#and she was visibly distressed

[pearlcaddy]

LOCKWOOD & CO. 1.08

[lapdogchase]

fun game for my government professor! guess my political affiliation using only The percentage of my essay thats just ranting about how much i hate the heiritage foundation and the stupid tricks they used in a specific survey to make it look like everyone agrees with them

[identityquest]

oc comic i doubt ill ever finish

[kaijutegu]

Alligator Body Language and You, or: How To Know When An Alligator On Social Media is Being Stressed for Views

Alligators are wild animals. Despite the idiotic claims of animal abusers like Jay Brewer, they cannot be domesticated, which means they are always going to react on the same natural instincts they've had for millions of years. Habituated, yes. Tamed, yes. Trained, definitely. Crocodilians can form bonds with people- they're social and quite intelligent. They can solve problems, use tools, and they're actually quite playful. Alligators are also really good at communicating how they're feeling, but to somebody who doesn't spend much time around them, their body language can be a bit mystifying. And it doesn't help when social media influencers are saying shit like this:

That is not what a happy gator looks like.

That's a terrified, furious gator who isn't attacking because the ogre handling her has her in a chokehold. She's doing everything she can to express her displeasure, and he's lying about it because he knows his audience doesn't even know how to think critically about what he's doing. He knows that because his audience doesn't know anything about these animals, he can get away with it. This I think is why I hate him so much- he deliberately miseducates his audience. He knows what he's doing is factually inaccurate, he just doesn't care because attention means more to him than anything else in the world.

Let's change that! Here are two really important lessons for understanding alligator body language on social media.

Lesson 1: Alligators Don't Smile (in fact, most animals don't)

So what's going on in this video? Jay Brewer is aggressively choking his white alligator Coconut while scrubbing algae off of her with a toothbrush. And make no mistake, he is digging into the creature's throat while she is visibly distressed. He claims she's happy- but she's not. He is willfully misrepresenting what this animal is feeling. That's a problem, because people... well, we actually kind of suck at reading other species' body language. The reason for this is that we tend to overlay our own responses on their physical cues, and that's a problem. For example, let's look at an animal with a really similar face to ours, the chimpanzee. Check out Ama's toothy grin!

Wait, no. That's not a happy smile. That's a threat display. When a chimpanzee "smiles," it's either terrified and doing a fear grimace, or it's showing you its teeth because it intends on using them in your face.

How about a dog? Look at my smiling, happy puppy!

Oh wait no, this is a picture of Ryder when he was super overwhelmed by noise and people during a holiday party. He'd hopped up in my sister's lap to get away from stuff that was happening on the floor and was panting quite heavily. See the tension in the corners of his mouth and his eyes? A lot of the time when a dog "smiles," the smile isn't happy. It's stress! Why Animals Do The Thing has a nice writeup about that, but the point is, our body language is not the same as other species. And for reptiles, body language is wildly different.

For instance, look at these two alligators. Pretty cute, right? Look at 'em, they're posing for a Christmas card or something! How do you think they're feeling?

Well, I'll tell you how the normal one is feeling. He's annoyed! Why is he annoyed? Because the albino just rolled up, pushed another gator off the platform, and is trying to push this guy, too. I know this because I actually saw it happen. It was pretty funny, not gonna lie. He's not gaping all the way, but he was hissing- you can actually see him getting annoyed in the sequence I took right before this shot. Look at him in this first shot here- he's just relaxing, and you can see he isn't gaping even a little bit.

By the end, he's expressing displeasure, but not enough to actually do anything about it. He's annoyed, but he's comfy and that's where one of the best basking areas is, so he'll put up with it.

Reptiles open their mouths wide for a lot of reasons, but never because they are actively enjoying a sensation. Unless they're eating. No reptile smiles- they can't. They don't even have moveable lips. If a reptile is gaping, it's doing so because:

It is doing a threat display.

It is making certain vocalizations, all of which are threats. Alligators are one of the rare reptiles that do regularly vocalize, but most of their calls aren't made with a wide open mouth.

It is about to bite something delicious or somebody stupid. Check out this video- virtually all of the gaping here is anticipatory because these trained gators know darn well that the bowl is full of delicious snacks. (I have some issues with Florida's Wildest, but the man knows how to train a gator AND he is honest about explaining what they're doing and why, and all of his animals are healthy and well-cared for, and he doesn't put the public or his staff at risk- just himself.)

It's too hot and it has opened its mouth to vent some of that heat and thermoregulate. This is the main reason why alligators will often have their mouths part of the way open, but sometimes they'll open all the way for thermoregulation. This is what a thermoregulatory gape looks like- usually it's not all the way open, kinda more like < rather than V, but you can't say that 100% of the time. Additionally, a thermoregulatory gape... typically happens when it's hot out. If they're inside, maybe they've been under their basking light for too long. Heat's the dominant factor, is what I'm getting at.

There is another reason that a captive crocodilian might be gaping, and that's because it's doing so on command. Some places have their gators trained to gape on cue, like St. Augustine Alligator Farm and other good zoos. They have the animals do this in presentations that are genuinely educational. They ask the animals to open their mouths so that they can show off their teeth and demonstrate how their tongues seal off the back of their mouth. They'll also do it as part of routine healthcare, because looking at their teeth is important.

In this case, the animals aren't gaping because they're stressed, they're gaping because they know they're gonna get a piece of chicken or fish if they do it. And what's more, they're doing it on cue. They have a specific command or signal that tells them to open wide. It's not an instinctive response to a situation. It's trained. If the animal provides the behavior after a cue, the situation is much less likely to be negatively impactful.

It's also important to remember that there's a difference between a partially open mouth and a gape! As discussed above, alligators will often have their mouths a little bit open just to maintain temperature homeostasis. It helps them stay comfy, temperature-wise. These guys are all doing thermoregulatory open-mouthed behavior- that slight open and relaxed body posture is a dead giveaway. (That and it's the hottest spot in the enclosure.)

Lesson 2: A Happy Gator Is A Chill Gator

So if alligators don't smile or have facial expressions other than the :V that typically signifies distress, how else can you tell how they're feeling? One way is stillness. See, alligators subscribe to the philosophy of if it sucks... hit da bricks.

Basically, if they hate it, they'll leave. Unless, y'know, somebody has their meaty claws digging into their throat or is otherwise restraining them. (Restraint isn't always bad, btw. Sometimes the animal is going through a medical thing or needs to be restrained for their safety- which a responsible educator will explain.)

Let's look at a very similar scenario, in which a captive alligator is getting his back scrubbed.

As you can see, it's quite different. First, he's not being restrained at all. Second, look at how relaxed he is! He's just chilling there vibing! He could simply get up and leave if he wanted to, because he's not being held. Towards the end of the video, as he lifts his head, you can see that his respiratory rate is very even as his throat flutters a bit. I'm not sure what this facility is, so I can't comment on care/general ethics, but like. In this specific case, this is an alligator enjoying being scrubbed! And you can tell because he's not doing anything. A happy gator is content to be doing what they're doing.

Why Should I Listen To You?

Now, you should ask yourself, why should you listen to me? Why should you trust me, who does not own an alligator, versus Jay Brewer, who owns several?

Well, first off, there's no profit for me in telling you that what you're seeing on social media is in fact not what you're being told you're seeing. I'm not getting paid to do this. That's the thing with people who make social media content. The big names aren't doing it just for fun. They're doing it for money. Whether that's profit through partnerships or sponsorships, or getting more people to visit their facilities, or ad revenue, you can't ignore the factor of money. And this is NOT a bad thing, because it allows educators to do what they're passionate about! People deserve to be paid for the work that they do!

But the problem starts when you chase the algorithm instead of actually educating. A "smiling" alligator gets the views, and if people don't know enough to know better, it keeps getting the views. People love unconventional animal stories and they want those animals to be happy- but the inability to even know where to start with critically evaluating these posts really hinders the ability to spread real information. Like, this post will probably get a couple hundred notes, but that video of Coconut being scrubbed had almost 400,000 likes when I took that screenshot. Think about how many eyeballs that's reached by now. What I'm saying here is that it's just... really important to think critically about who you're getting your information from. What do dissenters say in the comments? What do other professionals say? You won't find a single herpetologist that has anything good to say about Prehistoric Pets, I can tell you that right now.

