should’ve been there with her.. I should’ve-” He choked on his words, and the tears flowed freely down his cheeks. 
He wasn’t sure how long it would take to help you heal- but he wanted to be there as best as he could be. 
You don’t leave the one you love when they need you the most.
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lifeofkaze · 3 years
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When Stars Ignite - Chapter 13
HPHM Rockstar AU
A/N:
General Warning: This whole fic has a general warning of being NSFW / 18+. We will give specific warnings for every chapter in itself, but several adult themes will be more or less present in every chapter, may it be explicitly or in mention. These include sexual topics, drug abuse, (ab)use of alcohol, smoking and a whole lot of cursing.
Specific Warning: Language, allusion to NSFW content
~~~
Find the masterpost here, the previous chapter here and the next one here. The songs featured before every chapter can be found on this pretty badass playlist here.
~~~
This work is a collaboration with @the-al-chemist
Taglist: @slytherindisaster @night-rhea @carewyncromwell
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Drop of a hat she's as willing as Playful as a pussy cat Then momentarily out of action Temporarily out of gas To absolutely drive you wild, wild She's out to get you
~ Queen - Killer Queen ~
After Lizzie had left on that day back in August, Orion hadn’t been sure whether her words would follow action and there would actually be a next time, nor had he been entirely sure he wanted there to be one.
Not because the night he had spent with Lizzie hadn’t been fantastic, or either of them was feeling uncomfortable with it; but she had been his close friend and colleague for so many years now and Orion valued her presence in his life deeply. Changing a pattern that worked smoothly seldomly proved to be a good idea.
He had been glad nothing seemed to have changed between them when they saw each other next; Lizzie had acted just the same as always, focused on their music, laughing with him during breaks, maybe a little flirtatious, but then again, that was just her way.
Orion’s resolve to consider the fling with her done and dusted lasted about a week. He had walked her home from the dinner they’d had with the rest of the band; when they’d reached her flat in Chelsea, she’d waited in the door to the house, looking back at him over her shoulder with an amused expression.
“What now? Are you coming or not?”
He had to admit, the second time round, this time with their senses all together, the sex had been even better than the first time. His concerns about what it might do to their friendship were melting away with every kiss Lizzie left on his body, setting his skin aflame and shutting off his mind with that deliciously wicked smile of hers.
When they’d found themselves in his flat for a third time, he felt the need to stop her wandering hands while he still could.
“Wait a minute, we should really talk about what we’re doing here.”
Lizzie looked up at him incredulously, her fingers hooking on the seam of his trousers, her fingernails grazing his sensitive skin. “What, right now?”
Orion tried to ignore his urgent wish for her to continue where she’d left off and sat up. “Yes, right now.”
“Fine,” she answered briefly and removed her hands from his body, but not without running her hand over him one last time, sending a shiver down his spine. He couldn’t deny how much his body yearned for her but he pushed the heat inside his chest aside and forced his thoughts to focus on what was on his mind.
“If we want this to continue we need to talk about where it’s going,” he managed to say a lot calmer than he felt as he watched Lizzie slowly taking in his undressed body, a salacious smirk on her lips.
“I can perfectly tell you where this is going right now,” she chuckled but Orion didn’t let himself get distracted.
“I’m serious, Liz. As fun as this is, we’re actively breaking the rules here. We are part of a greater thing; the whole unity that is Equinox is more important than every one of us on our own. I don’t want to do anything that could harm the band.”
With a sigh, Lizzie sat up straighter, her expression serious. “Neither of us would ever do anything to put the band at risk. This here is not a relationship, Orion; we can stop this any time.”
She shuffled closer to him on the bed and put a hand on his arm. Her smile was now nothing but warm and reassuring. “Don’t worry, this is just fun, no strings attached.”
He wasn’t entirely convinced, however. “Things like this end in disaster more often than not.“
“If it makes you feel better, let’s make a deal,” Lizzie suggested. “We’ll do this as long as it’s fun and we both want it. In the case that things change for either one of us, we’ll just stop and go back to how things were before. How does that sound?”
Orion sighed deeply. “Do you really think it will work just like that?”
“Just like that,” she smiled, her hand wandering from his arm onto his chest, giving him a slight push so he fell over on his back.
“You’re thinking too much,” she purred as her lips trailed down his chest and over his stomach, coming to rest where hands had let off earlier. “Let me help you relax.”
And just like that, what had begun as a simple drunk one-night stand had developed into something that wasn’t just a friendship, but was far from a relationship either.
Even when their tour had started, they hadn’t stopped meeting in the dead of the night, the risk of being discovered adding an additional thrill, which Orion would have never guessed he’d find himself enjoying. Working off the adrenaline a successful show set off in their bodies soon became his favourite way of winding down. It wasn’t long before he’d actually started showing signs of impatience - something that used to be completely foreign to him - when Lizzie took her time before leaving the backstage area, joking around with Skye or Charlie, deliberately teasing him.
The curves of her body became as familiar to Orion as the neck of his guitar, and he knew exactly how to play both to coax the sweetest sounds from them. Lizzie began to learn every story behind his many tattoos, her fingers tracing the delicate lines as he told her all about them.
The harmony that had existed between them from the get go solidified, unexpected but not unsurprising; it felt like a natural extension to their friendship, raising their connection and understanding to a higher level.
Now, almost ten months since their first night together, he couldn’t even remember what it had been like before.
Orion was violently broken out of his musings by Skye snapping her fingers in front of his eyes.
“Earth calling Orion, you still with us, mate?”
She eyed him critically as his eyes snapped back into focus. “What’ve you been daydreaming about?”
He slowly pulled her hand away from his face. “I have been reminded of something and indulged in the call of the past for a moment,” he answered serenely.
“The way you’re looking it must have been a good memory,” Lizzie said innocently. Her eyes were sparkling as if she knew exactly what he had been thinking about.
He inclined his head, hoping his face wouldn’t give him away. “A favourite.”
Skye shrugged. “Whatever, let’s get those damn pictures taken and get outta here, I’m hungry. You’d better focus on the job.” She stopped, looking thoroughly bewildered. “Can’t believe I need to say this to you of all people.”
Still shaking her head, she grabbed Lizzie by the arm and pulled her towards the set that had been prepared on the far side of the room. The photographer was already instructing Merula on where to stand, Everett looking on from the sidelines.
It took them ages to get all of the pictures Rita’s magazine wanted done. After all of them had their portraits taken, they continued with group shots in various combinations.
When it was the girls’ turn, Orion joined Everett on the sides. The mood between the two guitarists had improved a little since Everett felt he got the recognition he deserved, but still, the atmosphere lacked the carefree camaraderie of the past. Orion struggled to find something to talk about with him these days, not wanting to provoke any of Everett’s bad moods.
As it turned out, their frontman had no desire to talk to him anyway. He was watching Skye, Lizzie and Merula pose in front of the camera intently. He leaned back against the wall and crossed his arms in front of his chest, a small grin forming on his face.
“You can say what you want, but our girls are quite a sight to see, aren’t they?”
Orion didn’t answer, only raising his eyebrows slightly. Everett took his silence as a sign to go on. “I mean, look at them.” His grin widened, taking on a wolfish touch. “Look at Lizzie, for fuck’s sake. Shame she’s always running ‘round all plain and simple, what a waste.”
