#and that sassy wrist movement like hello

[timethehobo]

Scribbly cos he gave us a profile shot. (Also that wrist flick I see you.)

[h0ney-mochi]

HELLO BEEN A LONG TIME AAAA

So, may i request Wanderer being a little shit as usual and the reader getting pissed off so they overstim him and make him beg-

Wanderer x gn!reader ;; readers pronouns not mentioned

SMUT/[N]SFW CONTENT (sub!Wanderer, dom!reader, overstimulation, begging

Summary: Wanderer being an ass to you as usual, but it really starts irritating you one day and so you.. bite him back, so to speak.

A/n: welcome back Esther <3 been a long time indeed. Sorry for the wait on ur requests.. actually, sorry for disappearing in general. mmh. I know I already apologized, but... okay. I'll talk about that later. I hope you enjoy. <3

"What's the fun in doing the same thing as yesterday? Nothing better to do?"

"Psh. It's really entertaining seeing you get mad over something so little like that—"

"Another day, another reminder to me that you're stupid."

"Huh. Can't look me in the eye now? Amusing."

That's only few of the things you've been forced to listen to today. You know you can't change his personality and his words, but sometimes it really does annoy you. Infuriate you. As if he has the upper hand in everything, as if he's all knowing.

Today's just another day. Usually you could handle his attitude, but today certainly wasn't the day. While Wanderer's throwing another sassy remark at you, you're trying to calm yourself down. Not the best time to be pissed off at him! You've got better things to do!

"Ohh, can't respond now? Did my words made you go silent?" His voice rings in the background as you lift your gaze to stare at him. Your met with a smirk and a raised eyebrow. "Oh dear, oh dear, someone sure looks rather upset, huh?" Wanderer speaks, chuckling at the end.

You swallow. Oh he's not gonna do this shIt. He better not.

He doesn't move under your gaze, simply staring back. He taps his fingers against the table, "Are you trying to intimidate me? Because you just look funny. Did I struck something, hmm?"

Right.

It's Wanderer.

Being a little shIt as usual. Except today's not your day.

You get up and walk in the direction to your room. He's quick to follow, using some of his anemo power to quickly catch up to you.

"Hey, don't you think it's rude to leave your friend while he's talking to you?" He speaks, floating to your side. When his feet are back on the ground, you take this chance to push him against the wall. A noise of surprise escapes his mouth as you work quick, flipping him over so his chest is against the wall.

Your hand held his wrists together behind his back while you rested your head into his shoulder. You breathe in deep before exhaling. You lift your head and see that Wanderer has turned his head to the side so he could see you. His lips are also moving- oh wait, he's saying something. Right.

"Let go-! What the fuck!" He exclaims, wriggling his arms to get out of your hand, but you only push you body against him, tightening your grip as well. He breathes in hard, glaring. "Did you not hear me? Have you gone deaf? I said let GO-"

"With the way you've been treating me today, I honestly could care less about listening to you."

Your voice was way too calm. Not a hint of annoyance, even though you were pissed at him. That made the man feel weird. Rather concerned, actually. Yet he knows he'll be able to turn the tables. He always can!

"Oh, is that it, huh? I really hit a spot?" Wanderer does a half smirk, "That's funny, you really got worked up over all that?" A chuckle escapes at the end of his sentence and you feel yourself freeze up. Just how far is he pushing you right now?

You lean into his ear to speak, "You sure do love running that mouth. Maybe I should give it some other use other than that? Should do that actually, it's what you deserve after all."

He swallows, a sudden thought popping into mind. And now he's.. not that bothered by you holding him against the wall, restricting his movements. Wait, no, he should resist-

"Hm? Gone quiet now? Ran out of useless shit to say?" You go down to a whisper, blowing air on his skin. Wanderer focuses his eyes on one spot on the wall, thinking of what to say and trying to ignore how hot your breath is—

"Let's go," you suddenly lean away, moving your hand to one of his wrists. You quickly start walking, leaving no time to answer Wanderer as he tries to speak.

...

"Fuck— fuck, I'm so close-" He moans, his dick pulsing in your hands. You don't say anything, you just stare at his facial expression. Eyes screwed shut, mouth slightly agape, breathy moans escaping.

You've already noticed that he's lifting his hips up, trying to match your pace. You've also noticed him still trying to move his hands out of the rope behind his back.

Another, much louder, moan comes after a moment of silence. "Ah— Mmh, fuck, come on, come on I'm gonna— I'm—! Haah—" Wanderer interrupts his own sentence, coming all over your hands and parts of his stomach. You don't slow down, continuing to do your work, making Wanderer twitch violently.

"That— That's enough, stop- [Name], that's- haah- that's enough- fuck-!" He moans out, his hands gripping the sheets under him, trying to get away.

"Enough? Are you fucking serious right now?"

Wanderer felt something he didn't feel before. The way you said that sentence, the.. anger in your voice..? Were you mad? Usually that would make him laugh, show his tongue at you, but all it did now was make his cheeks redder and make him weirdly needy for you. Needy? You're jerking him off, what else can he ask for??

"If you think I'm going to stop just because you told me to, you're beyond stupid. You've been a bitchg to me all fucking day, you think I care? Do you really?" You put a hand on his jaw, staring right into his eyes, "It's my turn to have my fun now. I'm not letting you go."

You were surprised to feel his dick get hard in your hand again.

© h0ney-mochi 2024 / Please don't copy or repost my work and writings! <3

[jobean12-blog]

Clueless

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x reader (college Bucky AU) 

Word Count: 1,634

Summary: You and Bucky are kind of friends and it takes a shitty night and some soul searching on your part to make a big realization...

Author’s Note: This is for the HBC’s @the-ss-horniest-book-club​ and the Surprise Drabble Challenge: Romcoms! This is such a fun idea and took me almost all week to figure out and decide on but I went with Clueless as my inspiration because it is definintely one of my favorites. So I used some dialouge straight out of the movie- so thank you to the writers, credit goes to them- and I kept the 90′s vibe but also updated a thing or two- hopefully it makes sense and works. Also, you can just imagine Bucky and the reader know each other in the same way Cher and Josh do in the movie- or whatever you want to think up- doesn’t really matter for this. And the reader is 18 and Bucky is maybe 19-20. Hope you enjoy and thank you all for reading! Much love always! ❤❤❤

Warnings: Lots of teasing and banter, sassy talk, flirting, soft touches, lingering glances and a good kiss (and some bad and awesome 90s references) LOL :)

As you walk down the sidewalk and search your bag for your phone you keep your eyes peeled on your dark surroundings, not wanting to draw attention but also not wanting to be taken by surprise. When your hand finally closes around your phone, you let out a breath and quickly dial the last person in the world you want to ask for help.

“Hello.” You pause at his slightly annoyed tone, pinching the bridge of your nose and smiling even though he can’t see it. “Hi Bucky. I was at a party and Brock offered to drive me home but then got too handsy and I told him no and he kicked me out of the car and left me out here all alone.” You can hear his breath hitch and the shuffling of sheets, “wait a second, hold on. Brock got handsy?! Are you ok? Where are you?”

“Downtown Brooklyn.” You suck your teeth and wait for him to unleash his frustration. “You owe me, you know that. Just find someplace to sit tight and be safe, I’ll be there as fast as I can.” With that he hangs up and you walk to the nearest gas station, standing outside the small mini mart next to the ice freezer. The fluorescent lights flicker every so often, creating an eerie atmosphere you can’t wait to get out of.

Bucky texts asking for your exact location and soon after you see his headlights pull into the station and he parks, rounding the car and rushing over to you. “Are you ok?” he asks, brushing his hand down the side of your face. “I’m fine, thank you for getting me. Can we go now?” He nods, looking you over once more before taking your hand and dragging you to the car.

He turns up the music and you make a face, earning a snicker from him. “What? You have a problem with oldies music?” Rolling your eyes, you sass back, “no Bucky, but I don’t know why you insist on making yourself seem like more of a bonehead than you already are.” He makes the music louder, completely ignoring your comment and singing along.

When you get home, you’re hungry and tired, quickly changing into less binding clothes and sitting next to Bucky on the couch. Taking some popcorn from the bowl you pop it in your mouth before snatching the remote from Bucky’s hand and changing the channel. “Hey, I was watching that.” You finish chewing and start brushing your hair, raising a brow his way, “I didn’t want to watch it. Don’t you watch anything other than the news?”

Bucky scoffs, looking to the TV then back to you. “I most certainly do, I just like to know what’s going on in the world, unlike you I don’t spend hours watching Parks and Rec.” Brushing your hair over your face you stick out your tongue, flipping your hair over and pinning it back. He throws a piece of popcorn at you, laughing when it sticks in your hair. You retaliate by taking your scrunchie and flinging it at his head, hitting him right in the ear.

“Look, I’m just curious. How many hours a day do you spend grooming yourself? He picks up the scrunchie and takes his short hair between his fingers, trying and failing miserably at putting it on. You lean over and brush your fingers through his hair not noticing how his eyes trail down your body and he takes a quiet inhale while you secure the scrunchie. “There you go,” you giggle. He pats the top of his head and shrugs, turning back to the TV.

The next day you find yourself feeling a bit down. Last night’s events catch up with you and you know the reason you had agreed to go home with Brock was out of loneliness. Brock’s advances were unwelcome, and he is the last person you want to date but as you think about at your friends, their happy relationships flourishing, you realize you want a boyfriend of your own. You couldn’t figure it out, what were you doing wrong? Were you just totally clueless?

Even after arriving home and trying to relax your mind was still occupied with thoughts from earlier and you barely heard Bucky when he walked outside to the pool. “Hey there, whatcha doin’?” You looked up, pulling your sunglass down your nose, “what the hell is on your face?” Bucky rubs his jaw and shuffles his feet. “I’m growing a goatee.” You stand and pinch his chin between your fingers, “Oh that’s good. You don’t want to be the last one at the coffee house without chin pubes.”

Walking away you feel him following you, rolling your eyes and letting the door shut in his face. “You know, you could try saying something nice for a change.” You whirl around, suddenly feeling shaky, “oh, so now I’m this awful person who isn’t nice! Can’t you take a joke?” He brushes past you and storms to the fridge, yelling, “you’re such a brat” before slamming it shut and walking out.

You’re left standing in the kitchen with an overwhelming sense of ickiness. Deciding a walk might do you some good you head outside and start down the street, no particular destination in mind. Even after you end up on 5th avenue and do some shopping you can’t shake the bad feeling. “Why should I care what Bucky thinks?” You say it out loud to no one while standing on a busy street corner, working over your thoughts.

“He listens to oldies music and he’s a hideous dancer, couldn’t take him anywhere. Wait a second. What am I stressing about? This is like, Bucky.” You’re so lost in your internal struggle that you don’t even realize you’ve walked into the street, a strong arm pulling you back at just the last moment, saving you from being run over by a cab. “Hey, watch where ya going girlie.” You suck in a breath and back up, stuttering “thank you,” as the man walks away shaking his head.

Once your breathing finally evens out the light goes on, “oh my god. I love Bucky. I majorly, totally, butt crazy in love with Bucky.” For the first time all day your head feels clear and you make your way back home. Seeing that you’re alone for the moment you head upstairs and change, hoping to have some peace for the rest of the evening so you can work through this newfound revelation.

Unfortunately, when you go to the kitchen for a snack Bucky appears to be in the same spot you left him earlier. “Hey,” you say quietly, shuffling around and opening all the cabinets. Now you don’t know how to act around him. Normally you would strut around him in your cutest outfits and send yourself flowers and chocolate, but you can’t do that stuff with Bucky. “What’s with you? You seem quiet.” Bucky’s question lays hanging in the thick air between you, your eyes wide as you search for an acceptable response.

He walks by, poking your as side as he passes and goes to sit on the couch. You bravely sit next to him, wringing your hands together and trying to think of what to say. He nudges your foot with his and you break into a smile, nudging his back until it becomes a game of footsie. He pulls the hair tie from the bottom of one of your braids, wrapping it around his thumb, “you look like pippy long stockings.”  

You turn to him and flick the brim of his hat, “and you look like Forest Gump.” His lips turn up slightly and he takes off his hat, running his hand over his hair. Without realizing it you start to take out your braids and comb your fingers through your hair to tousle it. Bucky’s gaze settles on your movements and he licks his lips, opening his mouth to say something but your phone rings.

You look at it but don’t pick up and he raises his brows, “not gonna answer? What if you miss out on something?” Giving his shoulder a shove, you let out a squeak when he grabs your wrist and pulls you closer. “I can’t believe you didn’t answer it. You must really like spending time with me. What brought on the change?” With his face only inches from yours it’s hard to concentrate but you manage to find your voice, “I always like hanging out with you.”

He shifts position so his hand cradles the back of your neck, “oh yea? And why is that?” Shrugging you say, “you’re funny…sometimes. And you have rescued me more than once…andddd…” He leans in a little closer, his breath fanning your cheek, “that’s it?” Your eyes drop to his lips, “well no, but what about you?”

His thumb gently caresses your jaw, “what about me what?” Your hand lands on his chest, fingers curling into this shirt, “why do you like hanging out with me?” His head tilts ever so slightly and his lashes lower when his nose brushes yours, “I never said I like hanging out with you.” Your hand tightens around his shirt and your lips touch in a barely there kiss, his words whispered in the small space left between, “I love hanging out with you.”

Heat rises from your stomach to your chest when Bucky’s lips press firmly to yours, the soft and warm touch making your heart skip a beat. By the time you realize it your hands are already in his hair and your legs are straddling his lap. Bucky deepens the kiss, stealing your breath, the smell of him hypnotic and the taste of him nearly silencing all other thoughts.

@aesthetical-bucky​ @auro-ora​ @bugsbucky​ @buckys-henley​ @book-dragon-13​ @buckys-broody-muffin​ @buckys-minty-breath​ @breezy1415​ @buckstaybucky​ @buckosawrus​ @chuuulip​ @eurynome827​ @hiddles-rose​ @hailmary-yramliah​ @hawksmagnolia​ @ikaris-whore​ @itsunclebucky​ @jhangelface0523​ @jewels2876​ @loricameback​ @lorilane33​ @littledarlinhavefaithinme​ @littleredstarfish​ @lokilvrr​ @mushyjellybeans​ @marvelandotherfandomimagines​ @marvelgirl7​ @nano--raptor​ @pinkdiamond1016​ @randomfandompenguin​ @sallycanwait68​ @softpeachbarnes​ @tuiccim​ @the-wayward-robot​ @this-kitten-is-smitten​ @yansi1923​

[kingsuckjin]

Just Smile -2

✷Paring: joker!jk x reader, robin! jin x reader, bts x reader

✷ Genre: bts batman au

✷Description: Description: All you’ve ever wanted was to help, that’s all. When you landed a job at Arkham asylum (possibly unjustly), you thought maybe you could help the poor souls locked away there. You were apprehensive about meeting one in particular, the worst criminal of his time, the infamous Jeon Jungkook, well known around Gotham as the Joker. But what if this man isn’t what the rumors and his records say he is? What if he saw you as the one needing help? You only had to do him one small favor and he could make every dream you’ve ever had could come true, he could take all the pain away and you would never want for anything ever again. Could what he offers be the truth? You can’t say you weren’t warned about him.

✷ Warnings: mention of kooks facial scars and self harm, the security isn't nice to kook, talk of mental disorders, talk of violence, depression, self loathing, idk if I forgot something please let me know

✷Words: 3.9k

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--Series Masterlist--

"Jeon Jungkook: age 22, displays sociopathic behavior, physically aggressive."

The last two words were ones that no therapist wanted to read, it was intimidating.

You thought about just closing the case file and just thinking about how to approach this. 

You were told you had to see this guy every single day, more than the hand full of others you were assigned to. You thought maybe your new boss was giving you the toughest case first just to see if he could break you, get you to quit.

You sighed as you glanced back down at the file of Jungkook on your desk and urged yourself to read further, it was important that you knew what he's done and what he could do. 

The lists of things he had done read like a novel and was probably just as long as one too. "Sentenced to Arkham Asylum by pleasing insanity under the sentences and accusations of: poisoning the city's water supply, which was considered an act of terrorism. Also thought to be involved in causing the disappearance of over forty people." the list just kept going on and on. 

You felt sick at your stomach making you close the file.

You wondered how you would even go about making a treatment plan for a man this vicious. You decided you couldn't, not until you met with him first. Meeting with him would be most of the battle. Would he try to snap your neck on the spot? Would he yell and scream at you?

To be honest, you were afraid. But all you could do was suck it up and act like the professional you were. 

"He's ready" a member of staff poked his head through the cracked door of your new office. You knew who he was talking about, you knew who was ready, but were you? 

You plastered a fake smile across your face and stood from your seat.

"Okay- I- I- um. That's great!" You tried to act as cheerful as you could given the unsettling feeling you had in your stomach.

