#anyone who treats my boy good gets a nice smooch from me

[julianalvarez9]

https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZT82sG3xU/

SHUT UP I LOVE THEM

[seiyasabi]

Momma’s Boy

(This is a Yandere Severus Snape x Hufflepuff! Female Reader story :)) Sorry if this is too OOC!

TW: Bullying!, unhealthy feelings!, manipulation!, Mommy kink!, face sitting!, creampie!, Femdom!, consensual sex!, etc..

Please proceed with caution!)

A wide hand smacks his books from his hands, casting everything onto the cobblestone floor. A soft sigh leaves the blach haired man’s mouth, as he slowly looks up from his belongings, to see a smirking Sirius Black. 

“Watch where you’re going, Snape-boy,” The four males let out ugly laughs, eyes filled with mockery. Severus says nothing, moving to pick up his things, only to be stopped by James. 

“Don’t think that we’ll let you off the hook that easily,” The brunet’s glasses gleam with a dark delight, making the bullied boy gulp in fear, “We’ve seen you creep around that cute hufflepuff- what was her name again?” He pretends to think, allowing a grinning Peter to take over. 

“Yeah, you’ve been creeping around that cutie, (Your Name), for far too long. We’ve noticed you following her like a kicked puppy,” Remus shoves Severus into the wall, causing the 6’1 (1.85 m) man to hit it harshly. 

“Don’t think we haven’t noticed you telling her lies about us,” Confusion is clear on the tall man’s face, causing all four of them to scoff, “She refuses to hang out with us, because she claims we harass you! That’s not true, is it, Snape-boy?” 

“I-well, uhm-”

“I-well, uhm,” James mocks, a knowing grin on his devilish features, “Don’t be nervous, we won’t hurt you.”

“Well, you lot haven’t been too kind to me these past few years,” More scoffs echo off the cobblestone walls, making the tall man feel small. 

“That’s not true, and you know it. We’ve been joking around with you, because we’re friends, aren’t we?” Remus reassures condescendingly, “Plus, friends tell friends when they’re wrong. You’re wrong for pursuing (Your Name), because Remus, here,” He slaps the dirty blond man on the back good-naturedly, “Liked her first. So, having you around, writing in your creepy notebooks about her, will no longer be appreciated.” 

An angry flush covers Snape’s pale cheeks, “It-it’s not like that! (Your Name) is my friend, please don’t make me-”

“Make you? We never make you do anything. We’re just suggesting you leave her alone, unless you want us to take matters into our own hands.” 

Sweat beads on the brow of the black haired man, as he tried to look around for anyone willing to help. No one besides the five of them are in the hall. 

“No,” The four raise a collective eyebrow at his disobedience, “No, I won’t stop being friends with (Your Name). I don’t care what you do to me.”

“That’s sweet, really, but I’m going to have to change your mind,” Remus snarls, his hands balling into fists. In a swift motion, the dirty blond man starts to punch at Severus’ face and chest. The tall man doesn’t have time to put his hands up, getting wailed in the head and torso multiple times. 

The blond’s friends jump in as well, quickly bringing their victim to the floor. Their kicks and hits are rapid paced, disorienting him relatively quickly. He curls into the fetus position, trying to protect his head, luckily stopping their punches. 

His assault continues for a few moments more, before he’s dragged to his feet, and held against the wall by the collar of his shirt, “Are you going to leave her alone now?” 

Snape shakes his head, blood dripping down his face, entire body aching, “No, I won’t. I let you lot walk all over me for far too long. We’re in our last year, why are you acting as if we’re first years?” 

Remus tightens his grip around his collar, teeth bared like an animal, “That’s the wrong answer.”

The blond raises a fist to punch him once more, only to be stopped by a familiar voice. 

“What are you doing?” Your concerned voice rings through the hall, along with your running footsteps. Hurrying up to the group of boys, you start to shove at Remus, trying to break his hold on your close friend (crush), “Let him go! Are you crazy?” 

Your friends are seen down the hall, looking at you in both surprise and slight disdain, “(Your Name), stay out of their business. Once they settle it, everything will be fine-”

“You can’t honestly think that I’ll let them hurt Severus! He’s our friend, and-”

“Stop standing up for him, he’s a total creep. The Marauders are doing you a favour-” You block out what your friends are saying, continuing to push at the blond’s hands. 

“Stop it, Remus! Just leave him alone!” He quickly pulls away, causing you to sigh in relief, only for you to be the one pinned against the wall. Your friend is being held by the blond’s lackeys, holding him back from helping you. Your other friends watch on in horror.

“Why must you always get in my way, Love? I’m trying to teach him a lesson,” You wrinkle your nose in disgust, trying to wriggle out of his grip. 

“Don’t call me that. Just leave Severus and I alone. I understand that you have taken a liking towards me, but that doesn’t excuse your horrid behaviour. If anything, it makes me dislike you! You’re nasty, big headed, crude, and mean for virtually no reason! I don’t understand why you and your friends act this way-”

“He doesn’t deserve your affection!” He blurts out without thinking, his grip on your wrists tightening, “He hangs around you like a dark shadow, he makes everyone around him uncomfortable-”

“I think he’s cute,” You snap out uncharacteristically, “In fact, him following me around is harmless; you following me around, on the other hand, is very harmful. People are afraid to talk to me because of you, and he’s one of the only people who stayed being my friend. I don’t want to hear you talk badly about him, when he has made my life better than it was before.”

Remus releases you after a long moment of silence, a hurt look on his handsome features, “Fine. Stay with the freak if you want to, just don’t come crying to me-”

“I won’t. I won’t seek you out, ever,” The blond motions towards his friends, prompting them to release your friend. You hurry to the dark haired man, cupping his face with soft hands, “Are you alright, Severus? They didn’t hurt you too badly did they?” His lip trembles, signaling oncoming tears, prompting you to turn towards your friends and wave off their concern, “It’s alright, you guys go to class, I’ll take him to the nurse.”

They stalked off, Remus constantly looking back at you. Unfortunately for him, all of your attention is on a certain tall man. 

“Come along, Sev, let’s go to the nurse,” He shakes his head as he sobs uncontrollably, “No? Well, I can’t let you stay battered… Do you want to go to my dormitory? I’ll heal you there,” He nods, allowing you to half-drag-half-pull him towards the Hufflepuff dorm. You’d picked up his things and set them in your satchel, before heading off. Many cast the Slytherin man questioning looks, but quickly realised who was helping him. You’re known as one of the kindest souls at Hogwarts, so it’s not too unlike you to help the freaks of the school. 

Once in your room, you help him sit on your full size mattress. You share the room with only one other girl, leaving two empty beds between the both of you. Luckily, she’s out of the room, most likely at her boyfriend’s dorm room. 

Sitting beside him, you quickly pull out your wand, “This might feel a bit weird, but I promise I’m helping,” You murmur a healing spell to yourself, watching as his skin becomes smooth and even toned once more, “There we go! Good as-oh no, why are you crying again? Did it hurt?” 

Hearing your distraught voice, he tries to comfort you whilst bawling his eyes out, “Nu-no, no, you du-did nothing wu-wrong,” He throws his arms around you, bringing you into a tight hug, “It-it’s just… You treat me so well, and-and I love you so much-” He cuts himself off to hide his face in your neck. Oh no, he just accidentally confessed!

You giggle to yourself at his shy behaviour, and run a hand through his messy hair, “It’s because I love you too, silly,” When you say that, Severus practically feels his soul leave his body. His Darling loves him?

“You-you love me too?” Nodding against him, you cuddle him sweetly. You rub his back reassuringly, rocking him slightly. 

“Yep! I’ve liked you for the past few years, but I never had the courage to confess,” He raises his head, looking at you with watery eyes. 

“Really?” When you nod, he can’t help himself, “Can I- Can I please have a kiss?” 

“Of course!” You lean forward, giving him a sweet peck. Severus practically creams his pants at the feeling of your lips on his. Seeing his bright red face, you frown a bit, moving his hair out of his face, “Are you alright? Did I make you feel uncomfortable?” 

“No! No, it was nice,” A dreamy smile crosses his handsome features, as he leans in again, “Can I please have another one?” Smiling, you nod, smooching him softly once more. 

This, in turn, turns into a whole makeout session. You slide onto his lap, making it easier for you to reach his mouth. Your new seating arrangements allow you to feel his hard cock under your ass, a small smile quirking its way onto your lips, “Are you excited, Sevvy?” You hear a small whimper in response, causing you to giggle, “Do you want me to help you?”

“Please?” Instead of responding, you start to grind against his clothed cock. Your panty clad cunny is directly against his fly, your skirt just barely covering your ass. Grabbing his hands, you place them on your hips, their massive size making you feel secure. Severus whines at your grinding movement, hips bucking into your own. To silence him, you give him an open mouthed kiss, your tongue dominating his own. 

Drawing away from his mouth, there’s a long string of saliva connecting you both together. Using a manicured finger, you break it, and bring it to your mouth. Your tongue darts out, licking your shared spit off seductively, “Do you want me to fuck you, Sevvy? Wanna be inside of me?” 

“Yes! Yes, please!” You run a hand over his clothing clad chest, kissing him on the cheek. 

“Okay, Baby. Do you want me to suck your cock? Or do you wanna eat me out?” His hands grip at the fat of your hips, drool practically dripping from his gaping mouth. 

“Let me eat you, please,” Snape begs, bucking slightly into you. You cup his face with both hands and grin, pinching his cheeks teasingly. 

“Okie dokie, Sevvy. Lay back for me,” He drops back like a corpse, flopping haphazardly on your, surprisingly comfortable, mattress. Unzipping your uniform skirt, you slide it down your legs, tossing it on the other side of your bed. Your cute boyfriend gasps at the sight of your thong, never seeing one before. Chuckling at his shocked reaction, you quickly strip yourself of your blazer and dress shirt, exposing your lace bralette, “Do you like what you see?” 

His head practically snaps off his neck with how fast he nods, “You look so… so beautiful, (Your Name). I feel so lucky to see you this way,” A dark blush coats your (skin colour) cheeks, as you look away a bit shyly. 

“Thank you. Will you let me see you undressed?” He squeaks out a ‘yes,’ prompting you to practically rip off his slacks, dress shirt, and blazer. Only in his drawers, your heart jumps into your throat. His broad shoulder and lightly muscled abdomen look wonderfully full, and the very apparent bulge in his boxers make you lick your lips hungrily, “Are you ready to eat my pussy, Sev?”

“Yes, please sit on my face,” You gawk at his out-of-character words, but do as he asks. Slipping your panties off, you scoot forward, placing your bare cunny on his awaiting maw. He helps you settle on him by wrapping his arms around your (Size) thighs, relishing the feeling of your fat being squished between his forearm and bicep. 

Because he wrapped his arms over your legs, he is able to part your pussy lips, giving him easy access to your throbbing core. He gives an experimental lick to your slit, making your legs tremble. Now knowing that he’s doing something right, he dives in like  a man starved. His teeth lightly nip at your engorged clit, all whilst his tongue dips into your dripping hole. A squeal leaves your lips, signaling the pleasure you’re currently feeling. 

Gripping his head by his hair, you throw your head back in pleasure, “Ye-yes! You’re doing so well for me!” He keens at your praise, increasing the speed of his ministrations. Though you can tell that he’s a virgin, he’s exceeding your expectations by a long shot. Lightly grinding against his face, more moans and whimpers leave your throat, your entire body becoming rigid as your orgasm approaches. With one last well placed suck, you’re cumming into his open mouth. Your juices run down his chin and splash against his cheekbones, causing Snape’s heart to practically beat out of his chest. You’re the most beautiful thing he’s ever seen.

Moving off of his face, you pat him on the head affectionately, “Did I do good?” He wipes some of your juices off of his mug, before slurping them down. 

“You were amazing, Sevvy. Have you done this before?” He shakes his head no, making you coo softly, “You’re a natural! Such a good boy.”

“Thank you, Mommy,” It’s like his entire body took a screenshot, with how still he became. He must have thought you’d be disgusted… but you aren’t. Instead, a small moan leaves your lips, before you bring him up into a hug. 

“My Baby Boy likes calling me Mommy? You’re so adorable,” You reach down to his cock, pulling him out with a tender touch. His tip is a dark pink, his precum dripping down his thick length. A large vein runs up the underside of his circumcised prick, and you can’t wait to sit on it, “Is it ok for Mommy to sit on your pretty cock, Sevvy?” You slip him between your cunny lips, grinding down on his length, and mixing your liquids together. 

“Ye-yes, Mommy! Please, please fuck me!” Taking him in one hand, you guide him to your opening, before pushing his tip inside teasingly. His whimper causes a gush of your slick to coat his length, helping you ease down him, until your pelvises touch. You can feel his dark, trimmed pubic hair rub against your cunny, making you squeeze down experimentally, “You-you’re so tight!” 

Smiling at him coyly, you reach behind you, and unclasp your bra, letting your perfect tits jiggle enticingly. You toss it aside, before grasping Severus’ hands, and guiding them to your breasts. He immediately squeezes, loving the feeling of them in his hands. You let out a small whimper, moving your hips in a circular motion, ultimately grinding him against your cervix. 

“Can I move, Pretty Boy?” Groans of pleasure rattle his chest, as you start to suck dark hickies onto his pristine skin. 

“Yes! Yes!” Giggling, you quickly lift your hips almost off of his cock, before slamming down harshly. Both of you groan in pleasure, signaling you to increase your pace. Moving at lightning speed, you start to bounce rapidly. Tits jiggling in the Slytherin boy’s hands, you bring him into a heated kiss. 

You swallow down his desperate whines, your hands pulling at his unkempt locks. Juices dripping down his cock, both of your thighs are quickly covered by your essence. His abdomen rubs against your clit with every bounce, bringing you closer and closer to your release. 

Breaking from the kiss, you suck on the skin of his throat, before speaking, “You’re so big, Sevvy. My pussy can barely handle how thick you are,” His hips meet yours, hitting your cervix harshly. A loud moan escapes you, “Fu-fuck! You’re so good for Mommy! Come on, Darling, meet my movement, and you can cum inside.”

At your words, he starts a breakneck pace, meeting your every movement with a mighty thrust. Your hands reach up to pinch his pretty, pink nipples, making him falter in his movements. 

“Mommy! Mommy-you feel so good! Please let me cum inside!” Increasing almost impossibly in speed, you feel yourself quickly hurtling over the edge. 

“Gu-go ahead! Mommy wants you to cum with her!” With one last sitting movement, the both of you orgasm harshly. Your back arches almost painfully, as you feel him fill you to the brim with thick, hot cum. Your own juices squirt out, coating the both of you in a sheen of white sperm and a glossy cunny juice. 

Severus face plants into your chest, practically drowning in your perfect teats. Whilst catching your breath, you run your hands through his hair, loving how silky the strands are. 

“You did well, Sevvy. You were so good for me,” You fully embrace him, as he buries his head further into your plush chest. 

“Th-thank you, Mommy, I’m glad I was good enough for you,” Bringing his face up to your level (wish is relatively hard, because he’s tall), you smile sweetly at him. 

“You’re always enough for me,” Kissing him on the forehead, you cuddle into him for a while longer. 

While you’re content and happy, Severus is over the moon. 

The girl he’d pined over for years is finally within his grasp! He’d have to write this moment down the moment he gets to his dorm! 

He’s just one step closer to stealing her away the moment they graduate. Hopefully, you’ll still be the homemaker he knows you’re meant to be, even if you’re a bit angry at him at first. 

Wrapping his arms tightly around you, he knows that you’re the only one for him. Hopefully, you think the same, too.

[generallybrontidefeelings]

News for you

A/N: OKAY, gave myself a break to write this lil thing because I needed some fluff from the angst pit I dug myself into. Written for @221bshrlocked #maggies17 writing challenge! Thank you for the prompt, madam, I had fun with this :) also any mistakes belong to me!

Pairing: Javier Peña x reader, Javier Peña x you

Summery: Javi and Steve recruit you, a humble photographer, for a hop, skip, and a jump of a mission. It goes sideways. 

Prompt: 66 “I’ve decided to write a how-to manual and you’re going to be the ‘what not to do’ example.”

Warnings: unbeta’d. T rating, a swear word? Tension, adrenaline! fluff, hiding in the trunk of a car? Protective DEA agents. A smooch! A very self-indulgent comfort fic

Words: ~3K ish

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“Javier-ommph.” His shoulders bonked your nose as he turned himself over and around in the trunk of the bronco, further squishing you between himself and Steve. “It’s been three hours. If no one shows up, I’m going to kill you!”

“Okay, honey, later,” he mumbled, looking past you out the rearview window. Low yellow light from the Bogotà street lamps hit his eyes and left the rest of his face in the shadows. His chest rose and fell as he scanned outside, past your head. Behind you, you hear Steve fiddling with his sidearm, clicking the cylinder into place. It’s the lowness, the calming choice of words that make the situation really click for you. 

You had stayed as still as you could on your side, sandwiched between the DEA agents’ shoulders. Imagining yourself cartoonishly small helped the awkwardness of having to choose between your ass bumping Steve’s hip, and your thigh lying against Javi’s. The three of you lie very still, listening. 

This wasn’t your job. Your job was to sit in the CIA designated office, walk files back and forth between offices, and develop crime scene photos. That was it. It was not as Javi had phrased it ‘doing us a huge favor’ by playing ‘date’ for the evening so he and Murphy could discreetly plant a camera in a hotel room across the way from some sicario’s hideaway. Without thinking too much about it, you tucked your nose against Javi’s shoulder and worked on compartmentalizing what was happening around you. He smelled like faded vetiver, the orange he’d eaten while waiting for Steve to install the tiny camera, and sweat drawn on by the humidity. He met your eyes, glowing sharp and dark under the lamplight, and you saw his apology in them. 

The back of the bronco opened you inhaled sharply and squeezed your eyes shut, yelping as Javi’s whole body lands on you, and preparing for noise.

“It’s clear, agents, you can come out.”

The image Carillo found when he opened the trunk would have been comical. The gringos bodies squished impossibly in the trunk of the Bronco; Murphy and his dumbass long legs curled upward like a dried-out harvestman blinking in the flashlight glare, and behind him, Peña practically lying on top of a you - a woman he vaguely recognized from the embassy if he squinted. And it didn’t look like the way Peña normally lied over women. Your face heated up under the warm flashlights and your own welling relief. 

When the car door started rattling, Javier had tried to crawl over you and push you behind him, or under him, somewhere not as vulnerable. But in the cramped quarters, he’d only gotten as far as moving his back completely on top of you so you were the big spoon - a big spoon who was near suffocating and panicking. His ass fell heavily into your hip bone, sending a shooting pain down your leg. All you could see was Javi’s shoulder, and the blinding flashlights of the Search Bloc men. 

“Did you get the camera installed?” Carillo asks, as you try to stay still under Javi’s deadweight.

“Yeah, it’s in.” His voice reverberates through you, and you want to smack him for dragging you into this situation. 

“You better get up, Peña, or you’ll suffocate that poor woman.” Your eyes popped open, and you gave in, smacking Javi on the shoulder until he moved. You hissed when you tried to sit up, your hip burning and calve cramping at the same time. The flashlights died, and you were back to sitting in the orange hued shadows inside the Bronco trunk. 

“All right, lady?” Steve asked, hanging his legs off the trunk of the car. Men with rifles stalk around the vehicle, one reporting to Carillo, another two keeping sharp eyes out. It’s quiet for the amount of bodies milling around.  

“Yeah-ow. I’ll be okay.” Javi was moving quietly, looking apologetic, glancing between your sore hip and your face. 

“You’re heavy, Peña,” you say, more to let him know you’re all right, all right enough to give him shit. His lips quirked up a little, and he let his body stretch out, leaning on the trunk ledge. You gently massaged the area that hurt while Javi and Carillo talked together, only catching a few words here and there. It feels like forever later, you sandwiched again sitting on the edge of the trunk between Steve and Javi, swinging your sneakers in little arcs, trying to control your facial expressions. You see Carillo jerk his chin at you, and Javi looks you over before answering. In an unexpected display, Carillo smacks Javi on the shoulder as well, saying what you guess is an expletive before turning and gathering his men. 

“Okay, here’s where we are.” Javi leans on the trunk bed again and bumps your shoulder with his. “The camera is on and transmitting, which is good. Bad news is the sicarios are on alert. Search Bloc wants to escort us home while they keep up the hunt.” 

“Do you own a gun?” Murphy’s question breaks your staring. 

“No, not yet. I meant to…” you trail off as he shakes his head. You know it’s stupid of you not to have any protection. This is Colombia, and you’re a single woman on American government paycheck. You finish lamely, holding your elbows: “I meant to get one.” 

“If they saw her they might be looking for her. Have her stay with you for the night.” 

Javi’s eyebrows raise imperceptibly. You want to say ‘no thank you’ and ‘let’s do it’ all at once. He got you into this mess anyway. 

“Sure, that’s fine.” You let out the breath you’re holding, actually relieved. You didn’t want to go home to your lonely, dark apartment after this. Not for a little while. 

Search Bloc escorts the three of you back to the apartment complex, and you’re ushered inside the building one group at a time. 

“Play nice,” Steve mumbles as he steps out of the bronco for his turn into the building. You watch him saunter in under the harsh lamplight. 

The driver calls back some directions, then takes off driving. You turn to Javi in the backseat, distress written across your face. 

“He says we’re going around the block a couple times then they’ll take us in. Relax,” he suggests, and without preamble, slips his hand around your folded ones in your lap. 

It’s a tense ride. Every corner you close your eyes and take a slow controlled breath. And every time Javi’s hand squeezes yours, the other wrapped around the grip of his sidearm. When the Search Bloc boys bring you back to the complex your sneakers scrape against the pavement up the stairs, then against the hardwood until Javi’s door clicks shut behind you. Then, only then, do you give in to your body's demand to breathe deeply. 