Orion had to fight the urge to roll his eyes. “Beauty comes from the inside, from embracing our nature as it is and carrying it to the outside. Lizzie is in tune with herself and that is showing. The way she prefers to keep it simple doesn’t dim her light, it enhances it.”
“I certainly wouldn’t say no to her glammed up like that, is all I’m saying,” Everett snorted.
Orion wasn’t surprised by Everett’s take on things, but he was astounded at how much his words were grating on him. Everett had been a flirt for as long as Orion could remember, but he had never objectified women the way he did these days. Ever since they had started their way to the top, the pressure they were constantly feeling had steadily increased. Everett was treating the girls admiring him just the same as he did anything else taking his mind off things; as a meaningless, replaceable means to an end.
He didn’t like hearing Everett talk about anyone like that, but especially not Lizzie.
However, Orion couldn’t deny that he had a point. As per usual, Andre had worked his magic on her for the shoot, creating a maximum effect with simple but well chosen measures. Lizzie’s light brown hair fell around her face in a heap of messy curls, her dark makeup accentuating her blue eyes.
The shiny leather leggings she was wearing were clinging tightly to her legs that were elongated by a pair of black heeled boots. A loose black shirt with the familiar logo of the Rolling Stones gave her the effortlessly nonchalant vibe that was so inherently her. She had tied it in a knot at the sides to shorten it, showing just the tiniest bit of her belly.
Yes, as much as he hated to admit it, Everett was right; Lizzie was a sight to see. Their eyes met briefly as Merula and Lizzie switched positions. Orion could see the smirk starting to form on her lips, like it always did when she caught him watching her.
She quickly regained control over her expression, flipping her hair out of her face and concentrating again. But her attention kept wandering back to him, a mischievous glitter in her eyes that Orion knew all too well.
When it was time for pictures of the whole group, he and Everett joined the girls in front of the camera again. To get a more compact looking picture of them all together, the photographer wanted him and Everett to sit on one of the sofas they had used for the interview, the girls grouped behind them, all trying their best to look as casual as possible.
Orion was sitting directly in front of Lizzie; he almost jumped when he suddenly felt her hand on his back, hidden from the others by her body that was very close to his. Her fingers tiptoed higher up until they found the exposed skin of his neck. Her nails were grazing his skin, leaving a trail of goosebumps behind at the unexpected sensation. Orion could feel the intense energy radiating off her and had to fight the urge to turn around and catch a glimpse of her expression.
Looking at her camera, the photographer, a beautiful young woman in a blue headscarf, frowned and shook her head. “This doesn’t look right yet. I’m missing the energy, the spirit of your connection.
She contemplated for a moment before her fine features lit up. “I know; Merula, could you sit between the guys? The other girls, one on each arm of the sofa, please.”
They changed as she had asked them to, Skye perching on the back of the sofa next to Everett and Lizzie now sitting closer to Orion than before. But still, their photographer wasn’t satisfied.
“Lizzie, could you lean in a little?”
“Sure,” Lizzie smiled innocently, leaning closer to Orion until their bodies were almost touching. He could smell her perfume and the sharp scent of hairspray. When he felt her hand on his back yet again, conveniently out of sight of the camera, he shifted his position a little, ever so slightly leaning into her touch.
Encouraged by him playing along, the corners of her mouth twitched, masked by a little tilt of her head for the camera. Her hand traveled down his spine to the base of his shirt where she lost no time to slip it underneath the seam, her cool fingers brushing across the bare skin of his back.
Orion exhaled slowly, trying not to laugh at the light sensation of her fingertips. Lizzie knew that he was ticklish in that particular spot. She was trying to play him, testing his control over himself, just as she had done after their first show in London.
He couldn’t believe the risk she was taking; touching him like that in a dark nightclub under a table was one thing, but during a photoshoot, with all eyes on them? He’d never thought she would be so bold.
Her ridiculous recklessness was intriguing, however; just like everything about Lizzie it was playing with fire and the reward of being close to a blazing flame never came without danger.
A movement at the edge of his vision drew Orion’s attention away from her touch. His eyes flicked over to the other side of the sofa and he thought he could see Skye looking over to them. His heart suddenly racing, Orion leaned against the back of the sofa, effectively forcing Lizzie to withdraw her hand.
He glanced over to Skye again, but she was looking straight at the camera, her moody rockstar expression edged onto her face. She paid him or Lizzie no mind whatsoever, and for a moment Orion wondered whether that frown on her face had been nothing but a trick of his mind.
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og-danny-dorito · 4 years
Text
Jason Todd : Assassination Jobs
[ A/N: kinda wrote this by the seat of my pants ksjdfndksjnf- it’s basically just how i think jason deals with assassination jobs and a story pertaining to the one time he really did do one and why he did it. not really an x reader but i guess you could technically place yourself in the woman’s place. she’s the one who calls upon jason to help with her issue but it doesn’t have any self-insert elements. kinda more of a really long headcanon ]
⚠️ TW : stalking, abuse, violence ⚠️
jason doesn't usually do assassin work. it requires a lot of coverups, connections, planning and is overall a huge mess, so he kinda just avoids it. 
there have been a few times though, where he’s made exceptions.
most of them just had good pay involved or something like that, but the one that’s probably the most commendable to him is when a woman came to him one time with a very vague request. how she got his line he had no idea, but regardless by the time they actually met up she seemed kinda,,, nervous.
she was kinda jumpy and avoided eye contact so she didn’t look too confident or assured in what she was doing, she was looking all around her nervously as if she was scared someone would hear them, and on top of it all she had planned for them to meet in a secluded alleyway with little to no surveillance opportunity and in a sketchy part of town.
he wasn't stupid enough to trust her right off the bat, obviously, but he was smart enough to know that if she really did have some sort of thing planned out she wouldn’t have asked him if he knew there was no way anyone could see or hear them there. it was a bit odd but seemed safe enough, so he showed up.
now, jason went into this expecting something standard. maybe a boss was bothering her or there was a coworker she was having trouble with or something like that, but what had come out of her mouth left him feeling both astonished and, to put it simply... enraged.
he could see the way she covered her arms when she talked to him or how she tried to wear layers of clothing that would hide some of the wounds under her skin. it wasn’t uncommon to find people like that in the area she said she came from, or to find people like that in the whole of Gotham, but somehow knowing that she was desperate enough to call a literal vigilante for it and risk getting put on The Watchlist made him even more concerned off than it should’ve.
in simple terms, the woman said than an ex was bothering her. the ex had forced her into an abusive relationship that usually left her in serious condition or had her admitted to a psyche ward, to which she had almost ended her life as a result. they had broken up after the police got involved, but because of some sort of loophole the ex was able to get out of prison a few months early.
that’s when the stalking began.
she said that she remembered the feeling of being watched, or feeling as if someone was always on her back. the family she was staying with just thought that it was a result of having come out of a mentally stressful situation, but she knew for a fact that something wasn’t right. the packages of unknown origin went unseen by the police. the flowers that would show up at her workplace with a little note reading “i’ll be back soon” were discounted for her loosing her mind. even things down to the way she felt like things were missing in her room when she came back from work had scared her to no end, and she finally decided to put an end to it whether she would get help from her family/the cops or not.