"I'll be taking you to where you'll be meeting with him. You've had time to look over his files, right?"  He asked as you left the office with the hospital staff and walked out into the too brightly lit hallway. 

"Yes, of course." but you felt as though “barely” would have been more accurate reply.

"So you've seen the list of what this piece of shit has done." 

"I-I-" it was hardly professional to be calling a patient a name like that "I have." But you agreed anyway.

"Just making sure, you really need to be warned about this guy. Last week he tried to bite another guy's finger off and he's been in isolation ever since." 

"Oh." Left your mouth as your thoughts blanked out with it, all but one which was”

Dear god, what did I agree to?

"Is locked up though, on his meds, and there will be a guard in the room just in case." 

Well that calmed your fears somewhat.

You passed door after door, some with yelling and screaming behind it, another with creepy singing, some patients just beat on the metal door with no regard, some were silent.

You saw two armed guards standing beside one of the doors just up ahead and you just knew that this was your stop, sure enough, the security man pulled out a card and ran it in front of a small box by the doorway, it let out a single, short, high pitched beep.

"You should get one of these soon" He told you as he opened the door and showed you his  key card, but you couldn't concentrate on anything else but the man that was revealed to be inside of the stark white room. He sat at one side of the table in a cheap folding chair by a wall. The more you looked, you could see that he was handcuffed to a metal bar, bolted to the white concrete wall. His head, with a mess of  toxic bright green hair, was tilted downwards, looking at the table and not you as you walked in. Hair was wild and stuck up in random places as if he had just rolled out of bed. 

Your eyes flickered to the guard standing directly behind him, a tall muscular man with a large gun held across his broad chest, ready if needed.

The metal door shut behind you and you admittedly jumped just a little at the unexpected sound.

You walked slowly over to the table, wondering when your new patient would look up at you. Even without him looking up you could see that his skin looked a pasty white shade and you thought maybe he hadn't been outside in a while, that being inside here had done this to him.

You had a seat in the chair across from him and cleared your throat and did your best to sound not nervous although your palms were covered in sweat.

"Hello I'm Doctor y/l/n" 

He didn't answer or say anything for a moment, you thought he might be asleep.

"I know" His voice was calm, yet he still didn't look at you. The sound of his voice was much more peaceful  than you expected, more soothing, velvety sweet like his vocal cords had been dipped in honey. You had expected a gruff deep voice that would invoke fear upon hearing a single word.

"What's your name?" You did your best to try to make conversation, you'd take what you could get at this point, you just had to get him talking, but you weren't sure that he would, judging by his demeanor and opposition to look at you.

"You know my name." His voice continued to stay calm, and he didn't seem upset at all, he just seemed to point out a fact.

"I do, but introductions are important. I would like to hear your name from you." You urged gently.

"Jeon Jungkook, patient 2354" he complied nicely with you, even giving you his patient number that you recall being beside his name in his file.

"Jungkook? Why don't you want to look at me?" You asked hoping that if he did then maybe he would feel more connected with you

"Skipping to the straightforward questions already?" his head bobbed a little as he let out a huff of amusement that wasn't sassy, but actually seemed like he was a little surprised by your basic request.

"You don't like that? Would you prefer to talk about other things?" you wanted to be careful just in case you had read him wrong, you wanted him to feel comfortable, you wanted him to know he could switch topics at any time.

"No, that's alright, I figured you'd ask, they all ask me to eventually." 

 You didn't know who he was referring to, they as in other therapists or staff or what. You were confused, but you decided to let him continue to speak other than asking more questions.

"My face... is... you haven't heard about my face?" He seemed so apprehensive to speak about it.

"No, I've only read your file, and it said nothing about your face." You informed him.

"It's pretty scary." 

"Well that's okay. I won't judge you. I don't mind at all." You did your best to reassure him. "But if looking down makes you comfortable I'm not going to-"

"You promise you won't scream if I show you?" He cut you off. It seemed like he wanted to show you.

"I swear." You were sure of your words.

You watched as he slowly lifted his mossy colored head up until his brown eyes met yours. He had a strikingly beautiful face, his eyes wide and brown almost deer-like, a strong jaw but gentle curves on his face that told you he was young. He had a few tattoos that you could see, a sad face with X’s for eyes on one of his cheek bones. The second was a few words near his collarbone that you couldn't quite read due to it being mostly obstructed by the collar of his white patient jumpsuit. To be honest, the tattoos suited him and his rather odd but soft features.

"I see nothing but your nice brown eyes." You were honest, his other nice features seemed to draw attention away from the not so nice one.

"Don't lie to me." He still didn't seem angry or upset or like it was a warning at all, just disbelieving of your comment.

You did however do your best not to look at the jagged scar of marred skin coming from the sides of his mouth to his mid cheeks. It looked like it had been cut so roughly, so carelessly, almost ripped. You did feel the very slightest urge to reach out and touch it, run your fingers along the long healed rugged scar, simply out of curiosity of what it felt like. Of course that would be inappropriate, and you knew better than to put your hand near the mouth of a man who almost bit someone’s finger off of course.

"I'm not going to scream, I'm not judging you, I'm not disgusted by you or anything you might think." You told the truth once again. "Do you want to talk about it?" 

"Sure, I don't mind." He gave a shrug and the chains that bound his wrists slightly jingled with the movement.

This was not at all how you expected the meeting to go. He seemed so quiet, calm and gentle. His current attitude was almost jarring compared to all the awful things you had read about him. You still weren't about to let your guard down thinking he might switch personalities at any moment to a more violent one, you were waiting for it just in case. In a way you wanted to see it, see what he might be like at his worst. You wanted him to match up with what you read in his file, but you were also very terrified of that.

"Do you want to tell me how it happened?" You asked and he gave a small nod.

"I-uh-I did it to myself." He was being so honest and open, yet his muttering and stuttering reflected his apprehension in talking about it, but you were still glad he was.

"Why? How?" You continued to prod, to see what he would and wouldn't answer and feel out his boundaries.

"I was tired of not smiling, so I took a knife and I cut my cheeks into a permanent smile." 

You had to will your eyebrows to not raise at his answer in slight shock or furrow with worry.

"You seem ashamed to show people, is that why your head was down and you didn't want to let me see?" 

He nodded.

"I don't enjoy looking like this anymore, especially not in front of someone seemingly so flawless. "I regret it." 

You were aware he had just insinuated you were flawless, he had complimented you, but you decided to say nothing about it and move on.

"What was going on in your mind at the time? Do you want to explain your thought process behind it?" 

"I-" he took a deep breath and once again looked down at the plastic grey table top. "I was younger, eighteen I think… eighteen is when it all happened. I was in an accident, hence my skin and hair, it- it really altered my mind. I was doing horrible things, and my mind… well it wasn't in the best state, I just kept falling further and further into a dark dark hole. My skin was ruined, my hair was ruined, my mind felt ruined, I was depressed. I thought no one would want someone like me- someone who looked this way. I was tired of being sad and in a bit of a psychotic rage, I cut the sides of my mouth into a permanent smile. Do you like it? If its not scary is it at least surprising to you?”

"Well,” you began with a playful tone, “I don't know if I can be surprised much anymore, especially by my line of work. Do you like surprises?"

"I do." He smiled a genuinely sweet smile and you could see his two front teeth were just a bit more prominent than the rest.

"What kind?" You wanted to keep him talking and any conversation going, and this seemed like a pleasant one, but to your dismay he gave a shrug. He almost seemed a little shy now, and that was once again very different from the violent man’s case file you had read.

"Well what else do you like?" 

"A lot of things. I like pretty things." He looked and you "and I like... I just miss the outside world."

"Did you find beauty in the outside world?” you genuinely wanted to know what he liked about being free.

“I do.I like the least expected things, those are the most beautiful, the chaos. Busy streets, hives of bees. There’s beauty in chaos I suppose, people don't like it but it’s underrated. So are imperfect things, imperfections are beautiful, unique, interesting.” 

His answer spoke volumes about him, it seemed to begin to tell you why he did the things he did, but you were sure it was only the tip of the iceberg of reasons why he was the way he was, and you now found yourself more than curious about the whys and hows of him and what made him tick. He seemed so soft spoken,calm, and so open but you knew there had to be another more violent and brutal side of him.

“Tell me about how you grew up.” you clasped your hands together on the table until you thought better of it. Somehow thinking that your arm freedom would be like rubbing it in his face that he was bound by chains and limited in mobility.

“Hmmm, I’m not sure what there is to tell, I grew up like any other kid in the suburbs of Gotham… at least I believe I did… I don't know things are blurry before the accident.”

“Accident?” you urged him to continue noticing he had mentioned this just a few moments ago but had not elaborated on it.

“The chemical accident.” you noticed him stare down at the table once more, his jaw seemed to clench. It seemed hard for him to talk about it, but talking about things was good, it was the only way to get breakthroughs. For a moment you didn't think he would go into it, you were about to change the subject and come back to the question at a later time in a more gentle way.

“I fell… into some chemicals… I was an employee, my first job. A janitor. It didn't pay much, I felt like I never had any money and it was hard with… I just couldn’t…” he stopped himself and struggled. 

“Take your time.” you said gently.

“It wasn't making ends meet. I started to steal things, burglarize homes. I never hurt anyone, I didn't want to, it was never my intent. I just had to find a way to make money for…” he let out a sigh “I just needed the money. I don't remember much from my childhood or teenage years, if I played a sport in school, who I was friends with, hell even my parent’s names. I do remember the struggle I went through right before the accident.”

“That's alright I-”

“Times up.” The big man from behind him boomed cutting off your sentence. You felt like he was really opening up to you though and it was only the first meeting.

“Five more m-” you wanted to barter with the man, but he cut you off once more with the same phrase. 

You scooted out your chair and stood in defeat.

You didn't even flinch when Jungkook also stood quickly and attempted to reach out a shackled hand for you to shake. 

Your hand went towards his but in a matter of seconds he had stumbled backwards onto the floor. You looked at the chain in the guards hand and assessed that he had pulled it, sending Jungkook to the floor.

You felt a tinge of guilt, especially when the man dragged him to his feet and back into his chair by the deep green hair. You just stood there gobsmacked with wide eyes at the abuse you had just witnessed. The man still had his large fingers in Jungkook’s shaggy hair.

“It was nice meeting you.” he said as he grunted in pain at how tightly the man held him by the hair. “I don't know when I’ll see you next… or the condition I’ll be in” he threw in making the man twist his fingers in his hair earning a series of ouches from Jungkook for the smart remark that might have hid a secret fear. “But I look forward to it.”

You were unsure of what you could do, it was obvious you held no power here.

“Yeah…” you scooted in your chair “I-me too.” 

All you could do was turn and walk out, hoping the guard would release his hair once you left.

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

The way he was treated bothered you, even long after you were home. You had showered, tried to eat but you couldn't shake how he had been treated. It wasn't your place to say how things were run there though, which is why you flopped onto your sofa and flipped through Netflix to try to forget or at least ease how upset you were with the movie.

That was until a pretty, velvet bag had caught your eye on the coffee table. It sat in the same place where you had haphazardly thrown it last night, untouched and forgotten.

Suddenly you were lunging out of your seat for it and dumping its contents into your lap.

You couldn't believe you had forgotten about it, that weird cat man could've given you anything, drugs, stolen jewelry, human teeth. What fell out onto your lap though wasn't any of that though.

"What the fuck?" You whispered in awe as you looked down at the thick stack of rubber banded together stack of cash that had fallen into your lap.

"What the fuck am I supposed to do with this?" You thought out loud. You had never seen so much money in one place at one time, you couldn't even pretend you knew how much it might be.

All you could do is stare until your phone buzzed from its spot on the couch cushion beside you. You directed your eyes away from the obscene amount of money you now possessed, and glanced at the name "jinnie" surrounded by hearts popping up on the screen making you sigh. You wanted to answer it, you wanted him to ask how your first day at work went, you wanted to continue to pretend last night didn't happen, pretend he felt the same way about you like you had before. But he lied to you, he led you on, he broke your heart, made you cry, you were never anything real to him and you refused to forget that now.

You let the phone ring as you stuffed the money back into it's nice bag and contemplated taking it to the police department. You thought hard about it, but if it was stolen from the party would you be arrested? You had been at that party, you were seen with the stranger, you could be seen as an accomplice. You picked up your now quieted phone and headed to your room where you tucked the money neatly into a shoe box under your bed before getting in.

In your mind Seokjin had once again ruined another night.

You drifted off thinking about Jungkook being tugged by the chains to the floor, unfortunately leading to dreams you're the one stuck in that white room, being hurt by the big guard with the gun. Feeling so trapped, dragged by the hair, knowing there would never be a way to leave and see the bees and hear the sounds of traffic out your apartment window ever again. You were thrown to the floor over and over and it seemed as though the sound of it grew louder and louder until you woke up and sat up in bed only to realize there was knocking at the door.

You reach for your phone on the bedside table in the darkness as you throw back your comforter with the other hand. The time reads thee in the morning as you head into your living room, but pause.

The knocking had stopped.

You were still curious and irritated at who would be knocking on your door this early in the morning, so you once again head towards it, unlock it, and throw it open to see absolutely nothing, no one, not even a stray cat.

You stepped out to look around a little and your bare foot stepped on something that was not the concrete of your front porch.

You picked up what looked to be an envelope and took it in, making sure to lock the door back up behind you, just to be safe, before flipping on a light.

The envelope was a bright green and had one of those very old fashioned smooth looking, red wax seals binding it closed, within the wax was the shape of a question mark.

You opened it to find a short but very neatly written note.

"People make me, save me, change me, raise me, what am I?

I believe the cat has given you something that doesn't belong to you, a terrible burden to put in your hands. So smart not showing him where you live, but I'm smarter. Peek-a-boo, I found you. Don't worry, I don't wish to hurt you, on the contrary, I simply wish to pardon you from your involvement in this. Leave it in your mailbox at midnight tomorrow night."

You thoroughly read the note a few times before your sleepy brain figured it out. 

"The money." You whispered to yourself. The note felt a little foreboding despite the promise not to hurt you. Nervousness began to wash over you as you just stared at the note now with eyelids heavy from not enough sleep. This money was definitely someone else's and that someone else knew where you lived.

"Thanks cat boy." You sarcastically muttered to yourself as your feet dragged your exhausted body back to bed. 

No matter how tired you felt, you were unable to sleep. The nightmare combined with the note and all the thoughts you had before bed had left you in a permanent state of unease despite having to get ready for work in just a few hours.

With very little sleep, all of the strange things happening and your broken heart, tomorrow was bound to be a bad day as well.

"Mind over matter" you said out loud "it's only going to be as bad as I let it be."

[allegra-writes]

"Sunflower vol. 1"

Peter Parker x Reader

General audiences

Warnings: none

Series masterlist

Just a little drabble in the "Fine line" verse. This takes place before "Lights up" so you don't need to have read that first. Much like Sharon Carter in CATWS you're an undercover agent assigned to protect Peter. This is what happened the first time you met 🌻

He was... Cute. Normal. Unassuming. That was your first thought as your eyes found him in the crowded classroom. You could see the poorly hidden muscles under his ill fitting plaid shirt and dark hoodie, but the untrained eyes of his schoolmates were probably oblivious to them. He made a face at something a dark haired boy was saying and for a split second you saw the sassy Spider-Man from your footage but it was gone just as quickly as it had appeared. 

"Ok, Y/n… let's see where we can put you" The teacher, Mr. Warren, you reminded yourself, scanned the room for an empty seat, "Ah, there, you can sit next to Mr. Davies over there" 

"Can I sit next to Peter?" You interrupted the guy, making it sound like Peter Parker was your friend already. Director Fury had been clear: You were to keep a close eye on Parker, befriend him, protect him… and report his every movement back to him. And you couldn't very well do that from half a room away.

"I want you to be his shadow, his bestie, his freaking conjoined twin. If that boy sneezes, I want to know. If he tweets something, I want to know. If he makes a bad taste joke, I want to know" Fury had told you, pinning you with an intense look, "This isn't just a surveillance mission, I want a full on personality profile. Stark left him a way too powerful weapon, I'm not taking any chances, I need to know if he can be trusted with it before Mr. Hogan hands it to him"  

"A weapon?" You snorted, "What, Dumbledore left him Gryffindor's sword?" 

Hill scoffed in annoyance, but Fury smirked.

"See? That right there, agent, is why it has to be you, you speak the language"

"What language?" 

"The same Stark used to speak," The director clarified, "the one Parker still does..."

"With Peter? Why?" The teacher's sceptic voice brought you back to the present. You lowered your gaze, trying to appear suddenly shy. It seemed to work because Mr. Warren's eyes widened in surprise, "Oh...oh! Parker? Really?" 