You gather your surroundings - it’s a cushy place, raised kitchen leading back to a bedroom and recessed living area. It would be homey if not for the messes on every surface; mostly cigarette packages, cassette tapes, half-empty glasses. The domesticity distracts you from the reality outside, of tire treads rushing through water run-off along the road. Headlights sweep across the edges of the ceiling to illuminate and fracture the room. It’s exactly what you expect for Javier Peña.

“Is your hip all right?” Javi is lighting a cigarette, but watching you intently. You lift your left leg a bit and shake it. Only a lingering ache remains. 

“It’s fine. A bath will help it,” you say. He nods and puffs out the smoke. You don’t know what to do, so you reach behind you and hook your fingers into the waistline of your skirt and look anywhere but him. The swish follows you down to the couch where you sit, and absently fiddle with the fabric. 

“I know that was more than I asked of you, and I appreciate it.” He pushes his stacks of magazines back into tissues and a crystal ashtray so he can sit on the coffee table. “You did well under pressure.” 

“I belong in a lab, Peña,” you say, leaning your chin on your knuckles. “I’m glad I could help, but don’t ask me to do that again. Ever.” 

“Cross my heart.” 

You smile at him. He’s stupidly handsome; he’d caught your eye the day you’d begun working in the embassy halls in the CIA rooms. You did your part, telling him ‘no’, and pulling confidential files out of his hands, and exchanging barbs daily. But that didn’t stop the tender flame of attraction that grew; you knew it wasn’t your place to harbour it, especially when the rumors of how he behaved with informants reached your ears. It didn’t matter, you decided. It didn’t dissuade you, so you let that little flame smolder freely, content to do your work and content to treat him as Agent Peña. Now in his living room, in the fluorescent kitchen lamplight, you wish all that would go away so you could sleep on his couch in peace. 

He didn’t help, calling you ‘honey’ and leaning on your desk to sweetly ask for specific rolls to be developed before others. He didn’t help at all, jamming his foot in the dark room door before you locked it, asking in his softest voice if he could get a look at them before anyone else did. And he helped the least when in his enthusiasm at whatever break he found in the photos, he’d draw you in by your shirt sleeve and press a grateful kiss to your temple before scribbling down whatever connection he had made. You were always grateful for the red lights hiding the heat that rose under your skin. 

“Do you have any spare blankets?” 

He looks around, like it’s the first time anyone’s asked him. “No, I don’t.” 

“Not even a throw?” Exhaustion leaks into your tone. It’s nearly midnight, and you just want to sleep. Javi stands and shrugs his jacket off. He extends his hand and you take it, letting him lead you down the hall to his bedroom. It’s neat, smells faintly of his cologne and smoke and soap. Before you knew it, he was pushing a big t-shirt into your hands and sitting himself on the bed’s edge to undress. You took the opposite edge, gingerly taking your sneakers off and groaning at the relief of being able to wiggle your toes. 

You decide modesty is for people who don’t identify drug cartel hired guns for a grocery money, and slide into Javi’s bedsheets in your underwear and his borrowed t-shirt. The light in the room clicks off, and you listen to Javi rustle around getting comfortable with your eyes closed. His hand lands on your thigh over the blankets. 

“You’re okay,” he says low, and you respond by resting your hand on top of his wrist as you drift into sleep.  

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

How you got here

“It would just be for a couple hours,” Javi had said, standing over your desk with Steve and your supervisor. Murphy did his part playing skeptic, arms crossed, and his striped tie on too tight. Your supervisor mirrored him, glaring at Peña for asking for such a favor. A big favor. Dark room specialists don’t grow on trees, and you had rolls of film to get processing today. 

“Why can’t one of your informants do this?” your supervisor asks. You raise your eyebrows at Javi. 

“Well, an informant you have to pay.” Murphy tilts his head to the side. Uncle Sam’s purse strings had been a little tight this quarter. “And she’s already on payroll.” 

“It’s up to you,” your super says, leaving you under the hopeful stares of Javi and Steve.

“Look,” Javi leans on your desk, getting low enough to make the conversation private, “you don’t have to do anything dangerous. All we need is to use the hotel room to set up a camera looking into an apartment across the street. You would give us a plausible reason to be entering the hotel, and could help us identify the guy if he shows up. So we’re shooting in the right direction.” 

You squint at Javi. He’s playing the biggest puppy-dog eyes you’ve ever seen. Crossing your arms on your desk, you lean forward so you’re even closer to his face, close enough to smell the last cigarette he had was at least an hour ago. “Do you need help setting up the equipment?” 

The twitch in his cheek tells you everything, just as Murphy answers “yes.” 

“Okay, I’ll bite, fellas.” 

“It will be in and out, honey. Shouldn’t be more than two hours.” His eyes are reassuring as you grab your handbag. 

The hotel clerk speaks with Javi as Murphy stands at your side with a hand lying stiffly on your waist, an appropriate distance from anything intimate, and just firm enough to give the impression of a pleasant couple. 

He gets a key, and the three of you reach the room without a hitch. You help Murphy get the little camera up and transmitting. Javi keeps an eye by the window, looking out the translucent curtains. 

“Bad news. Fuck,” Javi murmurs, and it makes your blood go cold. Murphy stops packing up the bag your equipment had come in and kicks it under the room bed. “We gotta get to the car.” Murphy reaches for the phone, dialing. 

“What’s wrong?” you ask anyone. It’s too vague, you can’t tell what the private language of partners is communicating to one another. 

Javi left the window, signaling to Steve to hurry up with his phone call. “Someone ratted on us, we need to get moving.”  

“I thought you said this wouldn’t be dangerous,” you hiss at him. You see him huff in frustration, and immediately feel bad. “Javi…”

He smooths his hand under your elbow. “Honey, I’m sorry.” 

The three of you make a graceless exit out the back service stairs into the Bogotà twilight, street lamps already on painting things in hazy greens to the humming of cicadas. Your sneakers whisper on the pavement, one hand gripping the back of Javi’s jacket; you feel silly doing it, but you don’t want to lose him, even if he’s inches in front of you. Steps away from the car, your heart is beating loud enough you barely heard the agents agree on where to lay low.  

“Trunk?” Murphy whispered. He had one hand hovering on the center of your back, the other on his revolver. 

Javi flicked his head to his partner, nodding. “Trunk.” 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Where you ended up

You woke up because something radiating heat was just downright uncomfortable in the already unbearable Colombian humidity. You wiggled into cooler sheets, only it followed you. 

You realized it was because it was an arm, thrown over your middle. As carefully as you could, you looked over your shoulder to the owner of the arm. 

Light trailed in through the gauzy blue curtains, backlighting Javi’s features and bare chest, laying shadows across his slack face. Uninterrupted by his chatting and clothing, you let yourself take him in; a soft chest inflating rhythmically, and a broad shoulder that collapsed on itself, either from weight, or it’s reach for your own body. You turned back over and nuzzled into the pillow, happy you’d led him lead you to his bed to sleep next to him. You couldn’t imagine being able to sleep soundly without someone there after hiding for your life for hours. A shudder runs through you at the thought, triggering Javi’s breathing to hitch and he draws you closer. 

“Javi,” you murmur in warning. He’s really too warm. He groans back at you, palming your hip but not removing his arm, and you push a little into his hand. “Is there a manual for making quick exits?”

“You gonna run away, baby?” You preen a little under the name, and compensate by pressing your heating cheek into the pillow. 

“No,” you say, letting your eyes fall closed and just enjoying the feel of his thumb brushing over the back of your hip bone through his old shirt. “But I’ve decided to write a how-to manual and you’re going to be the ‘what not to do’ example.”

He shuffles closer to you so you’re leg to leg. “Yeah? For what?” 

You send your top leg out so he can rest his bare thigh between yours. You start in a sing-song voice: “‘What not to do for an effective escape: don’t bring an extra person with you when your means of escape is a car trunk that only fits two bodies, not three.”

“You fit just fine,” he says, and you shiver at his nose bumping your clothed shoulder. 

“I was squished.” 

He snorts. “I got news for you: you lived. Even if you got squished. That’s what I call effective.” You hum when you feel him lift over you and press a kiss to your temple, then your cheek. Turning your head you graze his lips with yours while finding his eyes. They’re still sleepy, not quite open all the way. You don’t even have to lift your head to press your mouth to his warm pliant one, and he returns it gently; it’s different from the excited affectionate ones he plants on your head in the darkroom. You just want to let him know you are alive, and grateful. It’s fleeting, and you know in a week or so it will crack your heart a little more.He breaks it first, pressing a second, then a third into your lips, telling you he understands. 

He lies back behind you, pulling your frame against him, into his warm chest. “Go back to sleep, honey.” 

You pull the sheet around your chin and enjoy the sensation of being held by Javi, if only for a couple more hours. 

Tomorrow you’ll be back at the embassy, explaining your role in a DEA operation turned Colombian military operation to your superior, and you’ll be thinking about how Agent Peña is a much better big spoon than you are. 

[sohin-ace]

Mista - By the Silvery Moon

Werewolf Mista and his vampire girlfriend.

I wanted some soft spice so I made my own food.

You laid peacefully upon your boyfriend on his bed, bodies pressing deliciously against each other with the odd feeling of your temperature difference.

Somehow, never was it unpleasant for you to snuggle on the overbearing warmth of your favourite wolf and neither was it for him to feel the ice of your skin, refreshing on his furry skin.

It was basically a routine by now. You both could only see each other at night time, and Mista was busy as ever. Loyal as he was to his team he always did his best to be present for them at all times, even though it meant not having as much quality time to spend with his lovely girlfriend as he would like.

Tonight was one of those rare nights. He laid lazily on his bed and you would always come lay on top of him, showering him with affection and his most favourite belly rubs and head pats.

You both stayed in comfortable silence. Sometimes, you'd strike some casual mindless conversations, and it was those small moments that made your nights together so precious. Just being close to each other, regardless of species.

In the mondane vampire society that you belonged in, you'd be damned to not marry a man of your rank and class, and Mista would be equally damned to not mate with a proper omega from his own pack. But both of you couldn't care less for these old out-dated traditions. Nobody hardly followed those strict rules anyways nowadays, except for the most conservative of people.

Who cared if a vampire girl and a werewolf boy had fallen in love? Who would even stop you? You found each other and nothing could ever change that.

You were laying your head on Mista's broad chest and caressed the bits of skin on his exposed stomach, making the male shudder delightfully as he held your small frame flush against him.

He never got tired of rubbing your cold back, wondering how you could live with such skin of ice. He also never got tired of touching your hair, the scent of you even more prominent in it, driving him absolutely crazy.

You carefully lifted yourself up to stare at your lover who looked blankly up into nothing in particular on the ceiling, but instantly shot you a lazy and handsome smile as your eyes met. Gosh, he was so cute.

"Hello beautiful." He playfully called out and you grinned at his uncalled spontaneous cheesiness.

"Hi sexy~" You giggled and you could feel his torso spasm under you with his deep chuckle.

You moved to climb up just enough to get impossibly closer to his face and he let you do as you pleased, spreading his legs wider to ease your access and loosening his strong grip around you.

You looked over him with a fondness that was reserved for him only, and he knew there was nothing else in this eternal world of yours that you looked at with the same adoration in your eyes.

"Woah..." He breathed out through a lopsided grin "Girl, your eyes always make me feel some kind of way, dang... Shooting fucking bullets with those red eyes, somebody arrest you before you kill someone!"

"Oh shush, pup." You teased at his dorkiness and booped his nose. He hated it when you treated him submissively, but he never stopped you either.

"Hey, don't call me that! You freaky bloodsucker." He glared at you.

Ignoring his thoughtless offense you made yourself more comfortable on him, your personal mattress for the night, and proceeded to smooth your hands over his 3-days beard, caressing his cheeks and admiring his chiseled face.

You did remember Bucciarati convincing him to shave more often because of how fast Mista's facial hair grew. Funny advice coming from a Mothman who was half covered in fluff himself.

You had to resist the urge to peck Mista's very inviting lips as you hovered over him, propping yourself on your elbows at each side of his head. As sweet as you looked and as cute as you were in his eyes, the poor werewolf could not be immune to your intimidating and pressuring natural vampiric aura.

It was always a blurry thing, the natural hierarchy of monsters and humans. People fought everyday to make this unfair discrimination and hierarchy disappear, but no one could deny the strong overpowering aura some species had over others without even controlling it. Vampires, demons, sirens, titans among many others. Species that could make anyone else falter underneath them with just one look, one word, one step.

He trusted you with absolution to never do him harm and he was confident in his physical strength and power to counter anything, but truly, the intoxicating anxiety your glowy red eyes could put him through sometimes, prompting him to sweat and tightening his throat...

That was hot as hell.

"Come on..." He murmured more to himself than to you, but seeing his hungry gaze on your blood red lips so close to his, it was more than obvious what he wanted from you.

And you obliged. First, pecking his lips in a million tiny blooming kisses, almost too cutely for his own likings. Your sugary little smooches way too innocent for his current needs.

Fortunately for him, you were quick to catch on, or maybe it was on purpose that you teased him, he couldn't guess. Your shy fluttering pecks soon turned much longer, slower and more languorous with time, much to Mista's appreciation.

He couldn't help his big clawed hands from roaming along your back, eager to having you pressed even harder against him if that was possible, never getting enough of you.

Mista was the vocal type. You knew it wouldn't be long until he started making noises that would either alert the neighbours, or alert the most sensitive bugfolks that would most likely come check the commotion and maybe try to bask in some nice lamp light too while they were at it.

So, before he could ask for more, which he was eagerly expecting, you moved your lips to kiss along the corner of his mouth, to his prickly cheeks, then traveled down to his jaw and neck.

He released a low and animalistic growl at your defiance and lack of cooperation.

"... What do you think you're doing?" He asked lowly, his voice deep and gruff as you showered his neck with some sweet loving.

"Nothing," you muffled against his skin and he shivered from your cold lips and breath on his sensitive skin as you sighed, "You smell so good..."

"You... You wanted blood?" He scoffed and clicked his tongue, "You could have just asked... You damn vampires..." Mista did not hide his disappointment, thinking you'd initiate in some hot make out session only to stop cruelly and feed on him.

That wasn't the case though. You didn't like to use your boyfriend for blood, and surely, it wasn't a procedure you took lightly either.

There were plenty of volunteers for that service anyways, and you preferred the person be both physically and mentally ready for you rather than just randomly partake in some unrequited violent neck biting. You wouldn't waste the short and precious moments with Mista on such trivial and unnecessary reasons.

"No, no, I don't want to draw blood from you. I don't need it, I'll just satisfy myself with your scent." You buried your face deeper into him, taking in the smell of his blood, coming strong, fresh and vibrant under his tan skin of musk. "Plus I wouldn't dare bite you with no preparations. That's unfair."

"You're too cute." Mista snorted and wrapped his long and sturdy arms around you, squeezing you hard and lovingly.

Godamnit, he wanted to be mad at you but you were so adorable and sweet, he couldn't help but feel so lucky and privileged to have you. Not everyone could brag about having such a kind-hearted, hot and brilliant vampire girlfriend.

But he could.

"I love you princess. But really, you can take from me anytime you want. We've talked about this already, cara."

You moved to look back up at him, your gaze soft. "No, it's fine. Not now. For now I want to make the most of the little time we have together before the sunrise."

He laid his head back in contemplation. That was right. You'd have to go back home at least 30 minutes before dawn to prepare for bed without being in danger. Nights were too short and Mista's weeks of work were too long.

"My poor little babe will be blood deprived..." He cooed half jokingly and caressed your soft hair, sympathizing with your struggles.

"It's fine. I get less and less hungry when I smell your delicious, sweet virgin blood."

"Vi-.... VIRGIN?!" He shot up, almost shaking you up, "Who said I was a virgin?!"

You laughed at his outburst and his eyes were horrified and wide as saucers on you as you tried to calm your fit of laughter.

"Hehehe hahaha! I can smell it! It's so obvious! Please keep it that way, it tastes great too. Very nutritious and easy to digest~" You commented, giggling behind your hands.

The poor male blushed, unable to counter attack truthful and straight facts. "Nooo...." he whined, his wolf ears flattening down against his head in defeat.

"Don't be down, amorino." You cooed and gently caressed his face, "You know I'm just teasing~. Let me make it up to you."

And as you said that, you snaked your finger in his curly hair, slowly massaging his scalp and eliciting a groany sigh from the male. That was his biggest weakness, besides you, of course. Gentle head scritches. No werewolf could ever stay indifferent.

Just having your long nails rake so pleasurably along his scalp and dancing around and behind his wolf ears sent him to a pure state of bliss.

"A-ah, Y-Y/N... Aah thanks... Feels g-great hehe..."

"So polite. What a good boy."

Subconsciously, Mista's tail bonked loudly the side of the bed repeatedly with excitement, like a natural response to the praise.

It was cute, you thought, how much he could act like a puppy sometimes. Even though he hated to hear it from you, and rathered appear strong, dominant and protective for you, because he could be just that for you, and keep you safe.

You kissed him again and he instantly caged you back in his arms, planting his claws on your back and shoulders possessively. He was so crazy in love for you and the realization that he'd be gone for another long mission without seeing you hit him suddenly, which prompted him to tighten his legs around your hips and effectively emprisoning you with his limbs.

With his mind filled with thoughts of you only, and feeling your body pressed so delighfully against him, he kissed you even harder, giving you all his passion as he was getting drunk off your ministrations and intoxicating scent, both fruity and metallic.

"Hmph Guido..." You moaned on his lips and he could swear you did it on purpose. "Slow down."

"You're testing my limits babe, I don't like that."

"Hmm... It's 5 A.M." You whined softly between his insistant kisses and love bites.

"So what? I don't see your point. Let me have you." He mumbled huskily and you had to push him down to let yourself speak without interruption.

"I have to go, the sun is about to rise."

He groaned in annoyance and went limp under you, defeated. You chuckled at his reaction and propped yourself back on your hands as he released you.

"Fuck... Already? We barely did anything..." He huffed, beaten by time itself which was stealing his girlfriend away from him.

"We did a lot actually. I fed you, we played games, gossiped a bit and cuddled for like... 2 hours."

"We had a tickle fight too. Can't forget about my victory..." He proudly added before smirking, "... And your cute little noises."

"Shut up!" You slapped his arm as you sat up. Oh no, he was going to rub it in again, you knew it.

"Kyaaaah~ stop it! Guido not there aaaah~! AAAAAHHH~" He obnoxiously wailed and moaned exaggeratedly with an awful girly voice.

"SHUT UP! I didn't even say that! I don't even sound like that! You're gross!"

After a few more, well-deserved slaps from you and a fit of laughter from him, you eventually got off of the boy and fixed your clothes, walking away from the bed as he joined you.

"Aww but really babe," He wrapped his long arms around your waist from behind and buried his nose in your hair "I'll miss you..."

"It's okay sweetheart," You craned your neck and reached behind you to hold his face, "5 days fly by fast. And Bruno is kind, he'll give you a vacation if you ask him nicely."

Mista sighed, nuzzling into your hand and relishing in your soft hold. He was probably being dramatic in your eyes, acting like each day was the last one, but he wasn't completely wrong. His work field was more dangerous than he'd ever let you know, and even if you did know, he was well aware that you weren't even close to being afraid of death as he was. Vampires were immortal, after all, werewolves were not.

"Guido..." You called out, voice careful and airy.

"Hmm?"

"Don't be scared."

The male pulled away from you and stared at you with wide eyes. Scared? Was your kind really that sensitive to other's emotions?

His heart raced and he stuttered. "Huh? What- How did you-"

"I can smell it Guido, your hormones are strong." You turned to face him and grabbed his huge clawed hands in your ice cold ones, looking tenderly into his eyes. "You know I would never let you die."

Mista gulped. You knew. Of course you'd have guessed, you were so perceptive. He was dense to believe he could hide anything from you. There was nothing he could say when you read him like an open book and pinned him into place with your confident stance and fierce eyes.

"I..." He huffed heavily, avoiding your gaze "I can never be sure, Y/N. I didn't tell you everything about my work...."

"I know." You brought his hands up to your face and pressed a gentle kiss on his knuckles, his fur soft against your lips. "But don't forget my abilities. I'll turn you into a vampire without hesitation if anything were to happen. If I'm not here, Giorno will do it, we've already established this."

Mista's eyes widened at this revelation. You talked with Giorno? Even though the blonde was only half-vampire, he did have strong healing abilities, but the werewolf wouldn't have expected the vampires would ever work together to actually revive any of the team members in worst case scenarios. Thinking about it, it may even have been Bruno's idea.

Mista scoffed, unbelieving. "You sly bastards... You guys know the implications of turning people into hybrids, right?"

"I don't care. I want you safe and to stop worrying." You smiled and pulled him closer to you. "We'll talk about this later. Now kiss me."

Pushing his worry and melancholy to the side, the male obeyed and bent down to capture your lips hungrily again, hugging you almost uncomfortably hard. Mista wasn't really one to hold back much, and only you could either handle him, or put him back to place.

"Get home safe babe. Call me when you arrive." He murmured, still craddling your face close and you matched his whispers.

"Will do. Sleep tight, cuore mio."

Not quite wanting to separate from each other, you hesitated to move and had to use all your willpower to actually start walking towards the window, Mista still holding your hand and following close behind.

He opened the window for you and helped you hop on the frame, the moonlight long gone to leave space for dawn.

You shot one last look to your lover and blew him a kiss, making him grin goofily, "Bye bye Guido."

"Love ya, Y/N."

And with those sweet words, you jumped out the window, only to transform into your bat form and flying off into the early morning sky, your presence and your scent still remaining in Mista's room, on his skin and on his clothes.

Certainly, he had nothing to worry about.

[fallingstarnovel]

Chapter Three

That Monday, when he got to the lecture hall, he glared at Aliya for the entire time. She was visibly avoiding his gaze, tugging down her hair so she wouldn't make eye contact with him.

After it ended, he quickly walked over to her, coughing loudly from behind his fist.