Another reason you can trust me is that my sources are not "just trust me bro," or "years of experience pretending my pet shop where animals come to die is a real zoo." Instead, here are my primary sources for my information on alligator behavior:

Dragon Songs: Love and Adventure among Crocodiles, Alligators, and Other Dinosaur Relations- Vladimir Dinets

The Secret Social Lives of Reptiles- J. Sean Doody, Vladimir Dinets, Gordon M. Burghardt

Social Behavior Deficiencies in Captive American Alligators (Alligator mississippiensis)- Z Walsh, H Olson, M Clendening, A Rycyk

Social Displays of the American Alligator (Alligator mississippiensis)- Kent Vliet

Social Signals and Behaviors of Adult Alligators and Crocodiles- Leslie Garrick, Jeffery Lang

Never smile at a crocodile: Gaping behaviour in the Nile crocodile at Ndumo Game Reserve, South Africa- Cormac Price, Mohamed Ezat, Céline Hanzen, Colleen Downs (this one's Nile crocs, not American alligators, but it's really useful for modeling an understanding of gape behaviors and proximity)

Thermoregulatory Behavior of Captive American Alligators (Alligator mississippiensis)- Cheryl S. Asa, Gary D. London, Ronald R. Goellner, Norman Haskell, Glenn Roberts, Crispen Wilson

Unprovoked Mouth Gaping Behavior in Extant Crocodylia- Noah J. Carl, Heather A. Stewart, Jenny S. Paul

Thank you for reading! Here's a very happy wild alligator from Sanibel for your trouble.

[landfilloftrash]

rip that owlin ayyy

[homunculus-argument]

Game concept that's probably already been done: A videogame about possession, where you, the player, are the foreign entity possessing the character you are playing as.

The story's whole point is to get you out of the protagonist's head, and since you want to complete the game, it's presumable that you therefore want to help the protagonist get rid of you. While you control the playable character's body, their narration is their own, and frequently comments on what you're making them do, with remarks like "ugh, can we focus? we need to go to the thing" when you start twiddling with pointless things instead of progressing the plot.

And occasionally the character just refuses to do what you want them to do. Instead of an invisible wall barring you from going beyond the boundaries of the game, the character consciously halts and tells you "no, that's far enough. We can't just wander off." If you try to make the character attack NPCs that you can't fight, they shudder and shake their head, going "no, what's wrong with you? She's my friend!"

At first the game kind of railroads what you need to do next, which is specifically by the character you're controlling refusing to do what you're trying to make them do. Their whole goal is to get rid of you, get this evil damn thing out of their head. But gradually you can build up trust with the character, by leading them to things they want or need, and keeping them out of danger.

Consequently, allowing the character to die or get injured makes them harder to control, and more likely to refuse to do as you want. And the less they trust you, the harder the game is. While the sliding scale of trust might not be a visible mechanic in the game, you can hear it in the tone in which they talk to you. The voice lines are mostly the same, but when you start leading the character to a random direction, the same "where are you taking me?" can either be calm but intrigued, or distressed and afraid.

[allyriadayne]

another theme that i found fascinating this ep was the greens' inability to connect with the other. otto cannot comfort alicent who cannot comfort neither of her children, each having to look for another. they are breaking apart but neither can do anything about it and it's so poignant to see otto not knowing how to comfort alicent, while she can't touch helaena unless she gets uncomfortable. and the son who might welcome her embrace, aegon, she is unable to offer him anything! she's only touched him with violence. she's helpless! and this is also shown when helaena and aegon meet on the stairs. she tries to maybe say something and he even stops to listen! but there's no protocol for this. neither of them have ever comforted the other. no one taught them how to connect. even aemond who is not as affected by the toddler murder has replaced alicent or some parental figure with the brothel madam. it's crazy

like, that first scene with otto and alicent is crazy. she's so visibly distressed and he stops behind her to maybe comfort her but he can't! that's not something they've done often. and when he gets the courage, she turns away!!!!!! and in case you didn't notice the theme, alicent gets another scene just like the other except it's her who can't comfort her child. and she turns away too!!!! parents are not for comfort.

[aakaneeee]

Love is presented in many ways throughout Alien Stage: For Mizi and Sua, it's codependent, romantic to a worrying extent. For Ivan and Till, it's one sided, unrequited, and painful.

And for Hyuna and Luka, it's a curse.

Not only a curse, but one that haunts them. Jacob once told Hyuna to "Forgive yourself", which, to her, was misplaced. She could have forgiven herself. It was Luka who she couldn't forgive. But, in the end, she couldn't fulfill the legacy. She couldn't forgive herself for loving Luka. She couldn't forgive Luka for killing who she loved. And so, what did she do? She passed on the legacy.

The words "Forgive yourself" didn't help her. They built who she was, but in the worst possible way. She couldn't take his words, because she didn't consider herself the culprit, but the one she resented.

She told this curse, "Forgive yourself" again. She told them to Luka, sentence that almost sounded mocking on her lips. She couldn't have died before because she had to keep moving forward, but now, the pressure wasn't on her shoulders anymore.

She loves Luka, of course she does. But she cannot possibly forgive him. She knows he doesn't realize the suffering he inflicts. It's ironic, he's so unbearably smart, solving puzzles in a matter of seconds, but he doesn't know how to take in the real world, and the feelings of the ones around him, the most important 'puzzle' of them all. So, she gives him the biggest dilemma of his life. It's harsh, cruel, messed up in every sense. It's the puzzle she knew he could never solve, because she herself, who knew humanity, couldn't. Hyuna knew Luka loved her more than himself. And Hyuna cared for Hyunwoo more than for herself. Luka killed Hyunwoo, and so, Hyuna repaid him with the same coin, an eye for an eye. With an act that is the ultimate sacrifice, and the ultimate revenge.

As I have said, Hyuna knew the love he had for her, beyond the limits of his own body. She must've known how much her act would destroy his world: a fate worse than death. Her kind tone, telling him to take as much time as he needs to solve the newfound question she has proposed in such an ugly way, appears almost taunting.

And the way she holds him in her arms, purposefully close, and looks into his eyes, makes it just so much more painful. And yet, when she speaks her soul, passes everything she was carrying on her shoulders, over to him, her face is hidden away, buried in his shoulder. She's free. She finally had her revenge. She can forgive him, and then herself, even though the price was destroying him, without building him up again. Leaving him like pieces of a puzzle that never got solved. She's been cruelly betrayed, and she, even more cruelly, fed him his own medicine.

Hyuna is haunted by both Hyunwoo and Luka, similar to how Mizi is haunted by Sua. Hyunwoo brings the horror aspect: the bloodied blouse and head, while Luka has the smile that Sua has in the imaginations. The two people she loved most: the one who couldn't forgive her because she didn't get to apologize, and the one she didn't forgive. It's all so incredibly complex: she hates and loves, she resents and adores. Hyuna can't pick anymore. We're shown that she's such an active person, sociable, loving, having a whole group of humans just like her, and yet, we're told that she thinks all of them are selfish, even if they seem altruistic. She doesn't trust them, it seems it's a facade. In this, Luka and Hyuna are similar, but divided by the fact he wants to conceal his emotions, and she wants to make them more visible.

This page, specifically, made me click MiziSua and HyuLuka together. They look scarily alike. The same lovey-dovey expression, versus the distressed one of the lover, even the slight glow that Luka has is similar. I think this is meant to show that they still depend on each other, despite the fact that Hyuna seems to resent him so much.

Hyuna says Luka doesn't know the meaning of love. That the only thing he's ever shown, the only thing he genuinely knows, is suffering, and that his abilities basically stop at inflicting the same. (At least, emotional ones.) This is a parallel to Ivan, in my opinion, who didn't know love either, but he liked the idea of it. Instead, Luka loved with everything he had, even though he had no idea what it truly was. His love is obsessive, and somehow, so impossibly innocent at the same time. Because in a way, he's still a child. When he sees Hyuna, he becomes immature again, his facade of control dissipating into thin air. He mocked Mizi for her inability, but he's even worse.

According to his ear monitor, his heart was beating out of his chest. He could hear his own erratic heartbeat. It's painful, how happy he was, how excited, to be in her arms again. And yet, despite the love, the embrace was just as much of revenge.

Ever since Wiege, we've seen Luka smile so much. Just for him to never truly smile again.

I am a fan of the gentleness that Hyuna treats young Luka with. She seems awfully attached to the image of that innocence she knew. But it's not like Mizi's idea of Sua, the perfect one. It's an image she can't bear seeing again. "I couldn't stand seeing myself on those posters, because I knew exactly the face the you'd have. Yes, I bet you were smiling ear to ear." We've only seen him like this for the first time, but to her, it was so familiar, even years apart, she still knew.

Another thing I have noticed is that Hyunwoo's grave is right infront of a tree, almost separated from the others, just the way Luka was sitting before Hyuna found him. Now, this time, Hyunwoo lost Hyuna, and he's forever forced to be lonely in the garden he'll never grow out of.

Hyuna wanted to give Luka a rubik's cube he wouldn't be able to solve, something difficult. A rubik's cube can represent human nature, who Luka seems to have mastered completely. But Hyuna finally manages to postpone him: the puzzle is herself.