God, what was wrong with everyone in this school? How come all the girls (and some of the guys) weren't crushing on Peter Parker? Were they blind or something? The teacher shrugged, 

"To each their own I guess… Mr. Parker" he called out, "Make room on your station, you have a new lab partner" 

Peter looked up, visibly startled. His deer-in-the-headlights face was adorable, and you genuinely smiled as you took your seat beside him. His cheeks turned pink.

"Hi, I'm y/n"

"Pa-arker. Pe- peter," his blush deepened, "Parker. I'm Peter Parker" he wanted to punch himself in the face. Why did he have to be such a loser? But you just smiled brighter,

"Hello, Peter Parker"

…

Peter was trying to keep his mouth shut, less he made a fool of himself again. Mr Warren was droning on about something in front of the whiteboard but he couldn't get himself to listen, you were just too distracting. And it wasn't even as if you were doing anything to attract his attention, you had long ago given up your attempts at conversation after one too many monosyllabic replies, and were currently doodling on your notebook. 

"You're not paying attention" He kicked himself internally, that sounded like an accusation. But far from offended, you simply smiled again.

"Nah, I already know everything about sunflowers. Here, let me show you" You turned his forearm on the table, rolling up his sleeve. The soft tip of your pen tickled his skin as you started to draw on the inside of his wrist, "The petals around the outside, are called ray florets. And the ones on the center of the flower… " He almost giggled as you started filling the center with a million little dots, "are actually hundreds of tiny flowers called disc florets. Some are male flowers, some are female, that's why they can self reproduce"

The word 'reproduce' shouldn't have sent a tingle down his lower abdomen, he knew that.

"You mean self-pollinate?" 

"Yeah, that…" you murmured, suddenly noticing how close you had leaned towards each other.

Peter cleared his throat,

"So… are they like, your favorite flower or something?"

"Damn right they are!" You laughed, the spell broken "They're badass: They are awesome painkillers when you're out in the field. And did you know they can remove heavy metals, and even radiation from contaminated soil? People planted millions of them in Sokovia after, well, you know…"

Peter frowned in confusion,

"Out in the field?"

Fuck! You had really said that. What a rookie mistake to make! But something about Peter just made you let your guard down.

"Yeah, like, in a sunflower field in the middle of nowhere." You scrambled to cover up, "Once I got lost in one while visiting my grandma, in… Kansas. Yeah, in Kansas. Twisted my ankle real bad, spent the whole night there actually"

Kansas? Try Argentina. It also had been a little worse than a sprained ankle. And you had spend days there, on the run after a mission gone wrong. Hadn't been for the flowers you would have starved to death.

The bell rang just as you were finishing your drawing, complete with a path of ants and everything. 

"You should text me sometime, I'm on Telegram" You said, grabbing your backpack and practically running out of the class. Peter looked down at his arm. Upon closer inspection, the ants were minuscule numbers. A huge, dazzled smile broke on his face. He dug out his phone, entering your number before it could get smudge or erased or something. On the contact name, he entered a single emoji: A bright yellow sunflower. 

To be continued...

[agentwhiskeysdarlin]

Marked

Request: Maxwell spankings with his ring on so it leaves bruises 

Pairing: Maxwell Lord x Fem!Reader (no y/n)

Rating: NC-17

Warnings: mention of bruises, if you have a problem with marks like this left after sex skip on by please, sub!reader, dom!maxwell, fluffy fluff because I can’t help it, guilty Maxwell, shower sex, unprotected sex (wrap it before you tap it), I think that’s all???

Word Count:1,915 

Author’s Notes: Hello readers it’s been a minute! Things have been ugh with my mental health which leaves no room for writing at all. I promised a Maxwell fic was on the way so here we are! I hope you all enjoy and feedback is always welcomed and adored!

ao3 link for story

  You knew the second the words feel from your lips and you decided to top them off with a sassy tone you were in for it. He had stopped dead in his tracks of getting ready for the event the two of you were heading to and gave you a look that you knew too well. You were very famous for not holding back and therefore got yourself in a lot of trouble with Maxwell Lord. Max and yourself had been dating for little over a year and it still came to a shock to everyone that a person like yourself was dating the asshole CEO. You held your ground with the man to a certain line but if you inched across it you paid for it in anyway that Max saw fit. He was never overly cruel and knew when to stop or let up because he does care for you and you knew damn well that he did love you.

  “Would you like to repeat that for me princess?” His tone was edged and you gulped as you looked up at his reflection behind you in the mirror.

  “No sir,” the words were soft and you gave him the best puppy dog look you could.

  “Now, now we both know that cute little face does nothing to help this case. Come here,” he motioned for you to come to him.

  He sat down on the edge of the bed already dressed in his button up shirt and trousers that matched his suit jacket. You were still lounging around in your underwear until you had finished your hair and makeup. You walked to him and stood before him your head down. His finger came up to your chin and he moved your head so that your eyes feel upon his.

  “What does something like that get you princess?” He spoke as his fingers started to dance up your sides.

  “Ten spankings sir.”

  “Very good. Come now,” he patted his leg and you laid over his lap so that your ass was sticking up for him where he could spank it perfectly. 

  “Don’t forget to count or we will have to start over.”

  “Yes sir.”

  He fixed your already fixed hair gently to the side and with one hand pulled your arms behind your back and held your wrist, locking them down with his grip and the other rubbed at your ass moving your panties that didn’t cover much out of the way to give him better access. You let out a whimper when you felt the coolness of his ring rub across your ass and knew for sure that you were going to end up with bruises. He never gave you a warning and sometimes this part would last forever, drawing it out to make you squirm even more than you were. When his hand came crashing down across your ass you let a yelp before quickly calling out the number. It repeated quickly and harshly until he reached five before he stopped to rub on your burning ass. The ring added the extra pain and honestly it was only making the experience more heightened. You were panting and wiggling slightly.

  “Be still now princess.”

  “Yes sir,” you whined out as you stilled on his lap and let out a shaky breathe.

  He once again caught you off guard crashing his hand against your ass swapping cheeks so that each got five very good hits. You counted each one and as he came crashing down, you swear harder, one last time you had to stop the tears from springing forward. He rubbed gently across your cheeks to ease the sting before pulling you up and sitting you in his lap which caused you to gasp at the fabric rubbing at the sensitive area. 

“Now let that stink be a reminder to you for the night to be on your best behavior and keep that pretty little mouth in line,” he leaned forward and kissed you on the forehead before rubbing at your back and gave you a tap of simple permission.

  “Yes sir.”

  “Very good now go. I’m ready to see you in that dress I choose for you to wear tonight.”

  You couldn't help but to match his smile as you gave him a peak on the lips and darted off to finish getting ready. 

  The entire event seemed to be a blur. You ass felt like it was on fire which was not overly unusual after Max had his way with you but this time seemed to be different. You had took a seat while Max went to talk his way through whatever deal he was working on that moment. You couldn't help but to constantly switch positions as you sipped your drink and watched the man you loved mingle around the room. You caught his eyes as he came back to you, moving his chair over closer to you.

  “You okay there princess? You like really uncomfortable,” his eyes showed concern but a playful smirk appeared.

  “Oh yes just fine. Someone just did a number on my ass a bit earlier,” you sarcastic tone was one he took like a champ but you were sure to through in your own playful look his way.

  He gave you a pointed look and before he could say another word someone else popped up to speak with him. You gave him a simple nod to show you were okay and he took off again. The event thankfully soon came to a close and the two of you headed home. You didn’t bother with a shower, your heels already off before you even entered your home. 

  “Did you succeed in what you needed to tonight my love?” You asked Max as the two of you laid in bed.

  “I did actually. Closed that deal tonight, paperwork will be all that’s left to make it official,” he gave you a smile.

  “I’m glad then,” you gave him a smile before reaching up to give him a deep kiss.

  “Get some sleep princess,” he spoke softly before kissing the top of your head.

  The next morning the sun shining just slightly through the windows stirred you awake. You looked up to see Max still fast asleep and you slowly removed yourself from his grasp and made your way to the bathroom. Little did you know the second you were out of his arms and out of his bed Max had woken up. He watched as he exited the bedroom into the bathroom your naked ass showing just what he had done to you yesterday. Max was rough with you but not many times had he ever left bruises that bad. They were already slowly growing to a shade of purple and Max’s heart feel to his stomach. He rolled himself out of bed and walked into the bathroom. You were already under a hot steam of water humming softly to yourself when he stepped inside behind you.

  “Good morning my love,” you smiled as you turned to wrap your arms around his neck and kiss him.

  The look on his face stopped you dead in your movements. He looked so upset and you felt your heartbeat pick up and your face feel.

  “What’s wrong?” 

  “I hurt you.”

  “Max what are you talking about?” Your brow furrowed in confusion.

  Max pulled the mirror off the wall he used for quick shaves in the shower and turned you around. He held it up so you could see your ass in it when you half turned. Sure enough several almost purple bruises were littered across it. You let out a small sigh. You knew it hurt but wasn’t expecting to see that and in all honestly it didn’t bother you that much. You turned and took the mirror from Max, his face so full of worry as he watched you careful.

  “My love it’s okay,” you wrapped your arms around his neck and looked him in the eyes.

  “I’ve never bruised you like that before.”

 “Max we talked about all this right off and you know it’s okay. Plus it’s a nice reminder that I belong to you and only you,” you couldn't help the small smirk that landed on your face as you reached forward and captured his lips with yours.

  The kiss at first was gentle and sweet but soon the fever became too hot and Max had you against the shower wall. His hands slid down to your hips and kneaded them roughly yearning a moan from you. His lips moved their way from your lips down your neck until he reached your breast. He pulled your nipple with his teeth causing a gasp to slip from your mouth. He treated the other one the same before he kissed down your stomach. He flipped you over and kissed along each of the bruises along you ass before moving back up. His lips landing along your back caused chills to break out all over your skin despite the heat of the water. His lips made their way back to your neck. You were already a panting mess.

  “Max please,” you looked back at him begging with not just your words but your eyes.

  “You want me right here in the shower princess?” 

  A simple nod was all you gave him. He gave you a smirk before kissing your lips deeply once more before pushing himself inside of you. He pulled your back flesh against his chest as his thrust became slow and soft. It was rare that this happened. Sex was not much different for Max than the rest of his life. It was always fast and hard but on rare occasions you would yearn the slow and steady Max, the love making Max. You loved these moments maybe slightly more than the rest so you treasured them when they came about. 

  “You love it when I go nice and slow for you don’t you princess? So you can feel ever last inch of me go deep inside and then all the way out, stretching you so perfectly for me,” his words were like honey in your ears and all you could do in return was moan and node your head.

  He reached around and slowly started to rub your clit in circles as he started to pick his pace up just a little. He never once went too hard or too fast but it was all just right. You could feel yourself climbing closer and closer as the water above you ran colder and colder. You almost jumped when Max reached around and turned the tab off before returning his fingers back to your clit.

  “Come on princess cum for me,” he growled the words in your ear and it was the last push you needed.

  You came with whimpers and soft moans. Your entire body melted into him and if it wasn’t for him you would have feel to the shower floor. You felt him follow you and then came back to hear him moan your name in your ear as he released inside of you. You both stood there for a moment almost stuck together by the moment before he pulled out. You turned around and laid back against the wall still heaving breaths. 

  “If I’m going to get that every time you mark me I may just have to let you do it more often,” you gave Max a smirk.

  “Don’t tempt me princess.”

Tagged: @jimmythegirl​ @arcadianempress​ @discogrrl​ (emotional supporter) @immundusspiritu​ @someplace-darker​ @talesfromtheguild​ @thisis-theway​ @on-the-razor-crest​ (emotional supporter) @fioccodineveautunnale​ @spookyold-saintjm​ 

[evil-is-relative]

Hello, dear! You've been visited by the random character question fairy! :D ~☆

How, in general, does your character behave? Are they outgoing, reserved, or somewhere in the middle? Do they have any tics? Do they over plan or are they more spontaneous?

Ysmir is guardedly friendly and polite to a fault. Her mother was a courtesan and taught her how far simple courtesy will go, and she’s never forgotten the lesson. She’s mostly understanding of other’s mistakes because she sees many of her own as unforgivable, and can occasionally be too forgiving. That goes entirely out the window when enraged. She nearly kills Delphine and only stops because her daughter reminds her that she’s present to see.

She will always flinch when she sense Illusion magic, and will show signs of discomfort (shifting, tucking her hair behind her ears, nibbling her lips) when conversations get too personal. When she’s concentrating really hard, the tip of her tongue peeks out. Blaise and Runa both pick this up from her.

Ysmir is a glorious mix of over-planning and sudden acts of recklessness. Both get her into trouble. When she has to wing it she second guesses herself quite a bit, because she likes to think through all the ramifications of her actions before she takes them. Such as standing up and telling off the entire peace council at seventeen, because a teenager shouldn’t have to slay a dragon god, let alone have to get a bunch of adults who should know better to behave long enough for her to do it. That did not endear her to Tullius or Galmar. She reminds Ulfric too much of her father, Tyr, for him to hold it against her for long, though it smarted, and it made Elisif positively friendly to her.

-

Shell is overly friendly and distractingly flirty. This is not entirely an act, as she is fun-loving and enjoys the company of others. She’s sassy and borderline disrespectful, but only as far as she can get away with. While this is not the extent of her personality, she does play it up so others underestimate her, unwilling to look beneath the shallow surface.

When thinking, Shell will get out and play with her knives, flipping them through her fingers and around her wrists like a fidget toy. Other than that, her tells and tics have been pretty brutally disciplined out of her.

Because of her double life, Shell is very much a planner. Even when opportunities arise that need quick thought and action, she’s generally thinking two or three steps ahead.

-

Rommy is friendly and mannerly (even, usually, as Sheogorath when he’s in a good mood). He was raised gentry and is very much the door-opening, pulling-out-the-chair-for-guests kind even still. (Felicia always found this mildly hilarious, but charming, not that she’d openly tell him.) He’s outgoing, but does think through how his Daedric side might react. He likes to keep casualties to a minimum. 

Being Sheogorath comes with a lot of tics. One good one that he can never really suppress is that when he finds something genuinely funny, he can’t help but laugh, and the colors of the world around him become more intense.

Rommy is spontaneous, even when he was human. His history is awash in sudden, sometimes disastrerous decisions. Ysmir inherited a bit of this from him.

-

Fey is extremely polite and charming. She projects a calming, caring aura. While she’s capable of these, she’s actually quite shrewd and occasionally sharp. Her designation as a courtesan spy requires a lot of lounging and acting soft, while she’s more a creature of movement and creativity. Her turns of thought can be unpredictable and outwardly very odd, sparking spontaneous actions, but they will always align with her previous plans.

Fey has absolutely no tics. Ruthless perfection is expected of her, and she wouldn’t have made it if she didn’t deliver. Her biggest flaw was not being able to emotionally detach from her children, and falling for a human.

-

Tyr is very friendly, and a bit of a goofball. He has a way of getting people to cooperate whether they want to or not, and is a natural leader. He’s fiercely loyal and protective, and his temper, especially on another’s behalf, is something to behold.

He tends to bite the inside of his cheek while thinking, which quirks his mouth to the side. He is also a chronic foot bouncer.

As for planning verses recklessness, Tyr can plan for the long run, but mostly makes brilliant snap decisions that usually work in his benefit, something he unknowingly can blame on his connection to Tiber Septim.

-

Talon is outwardly cold and polite. Though technically allowed in Altmer society (mostly to spy in the open and to report goings on, like Fey was), he never made friends or even friendly acquaintances. Left on his own he is slow to trust, but once he has decided someone is trustworthy, he proves quietly kind and considerate, and is unable to not impart knowledge. When it comes to magic, he is a huge nerd.

If turning to granite is a tic, that’s Talon’s.

Forget planner, Talon’s a chessmaster.

[cozykhaos]

A New Sun Part 12

Hello! Sorry this chapter is so short, I find the chapters where I have to copy scenes to take a lot longer and be much more exhausting to write. I’ll make up for it in the next part! Any who, enjoy! 

Also, do any of you think that the Wizard might be Abbie’s father? What are some fan theories that you agree with?

----

I watched as the green apple sized creature danced on top of my mail box, its little legs kicking back and forth in the worlds smallest Can-Can Dance. I hadn’t seen the little creature since the Egg Festival, sometimes I would hear it’s little chirp could never find where it came from. It leaned over and patted the top of my mail box.

“Aren’t you a little bossy thing?” I quirked an eyebrow at it as it continuously pat the top of the box.

I opened and my mouth dropped open. It was filled with letters, I hadn’t even thought about checking the mail since I came out here, figuring if anyone wanted to talk to me they would just show up. I riffled through the envelopes, curiously a couple of them were from Lewis. The last letter sent a tingle through my fingers, a small current running through the tips, up my arms and into my heart. It wasn’t unpleasant, it was a way of way of saying ‘hey, I’m here, I’m important. Look at me. Read me.’