"So. Judas comes to face his crimes."

Aliya turned and gave him a pitying look. "I'm really sorry! I completely forgot I had a revision session in the morning and I had to prepare for it. I felt so guilty."

Evan glared at her for another second – before rolling his eyes with a smile. He was a benevolent kind of person when he wanted to be. "It's fine."

"You sounded like you had a good time," Aliya teased him. “Your texts were indecipherable.”

"Uh. I think I did." He pulled a face as he failed to remember literally anything about how he got home. "It’s all kind of a blur. There was this girl..."

Aliya's eyes went wide. "There was?"

"Ah, shut up, she just said a bunch of stuff at me and then... Hm. I don't remember much after that, but clearly nothing weird happened since I got home safe and fully dressed."

Aliya tutted. "This is why I don't drink. Sounds kind of scary."

Evan opened his mouth to say something like "you get used to it", but then he remembered that he was trying to be normal and closed his mouth again. "Yeah. Haha, a little. I'm not sure you would have enjoyed the party. It was loud and everyone was off their faces."

"Maybe. I'm glad you were okay, though. And you got home safe."

Evan smiled. By now, they were long outside the lecture hall and were walking through campus. Students were rushing from building to building, or walking in groups and chattering away together. So many people who were meant to be here. They all looked like they were right at home.

There was a flash of black in the corner of his vision. Evan turned his head automatically, only to see the black cat from a few days ago sprawled across a wall. It was staring at him with green eyes, unblinking and imperious.

"Oh, it's the university cat," he said to Aliya. "Look."

"Aww. I'm more of a dog person," she said bluntly.

The cat's eyes narrowed in disgust.

Evan was about to go over and pet it when he heard someone say his name over his shoulder. He looked behind him, only to see a boy with curly blond hair and an angelic smile. He was looking at the cat with a strangely intense gaz, before snapping back to smile at Evan.

"Ruth!" he said. "Hey!"

Ruth waved. "Hello again. You look like you've recovered from Friday night."

Wait. Wait a minute... Evan squinted at him, before feeling his face flush red. Was Ruth there as well?! He didn’t remember seeing him at all!! He laughed awkwardly. "I am. So sorry. I don't remember a lot. I was... very drunk."

Ruth nodded. "I was. I thought you might have difficulty remembering."

Aliya's eyebrows inched up her forehead, right into her hijab. Evan realised that he had been quite rude, and quickly introduced her. "This is my terrible friend from Astro. She invited me to the party and then left me to die."

"I'm Aliya," she said, elbowing him in the stomach subtly.

Ruth gave her a polite nod, before turning his attention back to Evan. "I hope you don't mind that I let myself into your house. You seemed very worried that I was going to harvest your organs."

"You were the one who took me home?!” Evan yelped, feeling the blood rush all the way to the tips of his ears. “Oh, haha, what? Haha, so weird," Evan said, feeling himself dying of mortification again. "Thank you so much. I don't mind at all. That was really nice of you. Usually I just stumble home by myself, you know? God, sorry, I must have been so annoying to handle."

Ruth shook his head, his hair tumbling around his ears. "You weren't annoying at all. You were very sweet, like a well behaved child."

Evan wanted the ground to swallow him whole. "Haha, that's good. Still, I'm so sorry. Thank you. Augh."

How was he so bad at this?

An idea occurred to him. He quickly started rummaging in his pockets. "Wait, wait, I think I owe you a coffee for saving my life twice now. I don't have a lecture for a while, so..."

Ruth looked at him in surprise. There was a yawning moment of silence in which Evan questioned everything that made him ask that question and wondered if it was too late to change his name and move to Mexico.

But then Ruth smiled. "I think I owe you one instead. You spilled yours last time."

"In that case, I'll pay for yours and you pay for mine, and we can call that even," Evan laughed, feeling relief flood through him.

There was a polite cough from behind him. "Well, I have a study group to get to, so," Aliya said, shooting Evan a knowing smile. "I'll let you two go have fun. See you, Evan."

Evan felt a little bit guilty at accidentally muscling Aliya out of the conversation. He waved her goodbye and turned back to Ruth, and all his guilt was forgotten. Ruth's smile was blinding. There were two little dimples in his cheeks. Wow, he didn’t know anyone in real life with dimples.

"Let's go," he said, inclining his head in the direction of the coffee shop, and off they went.

Evan watched Ruth over his coffee while trying to look like he was doing no such thing.

Ruth was fascinating. He had a very handsome face, with eyes that could have been carved into one of those old statues they kept in the museums of Rome. His movements were all graceful and deliberate, from the way he stirred his coffee to the way he unwrapped his blue scarf from around his neck.

He was also tall. Evan wasn't short – okay, he was kind of short – but Ruth made him feel like a god damn manlet.

"So," he said, because he felt the need to fill the silence with something, "what course are you on?"

"Actually, I'm a part time student."

"Eh, no way. I didn't know you could do an undergrad part time!"

Ruth smiled and shrugged. "I have a job on the side. It takes up a lot of my time. I suppose the university understood I had other commitments."

Evan blinked. "Wow. Must be an intense job."

"You have no idea," Ruth said, something steely glinting in his grey eyes. "But it's rewarding."

"Is it why you skip so many lectures?"

Ruth nodded. Evan couldn't hold back his curiosity.

"Then what is it?"

Supermodel? Secret agent? Government official? What was important enough that the university would let him mess around with the schedule like this?

Ruth just winked at him, and Evan immediately upgraded all his guesses. Eldest son of a mob boss. Heir to the CEO of a huge corporation. A superhero in disguise as a student.

"That's fine. I didn't want to know anyway," Evan lied. "I bet it's something boring like business management."

Ruth ran his finger along his cup, his eyes flickering down to the table. "In a way, I suppose you're not far off."

"So... why astrophysics?"

"No reason, really. I just felt something pulling me here. That's all."

Wow! Such a free spirit! This guy was definitely some kind of billionaire. Only a rich person could afford to come to university on a whim and then spend half his time doing something else instead. Evan, who thought coffee was a fancy treat, tried to contain his jealousy and failed.

They drank their drinks in companionable silence. Evan was full of questions, but he didn’t want it to seem like he was interrogating his new friend. He was just curious!

“Do you... go to a lot of student parties?”

Ruth shrugged. “Not generally.”

“Oh. Aside from last night, I guess. Um... actually, about last night... I was wondering about what exactly happened.”

Ruth went still. “Yes?”

“Was I... alright? When did I go home?”

“I found you upstairs in someone’s bedroom with a few people. It looked like you were playing some kind of game that involved kissing,” Ruth replied. “You seemed very uncomfortable with the situation. Did I misread that?”

A kissing game. What the hell. Evan hadn’t played one of those for years. He wondered who he was smooching when Ruth discovered him. So deeply, horrifically embarrassing.

“I have no idea,” Evan replied with a shrug. “I don’t really remember if I was comfortable or not.”

There was a faint frown colouring Ruth’s pleasant smile. “Then I’m glad I was there regardless. There should be no room for doubt with things like this.”

“Hah, in an ideal world. In my experience, there’s always doubt. You just kind of have to move on afterwards.”

Ruth’s throat bobbed, but he didn’t say anything else. His coffee was steaming so much that it fogged up Evan’s glasses, and he took them off with a chuckle to clean them. “Wow, look at that,” he said, desperate to change the subject. “It’s that time of the year where I go blind every time I enter a warm room. You don’t wear contacts, right?”

Ruth, still speechless, shook his head. Oh, this was awkward. Evan got the horrible feeling that he had messed up somewhere.

“So lucky. Well, hah, look at the time. I should start heading to my next lecture.”

He didn’t have a next lecture. That was a lie. But he really didn’t want to hurt the poor guy’s feelings. He started gathering his stuff slowly, trying not to look like he was rushing out of there. Ruth let out a deep breath, before reaching across to lightly touch Evan’s wrist. His skin was very hot from where it had been holding his coffee cup.

“The next time you go to a party,” he said quietly, “take me with you.”

“Sorry?” Evan said, certain that he misheard.

“Take me too. I, ah.. I’m actually quite nervous around people. And I find it difficult to go alone. It would be... nice to have a friend to go with.”

“Oh, dude, me too,” Evan said, giving him a reassuring smile. “I have mad social anxiety. I actually don’t get invited to a lot of things like that anymore, but if I do, I guess I’ll text you and see if you’re free?”

Ruth nodded, his hand slipping off Evan’s wrist.

“Thanks.”

“It’s no worries. We can be anxious buds together.”

With a slow incline of his head, Ruth signalled that he would like that, and Evan felt some of his nervousness settle somehow. It was a surprisingly soothing gesture.

“Well. See you at the next one.”

“See you then.”

And then Evan rushed off to hide in the library for a couple of hours so Ruth wouldn’t see him walking around campus when he was supposed to be in a fake lecture instead.

Evan was getting out of the shower when he noticed something black flash in the corner of his vision. He whirled around, rubbing shampoo out of his eyes, visions of getting murdered by some opportunistic shower murderer running through his brain.

However, when he looked around, there was nothing there. He swore he saw something, though. Something in the reflection of the bathroom tiles near his back.

When he was done, he stopped by the mirror in the hallway and checked his body just in case the black thing had been a huge house spider or something. It wouldn’t be the first time that he had a spider fall on him in the shower. Usually they washed down the sinkhole, leaving Evan shivering and feeling strangely violated, but what if this one managed to cling onto his naked skin?

There was no spider. Instead, sprawling across Evan’s lower back like a trampstamp was a sprawling, intricate black tattoo, formed from archaic lettering and symbolism that he couldn’t read.

“Hey, what the fuck,” he said into the empty house.

Having no housemates meant that he couldn’t run into anybody’s room and ask them to read whatever the hell it now said on his back. He tried rubbing at it, but nothing happened. It didn’t even feel weird or raised. It just felt like skin, and it didn’t budge.

Not even soap or nail polish remover got it off his back. It was like ink had sunk into his skin and stuck there overnight.

Evan was, understandably, more than a little freaked out.

> HEY UHHH SO > sent: image_5473843.jpg > ???

wow, that’s a really interesting tattoo!! when did you get it? <

> well you see that’s the thing aliya. i didn’t. > i do not know where this tattoo came from. ummm > i am freaking out a little!!

wh??! < you mean it just....??? appeared?? <

> yeah?? i literally do not remember getting any tattoo there??! ever?

you do have a lot of tattoos... are you sure you didn’t forget about one of them? <

> you don’t just forget about a tattoo!! > okay actually. sometimes you do. BUT NOT THIS BIG. THIS IS A TRAMP STAMP > I WOULD NEVER GET A TRAMP STAMP > oh god what if this happened while i was drunk at that party

ok calm down do you want me to come over and look at it? <

> no, it’s fine. i’ll just. ???? hhhhhhhhh > wait, there is something you can do! can you get me the numbers of uhh. fuck what was their name uhhh Tree. Branch > ROCK > and there was this girl who dressed like a goth, they were both at the party, can you ask your netball friends if they have their numbers? they might know what happened?? i guess? help?

i’ll ask around babe x sorry about this maybe go to the police? <

> they’ll just say i was drunk and there was nothing they could do. but thank you anyway i really appreciate this. sorry for bothering you

no need to apologise at all xx hoping you’re okay xx message me whenever you like <

Evan examined the tattoo in the mirror again. Now that the shock had worn off... well. Aliya was right. He already had so many tattoos. Most of them were already stupid ones he got on a whim. So even if he didn’t ask for this one... it was okay, right? It wasn’t so bad.

It was even kind of cool, in an old-school, mall goth kind of way. Spidery webbing and dots of red ink in what he thought might have been flowers of some kind. He tried to take a photo with his phone, but his hands kept shaking, so he just kept getting blurry pictures of his ass. Not ideal, honestly.

With a sigh, he stretched out on his bed and examined his older tattoos. His favourite one was still the navy outline of a falling star stretching down his inner arm towards his hand. It was his first proper one that he got done at a real tattoo parlour. A lot of the earlier ones were... well, the less said about how close he got to a skin infection, the better.

With a sigh, he tugged on a long sleeved shirt from his closet. Until he could work out why he suddenly had that black monstrosity on the back of his hips, he wasn’t sure he wanted to accidentally keep catching glimpses of it in every reflective surface.

Wait a minute. There was someone else there at the party. Someone who might have seen something that could help.

He opened up the messages from the unknown number and prayed that it was who he hoped it was.

> heyyy ruth i hope this is you!! haha hi

The reply came back about half an hour later, which was just long enough for Evan to overthink everything that had ever happened to him.

It’s me. Rest assured. :) <

Oh god. How to word this?

> well i’m doing good actually i’m you know. chilling! > actually there was something i wanted to ask you > please excuse the ass in this photo!!!!!

The what. <

> sent: image_5473843.jpg

Who did this. <

> funny question! i don’t know > i was hoping you could help???

I’m coming over. <

> no, i meant like do you remember seeing anyone at the party with a tattoo gun or a stick and poke or something?? you don’t have to come over sorry i don’t want to be a bother

You’re not a bother. I’m coming over. <

Well. Fuck. Evan panicked and threw on a pair of sweats and a hoodie, and then felt stupid, because presumably Ruth was going to come and look at the tattoo. Maybe he should wear nicer clothes? Did he have time to tidy his room?

> are you sure haha i don’t want to inconvenience you!!!

I was in the area anyway. It’s okay if you don’t want me to come over. But I have an idea about what happened. < Sorry. I know this must be alarming. I don’t want you to be uncomfortable. <

Evan thought about it. Well. It was the only lead he had.

> sure why not come on over

I’m outside. <

The doorbell rang.

***

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[moonlightflower21]

hope you guys love this one! took me a lil while because i wasn't sure how to structure it and in the end i went with little headcannons :) <3

Leonardo:

christmas with him is so cute and cosy

he's so thoughtful, thinking so hard for your presents and what you like

enlists april for help because obviously he can't buy them

wraps them up super carefully, with a cute lil note around the string

never fails to tell you how much you love him

and it's not always direct

under the mistletoe, for example. he will give you a little smirk and point to the ceiling wherever it may be placed.

and baby, his kiss? sweet yet passionate, short yet keeps you intoxicated. just amazing *chef kiss*

other examples of his touches are when you're doing something and he just leans against you for a lil while lost in happy thoughts

or holds your hands when you come back from the cold. he warms you up real good hehe

or rests his forehead against yours, allowing the christmas lights to dance across his body.

you totally place a cute lil hat on him

in turn, he braids in some tinsel in your hair. so now your hair is a sparkly mess. but you're having way too much fun to care

such a cheery mood overall

you guys may even belt out to christmas songs

his laughter is so catchy, your favourite tune. so it ends up with you both giggling halfway through the song

and later, you're both wrapped in blankets, sipping at hot cocoa

he loves these quiet moments, warmth flooding both your bodies while the movie is playing in the background.

his hand will always be touching you, somehow. if you're decorating the tree, he'll be right there to help you.

still in shock he celebrated this festive holiday with an angel.

"merry christmas, my love" he whispers at the end of the night, hearing the fire crackle in the background

"merry christmas, sweetheart" you reply, looking deep in his eyes.

that's love swirling in those oceans pools

and then he kisses you tenderly.

nothing has to be extravagant, over the top. just this intimate moment between you and him is all he loves.

christmas could end with him making love to you or wrapped in each others embrace.

your choice, honey ;)

Raphael:

christmas with this guy is really and truly unpredictable

but not 'cause he's angry

oh no, he's the most relaxed and chilled person.

well, kinda. (he woke up with glitter everywhere and mikey screeching in his ears that it was christmas)

but it's because, you never know what the nights going to hold with him

you may go out for a motorcycle ride, admiring all of new york in it's beauty

or he bring you to the rooftop, to admire your beauty

but what he loves, is being down in the lair. that's his home and with you and the overall vibe, it's so comforting. your house isn't a problem, either :)

this bad boy will hang up mistletoe in areas where you're sure to enter and will immediately run to you when you're underneath one.

"guess we better kiss, per tradition~"

you're going to be the one to part lips, raphael has no self control. he will have a makeout with you, literally anywhere. only exception is splinter

and he wants you to hang the lil star/angel on top of the tree.

will hold your waist and pick you up like a lil feather. "that's so beautiful babe, like you"

music (christmas, ofc) will be playing softly in the background

home alone is on t.v. and in your hands are warm cups of cocoa

he added the lil marshmallows (cutie)

and when you laugh, his face breaks out into his own little smile

he can't help it, you're so fucking gorgeous

"merry christmas baby" his finger is under your chin, directing your attention to him. he's sincere and vulnerable in this moment. his heart is on the line here

gets super insecure and sad when you don't reciprocate the love back.

but you do, you always do.

this christmas has been the best by far, spending every second with you.

"merry christmas, sweetheart"

christmas sex to end the night! (if you want to, though. everything is all consent!)

his lovemaking is normally all passionate, to savour the happy moments.

however this depends if you've been nice or naughty, raphael will decide

although knowing him, he will say naughty ;) kinky turt

Donatello:

one of the few times where all work is dropped and he can have fun!

but to be honest, will check time to time on his work. fear not hon, his focus is mainly you!

all the sweet treats will have a lock on them if possible

leo will have to warn him not to touch the frosted cupcakes

you may have to restrain him a little

he finds you sweeter though anyway ;)

he loves, loves, loves decorating stuff and will start with his lab.

will have you with him, as he drapes christmas decor around the lair

all the taller stuff, he will have you to sit on his shoulders and do for him.

lowkey can reach but he wants you on him

he puts on christmas music but will end up with you both dancing in each others arms, miming the words.

asks you what you wanna do, since he wants this night to be the most perfect for you

but you remind him that it's his night too and whatever he wants to do, should be incorporated

and so, he brings you to the couch, grabbing the massive bowl of popcorn and blankets on his way

you're more than happy

he will sneak mistletoe kisses, lil nerd

and then leans against you, with his signature smile

y'know the one where his cute lil smile is parted, showing his teeth slightly. yes that one

you kiss him once, then twice, then three times because you can't help it.

he's so freaking peRFECT *cries*

and the lair looks so beautiful, bathed in a golden light kudos to you. such a romantic moment~

"merry christmas, my dove" he whispers, holding your hand to kiss the top of it.

a rosy hue paints your cheek and your heart thumps happily

"merry christmas, love"

he doesn't mind having sex with you

but the night finishes with cuddles and happiness.

couple a cute nerds, you both 🥺🥰🤍

Michelangelo:

oh honey, it's all the pick up lines, all the jokes packed in this sunshine

"i'm not santa, but you can sit on my lap"

"mikey, do we have any pizza? i figured we can-" "i don't think we do only because you've stolen a pizza of my heart" he clutched his chest dramatically

when you're setting out the christmas presents and food, "babe, tie your shoes! can't have you falling for anyone else!"

"hey sweetness, do you have a name? or can I call you mine?"

and you can't even be mad with him. it's so heartwarming

cooking with him is so much fun

singing out to random songs

if you haven't already, will plop some reindeer ears on your head

"if we gonna do this, we gonna do it properly!"

you guys make all sorts of foods. especially gingerbread cookies. and then it's a competition to sees who makes the better one

this is all the while, belting your hearts out to songs

he twirls you under the kitchen lights, turns this into this massive dance number

with him singing all the way

laughter and chuckles escape both your mouths and finally he looks at you

happiness is literally beaming out of every single crevice in his body.

"merry christmas, to my sweet, gorgeous, beautiful, honey bunch" he holds you close, his hands around your waist and you grin

"merry christmas, to my wonderful, adorable, funny, stunning and amazing turtle" you kiss his cheek but he kisses your lip, hugging you close.

tearing up because that's the cutest and meaningful thing anyone has ever said

oh by the way, mistletoe kisses are a mUST!

literally, it's crazy because every corner you turn, boom! there's a freaking mistletoe

which... kinda backfired since you were under one with his brother

he let out a gasp and ripped off the extra added mistletoe muttering angrily.

you smooched his cute nose instead

but the night finishes as it started with laughter, happiness and excitement.

you know damn well, he won't refuse sex with you. if you're tired, he won't push anything.

he's perfectly content with snuggling you :3

and celebrating it all together is one word: magical. one big happy family. if you're working on christmas day, he will wait for you to come back. depending on your mood, he will either sing merry christmas to you while dancing around the lair with you or wrap you in a fluffy blanket and place you in his lap. and the second you're in the lair, all worries must be left at the doorstep and you enter a literal wonderland. he will make sure you have the best time of your life. forgot his present? absolutely no fucking worries. sick and ill? he will be your lil doctor, still incorporating some of the festive cheer. because he loves you so much.

[dontasktheradiodemon]

Gardens #2 (1/6/2021)

Click here if you’re like “What the heck is this about?”

Two chats today because I forgot to post one yesterday!

Angel @sluttyspiderpolkacock catches up with Madame @usedhearts after his abrupt arrival from Hell. He talks to her about his hopes to get away from Valentino and she offers support.

Madame

The gardens had drawn her away from the beach-- as much as she loved the sea, she missed this. She missed life, growing and sprawling, curated into beauty.

Madame sat at the fountain, her tentacles trailing in the water as she admired the plants. It was different from how she remembered Earth's flora, but it was flora all the same, and she loved it.

She adjusted her top, still in her bikini but with an added sarong around her hips, and leaned to smell a flower. "It's so lovely here," She muttered to herself.

Angel

" Big Mama, ya up here, too? " It was easy to see her, towering over the bushes and gracing the flowering vines from the trees, despite being seated. Angel's own willowy form almost could've passed for a foxtail.

He wove through her tentacles to come see her. " Valera's e'ry bit the butterfly, ain't they? " Arms in a welcoming spread, he flashed her a bright smile. " It's good t' see ya ~ "

Madame

Her head turned when she heard him and her face brightened into a beaming smile.

"Oh, Angel, darlin'! I'm so glad t' see ya, c'mere 'n give Mama a hug." A tentacle caught him around the waist to pull him into her arms, too excited to let him walk the rest of the way to her. She wrapped her arms around him and smooched the side of his face.