that’s where jason came in. she didn’t really have any specific instructions for him to follow, just a picture of the creeper and a request for him to “get rid of them” in the quickest way possible. he was kinda confused that she didn’t want them to suffer, but he struggled with the decision anyway. there was a very real possibility that she had in fact lost her mind and was now sending him out on a wild goose chase, but he also knew that it was equally as possible that she was telling the truth. he had seen people like her be ignored and have their concerns swept under the rug, only to have their voiced listened to when it was too late
so he agreed to the offer, telling her to give him until the end of the week to get the job done
he didn’t feel right having her stay alone like that, and so instead he asked her to stay in a hotel nearby for a few days so he could draw the ex out and get rid of them quietly. she was really polite about it too, agreeing to whatever requirements he had listed out for her and all of that. just a nice woman in general, didn’t produce any complications and tried to make it as easy for him as possible.
and so that’s exactly what he did. he waited until the creep pulled into the driveway in a super sketchy car with tinted windows and talked to the lady at the front desk, who eventually gave them the room the woman was staying at. they didn’t seem like they were trying to draw attention to themself at first, but as he got out of his car and made his way to the room, he could see how the ex was getting more and more aggressive with knocking on the door.
they were saying all sorts of fucked up shit to her through the barrier like how she’d never get away from them, how she’d suffer the consequences if she kept running away like this, shit like that. jason could feel the adrenaline coursing through him as he got closer, his steps speeding up as he closed in on the assailant. they only had a second to react before he was already putting them in a headlock, letting go when their body fell limp and hauling their arm over his shoulder
it didn’t take him long to bring them to his car (skillfully masking it by making it seem like they were blackout drunk) before tying them and throwing them in the backseat. the place he took them to finish them off was something simple like the side of one of the nearby docks, and he left with a text asking his cleanup guy to come take care of the body. he went back to tell the woman that it was over, that she was safe now in some odd attempt to console her. make her feel a little better
it was only when he got there did he find her sitting with her knees locked to her chest on the bed, the whole room completely undisturbed save for the mug which had probably been knocked to the floor in her panic of hearing the ex on the other side of the door. he didn’t blame her, if he saw that creeper in a dark alleyway he’d pay them no mind- ...but that wasn’t the point. the point now was that she was sitting here with her knees hugged up to her chest and her breathing erratic, obviously having a panic attack
here’s where the odd part comes in
jason has never really been one for this sort of thing. not killing people, he knows all about that, but rather... emotions. or emotionally charged situations. they had always been uncomfortable for him, like uncharted territory in a way, that’s why it was surprising- even to himself -when he walked over there and sat by her, putting a hand on her back and just... rubbing circles there
for a second it looked like she was confused too. the guy who just murdered her abusive ex in cold blood without so much as a qualm to the matter was now rubbing warm circles around her back, sitting there like some sort of awkward dad trying to comfort a middle schooler who just went through their first breakup. it didn’t seem awkward or forced though, just... concerned. and it was confusing. but she didn’t dare try to get away from him, not when it was actually helping her racing hearbeat
and so they kinda sat there for a second with him rubbing circles on her back before she eventually calmed down, taking in large breaths of air and trying to relax herself before she ended up getting cramps from staying in the same position. jason kinda just watched though, only taking his hand off of her back when she looked fully undone. there weren’t any words to affirm what had happened, it seemed. they both knew that it was done, and it could never be undone.
but the larger male couldn’t help the words that came out of his mouth once she had finally settled down, soft and without the familiar edge they normally had. “you know you could’ve asked me to make it painful for them. i would’ve done it if you had told me to.”, he said, the blank eyes of his mask tracking her every movement. she shrank a bit under the pressure of it, but made sure to keep her eyes glues to her hands in her lap. it had always been easier to speak that way.
how do you explain years of complex emotions to someone? the fact that you still cared about them but knew that there was no other way to get rid of the problems they were causing? for all she knew he could just be like the other supes out here, preaching evangelical bullshit without any knowledge of the real problems that made this world the shit hole it was. but... part other knew that wasn’t the case.
she knew in her gut that behind that mask was just another human being, littered with scars from a past that would never heal over. what superman would agree to killing someone, anyway? he wouldn’t, that’s how. she knew that only someone who understood what was going on would do that, take the risk to avoid it happening to someone else. the thought made the next words a little easier to get out of her mouth, even though she knew it sold the idea short
“i cared about them once, i wouldn’t want them to suffer like that.” and to that, he only nodded. it seemed like he understood, and for a second jason did. he didn’t want his mother to suffer, even when she had sold him out to a literal clown and watched him get beat within an inch of his life. it made sense in some odd way, and he couldn’t argue with it. so he didn’t
he stood and looked around the room before asking her if she needed him to bring her home, to which she politely declined and said that she’d just take public transport. and so he got himself together and made way for the door, to which the woman called out and asked him when she was supposed to pay him.
to which, with all of his conscience guiding his actions, jason stopped and turned to her.
“free of charge.”, he said. and then he left.
he left without feeling guilty about it for the first time in a while. he slept easy that night, with his train of thought on the right track and how mind stilled, relaxed and comfortable in his nearby safehouse. and for the first time in a while, a very very long while, he felt like he was doing something right. no, he wasn’t that poster-boy that every one wanted from him or the savior people needed, but he did his best. he did his best for the people that needed it and honestly, what’s more important? complying to a corrupt system, or protecting the weak?
and even though he had always known the answer to the question, he felt like he knew for sure what it was for.
[ Thank You For Reading! ]
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5ro4 · 3 years
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Dark makes no sense [Spoilers of the whole show]
I thought Netflix’s Dark season 3 was disappointing, boring and made no sense. From its first few chapters I was wishing for it to end already, but it kept going, simultaneously being a convoluted exposition dump while actually explaining nothing, then pulling an ending out of nowhere long after I had stopped caring.
It’s kinda hard to find proper criticism for the series last season; most people just praise how it’s the best possible ending and everything makes perfect sense, so I decided to write my thoughts and criticism.
I’ll clarify that I enjoyed seasons 1 and 2 a lot. They are convoluted in a good and interesting way, where everything seems to fit nicely together, to have been properly planned all along, and it carries the promise that the deeper mysteries that remain will be explained later on.
But then season 3 happens. I still think overall it’s a good show, interesting and worth watching, but season 3 is disappointing and the show as a whole is certainly no “perfectly written masterpiece”.
Massive spoilers from now on.
Even if it made logical sense, season 3 is bad.
Most of the charm of the first 2 seasons is watching how every action fits in a single linear timeline and how every cause had an unexpected consequence that makes the timeline more and more complex while maintaining perfect coherence. It’s hard to follow, but it’s doable.
Then season 3 ruins the charm by making everything so convoluted it’s impossible to follow and unsatisfactory to even try.
Complexity is enjoyable up to the point where anything can happen. Why would you still care then? How could you? A mystery is intriguing because it needs to be explained by the rules of the world; the rules you know and are able to follow. If the explanation could be “a witch did it”, then none of the mysteries would be intriguing.