Somewhere behind me Asher snuffled. The tiny creature noiselessly bounced in place. Eos Farm held its breath. I opened the letter. It breathed again.

My sources tell me you have been poking around inside the old Community Center.

Why don’t you pay me a visit?

My chambers are west of the forest lake, in the stone tower. I may have information concerning your…

‘rat problem’.

-M. Rasmodius, Wizard

I turned the letter over, blank. I looked at the small creature, who was starring up at me with glossy black eyes and a tiny smile.

The stone tower? I turned and looked in the direction of the tower, I could see the peak of the blue roof from my farm. As children we tried so many times to get inside that tower. All of us, Abigail, Sam, Sebastian, even Haley and Emily. We would stand out there, staring up at the stone structure, discussing ways to get inside. We could always hear movement on the other side of that thick wooden door. We tried climbing the side of it, to get to the top window. We would grow tired before long, the tower seeming to stretch on forever. Once Abbie fell, instead of plummeting to the ground, she gently floated to the grass below. After that we stopped trying to get inside. We would stand at the bottom of the hill and tell stories about what we thought was inside.

Sam said it was a pizza buffet.

I picked up the little being off the mail box and put it on my shoulder. It grabbed my curls and wrapped the tendrils around its little body. That would be a pain to brush out later.

I whistled for Asher and off we went towards the tower.

It was just as intimidating as I remembered. The thick oak door, the stones soaring into the sky, Rapunzel’s hair wouldn’t even make it to the ground. I told myself to be brave and I knocked.

“Come in!” A voice roared from the other side. I stared at the bare door, no door handle to be found.

“Uhhh how?” I asked. The tower seemed to sigh and the door opened on its own.

“Sassy fucking tower,” I muttered under my breath and entered the tower.

The room was basic but my brain couldn’t grasp what it was seeing. Everything seemed to be covered in a haze as if an illusion, from the basic oaken floors with the bubbling cauldron that reeked of spoiled eggs and rotting apples. The far right of the room stones took over the floor, white symbols painted on top and so many candles with too many different fragrances. Lavender, basil, sage, nutmeg, ginger. It was an assault on my senses and I felt feint. Ash whimpered next to me.

A man I had not seen made his way from around the symbol painted on the floor. “I am Rasmodius… Seeker of the Arcane Truths. Mediary between ethereal and physical Master of the Seven Elementals. Keeper of the Sacred Cha- You get the point” He had a voice that rose from the earth, it was hard and closed around each word at the end. It rooted me back to this place, back to this tower. I stared at the wizard he stared back but averted his dark gaze, familiar purple hair poked out from underneath his cowboy hat and covered his face in a handle bar mustache and goatee. I gawked.  

He approached me. “And you... Kit. The ones whose arrival I have long foreseen.” His eyes shifted to the circle next to him. “Here. I have something to show you.” With a flick of his wrist and a “BEHOLD” my little friend appeared in the circle. The little creature chirped inside the now glowing circle, lights danced from the edges and upwards. The creature chased them, dancing around the circle like it was a stage. “You’ve seen it before, haven’t you?”

I nodded. “I mean, it did tell me to check my mail.”

The wizard’s dark gaze landed on me. “We will get to that in a minute. They call themselves the ‘Junimos’. Mysterious spirits these ones. For some reason, they refuse to speak with me.” He flicked his rest again and my friend disappeared. I looked around but it was no where to be found.

“I don’t know why they have moved into the Community Center,” the wizard continued. “But you have no reason to fear them.”

I looked down at Ash who noticeably gulped, his tail tucked between his legs. I picked up the pup and cradled him close. Rasmodius looked at me with his head cocked to one side. “Inside the Community Center, there was a golden tablet in one of the rooms,” I said. “It had a language written on it that I’m not familiar with.” It seemed important to tell him.

“Most interesting, stay here. I’m going to go see for myself, I’ll return shortly.” With that he disappeared. I stared at the spot that the wizard was just standing in. I pursed my lips into a duck bill and waited. The door behind me open, I spun and stumbled backwards as the wizard entered.

“What the fuck!?” I yelled at, holding Ash closer to me, he growled at Rasmodius.

The wizard ignored my reaction. “I found the note. The language is obscure but I managed to decipher it: We, the Junimos, are happy to aid you. In return we ask for gifts of the Valley. If you are one with the forest then you will see the true nature of this scroll.” He walked to the cauldron staring into the green cloud that steamed from it. “’One with the forest’” He mused. “What could they mean?”

I glanced down at Ash who looked up at me. He wiggled in my arms and I sat him down. The wizard was stroking his goatee in silence, lost deep in thought. Rasmodius paused, his eyes wide as he said “AH HAH!” He pointed at me, I flinched, almost expecting to be struck by lighting, or turned into a frog. “COME HERE!”

I looked around, hoping to see someone else standing close enough that I could throw them in my path. Asher had army crawled away on his stomach and into a corner. Traitor.

Hesitantly I walked over to Rasmodius and in front of the cauldron.

“My cauldron is bubbling with ingredients of the forest.” He started.

The smell was much much worse this close to the pot. “Baby fern, moss grub, caramel top toadstool, can you smell it?”

I gagged.

“Here. Drink up. Let the essence of the forest permeate your body.”

“I’m sorry, what?” I looked at him.

“Drink up. Let the essence of the fores-”

“No no, I heard you.”

“Then why did you ask?”

“It wasn’t really a question.”

“It sounded like one.”

“I was being facetious.”

The wizard stared at me unblinking, taking a cup he filled it with the goop from inside the cauldron and shoved it into my hands. I glanced down at the slim, something inside of it bulged like a frogs throat before popping.

“Drink.” The wizard ordered. I plugged my nose and took a deep gulp of the brew. It spilled out the side of the cup and down my chin onto my shirt. I set the cup down, it took a moment for the taste to assault my taste buds. Boiled mushrooms, hot mud, rotting leaves, algae and a feint hint of raw ginger. I heaved.

I hit the ground with a thunk.

Asher scrambled over to me.

Visions floated before my eyes.

Thick tree canopies, with leaves drifting down to the forest floor. The trees became thicker, growing into a lush forest, they swam before my eyes.

Then.

Darkness.

[insert-pun-here-now]

Shooting Star- All or Nothing- Part 2

Masterpost

“Thank God!” Tina yelled, rushing over to hug Blaine. He jerked back, stiffly. His movements were more robotic than anything, eyes fixed blankly ahead as he slowly tilted his head downwards to look at Tina, eyes burning from the number of times he rubbed it on his sleeve, unable to use his hands due to them being covered in Marley’s blood.

Tina took in the sad environment, the glassy eyes, the dried tear tracks on everybody’s faces, their silence, the blood. She looked around, trying to find people missing. “Where’s Marley and Brittany?”

“We don’t know where Brittany is,” Joe admitted.

“But Marley? I thought she was with you,” Tina asked, confused, then the shock began to really catch up to her, taking in their faces, taking in everything. The pain, the sorrow, the regret, the guilt.

“She was.” Artie’s hands were hanging out of the sides of his wheelchair, eyes glazed over and staring into the distance. “Then she wasn’t.”

“I should have been there.” Tina’s hands flew up to her mouth, horrified. “I should have been with you guys.”

“No you shouldn’t,” Blaine rasped softly, voice cracking.

“I wanted to be with you guys!” Tina yelled back.

“It wasn’t nice, Tina. You wouldn’t have... we all didn’t...” Blaine stared at the sky.

“We stick together!”

“Did we ever, for Marley?” Unique shouted, voice wavering slightly as she stepped up to Tina, seeing Blaine unresponsive. “Do you want to know what happened in there? She was beaten. She was battered. She was so thin her ribs cracked with a little force. She was so weak it took a man stepping on her wrist to break it. And all the while we realized that we weren’t the best to her. He beat her and shot her because she took attention away from Kitty by saying she was the one who was a burden to all of us by losing Sectionals! And you know the last thing she said? SHE FUCKING APOLOGIZED TO US FOR EVERYTHING! In low self-esteem language, that means she was sorry she even existed in our lives to begin with. Let that sink in. She. Was. Sorry. She. Existed. Marley Rose, our own version of your Rachel, had such low self-esteem that she was sorry she existed,” Unique scoffed, stepping closer. “No one has passed out at Sectionals before. But I don’t think you let someone feel so underappreciated they were sorry for their own existence.”

“Unique...” Ryder whispered, stepping forward. “Let it be.”

“Hell no I’m not letting this be!” Unique spun around to face him angrily, her face turning redder as her voice rose higher and higher. “I was her best friend! She had my back since day one! I should have had her back! Maybe then she wouldn’t be this worse off... maybe then she wouldn’t have been shot at all...” Her voice became nothing more than a whisper.

It didn’t escape anybody that she used was.

Sure, Marley could be a little extra, a little goofy, sunny, stubborn, her sense of justice too strong sometimes, her sense of morality an annoying trait that made people think she was a goody-two-shoes most of the time. Maybe her songwriting wasn’t the best, maybe her songwriting needed a little improvement, but maybe if they all worked together they could create a masterpiece.

They were all works in progress, but Marley was the best out of all of them.

(Rachel would later state that of all the members so far, Marley was the only one who hadn’t cheated on anybody, hadn’t been a total bitch, hadn’t done anything that was remarkably stupid and wrong. Eating disorders didn’t count- they realized with Mercedes and Quinn before and Kitty later. To Ryder he found it bitter that it took Kitty coming out with an ED for everybody to take it seriously. Everybody found it bitterly ironic even later, when the truth came out about Kitty’s involvement.)

Joe sighed, slouching slightly as he cast his eyes up skywards, hoping to God that with one member down, they could find the other one quickly safely and unharmed.

Jake spoke up, voice thick, echoing everybody’s feelings, thoughts... anything.

“Brittany got shot too.”

The world around Sam shifted and tilted on its axis as he gaped at the younger Puckerman, staring right at him mouth ajar. “You’re kidding. How did you know? Where is she? Where the fuck-? Why didn’t you tell me earlier?! Tell me fucking where she is!” Sam roared, closing the distance in an instant and grabbing the front of Jake’s shirt. “ANSWER ME!”

“When I went outside to look for help... I checked everywhere for other people. I heard Brittany crying in one of the corners. She was bleeding quite badly and I helped her outside... and then she told me not to blame myself,” Jake whispered. “That’s when I got the paramedics to go back for Marley.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“My heart shattered. I didn’t want yours to break either.”

“Piece of shit!” Sam yelled, shoving Jake back. Mr. Schue stopped Sam from attacking Jake any further by throwing a hand across his chest to block him. “You should have just told me!”

“Like it would have made anything better!” Jake shouted back.

“You don’t know me,” Sam snarled. Coach Beiste stepped up, separating the two.

“That’s enough. You both arguing isn’t going to reverse what happened. We need to calm down, now.”

“I need to call Kurt,” Blaine said suddenly, stepping away and tapping at his phone. “I need to tell him- I can’t- I can’t...”

“It’s okay,” Sugar whispered, rubbing his back. “We’re here.”

“No,” he choked out, fumbling with his phone and putting it up to his ear. “Kurt, please, pick up. Pick up. Pick up.”

A choked sob, as he almost collapsed to the ground, his knees weak as he finally heard Kurt’s simple, “Hello? Blaine?”

“Kurt.” His voice was choked, as if someone was strangling him. He didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, or anything. “Kurt, I love you.”

“I don’t understand-“

“I love you,” Blaine repeated forcefully this time, before sobbing. “I just... I just wanted you... I just wanted you to know that. I needed for you to know that. And I know I’ve apologized a million times for what I’ve done and did a lot of terrible things and I know we’re reconnecting again but-“ Blaine sank to the floor, on his knees, hands covered in Marley’s blood as he stared at the stains. “There was a shooting in the school.”

There was a gasp over the phone as Kurt fumbled with something, glass shattering in the background. He could hear Santana and Rachel in the background, yelling about something. About breaking glass. They abruptly stopped, there were murmurs of concern, then- that was Rachel’s voice now. “You’re on speaker, Blaine.”

“I- I just... we had something happen. Something happened and the school was shot up,” Blaine said, and Rachel’s gasp could be heard over the phone.

“Are you okay?” Rachel asked, gently. “Was anyone hurt?”

“I’m okay physically.” There was a sigh of relief over the phone. “Brittany and Marley got hurt.”

Utter silence.

“Britt and Marley got hurt?” Santana asked, slowly. She was in shock. She was in disbelief. She sounded like she wanted someone to slap her to get her back into reality.

It finally registered in Blaine’s head that Santana still loves Brittany. She was still head over heels in love with Brittany and no one could say anything about it, even if Brittany is dating Sam at the moment. And Marley was her mentee. Santana was fiercely protective of anyone she considered to be worth protecting. Blaine wondered if Santana could see what he sees in the newbies: potential. Brittany was self-explanatory but he wondered why Santana was attached to Marley. Maybe they were closer than he thought.

With all that was said and done, would Santana feel guilty too?

“Baby Blaine? You still there?”

Blaine blinked back into reality, forcing himself to look away from the incriminating red on his hands and getting to his feet and walking. Each step felt like he was sinking into cement, deeper and deeper. He was walking in an aimless direction.

“Y-yeah, I’m still here.” It felt like someone dumped an ice cold bucket in his face, shocking him. Santana’s voice felt like that at the moment, probably taking over speaking since Rachel was probably busy with Kurt, who he could hear sobbing in the background. “For now.”

“No, don’t you dare speak like that,” Santana snapped, and there was a rustle as she shifted. “I don’t care where everybody is now, I will call for a full New Directions reunion even if I have to drag Puckerman’s ass out of college and whip Finn into coming back. They are his students, and if Mr. Schue was caught in the crossfire like that, then he’s no use. I don’t care if Mr. Schue and Finn are feuding, I don’t care if you all say you’re fine because you’re all clearly not. I am dragging the entire New Directions back to Lima and you will not say a word to stop anything about it.”

“Santana, I-“

“Blaine Anderson if you are about to say that it’s too much for us to suddenly come there and possibly leave everything behind abruptly, I’m sorry, but Rachel and Kurt are packing as we speak and they have sent texts to Puck, Finn, Quinn, Mike and Mercedes and they have AGREED, so shut your pie hole about it and accept our love! I don’t give it out that easy. God, I think I see why I let Berry organize these things...”

Blaine closed his eyes and smiled, listening to Santana rant in the background. He knew it was to distract him from the madness around him as the paramedics came up to him and looked him over.

“You okay, man?” Ryder asked softly, coming up to him.

“No. I don’t think I’ll ever be,” Blaine said, knowing that Santana was trying to act extra tough and sassy to hide the fact that she was downright terrified.

“Blaine- stop,” Santana huffed. “They will get through this. Look, I will flay you if you tell anybody else but... I’m scared too. I’m scared for Baby Marley and Britt. I know there’s so much more you’re not telling me because you can’t bring yourself to tell me. I’m downright terrified that you’re not telling me fucking anything other than there was a shooting and both of them were hurt. But we’re coming back, we’re not letting you guys go through this alone, alright? We are family, and if the newbs don’t know that yet, they’re going to know it now.” A pause. “I’m not just saying that ‘cause Puckerman’s brother is in there and he’s literal family.”

“Santana, you are a secret softie.”

“Shut up.” She paused for a moment. “Kurt wants the phone back. We’re all hopping onto the first flight as soon as we can. I’ll leave you both to talk things out later, alright? He’s a mess.”

“Alright. See you soon, Santana.”

“Take care of yourself, baby Blaine. And remember: you’re alive now. And you’re safe.”

Blaine hung up the call as Ryder placed himself next to him. Everybody was getting rollcalled, Coach Beiste and Mr. Schuester were called by Sue Sylvester to help the rest of the teachers do rollcall. Blaine imagined the tears that came when mentioning Marley’s name. It felt like a stab in his heart as Kitty joined him and Artie was just in his wheelchair, staring at the sky blankly. Jake was keeping a wide berth from Sam, who was talking to Unique and Tina. Joe and Sugar were trying to pray together, but they were practically supporting each other.

Kitty’s mouth opened, then shut suddenly. Then... “I didn’t get to tell Marley it wasn’t her.”

“Wasn’t her what?” Ryder asked.

But Kitty just shook her head, suddenly sobbing and curling into Blaine’s side as he put his arm around her and let her sob into his shirt. Artie was practically indisposed, staring into space. Sam was dry-heaving. Unique was actually vomiting into the ground, Tina rubbing both of their backs. Jake was kicking the shit out of a tree, yelling and screaming in frustration as he also picked up rocks and chucked it at the tree, barely satisfied when the rocks made a heavy thunk on the tree.