"Thought you'd be at that shindig with Big V. How'd you sneak away, sweetheart?" She held his face gently in one hand, gently stroking his cheek with her thumb.

Angel

Angel smiled sweetly, giddy and the smallest bit shy with her affections but welcoming them with a tight hug in all his arms.

" I just got m'self a lil break, no biggie! They'll survive wit'out me just fine! They got Babygirl Paps an' the fluff girls takin' care a e'ryone. It's time the newbies got a chance t' shine, don't'cha think? "

His smile grew wide with an affectionate lean of his cheek. She was hitting JUST the spot and he was becoming PUTTY in her hands.

Madame

"Yeah, suppose yer right about that-- them new girls gotta learn sometime!" She laughed, taking one of Angel's hands and gently guiding him to sit next to her.

"Well, c'mon then, take a seat, get off ya gams, and tell me everythin'. How're ya, shug? How ya been likin' this whole palace we got to explore? Pretty schnazzy if ya ask me." She winked and very, very gently poked him with her elbow-- didn't want to hurt him, after all.

Angel

He almost fell off balance as her hand left his cheek and led him to his seat.

" I ain't seen e'rythin', but it's pretty fuckin' nice, " he said simply with a dip of his fingers into the fountain ( for no particular reason whatsoever ) , " I been workin' my ass into the ground all season. Everyday a huge fuckin' clusterfuck a shoots an' appointments... " Angel gave a roll of all his eyes as he mocked the tone of Valentino's voice.

" _Gotta churn out that fresh content, Angel Cakes ~ Camera ain't gonna eye - fuck itself, Angie Baby ~ If I don't see a chicken supreme in my office in five I'm gonna throw a BITCH FIT... SUMMER._ 'Cause y'know, he don't like me doin' the food runs. "

Madame

Her eyes roll at the Valentino impression. Yeah, that sounded like him. Madame shook her head, her large hand wrapping around Angel, rubbing his back.

"Course he don't want ya doin' the food runs-- fuckin' idiot thinks if he starves his workers, they'll look better when all it really does is make 'em give subpar work. How ya gonna entertain a John if ya really wanna just eat his burger insteada his dick?" She laughed, her head shaking again.

"Angel, darlin', he ever send ya out ta run an errand, come to me 'n I'll get a meal in ya. My babes ain't gonna starve on my watch-- can't rightly let 'em, breaks my poor Southern heart." She looked off into the distance and closed her eyes, wiping away a pretend tear.

Angel

Angel giggled and covered his mouth with a sly aversion of his eyes. " Y'know... sometimes dick be temptin'... " A snort, and his arms wildly fanned.

" I didn' even GAIN THAT MUCH! " he continued, " I ain't e'en said nothin' about livin' up the hotel and downin' everythin' Alastor whips like a fuckin, GARBAGE DISPOSAL, NO! I just go to Cherri's, post ONE picture, ONE TIME, of the CUTEST FUCKIN' DONUT...! "

Oh he was full on venting, now. He held up a finger and dug through his fluff a hot second. " An' he sends me THIS! " There he had it, The Book. " What kin'a palooka e'en uses these anymore?? Ya THINK he'd fuckin', hire a nutritionist or some shit who moonlights as a hitman, or some shit. He HAS the FUCKIN' MONEY! I KNOW! 'CAUSE I'M OUT THERE MAKIN' IT FA 'IM! "

He then collapsed into Madame's chest, still muttering but full tuckered out, arms limp. " _I'ma fuckin' kill 'im..._ " **Did he say that out loud?**

Madame

Madame listened to everything, watched every flail of arms, intently. Poor boy. It was a tough gig, being Valentino's prized pet. She honestly thought she'd taught him better, but he was always on about how he already knew the business, knew how to handle people. Obvsiously not, with how Angel was going on.

Her arms wrap around him when he falls forward-- a chest this big had many uses, pillows being one of the best in her opinion. Madame gathered him close, going so far as to pick him up and cradle him against her chest.

"Aww, honeybunch. I know just how ya feelin'. Valentino....well, he's an asshole. Head so far up his ass he eatin' his own shit fer breakfast." She shook her head, rocking Angel a bit, like one would a child who'd had a nightmare. She hums softly, an old lullaby her mother used to sing, way back when. She kept that up for a few moments before falling silent. The silence hung between them before she spoke, voice low.

"If'in you did kill him, I wouldn't blame ya, honey. There'd be no love lost between me'n him. I'd support ya claim to that throne, if'n you wanted it. In Hell, ya learn ta balance the cruelty with the kindness, and if ya can't find that balance, well, then, ya deserve to reap what ya sow. And Valentino's sewn a whole lotta hate down there. Karma's a bitch, even for the dead, and all I'd say would be 'good riddance'. You deserve so much more'n him, 'n so much more'n he gives ya. Yer the star and you deserve to be treated like one."

A tentacle scooted under his chin, tilting his head up so she could look at his face.

"You remember Mama's in ya corner, alright, Angel? I'm rootin' for ya. And my arms and doors're always open for ya."

Angel

His eyes blew wide and cornerless, staring not at Madame but at a far off, intangible point behind her. It never really occured to him just how impactful erasing Valentino's existence from Hell would _be._ All he found himself stuck on was getting it _done,_ losing himself in the possession of madness and the mindsets of cornered prey whenever he acted.

Angel didn't want to inherit the empire. Having the responsibility of so many souls under his care wasn't something he ever thought suited him. Protecting his peers on the streets was one thing, so was taking demons of all walks of life temporarily under his wing until they could fly on their own. _Management_ was another. Keeping souls in _line_ was another. He always thought himself the soldier, the weapon, the right hand, the poster boy of the wall supporting his image. An _Overlord_ of his own right...? The closest he'd come to it was before he partnered with him, fresh into demonhood, throwing his power and whims wherever he wished...

_But claiming Valentino's head would **do** that to him, wouldn't it?_ He'd inherit his power, his enemies, new enemies out of his allies... Angel's head began to spin. This was the nature of Hell. _Endless tiers of suffering._ All he wanted was his freedom... _How much was too high a price to pay...?_ He'd be fighting Valentino's battles _long_ after he was gone...

" That was, uh... " he said in an uncharacteristically small voice, " ... a fig're a speech... He's good t' me... really... " Angel bit his lip, eyes meeting her now that he'd processed all she had to say to him. Madame and Valentino sure had _history..._ and if Angel learned anything from his partnership with him... _it must've ROTTED to the very CORE._ They had this in common and he could feel it in her voice.

He trusted her. He knew he could. But maybe he didn't have to use it... not QUITE yet...

A warm, genuine smile bloomed over his face and he took her hands. " I will, " he promised with a binding kiss between her aligned pointer fingers, " Ya have my word, I love ya club an' what'cha doin' wit' it... I'll... " _Meet you in the middle._ " I'll... come aroun' some more. Maybe a performance or two would make 'im nervous enough t' give me next holiday off, ah? "

Angel laughed, knowing that chance was slimmer than his waistline after routine removals of his floating ribs. It _would_ be _nice_ not to have to work Valentine's Day...

" Thanks... fa hearin' me out... " he said sweetly, subtly off the edge of a choke, " The grind don't stop, an' it gets pretty fuckin'... MUCH... "

Madame

"That's right, baby, the grind don't stop, but Mama's here for you." Her tentacles moved around, and she used them to cradle Angel instead of her arms, freeing them up to hold one of his set of hands.

"Now, you listen to Mama, alright? I know Big V better'n anyone around. Raised him in Hell myself, and he shames me every day, the way he acts. I know his temper, his vices, I know it all, Angel. And darlin'? He ain't never treated no one right since the moment he landed ass over tea kettle in Hell. Probably long 'fore that too, considerin' he landed in Hell in the first place. I know the sorts a things he tries to pull..."

She took a deep breath, and leaned down, her tentacles lifting Angel higher. She pressed her forehead to his, and took his face in her hands, her voice lowering as her throat tightened.

"Next time he tries anythin'-- _anythin' at all_-- you come to me, Angel. I know yer a big boy, I know you can handle yerself, but it breaks my heart to know you're there with him, every day. It honestly truly does. Bein' Val's favorite is a hard life, or unlife, I suppose, but just know Mama's got ya back. I'd sooner slap that grin off his face and grind that stupid hat a his inta the dust than see ya hurtin' cause a him. I know it can be hard to accept help, but I do want ya ta know that it's there, if'n ya need to accept it, alright?"

She sniffled as she straightened up, using both her hands and tentacles to hold him close. "You're my boy, Angel, I love ya like my own. We ain't blood, but what's blood ever done for anyone? We better'n blood, we're family, got it?"

Angel

_Oh the tears._ They were coming. She already knew what he was keeping safely lodged in his throat. It saved him from having to admit ANYTHING while making it crystal clear to him that she had just what he needed, and was willing to give it to him.

But for NOTHING in return...? Angel closed his eyes and nuzzled into her forehead as the tears beaded off the long length of his lashes. Behind his eyes were the memories branded into his skull, words insisting that there was no such THING as the sentiments he found himself faced with. _With every sanction, there was a CATCH. With every favor, a FEE to be repaid twice over._

He fought them with the help of her every word.

" G... got it, " he choked, " I got it. I won't let'cha down... " A small sniffle. Angel's emotions flowed, but they were soothed and much more contained than they were when he was alone. It was becoming clearer and clearer now that he was in the company of trust.

He found traction in her tentacles and allowed her to support him, the tight pressure of the coils feeling more like safety than constriction. Perhaps, he really could survive post extermination Hell...

" I, uh... " Angel swallowed thickly. " ... Blew the top floor window... b'fore I took off... I dunno if any angels got in, but... he 'ad t' deal wit' 'em... "

Madame

She lifted a hand to wipe away a couple tears before they could fall-- she was wearing waterproof make up, as she always did, thank fuck. Madame pressed a kiss to his forehead, and held him.

Until he said that. She blinked and looked down at him, shock clear on her face for the moment or two it took her to process what he said. And then she burst out laughing. Her entire body shook with it, loud cackles that rose into the air.

"Oh fuck, oh god, Angel! Baby, you're a fuckin' riot! Did ya really? Just broke through the damn window? Damn, shug, ya know how ta make an exit!" She laughed again, Angel pressed against her chest.

"Oh, honey, ya ain't hurt, are ya? No scratches, gashes? I mean, ya looked tip top when ya walked up, but that fur a yours hides a lot. Anything ya need Mama ta look at?"

Angel

He chuckled sheepishly with a comical bump along the waves of her laughter. Despite how afraid he initially was to return, it must've been HILARIOUS from Madame's point of view. It eased him some.

" Nah, nah! I'm fine! I think...? Uh... " Angel did a quick survey of himself. Valera might've brushed out the last of the glass from his fluff already. Enough of the alcohol wore off for him to have felt any stinging by now ( he was PRETTY sure. )

" Yeah! I think I'm good, thanks ~ " he assured, " I take color real easy so if I'm bleedin' , it SHOWS. BRIGHT an' hot pink ~ " He took a little too much pride in that.

Madame

"Oh, fancy Mister Pink Blood over here," She said, still giggling a bit. "Mine's blue, if'n you were wonderin'."

Madame took a deep breath, rocking him in her arms again, just on instinct.

"God, I'd pay a million bucks ta have seen the look on Valentino's face when ya did that. Serves him right. An Angel lead the angels to him!" She started laughing again, devolving into softer giggles after a few moments.

"How's everthin' else, though? Ya feelin' alright? Ya body's fine, but wanna make sure my boy's doin' good."

Angel

" It shows up pretty in pictures, is all ~ " he said casually, " Bloodplay photosets always turn out real good. " He then casually reclined along a tentacle and drew idle circles in the fountain to watch the calming ripples.

" Think... e'rythin's ok... " he mused, " Just really needed not t' work the Extermination pa'ty an' just... chill out some. " He scrutinized his own reflection in the water for clues. Not much else came to his mind from the massive shadow his immediate issues casted over them.

Madame

"Alright, if that's it...." She trailed off, two of her tentacles peeling off to plop into the fountain as she leaned back.

"Y'know I hadn't even seen the ocean since I was a young'n? Hadn't swam in it fer longer'n that, too. I'm....so thankful to Valera fer invitin' me. Not only do I get to not worry about the Extermination-- at least as much, but I get to enjoy somethin' I missed fer so, so long."

She gave Angel a squeeze. "And now my boy's here'n safe 'n sound. Nothin' better to relax an ol' ladies' heart."

Madame smiled down at him. "Everythin' will be fine, Angel. We may be in Hell mosta the time, but this right here?" She gestured to the plants around them. "This all is proof that we ain't always there. Even in our hearts'n minds, when we there physically, we aren't always in Hell. There's a sayin': Hell is other people. But I think Heaven can be, too. If ya got the right people around..."

Angel

Angel wrinkled his nose. " Heaven's a load a bullshit. All of it, " he said cynically, " Ya condemned, ya condemned. Ain't no POINT in tryn'a make nice wit' the fuckin' feathery DOUCHEBAG brigade lookin' t' ERASE US e'ery fuckin' YEAR. " The words came from his gut. He wasn't hiding any hidden hopes or dreams. " Ya really think a place that commits annual fuckin' genocide a sinner's where it's at? A thing to LOOK FOR IN PEOPLE? It's a fuckin' fairytail, the fuckin' shit they tell us t' be believin' about Heaven, _**Mamina...**_ "

The last endearment rolled off his tongue like a plea. _ Don't try t' sell me anythin' I'm never gonna have..._ " Ya know I fuckin' - RAN, from the party. I ran from the fuckin' studio too. Hotel ain't gonna save me wit' their redemption prayers. Just... gonna put a lil' pause on the sufferin' awhile. Like 'ere. It's just a break. After this, it's Hellhole Sweet Hellhole all over again 'til the next time we're at our wit's en'. That's all there is, that's I got. " Angel sat up from his recline so he could look Madame in the face. " ... E'en if I got you. I don't mean it like anythin' ya do don't matter, but... y'know... " He sprawled his hands defeatedly as his words failed him, and his face fell into a bittersweet anguish. It seemed some things were completely beyond even his imagination.

Madame

Her face only softened as he spoke, and her heart ached for him. Oh, this poor thing, tossed about by life and then by Hell, it was no wonder to her that he was so cynical.

"Angel, darlin'," She said, after he finished his rant, her hands moving to ever so gently hold his face between them. Madame let out a long, slow sigh, staring into his eyes with the sweetest, most motherly expression she could.

"Call me an optimist, but I'd like to think that livin' over a century in Hell has taught me one thing: even Hell can have some sweetness. Sure, we all sinners'n demons down here-- or there, but that don't mean there ain't still decent folk who'd treat ya right down there. That Princess for one, she's a good egg, startin' up that Hotel may not get the results she's lookin' for, but it can help. She wants to change things, and I don't blame her.

"Hell is Hell, it's true. Heaven ain't no picnic either, but I think ya missed my point, shug-- When I say that Heaven can be other people, I ain't meanin' the feathery bastards that come down ta kill us every year, or even the fuckin' cunts that live up in them clouds and send 'em down. I'm meanin' the _concept_ what ya learned in Sunday school. What Heaven is _supposed_ to be. It's supposed to be a place where ya surrounded by people that love you and that ya love too. And if we can find those kinds of people, even in Hell? Well, that's a bit of a miracle in my books.

"So no, Hell ain't never gonna be Heaven and thank fuck fer that, cause I think Heaven's prolly borin' as shit compared to the fun we can have in Hell. I'd rather run a cabaret in Hell than lay around bored as sin in Heaven any day. But what I'm tryin' to say is that, if ya got good people around ya, then things'll get better. Hell, honestly, ain't been no different from life up above, fer me. Ya gotta make the most of what ya got, honeybunch."

She pressed a kiss to his face, her lips covering half of it when she did. "That make sense, darlin'?"

Angel

" Yeah. Total sense. " Angel deadpanned into the rosebush behind her. " First rule t' makin' it in Hell's bein' an Overlord or the fuckin' Princess, " he replied caustically. It didn't seem like she was going to understand or stop lecturing until he relented one way or another. But if Madame was Hell bent on teaching him something, he had to let her know he wasn't a CHILD that could be sold far off dreams when he was preoccupied with spending his every waking moment surviving the present.

" I _know_ there's sweetness in Hell. Dealin' sugar's my JOB. Makin' the most outta the scrap I got doesn't give me time ta KID. " He got up and started pacing the pavement, cigarette in his teeth and a light in his claws. " First thin's first, get outta Big V's horseshit. If it don't kill me, THEN I can see what I can do about gettin' a fuckin' life preached to me by a sister who fuckin' rapped my ass every Sunday. " A puff of red hearts whisked into the sky. He couldn't bring himself to buy a thing she said past offering to help him if he needed a place to be. The crystal clear promise of security was the only thing that made sense to him and as he was, he had no place for faith.

Madame

Her expression didn't change, even when Angel got up and started pacing. It was alright-- he wasn't ready, in his heart, to hear what she said, and that was okay.

"It's good to have priorities, shug. Glad ya got that shit figured out. I don't mean to preach, just speakin' my own truth, Angel. If ya don't wanna hear it, well, then, I'll shut my yapper 'n we can just enjoy the respite we get here, yeah?" She took a deep breath and swirled a hand through the water.

"Just want ya t'be happy, sweetheart. Like any Mama would. Just cause we in Hell doesn't change my heart."

Angel

" I appreciate what ya sayin', Big Mama, " he sighed through curls of crimson escaping from the valleys of pointed teeth, " It just ain' it fa me. I 'ad to lie, scrap, and _fuck_ m'way to where I am now. I don't... _got_ the means t' be thinkin' a what it'd be like to not have to. I don't 'ave the POWER - I mean, maybe, I _USED TO,_ but... "

Angel looked around. He couldn't imagine littering the pristine garden with his ash, so he kept the butt on hand. " ... I gave it away. Fa this. Fa... " _He could say this to her, right?_ " ... Fa HIM. Before... it all got to 'is head an' before I knew it, I wasn' it anymore. He was chasin' more an' more power, the kind I gave up. So it's gonna... _TAKE..._ s'more lyin', fuckin', an' scrappin' before I get anywhere else. Until he could look me in the fuckin' eye an' SEE... how BAD. He fucked. Up. "

Madame

She nodded along with him, knowing those words well, knowing that feeling. "I getcha, baby, I getcha. Don't need to explain none to me about shit like that. I understand, babydoll, I do."

Madame reached over, gently taking his hand in hers, drawing him back to sit next to her again. "Ya got a smoke ta spare, Angel? Mama's got a cravin'."

She let out a sigh, and glanced out over the garden. "If'n ya need to talk about it though, I'll listen, Angel. No one'd understand better'n me, yeah? I know Vee better'n anyone cept maybe you 'n possibly the other two Vees. So ya need to vent? Just rant ya head off? I can listen. I know how much that can help sometimes."

Angel

" That - ... That's it, " he said calmly, starting to feel more comfortable in the stimulants soothing his system, " Ye... yeah, I... " Angel procured his case and flipped it open for her to browse, allowing his head to lean against her shoulder. The light off the pink crystal seqins sparkled in the water.

" He's... gonna pay. An' I'm gonna collect. That's all I got an' all that matters. Until I do that, ain't nothin' in the shithole that's gonna be up fa my takin'. " He put out his cigarette on the empty side of the case and fixed himself another. That could do for now. " _C'est la CAZZO vie._ "

Madame

Madame looked over his selection and took one. She waited until he lit his next and leaned in to light hers off it. She took a long drag, blowing the smoke out-- no shapes like Valentino's, just a cloud, the way she preferred it.

"Sure is, Angel, sure is. I'll be there ta have ya back, though." She ruffled his hair affectionately. "Mama's in ya corner, and don't forget it."

Angel

_That_ was the reassurance he needed, something concrete he could trust in. " Never, " he affirmed sternly as if his voice wrote a contract in the smoke, " I got that, ain't much I couldn't do. " Snapping the case closed, he lounged against her and looked up into the sky, redless save for the dissipating shapes they blew. For the moment, he really felt like he'd be ok.

Madame

Her hand moved to the back of his head, giving him some gentle scritches as she held him close.

"Got any ideas fer an act ya'd wanna do at the cabaret? Anythin' ya wanna do that ya hadn't got to before?"

Angel

" Zorita 'ad some shit goin' on, " he said immediately through brightened eyes, " Dunno if I could really pull it OFF, but the SHOWS were real fuckin'... _choice ~_ "

His arms then got animated, slicing and molding the air around his thoughts as he brainstormed.

" I got chances to try a lotta thin's, but only the one time it'd take fa Big V t' decide it wasn't worth gettin' me into when the pole was just as good an easier t' maintain. If I got back to anythin'... I think I'd wanna do the ring... "

Madame

"The ring, eh?" She smirked, giving a nod. "That's a fun one, fer sure. What about the ribbons? He ever let ya do those? The things soma the girls can do...."

Angel

" Ribbons? The ones on the sticks? " He racked his head through the years. " Huh... no... I don't think so... Unless the prop's somethin' I'm wearin' an' can throw, he thought it a waste a time. I tried t' pitch 'im the idea a dancin' wit' 'em in nude if I could keep a trailin' ribbon over my junk the whole time, but he didn' believe me, " he explained, snickering, " I could TOTALLY pull it off if he gave me the time! _His loss ~_ "

Madame

"No, no, the ones hangin' from the ceilin'! It's like the ring but, y'know, big ol' ribbons a cloth. Some circus level shit, but damn, if it ain't pretty." She laughed, shrugging.

"Think ya'd look real pretty danglin' up high from all a them."

Angel

He blew a raspberry, a storm of popping hearts spraying over the fountain. _Can't take that image back NOW -_

" Oh, silks, yeah, I TOTALLY knew what ya were talkin' about, " he said between giggles, " Yeah, I done those once or twice. It came pretty easy, I dunno, an' it was lotta fun, but y'know Big V... "

Angel then put a pair of free hands to his head to mimic feelers. " _They wanna see ya ASS, Angel Cakes,_ " he mocked.