So we have a character that dies, and it’s intriguing because we know he’s alive in the future, so how can this be possible? Well, there’s actually 2 parallel worlds, so he’s alive in the other world. It’s a surprising twist, but the rules have been broken; now almost every mystery can be explained by the existence of a parallel world.
But then a character dies in both worlds! How can that be? Well, in the second world there’s actually two intertwined timelines, so they died in one of them but no the other.
How are you supposed to care about anything that happens from this point onward? No mystery is that mysterious when the possibility of a convoluted explanation involving multiple worlds and timelines is always there. And why even bother trying to make sense of it when they could pull out a fourth timeline or a third parallel world at any moment (and they actually do)?
Character’s motivations are impossible to follow because everyone is lying and being double-crossed by alternate reality characters all the time.
Half of the characters you are following now aren’t even the original characters but their versions from another world or another timeline inside that second world, so it’s really difficult to keep caring about any of them.
I’m not even going to attempt to criticize any of the fine details or possible loose ends because when characters can jump between timelines and realities at any time and all of them are either lying or being lied to, I’m pretty sure that by watching the show 3 times and reading the wiki you could find some plausible explanation for any small inconsistency, but at this level of complexity who even cares.
However, I think there are major, big picture flaws that somehow seem to have gone over most people’s head.
1.- The end is the beginning, therefore every action is an explanation for itself.
Most of the plot and almost the entirety of season 3 could be summed up as: A ton of people do nonsensical things because they know their future selves did those things, so they must repeat them because time is linear (except in the end it isn’t).
The bootstrap paradox is the cheap way this show has to explain any mystery and any character motivation: It happened the first time, so it must happen the second one too. Since this is a loop with no beginning, there is no need for any action to have had a logical explanation at one point.
It becomes useless to try to understand why any of the main mysterious characters do anything or what their plan is, because it can always be explained (and often does) as just “this is what happened the first time, so it must happen the second one too”.
There’s a point where one character is compelled to kill himself just because a character from the future saw him kill himself, so he must kill himself now so the future is consistent, even though there was never an actual reason for him to kill himself.
This is cheap and lazy because you can have any character doing any mysterious thing and no explanation is needed. Why do Noah and Helge drop dead kids at specific times and locations? Because they are just repeating what their future selves did, and since the loop has no beginning, no original reason exists.
2.- Adam, Eve and Claudia’s plans and motivations make no sense.
Adam and Eve’s motivations, and to some extent Claudia’s, are extremely unclear. They are the ones who explain to everyone else how time and parallel worlds work, except they are always lying and opposing their younger selves, and they are actually wrong about how all of it works.
This makes it hard to actually know what their actual motivations are, since the show doesn’t clearly show when and how they arrived at their current understanding of the world. It’s somewhat clear what they are trying to do, but not why they are trying to do so or what makes them so confident about their knowledge.
The show presents Adam and Eva as opposing forces trying to control time, while Claudia helps one or the other at different times for different reasons, yet most of the time all of them are actually doing exactly the same thing: Trying to make everything happen as it happened the last time.
So the story goes something like this: Following Adam’s instructions, Young Jonas tries to change the past by preventing himself from being born. Claudia stops him, tells him he must fight against Adam and therefore he can’t stop existing, so he must let history repeat itself. Jonas works alongside Claudia and somehow eventually ends up becoming Adam, whose plan, according to the Dark Wiki (dark-netflix.fandom.com) is to keep the cycle going.
This makes no sense, but that last part is actually wrong, at least to some extent, which shows that even the people writing the wiki don’t really know Adam’s motivations.
By the end of the show, it’s clear what is the ultimate thing each of them are trying to accomplish: Adam wants to destroy both worlds, Eve wants to keep the cycle going to avoid Adam destroying the worlds, and Claudia wants to save her daughter in at least one world. None of them seems to actually care about the apocalypse, although that was supposed to be the main conflict to avoid.
But how did Adam and Eve reach those conclusions? That’s never properly explained and their whole development seems nonsensical and contradictory: They try to change the past as their younger selves, they grow old trying and realize it’s impossible, so they turn around and try to prevent their younger selves from changing it.
At every chance they had to actually change the past someone appeared to stop them or convinced them not to do it, yet they somehow end up with the belief that time cannot be changed, while simultaneously doing their best effort to ensure time is not changed.
This is a total contradiction. Either you think time can be changed and try to do so, or you think time can’t be changed and do nothing about people trying, since you don’t need to prevent anyone from doing what you believe to be impossible.
Adam’s plan is to kill Martha and her baby, since her son is who ultimately will put the whole cycle in motion. If he is successful, he will create a paradox where the cycle was never put in motion therefore none of them exist, and thus they will cease to exist*. To do so, he needs to make pregnant-Martha go through a time travel portal because quantum shenanigans say that’s the only way to remove her baby from existence.
* “A paradox happens therefore we suddenly stop existing” makes no logical sense, but since it’s a common trope, let’s ignore it for now.
Eva knows of Adam’s plan and disagrees. For some not properly explained reason, she would rather have and infinite loop of people repeating their same miserable lives rather than ending the loop and making them disappear,  thinking this is equal to them never existing, although they clearly existed. There might also be motherly instincts mixed in; the love for the son she is never shown having a conversation with before turning him into a murder machine to prevent him from not existing.
Eva’s plan is pretty stupid and evil, while Adam’s plan is contradictory, since he is preventing people from changing the past or creating a paradox in order for him to create a particular paradox as a last resource after failing to change the past.
Meanwhile Claudia is trying to repeat the timeline with the intention of actually changing everything at some point, but I don’t care to try and guess what her plan actually was all along.
3.- There’s no way Claudia could get her final revelation.
The characters are supposedly repeating the same cycle over and over, so nothing should actually change, but let’s say it can somehow because they explain something about moving grains of sand.
Concluding that a third world must exist because “there’s always a third dimension” is already a wild logical jump, but even so, how could she ever conclude that the third world was an original one that got destroyed and divided into two parallel realities, and that the reason was the clockmaker failed to make a time machine? It is completely impossible for her to conclude such things.
4.- The creation of the two worlds makes no sense.
So, there was an original world. A clockmaster tries to make a time machine, but instead destroys his world creating… two parallel worlds with 3 timelines that are interconnected in an extremely convoluted loop without beginning? And neither of those worlds actually spawns from the moment he activates the time machine, since he is intercepted years before that by those world’s time travelers?
This is a total cop-out that’s not a better explanation than “magic”. A dude made a machine that destroyed the world and spawned 3 seasons of a completely arbitrary but conveniently interconnected mystery thriller.
5.- Time rules are inconsistent
There’s a scene in which time is proven to be so deterministic that Jonas is literally immortal. He can't be killed because that’s not the place and time where he’s supposed to die in. This is both dumb and inconsistent.
The concept makes sense to a certain extent: If the character is alive in the future, it means he didn’t die in the past. However, that only works as long as the character is not trying to kill himself to prove a point. It only works somewhat elegantly in the show because Jonas accepts it as truth and doesn’t try to push it further, but what if he didn’t? What if he kept trying to kill himself just because he knows he can’t? Would knives break and guns keep getting jammed? It’s dumb because it implies time is a sentient being that will go out of its way to prevent things that aren’t supposed to happen from happening.