Ryder was just looking at Jake, sliding out of his seat and watched him pull back his fist and punch the tree as if it would make everything go away. For all his efforts, the tree barely moved. With a roar, Jake continued to slam his fist into the tree. His shoulders shook with silent sobs as every punch grew weaker and weaker as he finally threw a slow punch, missing the tree entirely, and then sliding to the ground as his back hit the tree.

“Did you get it out of your system?” Ryder asked quietly.

“No,” Jake muttered, but he made no move to get up. He was panting heavily, sweating hard, though Ryder couldn’t tell the difference between his tears and his sweat. “I’m her boyfriend, Ryder. I’m her fucking boyfriend and I didn’t see this. I didn’t fucking see any of this.”

“I’m pretty sure none of us ever saw a school shooting to happen today, so...”

“No!” Jake shouted, and Ryder flinched slightly, but relaxed. “I mean her. I didn’t see any of that. I didn’t see that she needed help. I didn’t see that she still relapsed. I didn’t see she didn’t love herself. I didn’t see because I was fucking blind to all of it!” Jake picked up a stone and hurled it far away from them.

“Love is a blindfold,” Ryder said softly, staring into the distance. “You love someone so much that you don’t see their flaws. It doesn’t matter what kind of love it is, you just think they’re perfect and can do no wrong. You put them on a pedestal and turn a blind eye to what falls from the top because you’re focused on the perfect artefact.”

“When did you get so wise?” Jake smiled, though it was mostly forced. Ryder would still take it.

“Because that’s what I did with Katie. And it’s what I did before... but that’s a story for another day.” Ryder patted his shoulder awkwardly, and noticed Jake was still heaving, panting from his efforts to destroy the tree. “I think we all owe Marley an apology.”

Ryder was absolutely gutted. He thought she stopped. He thought everything was okay. But no. He should have pushed. Should have done something. But now it’s too late. It’s too late and Marley absolutely paid the price.

“Guys...” Kitty’s voice drew all of them back to the present as Joe and Sugar came up to Blaine and Kitty, hands outstretched to Kitty who looked like she was going to faint. “I... I don’t feel so good.”

“Did you eat?” was the first question that popped into Joe’s mind, frowning at her.

“No... I missed one of Sue’s shakes today...”

Artie looked back at Kitty and at Unique and Sam vomiting and having a panic attack respectively. Sam was rocking back and forth, hands over his ears and whimpering. Unique sighed as she stopped vomiting, looking tired, and Tina was trying really hard to comfort them both, looking up to Artie for help.

“Mr. Schue!” Artie yelled, rolling over the ground to get to the four staff members deep in discussion about the situation. Coach Beiste had silent tears rolling down her face. Sue was comforting Becky with a hand on her back. Miss Pillsbury had looked up at Artie shouting, Joe catching Kitty as she collapsed, Unique and a bunch of vomit in front of her, Sam having a panic attack. Ryder and Blaine were trying to help Tina with Sam. Sugar was running to the teachers, looking terrified. “Mr. Schue we need help.”

“Will,” Emma said, swatting Will’s hand. “We need to help them!”

“Go and help them,” Sue said, trying to calm Becky down. “I’ll stay with Becky.”

“Hey, hey,” Will said, crouching by Sam. “It’s Mr. Schue. You’re safe now.”

“No-no- no we have to get out, Mr. Schue, we have to get out, we have to get out-“ Sam gasped for a breath, grasping at Blaine blindly. Blaine hardly blinked, as Ryder put a hand on his back, but instead of rubbing aimlessly like Tina, he motioned for Sam to lean against Blaine.

“Can you feel his heartbeat?” Ryder asked quietly. “Can you try to match his?”

“Don’t worry, Mr. Schue, we got Sam. Help Unique, I think she’s throwing up due to nerves and stress and Kitty passed out,” Blaine whispered, controlling his breathing to keep his heartbeat steady. “Tina, could you help Sugar in getting us all some water?”

“We’re going to the hospital in a bit,” Will whispered. “If you want to go home, that’s fine. I don’t blame you.”

“No. Us Glee freaks stick together,” Ryder said sadly. “And I don’t think we’re leaving each other alone, not for a hot minute. I think we all... have something to say to each other.”

“And the others... they’re coming back. Something about supporting us, organized by Santana,” Blaine muttered. “I tried to talk them out of it, but you know Santana...”

“I think we need their help,” Will admitted, hanging his head. “I should have known something was up. I just... thought you kids could handle it.”

Blaine smiled sadly. “As you say, we’re only kids.”

Will got up to help Joe with Kitty, who was pale, paler than ever. The paramedics looked her over then frowned.

“She needs to be taken to the hospital. She’s very dehydrated, she’s severely underweight. She has electrolyte imbalances, which could lead to fatality.”

“What?”

“We need to move to the hospital now.”

[writerbyaccident]

A Certain Type (Yandere All Might/Toshinori YagixReader)

Request: Maybe All Might kidnapping a sassy villain darling who loved to rob jewelry stores. Instead of taking her to prison he takes her to his home. She is baffled but doesn’t complain until she realizes she’s trapped. She’s annoyed and bratty to All Might until she finds out about his true form and ironically she finds his skinny form irresistible and tries to make out with him.

Thanks to the requester, this one was really fun to write!

           Sitting on the couch, you were watching television with your feet kicked up on the coffee table. There wasn’t anything good on, but you were so bored that you kept it on anyway. As time continued to pass, the itch to actually go out and do something nagged at you, but it was an itch that you could not scratch. You had been trapped down in this basement for about a week now, and it wasn’t getting any easier. Used to going where you wanted when you wanted, this was admittedly a hard adjustment to make. But still, it had to be better than prison.

           When it happened, you had been on a simple visit to the jewelry store. Although, you supposed that the gun you had pointed at the manager had made things a bit less simple. Your plan was just to get in, get your jewelry, and get out. You weren’t actually going to hurt anyone, but you guessed you couldn’t really blame anyone for not realizing that. If it had just been the police that showed up that night, everything would have worked out the way you wanted. After all, with your impenetrable skin, there wasn’t a whole lot that they could do to you. All Might on the other hand, All Might could do a whole lot.

           “I am here!” came his signature phrase as he rushed into the jewelry store. The owner nearly swooned in relief when he appeared. You however, weren’t quite as happy.

           “I’m sorry, sweetheart,” you mocked him, trying to distract him while you searched for a way out. “But I’m afraid they’re sold out.”

           “That’s alright,” he answered. “I’m just here to make a return.” He flashed his famous grin at you, eyeing the bag clipped to your waist. You smirked back at him, trying to keep your annoyance in check.

           “Well then, I guess I’ll get out of your way.” Suddenly, just as All Might was taking a step forward, you took some of the loose pearls you had been holding in your left hand and threw them at his feet. The Symbol of Peace slipped on them, giving you the chance you needed. Running past him, you exited the store and rushed down an alleyway. Refusing to look back, you zigzagged through the shadows of the city, determined to get away with your bag of loot. You had earned those jewels, after all.

           But as you turned a corner, you slammed into something you didn’t expect. Or maybe you did, but you just didn’t want to admit it. Standing there was All Might, still wearing that grin of his. He snatched your bag from you with one hand, while grabbing your wrist with the other.

           “You know, for such a big guy, you really can sneak up on a girl.” He chuckled at your quip, and before you could even attempt to get out of his grasp, he pulled a cloth out from his pocket and held it up against your face, causing you to pass out.

           When you had woken up, you had been in this basement with no idea why you were there. You figured that maybe All Might wanted to make some sort of deal with you, bargain for a bigger fish so to speak, but overtime it became apparent that that wasn’t the case. No, he had brought you here because he had a crush. It was no coincidence that he showed up that night, he had been watching you for quite some time.

           Speak of the devil, you heard the door at the top of the basement stairs being unlocked slowly. He was careful not to rush it, not after your previous escape attempt. For some reason that he just couldn’t comprehend, you weren’t content to just stay and be his little plaything. But All Might was nothing if not tenacious, so he wasn’t about to give up on the two of you. The first time he had seen you, he knew that the two of you were matched in some way. It wasn’t something obvious, but there was a part of you that reminded him of himself. It was the part that kept joking, kept laughing and smiling even in the most dire of circumstances.

           “Hello, darling,” he called out to you as he climbed down the stairs.

           “Hey, how was your day? Horrible, I hope.”

           “Ha!” he laughed loudly. “You’re such a jokester!”

           “Mom always said I could be a comedian if the whole crime thing didn’t work out,” you said wryly. Eyes narrowing, you took in All Might’s appearance as he made it to the basement floor. He was still as strong and muscly as ever, but he seemed worn out. He wasn’t standing as ramrod straight as usual, and he was moving slower too.

           “Feeling a bit under the weather there?” you asked, quirking an eyebrow.

           “Nothing to be worried about, just a bit stiff.” You began to roll your eyes at his ego, when your captor suddenly started to cough harshly. To your shock, you spotted blood dripping out of his mouth and rose from your seat, unsure of what to do. Before you could do anything though, steam surrounded All Might, and when it dissipated, it wasn’t All Might standing there.

           Or was it? Looking closer, you could see similarities between the man standing before you and the Symbol of Peace. The hair was similar, as was the expression. But the man himself was skinny and his eyes were dark. Slowly, you began to move towards him.

           “What the hell just happened?”

           “This is what I really look like. I can’t hold my other form for very long these days. I was planning to tell you, but I was just waiting for the right time.”

           “Why?”

           “Why what?”

           “Why did you bother to wait?” you whispered, now standing close enough to him to hear his labored breaths.

           “Because—because, well, I know that this form isn’t exactly impressive or heroic. And I just love you so much, I was afraid I might lose you.” You stared at him for a minute, processing this new information. Once you had, a smile slowly spread over your face.

           “I don’t think you need to worry about that.” He sighed at that.

           “I know you’re still adjusting,” he said in that slightly patronizing tone of his. “But I know that we’re meant for each other. You’ll realize that eventually, but I didn’t want to risk things too soon.”

           “That’s not what I meant,” you responded with a crooked smile.

           “What?” In lieu of a spoken answer, you decided to show him the truth instead. Grasping his now baggy shirt in your fist, you pulled him down so that his lips met yours. He was still for a moment, but as you continued to grind your lips against his, he eventually began to match your movements. It was a shame he hadn’t shown this side of himself earlier, you thought to yourself, you liked this form much better.

[taetaespeaches]

“I broke your nose, and I’m sorry for that, but what you’re doing isn’t fair”

Seokjin x Reader (or oc)

Word count: 1,805

I found this prompt a while ago and thought it would be a fun concept for our Seokjinnie. 

 You swatted your best friend’s eager hand from the takeout bag you had just set on the counter. “It’s not for you.” Jin looked at you in shock, eyes big. “It’s for Guk.”

“Ah, I can’t believe you right now,” Jin said shaking his head. You had just arrived at the boys’ dorm, bringing food for Jeongguk from his favorite restaurant.

“How could you do this to me? I’m supposed to be your best friend, yet you bring JK food and nothing for me?” He put his hand on his hip as he shot you a glare, pursing his pillow lips. Those lips. You can’t count the number of times you have wanted halt his rants and sassy remarks by engulfing those lips with yours.

“Oh shush, I get you food all the time,” you told him, mimicking his pose as you placed your hand on your hip. “Also, what kind of greeting is this? A hello would be nice. Maybe an ‘I missed you’.”

“Hello, Love, I missed you,” he said sincerely.

“I missed you too,” you cocked your head adoringly before switching gears. “Now what is this I hear that you refused to cook for Kookie? What makes you think you deserve food when you’re starving your poor maknae?”

Jin rolled his eyes. “Oh, so now you’re starving me because I wouldn’t cook for him?”

You stepped closer to him, leaning against the counter, crossing your arms over your chest. “Why won’t you feed the poor boy?” His eyes met yours, only to find a devious glint in them. His lips curved into a smirk.

You and Jin had a very playful relationship. You spent countless hours bickering with each other, but it was always lighthearted and fun. Everything about your relationship was lively yet comfortable.

There was also a lot of attraction between the both of you that neither of you were brave enough to act on. Everyone, including you two, knew you weren’t “just friends”, despite you both hiding behind that label for the past year. However, you two had been inseparable over the last two weeks, finding it more and more difficult to keep up the “just friends” act.

You both wanted each other, and you were waiting to see which one of you would finally step up and make the move that would change the dynamic of your relationship forever.  

Jin’s eyes fell from yours, drifting down your body, observing your stature. As he took in your appearance, his eyes suddenly widened, realizing you were wearing his shirt. It wasn’t uncommon for you to wear his clothing, but it still affected him every time you did.

“That’s my shirt,” he deadpanned.

“It is,” you responded with a grin.

He shook his head slowly while smirking. He stepped towards you, leaving just a small gap between you as he reached out to grip the shirt between his fingers. “You’ll be the death of me, y/n.” Your eyes found his lips.

“I really did miss you,” he said as he tugged on the material of the shirt, pulling you towards him.

Just as your body started to fall into him, a loud yell sounded from behind Jin, causing him to yelp and fling his arms up dramatically before curling into himself out of fear.

Suddenly, you were groaning in pain, crouching over, as your hands shot up to cradle your nose. You heard a brief giggle from the source of the yell, followed by an, “Oh, shit”.  Jeongguk’s face was ridden with instant guilt, as his plan to scare Jin totally derailed.  

Jin’s eyes grew three sizes larger as panic set in. Panic over the fact that he just hit you. He hurt you, his favorite person.

He quickly made his way to you, placing his left hand to the small of your back as he bent over to peer at your face. You looked toward him, allowing him to see the blood running over your hands.

The panic and guilt led to him to ramble.

“Shit, y/n, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to hit you, I would never hurt you on purpose, are you ok? Fuck, of course you’re not ok, you’re bleeding, we should go to the hospital, right? Let me take you to the hospital, right, we should go to the hospital?” He looked from you to Jeongguk, waiting for someone to say something.

“Of course she needs to go to the hospital!” Jeongguk yelled as he looked at you before wincing.

. . . . . . .

Jeongguk was sat in a chair next to you, staring at your swollen nose as he shook his head. Jin was stood in the corner, his gaze never leaving you. You were sat on the medical table, looking around the room, glancing at Jin occasionally. The air was thick with guilt and tension as you waited for the doctor to come back to finish treating you.

“I’m really sorry, y/n,” Jeongguk broke the silence, causing your eyes to meet his. You looked at him softly.

“Kookie, why are you sorry? You have no reason to apologize,” You said sincerely.

He looked down at his feet as he tapped his fingers lightly against his knee.

“Of course he should be sorry,” Jin mumbled under his breath as he observed your interaction with the younger man. You shot him a glare.

“I’m the one that scared Jin-hyung,” Jeongguk said quietly, guilt lacing his tone, bringing your attention back to him. “This is all my fault.” You leaned forward, placing your hand on top of his, halting his nervous tapping.

“It was an accident, Guk. Stop worrying. Besides, it was Jin that smacked me in the face, not you,” you said with a small smile and a light chuckle. “It’s not your fault he overreacts,” you tease. Jeongguk looked up to see your smirk and let out a giggle. You both peered over to where Jin stood, who was now glaring at the both of you.

Sensing the frustration coming from the older man, Jeongguk looked back to you and smiled before excusing himself to grab a drink from the vending machine in lobby. He looked at Jin and motioned his head towards you, silently telling Jin to talk to you.

As soon and Jeongguk made his exit, Jin approached you with a mix of guilt, sadness, and anger in his eyes. He huffed as he sat in the chair Jeongguk was previously sitting in. You looked at him for a moment before looking down at your hands as you picked at your nails. Jin sighed.

“I broke your nose, and I’m sorry for that, but what you’re doing isn’t fair,” he said to you slightly louder than you had expected.

You snapped your head to look directly at him, examining his face. His statement sounded so ridiculous it would have made you laugh if it weren’t for the mix of emotions written across his beautiful features. Is he mad? You couldn’t quite decipher what he was feeling.

“What isn’t fair?” You asked quietly, causing him to sigh and reach his hand out to lightly grip your thigh just above your knee. Your stomach leaped at his touch.

“Are you mad at me?” Your breathing hitched at the worry evident in his eyes. “You have every right to be, but I feel awful, and it sucks to see you comfort Jeongguk while you leave me out in the cold. I am so sorry that I hurt you, I mean, fuck, I never want to hurt you, and if you’re mad then I accept that, but will you please just talk to me at least before I lose my damn mind trying to figure out what’s going on in that head of yours?” He rambles all in one breath.

“I’m not mad at you,” you quickly respond. He looks at you with big eyes, full of surprise. “It was an accident, Jin, how could I possibly be mad at you?” His eyes softened as he felt a little bit of relief. “I just like messing with you,” you smirk. His lips curved into a smile as well.

You both sat in silence, staring into each other’s eyes before yours fell to his lips briefly.

“Were you going to kiss me earlier? In the kitchen?”