Madame

Madame laughed, shaking her head. "Fuck, ya got that down, don'tcha?" She shrugged.

"Valentino's always been shortsighted about these things. If ya _always_ give em what they want, then there ain't no reason fer them to be tantalized! Can't give 'em all a it up front, ya gotta _tease~_" She gave her chest a little shake and winked at Angel.

"But acourse you know what I'm talkin' 'bout, don'tcha, Angel?"

Angel

" Probably more than HE DOES, " he joked with a mirroring preen of his own chest, " He's all about that fast money, but he ain't got NO. IDEA. How far ya can stretch the bucks. LEMME TELL YA! "

Angel excitedly straddled the edge of the fountain to face her. " The LONGER ya can edge a John, the more he's gonna give ya. Physically, emotionally, all of it. Big V deadass for - fuckin' - GOT that there's more t' hustlin' than _wham, bam, thank you ma'am_ - 'in it out. Time he trade in those goofy fuckin 'eart shades fa dollar signs, ya'd THINK! "

Madame

"Oh, I know, honeybunch, I _know_. It's all about the tease! All about the tantalizin'. Give 'em just enough to keep 'em comin' back fer more 'n more!" She laughed, winking at him.

"Big V's lost sight a that, he's too preoccupied with shittin' out content fer Vox that he fergot the biggest money maker in th' game." Her smile turned sly as she looked at Angel.

"But I never fergot that. That's why I lasted this long, and why I'll keep lastin'."

Angel

" Time's up, ah? He sells fuckin' Voot Floops fa $666 an they taste like FUCKIN' ASS! I WOULD KNOW! " he joked as he toyed with his case, " Ain't nothin' in 'em either, just THE emptiest shit there is t' be eatin'. Fa like a week? Month? Fuck I know, but it was all we 'ad in the studio breakroom an' I swear ta FUCK I always en'ed up HUNGRIER than before I ATE 'EM. "

He then opened up his case and started rolling some more cigarettes. " Wonder when someone's gonna tell 'im his new boyfrien's fuckin' _STUPID..._ " A sly smile. " He ain't got nothin' on ya, yeah? Could _you_ get away with it? " Angel chuckled, " Not too 'arshly, though! I ain't about t' be feelin' bad fa his new squeeze... unless... _he's got a cravin' fa spider..._ "

Madame

She snorted. "I _could_ but don't mean I _would_. I ain't about ta stir that pot like that-- besides, ya _know_ I'm a good ol' Southern Lady, and we have better ways a sayin' shit like that ta the point were people ain't even know we talkin' shit."

She placed a hand on her chest and batted her lashes. Madame deepened her accent as she spoke again. "Well bless yer heart! I ain't ever seen a bug quite as cute! Yer as adorable as a bee's wing!" She started laughing.

Angel

Angel echoed her laughter with intermittent snorts. " Ain't no gay bitches got time fa that. Our petty, impatient asses WANT ya knowin' when we're takin' ya fa a DRAG, " he joked with a wink. _Pun intended._

" That's the master plan, though ~ " he sang with a quick drag of his tongue over the end of a fresh cigarette before slipping it into the case, " Fuck 'im. Fuck 'is boyfriend. THEN fuck over 'is whole ass life. Shit ~ "

Madame

"Sounds like a plan, shug. Sounds like a plan, indeed." She chuckled. "Just know I can't take _direct_ action in ruinin' Big V's shit. I'll support ya, but I can't get involved with my own tentacles-- plus, I mean, Val'd smell that a mile off, so's best I keep to the background, fer all our sakes. It he breaks our deal first, then I'd have free reign to help ya more directly, though."

Angel

" Yeah yeah, ya don't gotta, " he assured, " I ain't plannin' on involvin' or takin' no one down wit' me. Promise. No one better take this from me, either, but... What, kin'a deal ya got goin' wit' 'im? "

Madame

"Ain't nothin' fancy, basic sorta non-interference thing. I don't mess with his business directly, he don't mess with mine. Mostly keeps us outta each other's hair-- but poachin' talent is fair game, which is why I can offer ya protection 'n such." She smirked and winked again.

Angel

" _Nice_ loopholin' ~ " he sang, " No wonder ya been sittin' pretty all this time, Big Mama. Save a spot fa me an' I'll be the prettiest throne candy anyone's e'er seen ~ "

Madame

"Deal Makers gotta get those loops on lock, baby boy, and I wouldn'ta lasted this long if I weren't a damn good Deal Maker." She giggled again.

"Ever since ya started up with Big V, I had a spot primed 'n ready for ya. Knew ya were a star, baby."

Angel

" HA! " Angel gave a short, small burst of slightly embarassed laughter. " Spotlight's where I belong, Mama ~ Chargin' me rent in m'own house oughta be a _crime ~_ "

Madame

"Ain't that true, babe, ain't it true!" She laughed again. "Ya belong in it."

[snkpolls]

SnK Episode 61 Poll Results (for Anime Only Watchers)

The poll closed with 164 responses. Thank you to everyone who participated!

Please note that these are the results for the Anime Only Watchers’ poll. If you wish to see the results for the Manga Readers’ poll, click here.

Anime only watchers, beware of spoilers if you venture over to the manga readers’ poll results.

---

RATE THE EPISODE 142 Responses

Episode 61 received even better reception than episode 60 did for anime only viewers, with all votes leaning 3-5 on the rating scale, none of our respondents seemed let down by the episode! 

AMAZING!! not action heavy this time, but the information i gained  was a big insight on what’s to come! lots of things are gonna go down and i’m s c a r e d. ready for next sunday 😈🔥

It was fire 

I really loved this episode, better than the last episode. Animation quality was on par with movie quality. MAPPA is giving us their best, ALL HAIL MAPPA.

1 word. Awesome

I love the pacing on this episode and the small details in it. 

Give me more!!!

bruh

WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING WAS YOUR FAVORITE SCENE/MOMENT? 142 Responses

Reiner monologuing about the 104th at the dinner table took front and center seat this week with 43% of viewers favoring this scene the most. Trailing behind, 16.9% enjoyed the scene where Reiner meets up with the Warrior Cadets, and 9.9% enjoyed seeing the human forms of the Cart and Jaw titans for the first time.

WE FORGOT TO ASK LAST WEEK D: WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING SCENES/MOMENTS FROM EPISODE 60 WAS YOUR FAVORITE? 142 Responses

Last week, the highest percentage of people (at 30.3%) enjoyed Reiner’s, “I’m sick and tired… of walls.” 19% favored the scene of Zeke’s scream turning Eldians into titans. 17.6% were most hyped up over Reiner and Galliard wrecking Fort Slava.

MAPPA WENT ALL OUT WITH THE CINEMATOGRAPHY IN THIS EPISODE. WHAT DID YOU THINK OF THE CINEMATIC PANS AND ROTOSCOPE ANIMATION? 142 Responses

Overall, 75.4% of the total vote went in favor of the animation this week, with 33.8% of viewers stating they felt as though they were watching a movie, 32.4% enjoying the fluidity, and 9.2% enjoying the upgrade from the stiffer animation in the previous season. 10.6% felt the rotoscoping and cinematic shots were a little too over the top for an anime, and 10.6% are indifferent. A small handful aren’t enjoying the cinematic animation at all. 

Hated the rotoscope, loved everything else.

It was a bit off-putting at first but I've grown to really like it

it was different but i liked it! it was cool. reminded me of some anime movies i’ve seen, though unique in it own sense

Thought it was great and fluid just at some points like the scene with udo on the docks felt a bit choppy.

Beautiful work, it honestly felt like I was watching a movie. From cinematography to shot framing to the animation. A dialogue heavy episode felt exciting, which is amazing.

I really liked the animation

The animation is so glowy

NOW THAT WE’VE GOTTEN TO HEAR A LITTLE MORE OF THE NEW OST TRACKS, HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE SOUNDTRACK SO FAR THIS SEASON? 142 Responses

People are overall enjoying the new music so far, with 41.5% feeling it really compliments the change in atmosphere and 35.9% REALLY enjoying the songs and finding their usage very good. 9.9% feel they’re just ok while 7.7% miss the music being composed solely by Sawano. A smaller handful aren’t enjoying the new music.

They DEFINITELY bring the right vibes lol. again, different, but i like it!

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE CLOSEUP OF ZEKE’S MOUTH? 141 Responses

In our first of a series of unnecessary crack questions, 31.9% find Zeke’s mouth closeup to have been pretty cool animation. 24.8% are very concerned about Zeke’s treatment of his lungs (do shifters get lung damage?). 20.6% didn’t care about Zeke’s mouth at aoo, while 14.2% would welcome a smooch from him. A handful of people just think it’s gross, lol.

Fucking hate zeke smh 🙄

He smokin a spliffy 😂 not no ciggy 

what chapstick using??lmao.  it was a cool scene

WHAT’S YOUR OPINION ABOUT ELDIAN ASSES? 140 Responses

Eldian asses didn’t turn out to be too controversial, with the majority (42.1%) just wanting to know the details of Zeke’s secret ass wiping technique. 10.7% just think Eldian asses are neat, and another 10% are more enthusiastic about some nice Eldian asses. 25.7% are confused about the question’s inclusion, and 11.4% don’t understand why this was asked at all.

DO YOU WANT REINER TO GIVE YOU A HEAD PAT? 140 Responses

In a close race, 42.1% of respondents would be thrilled to get a nice head pat from Reiner! 41.4% apparently don’t, and just wanna know what the heck the pollsters are smoking while writing up these questions. 11.4% do NOT want Reiner head pats. :(

ZEKE SEEMS TO BE KEEPING HIS ROYAL LINEAGE A SECRET FROM MARLEY DESPITE HIS LOYALTY TO THEM. ANY IDEAS WHY YOU THINK HE IS? 139 Responses

Zeke, the “wonderboy” (as General Calvi puts it) who sold out his own parents, has never been doubted by Marley in terms of his loyalty. Yet, for some reason he seems to be keeping his royal bloodline a secret from them. When we asked why that is, over half of respondents (56.1%) state that they are suspicious of Zeke and his real motives, believing that he is plotting something under Marley’s nose. 25.2% feel that he doesn’t want them to know he’s royal so that they can’t abuse his power, and 12.9% think he simply doesn’t let them know so that they won’t kill him. 

I forgot he was royal 

maybe they will force him to continue the bloodline through children, or maybe he will get used or killed

Well if they dont know hes got a hereditary advantage over both his predeccesors and succesors, he'll always be recognised as the best beast titan and heaps better than my boy Colt.

WE LEARNED IN THIS EPISODE THAT FALCO’S LAST NAME IS “GRICE.” DO YOU THINK THIS WILL HOLD ANY SIGNIFICANCE? 139 Responses

32.4% of respondents don’t remember anyone named Grice. To recap, “Grice” is the name of the person who recruited Grisha Yeager into the Restorationist group, and is the one who was kicked off the wall for the restorationist titans to chase after once they were transformed by Marley. For those that did remember this seemingly random person, 52.2% feel that this relation will be brought up again and have importance to the story, and 12.9% feel it doesn’t really mean anything other than being a neat little detail. 

I feel like you asking this implies that there’s something to it

Not sure yet. But, Falco and Colt seem to be really caring and aware of how the Marlyeans treat Marly-Eldians (at least compared to the other warrior candidates). Also, when we saw their parents they seemed kind too, showing lots of concern for Colt. Maybe they learnt what the former restorationist/other Grice was doing and his cause of death and sent their kids to the warrior program for the same reason Grisha and Dina did Zeke? My bet is Colt & Falco are the restorationist Grice's nephews?

YOUR REACTION TO THE CART TITAN BEING A CUTE WOMAN? 140 Responses

Pieck deserves a colorful pie chart, and she got one! 25.7% say she’s best girl, 22.9% think she’s utterly adorable. 13.6% of viewers already knew about Pieck before getting to this point and were unsurprised. At a tie, 11.4% of voters think that it’s amazing, or they were shocked to find out that the quadrupedal nightmare titan is really just a short, cute woman.

I worked it out last episode since the armbands appeared to indicate the 'type/status' of Eldians, but I was a bit surprised last episode I thought from the trailer the red bands may be special lineages i.e. Ackerman, Oriental clan, and Riess/Fritz. Still think she may be from the oriental clan though since the only characters we've seen with a similar appearance to her are Mikasa and her mother.  

she kinda shawty 👀 but she looks scary too

WE WERE FORMALLY INTRODUCED TO MORE CHARACTERS THIS WEEK, SO WE WILL ASK AGAIN… WHICH NEW CHARACTER IS YOUR FAVORITE SO FAR? 143 Responses

Last week, Falco was the most favored of the new cast with only 40% of the vote. This week, he shoots up over 10 percentage points, with 50.3% of viewers feeling the most positively toward him. Pieck comes in second with 17.5% of the vote, and Gabi is hanging on with just 12.6% of the vote. Colt and Galliard are trailing just a little bit more behind them. 

Gabi best girl

WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE FATE OF YMIR? 144 Responses

While we did get teased about Ymir’s fate in Season 3, seeing the scene in full can definitely have more of an impact. 37.5% of respondents have accepted the notion of Ymir dying, and feel that it was a decent end for her character, all things considered. 22.9% are in complete and total anguish over her fate, and 20.1% are simply just disappointed and had hoped to see more of her. A very small percentage think that this is actually a red herring, and that Ymir is somehow still alive somewhere.

Already saw this in season 3

Appropriately grim and realistic given what lengths Marley will go to in order to protect themselves 

I am in so much pain please euthanize me that’s my wife

i didn’t really like her anyway so it’s fine(but it was still a bit sad) 

Kinda hate crimey considering shes the only OUT (@jean) charcter. Nah jk. Like wasnt shocked tho coz we saw Galliard last ep

Let's fucking GOOOOOO

Galliard will NEVER replace Ymir, I already hate his bitch ass

So Galliard really is a replacement scrappy eh? I already hate him JUST for that.

TURNS OUT THAT GALLIARD IS MARCEL’S BROTHER. DO YOU THINK THIS WILL BE SIGNIFICANT? 143 Responses

Over half of respondents (52.4%) believe that Galliard’s relation to Marcel will have significance at some point. 32.9% think that it might, but don’t want to say either way. A small percentage feel it’s just a detail that won’t matter. 12.6% have completely forgotten who Marcel is (to refresh your memory, Ymir ate him before RBA attacked the walls).

DO YOU THINK THE MAN WEARING THE ARMBAND INCORRECTLY WILL BE IMPORTANT? 144 Responses

At 73.6%, the majority of viewers are eyeing the random amputee soldier who Falco briefly helped out, believing that he will be important in some manner moving forward. 13.9% believe that it’s just a random soldier, and the scene maybe meant more in terms of showing Falco’s kindness. 12.5% aren’t sure what to make of the amputee soldier at all.

LAST WEEK, WHEN ASKED WHO WILL INHERIT THE ARMORED TITAN, THE MAJORITY PICKED FALCO. AFTER THIS EPISODE, WHO DO YOU THINK WILL INHERIT THE ARMORED TITAN NOW? 143 Responses

Falco is still the most favored to inherit the Armored Titan from Reiner with the percentage of people believing he will jumping from 37.6% to 48.3%. 21.7% are still confident that Gabi will ultimately be the one who gets to eat Reiner. 28.7% believe that neither of them will inherit Reiner’s titan at all.

DO YOU THINK THAT REINER REALLY BELIEVES THE PARADISIANS ARE DEVILS? 143 Responses

The overwhelming majority of respondents don’t believe that Reiner really means what he says when he calls the Paradisians “savage, heartless devils.” Only a small percentage feel he does really means what he says, and a handful of others aren’t sure.

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT REINER WITH WHAT WE’VE SEEN IN THIS ARC SO FAR? 143 Responses

The majority of viewers feel very positively about Reiner and are enjoying seeing more of him, with 46.2% stating that Reiner is really starting to grow on them, while 26.6% already liked Reiner from the start. 18.2% are beginning to feel more empathy for Reiner, although they still aren’t huge fans, and a smaller percentage don’t like him and haven’t been swayed by the narrative as of yet. 

Always seemed like there was lots to him, enjoying the furthered development into his psyche :) 

he’s so hot omg. i feel so terrible cause he’s clearly suffering from ptsd and his disorder too. he seems torn. i do like how he is playing a major role so far. 

I’m in love with Reiner and always have been

Meh

Reiner became 1000% hotter after his life fell apart

REINER AND GABI ARE REVEALED TO BE COUSINS. THOUGHTS? 142 Responses

36.6% of respondents were genuinely shocked to learn that Gabi and Reiner are cousins. 21.8% feel more invested in Gabi’s character arc after knowing this information. 19% were already spoiled on this, and 15.5% don’t really care about it at all. 

Kinda thought she wanted to fuck her cousin lmao

Makes me horrified how casually they talk abt eating Reiner

They had the same last name so I figured they must have had some relation.

Yee haw

GABI QUESTIONS REINER AFTER HE TALKED ABOUT THE 104TH, ASKING IF PEOPLE ON PARADIS WERE ALL BAD. DO YOU THINK SHE CAN OVERCOME HER BRAINWASHING TO SEE THAT PARADISIANS AREN’T EVIL? 143 Responses

The majority think that there is a possibility for Gabi to see things from a new perspective over time. 40.6% aren’t completely sold on it yet, but also believe that it’s within the realm of possibility. 32.9% are very confident that this is the direction her story arc is going to take, and 26.6% think that nothing will be able to undo years of brainwashing for her.

THE TYBURS ARE SAID TO BE AN AFFLUENT FAMILY THAT HOLDS THE WARHAMMER TITAN, BUT HAVE NEVER BEEN INVOLVED IN ANY CONFLICT. WHY WOULD THEY WANT TO GET INVOLVED NOW? 139 Responses

While we still don’t know much about the Tybur family, we thought we’d check in and see what preconceived notions viewers may already have about them. 27.3% believe the Tybur family feel the same as Marley and see Paradis as a threat. 30.2% think that the only reason they’d want to get involved in the conflict is if they get something about it. 41.7% think that the Tyburs are super sus and ultimately will have their own agenda for attacking Paradis. 

They got the good life already, why battle?

WITH AN ATTACK ON PARADIS BEING IMMINENT, HOW DO YOU THINK REINER WILL REACT WHEN HE RETURNS TO THE ISLAND? 139 Responses

We’ve seen Reiner struggle over the weight of his sins in previous seasons, with Ymir even pointing out that he has developed a type of “split personality” to cope with the horror he forced onto the people of Paradis. With the prospect of returning to the island, we asked how you think Reiner will handle the situation. With the highest percentage, 32.4% of respondents feel that Reiner’s mental state will make him completely ineffective if he returns to Paradis. 28.8% think he may even completely switch back to his “soldier persona” once he faces his former comrades again. 26.6% believe that he will keep himself together and stay focused on the mission handed to him. 9.4% think he will find a way to avoid going back altogether. 

Honestly, don't know.

I wouldnt say ineffective, probably just ina daze of sorts. Like hes not fully in the moment.

Idk if he is even gonna go

Not Sure

I hope my boi Reiner makes it through!

REINER FLASHBACKS NEXT WEEK! ARE YOU EXCITED TO FINALLY GET THE WARRIORS’ BACKSTORY? 142 Responses

The vast majority are happy to be finally getting the Warriors’ backstory in the next episode, with 69% feeling overwhelmed with excitement about it, and 19.7% just happy to finally be getting to this point. A smaller percentage don’t really care about learning their backstory and a handful of people are actually dreading it. 

I loved the baby warrior flashback and can’t wait for next week.

ON A SCALE OF REINER TO ZEKE, HOW EAGER ARE YOU TO GET BACK TO PARADIS? 141 Responses

While there is a handful of people who are enjoying the new perspective and getting to know these new characters in Marley, the majority of viewers are (unsurprisingly) eager to see what’s going on with the original cast after the 4 year time skip and the cliffhanger at the ocean in season 3. A message from manga readers: we know your pain, just hang in there!

This arc isn't really doing it for me. The story is only interesting when it focused on the 104th.

If their goal is to make me sympathize with the Warriors it ain't working, I frankly don't give a crap about their sob stories and want to see Eren and friends wreck shit for them

ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS ON THE EPISODE?

Animation and graphics quality is amazing. The sea was CGI too which feels a bit too detailed compared to other things. The plot and vibe is amazing. I like the WW2 style of things. There are so many interactions coming just the thought makes me hyped up. I can easily rewatch it and notice new details and i enjoy it too. Feels really packed and intense.

Solid, loved the animation props to MAPPA, cant wait to see Reiner's character development.

Kinda just people walking around with HELLA ptsd.  Overall kinda vibey Very reminiscent of seas 3 part 1. I will say kinda tgf about these knew kids accept Colt, just wanna see the ogs and Jeans side part. I also HATE Reiner but.........dare I say.....he's growing in me???? Not gabi tho 

Great episode, the trailer's beginning to make a lot more sense now. I didn't expect that guy with the long blonde hair declaring Eren as the enemy (from the trailer) to be part of the Tybur family (maybe I'm wrong here but he looked identical to one of the Tybur family members in the photo Zeke showed.) I assumed he was maybe the Marley leader haha. I think he may be the warhammer titan but it's hard to tell at this point. Regarding the Tybur family, another curious thing is how they are celebrated internationally not just domestically for their help during the great titan war. I am curious whether Marley only treat the Tybur family well because if they didn't that would create issues globally? It seems like the Tybur's have lots of power. But, I wonder if the war hammer titan will be a letdown... I thought it would be the 'big boss' of the titans but after learning that titan doesn't go through training like the other titan shifters and never fought I feel like it's a 50/50 on whether the shifter will be strong or not... I also feel like the guy Falco spoke to was Eren, and this could hint at Eren noticing and possibly trying to indoctrinate Falco? and he was possibly watching Reiner talk to the kids? That was probably Pieck though. Curious how Pieck's father was shown but not mother, he also didn't look like he was from the oriental clan maybe we have another Mikasa on our hands (half Ackerman/Oriental clan) that would be cool, maybe a little bit fanservicey tho.