Also, it’s inconsistent because it’s latter confirmed that the past can in fact be changed.
6.- Conflicting beliefs are held at the same time.
Eva devotes her life to ensure everything happens as it should happen while simultaneously being 100% sure things will happen in the present as they happened in the future and there’s no way to avoid that. She is dumbfounded when Adam doesn’t kill her the moment he was supposed to kill her.
I’m pretty sure Adam and Claudia hold these same contradicting beliefs at one point or another, simultaneously believing the past can’t change while making their best effort to ensure it doesn’t change.
7.- Time stopped for a brief moment.
Claudia literally says that time stopped for a brief moment when the clockmaster activated his time machine or something.
Think about that. She’s telling you that time stopped during a small  period of time. She's using time to mesure the lack of time.
Also, how could she ever know if time was stopped and for how long (hah), and how does it make any sense that her plan is to do something while time is stopped.
8.- Deep meaningful answers for the gullible.
This is not a plot hole, just a criticism to the writing and the development of the plot: Almost every time a character makes a crucial question to the character that holds the answer, they either don’t respond because of the bootstrap paradox (“my future self didn’t explain it to you so now that I’m in the same situation I won’t explain it either to avoid changing the past”) or they quote a philosopher or something in an attempt to seem deep while giving a non-answer that’s completely unrelated to the current conversation.
This is an actual conversation from the show:
- Why are you storing barrels full of nuclear waste inside an underground cave? - What we know is a drop, what we don't know is an ocean.
OK! No more questions then!
9.- Blind trust in the wrong person.
This is also a relatively minor nitpick I just want to get off my chest.
Characters, particularly Jonas and Martha, blindly trust anyone who appears before them and tell them they have been lied to, even after discovering that the last three people who supposedly revealed the truth to them was actually lying too.
This could still be believable given the circumstances until we get to the point when they would rather trust a total stranger over their future selves. Why would you trust anyone over your future self? Even if they are lying, you will become them in the future; their plan will be your plan, no matter how hard is it to understand now. Yet Jonas doesn’t require any proof from Claudia before trusting her completely over Adam.
10.- Why are Jonas and Martha needed to stop the cycle?
This is never actually explained beyond some vague idea of them being at the center of everything. Claudia could have traveled to the original world herself. Jonas could have done it too without taking Martha with him.
How do they even tune the machine to take them to a world that no longer exists?
11.- The whole time tunnel with Jonas and Martha?
???
12.- The resolution is a paradox, and thus impossible.
In order to stop time travel from ever existing they need to travel in time and prevent time travel from being created, thus making their existence a paradox, which makes them slowly disappear in a cloud of gold dust.
I know this was done for the visual spectacle, but still.
So much struggle against determinism, so many exposition dumps, so much care to make every piece fit perfectly in the timeline, just for the final resolution to be a blatant paradox. Pretty, but not really fitting.
Even though multiple universes with multiple timelines are shown to exist, somehow the rules of time only allow for a single timeline to exist in the end, even if that timeline contains an impossible paradox.
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commander-hanji-zoe · 4 years
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Do you have any headcanons on veterans x reader on quarantine lockdown headcanons. Baking, Reading, Exercising?
Ohhhh I have so many! Thank you for this ask ❤️ One of these days I’ll master the art of answering a head canon question quickly and with shorter answers. But today is not the day! There’s a few nsfw bits under the cut. This is over 3k words....how?? 
Mike 
Mike is fond of long lay-ins, it’s what he lives for at the weekend. He loves you so much and enjoys nothing more than being comfy and snuggly under a duvet with you. Eating breakfast, watching Netflix, just chilling and enjoying one another’s company. So during lock down there’s gonna be a lot of time in comfy PJ’s lazing around in bed.
Mike loves cooking and cooking shows! The two of you have a date night once a week where you cook together. You always light some candles, listen to jazz and have a glass of wine or two while cooking. One week you try making your own sushi, the next it’s Jamaican curry, then it’s pizza night! Trying new things is something you both love (both in and out of the bedroom *cough* more on that later. 
When restrictions are eased a little and you’re allowed to sit outside/drive for exercise, the two of you take a long countryside drive together and find a quiet secluded spot where you can sit and have a picnic and watch the clouds go by. 
I see Mike as a guitar kinda guy, so he’ll teach you if you don’t play and if you do, the two of you will enjoy spending some time writing songs together and playing along to your favourite rock and indie tunes. 
You enjoy watching live acoustic gigs and concerts which are being streamed by artists and comedians etc. Mike encourages you to get dressed up with him, you have drinks while watching and often end up dancing as if you were at a gig in person. 
Binge listening to podcasts together ‘The Magnus Archive,’ ‘Welcome to Nightvale’ and ‘MaMbBam’ being favourites. 
Star-gazing. Sitting outdoors at night, during the day the two of you will spend time in your garden but it’s night time you really enjoy it the most. Sitting outside on a blanket and with another over you, you make sure all the lights inside are turned off so you can enjoy watching the stars, moon, planets, satellites etc above you. You often have a glass of wine or a cocktail as you sit out there, sometimes you fall asleep in Mike’s arms so he’ll carry you up to bed. 
Finally Mike is very good at giving you personal space, while he loves taking up new hobbies with you and spending time doing things you love together, he also knows you both need your space. It makes the time you do spend together so much sweeter. 
Erwin
Even though you don’t need to go out to work, Erwin is still up early. When he wakes he showers and then prepares for the day by making you both a delicious breakfast. Think poached eggs, grapefruit, french toast, yoghurt and fruit etc. He likes listening to the radio over watching TV first thing in the morning so you have that on for a bit. 
You enjoy daily workouts together (with Saturday or Sunday off). Erwin takes them unsurprisingly seriously, however, he does make them fun. The two of you will have little competitions with one another and Erwin creates a workout playlist for you - it’s an eclectic mix and includes songs that you both end up singing along to. 
Erwin loves to play the Piano but due to his work he only usually touches it a few times a month if that. With lockdown he starts playing daily, there’s a few times when you wake up and he’s already practising - it really is beautiful. Sometimes if he knows you’re watching he may stop playing, or at least change what he’s playing to something you know so you can sing along or join in. If you’re quiet though you can stand in the door for 5-10 minutes without him realising and he’ll continue to play classical music. 
As well as the home workouts you try to go out once a week for a run, as much as Erwin just wants to get on he would never leave you behind if you’re struggling to keep up and will wait for you (he’s a gentleman after all). 
Canvas painting, sometimes Erwin struggles with getting out or showing his emotions, after doing virtual tours of art galleries online you suggest ordering a canvas, some acrylic paint and palette knives. It’s amazing the level of emotion you see pour out of yourself and Erwin onto the canvas, it’s incredibly therapeutic so you order more canvasses. 
The two of you really enjoy binge watching documentary shows - you know the second Tiger King came out Erwin was all over that. There’s this side to Erwin that not everyone gets to see, or at least when they do it’s very rare. But during lockdown you get to experience it more frequently, he really does have a great sense of human and likes to have fun. While he enjoys documentaries about WW2, science (Unabomber: in his own words is also on the list) things like Tiger King, Dark Tourist and Louis Theroux docs are also a guilty pleasure. 