“Hm?” A lump lodged itself in his throat as he looked at you, stunned by your sudden forwardness. He quickly recovered, feigning offense that you would even suggest such a thing. “No. Never. Of course not.”

“Oh really? I could have sworn you were. You know, before you broke my nose,” you playfully jab with a smirk.

“Oh come on…” He shook his head as he stood up, placing himself in front of you and reached to grab your thighs just above your knees.  Your breath quickened as he lightly pulled your legs apart and nudge his body between them. “How long are you going to hold this over my head, love?”

Jin leaned towards you as your eyes fell to his lips, again. He noticed the movement in your eyes and smirked a little.

“Not sure. How long does it take for a broken nose to heal?” He let out a breathy laugh, that slightly resembled windshield wipers.

“Hey Jin?”

“Hm?” he hums in response.

“Will you just kiss me already?” His eyes dropped to your lips.

“Love,” your eyes meet again. “Your nose is broken.”

“But you did this to me,” you pouted, teasing him. “Shouldn’t you try to make up for it?”

“Ah, you’re so unfair.” Jin laughed again as you set your hand on his abdomen and gripped his shirt, pulling him towards you. As his body fell further into you, he gently placed his hands on your jawline. Your hands reached up to secure around his wrists.

As he gently lowered his head to yours, he glanced from your eyes to your lips a few times before stopping to look at your nose. You looked into his eyes, waiting, biting your lower lip.

He hesitated before tilting your head to the left as he overexaggerated the lean of his head to the right to avoid bumping your noses together. Slowly, you both leaned in, pressing your lips together as your eyes closed. The feeling of his plump lips massaging over your own was so much better than you ever imagined.

He pulled away slightly and looked at you as your slightly blackened eyes fluttered open.

“I can’t believe I waited so long to do that,” he whispered, lips still hovering over yours.

“Wow,” you blushed.

Jin let out a small giggle. “You’re so cute.”  

“Even with a broken nose?”

Laughing lightly, he leaned back into you. “Even with a broken nose,” he whispered against your mouth before pressing his lips to yours again.

[haikyuu-imagines-and-others]

Hello :} I would like to request a scenario where Yaku starts bringing his best friend (chubby! reader) to hang out with the boys more often, she seems shy at first & Kuroo grows curious about & notices that she's p cute, but when he starts taunting her she always responds with something more sassy which catches him off guard. They end up getting along really well & Kuroo asks her out! Thank you so much

Super duper cute! I love this idea! Though, I am not very familiar with writing for Yaku, so please give me any pointers if I screw up! Thanks for requesting, love! - Admin Satori

Kuroo Tetsurou:

“Are you sure about this, Mori? I don’t want to impose on you and your guy time…”

“No, no, no, it’s fine, _________. You wanted to hang out after school, right? Well, I have practice, so we can chat between breaks and hang out just fine.”

Yaku waved off your worried glance, and you couldn’t help but sigh a little in defeat as he led you towards the doors of the gym, “But what if they make fun of me? Or are jerks?”

Dark brown eyes glanced at you from over his shoulder, and you felt an embarrassed flush come over your cheeks, “Then I’ll kick their asses. Duh.” As if it were the most simplest thing in the world. You rolled your eyes and nudged your shoulder against your best friends, “You’re going to do just fine. You’ve got a smart mouth, and I know of a few of the guys who would really like for you to bully them.”

You laughed loudly, “What? Bully them? I wouldn’t ever think of doing something so mean!”

The gym doors opened before you, revealing a smirking, very familiar third year, “Ah… Yaku, you’re late. Again.”

Immediate irritation flashed on Yaku’s face, “Am not! You’re just here an hour early.” Walking in, Yaku huffed, closing his eyes and frowning from the glimpse of the team before him, “Why isn’t anyone practicing? If you’re all here, might as well be practicing! Get to work!”

You couldn’t hide the quiet laugh behind your hand at your best friends irritation - now seeing first hand why he was always so stressed out. His team was a bunch of lazy cats and fierce tigers. Neither really doing much to improve their focus on the practice before them.

But your laughing caught the attention of the slyest of all, golden eyes glancing at you from the corner of his eye before looking back at Yaku, “So… You and the LP, huh?”

Kuroo wasn’t exactly easy to miss. You had him for your chemistry class - though you were partnered with Yaku. You’d asked him for help on problems before, but it was only ever for educational benefit; A conversation between the two of you outside the classroom had never before been a thing. And now here he was, asking such a personal question of you? Out of the blue? You coughed in surprise and stared up at him with wide eyes, the sight making his heart jump in his chest - why?

Quickly, maybe too eagerly, you shook your head, “O-oh! N-no! We’re not dating!” Then you frowned and gave the tall young man a confused stare, “What does LP mean?”

His chuckle made your skin erupt in goosebumps, but you chose to ignore it completely. “LP? Come on, _______, I thought you were smarter than that.” Kuroo let out a dramatic sigh, his golden eyes now focused solely on you, finding your confusion laced eyebrows and puzzled pout to be… well, he thought it was pretty cute on your face. When you didn’t show any sign of answering his taunt, Kuroo cleared his throat, “LP… it means ‘Little Person’.”

You rolled your eyes and looked away from the tall captain, “He may be short, but he’s more suited to be a Captain than you are.” That was mean. You flinched at your own words and looked away with another pout forming on your lips, “Sorry… I didn’t mean to be rude…. But you are severely slacking in getting your cats in order.” You waved your hand out in front of you, motioning to Yaku suddenly doing a roundhouse kick to Lev’s butt, making the bean pole yelp in surprise before whining to his senpai about being rough with him.

The bite in your criticism did sting a little. Kuroo would admit, you packed quite the punch, but he was a big boy and could handle the criticism just fine. “You’re fine.” You stared down at your shoes, genuinely feeling bad about your quick to the trigger judgement. Kuroo noticed this, and smirked as he leaned down to your level, his face only a few inches from the side of yours, making you freeze any movement; You even stopped breathing. Why was he so goddamn close? Didn’t this cat know the meaning of personal space? “Ohoho? If you’re so upset about what you said, why don’t you make it up to me?”

What a ridiculous idea! You snorted and turned your face, meeting his eyes directly, your noses just a hair length away from touching each other, “In your dreams, Cat-Man.” Kuroo was surprised by your abrupt challenging of his own tease, and actually took a step back before standing straight. His eyes squinted as he stared down at you, “What? Why are you looking at me like that?” Your defenses suddenly shot up around you, not liking how his eyes seemed to be analyzing your every movement - every little twitch of your body or the slightest breeze from outside rustling your clothing or hair. His eyes caught it all. You wondered if he could see the rate at which your heart was beating in your throat.

Then a smile slowly formed on his lips - not a smile… a smirk. A knowing, confident smirk pulling his lips, making the corner of his eyes crinkle just the slightest. You licked your bottom lip, either to moisturize or because of something you’d seen in him, you couldn’t tell. But he noticed, his golden eyes having seen your pink muscle gliding across your lips - wondering what you tasted like.

Internally, Kuroo couldn’t stop his heart from beating almost completely out of his chest, his nerves on edge from seeing you so close, from having been to actually get a faint waft of your breath in his own mouth. He cursed himself for getting in your face, and he cursed any genetic disorder he had for having two separate personalities as it seemed he had; One panicking dork and the other a egotistical confident captain… Kuroo worried, wondered, if you’d see the real him.

“What?” You tried again, making Kuroo suddenly inhale before looking away from you completely, a quiet tint of pink taking residence in his cheeks.

He shook his head, “Nothing - nothing… Just…” Another smirk pulled his lips, “Debating.”

You frowned at his short answer, feeling that same irritation your best friend felt with the captain on a daily basis. “Debating, what?” You wanted to know! What was this scheming captain thinking about?

A raised black eyebrow was thrown your way, and you gave him a wary stare, “On two things…” You rolled your wrist, motioning him to get it out already, “I’m trying to decide if I want you as my girlfriend or if I want you as my bully… Very different outcomes but pretty much the same feelings.” He snickered, and your face flushed a violent red at his confession.

“K-Kuroo-san… A.. I-I… Uh…” Your brain short circuited, and Kuroo chuckled quietly, but the blush on his own cheeks didn’t go unnoticed by your eye - he was just as embarrassed as you in this situation. Only, he had been prepared for what he was going to say in the moment - you were taken by complete surprise! “I…. Uh… I would rather be-“

“Hey! Quit chatting, Kuroo. We have work to do and you’re not escaping Dives this time!” Yaku grumbled as he grabbed the front of Kuroo’s jersey and tugged him over to the team, leaving you in an embarrassed state - watching the ever bold sly captain be forced onto the court. Kuroo’s golden eyes didn’t leave yours as he was pulled to his team, only breaking the intense stare down when Yaku sent a karate chop to Kuroo’s side for being preoccupied.

What would your answer be?

I feeeeeel like this quickly got off topic… and I realize I have two different portrayals of Kuroo going on on the blog hehehe… hope you liked it!

[light-puns]

Cute drabble with Kat? Maybe Lux looking after him or something? They're so cute!!

// First of all Nonni, you are my favorite ever. @lotus-of-noxus‘s Kat, in case anyone wasn’t aware. 

The sound of her shallow pants are too loud even in her ownears as she pulls up, twisting around in the maze of Demacian forest. This isn’tan area she frequents, this isn’t an area any human frequents really. Thisforest is endless and dark, it ranges for miles across the land, and there is areason the locals stay out of these woods. The call that echoes off the trees isguttural and screeching as her hunter rounds the bend down from her. Its eyesare sightless, but it can smell her, even among the murky scents here. Too manylimbs pull it along, its movements clumsy and wild but brutal in strength.

Lux’s hand raises, another step backwards, the light shegathers in her palm is warm and comforting, it twists refining itself into aweapon. It’s hard to focus on the spell through the earsplitting cries of the thingcharging her. She’s about to close her eyes to try and focus when the flash ofsomething catches her attention. It takes her a moment to realize it’s aperson, and what she’s spotted is the glint off a blade.

Hesitation.

She snaps her hand closed and breaks the channel on thespell, it spares whoever is behind the thing. However, now she is left facingdown this monster’s maw as it lifts a hand, or what might have once been ahand. Magic has twisted it into something gaunt and claw-like, but she isn’tlooking at the thing before her, her eyes are past it.

“Kat?” The name falls from her lips in absolute confusion.He’s not supposed to be here, he’s out on a mission, following rumors, nothere, in the darkness of this forest. Yet, that has to be whom it is, has tobe, those eyes are unmistakable. He’s screaming at her, something she can’tquite make out and then she’s being slammed into the nearest tree and there isblood. It’s wet and warm across her arm but there is no pain, so it can’t be her blood.  

There is a moment of abject horror as she realizes what is splatteredup her arm and across her cheek is his blood. It’s a flurry of motion afterthat, she’s screaming, he’s talking, the creature is shrieking and; the lightthat explodes from her hand in the dim illumination of the forest is asblinding as her anger. It’s searing in color and crackles with electricity,when it finally fades into a seeable state the creature is no longer there andKat is grabbing her wrist and dragging her with him. She stumbles after him,confused, but allowing him to lead them from the tangle of trees, she doesn’task how he knows the way out.

Once out of the grove he pauses as if he’s thinking about something,but Lux is a burst of motion, her hand grasping his. Her fingers are tightaround his wrist, there is an almost nervous nature to her hold.

“Come.” It’s a command as she pulls him along, deeper intosomewhere he really aught naught be. Demacia is never safe for him, but her innis close, and he’s injured. He doesn’t say anything though the brow arch saysenough for him. There is a cheeky comment on his tongue, but he eats it at herglare. There is blood pouring down his side, as she sneaks him through the townand into The Stallion inn, drawing him through the hallways and into her rooms.

“Where are you hurt?” Her tone was fraught with worry as shepushed him a little deeper into the rooms, locking the door behind her.

“It’s fine, Lux.” His manner was amused as he eyed her, butshe didn’t seem intent upon stopping as she pushed his jacket off his shouldersher hands deft in their movements as she moved his shirt up. Having to followhim as he tried to step out of her hold and create space between them.

“So forceful tonight little bird.” The lilt to his voice didlittle to assuage her worry as she finally managed to peel the tatters of hisshirt away from the gashes along his side. It was amazing he was still standing,they were deep, ragged, and already looked infected. She winced before easinghis shirt over his head with his assistance.

“Not now Kat, you can tease me after I fix this. Lights, I’mso sorry.” She pushed him towards her bed before moving throughout the trio ofrooms that were hers. Picking up a medical kit, a water basin, several cloths,she moved back towards him stopping when she found him not sitting on her bedlike she’d intended but on the chaise by the window.

“Wasn’t your fault Lux.” His tone was soft, an amused littlehuff escaping him as she panicked about him. Never lighting in one spot forvery long, entirely reminiscent of the ‘little bird’ he often called her.

“Hnn.” Was the only answer she gave as she motioned him tolay out. “Down.” Another command, she was all about orders tonight, as sheangled herself beside him. Her touches were light, gentle as she cleaned thearea of blood, she didn’t take note of his silence, too focused on her work.

“Ah, these are deep, it’s going to feel warm for a secondwhile I burn away infection.” This was Demacia, she wasn’t supposed to usemagic here, but the thought didn’t even occur to her as she placed a pale handover the gashes focusing on the fire element for a moment to sear the possibilityfor contamination from the wounds along his side.

“If only you touched me this tenderly when I wasn’t injured.”The cheeky comment had her gritting her teeth for a moment. She leaned forwardslightly to glare at him. How he still had the energy for such smartass remarkswas beyond her.

“Can you not be sassy right now? You’re bleeding out on mychaise.” Lux gave him a pointed look which only earned her an unrepentant grinfrom the redhead. She rolled her eyes before leaning back to poke at theinjuries for a moment. “Lights, Kat I really am sorry, this is going to hurt.” Hertone was so apologetic as she threaded the needle and bit her lower lip,getting only a half assed handwave from the man.

The stitching was a swift process, or as swift as she couldmake it. Nice neat little lines closing the four slices along his back and uphis side. Once she’d tied off the last stitch she rested her hand against it,she shouldn’t. It had been her fault though, he’d gotten hurt because of her ownineptitudes. These marks would be on his body because of her. It was the least she could do.

“All patched up doc?” His voice was a lazy drawl, he soundedtired or maybe that was her projecting.

“Not yet, just, don’t move for a second.” Lux’s voice wavered,and he seemed to pick up on that because he glanced over his shoulder at herwith an arched brow. She shook her head at him, a small motion which only hadhim arching his brow a bit more.

“Lux?” His question was met with another head shake as she puther hand on his side, the same way she had before when channeling the fireelement. Her eyes fluttered shut for a second, though she could feel the way hewas searching her features.

Lux dug deep, touching into her center, immersing herself init for a moment before tugging at the strands of her own life essence, bindingit with light energy and in a makeshift spell she shouldn’t be using to help urgethe knitting of Kat’s flesh back together. She was no healer, that trait wasn’tin her repertoire of skills, not in the traditional sense. However, with somesacrifice on her end and a bit of energy from both herself and him she could atleast encourage the mending process to go a bit faster.

His magic answered her easily as she dipped the soft hues oflight along his wounds. Reaching out with her energy towards his own, the warmwelcoming blaze from his magic eased something in her, it always did. To hiscredit Kat didn’t move until her hand trembled against him. Then his hand wason hers and he was sitting up breaking her concentration.

“Hey.” His voice was soft, almost confused, that rare one heused.

“Hello.” She smiled leaning down to pick up the wrappingsshe’d brought with her and proceeded to pointedly ignore the way he watched heras she wrapped his mid-section.

“Going to tell me what that was?” She shook her head beforecasting another grin up at him.

“Come on.” She kept her smile as she stood tugging on hishand to pull him towards the bed. “Shoes off. Sleep. Don’t make me cast a spellon you.” A relatively shallow threat, though she just might if he fought her overmuch.When he didn’t really argue with her, and instead flopped out in the small innbed Lux tilted her head. Now that was odd, but she supposed it could be bloodloss mingled with an adrenaline crash, so she let it go.

Lux set about tidying up the room putting things back wherethey went before moving to sit beside him on the bed. She took a few moments tojust watch him, before moving her hand out to rest against his forehead,feeling for any signs of a fever. The fingers around her wrist had her startingslightly before he was smirking up at her from under her palm.

“Stop worrying little bird, I’m fine.” His tone was amusedbut it didn’t quite have the same swagger it normally did. Now that she thoughtabout it, he hadn’t been nearly as obnoxious this entire time. She leaned backa moment eyeing him, watching his face, before she moved to flop next to himpulling him towards her till she had him situated with his head on her abdomen,so she could pet him at her leisure. He didn’t seem terribly bothered by thechange in position if the amused huff was anything to go by.