And in the end, after Hyuna's body goes limp, he finally manages to take her in his arms. He promised that there, she'd be safe, but he didn't manage to keep her that way. And suddenly, the words "My Savior" from Ruler of my Heart are awfully true.

[cetoddle-archive]

i love it here i feel so miserable i can barely move but i managed to drag myself out of bed and go into the living room to say hi to my mom who’s on the phone with my grandma and she was just like “oh she came in here looking miserable. anyways” and went back to talking about my sister 😐

[lorasdolly]

𝙰𝙶𝙸𝚃𝙰𝚃𝙴𝙳 𝚆𝙸𝙵𝙴 𝙰𝙼𝙱𝙴𝚂𝚂𝙰

"Did I not tell you to remain outside, for the sake of—" Her words echoed against the walls as her gaze shifts onto you, her fists against the polished surface of the desk.

She was ready to yell another plethora of cruel words towards the servants who were insistent on bothering her till no end, but her jaw untensed and eyebrows visibly relaxed at the sight of you.

"Oh, dearest." She speaks with a softer tone, slumped over the edge with a sigh. Your frame carefully approaches her, cautious to not throw more fuel on the fire. Ambessa's tongue runs across her lips to hydrate them.

"Seems like there is something bother you," you spoke with the usual sweetness in your tone. "The servants had me rushed over here." A chuckle escapes your lips at the mere image of how they showed up at your quarters, distressed over Ambessa's inability to calm down.

"You always did have a sixth sense." Ambessa says, a slight exasperated edge. She hook her head, a dry laugh escaping her lips, no humor behind it.

Her demeanor shifted as you got closer to her desk, softening at the sound of your voice and sight of your presence. Her clothes were disheveled, hair was messy, along with the sagging of her broad shoulders.

Exhaustion took over every crevice of her usually stoic face. "Come here, sit with me, dearest." She intended to relax, and she thanked the servants for at least doing one thing right and sending her wife over.

You smiled at her insistence, the granting of permission to come in close like a breath of fresh air. You pick up your step, watching as she sits back in her desk chair.

A small smile graced your lips at the sight of your wife, even if she could have snapped at any moment like a lion at rest. You were getting dolled up once the servants came to fetch you for Ambessa like a chew toy, and you didn't have much time to finish getting ready.

Your figure stood between her legs now, hands on her shoulders as you patiently waited for any further word from Ambessa.

"Sit," she repeats, her deep voice slightly firmer. Her larger hands reach to grip your hips, gently pushing and pull you till you're seated upon her lap.

Her shoulders relaxed at the skin-to-skin contact, muscles untensing with a sigh. Ambessa's arms loosely wrap around your frame, legs parting slightly to help you comfortably settle upon her thigh.

Your hands responded in kind, grabbing her hand gently and pecking from her finger tips, down her knuckles, and to her wrist. It was a silent, intimate moment between you and your wife.

Your eyes shut gently, tenderly allowing the embrace between you and your wife to take place. It wasn't a stressful day for you, but truthfully, it never was.

Ambessa had ensured your life was easygoing, breakfast in bed to reading all day. The least you could do for her was give her time with you to calm down.

"Mmph," the warm and nearly inaudible noise left her full lips, enjoying the attention you peppering kisses across her skin. Her head rested further against you, burying her nose the crook of your neck and inhaling the subtle scent.

Teasingly slow, her hands slip under the hem of your dress. She slips them further to feel the warm and supple skin of your thumb. As she begins to rub gentle, soothing circle against the flesh.

You smile, your grip on her hand released. Instesd, you tangled your fingers in her hair. You accepted her touch and carressing, feet swinging off her lap.

Gently, you press a balmy kiss against her cheek, pink lipstick mark coating the small area now. She didn't notice, but you chuckled internally. Your fingertip now traced the kissy mark, feeling her hands everywhere.

"You look as beautiful as a painting perched on my lap here, dearest." She speaks as her nose nuzzles against your jawline. A soft grumble left her mouth while her calloused hands traced the expanse of your thighs.

She hiked up your dress, her noises raspy and tired yet hungry.

"A painting?"

Your fingertips continued to trace, now on her bulging muscles that can be seen from under her clothes. "Becoming a romantic the moment the exhaustion gets to you?" It was only a teasing jab, you appreciated her kind words.

It was also far from the truth. Even if she didn't express her romance through words, the worship and praise you'd receive physically was enough to create a show for it.

"I'm perfectly lucid," she retorts, a small smirk crossing her lips. "Can't a woman compliment her wife without any ulterior motives?"

Her hands were now located on your ass, squeezing and rubbing the malleable skin beneath her fingers. Her warm, chapped lips find purchase upon your shoulder blade, grazing the skin.

Throaty moans left you as your arched your back slightly. Her hand wandering towards your cunt made it harder to focus on trying to be enticing.

Now, rather than focusing on her, she was making it about you. Somehow, she managed to always flip the tables on you, making you a dumb mess on her lap sooner or later.

She traced your lace panties, breathes escaping your mouth not nearly as quick enough. Your lips continued to stay parted, hands tugging at her hair with ease.

"'Bessa," you murmured, slightly muffled by the long sigh you took.

“Mmm,” her voice is low, and a guttural sound that vibrates through her chest. Her touch becomes more firm, and you can almost feel the callouses on her palm as she strokes over your clothed flesh.

"Use your words for me, sweetheart.”

You nod desperately, "Fucking touch me, 'Bessa. Please." You weren't thinking straight or ethically any longer, willing to say anything so she'd make you feel good.

Your reactions presented your desire for her, sweet little noises and squirming around on her lap. She didn't mind the fisting of her hair, truthfully she hardly even noticed when you hit her shoulder at an attempt to silence yourself.

“Good, dearest," she croons, the praise sounding almost condescending as she pulls you close. She holds your chin, her fingers gripping you almost forcefully as she tugs you so you’re facing her.

Her eyes, still tired and dark, meet yours, and without a word she pushes her knee between your thighs, and drags it against you. A silent demand, a command. Wanting you to work for it.

You moan in despair, but nonetheless start dragging your clothed cunt against her knee to satisfy your needs for a temporary moment.

You'd need assistance eventually, but for now staring at her pretty face and grinding on her tensing muscles would make do.

Your noises grew louder and so did her smugness, her hands starting to gently guide you rocking against her knee.

Her desires started testing her restraint, the need to snake a hand between your thighs and enter you smoothly from all your slick.

To distract herself from her own hunger, her hands now cup your face, and it’s only a moment longer until she’s pressing her lips to your own in a heated, almost desperate kiss. Despite her fatigue, her kisses hold a certain hunger and fervor that only she can display so quickly.

Her knee remains between your thighs, pushing with an amount of heat that only increases with every motion. Each and every gasp and whine that escapes your lips, only adding to the hunger.

You kept riding her thigh, grinding as you let the sloppy kiss grow deeper. You tried to put on your best performance in hopes she'd give up and fuck you straight already.

Your hips started stuttering, movements becoming messier as you needed a release that her thigh alone couldn't get for you. Normally, you'd beg for more, but the most you could do is break the kiss with a string of saliva and stare at her like a bitch in heat.

Her last thread of self-control snapped, slithering her hand under your lace panties and parting your folds. This suddenness caused you to wrap both arms around her neck, clinging like a vice.

She felt the arousal for a moment before plunging a finger in, feeling the velvety, gummy walls. She let your adjust and swirl the finger inside before adding another one, the wetness sufficient to fit both.

She stretched you out perfectly, curling softly into your g-spot. The slow movements made you more needy, bucking your lips down onto her hand, encouraging her to curl her digits quicker.

The way her fingers rammed into your g-spot made you dumber and dumber, nothing but her name and moans leaving your mouth like a chanted prayer.

Then she pumped her fingers in and out, your fingernails digging into her shoulder, surely leaving marks. A white ring coated her fingers every time she thrusted them in and out, signaling how close you were to cumming on her fingers.

Ambessa's "Come on, dearest. You're such a good girl, cum for me, make me happy." was all you need to wet her fingers further with your orgasm.

Slowly helping you ride your high, she pulled the fingers out and located them inside your mouth, allowing you to lick and suckle till they're freshly cleaned with your own saliva.

[fushitoru]

the importance of skincare a gojo satoru fic

PAIRING: gojo x reader SUMMARY: worried about your boyfriend's skin health, you're set out on a mission to teach him about skincare, sitting him down and rubbing products over his face while seated on his lap. only, he convinces you that he has something to teach as well about facials. just not the kind you expected. WARNINGS: NOT EDITED, oral (m!rec), gojo cums all over reader's face, nsfw, FLUFF (a lot of it), established relationship, gojo is a nuisance, gn!reader, i have writer's block and this helped, silly little thought based off this drabble

“Applying sunscreen on my boyfriend because otherwise, this is what we’ll look like when we’re 60.”