The two of you will spend some evenings laying chess by candle light with a glass of whiskey. 
Levi 
I feel to say that you’ll be cleaning a lot is a little obvious and I actually think that for the most part Levi would prefer to crack on with that on his own - it gives him peace of mind and it’s something he has control over. He enjoys it 
Together however, expect DIY Projects or painting/decorating. There’s things the two of you have talked about doing for ages and never gotten round to, now you have the perfect excuse. From painting a feature wall in your living quarters to making a little step wooden step ladder for the garden that you can put potted plants on. The two of you use your time to get creative around the home.
Dancing - the form of fitness you decide to take up is dance. At first Levi scoffs at the idea but then when he realises what a work out it actually is and how much strength and flexibility is required for some of the tutorials you’re following, he’s game. The two of you end up choreographing a dance together - it’s super cute (and hot in places - oops) 
You’re the kind of couple others are jealous of because you just work so well together, spending the perfect amount of time doing things together and apart. 
Being a lover of tea, Levi decides to educate you on the many different types by subscribing to a ‘tea lovers’ subscription box. You take the time to sit with him and really enjoy each tea, just talking with no noise from the radio or TV.
Levi likes to put together tapas or cheese tasting boards, he chooses the food for the main, you put together a starter or dessert and pick the wine that goes with the flavours he’s mixing. Together it’s like a perfect harmony. You set the table, light candles, listen to jazz and it’s almost as if you’re at one of your favourite restaurants. 
Watching Horror movies, you’ve probably seen every horror movie on Netflix, Amazon Prime etc. which is available to stream come the end of lockdown. Horror was actually how you met, you were at the cinema to see ‘Hereditary’ and none of your friends wanted to come with you so you went alone. Levi and his friends (the other vets) were in the same screen and sat next to you. So now Levi is strangely sentimental about horror movies. There’s cuddling up under blankets in the living room and plenty of popcorn along with movie themed cocktails. 
Video calls to your friends, you do more of the talking but Levi sits by you throughout and occasionally joins in. He’s loathed to admit it but he really likes seeing everyone’s faces and hearing their voices. 
Moblit
Moblit has a large collection of puzzles, a few were completed when he was younger but a lot of them aren’t. He used to get frustrated with them but always wanted to finish them so he could frame them and put them up around the house. When lockdown happened you think it’s the perfect opportunity for the two of you to work on them together and help him out. Turns out it’s actually a lot of fun and a pretty good was
Baking! You both love the Great British Bake Off, before lock-down you were always talking about how you wanted to give the recipes a try but of course something else always came along. Now lockdown is the perfect excuse to order some ingredients online and get baking! The kitchen often looks like a mess, Moblit gets flour on his face and even in his hair? You don’t know how it happens but you have a lot of fun doing it and hey what you bake usually turns out pretty good. 
Subscribes to Disney+ the second it comes out - and the two of you binge watch your favourite Disney movies singing along to them (I get the impression Moblit would be a huge Hercules and Moana fan). 
Watching Avengers Infinity War together and later on in the evening he turns to you and just says, “I love you 3000.”
Bike rides through the countryside (as long as it’s close to home of course and you can stay safe!) 
You watch art shows together (like the still life drawing classes on TV or Grayson Perry’s art class). Shows which have been made specifically now for lockdown to help inspire people to take up new hobbies. Both of you are pretty inexperienced at art or drawing so you have a lot of fun watching the shows, following the instructions and seeing where your hand and pencil lead you. You both end up discovering your own unique style of drawing - this inevitably ends up doing a still life of one another (more on this later). 
Hange 
Hange really struggles with lockdown, it makes them feel pretty anxious and they hate not being able to be out and about exploring/doing their job/learning new things etc. So Hanji needs quite a bit of love and looking after, care packages for the two of you go a long way so you order nice things in the early days of lock down. Hanji’s eyes light up when you hand them what you’ve ordered. 
Loads of gaming, you both enjoying exploring other worlds along with fantasy so everything from World of Warcraft, Skyrim, The Outer Worlds, Outer Wilds to the Final Fantasy games, The Witcher and Assassin’s Creed are all up your street. Sometimes you play alone, sometimes you watch one another play while reading magazines. Often when playing WOW you play together and share a mount, heading into raids together and working as a team. It’s not as good as being outside and exploring the world for real but it’s pretty close. 
Loads of movie marathons with enough sweets to make you sick, especially the gummy kind like Haribo. 
Hange - Arguments over who loves who more, it’s usually in the middle of a TV show that you’ve been really invested in but now with the impending end of the world, it’s so easy to get distracted. The ‘arguments’ usually end up in pillow fights and just laying in one another’s arms in silence. 
Home made science experiments - yup, you knew this was coming. There’s so much you can try at home with simple house hold ingredients. Hange also orders kits online so you end up growing your own crystals (not the drug kind lol), making your own ‘volcano’, making slime, dying flowers etc. At first you rolled your eyes when Hanji suggested it but actually it turns out to be a lot of fun and it’s pretty interesting, so you end up learning something. Hanji also orders DIY Sweet kits which are as fun to make as they are to eat. 
When it comes to heading outside to clap for key workers the two of you are gonna be dressed up to make the children smile. You’ll be banging pots and pans or possibly have a kazoo or tambourine. 
Nanaba
There’s loads of Gardening, it’s something the two of you always liked but found you didn’t have the time you needed to commit to it as much as you’d have liked. 
Cuddling on the grass in your garden, rolling around enjoying the sunshine and sun-bathing side by side.
The work out of choice for the two of you is yoga. You light incense and some candles as well as listening to mediation music and just take some time out to be alone with your thoughts - together. You both agree that stretching really helps you especially where you’re working from home, it’s so easy to get back ache! 
The two of you love dancing 
Nanaba decides to take up quilting and crochet. It’s something her mother and elder sister taught her how to do but is practically a forgotten hobby. You help one another to remember the basics and decide to make a giant patchwork quilt for your sofa. You work on it together so that there’s a part of both of you in it, you take inspiration from your garden and the world around you, even though it’s a lot smaller than it was before. If either of you prick your finger the other is there to kiss it better.
Preparing relaxing baths for one another, you enjoy much of the bath on your own but sometimes the other will sit on the toilet and read aloud or just come in for a chat. Lockdown makes you more open with one another than you were before. 
Getting into bed early before the sun has set, you keep the curtains open so you can watch the sky turn orange. Plenty of time in bed means you have time to binge watch the latest TV shows and not feel guilty about it if you have work the next day.
Witchy things - tarot card readings, candle magic, little rituals in the garden and kitchen witch magic like making dandelion honey or moon spell cookies. 
Below are a few nsfw thoughts (I didn’t write many but a couple kept bouncing around in my mind).
Erwin - 
Sex first thing in the morning, the kind of lazy, sleepy sex that the two of you dream of having but never have time before work. Now, you do and Erwin intends to make the most of it. 