“So, what are you thinking about?” Her phrasing wasconversational as she ran her hand through his hair reaching her free one outto tangle with his fingers giving a small pulse of her own magic in the process.It was how they showed support, how they spoke, a language between just the twoof them. The only person in the world that connected with that part of her.

“How comfortable a pillow you make.” There was a cockyamusement to his voice that had her rolling her eyes. Well, at least he wasn’tbroken, that was good to know. She’d worried there for a moment that maybe she’dscrambled his brain with the magical blast in the forest.

“Right, so what are you really thinking about?” Heramusement was evident in the way she spoke, the slight squeeze she gave to hishand and the affectionate sigh. This was more contact than was typical for them,but it felt, nice, right. Even as shejust lazily let her magic tangle with his, the same way her fingers had. Luxglanced towards his hand noting that at some point he’d shed his gloves, butshe wasn’t sure when. She should get up and change out of her clothes, theywere bloody, but then so were his pants and he didn’t seem like he reallycared.

He didn’t answer her, for so long that she thought he mightnot at all. He was just laying against her, staring at the ceiling of theirtiny inn room, his breathing even but not deep. A soft sound escaped him,something like an exasperated grumble and a sigh of frustration. He wasfighting with something inside himself, some inner battle that she desperately wantedto ease.

“Should have just, moved differently is all. Shouldn’t haveeven happened, was stupid.” His tone is nonchalant as he speaks about it. Yetthere is something in the tenseness of his shoulders and the way he’s beenstaring at the ceiling this whole time that has her sitting up slightly to lookat him.

“Mistakes happen, Kat. It’s not your fault, I should havemoved, you were just rescuing me, wasn’t your mistake, it was mine.” Her words aredistant as she tries to reply the fight in her mind but it’s blurry at best.She can feel some of the tenseness leave his shoulders, but he still seemsunhappy, so she curls a bit closer wrapping around him slightly to place a kissto his bare shoulder. It’s strangely affectionate but has the desired effect ofcausing him to look at her, green eyes curious and amused. She can’t stop himfrom thinking about it in the long run, but she can distract him right now.

“Why Luxanna, I never knew you could be so bold.” His voice is teasing and he takes the teeth against his shoulder in stride. It’s an angrylittle nip followed by a swat to the head before she’s trying to roll away.

Never mind, let him stew in his own thoughts. He was clearlyfine.

He stops her though moving with a speed her really shouldn’tposses after being injured. He’s half leaned over her smirking and she’salready done with his nonsense. His hand is still tangled with hers and theslight pulse of magic only makes her roll her eyes. It’s not exactly anapology, but it’s his own version of affection between the two of them.

“Don’t stress your wound idiot.” She’s glaring lightly, andhe just seems to find this all the more entertaining. He’s not moving though evenwhen she pushes against his arm with absolutely zero real intent to move him.

“We’re all allowed to make mistakes Kat. You know, thatright? I make them all the time. It’s alright, don’t beat yourself up over itokay? You’re too good for that, and you’re worth it to me.” Her voice iswhisper soft as she sits up slightly to place a kiss feather light over the scaron his eye and when she lays back there is a moment. It’s brief, but it almostlooks like vulnerability flashes across his face before he’s flopping outbeside her, though he doesn’t untangle their fingers. She doesn’t explain whathe’s worth to her, or what she means by the comment and he doesn’t ask.

“Goodnight little bird.”

[lost-your-memory]

Girl, please give me like a Tarzan au with Cat as Jane finding Kara in the jungle and then Kara showing Cat the trees and Cat teaching her how to speak. NC x

This is as AU-ISH as it can be, probably crack-ish too.

What Cat notices first, surprisingly enough, isn’t that the girl is practically naked, no.She doesn’t actually linger on the strange loincloth made of a few banana leaves and maintained low on the waist by what looks like a sturdy liana and she doesn’t even glance at the visible breast that is barely covered by a few long strands of dirty blond hair.What Cat sees first, in all the oddity of the moment, is a pair of incredibly bright blue eyes that reminds her of a spring morning sky. It evokes a whole new world to her, one made of a cloudless azure or a quiet sea somewhere around the islands made of white sand and coconuts trees.It’s exotic and new and she finds herself drawn to those wild eyes, lost in a face that is all sharp edges despite the round and somehow childish features.The stranger doesn’t move but something sparkles in her eyes that isn’t fear, not exactly. Cat figures she should try to move but she is scared she will make the stranger run if she does so instead, she chooses to speak.“Hello there,” She starts and her voice is soft and low, like the one she uses when she talks to her sweet little boy. “My name is Cat, and I am very pleased to meet you. Can you tell me your name?”She sees the stranger tilts her head to the side right after the questioning accent on the last word. The bright blue eyes sparkle and shine but the weariness is still here, floating around the azure irises. Cat finally takes in the rest of the stranger’s body, the muscles and the nerves showing of everywhere, the sun-tanned, dirty skin and the scars, here and there, that didn’t heal properly.“Do you not have a name?” She gently asks again, not moving from her position against the trunk of a tree and trying not to look down from the branch she is standing on, for fear of realizing how far down the ground is.The stranger tilts her head on the other side this time and Cat briefly thinks of a puppy, a curious looking puppy listening to a new command and trying to figure out what is expected of him. Cat wonders how old the strange woman is but the dirt on her face, hair and body makes it hard for her to guess and the eyes, so ever blue, are both so old and yet so young she can’t rely on them. She can only drown.“Cat,” She tries, pointing a finger towards her chest. She used to do that to try to get Carter to say mommy and it worked. It took over a year but it worked, so she figures it can work in her current situation as well.The stranger looks at her hand and then at her face and slowly, very slowly, she relaxes enough to put her full weight on her feet and legs. She stands crouched on the floor, like an animal but Cat doesn’t find it that strange.She thinks maybe, the limits of what she considers normal are being pushed and her vision of the world is being shook, and it pleases her.The stranger raises a hand and points it towards Cat, before opening her mouth and Cat holds her breath in anticipation.“Cat”The voice is deep and gravelly and even though the name only has three letters, it’s hatched and laboriously pronounced. Cat wonders if it’s the first time the stranger ever talks and her heart aches a little for that woman who seems to have survived alone on this island for God only knows how many years. She wants to know the story behind the azure eyes of this woman who carries herself like an animal.“Cat,” She repeats and then she turns her hand towards the stranger and simply stares, waiting to see if something happens.The woman’s brows furrow but eventually, she turns her wrist to point towards her own naked chest and Cat thinks she sees a hint of thoughtfulness in the blue eyes.“Ka-ra”It’s a guttural way to blurt two syllables but Cat gasps softly, thrilled by the progress they have made in such a short time.Then she smiles and repeats, slowly “Kara”Kara, since it seems to be her name, tilts her head on the left and then, her lips part and move to form what could only be described as a grimace but Cat knows, she just knows it’s meant to be a smile.—Kara is a fast learned and Cat is sometimes a little in awe with how clever the woman in the jungle is. She has learned the rudiments of the English language is less than two weeks and she is starting to form full sentences, despite a few mistakes here and there.“Where is you from?” Kara asks one morning, her voice a little more smooth than before, and she glances down at an illustrated book showing various species of felines.“Where are you from?” Cat corrects a little absentmindedly as she tries to sketch a portrait of the girl. She is sitting in a soft and comfortable armchair outside of the tent they had been using as an improvised school for the past few days. The charcoal in her hands it a little thin, about to break and it annoys her because she is practically done.“I was born in England, in a city called London but I traveled quite a lot since then, I now live in America, in a town called National City,” She answers after having rectified the line of Kara’s shoulders.The woman doesn’t move like a human yet, far from it actually, but Cat notices she seems to straighten a little when they are together. She still runs on her four limbs, much like a monkey, but when she manages to stay still for a few minutes, she almost sits down in what would be considered an appropriate position for a young child.“America,” Kara repeats, struggling a little with the letter m. She tries the word again and this time, she seems satisfied with how it sounds because there is this grimace again, etched on her features. It still has a long way to go to become a real smile but Cat has become somehow fond of the strange gesture.“Yes, America. It’s a big continent …” Cat trails off and Kara looks at her with her head tilted, like an actual puppy. “Here, don’t move. I will get a book to show you a map of the world.”She stands, slowly enough not to startle Kara and then moves to enter the tent. She is still careful to avoid any kind of too sudden movements because Kara is easily spooked away.When she comes back outside, she finds Kara looming over her sketch and she is relieved when she notices it is still intact.Kara, whose curiosity seems limitless, has this tendency to touch everything and anything and while it’s quite normal given the circumstances, it is very frustrating for her to find broken items and smeared lines in books and various pieces of paper.“This is me,” Kara states as she points a finger to designate the aforementioned sketch.“Yes, it is you. I am trying to draw you,” Cat explains and she smiles, before walking towards a nearby table to open the atlas.Kara comes to her sides and since she is still not standing up properly, she isn’t tall enough to look at the book. Cat is about to help her to a chair when Kara gathers her limbs, tenses her muscle and then jumps on the table, landing in one fluid movement that barely makes the wooden piece of furniture creak.“This is a book,” Kara states again as she tilts her head to study the double pages displaying the world.Cat blinks a few time and then nods, choosing not to say anything about posture and appearances. She figures she will have time to teach Kara some manners later.“Yes, this is an atlas. It’s a special kind of book that only contains different sorts of maps, to allow us to know where a place is,” She explains and she turns the book so Kara doesn’t have to read it upside down. “Here is this big lot of islands called Great Britain, in the continent called Europe …”Cat explains some geography to Kara and to her surprise, the woman seems genuinely interested. She asks questions and moves a dirty finger along the travel lines Cat showed her and she repeats the name of the countries, of the towns and she even remembers the boats.A few hours later, Kara is back on the floor next to the armchair and she seems enraptured in the felines while Cat is reading a book.“Who is Carter?” Kara suddenly asks and Cat’s head snaps up, both in surprise and confusion.Kara’s eyes are incredibly blue under the bright light of the late afternoon and the look in them is intense.“Where did you hear that name?” She asks back, because she knows she never mentioned her son to Kara before.Kara seems to think for a few seconds but then she trots towards a tent and brings back a wooden frame with the black and white picture of a young boy displayed in the oval shape.“I … re-ad it,” Kara explains as she puts her finger on the golden plaque under the photography, where the name is carved in elegant black letters. She struggles with the word and it comes off hatched and unsure but Cat just gapes at her, dumbfounded and speechless. Kara starts to fidget with her hair under her gaze and it finally brings Cat out of her awed silence.“You know how to read?” She half-asks, half-wonders out loud because it seems so impossible and yet.“I teached myself. With a book?” Kara doesn’t sound sure but the look in her eyes is clear and a little happy as well.Cat doesn’t even correct her on her mistake before praising the young woman enthusiastically.—The bath is something Cat almost regrets suggesting in the first place but when she takes in the sight of a clean Kara, with her glowing sun-kissed hair falling is soft waves upon the tanned clean skin of her shoulders and chest, she forgets about how hard the whole experience had been.“I don’t like baths,” Kara grumbles and Cat chuckles at how dejected the woman looks. The blue eyes are a shade darker than usual and there is an honest to god pout etched on her glossy pink lips.“Well, maybe you do but you also smell better, trust me,” Cat retorts and Kara narrows her eyes at her, already understanding that there is a sassy jab hidden behind the words.Cat has discovered, during the past six weeks, that Kara is in fact very astute, clever and perfectly able to sense the different tones and double meaning behind Cat’s not so innocent words sometimes.“You are saying I was stinking before,” Kara accuses and she isn’t smiling, she looks a little upset even. Cat swallows the burst of laughter that threaten to escape her lips and simply offers a smile instead, a gentle one.They wander off in Cat’s camp and Kara makes herself comfortable, nested in the seat of an armchair with a book. Cat marvels at how fast Kara is learning but as she watches the woman turn the pages of the novel, her eyes linger a little.Kara is beautiful, it’s something Cat had always suspected despite the dirt and the strange attitude.She’s tall when she stands up, broad shoulders, strong arms, defined abs caught in a thin waist, muscular legs and her skin has this natural, healthy glow of one that has spent much time under the sun.Her long hair, now clean and free from all the branches and leaves that had been caught in there for who knows how long, is of a golden sun color that sparkle and gleam underneath the sunlight and Cat follows the strands that cascade around Kara’s features, stopping on the half-hidden breast Kara still refuses to cover despite Cat’s best attempts.A blush rushes to her cheeks and she looks away quickly, busying herself with a book of her own.“Does Carter like birds?” Kara asks, a few hours later as she closes her book and leaves the armchair. She doesn’t quite walk like a human yet but she has learned to move on her two legs only and while it doesn’t look natural, it’s still better than her previous way to move.Cat smiles softly and nods. She misses her little boy but she had been promised a fortune for her exploration book and she loves the thrill of adventure too much to feel too guilty about leaving her 7 years old son at home with his nanny.“He does indeed, why do you ask?” Cat tilts her head to the side and put down her book on her lap, watching as Kara seems to gather her thoughts.“Do you want to come see the birds? You could … draw some, for him?” Kara asks, sounding hopeful, and something warm and soft rises inside of Cat’s chest.“I would like that very much,” She accepts the offer and she is stunned to see a smile grace Kara’s lips. A genuine, true smile, far away from that grimace Cat knows she will miss a little but for now, Kara’s entire face is glowing from that smile, it’s raw and pure and as intense as the sunlight.It doesn’t take long before she finds herself clinging to Kara’s body as the woman climbs along a liana, taking them up, up, up and away.When they emerge from the densest part of the foliage, Kara gently puts her down on a large and solid branch and she moves a finger to her lips to indicate they must be quiet. Cat nods softly and then looks around.Her eyes widen at the incredible spectacle she witnesses. Everywhere, on every branch, every liana and every edge available, there are birds, of every size and every colors and she counts at least two dozen of different species.She didn’t notice before because she was focused on not thinking about the height but the air is buzzing with the sounds of bird tweeting and chirping and it’s so beautiful she feels tears fall on her cheeks, happy ones.A hand comes to brush the salted drops away and a palm, strangely soft for belonging to someone who had spent most of their life in the jungle, presses against her cheek. It’s warm and gentle, kind.Cat looks up to find Kara’s face barely an inch away from hers and her breath catches in her throat.She doesn’t know, in this moment, if she is surprised or hopeful or scared, or all three of the above, but when Kara tentatively leans forward, Cat doesn’t turn her head away.

[yurio-plisetksy]

Skate Date: Yuri Plisetsky x Reader

Request:  Hello! Do you also write fluff? If so, do you mind stepping back to 15 year old Yuri? He meets a very sassy girl that he instantly falls in love with (she's 14 maybe??? thanks!) and he very shyly asks her out and he holds her hand the whole time of their date (like they go skating?) and in the end of the night, he kisses her and it's his first kiss? Thank you so much!

A/n: Planning on posting a few more tonight.

Why was his heart pounding like this? It felt like it was about to burst open in his chest and jump out. If you hadn’t talked to him like that, he wouldn’t have felt like this. It was distracting him from skating and following the instructions he was given, and his eyes would always linger back to you. From the moment Yakov announced you were joining the training camp, Yuri became particularly interested in you, always keeping an eye on you and inspecting everything you did.

“Pair skate?” Yuri looked up at Lilia with surprisement in his orbs, his jaws slightly parted from each other when she nodded. Her slender hand motioned to the side, and Yuri’s eyes were met by two curious ones. You noticed how his pupils dilated just slightly and a groan slipped from his lips in pure annoyance. “I don’t want to, I’m perfectly fine on my own.” Lilia rolled her eyes at his attitude and gave him a encouraging push towards you. He grumbled and folded his arms over his chest as he stepped towards you.

“Geez, I don’t bite… hard.” You offered him a toothy grin. He rolled his eyes at you, but couldn’t help himself from blushing as you talked to him. After admiring you from a distance for quite a while, it felt unusual to finally talk to you. You chuckled at the redness on his cheek and extended your hand out towards him. He stared at it with confusion, and you scoffed with a smile before grabbing his hand. He was a little overwhelmed as you pulled him further onto the ice to practice. “C’mon we can’t slack off! Let’s go practice!” And at that moment Yuri knew he was completely falling for you, and hard. Like tripping down the stairs and breaking your arm kind of hard.

After the week of training camp had almost finished, you and Yuri had only grown closer and closer. You were a huge tease, and even though people speculated about the existence of it, Yuri seemed to blush every time you talked to him. Mila was the first one to point it out, and also the last since Yuri had thrown one of his skates towards her as she mentioned his red cheeks. You would chuckle at the scene and just ignore the fact that Yuri had obvious feelings for you, but maybe you were feeling it too. The way he laughed caused your heart to skip a beat and when the both of you were skating together everything seemed to synchronize by itself.