You gasped out loud, despite being alone. Rolling around on the couch you were lazing in, you stared at the paused screen in front of you: a woman and her boyfriend, except she’s finely aged with a few wrinkles, and he looks like an extremely wrinkled potato. Suddenly, your mind flashes back to all the moments your boyfriend, Satoru, would scroll on his phone while you finished your nighttime skin care routine.

“Baby, you really should start doing some skincare.” You give him a sideways glance while rubbing snail mucin all over your face.

Satoru looks up from whatever nonsensical reel on his page half heartedly and observes you as you pat your hands all over your face and neck. “I wash my face.”

“Using your 13-in-1 wash?”

“I don’t use 13-in-1 wash.” Satoru fully looks up, frowning. Sassily, he adds, “And what you’re rubbing all over your face looks like cum.”

That’s as much prodding you’ve done to convince your boyfriend to adopt better facial hygiene, but today was different. You were not about to let your pretty boyfriend get skin cancer or age like milk.

The door opened, as Satoru stepped into your apartment. “Hi, baby!” You perked up from washing your dishes, your form barely able to peek over the kitchen counters over to him, at your doorstep. He can hear pitter patters of your feet as you make your way to him. Then your warmth envelops him, smelling of dish soap and rose. He gives a little mwah! to the top of your head while murmuring, “I bought crepes for you today. Extra Nutella and everything.”

But rather than excitedly reaching for the crepes, you stayed in his hold, hugging onto him tight and stuffing your face in his shirt, breathing in deeply as if to memorize his scent. Satoru confusedly looks down at you, hesitantly coming up to rub your scalp to give you head scratches with his free hand. “Are you okay?” 

“Satoru, we have to talk,” you mumble into his chest. 

Alarmed, Satoru looks down at you. “Oh my god,” Satoru nervously exclaims, “at least let me put down our crepes before you give me a heart attack.” Your only response is to nuzzle your face further into his chest, while he grabs your hand, unwraps you from him, and leads you to your couch. He puts the crepes down on the dinner table and grabs both of your hands, pouting and frowning slightly in that sweet, ignorant way of his. “What happened? Did I do something wrong?”

You glanced up at him, staring in distress. “Babe, you need to do your skincare.”

“This is what you wanted to talk about?” Satoru looks at you confused. “I thought it was something serious.” You almost want to sob at the way he looks like a confused kitten. You don’t understand why you’re so hung up over that one TikTok—although, your menstrual cycle app did say menstruation was near—but it definitely changed your outlook on your boyfriend’s skin health. 

“This is serious.” You were visibly growing more and more listless until you suddenly make the decision to stand up and make your way somewhere towards the bathroom. 

When you came back, you had your hefty Chanel purse, one that Satoru gifted you for your 2nd year anniversary. You set it down in the space between you and Satoru with a plop! as you began to rummage through the contents to find your essential skincare items. Dragging him to the bathroom, you command him to wash his face. And, to his credit, he does go through all the motions, albeit a little confused. 

A few minutes later, you sit him down on the couch—with your skincare items in hand—and take your seat on his lap. Satoru’s still a little confused as to what’s going on, but—to his credit—you aren’t doing much explanation, either. 

“Baby, I’m really confused,” Satoru is now putting his hands on your hips, pulling you closer to his torso as you lather different creams on your hands. Any further questions from him are stopped as you gently rub them all over his face, targeting his T-zone and cheeks. 

“I saw a TikTok of this girl ‘nd her boyfriend, ‘Toru,” you explain, lathering his face. “He doesn’t do his sunscreen, so he’s going to look like an overboiled tomato when he’s 60. Didn’t want the same for you.” 

 You continue to reach for another bottle, until you realize it’s set too far down the table for you to reach. Naturally, Satoru reaches it for you and puts it in your hands, frowning. “You made me so worried. I thought I did something wrong.”

“You are doing something wrong. You’re doing your pretty skin wrong.” You were scowling, but your hands were sweetly patting Satoru’s face in a way that made him relax. After a long day of dealing with Yaga, he appreciated your soothing hands massaging the tension out of his face. It was never easy dealing with dissaproving old fucks. 

Deciding to adjust his posiiton, Satoru crossed his arms behind his head, laying back onto the couch instead of sitting. Closing his eyes, he felt you straddling him in an effort to reach across his torso to his face to continue your pampering. You both fell into a comfortable silence as you droned on about what you were putting onto his face. A serum that smelled good. “This is hyaluronic acid serum. This’ll keep your face nice and hydrated.” A cream that felt cold on Satoru’s skin. “This is niacinamide, because I know you picked on your acne and boogers when you were going through puberty.” He wanted to protest, but it was so hard to when you pair the insult with a small smooch on his nose. Something that smelled harsher than the others. “This is retinol, and it’ll help you prevent wrinkles.”

In the midst of your teaching, he cracked open an eye and grabbed both of your hands by the wrist, seemingly in thought. “Wait, babe. You’re missing something.” You blinked. “What?” 

“Well, there’s this thing called facials." The beginnings of a smug smile bloomed across his face. It’s really good for your skin, ‘nd I have just the thing with me."

“‘Toru, you are so stupid,” you whined, licking up and down his cock and balls, giving little kisses to his pink and throbbing length.

“Shhh, baby, this is good fo’ you, I promise.” Sounds of plap! plap! echoed throughout the room as your boyfriend slapped his cock against your cheeks. He groaned, taking in the arousing sight of you: on your knees, only wearing his shirt. His cock hardens at the thought of you, his pretty little girlfriend, spending all day in his clothing. He could see your cute little baby blue panties covering your ass as his shorts rode up in your attempts to take his cock deeper in your mouth. As you continued to slobber on his cock, deepthroating him, he could continually smell your arousal, moaning as he realized you must be ruining your underwear.

“Awww, I can smell you, sweetheart. Your little pussy getting wet from just sucking my cock? I’m not even touching you,” Satoru pouted in faux pity and cooed, patting your head while he continually fed you his cock. 

You tried to protest. “Mmmff—” 

“Shhhh,” Satoru had a cocky smile on his face as he shushed you. “Don’t talk with your mouth full, baby.” With that, he lightly grabbed your hair, looking down at you for permission. When you nodded, he began face fucking you in earnest, cock throbbing as your hot, wet mouth enclosed around him. Your tongue laving over his sensitive spots made him groan. “Your mouth feel sooo good. What a good girl, taking my cock, slobbering all over it—fuck.”

He felt himself coming closer. “Baby,” he groaned, “you’re about to make me cum. Gotta give you your facial, right? Make you all nice and pretty?” You whined, tears running down your cheeks because of your stuffed mouth. It sent vibrations up and down his cock, making him come even closer. “Fuuuuck. Fuck, I’m coming.” Satoru pulled out of your mouth, pumping his cock onto your face, your tongue stretched and your eyes directly on his. Rubbing your tongue softly on his tip was what made him reach his climax; he moaned as he splurted long and think ropes of cum, coating your cheeks, forehead, and tongue. It was all so messy. Even after being done, Satoru was continually rubbing his cum into your skin with his cock. 

“Wheeew.” Satoru giggled, reaching down to put you on his lap. “Looks like you got your skincare.”

“Satoru, please give me a tissue. Right now. Your cum is dripping all over my face.”

“Aw, don’t be like that,” he whined. To your annoyance, he only further rubbed in the creamy substance over your face, using his palms and fingers to spread it. 

Disgusted, you knew what to say. “You’re never getting head from me ever again.”

Satoru had never scrambled to the bathroom faster.

a/n lol he's so stupid. this is the only thing i could force my brain to write but now i'm locked in and finishing all my drafts fr

[naburi]

GOT YOU!

CHAEWON X READER

TAGS: MASKED SEX, FORCED SEX

2.2K WORDS

“Got you!” Chaewon confidently said before she pulled you into an empty room. “Who are y-“ you protested but you were too drunk to resist. She sits you on the edge of the bed before sitting on your lap. She wraps her arms around your neck as she gives your mask small kisses then slowly adds her tongue, making out on the mask. She got interrupted by the sudden ringing in her phone. “Hey! Are we still going to meet?” A horrifying realization hits her.

Chaewon tries to stand up but you hold her by the waist and pull her down on the bed. “No! No! I thought you were-“ the girl tries to explain herself. You pull her jersey up revealing a black sports bra that’s covering her small tits. You sneak your hand inside her bra to take a hold of her tits. Your cold leather gloves add to her sensation as you pinches her nipples. The girl can only moan but continue to resist. You catch her two hands pushing you away and hold it over her head.