Also shower sex, sometimes this follows the sex in the morning so by the time you finish work you’re already feeling tired. Often it follows the workouts you do and it doesn’t take either of you long to cum seeing as watching one another get sweaty and flex muscles - the tension is unbelievable. 
If you get too distracted during the work day, either by Erwin or TV (or if you distract Erwin too much) they’ll be punishments in the form of spanking and rough sex from behind, hair pulling and all. It’s the first time you find yourself wanting to be punished. 
Levi 
Sex in spaces you’ve just cleaned, it’s sort of a punishment if you back-talk him as he’ll make you clean up afterwards. Secretly he loves dirtying the sheets, it’s almost like an ultimate fantasy for someone who is so clean and neat, but he really has to be in the right mood for that. 
Lockdown is a chance for the two of you to explore some of the sexual fantasies you’ve discussed but never tried from light bondage (to start) and role-play. 
Switching, in your relationship neither one of you is particularly the dominant or submissive one continuously, rather you enjoy switching, but when you are in the role you both take it seriously. Now you’re in lockdown and it’s easy to get bored, you both agree to really extent the roles on the day you’re both in the mood, you could lead Levi round on a leash and collar all afternoon and he won’t complain. 
Mike 
Checking in on you as you’re working and trying to convince you lunch break sex is definitely a thing that will help you concentrate on your important presentation in your afternoon video conference. But of course he leaves you a bit of a mess and without a minute to spare so you appear on camera looking like you’ve been dragged through a hedge backwards. 
With Mike there’s also a lot of time to get creative in the bedroom, you have longer in the evening to take your time exploring one another and discovering new positions you’d never have thought possible.
When lockdown goes on much longer than anticipated Mike decides to turn up the creativity a notch. A rather large unmarked parcel arrives containing a latex bed sheet and sex swing, so you know you’re not going to be getting a lot of sleep for a while. 
Moblit 
Kisses that last for hours, the kind that start innocently and slowly you find yourself getting worked up and wanting more but Moblit continues to tease with those kisses and will pretend he has no idea why you’re worked up. However he does go weak at the knees if you praise him so that’s usually the way to get what you want. 
The still life drawings of one another start off fully clothed and very quickly become nude studies. You can only take it seriously for so long before he pounces on you or you on him and it’s like ‘that’ scene from Titanic within minutes. 
Endless, almost excruciating foreplay. 
Hanji 
Has always liked to have fun in bedroom, with lockdown it’s more of an excuse to dress up and play around, I’m thinking teacher & student or Doctor/nurse & patient. Hanji really gets into the role. 
Science experiments continue to the bedroom, you decide to give the whole electro-stim thing a go. 
Also with the DIY sweet kits there’s also a little left, so popping candy, expanding foam candy and more are used to adorn your bodies - it doesn’t stay on long as the combination of candy and sex is too irresistible to leave alone. 
Nanaba 
Sex outdoors, your garden is pretty secluded. It was something you talked about doing a lot but always found your weekends were too busy with friends and others that you just never got round to it. There’s grass stains on your knees and your clothes and you’d both wear them with pride outside the house if you could.
Bath tub sex, even if it’s a little uncomfortable it’s so intimate and personal that you don’t care how much of a mess you make or how many bruises you end up with. Lockdown hits you both hard mentally and bath tub sex is a way of feeling better and cleansed. 
There’s also a chance for some sex magic which involves wax play, again, something new you’d thought about for a while and now you both just wanted something to make you feel alive. 
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fbfh · 4 years
Text
vegas lights - piper x mpdg!bff!reader
2.3k words
wlw, friends to lovers
piper x manic pixie dream girl! best friend! reader
inspired by this concept playlist from this post (i think it’s the fourth one on the post)
You and piper met at one of those fancy boarding schools
You’ve been told you have trouble respecting authority, can’t follow instructions, and have little regard to your attitude
So more specifically, you met in detention
You had shown up to school with blue and orange hair
As you expected, that didn’t go over well
Piper hadn’t done her homework again
The teacher had left to make some copies of papers, and you were sitting one seat back and to the right of piper
“Hey, since people always talk about going back in time and making one small change that affects everything, do you think the most minute decisions we make have the capacity to change everything now?”
She turned her head and saw you leaning across your desk
Your eyebrows matched your hair, your blazer was too big and the sleeves were cuffed, and pen ink was scribbled on your arms and hands
You had a wild energy, like a strong breeze that smelled like summer you find some other time of year
“Uh…” 
She wasn’t really sure what you meant, and was still a little thrown by you
“Or like, is it the kind of thing where nothing we do matters and we’re gonna end up where we end up, so that takes off the pressure of moralizing your decisions and you end up making ‘better’ choices?”
Was this real?
The late afternoon sun cast an unsettling blue green light throughout the building, and made Piper feel even more like she was dreaming
“Maybe neither,” she mused, grabbing the first thing that came to mind
A new smile crept at your eyes, and she could almost see your perspective shift
“Yeah, like… the presence of someone who wasn’t there before was the thing to set everything off. Maybe it’s not your decisions as much as being there…” you trailed off lost in thought, “huh.” 
You pushed yourself up, and sat on the edge of your desk
“So what are you in for?”
Piper hadn’t realized she was staring until your eyes locked with hers
“D- uh, didn’t do my homework,” she sputtered
You sighed, and rolled your eyes
“God, they’re only gonna realize humans aren’t designed for constant work when we’re all dead.” 
You turn back to her
“You seem intelligent. Being smart doesn’t mean anything, intelligence is what actually matters.” 
Wow
How do you respond to that?
“... I’m Piper,” 
“Piper…” you repeated slowly
“I like that.”
Silence 
“What’s your name?”
“What do I seem like?” 
She looked confused
“What do I strike you as?”
She thought for a minute, then blurted out the first thing she thought of
“Vegas.” 
You smiled
“I love that… we’re gonna go to Vegas some time. It’ll be an adventure.”
“If I had to guess for you…” you trailed off, examining every detail of her in a way that didn’t make her self conscious
“I’d say diamond. I really like Piper too, though.” 
Her stomach fell
There it is, nothing more than a pretty face once again
“Oh, cause I’m-”
“Strong.”
Her eyes snapped up to yours
“You don’t seem like anyone can break you.”
She liked that a lot better
You asked her something about lunch tomorrow, she didn’t remember quite what, and that was the beginning of the two of you
You spent every minute you could together, which often resulted in coordinating your stunts with hers to end up in detention together
After a while the bmw story came up
You believed her without hesitation
“God, guys can be the fucking worst sometimes. I bet that piece of wet toast gave you the car to get on your good side then pulled a Nice Guy as soon as he realized it wasn’t happening.” 
Not totally accurate, but she appreciated your enthusiasm so she agreed wholeheartedly
For some reason it felt really nice to hear you say boys suck
As the semester went on, she started to get worried
You had started talking to a guy, and she had a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach
She found herself having to try harder and harder to fake happy for you
She was almost surprised at how relieved she was a week later when you plop down at your usual lunch spot and denounce cynically
“Y’know that guy I was talking to? Turns out he’s not actually into philosophy, he’s a fake academic with a superiority complex.”