I like that the focus is on world building right now

I’m just so excited to see what’s coming next

It was friggin awesome but I’m curious on who fell off the roof 🤔

Who is the guy who jumped and died ? :(

WHERE DO YOU PRIMARILY DISCUSS THE SERIES? 138 Responses

Thank you again for participating! We’ll see you again next week!

[seijorhi]

asks :)

once again i am bad at answering things on time, so have a bunch of asks below the cut

logically speaking, if devil kuroo and fallen angel reader had a baby...

*BD chanting* Hellspawn! Hellspawn! Hellspawn! But no, that would be a big yikes 👀

the fall was SO GOOD!!!!! so in the story we are a fallen angel? and we had witchy friends hide us? also is kuroo jealous of witchy friends for being close with us as just friends or👀👀 also what happened to readers wings if kuroo wasn’t the one who took them?

Thank you, bby! So yes, it’s kinda vague in The Fall because i didn’t want to bog down the fic with backstory. But yeah essentially after being cast out from Heaven, Kuroo stole the reader, who later escaped. It ain’t easy to hide from the Devil, so she find a witch to help keep her hidden from him with the wards - flash forward a hundred or so years and Kuroo finally finds the witch and your other friends, tortures and kills them in his hunt for the reader. He would have killed them regardless for helping the reader, but jealousy is what drives him to take his time, to be cruel.

Also, the reader had her wings ripped off by the other angels after they find out she fell in love with the devil (even though she didn’t know that)

DEVIL KUROO HAS ME RUNNING LAPSHSISBSUS im curious, how did he meet the angel?

 DEVIL KUROO IS SOME GOOD FOOD!! I wanna know how he tricked us and then I want devil kuroo smooches

So I’m gonna answer these two together because they kinda go hand in hand. First of all, thank you, bbies! I’m glad y’all are as horny for him as I am! Basically, without going into the full backstory that I worked out in my head - Kuroo meets her on her first time on earth. I like to imagine that she was all soft and innocent and perfectly naive and caught his attention. He comes to her as ‘Kuroo’ and pretends that he was an angel cast out from Heaven (which isn’t technically a lie 👀) in order to manipulate her. At first it’s more of a game - he’s not as interested in her as he is in corrupting something so pretty and perfect. He wanted her to choose to fall for him, to take something from heaven and ruin it - before casting it aside and leaving it to suffer, but along the way he became a little too invested and caught feelings. Not healthy, good feelings, but feelings nonetheless.

Of course, it’s only a matter of time before the others notice you keep slipping away down to earth, and when they realise who it is you’re with (not nearly so easily fooled by the devil’s tricks) it doesn’t matter - they tear off your wings and cast her out, leaving Kuroo to come and sweep her right up.

The Fall was such a tease, I thoroughly enjoyed it! I totally pictured Kuroo in his JVA outfit when you described him, with volleyball shoes and all 😂 - @itadaklmasu

Lmao I am snorting at the image of Devil!Kuroo wearing volleyball shoes

lol i saw that ask about the person saying they don’t even watch bnha or haikyuu and i’d just to say, same. Idk how i came across your blog but even though i don’t know anything about the characters, your writing absolutely hooked me and i’m so invested in your blog

Sehfblvehjrwkl bby this is so sweet, thank you so much!! Tbh you probably don’t even need to watch the series to read my stuff - just trust me when I say that they’re hot lmao

Okay, first off, I legit check your page every day, and I’m totally in love with your writing. Second, I’ve been simping for Tsukki lately, and I think as a yandere, he would be so good at gaslighting. Like telling you that you aren’t good enough to mean anything to anyone and that he pities you enough to care about you and that he’s the only one that does. Idk how accurate that is, but I feel like he would just be super mean. Don’t forget to rest and take care of yourself!!

💕💕💕 ahh thank you sweetheart!!! Honestly Tsukki would be a really scary yandere to have because he’s cold and mean and super into degradation. Don’t get me wrong, that boy is obsessed with you, loves you - in his own little way - but you’d never know it from the way he treats you. But yeah, he’d manipulate the absolute shit out of you. 

Hi I just wanted to say that you are literally my go to for soulmate Aus. Honestly your pieces are some of the best writings and I adore them soooooo much. I love how they have a lot of depth and emotion behind them and how you incorporate how reluctant the reader is to even want a soulmate sometimes lol. This is my nth time rereading all of your soulmate fics and I swear they get better over time so I just wanted to thank you for taking the time to write them!

Bby, keep talking like that and i’m gonna melt!!! I do have a soft spot for my soulmate au’s because there is just something about that whole concept that just gets to me - especially when you throw jealousy, obsessiveness and a whole bunch of possessive vibes on top. It’s my happy place 😌

Not a request, but I just read Untouchable and I was wondering, how would Aizawa punish the reader now that he has her back?

I don’t think he’d be super into the physical punishments - though he might break a leg to keep her housebound and reliant on him. He’d take away all of her ‘freedoms’ - lock her in the basement with barely enough food and water to survive until she remembers how good she had it before. Of course, once he did let her out, he’d fuck her nice and rough - marking her up so she doesn’t forget who owns her, mind, body and fucking soul.

[petri808]

Beauty and the Geek

requested Sequel to Chemistry Hell.  Nalu High school AU

The reminder on her phone goes off and Lucy looks at the clock on the library’s wall.  “Time for me to get to practice,” the young blonde stands up from the table and smiles at her friends, “I’ll see you guys tomorrow.”  She grabs her back pack and slings it over her shoulder, then places a hand on Natsu’s arm, “but I’ll call you tonight right, so I can double check my homework for Chem?”

“Sure,” the boy smiles back, “I’ll be home all night so you can call whenever.”  

She lets her hand linger and slide a little along his arm, “Thanks!”  Lucy waves as she walks away, “bye guys!”

“Bye Lucy,” Natsu waves, but when he turns back to their group of friends, they’re all grinning.  “What?”  He looks around, “why is everyone staring at me?”

“Why didn’t you give her a kiss goodbye,” Gray teases, even throwing in the fake smooching sounds.  

“Or offer to walk her to practice,” Levy chimes in with a wiggle of her eyebrows, “you know, hold her hand the whole way.”

Natsu’s face flushes, “t-that’s not the kind of relationship… we-we’re just friends!”  He shakes a fist at Gray, “and who are you to talk when you still haven’t got up the courage to talk to Juvia!”

Gray Fullbuster was Natsu’s defacto best friend, frenemy, depending on the day.  The dark-haired young man had grown up with Natsu and if he’d really wanted to pass for popular, Gray probably could have pulled it off but, the cool-headed young man had never been fond of too much attention.  Besides he was shy, hence the reason he hadn’t managed to make a move yet.  Juvia Loxar was one of the top swimmers in their school and even though he was sure she liked him too, Gray always clammed up around her.  

“Tch,” Gray flips off Natsu.  “I will eventually.”

Ever since that moment in the diner, Natsu and Lucy had grown very close.  Their friends teased when one or the other wasn’t around because that vision was becoming a distant memory.  During most breaks at school the pair would hang out with or without their friends.  Calls and text messages had become a nightly occurrence.  So, they had a lot in common and liked each other’s company, what was the big deal?  

Football season was starting up and Lucy was getting busier.  Between practices and games both home and away, she and Natsu took whatever chances they had to hang out or chat.  Thanks to texting, he made the long bus rides more tolerable for her.  Sometimes she would hear the other girls snickering, but she paid them no attention.  A couple of them even asked if it was a boyfriend on the other end and she’d just laugh and change the subject.  

It was true, her and Natsu looked like they were becoming an item, that was hard not to notice.  Deep down she hoped that someday they could be a couple, but Lucy’s wasn’t in a rush and Natsu didn’t seem to be either.  That being said, it was the time of year when couple activities were going to be happening, like prom.  She’d be lying if she didn’t hope that Natsu would ask her.  He would look quite handsome in a tux and she on his arm in a ball gown.

The game against Lamia High had finally come to an end.  It was a close one, but Fairytail managed to pull it off at the end with field goal to win the game.  As everyone packed up their gear and readied to get on the bus, the captain of the football team, Jackal Noroi approached her.  

“Yo, Lucy!”

She turns around, “oh, um hi Jackal.  Can I help you with something?”

“Yes, you can!” He grins and leans against the exterior of the bus, “by becoming my date for the prom.”

“Oh,” Lucy tucks her hair behind her shoulders, “I kind of, already have other plans.”

Jackal’s face goes from a cocky grin to annoyance in zero seconds flat.  “You ain’t gonna tell me it’s with that Dragneel nerd.  Why the hell would you pick him over me?”

“I’m sorry, I haven’t made a decision yet so I can’t say it’ll be him or not.  But Natsu is a really nice guy and we get along.”

“Tch!” he pounds his fist against the bus.  “I can’t believe I’m being turned down but whatever!”

Lucy was shocked at how angry Jackal could be over something like this.  She just watches as he storms away towards his buddies.  Oh well, regardless of Natsu or not, Lucy never really cared for Jackal.  His attitude was too cocky for her tastes, and he had a reputation for just trying to take advantage of girls.  But just because he was the quarterback and star player, girls still fawned over him.  Most of Lucy’s fellow cheerleaders would have thrown themselves under the bus to be asked to prom and she’d just turned him down.

Needless to say, the bus ride home wasn’t exactly comfortable.  Lucy could feel the daggers levied at her back by everyone.  She did her best to ignore it, comforted by Natsu’s messages.  Of course, she didn’t want to tell him what had happened and acted normal, just letting him know how the game went.  They also chatted about homecoming which was in a couple of weeks.  She’d be cheering at the game, but afterwards, maybe they and their friends could go out for karaoke or something fun.      

She tries her best to put the incident behind her.  At practices, she did what she had to do and would leave before anyone had the time to question her.  Though it didn’t seem like they cared about her side of the story.  Lucy was starting to really see why Natsu had labelled her in the beginning because it seemed once the others began associating her with the nerdy kids, they’d started to treat her differently too.

These cliques were such a stupid thing.  And stereotypes….  Lucy was starting to believe they sometimes existed.  

Homecoming arrived soon enough, and it was gearing up to be epic.  With Phantom High as the opposing team, everyone was raring to go.  From the guys on the field to the cheer squads and bands, emotions even ran high with the fans battling it out to see who could be better, louder, tougher.  The Fairies needed to win on their hometown turf, or they’d never live it down till next year.  

In the stands Natsu and the rest of their friends had all shown up to support their school.  They had gone early enough to get seats near the cheer section because Natsu wanted to be closer to Lucy.  She’d finally broken down a few days ago about some of the taunting she’d received, and he wanted to make sure if it happened tonight, they could do something about it.  So far, so good.  With everything going on around them, the cheerleaders were too busy keeping the crowds electrified to worry about little squabbles.    

And Lucy looked so beautiful.  Natsu could care less about the football game choosing to watch her instead.  The short skirt she wore and tight vest top.  Her hair up in adorable pig-tails.  A bright smile making her eyes sparkle.  His heart almost jumped out of his chest when she’d waved at him during half time.  

“Natsu do you want something from the concession stand?”

She was really good at all the cheers, staying on point, and doing her part during the pyramids and other… whatever you called routines.  He wondered what had made her get into cheerleading.  It wasn’t a question he’d asked Lucy before, maybe he’ll ask her later.

“Oi!” Gray slaps Natsu on the back.

Natsu turns to his friend.  “What?!”

“Levy’s been trying to get your attention, that’s what!”

“Oh,” Natsu blushes and pushes his glass back up.  He turns to the girl, “sorry, Levy.”

Levy laugh’s and winks, “it’s fine.  I could see you were focused on someone.  Would you like something from the concession stand, I’m gonna grab a drink?”

The tinge of pink deepens along his cheeks and the tips of his ears.  “I’m okay, thank you.”

Finally, the last seconds were ticking down on the clock.  Everyone was on their feet watching as Ezel, a lead Tailback, sails the ball towards the awaiting Jackal who was open and nearest to the goal.  Phantoms defensive team was heading toward him as well at a rapid pace, but the Fairies Guards and Tackles were keeping them at bay.  You could have heard a pin drop when Jackal barely caught that ball on the tips of his fingers, cradled it and ran the few yards for a touch down!  

The crowd erupts!  Screams and shouts echo in a wave from the bleachers!  The cheerleaders whopping and hollering for the team stir even louder shrieks from the fans.  The Fairies had won by 12 points!  Jackal and the rest of the team pile back towards the sidelines, high-fiving, and congratulating each other for the job well done.  

When Jackal reaches the cheer squad he walks straight up to Lucy and grabs her around the waist, lifting her off her feet.  “See baby girl, you sure you still wanna turn me down?  I’m the MVP of the school for crying out loud!”

“C-Congratulations on the win,” Lucy sputters, all the while turning her head to avoid his oral advancements “but please Jackal, put me down.”

He growls and drops her to the ground, “you still won’t say yes!  What the hell is wrong with you?!  Do you have any idea how many girls would kill for my attention?!”

Lucy staggers back and manages to keep her footing before falling.  “I know, and I’m sorry but you’re just not my type!”

“And a fucking nerd is?!”  Jackal rages, “Dragneel is a fucking four-eyed virgin nobody!  He’ll never be anything more than a pencil pushing loser!”

It’s at this point others from both the cheer squad and football team start surrounding Lucy.  Emboldened by Jackal, they shout taunts of everything under the sun at her, about Natsu, just nasty names.  Lucy’s friends all rush down behind her as well, with Natsu stepping in front between her and Jackal in an effort to shelter her.

“Back off,” Natsu yells at the imposing football player who stood taller, especially when you added the muscle that he had backing him.  “J-Just leave Lucy alone, she said she’s not interested in you!”

Jackal cackles and points a finger into Natsu’s chest, pushing the quieter boy backwards.  “And what are you gonna do about it, nerd!?”  He narrows his eyes, “You ain’t no match for me, I’m gonna win this battle one way or another!”

“Please, let’s just get out of here,” Lucy begs.  Her hands on both of Natsu’s shoulders, cringing.  Their friends are also pulling on him, knowing this was getting ugly.  If the other football players were to jump in, they’d be no match.  

Luckily at that moment, the coaches swing into action and pushes the group apart, yelling at everyone to disburse or risk suspensions.  Natsu was furious but his friends were right.  In a one-on-one fight he might have a chance, but he doubted that Jackal or his buddies would play fair.  He turns around, grabs Lucy’s hand and they immediately leave the stadium with their friends in tow.  Their plans had been to go out bowling after the game, but no one was in any mood for entertainment.

Everyone heads out in their separate ways agreeing to meet up during the weekend when things had settled down.  But for Lucy, she didn’t want to go home yet, so Natsu takes her back to his house.  Thank goodness his parents were understanding of the situation and allowed them to be alone in his room together, with the door cracked open.

Lucy sobbed into Natsu’s chest and he did the only thing he could think of, holding her tightly and rocking gently.  His mom brought them some tea, hoping it may help to calm the young girl, but it was to no avail.  

“Cheer is over for me,” she mumbles through her broken tears, “I can’t go back.  They were all so horrible!  I’m sorry Natsu… I’m so sorry…  I see why you’d thought I was a bitch when we first met…”

“Shhh, Lucy, it’s okay, it’ll be okay…”

“No, it’s not!  You were right.  All the cheerleaders are wretched people!  And those jocks are so disgusting, I hate them!”

“Lucy, don’t say that.”  As much as he wanted to agree and shout, ‘I told you so,’ Natsu knew that would only make things worse.  “You proved that it’s not always true, not everyone is bad.”

“But they all jumped in and started taunting us.”

“I was wrong to assume a stereotype applies to everyone, and I don’t want you to fall down that same path. You’re better than that.  Better than them.”  He tips her chin up, staring down with a serious expression.  “Promise me you won’t be like that kind of person.”  Holding Lucy���s head against his chest again.  “It’s really my fault you’re in this mess, if you’d never met me, you’d still be living carefree with your old friends.”

“Please don’t say that Natsu.”  Lucy sighs.  “I’m glad we met cause now I know those so-called friends weren’t really friends after all.  You and Levy, and the others are so much better than they are.  If only that asshole would have just left me alone.”  She throws her hands up, “I don’t even understand why Jackal was so desperate for me to go to prom with him.  I’ve never, ever, ever, given him a reason to think I’d be interested.  I swear it’s like he’s jealous or something.”

Natsu chuckles, “Noroi?  Jealous?  Of what, me?  I doubt that.”

“But exactly!  He could get practically any girl he wants, why pick me?”  Lucy sits up.  “Natsu the only way it makes sense is he’s mad that I turned him down for a… a…”

“Nerd.”

“I didn’t wanna call you that,” she blushes.

“It’s okay,” he laughs, “it is what it is cause I am a nerd.”

“Maybe I shouldn’t even go to prom,” her body deflates, “I’d rather not deal with them again if I don’t have to.”

“You shouldn’t let them stop you Lucy.  If you really wanna go, then go.”

“But I don’t have a date…” she peers up through her lashes, biting the corner of her lip.

He gulps, “Would you go to prom with me?”

“Yes!”  She throws her arms around his neck, hugging him tight.  “You’re the only one I’d wanna go with.”

The night of the prom couldn’t come soon enough for the young pair.  Lucy’s father was nice enough to send them off in a limo after having professional photos taken at her home.  It all made Natsu very nervous, but Lucy did her best to keep him calm.  “Don’t worry about my dad.  He is tough, but if he didn’t approve of you, I’d never would have been able to hang out with you.”

“Okay.”  That was good to know, though it didn’t really help.  Mr. Heartfilia was an imposing figure.  He was tall, though not a very big guy, Natsu’s own father was larger and more intimidating in size, but this man, the vibes he just gave off sent warning bell’s in Natsu’s mind.

The one thing keeping his mind off of anything else was the beautiful young woman gracing his arm.  Lucy had spared no expense on her dress, choosing a full length, salmon-colored satiny crepe that flowed along her body, hugging and pulled in to highlight her curves.  The bust area was beautifully cinched to cover her bosoms, leaving just the tops revealed, and held up by inch-wide straps that haltered around her neck.  But that wasn’t even his favorite part.  The dress was open backed, cut down to a V that began right at her waist, and flowing over her rear like a gorgeous waterfall.  It didn’t even bother him that the color was so close to his hair color.  In fact, it made him proud that she’d chosen it.  When they walked into that ballroom, Natsu felt like the luckiest man in the world.

They find their group of friends, settling in with drinks and appetizers at a set of tables, just listening to the music and chatting.  This was the first formal dance he’d ever been to, so Natsu was already nervous because of that.  It didn’t help that it felt like there were eyes watching him, Jackal and his football cronies on the other side of the room, just glaring.  He really couldn’t understand the guys problem when he had a beautiful date of his own.  Seilah was another cheerleader with Lucy, and very pretty.  Why did Jackal desire Lucy so badly?  Gray suggested it was about power and coveting what he couldn’t have.  Whatever the reason, it was all ridiculous.

An hour into the schedule, the friends were having so much fun talking, they didn’t notice what was going on at the prom until they heard a loud voice over the microphone.  The Principal, Makarov Dreyar stood on the stage ready to announce who that years Prom King and Queen would be.  No one in the group really cared because they figured none of them had a shot.  So, there was no surprise when Jackal was named Prom King.  The guy was an asshole, but he was popular because of his football prowess.  

“And for your Queen, Lucy Heartfilia!”  

“What?!” Lucy blurts out in shock from the turn of events.  “Why would anyone vote for me?!”  The prom king and queen were voted on at the entrance by the students.  She was sure that with the whole football team and cheerleading squad incident, and the fact that they were the popular clique of the school, one of them would win.  Besides the last thing Lucy wanted to do was have anything to do with Jackal.  

She sees Makarov waving at her to come up to the stage to receive her crown.  At first, she tries to shake her head, but he gives her an annoyed look.  Did Jackal get his friends and other to vote so they’d end up winning together?

“You should go,” Natsu mumbles, doing his best not to look upset.  “Everyone’s watching, and it’s just formalities.”

“Really?”  Maybe, Natsu was right.  Just because she was voted prom queen didn’t mean she had to associate with Jackal in anyway.  The faculty crowns them, takes a photo for the yearbook, and sends them on their way.  She’ll just get this over with quickly.  “Oh-kay.”

Lucy throws on a fake smile for the camera as they go through the motions of the ceremony.  A crown, a bouquet, a picture.  She tries to keep a slight distance between her and Jackal, not wanting to be touched ever again by the creep.  As soon as the picture is taken and they are told that they can leave the stage, Lucy flees before Jackal tries anything.  

Natsu watches it all from their table, his eyes zeroed in on the football quarterback.  It was obvious that Jackal was looking for an opportunity to make a move, but luckily for Lucy, the Principal was rushing through the ceremony and not giving the man a chance to get close.  As soon as Lucy leaves the stage however, Jackal follows her.  Midway between their table and the stage, he grabs her elbow to stop her.  Natsu tosses his glasses onto the table and stands up immediately.

“Let me go Jackal, I’m trying to get back to my date.”

“It’s tradition the King and Queen have a dance.”

“The principal never said anything about that, you’re making it up.”

“Look woman, that’s just how it works, now let’s go!”

Lucy yanks her arm away from Jackal’s grip, “No!”

At that moment, Natsu rushes up, pushing Lucy behind him and acts as a shield.  He narrows his eyes and levies a glare at the football star.  “Leave her alone Jackal, she said no, and no means no.”

Jackal growls, “you stupid fucking nerd,” he grabs Natsu below the lapels and yanks him forward.  “Just know you asked for his!”  Jackal seethes, swinging and punching Natsu in the jaw before he has time to block.  