You give her small tits a hard grope and multiple slaps as they turn red. Your cold glove trails down down to her small waist to reach her shorts. You unbutton her jean shorts as you put your hand over her underwear. Chaewon twitches as she can feel your cold glove even over her underwear. Your fingers slowly teasing her slit as you pressed in over her now wet underwear. The girl's arms are still resisting but her legs say otherwise.

Her legs are visibly twitching when your cold glove meets her clit over her wet panties. Chaewon can only groan as she tries to hold her soft moans. An unwanted stranger is touching her body without her permission. She looks back on her mistake of not checking who's under the mask. She hates that someone she didn’t know is making her body quiver in pleasure. You push her wet panties aside to make a direct contact on her slit. The texture of the leather also adds to her sensation. Her wet slits lubricate the leather as you plunge one thick finger glove inside her.

Chaewon releases a surprisingly loud moan. The cold finger glove inside her is too much for her sensation. You were pretty sure that some people outside heard that moan. You try to plunge the finger glove deeper which made the girl bent her back. Another loud moan left her mouth, all of her inside walls are feeling the coldness and the foreign texture of the glove. Chaewon doesn’t like how vulnerable she is right now. She’s embarrassed that one of the well known sophomores on campus is getting violated like this.

“F-fuck!!” She verbalized. Chaewon realizes that her reputation will take a hit if the whole campus finds out what happened. All she can do right now is to go along with this. She hates the fact that she agrees to meet up with someone she hooked up with before, she hates it even more that she mistook you for that person. You felt that she stopped resisting and now is making eye contact with you. Instinctively, You pull your finger glove inside her slit. You put that wet finger in front of her mouth, testing her if she’s now willing to do this with you.

With no hesitation, she sucks that finger glove while still making eye contact with you. Your finger disappears and reappears in her mouth as she continues to suck it like she’s proving a point. She wants to show you that she’s not a damsel in distress. Chaewon holds your hand to keep it in that position. The girl continues to suck the finger glove, making a wet noise in the process. Your other hand holds her by the hair, trying to pull her in your crotch, signaling what you want.

Chaewon sucks it some more before her mouth leaves the wet finger glove. You find the head rest to lay on your back while the girl is now slowly creeping in on you. You let her unbuckle your belt, biting it to pull it out of the lock. She unbutton your pants to pull it down, revealing your hard cock that’s begging to be left out in your underwear. Chaewon paused for a moment, she didn’t realize you have a big cock. You noticed her hesitancy, you tapped her head, signaling her to continue.

This girl doesn’t like getting instructed to do things. Instead of pulling down your underwear, she just strokes your bulge over it. Frustrated by her actions, you pull her hair forcefully, to move her face close in your crotch. You use your other hand to pull your cock out, touching her face. The girl darts a glare on you while she gives your cock small pecks. The girl keeps glaring at you while she slowly sucks your tip.

Your cock looks bigger due to how small Chaewon's face is. She tries to suck your whole cock on but falls short all the time. The girl looks annoyed that she can brag about how well she just deepthroated your huge cock. She knows that if you aren’t satisfied again, you might force your way into things. Expectantly, you grab the girl in the back of her head while you meet her mouth with your thrust. Chaewon somehow finally manages to take all of your cock. You let her pull her head back as she coughs. Her mouth hasn’t been stretched that deep before.

You smirk when you see how watery her eyes get with the sudden deepthroat. “No! N-“ ignoring her plea, you hold her short hair in a makeshift pigtail before you push her face down to your cock. Her nose now touches your lower abdomen. Chaewon keeps pushing herself up but you enjoy the way her face turns red and her eyes bloodshot. You hold her in that position just before she can’t take it anymore. The girl lay flat on her back when you finally let her go. She coughs and breathes heavily as she catches some air.

Chaewon's eyes closed, she wished for the night to end, she shut her eyes as she’s about to rest. All of a sudden, the girl was knocked back to her senses when you pulled her by the legs. The girl looks shocked, your hard cock is just inches away from her slit. Removing her jean shorts completely, leaving her wet panties. Chaewon’s body twitches when you first tap your hard cock on her panties. She didn’t know why her body responded like that, the girl is on high alert due to the stress she’s currently experiencing.

You tap your cock on her wet panties a few more times, observing her reaction. Chaewon’s eyes are glued to your hard cock that’s now pressing on her underwear. On edge on what you’re about to do, the girl tries to look you in the face but all she can see is the cold mask that you’re wearing. The girl looks defeated, the famous sophomore that everyone admires is just getting used like a sex slave.

You move aside her panties just as you align your hard cock. Your cock is visibly pulsating due to how turned on you are by this situation. Chaewon’s eyes look like she’s about to cry. She doesn’t even think that she can take the size of it. She has taken “big” cocks before but she didn’t know that a size like yours could be possible. Not knowing that her best friend, Yunjin is in a similar situation but with the biggest cock in the campus.

Chaewon’s eyes are forced shut as she is anticipating your penetration. A smile forms on your face when you notice her expression. You put your hard tip on her slit and the girl is already moaning in surprise. You move your cock painfully slow while you focus on her reaction. The girl grimaced as she felt her inside walls get stretched slowly. She let out a long low groan until you pause your penetration.

Her walls are too tight to go deep but your whole shaft isn’t in yet. You hold her by her very thin waist to push your cock more in her. A bulge was visible on her stomach as your whole cock is now inside her. Chaewon screams in pain. Nobody has reached this deep within her, she felt like her legs would split in two as her deeper walls got stretched for the first time. You’re chuckling under the mask as the girl is losing her mind just by taking your whole cock.

Chaewon screams in pain again as you slowly pull out your cock. The bulge on her stomach has also disappeared. Her small pelvic can’t take your size. The girl is now in tears, she tried to wipe her tears on her eyes as she’s trying to collect herself together. Chaewon yelps as she feels your tip going inside her again. You try again to surge her inside, you both grow with how your cock feels her tight walls. Your cock bulges out again on her stomach as you all of your cock is deep in her again.

Loud groans echo in the room as you now move in and out of her. You and Chaewon are looking at your cock bulging out of her stomach with your every thrust. She can’t mentally process how her body is getting ravaged right now. You looked at her face and saw the girl biting her lips. Somehow, she finds it arousing how her body is getting used like a rag doll. She does not want to admit it but she knows deep down that she likes being used like a rag doll. It turns her own how you only care about fucking the hell out of her. Everyone boy she encounters worship her unlike you whose only goal is to pleasure yourself with her tiny body.

Chaewon may try to hide it but her body betrays her. Her legs are unconsciously spreading out, inviting more of your thrust. You noticed this subtlety and held her by the legs to pound her upwards to hit her g-spot. The girl covers her mouth as she wants to hold her high pitch moan. You grab that hand of hers away from her face and press her cheeks with one hand. You want to open her mouth up to hear her unholy moans. Chaewon is still trying to protest against your dominance, she is trying to close her mouth to stop moaning.

Her persistent denial is getting on your nerves. You put two fingers on her mouth to keep it open. The leather on your gloves is touching her tongue. You move your fingers inside her mouth, seemingly instructing her tongue to lick it. Chaewon can’t help it anymore. She starts licking your finger gloves as you keep up your pace in fucking her. Your hand on her mouth while the other is holding her leg. You leverage yourself to fasten your thrust in her. Making inside walls used to your girth.

Muffled and sloppy moans continue to leave her mouth as Chaewon enjoys sucking and licking your finger gloves not knowing that this will haunt her later on. You give her a deep thrust before resting your cock inside her. You focus your attention on her drooling mouth. Saliva pours down on the side as she continues to lap your fingers. You teasingly pull away your fingers to elicit a reaction for her. She holds your hand to keep it in place and continues to suck it like it’s the only thing she knows.

You let her suck your fingers as you pull back your cock before plugging it back in again. Chaewon pauses for a moment as she feels your thrust. Her warm walls are now less tighter than before. This let you fuck her in more faster pace. The girl’s mouth is left open, static with how fast you're moving. You finally pull your fingers out of her to hold her by the waist with your two hands. Your hands that’s on her side can almost touch due to how small her waist is. Having a great hold of her, you thrust in her rapidly, almost lifting her up every time your hips collide.

Chaewon screams as she feels all of your cock going in and out of her. She arches her back in ecstasy so you keep holding her down by the waist to not break your rhythm. Her legs start to shake as she’s getting near her orgasm. Chaewon let out a high pitch scream and she seemingly blackout when she finally released.