A weight flew off her chest
“You’re way better off without him,” 
“I know! He thinks watching rick and morty is a personality trait,” 
“Oh god…” she laughed
She had to fight a smile for most of lunch
To her despair, the cycle repeated again, less than a week later
Then again and again, you were seeing a new boy every week for a little over a month
As it progressed, she began to notice feeling worse, then better with every guy you picked up and dumped
She started to worry she was being a bad friend, possessive and jealous
You could tell something was off, and had mentioned here and there if she needs to talk to you she can
Every act of closeness from you made her feel worse and better at the same time
You had asked her to help you re dye your hair, this time a bright lime green, and she had no idea how she’d made it through the long night of just the two of you without saying something really stupid
It was almost graduation by now and she felt like she was going to break in half
“That’s it, I’m done with men. Never touching another one. Ever.”
She looked up at you shocked
“You can hold me to that.” you finish, a laugh frosting the seriousness of your statement
A flood gate opened somewhere deep inside her
Before she could stop it, the thought crept up on her from the back of her mind
‘Least now I have a chance with her,’
The organicness shocked her so much she almost choked on her food
“You okay Di?” you asked
Her pulse was racing and she felt panic and adrenaline coursing through her in a way she’d never experienced
“Yeah, I just have go to the bathroom,” she said, standing up quickly and avoiding your eyes
“I’ll come with,” 
“No! It’s fine. I’ll be right back, stay here.” 
You agreed
She rushed into the bathroom to google “does having a crush on a girl mean i’m gay” 
She tried rephrasing the question a hundred times, glad she remembered to turn on private browsing before she started
She tries to calm her breathing as she gets the same answer five times in a row
“If you keep asking if you’re gay, you probably are”
One article on realizing you have a crush on your girl best friend was actually slightly helpful
It was validating, gave advice on how to act normal, and emphasized there’s time to sort out these feelings and what they might mean later
She read it three times before the bell rang
Shit
She had half her classes with you, what was she gonna do now?
She came out of the bathroom and there you were, waiting for her
“Hey, you okay?”
“Ye- uh… yeah, I’m… sick I think. That’s why I left suddenly, and couldn’t… finish lunch,” she was a terrible liar to you, and just hoped that whatever forces had gotten her in trouble so many times could convince you this was all cause of a stomach bug
“Oh, that sucks. I have an extra bag of chips if you get hungry later, and if you wanna sleep after class instead of hang out I totally get it.” 
Her heart was palpitating
At least you seemed to believe it
“Yeah,  I probably should… and I probably shouldn’t get too close to you- like, I should stay away from you. Cause I don’t want you to get sick too.” she knew she was rambling and had no idea how to fix it.
“Okay, text me later. I’m here to talk if you wanna.” you smiled, and squeezed her shoulder, her heart squeezing at the same time
She left in a hurry to get to her next class, for once grateful you weren’t in it
Over the next week or so, the idea of having a huge uncontrollable crush on you started to be less scary
She just didn’t want to lose you
She knew everything about you
Your favorite color, violet
Your favorite singer, someone named king princess
Your favorite food, broccoli
Even your favorite lip balm flavor, cherry
She had to set all these feelings aside and be there for you as a friend, because that’s what you needed her to be
Just for another week, then you’d part ways for the summer and she could get over this before next year
She couldn’t stop the way her heart skipped a beat when you rested your head on her shoulder
Or when you were studying last night
You couldn’t figure out a problem, and put your head in her lap declaring,
“That’s it. We’re moving to a countryside cottage and becoming an old married farming couple.”
She didn’t breathe right for a second
She somehow managed to choke out
“God, please. That can be our plan b if we fail.”
Which, unfortunately, you didn’t 
You both passed, and unhappily went your separate ways for the summer
She tried to keep plans to meet up abstract, savoring that last hug on friday more than she should have
This plan will work, she’ll avoid you all summer, and come back next semester and be totally normal
It will all be fine
Or it would have if you hadn’t pressed a kiss on her cheek before she got pulled into a rented car, speeding off for the airport
Every minute between that second and seeing her dad at the airport was filled with thoughts of you
Five days had passed, and she couldn’t sleep
She had tried to keep texting you to a minimum, which only worked because of how much she was overthinking everything
Friends can kiss sometimes, right?
And yeah, you looked at her with those big sparkly eyes, but you’ve looked at her like that since she first met you
She was laying in bed, staring at the ceiling, and couldn’t get your stupid amazing smile out of her head
She was… overwhelmed
Her phone buzzed
Of course, it was you
She threw her phone on her bed without reading it
Her whole body was buzzy, her feelings had never been this strong
It was too much
She actually felt like she was going to explode in 10 seconds
She could feel a stupid impulse of some kind or another creeping up
A gentle tapping on her window snapped her out of it
‘It’s her’
No it’s not, she chastised herself, you’re practically on the other side of the country
She looked over at her window
It was you
It was you
Oh god
She scrambled out of bed, and threw the window open
You had already popped the screen off, propping it next to her window
“Hi,” you said,
“H-” she had no words
Time and time again you left her speechless
“Y-... your hair’s pink,” she choked out
You laughed and smiled that crooked little smile of yours, and she could feel her heart clench
“Yeah, d’you like it?”
“Yeah,” she said without a second thought
Something she’d read online came back to her in a rush
‘If you like your crush after they change their hair, you know it’s real’
Shit
You placed your hand on top of hers
“So… do you wanna go on an adventure?”
“Yes.” she answered, never wanting anything more
You laugh and lean forward, closer to her
You brush a strand of hair out of her face and watch as her eyes flutter closed
A surge of nerves pulse through you simultaneously, your hand still on her face
“Piper,” you whisper, sounding closer than before
“Hm?”
“... do you want to kiss?”
Relief floods her like nothing she’s ever experienced before
She nods twice, vigorously
Your lips connect in a moment of pure euphoria
You’re soft
You taste like cherry, and that gum you’re always chewing, grapefruit and pear and a little cayenne
Her lips are warm and soft and so inviting
When you finally pull away, you’re both breathless, already wanting more
Her mind is reeling
What if this is just a fling or something, what if this isn’t like, romantic kissing and it’s the kind of kissing best friends probably do sometimes?
Best friends can kiss sometimes, right???
She has to do it now, there’s no way she could possibly come back from this
She has to tell you how she feels
But how can she say it?
She can’t just blurt it out
It has to be perfect
But she also has to be able to take it back in case you say no
“Piper,” you start again
“Yeah?” she breathes
Once again you take the words right out of her, spinning them into something beautiful and easy to understand
“Do you want to be girlfriends? Like, date each other?”
She’s frozen for a second
This has to be a dream
It feels fake
She’s been dying to hear you say those exact words for months
And how much more in character could it have been than after asking her to go on an adventure
She looks into your eyes, searching for a hint of a lie
She finds nothing
And for a moment, for the first time, she sees your composure begin to crack
You look… scared
She realizes she hasn’t answered yet
“Yes!” she blurts, pulling you in to kiss you again and again
“Yes, yes, yes…” she mutters between kisses
Your giggles hit her ears, sounding different than ever before
After what feels like forever and not nearly long enough, you finally part again
“So…” you play with her hair, braiding a loose strand
“How ‘bout that adventure?”
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