It rocks Natsu for a split second, damn the guy could punch!  Jackal swings again, but this time he’s able to block and pushes the man back.  “Drop it, you, asshole, or I’ll have to hit back!”  Natsu didn’t like fighting at all, but with a burly father who loved to wrestle, he was taught a few things.  He squares up, ready for Jackal’s next move.    

That sends Jackal into hysterics, “a fucking nerd is trying to stand up to me?!  Now I’m really gonna put you on your ass!”  He swings again, but this time Natsu sways to the side, dodging the straight punch, and sends an uppercut of his own, catching the other man directly under the chin, knocking him off his feet.  He may be a nerd but also worked out to keep fit.    

An audible gasp hits the room.  A nerd just knocked the football quarterback on his ass!

Jackal roars and jumps to his feet, launching himself at Natsu.  He throws another punch, which Natsu again tries to dodge, but the man’s knuckles graze his chin with half the power of a full landed punch.  It stings, but nothing like the first punch.    

Despite taking the small hit, Natsu still manages to grab Jackal by the shoulders as he moves past in the momentum, pulling the man’s torso down, while bringing his own knee up into the guys abdomen.  He lands just below the solar plexus enough to knock the wind out.  Jackal doubles over, and Natsu drops him to the ground.      

By this time, the football coach Mr. Clive had rushed over and grabs the crazed Jackal, standing him up, and pinning his arms to his sides.  Jackal screams to be released, but they ignore him, and the coaches grip just tightens around his arms.  The larger adult has no problem keeping Jackal restrained.  Principal Makarov has also arrived by this point.  “Take him to the office right now and call the cops,” the principal tells the coach, “I’ll be there in a couple minutes.”

Once the coach takes away the screaming man, the principal turns to Natsu.  “Are you okay Mr. Dragneel?”

Natsu massages his jaw which was starting to throb, “I’ll be okay.”

“Are you okay Ms. Heartfilia?” Makarov asks the girl who’s also inspecting her date for marks.  

Lucy nods, “I-I’ll be okay.”

“I saw Jackal provoke this and throw the first punch, so you’re not in any trouble for defending yourself Mr. Dragneel.  But, Monday after school I want you both to come to my office so I can take a full report.  Is that understood?”  They both nod their heads.  “Good, enjoy the rest of your evening kids.”  

As Makarov walks away, Lucy and Natsu’s friends rush over and a circle slowly forms around the pair. Other’s gather as well, including a few of Jackal’s own friends, and some of the cheerleaders with a mix of concern and congratulations for beating the bully.  Apparently, they’d acquiesced to the man’s behavior out of fear because he was the quarterback, but it didn’t mean they approved of it.  Seeing a nerd like Natsu stand up to the guy and was winning the fight made them realize how wrong it was to ever put up with Jackal’s attitude to begin with.  Apologies were made to both Lucy and Natsu over the homecoming game incident.  

“We hope you’ll stay on the team,” Kyoka places a hand on Lucy’s shoulder.  “You’re a damn good cheerleader, and we wouldn’t want to lose you.”

Lucy flinches back unsure, but Natsu puts his arm around her waist and coaxes her forward with a relaxed look of approval.  “I don’t know…” she murmurs, “if Jackal is still on the football team it might make me uncomfortable.”

“I doubt they’ll let him stay, might even expel him for fighting,” Tempeter, one of the cooler-headed football jocks chimes up.  

“I think you should stay on the team,” Natsu adds with a sweet smile, “you love cheering, so I’d hate to see you not do it.”

“You really think so?” Lucy questions.

“Yeah,” Natsu’s grin widens, “besides, I’ll always be at the games to keep an eye out.”

That brings a smile back to Lucy’s face.  She turns to Kyoka, the head cheerleader.  “Okay, I’ll stay on.”

“Great.  See you at practice,” the woman smiles and walks away.

After a few more minutes the crowd begins to disburse, leaving just the group of friends alone again.  They return to their table.  What a night this had been, and there was still another hour to go till it was officially over.  The whole ordeal had been exhausting, mentally and physically.

“How is your chin feeling,” Lucy questions Natsu.  The area was red but at least it didn’t look too swollen.  

Natsu touches his chin in a couple of places.  “Tender, but I’ll just throw some ice on it when I get home.”

“I’m sorry you got caught up in all that Natsu,” shame evident in her soft tone.

He cradles Lucy’s cheek, softening his expression.  “No apologies Luce, none of this was your fault.  Jackal is a bastard that threw a tantrum when he didn’t get his way.”

“But you got hurt because of it…”

“And I’d do it all again to protect you.”

Lucy smiles and leans into his hand, turning her head to place a kiss into his palm, and places her own hand over his.  “I’m really glad chemistry class lead to another type of chemical reaction.”  

Natsu chuckles at her pun.  “I couldn’t agree more…”

[freczeyourbrain]

⌞ʾ⁎ ⊰ david corenswet, cismale, he/him ⊱ i think i just saw JOHN DARLING walk across trafalgar square, singing to WILD ( Troye Sivan ). you know, the Twenty-Two PhD Student/Volunteer? people claim that they are just like JOHN DARLING from Peter Pan. it must be because they are Intelligent and Sheltered as well… though i could be wrong. all i know for sure is that they live at Chicago* apartment. 

I HAVE NO SELF CONTROL OBVIOUSLY SO, HERE WE GO BABY, A LITTLE BIT ABOUT MY SON AND THE DARLING’S PRIDE AND JOY: JOHNATHON BLAKE DARLING

as you all know it is me, the trash demon herself. i also play jd, maureen, melchior, elle, and gabriella so this makes john my SIXTH and final son. as always, if you would like to plot with ANY of my characters don’t hesitate to reach out on here via dms or on discord (which im on CONSTANTLY) now, let’s get started on some basic breakdowns of my SWEET SON

B A S I C BACKGROUND

JOHNATHAN BLAKE DARLING is the middle child of the darlings, but he is the eldest of the boys, often his parents treated him slightly like he was the oldest of the three children due to his love for literature and school and how grown up he tended to act his whole life. his father especially pushed him hard his whole life to be something great when he grew up, carrying the weight of the family name on his shoulders basically his whole life.  

during his school years, he actually got picked on quite often, he was lanky and awkward seeing as he hit a rather early growth spurt. often other kids would call him a teacher’s pet, seeing as he was always the top of his class and enjoyed learning new things, but he tried to keep his chin up to the best of his abilities to make his sister and brother happy. he didn’t want them to see him upset, after all, wanting to prove he could be the strong darling brother he was meant to be. 

it wasn’t until after he graduated high school, of course at the very top of his class, that he had a bit of a glow-up of sorts? he grew into his features, got contacts, and began taking his health seriously with regular exercise and eating right. it wasn’t for the aesthetic of it, it was merely to make sure he was as healthy as he could be. 

starting college, he always knew he wanted to help others grow, and teaching seemed like a good option. still wanting to make his father happy, who had very high hopes for him, he agreed to get his PhD in education so he could teach physics at uni and make good money to help provide for his parents ( if need be) who weren’t getting any younger, as well as make them happy. 

in his free time, john volunteers at an orphanage, the desire to hang out with abandoned kids stemming from neverland fantasies he and his siblings dreamed up. something makes him feel a connection to these children, even if he grew up very lucky in a nice home and a full family, he enjoys spending his free time with them. he started off doing it as a high school club, and then as a way to earn credits in college, and now he does it because it really fulfills him.

LITTLE FACTS ABOUT THE MAN HIMSELF:

i’m gonna make a character page one day but here are basics you should know about john.

he is a cancer on his zoadic because he is a very soft boy xoxo

he is bisexual, obviously, but he has never had a girlfriend/boyfriend 

that being said, baby boy is also a VIRGIN and can’t flirt to save his life due to growing up as an outsider to the cool kids and never having anyone want to date him (JOKES ON THEM NOW LOL)

deep down, he dreams of being a little crazy and getting into trouble, his whole life he’s been so sheltered and wants to see what else is out there even if it means breaking out of his shell. ( i’m pulling this from john in peter pan, when he was in neverland, and how easily he threw his perfect life behind the minute he got a taste of the reckless life of a lost boy. homeboy painted his whole ass face and danced around with the Indians and smooched tigerlily at one point so, that’ll be fun to explore)

john is very protective over michael and wendy, despite not being the oldest, he looks out for his siblings constantly, family is VERY important to him.

that’s also big for him, john wants to have a family so bad, the whole big house, tree swing in the big front yard, picket fence DREAM, he wants that so bad. dshjkfhaskjhkjas he is a sweet boy

he legit was put in manners classes as a boy, so he is VERY polite and kind to most people he meets, but is a little cautious of approaching people first bc of his childhood.

AND THAT’S IT BC MY BRAIN IS MELTING OUT OF MY EARS, IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR WANNA PLOT PLEASE REACH OUT XO

[jimlingss]

Jungle Park [15]

Chapter 14 - Chapter 15 - Chapter 15.5 OR Chapter 16

➜ Words: 5.6k

➜ Genres: Fluff, Light Humour (?), Slice of Life, Workplace Romance!AU

➜ Summary: The equation is simple. Hoseok needs to hire someone. You need a job. Except like any actual equation, it’s not fucking simple at all! Not when you have to add the fact that he was forced to hire someone he doesn’t want in his office, he has little respect for your job in general, and oh yeah...once upon a time you might have—*CENSORED*.