A few minutes later, Chaewon opens her eyes, not remembering what just happened. She looks confused when she sees a hard cock that’s dangling upside down infront of her face. Her head is hanging over the edge of the bed, you tap your cock in her lips before you insert your shaft in her mouth, that’s when she wakes back to her senses and remembers the horrifying reality that she’s still in.

[genderkoolaid]

In 2014, the Gloucester county school board voted to ban Grimm, then 15, from using the boys’ bathrooms, even though he’d been living openly as a boy for months and using the restroom without incident. The policy turned deeply intimate facts of Grimm’s life into a media spectacle. With the ACLU, he sued to defend his rights to use facilities that matched his gender, launching a groundbreaking national case on bathroom access. Grimm became an LGBTQ+ icon, celebrated by Laverne Cox at the Grammys and interviewed by Whoopi Goldberg on The View. He eventually won a landmark federal decision asserting trans youth’s constitutional protections against discrimination. [...] And while Grimm became a civil rights trailblazer, the case did not secure him stability or financial security. The Pride parade invites have stopped coming, and like so many other marginalized trans people, Grimm has faced significant mental health challenges and struggles with poverty. He recently lost his housing, and is now facing homelessness. “I’m someone who has had worldwide visibility. I represent an outer crust of privilege most people will never see, and I cannot make ends meet no matter how hard I try,” he says. [...] Much of his family rejected him [after coming out], but many friends and teachers were supportive as he entered 10th grade as a boy and clearly more comfortable in his skin. He initially used a private nurse’s restroom, but it was inconveniently located; peers and staff noted his long bathroom breaks, leaving him alienated and humiliated. So the principal and guidance counselor agreed to let him use the boys’ restroom, and for two months, he had no issues. But gossip circulated outside school and on a community Facebook forum, where people posted vicious comments. Friends defending him online faced harassment. “It was the adults who made it a problem, because their mentality spread to their kids,” recalls Evelyn Hronec, another friend. “These were grown adults talking about a 16-year-old’s genitals. It was vile.” At school board meetings in 2014, speakers stood feet away from Grimm, misgendering him, asking questions about his body and transition, calling him names and demanding he be kept out of boys’ facilities in the name of “safety”. In one speech, Grimm pleaded for the opportunity to “use the restroom in peace”. When a man called him a “freak” and likened him to an animal, Deirdre lunged out of her seat, she recalls. “I was fighting for his life.” [...] In 2021, the supreme court allowed Grimm’s victory to stand, and the school board was ordered to pay $1.3m in attorney’s fees. Grimm, however, only got a symbolic $1. To secure damages, Grimm would’ve had to give the opposition’s lawyers access to his medical records to scrutinize the cause and extent of his emotional distress, a process he couldn’t stomach after years of fighting. The idea he’d have to prove his anguish was unbelievable to his mom, who can’t shake the memories of her son becoming suicidal. Grimm doesn’t regret moving on without damages. But he desperately could’ve used financial help – especially as the trauma of his childhood began to catch up with him.

[miniimight]

❝ CAN YOU STOP PUTTING EVERYTHING ON THE TOP SHELVES?! ❞ you finally talk to him after a little argument ( height difference )

with deku, bakugou, rody

IZUKU

he tried to look nonchalant as he responded with a questioning hum. yeah, he was putting stuff on the top shelves. "hmm, what?"

you crossed your arms and glared at him. "you heard me."

he turned to you with the picture of innocence plastered on his face. "i don't know what you mean, i just put things where i put them. it just happens that they're high up."

you raised an accusatory eyebrow.

"for you, anyway." he mumbled, turning back to make his sandwich.

"exactly!" you exclaimed. "for me! you know i can't reach things up there and you do it on purpose!" you found your face was hot as you explained it.

you knew exactly why—you both had gotten into a little fight and you weren't talking to him for a while. this was the first time you had spoken since the argument, and even though you were yelling at him, your voice was music to his ears.

a small smile spread on his face despite his efforts to feign innocence. "on purpose?"

"yes!"

he paused, walking towards you. his disregard for space led to you being crammed against the counter behind you. he leaned over you and asked, "what it is that you need, love?"

your cheeks heated and you cast your gaze to the floor. "the box up there..." you murmured. he stretched to reach it and you flattened your palms against his chest. "izuku! you're squishing me—!"

he chuckled and brought the box down to the counter before kissing your forehead. "i'm glad we're talking again."

BAKUGO

"what was that?" he asked you, a knowing smirk on his face.

you huffed, already on top the counter trying (and failing) to reach the stupid box you needed. "i said stop putting shit on the top shelves. you know i can't reach it."

he shrugged, turning his attention back to his phone. "i dunno what you're talkin' about, princess."

you glared and pointed to the box. "you don't even use it?!"

"aw, don't jump the gun on me now, babe. you know i like to switch things up a lil' bit." he grinned, taking so much joy in your visible frustration. he was just happy you were speaking with him again.

you rolled your eyes, electing to ignore him as you tried your best not to fall off the surface or pull the cabinet down with you.

bakugo eyed you carefully as he threw away the thought of you begging for his help, reluctantly decided your immediate safety was more important. "'kay, that's enough." he walked over, his hands on your hips steadying your wobbly movement. "you'll hurt yourself, y/n. come down."

"i want that stupid box..." you pouted.

he rolled his eyes, his arms now circling around you as he lifted you off the counter. you gasped and curled your legs towards your body, clutching his wrists.

"oh, relax, you know i won't drop ya." he grumbled and set you down next to him. he easily plucked the box from its high perch, handing it to you.

"happy now?" he pinched your cheek. "stubborn brat. could've broken a bone or somethin'."

RODY

"what, having trouble sweetheart?" he snickered.

your face heated and you huffed. "rody... just get it for me, please."

"hmmm..." he pretended he was thinking hard. "i think... no."

you looked at him incredulously. "no? you put it up there!"

"i so did not." he turned up his nose, though pino was smiling and nodding her head.

you narrowed your eyes at him. "you're sabotaging me into breaking your silent treatment."

"whaaaat?" he exaggerated confusion. he held his head and pointed at himself dumbly. "me?"

"you're impossible." you rolled your eyes, moving to climb onto the counter.

"in any case, my plan worked wonderfully," his signature smirk graced his lips as he laughed softly, leaning against the wall to survey your distress.

your fingers just about brushed the side of the box before pino crashed into it, sending it further back and completely out of your reach. you swiveled to glare at the little pink bird. "pino!"

she bashfully twirled in the air before happily fluttering away.

rody's laughter filled your ears and you groaned, resting your head against the shelf. you heard shuffling—when you looked up, rody and his stupid smug smirk was beside you, easily bringing the box down.

"now we both look stupid, yeah?" he pressed a fat kiss on your cheek and softened when you laughed brightly.

© miniimight ! thanks for reading &lt;3

[deebris]

The Mysterious Visitor 3

Batfamily x batsis (platonic!)

Synopsis: Bruce begins to suspect that Damian is hiding something after the two of you finally see each other, and the father-son trust between them is shaken. Tim finally sees your face, and something strange happens. The meeting between siblings was not successful, and to their dismay, Bruce will need to confront Talia face to face once again.

Warnings: The reader is 13 years old and is Damian's twin sister; the tone of the story is somewhat sad; Bruce is intimidating; Hugo Strange mentioned; family discussion; maternal overprotection.

Word count: 3.6k

Note: I'm sincerely sorry if I didn't include someone on the tag list or if I made any mistakes. This part took longer because it's a bit longer.

Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5 - Part 6

"Forgive me for not offering anything sooner, miss," Alfred said, watching you carefully pick up the hot chocolate he had given to you. He found it curious how you ignored the handle of the mug, instead holding it with both hands, making sure wouldn't spill it.

You diverted your eyes from the brown liquid and looked at the old butler, now knowing his name, licking your lips after the sip to clear the excess drink. "It's okay," you responded, unaware of the chocolate mustache that had formed.

Bruce, still in the room, watched the scene from the side while patiently awaiting Damian. He traced circles with his index finger on the rim of the whiskey glass he had poured for himself, trying to keep control of how much he drank. Bruce would never admit it, but he needed to calm down, and perhaps a bit of moderate alcohol might help. He knew it wasn't appropriate to drink in front of someone as young as you, but he couldn't stop himself.

He was caught looking at you with a suspicious gaze that didn't waver. The room was filled with a palpable discomfort, and you, embarrassed, went back to staring at your own drink again, focused on listening to the crackling of the fireplace.

"Here, take this," Alfred said gently, extending a napkin from the tray. You accepted it and wiped around your mouth, finally realizing you'd made a mess.

Your mother would have scolded you for your lack of manners, you thought to yourself. And, for the thousandth time that night, you worried about how she would react to discovering you weren't in your bed. Maybe she had already noticed and was preparing a furious speech along with your punishment.