Now, after practice, you were sitting with a few friends, Yuri wasn’t there. You talked about how the training camp was almost ending. It had been 6 days already, meaning everybody was supposed to go home the next morning. You didn’t want to leave yet. It had been one of the most fun and educational weeks ever, and you wanted it to last even longer. Yuri agreed with you on that, and was currently pacing around the changing rooms, in desperate need to think of something to spend more time together.

“Yura? Where are you? Everybody left already…” You stood in front of the boy’s changing rooms, curiously peeking into the locker rooms to find the Russian boy. You sighed and shrugged, calling out to him once more. “Yuri? I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?” Your eyebrows furrowed, slightly disappointed you couldn’t spend more time with him this evening. Just as you were about to head back to your hostel, you heard footsteps rushing towards you. “Y/n! Wait up!” You smiled and turned towards the sound of Yuri’s voice. You giggled and looked up at him as he stilled in front of you. You noticed his furrowed eyebrows and raised yours. “What’s up? Are you okay?” You asked, slight worry laced into your voice as you inspected his slightly nervous state. He quickly nodded with an awkward chuckle, opening his mouth to speak up. “C-Can I ask you something?” He caught your interest, and with a quick hand gesture you motioned him to continue. He took a deep breath, air filling his lungs and getting rid of the few nerves that  controlled his body. “W-Will you go out with me?” He asked with a shaky breath, eyes focused on you. Your eyes widened in surprise, but excitement replaced the confusion soon enough. You cleared your throat and looked back into his eyes as you smirked. “I can’t believe it, are you serious?” His heart sank. The disbelieve in your voice was as discouraging as a parent telling you to stop doing what you love. He felt slight shame standing in front of you. “You took this long to ask me out? I’d love to, idiot!” His pounding heart calmed down after your words. He narrowed his eyes at you and he seemed to burst, before the sound of laughter erupted from his throat. You chuckled along with him and offered him a fond smile.

“Don’t scare me like that again! I was feeling so lame, you have no idea…” You snorted and patted his shoulder, apologizing to him for your teasing nature. He smiled and nodded. You sighed and thought of a nice place both of you could go to, but quickly remembered that you were leaving the next day. “Yuri… tomorrow morning…” His smile faltered. His thumb met with his lower lip, thinking as he rubbed the pad over his chapped lip. His eyes wandered towards the ice on his right, and he smiled. A twinkle appeared in the orbs, and he nodded towards the rink with small. “We could just… skate a bit more together…” He offered and you nodded, placing your bag on the ground and grabbing your skates out. “Yeah, sounds like fun!”

“How many times have you fallen already?” “Shut up.”  Yuri groaned as he pulled himself off the cold ice. He shrugged the cold substance clinging to his clothes off of him and turned back to you. He scoffed at the smirk displayed on your face, and to your amusement a blush appeared on his pale complexion. You chuckled and checked the watch on your wrist, frowning when you noticed it was already pretty late and you should wrap up soon. Yuri sighed at your expression, already knowing your thoughts without you opening your mouth.

“I guess we should… go change…” You nodded, wrapping your arms over your chest and squeezing them as you let out a deep breath. Your head looked up, meeting Yuri’s gaze down on you. “I had a really fun time… I wish we could have spend some more together…” Yuri noticed how your brows furrowed once your gaze fell to the ground. He moved more towards you, placing his hands gently on your shoulders. “Y/n…” Your head shot up at the mention of your name, but you had no time to ask what was on his mind, when he suddenly pressed his lips firmly onto yours. Your eyes widened, and you tensed at the gesture. You felt his fingers dig into the skin of your shoulders, nerves wrecking his sense of sensibility as he was actually hurting you pretty badly. You couldn’t care less though. His hesitant lip movements and tense aura was giving you enough evidence to know this was his first kiss.

So you smiled, and melted into his touch. You wrapped your arms around his neck and tilted your head so the both of you were positioned slightly more comfortable as you kissed. You could feel some of his nerves fading, and as your hand caressed from his neck to his cheek he was completely relaxed. You both pulled away. He gasped slightly, and even after he had been blushing from your comment all day, nothing could compare to the redness of his cheeks at this right moment. Your eyes met his, and suddenly a chuckle was heard. His lips fell into a slight frown, along with his eyes. “Your lips are cold… but it was nice.” Yuri’s expression changed into a millisecond, and he returned the chuckle while awkwardly scratching the back of his head.

“Or should I say… n-ICE?”

“I hate you.”

“I don’t blame you.”

[archi-pelago]

wheezes mostly theories n whatnot but I’m trying to kick my muse back into gear 

ava/tuls interaction

Nothing was worse, Ava thought bitterly, than allies through fear.

Well – Wrathia had replied to that thought, spinning her carved pipe delicately between two perfectly filed and talon’ed fingers – Nay, girl, but an ally out to kill you after the battle is worse than one who’d rather flee.

Ava assumed she spoke through experience, and decided not to pry any further. She had learned a long time ago to ignore the witch, and even though sometimes she had important information to dispense to her host, she was mostly a long-toothed chatterbox.

Her feet sunk into sweet soil. Maggie’s mind was pretty, and it sparkled around the corners of her vision like a cheap drug. Ava waved off the glamour with a quick glare and began her search.

She remembered too acutely how satisfying it was to see Maggie quivering, afraid, and it made her sick to her stomach. She had a smile that mirrored Wrathia’s at the time, from the long sharp teeth to how filled with bloodlust it was.

Speaking of lust, Ava pushed her palm against the trunk of a sad tree, revealing the heartbroken wails within; she had a bone to pick with Maggie’s demon. Ever since she strong-armed Maggie into teaming up with her – an easy task when you’re made of hot sharp things – she knew little about Tuls and his goal. In order to get this done and get it done fast, she needed both sides of the coin to cooperate.

She slipped inside, and per Wrathia’s instructions, followed the “self-pitying moans” until she located him. Ava could recognize him, thanks to the limbo lenses, but seeing him as a moving creature and not a vague echo through star-dusted lenses was a different experience. He was huge.

Giant red leaves clung around his collar like the mane of a lion, almost noble – his giant hands steadily painted the portrait of a delicate looking daisy woman, with a soft expression. Ava thought it was wistfully cute, in a way, until she glanced up and saw portraits of the woman everywhere.

…a little concerning, but she’d prefer portraits to drawers. Clearing her throat, she announced “Hello? Are you Tuls?”

His movements slowed, the brush pressed against the canvas inching to a halt as he tilted his head slightly. She could barely see his face, but she could distinctly spot a deepening frown.

“…who else would it be?”

Either all demons were sassy or Ava was being sensitive. In any case, she steeled herself and announced “I’m Wrathia Bellarmina’s host.”

That got his attention. His ears seemed to twitch at the edges, and his form groaned as he stood, wood snapping into place as his huge body settled into another position. He finally turned all the way, and his gaze, although drunk with sadness, was still sharp. His eyes were bright with curiosity – and wariness.

“…Ava?” She blinked in surprise. “Maggie’s… old friend? You are… Wrathia’s host?” he wasn’t stupid with his words, or slow, as though they were processing – it just seemed like there was a lag between his mind and his mouth. It still put Ava on edge enough that her fingertips went hot. “That…” he put a hand to his mouth. “…explains a… few things.”

“Most things, really,” she refuted casually, eyes automatically darting up to the perfect paintings all around “but I’m here to talk to you about some things.”

“What things?” he echoed softly, hollow – he turned back to the painting and it looked like he was going to sit down again, so Ava reached out and put a hand on his wrist. Apparently, he was used to Maggie prodding him, because he didn’t notice until Ava curled her fingers inward and he felt the slight prick of almost-claws.

“Why did you pact?”

His glance sharpened. “I had little choice. It was this… or remain a specter.” He didn’t sit down again, luckily, because Ava was certain if he got back to his painting he’d ignore her completely. “Why did you?”

“I wanted something. So do you – I know that look,” her own eyes sparked fire, ferocity and want – it mirrored Tuls’ own expression. “That’s the look of someone who wants nothing except one – single – thing. And nothing else matters. Not even dying.”

He stared at her for a long moment, and his eyes didn’t study her expression – he was gauging the cruelty in her pupils, the rage in her furrowed brow. A few faeries danced nearby, curious, but quickly departed when the atmosphere turned sour.

“…you are a little like Wrathia… but not completely.” She opened her mouth and he put up a hand. “…that’s a good thing… she’s insufferable. Sit with me…” he sat down in front of his painting and began mixing pigments again. Ava sat on a nearby stump, which she assumed Maggie used often – it was worn a little like a seat. Or did laws of erosion even work in a magical mind-scape? Ava pushed that question aside as she pulled her knees up to her chin.

Tuls continued painting, and it wasn’t for a few minutes that he began speaking again. “What… was your pact?”

Her grip on her knees tightened till there were little crescent shape indentations on her caps. “Why do you ask?”

“You sit like someone… who’s wish is innocent.”

“Is there a way to sit like it isn’t?”

A tiny smile up curled the edged of his mouth. “Yes… look to Wrathia or her husband for an example.”

Ava snickered into her palm and replied “Fine; I’ll bite. I want a second chance.”

“At what?”

“Life. If you haven’t noticed, Wrathia is really good at ruining those. And ending them.”

He nodded in agreement, huge leaves serving as hair bobbing with the movement. “…fair enough. My wish… is to confess my love… to this woman.” He tapped the canvas with the wooden tip of his brush, and Ava inched closer to see how the painting was coming along.

“Who is she?”

“My Princess… Ranunculae.”

Cinders shot out of her mouth in surprise as Ava repeated “Your princess-? So you’re not royalty?” He shook his great, shaggy head slowly, like sap dripping between the cracks of bark on a tree. “Huh. I thought all of Wrathia’s warriors were some kind of nobility.”

“You’ll find the only nobles… are her and her husband…”

That was an interesting nugget of information. Ava stowed it away for later as her toes curled uncertainly. “If you’re not a royal, and that’s your princess – who were you?”

“I was… a guard… a knight… her knight.” His tone went soft, and Ava let it. She could only imagine what kind of mockery he had received from Maggie. “I was… her escort… her companion… her confidant… her friend.”

Ava smiled and relaxed a little, lowering her legs and pressing her elbows to her knees, acting the part as the avid listener. “You two fell in love?”

He cleared his throat uncertainly. It was a pretty abrupt noise coming from someone who spoke as slow as paint dried. She wondered if he’d get his story out before his canvas solidified.

“I fell in love… with her. I am… uncertain… what her feelings are… towards me.”

“Ah.” She ran her tongue along the inside of her cheek, feeling bumps and scars from when her teeth were sharp and dug into the soft flesh. “so, you just want to get your feelings out?”

“Basically. When I died I was… not in the position… to make a declaration such as that… though I wanted to, dearly.”

“How did you die?” Ava questioned aloud, not catching the thoughts before they fled out her mouth – she was pressing the edge of the cliff, here, but she wasn’t sure when she’d get a chance to talk to him again.

“How did you?” he asked back, brow raised and expression skeptical. It was strange to see such a heavy face so dynamic.

She fiddled with the straps on her dress, looking to the side and focusing her vision on another canvas. “I – uh – was impaled on TiTAN’s sword.”

“…mn. Execution?”

“Accident,” she replied, before stopping. “Well – sort of, I guess. Maggie did want me dead when she crashed the ship. I guess her wish was granted when I was flung onto the statue. I guess that’s kind of an execution.”

“Then… perhaps… you will understand.” He began final touch-ups of the Princess’ face. “You see… Ranunculae… is sweet. Kind. Patient…. To a self-destructive degree. She was… betrothed.” Ava flinched involuntarily. Tuls was carrying around some serious baggage, and she wasn’t any therapist – but knowing the depth of his motivations could only help her in convincing him to have some incentive with her quest.

He glanced to her, and she was waiting patiently for him to continue. “Her betrothed was… a weed,” he hissed the word, and Ava felt a sharp spike of fear go down her spine seeing sharp green teeth revealed in his sneer. “He took advantage of her… manipulated her… I saw and offered advice… break the marriage. But… she put her personal needs last… in comparison to the needs of her people.”

“A very Princess-like thing to do,” Ava noted, and Tuls rolled his shoulders irritably.

“I agree… but I love her. And I could not… would not… stand idly by… as she was paired for life to that nightshade of a prince.” She could almost see it unfolding in front of her – Tuls foolish chivalry mixed together with his infatuation was a toxic combination. “On their wedding night… I ended the prince.”

She could see why Wrathia chose him to be one of her warriors. When he had motivation, he saw it through to the end. His leaves ruffled at the memory, thorns winding tightly around his feet, and Ava swallowed hard.

“However… when I buried him in the garden… early the next morning, he was demanding my corpse on the front steps. That’s the real… issue… with plants,” he surmised with a scrunched expression, dabbling a bit more paint onto the picture “they’re hard to kill.”

“So… what did you do?”

“…there is a way to kill… his kind… my kind… but it involves something you are well acquainted with.” His lifted his head from his painting and tilted it her direction. The sparkling light around them only made this conversation seem more gruesome. “…fire.” Her muscles went taut, but he was looking back to his picture and didn’t notice. “I am no fire-bearer, nor do I claim to be… but… Wrathia noticed my ability… she sought my company in my prison cell… and offered a deal.”

He stood. His painting was finished, and now, he fished around the corner for a good frame for the portrait. “I was to be executed… for my crimes… but I could live again. In exchange… for assisting her after death… she would permanently end the prince.” He pulled out a glossed oaken frame, and dusted it off. “Naturally, I agreed.”

Naturally - Ava stomach felt like a hot coil of tension, but she continued to listen as ask questions, as was her role in the conversation. “You were executed?”

“Eventually. The process… takes a while. They tend to weaken the prisoners first… so that they can’t take root after being killed. I believe it was a couple years… before my sentence was completed…”

A couple years waiting for death, thinking only of his Princess – no wonder he was obsessed. “But I’m guessing you’re not really interested in actually helping Wrathia in her mission.”

“Your mission,” he corrected “is none of my concern… but I did make a deal… and I have been found, despite the odds… so I suppose I’ll have to help.”

“Your enthusiasm is overwhelming,” she muttered, pushing her hair back and narrowing her eyes “but, how about this – before we kill TiTAN, we’ll find Ranunculae and put her somewhere safe. That way you can consider it more like protecting her rather than killing Wrathia’s enemies.”

He was slipping the canvas into the frame, clipping it on, and he stopped. “…you are…determined to see this through.”

“TiTAN has put me through my fair share of bullshit,” she replied waspishly, running her nails along her scalp painfully while she pulled her hair back again “so consider it less determination and more pissed off. I’m not that noble about this.”

“Determination… has nothing to do with nobility. Wrathia was determined to be empress… and she killed many. She is not noble… nor is she humble, or valorous…”

“I can make a list longer than that of the things Wrathia isn’t – what matters is that I need your cooperation and I need it fast. My enemies aren’t slowing down anytime soon-”

“You are hoping,” he interrupted quietly “that the sin you do is worth what you want.”

Silence flooded the space between them until it was suffocating, constricting – Ava’s limbs felt tight, like she was being strangled, and she didn’t reply for a few moments. When she did, her words did nothing to alleviate the pressure between them. “Aren’t you hoping the same thing?”

“We are… creatures of deals and desires, Ava…” It was the first time he used her name since their initial introduction, and it felt too personal, too exposed to say it at a time like this. “…we are doing terrible things… for innocent wants… now we see where they will land us. In heaven,” he stroked the Princess’ face in the portrait longingly, before looking to Ava “or in hell.”

She licked her lips anxiously, and they tasted bitter. For a moment in time, they simply stared at one another, a fellow creature of wishes and sin, while sunbeams revealed the golden pollen dancing around their ears playfully. They both murdered for their desires, both made deals with a long-toothed demon in the dark – they both looked up to their hopeful destination while trying to ignore being knee deep in blood and guilt.

“…it has been… interesting… to talk with you…” he plucked the picture up, now investigating a place to set it “but… Magnolia will be waking soon… so you’d best leave.”

Ava didn’t spare another moment to retreat. They were both eager for some personal time, and Ava didn’t want to be near him for much longer. He was entirely aware of what he did, he comprehended exactly what he asked of Wrathia, and he felt no remorse – only sadness that he didn’t confess to his Princess.

Every day, the events of TiTAN HQ ate at Ava’s marrow like a parasite.

As she entered the domain of her mind, surrounded by tight drawers and fire, she wondered – would there ever come a time when she would cut down her enemies without looking back, ignoring her sins with something as domestic as painting – or was she too many steps off from Wrathia, and she would never truly enjoy her new life?

Looking back on it, perhaps there was almost nothing worse than having allies that feared you – other than understanding precisely why they feared you, and knowing that quality would most likely be your downfall.

Ava closed the drawers to her mind tightly and tried not to think of a blood-soaked giant staring longingly at his princess, and she failed.