"What are you thinking about, dear?" Alfred asked, noticing your quietness as you rested the hot chocolate mug in your lap and started staring into nothing.

You snapped out of your stupor upon hearing the question, fiddling with one of the charms on your bracelet, the "T" specifically, Bruce couldn't help but notice. His mind was in turmoil, much like yours, with a thousand different thoughts arising every second. He felt strangely betrayed, questioning how much more his son hadn't told him—important things like the fact that he had a sister.

"I was just thinking that..." you trailed off, swallowing hard as the nervousness grew. Letting out a shaky sigh and with visible tears forming in your eyes, you continued, "My mom's going to be mad at me."

"And are you afraid of your mother?" Alfred insisted, trying to sound gentle upon seeing your distress.

"It's not quite that," you replied, trying to ease the situation so he wouldn't jump to conclusions.

You weren't exactly afraid of her, but you knew that rummaging through your mother's belongings, stealing a letter, and sneaking out in the middle of the night would disappoint her. You worried about her reaction and, above all, about Damian's reaction. If he was still the same, he certainly wouldn't be happy with the circumstances.

You tried to calm yourself, convincing yourself that you had the right to be angry for the first time in your life, not them, even knowing that your family would see you differently. It was as if you were perpetually a five-year-old in their eyes, always needing to hear lectures about every dangerous step you took.

Even though you and your brother were the same age, he was more responsible, smarter, stronger, destined to be a leader. And it annoyed you so much, but no matter what you said, your mother wouldn't change her mind about your upbringing.

When Damian left, Talia had said he would spend some time in a different place to learn new things and improve himself. For the first few weeks, it was even liberating not having him on your neck all the time, but then you realized it was because of him that you could do simple things like take a walk around the neighborhood alone.

Without Damian at home, your mother had no one to contradict her decisions, and her constant protection began to suffocate you. Then came the longing, and what was supposed to be a few months turned into years, and you never saw him again. You never stopped thinking about him. Every day, every birthday, and every Christmas, you would wait near the entrance of your apartment before going to bed, hoping that he would open the door again.

"Where is your mother?" Bruce suddenly interrupted, feeling Alfred's cautious gaze on him. You hesitated to answer, after all, although Mr. Wayne was a very popular man with a good image, you didn't know him. "I don't intend to harm you, but I need to know to take you back home," he justified, looking directly at your face, but Alfred knew this was Bruce's way of telling him that he wasn't interested in Talia, but rather in ensuring your safety.

"I'm not dumb, I know how to get home by myself," you tried to defend yourself. And though the words might sound arrogant, you said it calmly, not wanting to offend him.

"The point is not that. This is Gotham City, you shouldn't have gone out alone in the middle of the night." Bruce tried to reason with you, and it seemed to have worked because you fell silent.

"You need to trust us, miss," Alfred tried to encourage you to respond, but you remained silent. Bruce turned the glass to take a big sip of his drink and both gave up, not wanting to pressure you further.

The following minutes were silent, interrupted only by the sound of you drinking the hot chocolate in a few sips. Unexpectedly, Titus, Damian's German Shepherd, seemed to have taken a liking to you. He entered the room from the kitchen and stopped by your side to smell the new scent in the house. The relatively gentle dog sniffed around you, appreciating the head pats he received while you were enchanted by the furry animal.

Bruce couldn't help but compare you to his son since he began to analyze you. Damian had his mother's cunning personality and an arrogance that Bruce couldn't deny he had too, but it was more pronounced in Talia. He clearly remembered the first meeting with Damian. The first thing the boy did was make a ridiculous joke about his height, and he never seemed shy when meeting Bruce or the other boys. Also, when he arrived at the mansion, he felt comfortable analyzing every tiny detail of the house, unconcerned if his opinions were unpleasant.

You, on the other hand, although in different circumstances, limited yourself to a small space on the couch, responding only when asked and gladly accepting the kindness of Dick and Alfred. Bruce wondered how Talia could have raised a daughter like you. She and her sister, Nyssa, were sharp women, trained to be natural-born assassins, despite having a traditional father like Ra's. It was hard to believe that you, an apparently ordinary and shy girl, could be her daughter.

"Do you like dogs?" Bruce asked, deciding to stop being grumpy.

"I do, but I think I prefer cats." You continued to stroke Titus's cheeks, who began to want to climb onto your lap. Unfortunately, he was too heavy, and you had to push him back to the floor. The animal seemed to interpret that as a game because he kept trying to climb several times. "Mom gave me one for Christmas last year."

"Titus." Bruce's voice caught the dog's attention, patting his right thigh, calling him to sit on his lap. His gesture, although meant to stop the animal from bothering you, made you a little disappointed that you couldn't pet his soft fur anymore.

"What a coincidence. It seems you and Damian share something in common." Alfred was smiling while talking to you, which was rare for him. "Last Christmas, he also brought us two stray cats. The black one lives with us, but unfortunately, I don't know what happened to the other one. Curiously, the cat has my name." The butler tried to make a face at you, pretending to be unhappy. A Cheshire smile spread across your face, followed by the most contagious laugh he had ever heard, and he couldn't help but widen his own smile.

"The cat's name is Alfred?" You asked incredulously, seeing him nod positively. "Mine is an orange cat. He's cute but very troublesome; he even scratched one of my ballet shoes." You commented, much more at ease in Mr. Wayne's presence.

"An orange kitten?" Bruce's eyes widened slightly, just like Alfred's.

An orange and a black cat, both mentioned on the same date. Your seemingly trivial confession revealed to both of them that Damian had indeed kept in touch with you. Perhaps not directly, but it showed that he hadn't forgotten your existence and cared enough to have given the other cat to his sister as a gift. Now, because of you, they both finally knew what had happened to the other furball.

"Your brother also raises a cow here on the property." The butler thought it would be of interest to mention the funny fact, given that Damian was too irritable to raise something like a cow. And it seemed to have worked, as you laughed with genuine surprise in your eyes.

Bruce couldn't help but let out a muffled laugh when reminded of the cow, and unlike how he had been so suspicious of you moments ago, he was now more relaxed. He wondered when was the last time he saw Alfred so cheerful with someone new here at the mansion. The butler was a man full of tenderness for the family, but he was difficult to deal with for outsiders, although he always presented himself in a polite manner.

But the pleasant moment was suddenly interrupted by a series of voices coming from the top of the stairs, making Bruce and Alfred frown. Both stood up to see better what was happening and saw Damian pushing and shouting at his three brothers while struggling to descend the steps without being hindered by them.

Jason saw that Bruce and Alfred had already noticed them, failing to prevent the boy from confronting you three, and let go of his arm. Dick and Tim followed suit, defeated. The events of the night were revealed to him by his brothers, who told him everything from you being here to the fact that you had had some sort of contact with Strange. Damian went berserk at the last part and stormed out of the room in a flash.

Seeing his son in the Robin uniform, Bruce thought of reprimanding him, knowing he had gone on patrol alone again, but decided that was a matter for later.

"Damian," Bruce called out, calming him down a bit from his excitement. "We have a visitor." There was no view of the stairs from the living room, so you couldn't grasp that Bruce was calling Robin by your brother's name.

Damian descended the steps slowly, as if it were a very difficult task for him, and then finally looked at you, then at Bruce, and back at you, completely ignoring anyone else. He took a deep breath, trying to process the situation. Dick had told him that his father didn't know anything about you being his daughter, but he was sure this secret wouldn't last much longer. And honestly, he preferred that both of you knew the truth, even knowing that his mother wouldn't be happy.

"What are you doing here?" he asked, surprise evident in his voice.

You slowly got up from the couch, gripping the hot chocolate mug tightly. The truth was, Damian hadn't realized he was still dressed as Robin, and that's why you didn't recognize him. You stood there, paralyzed, not understanding why he was in Bruce Wayne's house, and why would he talk to you? Or maybe this was some kind of joke, and you still hadn't figured it out.

Damian was silent for a moment, his expression serious. "You were supposed to stay with Mom. It's not safe for you here."

"Master Damian," Alfred spoke, signaling to the mask on his face. Damian quickly tore it off, feeling stupid for forgetting about it.

You almost let the mug slip when you saw him. Your brother had grown a lot since he was ten. His face was thinner, more defined, and his eyes smaller, plus his voice was deeper. That's why you didn't recognize him at first. Before, you would have known who he was just by the sound of his voice, but it wasn't the same anymore.

You were happy and surprised at the same time. That moment was shocking, and the bitterness you felt a while ago was forgotten. Your anger at discovering Damian ignored you for two years for the people in this house didn't cross your mind now, too busy trying to memorize each of his new features. The superhero world wasn't new, after all, but how could your brother be Robin? And if he was Robin, did he know Batman?

"I wanted to see you," you replied, your voice trembling. "I missed you."

Damian sighed, approaching. He wanted to argue but fought against it, knowing the last thing he should do was yell at you after so long. "I missed you too, but you shouldn't be here, S/n. Things are complicated here." He responded tensely, calculating his words and trying to find a way to get you away from Bruce as quickly as possible before something slipped.

Bruce watched your interaction, unsure of what to do. He didn't understand the depth of your relationship, wondering if he should intervene or let you talk alone. It seemed too personal to discuss in front of so many eyes.

In a brief exchange of glances with Dick, in a kind of silent conversation, Bruce signaled for him and the others to leave.

Understanding as always, Dick nodded, indicating they should leave but not before approaching Bruce with something. "Bruce, promise me you'll only read this card when you're in a clearer state of mind," he asked in a whisper, placing a piece of paper in Bruce's hand, careful to put the written part facing his palm. Dick rarely asked for promises, so Bruce reluctantly agreed.

"Can you at least tell me what it is?"

"It's a clue about Hugo Strange," was the simplest response he could give. "But let's leave that for another time," Dick emphasized, looking at you and Damian, who, to their surprise, were watching them.

"Let's go. This is no longer our business," Dick tried to pull Jason and Tim along, but Tim was stubborn:

"Did you give it to him?" Tim said just loud enough for Dick to hear.

"Yes, Tim," he replied, not wanting to give him more room to argue, going up the stairs two steps at a time, followed by Jason who climbed more calmly, holding onto the railing. Tim gave one last look at Bruce, then at Damian, Alfred, and then you, who was now watching the three. You already knew Dick, but the other two figures aroused your curiosity. How many more people live in the mansion?

The boy you didn't know was called Tim started staring at you with an intrigued expression. He hadn't managed to see your face closely before, but now, looking calmly, he couldn't avoid noticing how familiar you seemed. He felt he had seen you somewhere, but where? You examined him with the same perplexity, and for a moment he parted his lips to say something, maybe to ask if he knew you, but Bruce's voice made him jump:

"Tim, you should go to bed, just like your brothers." He asked in a gentle tone.

"Sorry, Bruce." He responded quickly, going up the stairs in same style as Jason.

"Do you have any idea how long I've been looking for you?" Damian took advantage of the fact that the three had left and angrily threw it in your face, but trying to disguise it at all costs to avoid sounding too harsh. His eyes were frantic, looking at every part of your face.

He wasn't sentimental, and he refused to go through the humiliation of showing any weakness at seeing your grown-up figure, even if it caused him heartache. "Why did you disappear like that? Mom's been worried for hours."

"I already told you. I wanted to see you." Your voice rose a bit, desperately trying to justify yourself. You wanted so much to hug him but felt too embarrassed to do so, finally realizing that the intimacy you had before no longer existed. It was as if he were a stranger.

"Let's go. I'll take you back." He grabbed your wrist, wanting to disappear from his father's sight at all costs, but you pulled away, surprising him.

"Why are you so eager to get rid of me?" You asked indignantly, trying to swallow the sob due to your wounded pride. The warmth in your heart rose to your head, finally feeling that old anger again. "I haven't seen you in years, and the first thing you do is want to keep me away again!" You were distressed, feeling rejected.

"Maybe it's because you only cause problems!" He exploded.

"I had forgotten how irritating you are!" You shouted at the top of your lungs, trying to push him back as you did in childhood arguments. Back then, you two were equal in strength, but now Damian was becoming a man, and he barely moved.

You didn't notice when you dropped the mug on the floor, which luckily didn't break as the impact was cushioned by the rug. But the little liquid left had spilled and stained it, and seeing Alfred pick it up to clean made you feel awful. You should have done it, but he stopped you when you made a move to bend down, saying it was okay. Alfred felt he shouldn't participate in this conversation and used the mug situation as an excuse to go to the kitchen.

"Stop." Bruce intervened between you two, separating both and giving his son a challenging look. He knew this kind of attitude was typical of him, but seeing how loyal and obedient Damian was to Talia, he thought he would at least show some sympathy to his sister. "S/n, why don't you go sleep a bit? It's late, it would be good to rest." He offered as a truce and also as a way to interrupt your meeting, seeing how bad it was going.

"Do you realize the danger she got into? Talking to strangers, no less." Damian spoke again, his voice dangerously calm, ignoring Bruce. "Do you have any idea who that guy was, S/n? Do you have any idea?!" His voice began to rise a few octaves.

A solitary tear rolled down your cheek, recalling the man who had helped you on the street. At that moment, he seemed like a good person, but the way your brother was talking, apparently he wasn't. "How many times do we need to tell you not to talk to strangers? Not to leave the house without telling anyone? It's always been like this since we were kids, you never change!"

You had no reaction. That single tear had turned into two, then into several others, as you shrank into your own shame. You felt ridiculous for coming here because of him.

"Damian, who are you talking about?" Bruce held him by the shoulders to stop him from continuing to spew anger at you. His voice was much deeper than the boy's, and although it didn't intimidate him, it was enough to make him look at him at least.

"Hugo Strange, Dad! Damn Hugo Strange!" Damian lost control of his own mouth, speaking without thinking and not realizing the slip he had just made. "Because she's too stupid to have the slightest notion about anything!"

"Hugo Strange?" Mr. Wayne asked out loud. You knew exactly who Strange was, just as you knew other villains, although you might not recognize them by appearance. But that didn't matter to you now, as you spoke right after:

"Why did you call him Dad?" You looked your brother in the eyes, expecting some kind of explanation, not noticing how his body hairs stood on end.

Suddenly, a realization hit you. This was his new family now, and this man was his father. That venomous jealousy returned once more, and you didn't know if it was because Damian now had someone to call 'Dad' or because it meant how close he had become to these people. Damian swallowed hard, sweating and standing still like a statue.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Wayne. I didn't mean to cause trouble." You apologized, deciding to completely ignore Damian from now on.

"No need to apologize." Bruce felt uneasy, and like you, he drew a wrong interpretation from it. He thought Damian hadn't told his sister who his real father was, which was possible considering he also hadn't told her he moved in with him. The fact that you two were twins was also still unknown to Bruce. The most logical idea, though not spoken or thought, was that you were Talia's daughter with another man. "I'll ask Alfred to show you a room."

You looked one last time at Damian before disappearing into some wing of the mansion. It hurt to see him watching you leave without even saying goodbye. A 'good night' would have been hopeful, even though you hated him now.

"Come, miss." You felt Alfred's hands on your back, guiding you. "I'll show you the guest room," he explained, and you looked back, seeing Bruce watching the two of you.

"Thank you, Mr. Wayne," you said, trying to sound as grateful as possible, while wrapping one arm around Alfred's waist affectionately. Bruce gave you a slight smile, uncrossing his arms to wave goodbye, which you returned with your free hand.

"You and I now have a lot to talk about." Bruce's aura had become cold again. The trust he had built with Damian wasn't broken, but it definitely had a crack.

"Mom is coming," he said in a low voice "I called her as soon as Dick started told me everything," he confessed, knowing Bruce would be furious, watching him run a hand through his hair to relieve the tension.

Following his example, Damian also sat in one of the armchairs in the room, analyzing his father's movements. Whenever Talia and Bruce were in the same room, even if they didn't do it openly, they fought for some kind of dominance.

Bruce made a move to take out the card Dick had given him to see its contents and maybe pass the time while the second storm of the night was yet to come. The first had been you, of course. He ran his fingers along one of the edges of the card, without taking it completely out of his pocket, and then remembered his son's words:

'Promise me you'll only read this card when you're in a moment of clarity.'

The last thing Bruce had now was clarity. So he sighed heavily and pushed it back into his pocket, staring at the boy beside him. "Why do I feel like your sister should be a secret, Damian?"

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Credits for the divider: @cafekitsune

[stackslip]

i don't care about grimes, i mean she's obviously being abused by elon and could be deported and lose all access to her kid at any time which sucks, but in the same way that i feel about all white supremacist women who chose that path and ended up being treated misogynistically by their white husbands or exes.

however i feel genuine distress at seeing that X kid constantly being brought along his dad, with no boundaries and in plain view of others and considering elon's view on parenthood as some sort of eugenics-motivated moral duty to create the Perfect Genetic Legacy and how his ex-daughter talked about her upbringing, and his growing and more visible use and talk of his child as both his genetic legacy and "emotional support human" i genuinely feel anguish on behalf of that kid. it took so much for his sister to escape elon, and i doubt he's ever going to let that happen to his other children ever again. there's a particular kind of abuse from wealthy parents whose power over you will never end until you perhaps escape the country--and even then!