“The work you do going forward will not only affect you, but the lives of the people all around you. From your law partners to your clients…” The speaker at the front drones and on and on, his voice booming around the grandiose courtroom. You imagine a wedding ceremony could take place here or a nationwide criminal court case that you often see in the movies.    Jungkook is sitting dead center in the crowd of other articling students, wearing gorgeous black silk robes with a white shirt underneath it. “The most important advice I can gift to you today is to enjoy the journey and not just the destination. You will find in your life that often times—”   His parents are sitting in the front rows, beaming with pride while his older brother is snapping a million photos with his giant Canon camera, embarrassing Jungkook and making him all the more bashful. The entire firm is sitting behind them, watching and proud that the little student was finally being called to the bar.   The judge speaks quietly, calm and composed as he delivers a few jokes here and there while making his own inspirational speech. You listen in before leaning over to Hoseok and lowly whispering, “Is there something on my face?”   “No.” His brows furrow and he takes a glance at you. “Why?”   “I don’t know. You’re the one who keeps looking at me,” you murmur at a barely coherent volume. “Is there something wrong?”   Hoseok sits straight, leaning back on the hard bench and scanning the premise to see if anyone has noticed. “No, no. It’s fine.” The lawyer brushes you off and you have no choice, but to disregard it like it was part of your imagination.   The ceremony continues and everyone watches until the kids stand up together, turning towards the woman who reads the official oath from the open book. Her hand is held in the air and as she reads line by line, the crowd of almost-lawyers repeating after her, being sworn in as they promise to uphold the dignity of the law to the best of their abilities.   As it ends, there’s a massive round of applause and you see Jungkook emerging from the horde to land in his mother’s arms, hugging the older woman while she tells him how proud she is. It’s an endearing sight, especially when his dad gives him a bouquet of flowers to congratulate him and he has tears in his eyes which his brother makes fun of.   “Congratulations, Kook!” Jimin takes five strides outside of the building, walking against the flow of people leaving to smother Jungkook in a hug, even when the younger is larger in built.   “I can’t believe our little Jungkook has finally made it!” Sunyi smiles softly, catching the eye of a few other older lawyers who pass by. She’s wearing a bright yellow sundress that is reminiscent of sunflowers, having gone to a garden party with her grandma before rushing over here and making it on time. Yoongi seems to notice the prying eyes of strangers and stands in the way, blocking her from other people being able to ogle.   “I’m so proud!” Taehyung declares in the meanwhile, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand and sniffling dramatically. “I feel like a father who just watched his son grow up.”   Jungkook laughs, his nose scrunched and his cute bunny teeth showing in his grin. “You’re not my dad.”   “Does this mean we can give him the Yoo case file?” Yoongi suggests in a light voice, lifting his volume to be louder than the noise coming from the different crowds.   “I hope you’re ready, Jungkook.” Naul grips the strap of her bag, closed toe heels stepping together. “You’re going to be in court on Monday by yourself arguing for our client.”   Immediately, the boy’s smile falls. His doe eyes widen as large as saucers, features contorting into blatant fear. Jimin nearly falls onto his knees in laughter. “Give him a break! He’ll go on Tuesday.”   But that still does little to comfort the new lawyer. “T-T-...Tuesday?”   “Don’t tease the poor kid!” You step in with a laugh, saving the day before he can have a mental breakdown. “Come on, we can talk about this later. We should get back to the office.”   “Everyone, listen to Y/N. She’s the boss now.” Jimin announces with a smile and the entire firm walks off not to crowd up the entrance and block people from exiting. Jungkook’s parents and brother join as well, but you shift around slightly when you notice that he and Hoseok linger.   “Good job, Jungkook.” Hoseok wraps his arms around the younger’s shoulder, hugging and squeezing him while swaying side to the side.   The boy blinks a few times before melting into a sheepish smile. “Thanks.”   Hoseok plants a fat kiss on his head, on top of his hair, and Jungkook makes a disgruntled noise, moving back to avoid further smooches. Hoseok laughs and you smile before turning away.   //   The party is rather modest and much less chaotic than the end-of-the-year holiday celebration, but there’s still catering and everyone is able to get a nice lunch. Music plays in the back while people mingle together, but the main attraction seems to be the slideshow of Jungkook from when he was a baby until now. You’re glad Jimin insisted on making it and that you contracted his parents to find the photos. It warms your heart and he’s downright adorable. You feel proud that he came such a long way.   “You were so cute as a toddler.”   He’s shy and flustered, scratching the back of his head. “Thanks.”   “I was going to get you a bouquet of flowers too, but I didn’t know what you would do with them.”   “It’s okay. All of this is more than enough.”   “At least let me treat you to a meal some time, okay?” you insist, feeling way too guilty when it seemed like everyone else had some sort of present for him. “It’s my way of saying congratulations.”   Jungkook nods with a bright grin. “Okay.”   It doesn’t take a single second later before Lisa is shrieking at the top of her lungs. “Oh my god!” The both of you whirl your heads over to find the slideshow beginning Jungkook’s puberty years and his face drains of colour all at once. Jimin, Taehyung, Seokjin, Namjoon, and Seulgi all burst out into laughter, unable to contain themselves.   “Look at how cute he is!” His mother coos at the photos, a sense of nostalgia overwhelming the older woman.   “Mom! Oh my god. How do we turn this off?!” He groans, walking over and trying to do damage control. But more pictures of Jungkook’s fourteen year old self dressed as Goku and other various characters from Dragon Ball Z comes up.   “This was ingenious.” Hoseok approaches with one hand in his pocket and the other holding a glass of nonalcoholic champagne. He stands side by side with you, looking straight ahead at the projected screen.   “Thanks. It was Jimin’s idea though.”   “Still a good job on your part.” He steals a glance, but never looks you in the eye. “Jimin has a thousand ideas every day. Doesn’t mean they can all be executed.”   “Mhmm…” you hum a note, watching everyone chatting. Jungkook is still the center of attention and scrambling to save face in front of his colleagues and superiors. It’s loud and noisy all around you, but between you and Hoseok, it’s quiet. “You know….you don’t have to tiptoe around me.”   He turns to look at you in surprise and you smile, using his own words against him. “I’m not.”   “You seem uncomfortable. If it’s something I did, then let me know so I can fix it. You don’t suit being nervous and unconfident.”   There’s a beat of silence before he’s scoffing with a laugh. “You didn’t do anything,” he lies easily. “It’s because of work. Things are beginning to pick up and soon enough, we’re going to be busy around here.”   “If it’s stress then you can always come talk to me if you want.” You nudge him playfully. “There are a ton of stress relieving methods I know about and I might be able to give you a stress ball or two. But you should hurry. I have reason to suspect that Jin’s going to claim all of them soon.”   Hoseok laughs. “I’ll pass.”   “Your call.” You shrug. “You’re the one who hired me, so you should use me to your full advantage.”   “If I used you to your full advantage, you wouldn’t last a single day.” There’s a streak of mischief that glimmers in his eyes.   Now you’re the one scoffing. “What’s that supposed to mean?” And to your dismay, the lawyer only shrugs and giggles again. It’s nice to see him relaxed and at ease, able to joke around with you and look you in your eyes. Things have returned back to normal…..at least temporarily.   //   Although you have no clue what is a lie and what is a truth when it comes from his lips, Hoseok isn’t wrong when he told you that things were about to become busy….because things become hectic and out of control. If the phrase ‘shit hits the fan’ could be personified, you suppose this is what it would look like.   “Namjoon, Namjoon.” Yoongi’s walking with his briefcase and coat in tow, a quick pace that the poor legal assistant can barely keep up with. “I need you to come with me. Bring me Mr. Ji’s case file.”   “Okay.” The male’s glasses nearly fall off his face with how quickly he whips himself to the left, grabbing his jacket and belongings.   “We’re meeting with his wife’s attorney. Apparently he took the kids with him and she wants to press kidnapping charges.” The both of them run out of the office like their pants are on fire.   In the meanwhile, on the other side of the floor, Seulgi and tech-savvy Dahyun are on the carpet trying to fix the copier. The photocopier jammed an hour ago while the other copier is failing to connect to any computer whatsoever. It’s an outright disaster with Inyoung taking Dahyun’s place at reception, catching up on all the phone calls, technicians being contacted to fix the machines. Seokjin left to the courthouse to print the necessary documents needed for later files.   At least Taehyung and Jungkook managed to escape the madness that was spiralling wildly. They drove to the next city over, dealing with a case at a different courthouse. Naul is also meeting with a client somewhere outside the office. It leaves only a few of you left at the actual firm, notably Jimin and Sunyi who are in the middle of mediation in the conference room. Half an hour ago, the wife came in and angrily demanded that things be resolved today. The appointment was pushed up, the soon-to-be-ex husband dragged in, and it ruined the schedule completely.   You feel useless. There’s nothing you can do to help. Legal professional privilege doesn’t allow you to assist in matters between a client and a lawyer, and when you tried to help fix the photocopier, you dragged them down with your confusion. You’d bask in the simpleness of your job if it wasn’t for the way guilt worms its way beneath your skin.   The phone rings suddenly and it snaps you out of your trance. Inyoung is on the other line, sounding a little more nervous than usual. “Ummm...Y/N...have you seen Hoseok?”   “No, I haven’t. Did you try calling his cell?”   “He’s not picking up. I didn’t see him exit either.”   “Is there something wrong?”   “No, there’s someone here to see him, that’s all. But I’ll tell her to wait.”   “Okay. Tell me if you need help with anything.”   “Alright.”   You resume working on the staff handbook, completed three quarters way through. You’re finally finished the section about discipline policies and about to begin writing about rules regarding company equipment and computers. But as you stand to stretch your legs and make your way to the kitchen for a coffee refill, on the way there, you run into someone in the waiting area.   “Wendy?”   “Oh! Y/N!” The beautiful woman with her light pink blouse and black pencil skirt stands with a smile. She fixes her honey coloured hair to drape her backside. “It’s been a while!”   “Yeah, it’s been a long time.” You linger for an awkward moment, not sure what to do before you motion down the hall. “Would you like to come into my office instead of waiting out here?”   “Sure.” She grabs her bag and follows your lead.   “I’m sorry. We don’t know where Hoseok is at the moment, but we should be able to reach him soon.”   “It’s fine. I don’t mind. It’s not like I have anything else to do. I’m actually quite free these days and it’s nice to be around other people. Less lonely that way.” As she walks down the corridor, her brown eyes does a sweep of the premise. “You guys must be busy around here.”   “Yeah, it’s been a bit hectic this week.”   “I’m glad Hoseok’s business is doing well.” She has a soft smile while entering your office. “This is so cute!”   “It’s nothing much.” You’re embarrassed at your poor excuse of an office. There are lame posters on the wall, tiny plants at the window sill, but it’s still a closet no matter how hard you try to make it better. “Just making do with what I have.”   “No, it’s cozy.” She takes a seat from across your desk. “Trust me, I once had a massive office and just useless furniture. Made me feel worse since it was so empty and lonely.” Wendy sighs, “I’m so glad it’s over.”   “Over?”   “I’m selling my office and the entire firm actually.” She leans back in the comfortable armchair with her arms crossed. “I owned the firm with my husband, built that business from the ground up. We were partners, but now that we’re getting that divorce, we’re liquidating it all and splitting the money.”   “It’s funny, huh? How you can invest yourself and your future so much into another person, but something just happens and all your plans get ruined.” It’s like a pressurized geyser has exploded the minute you took off the lid and she spills all the beans of her life. “Well...I’m just happy to get away.”   “That’s good then.” You’re not so sure if you should be hearing all this, such private matters that are usually kept hidden from you, but Wendy tells you casually like she doesn’t mind, like she’s reading from the Sunday paper, like you’re a friend.   “You’re giving me that look.”   “What look?”   “That fearful look that tells me you’re scared.” The corner of her red lipstick-stained lips tugs upwards and she flicks a piece of dirt from underneath her fingernail before bringing her attention back to you. “Don’t worry. Not all marriages end like mine. Some end worse. Some end better. A lot don’t end at all.”   Without taking a breath she continues, “They always tell you not to shit where you eat...if that man,” she spits the word out with disdain, “and I were not partners, it probably would’ve made this a lot easier. I would still have a job at least. But you know, my seventeen years of marriage was great. The three after that were alright and then the last two were horrible. If you were to ask me if I would do it all over again….maybe. For seventeen years, I had everything I could’ve wanted, a partner, a husband, a companion.”   A wistful sigh leaves the seams of her mouth and she gestures with her hand tiredly. “I think I’m rambling, but I don’t want to scare you off.”   “What do you mean?” you ask, not sure what she’s implying.   There’s a chance that she doesn’t hear your question and a chance that she straight out ignores you. She never once clarifies herself. Instead, Wendy switches the topic of conversation. “How’s Hoseok?”   “Hoseok? Y-yeah...he’s doing fine. Busy.”   The fifty-one year old lawyer who appears stunningly twenty-five reaches out and takes the stress ball on your desk that looks like Earth. She squeezes and watches it come back to life, relaxing in the chair and fiddling with the toy. “That boy is always busy. He’s very passionate about his work. But outside of it, I swear to god, he’s a clown.”   You burst out laughing. “I would say he’s more like a cheerleader.”   “Yes.” The woman snaps her fingers. “That kid has a handful of good traits, encouraging, cheerful, but his energy can be downright burdensome. Not only that, but he is so meticulous and I’ve seen him run this office enough to know he secretly enjoys tormenting his employees.” Hoseok’s former mentor laughs again and shakes her head. “He keeps your hands full without you even realizing.”   “No one really knows that side of him around here.” You take a brief glance outside of your office door. “Everyone is either scared, intimidated, or they just don’t like him. He thinks being respected and being loved are mutually exclusive.” The timbre of your voice drops down into a whisper. “It makes me sad.”   “But he seems brighter these days,” the woman from across your desk points out while watching you carefully.   “Does he?”   You hope so. Sometimes you worry that he feels too alone. You know that Hoseok is completely aware of the rumours about him and how people actively avoid him. And he doesn’t want to make anyone feel uncomfortable, so he leaves this office later or earlier to avoid taking the elevator with his employees. He doesn’t speak freely to people who aren’t Jimin and Yoongi. He eats lunch by himself in the office, pretending he’s too busy to join everyone else. He rarely displays his affection, rarely shows no restraint. He focuses too much on being firm and professional. He doesn’t mind being labeled at the mean and angry one. And it makes you sad.   Jung Hoseok makes you worry too much.   “Yeah.” Wendy’s gaze softens. “And I think it’s because of you.”   “Me?”   “Hoseok is very careful with the people in his life. Despite his good nature, he’s a man of serious commitment and loyalty. I know that much.” She nods as further confirmation of her convictions. “And I can tell that the two of you are very close.”   “We...we aren’t that close,” you deny. “It’s just that we used to go to school together, that’s all.”   But the female’s perception is too sharp for you to fool. “I think you’re underplaying the truth here.” Another smile appears on her visage. “There’s nothing wrong with admitting you care about another human being.”   “I just….” You don’t know how to explain yourself, how to reveal a past that cannot be spelled out in mere words. “We tried. A long time ago. We tried to be something more. And it didn’t work out. At all.”   She hums, setting down the stress ball and looking straight at you. “I think sometimes things aren’t meant to work out...but that doesn’t make the time spent together any less meaningful. Sometimes and only sometimes...I think there are things in the world that are worth trying over and over again.”   Your mouth opens, but before something more can be said, someone else appears at the door. He’s panting a few breaths, black hair made amok, suit slightly wrinkled like he jogged here. “I was in the bathroom.”   “There you are!” Wendy lifts herself from her seat and gives a quick hug to the lawyer.   “Sorry for making you wait.”   “No, I was having a nice chat with Miss. Y/N here. Very pleasant girl.”   “Alright…?” Hoseok glances at you, a bit amused and skeptical. Then he looks at his former mentor and now client. “Should we get going?”   “Of course.” Wendy turns to you. “I’ll speak to you some time, Y/N.”   You smile at her. “My door’s always open.”   //   The woman muses how much darker Hoseok’s office is compared to yours. While he has more space and a much larger window, there are blinds pulled a quarter way down and his furniture is a lot darker, mahogany wood or polished black surfaces, a modern aesthetic. In contrast, your tiny space feels like a sunroom, a lighter colour scheme with plenty of sunshine that makes it a lot more breathable. It’s certainly interesting to compare your spaces and tastes, and how they could potentially complement each other well and strike a good balance.   Hoseok is preoccupied flipping through stacks of papers, writing things down. On the other hand, Wendy is sitting across from his desk, legs crossed over one another, bored.   “That girl is sweet.” There’s silence and she fiddles with the zipper of her expensive purse. “She’s very earnest, I can tell. Her heart’s in the right place.”   “She’s naive and trusts too easily,” he mumbles from the corner of his mouth.   “That’s not necessarily a bad thing,” she points out. “I heard you used to know each other back then.”   “Uh-huh.”   “You dated?”   Hoseok finally lifts his head, meeting her eyes. “She told you that?”   “She said it didn’t end up working out.”   “Oh.”   “Do you love her?”   “What?” Hoseok’s eyebrows shoot up to his forehead, getting whiplash at how she went in for the kill without beating around the bush. He scoffs and barks out a laugh, returning to his paperwork. “Don’t be ridiculous. Y/N is my employee.”   “It’s not illegal.”   “It’s unethical.”   “She technically doesn’t even work under you or take orders from you,” Wendy says in a curt tone, never one to back down when she knows she’s right. “She runs her own department and does her own thing. I don’t see any problem in it.”   “Can we please stop talking about my business and get back to yours?”   “I’m always talking about my issues and problems. It gets boring when you have to constantly discuss the doom of your love life, alright, kid?”   Hoseok ignores her and clasps his hands together on top of his desk. “So you really decided to liquidate the firm? I thought you were planning to split it.”   “No. We agreed to just sell. There would be too many problems with figuring out who gets what client and which employee we would take with us. It’s better and faster to do it this way. Plus, I don’t think I have an interest in pursuing law anymore.”   “What?” He frowns, jaw becoming slack. “What are you planning to do then?”   “Travel. See the world. Maybe write a book.” Wendy shrugs. “Do all the things I couldn’t do when I was married and working full-time.”   “But will you ever return to practicing law?”   “Probably not. I’m at the age where I can retire early and have enough money to last the rest of my life.”   Hoseok shakes his head, reeling from unadulterated shock. Wendy is a great lawyer, a role model, someone he looked up to, and he can’t understand why she’s throwing it all away. “I just don’t…”   “Get it? Yeah...sometimes I wonder how this all happened.”   “Just…” Hoseok sets his pen down and looks at her. The woman has always looked younger than her actual age, an impressive feat created from hard efforts, genetics, and expensive creams. While many people, men and women alike, have been impressed with how well she takes care of herself, Hoseok never cared much for it. But right now, up close, he can see her wrinkles and the deep set marks of age, exhaustion, how life has taken its toll on her. She looks more tired in the past year than she has her entire life. “Where did things go wrong?”   But at the same time, she appears wiser.   “You know, Hoseok—” Wendy’s legs uncross and she sits straighter. “—I loved Mark very much. I know he was your mentor too and you respected him greatly. You were around us when our marriage was at its highest points, so I understand why you’re surprised when I first came to you about this.”   He can’t hide how hurt he is anymore. It was never his marriage, but they always symbolized his hope. “You were both so in love. I could’ve never expected…”   “This outcome? For us to think it’s easier to just end things? Yeah...” She smiles meekly and gently whispers, “me either. But it happens and it’s okay. We both just fell out of love. We both fought. We lied. We cheated on each other. We merely tolerated one another. It was ugly. And I hated myself.”   He’s heard the same story a million times over. No one ever gets into a relationship believing they’ll break up or get a divorce. It’s unplanned. In every single case he’s worked on, every story he’s read, there were always the high moments. There was always love at some point. There was always happiness. It’s just that no one ever expects for it to crash and burn and become so hideous.   Happiness. Family. Children. Love. Anger. Infidelity. Abuse. Deceit. It happens all with the same people. There are years spent sharing bedrooms, falling in love, creating families, raising kids. And there are years drawn out screaming across the courthouse, cursing each other to death, grabbing any assets, letting pettiness get the better of logic, trying to win as if it’s some kind of game.   “I think being a divorce lawyer has made you jaded, Hoseok,” Wendy comments.   “How could it not?”   “You’re right. It doesn’t always work out, but sometimes it does. And I think the feeling of love, of companionship, is completely worth the risk.”   His mouth lifts into a timid smile. “Since when did you become such a hopeless romantic?”   “Since I saw you and that girl together.”   Hoseok scoffs yet again, brushing her answer off. “You’ve seen us twice together. That’s it.”   “And that’s all I need to see,” Wendy snaps back, unyielding. “If you’re a good mentee then you would just listen to what I have to say. I’ll tell you the same thing I said to her — just because things don’t work out, doesn’t mean the time spent together is meaningless, and sometimes it’s worth trying things over again.”   She stares straight into his eyes, dead center like his pupils are the bullseye of a target. “You will learn from other people’s mistakes, from my mistakes, and you will face what you want rather than running away.”   “Just because you see love fail every single day, doesn’t mean yours will fail too, Jung Hoseok.”   //   The rest of the day simmers down at a better pace. Taehyung and Jungkook return earlier than expected and help Jimin and Sunyi catch up on their schedule that they were behind on. Naul and Seokjin are in good condition while Yoongi and Namjoon call to let everyone know the problems have been resolved.   The copier gets fixed miraculously and Dahyun returns to the phones and Inyoung goes back to her position as well. But by then, the work day is over and everyone bids each other goodbye. You stay a few minutes later, finishing typing up the paragraph for the day before grabbing your belongings and your coat.   You’re about to leave, but you notice Hoseok’s office door is closed with the lights still on. Wendy had left hours ago and the receptionists are gone. He’s not having a meeting with anyone, and it’s this relentless curiosity that causes you to knock on his door three times.   Your knuckles rap on the surface of the wood. But with no sound responding, you carefully crack the door open. The sight of Hoseok’s mouth wide open greets you. His head is knocked back, neck on his chair, slumped, and snoozing away.   You smile, approaching with three strides and calling him quietly. “Hoseok...Hoseok?” Your hand lifts to gently shake his arm. “Hoseok.”   “Hhm? W-what?” He slowly blinks awake, sitting up again and looking around as if he forgot where he was. “What...what happened?”   “You fell asleep. It’s time to go home.”   He stretches his arms up in the air and yawns, glancing at you and becoming embarrassed. Hoseok puts on his coat slowly, arms pulling through the sleeves, and you wait for him. “I didn’t realize I was so tired.”   “It’s okay. I won’t tell anyone.” There’s a cheeky grin on your face. “I know things have been hectic around here, so it’s okay if the boss gets a little nap time.”   Hoseok scoffs lightly and turns to look at you. You’re ready for this cue to leave this office, but when he simply stares, you’re forced at a standstill, feet rooted in the ground, swallowing hard as your heart rate begins to pick up speed. “Y/N, can I ask you a question?”   Your head tips. “Sure. What is it?”   “I know this is inappropriate and unethical. It might be deemed as sexual harassment too. I don’t want to impose on you in any way. Just tell me if you’re uncomfortable and we can pretend this never happened—”   “What is it?” you interrupt, unable to contain your amusement when he’s acting so oddly frantic.   “Can I...can I have..a hug?”   There’s a pause before you answer.   “Okay.” A slow grin spreads across his face, giving him permission by opening your arms up and motioning him over. When Hoseok stays hesitant, you take a step closer and casually wrap your arms around him. He embraces you back after a delayed moment and it goes quiet.   “I’m sorry.”   “For what?”   “I’m your boss. I shouldn’t be doing this.”   “It’s really not that big of a deal. It’s just a hug. I thought it was something much worse.” You giggle quietly, trying to ease his tense muscles that seem to be shriveling up in your embrace. “Did you know hugs can be part of stress relief? I’m just doing my job.”   Hoseok smiles, reminding you of the sun as he leans down, pulling you closer to accommodate for the slight height difference. “This is definitely not part of your job description.”   “I like giving out hugs, so I definitely wouldn’t mind if it was.”   “You’re beginning to sound like Jimin.”   “Why didn’t you ask him to hug you instead?”   He snorts, laughter bubbling from his throat boyishly, voice moving in a childish pitch and you can practically hear his pout. “I’d rather hug you for a million years than hug him for one second.”   You have to remind yourself over and over again that this means nothing. Hoseok just needs emotional support. He just craves platonic physical contact. He’s friendly. This means nothing more. It means nothing. Nothing. Nothing. Nothing.   “I don’t know about that. A birdy told me you kissed Jimin a lot,” you tease, keeping your mind off of unnecessary thoughts that are beginning to plague you.   “On the forehead.” Hoseok melts into your arms, smiling harder. “It means nothing.”   “Yeah...I know. I know.”   It’s quiet. There’s an absence of all sounds, of white noise, of the busy concrete jungle that surrounds the building you’re in. In Hoseok’s office, you can’t even hear the buzzing of the fluorescent lights above you. All you take in is the sound of his soft breathing, the noise of your running pulse playing in your ears, the scent of fresh linen coming from his crisp clothes, the slight tinge of expensive cologne, how firm yet soft he is wrapping himself around your frame.   It’s an invasion of privacy, how easily he can sneak himself and affect your deepest emotions. And yet, you have no nagging doubts, merely savouring his warmth and finding peace and comfort in his touch.   “I help end marriages every day. I see the end of relationships all the time,” he murmurs, barely coherent as if afraid to ruin this moment. “I...don’t think I believe in love, Y/N.”   “Me either,” you admit.   “Why?”   “Because...my love wasn’t enough.” It hurts. You shut your eyes tight as if you can stop the barrage of memories, prevent tears from soaking down your cheeks. “And I think I lost my chance.”   He swallows hard and holds you closer, tighter, without any regard for where you are or who the both of you are. “Whoever hurt you was an asshole.”   “Yeah.” Your hands curl around the fabric of his coat, bunching it in your palm, grasping onto him. “He was.”   The man becomes sleepy, blinks heavy as his heart feels. He should let go of you, but he doesn’t want to. It’s like his senses have told him he once let go of you before when he never should’ve. But eventually, enough time passes that you stir. “Hobi, are you okay? Is there something you want to talk about?”   His entire body freezes up, muscles becoming rigid, and he pulls away, brows knitted together. “What did you just call me?”   “What?” You blink. “I said Hoseok.”   “No, you didn’t.” He hasn’t heard that nickname in years. His parents don’t even call him that and he knows for a fact that he isn’t going crazy, that his ears aren’t deceiving him.   You step back and pull him away. In one breath, you’ve closed yourself off, drawing into your own body, uncomfortable. “I said Hoseok,” you insist with a sigh. “But can we go now? I’m going to miss my train.”   He nods and you walk ahead of him, going straight towards the elevators. Hoseok is left staring at your lonely backside and he wonders how he could’ve been such an asshole, what he exactly did to hurt you so much, who you exactly mean to him.

[whosjunglejim4322]

A Bitter Taste-JJK

Summary- Your new roommate happens to be a vampire. He also happens to have a peculiar distaste towards humans, ironically. What happens when he realizes, that you're the only person he’s sorta liked in over a century?

Genre | vampire!Jungkook x reader, best friend!Taehyung x reader, angst, some fluff between bff Tae and Y/n

Warnings | slight nsfw content, mentions of blood

So a vampire and a human walk into a shared apartment..." 

The joke will never be even remotely funny, not even when it is passing the pink lips of your best friend Taehyung, his eyes transforming into crescent moons as he laughs exuberantly at his own wit. 

You roll your eyes with the ghost of a smile still lingering on your pout, chin in your palm as your metal straw clanks against the melting ice in your empty glass. You finished your Bloody Mary an hour ago, but you just can’t bring yourself to leave the company of Taehyung. 

Mostly because the creature who has been your housing mate for the past three months, sort of despises anything that has an actual heartbeat. 

You don’t exactly blame him, considering what humans have done to vampires in the past, and the fact that in some other parts of the world vampires are still hunted and killed rather than accepted. 

Your city, in fact, is one of the only ones that actually considers vampires as common folk, even having functioning blood banks filled with volunteers ready to help cater to them as to create a safe and healthy environment for everyone involved. 

Of course, there are a few bad apples, just as humans, which is why your city does things the way it does. 

If they have a safe place to get their meals, there are less rampages or hungry vampires going rouge. 

Not that vampires really scare you, which is why you had little to no inhibitions when signing the lease to become Jeon Jungkooks roommate. 

Though, it was safe to say that he wasn't exactly thrilled to have you in his quarters. But he was desperate, and honestly was willing to accept anyone. Even people like you, with your rose scented hair and bright, blinding smile. 

Disgusting, he had thought to himself. Who even are you? To come waltzing in smelling sweet, to have such warmth within your aura. You didn’t flinch, not even when he was telling you the rules you’d have to follow when living with him. 

“First and foremost, keep all of your refrigerated food on the bottom shelf. My meals stay on the top at all times, to keep them colder, and fresher.” 

You felt your skin crawl at the mention of his meals, but it’s no like you hadn't expected it. He’s a vampire for god sakes. It still doesn't mean that trying to make yourself a sandwich and seeing a bag of blood is very pleasant, though.

He met your eyes for the first time since you met him, the almost obsidian irises feeling as if they were boring into your soul. You are sure he could hear the beating of your heart, the pounding of your pulse. Maybe it’s because he looked like a walking, fallen angel; dark hair shadowing the sharp planes of his face, eyes hooded as if even looking at you is a task. 

Or maybe it was because, quite frankly, biting your tongue was becoming difficult, especially with the tone of his next statement. 

“And for no reason should you ever go into my room or study, no matter how urgent your mundane mind thinks the situation might be. Understood?” 

You grit your teeth, remembering that he simply is a disgruntled creature and that you shouldn't let it get to you. “Of course, your majesty.”

You aren't quite sure what compelled you to think that a being like him would find sarcasm to be even partially amusing, but it was already to late to take it back. 

“Your room is down the hall.”

His face remained stone cold, pink lips set into the same, straight line as they had been throughout the entire introduction. You leaned down to grab the handle of your suitcase, and gave him a jubilant grin as you turned on the heels of your boots and trotted off towards your room. 

He grimaced, suddenly feeling as if he needs a drink. He really didn’t know how he was going to put up with you. 

“I think I’m gonna head home, feeling woozy.” Taehyung pouts as you push your empty glass to the side, stretching your limbs before you slide out of the booth. 

He stands with you, gently grasping your wrists and pulling you towards his lithe figure. You let out a sigh as he looks down at you with puppy dog eyes. “Why don’t you stay over? We can have a movie night and eat our weight in snacks, for old times sake.” 

You smile warmly as you wrap your arms around Taehyungs middle, feeling contentment when surrounded by his warmth and sweet, lavender scent. You remind yourself to steal a dollop of whatever lotion he uses the next time you visit his place. 

“I wish I could, but I don’t want to piss off grumpy pants by coming home any later than midnight. Isn’t it you and Jimins anniversary anyways?” 

You look up at him through your lashes, watching his expression change from one of disappointment, to giddiness at the mention of his lover. 

“Yeah but he loves you, and so do I. Besides, why are you worried about coming home too late? Does someone have a crush on Mr. Cullen?” 

You groan against his chest before pushing yourself off of him, giving his broad shoulder a swat as you glare up at him, his dark eyebrows wiggling about. 

“First of all, he’s much more of a Dracula and-hey! I don't have a crush on him! I’d never-he’d never even look at me like that.” 

Taehyung pulls you back into him with a goofy, boxy grin, chuckling at your tipsy state as he whispers in your ear.

“Whatever, lightweight. Just remember who your first and best kiss was.” 

You squeal as the mint haired boy begins to assault your face with a series of loud, obnoxious smooches, causing you to push yourself off of him with a grimace as you wipe your face with your sleeve. 

You giggle as he throws up a finger heart, your eyes rolling for the tenth time tonight as you pull your phone out of your back pocket to call an Uber. 

It is, in fact, true. Taehyung was your first kiss all the way back in sixth grade, underneath the sunset at an empty park after band rehearsal. 

There was a time you had a helpless crush on the boxy smiled boy, how could you not? He’s all soft, honey colored skin, long eyelashes shading chocolate irises, and plump pink lips serving as the centerpiece of his canvas. 

But, you soon realized that he is much more of a platonic soulmate than a romantic one, and you were more than ok with that. In fact, you were thrilled when you found out that he and your universities most famous dance major, Jimin, began dating. 

“Uber is here, gotta go.” 

Taehyung groans, reaching over and giving your hands a squeeze. “That was fast, want me to walk you out?” 

You smile, shaking your head. “I think I can survive one night without TaeTae’s protection. Plus, your lover boy will be here any minute.”

His lips turn upwards at the mention of his childhood nickname, given to him by you, and his grin only grows at the thought of Jimin arriving shortly to begin celebrating their anniversary early. 

“Ok, I’ll see you tomorrow? I’ll have to tell you all about tonight.” he gives you a playful wink as you walk towards the exit, your eyebrows wiggling mischievously. 

“Of course, use protection!” you shout at him from across the bar, both of you ignoring any stares or expressions of distaste, You and Taehyung have always been like this, shameless around the other. It’s refreshing, having a best friend like him that seems to break you out of every shell that you are trying to hide in. 

“Always, baby!” he shouts back, causing a boisterous giggle to bubble in your throat as you exit, giving him a small wave goodbye. 

When you push your key into the lock belonging to you and Jungkooks shared apartment, you realize Taehyung was right. You are a lightweight.

Stumbling through the cold and dark apartment, you begin to think about how obvious it is that you live with a vampire. Speaking of Jungkook, it really bums you out that he doesn’t like you. 

Maybe it’s just the alcohol and exhaustion that is making you feel this way, but the more you dwell on it, the more it gets to you. You have been nothing but nice and accepting these past three months since the day you met him, and frankly, its unfair that he treats you the way he does. 

So, instead of walking to your room, you decide to make an admittedly unwise detour. You know that this isn’t a good idea, but hey, fuck it, right? If he was going to kill you or drain you of your blood he would have already, it’s not like this is going to suddenly make him angrier than what he already is. 

It’s the moment before your palm touches the cold door knob, that a petulant sound graces your ears. 

Actually, the more you listen and the louder the sound grows, you realize its far more than just petulant. It’s a cry, sharp and enough for your fight or flight senses to kick in. 

All your last two braincells can piece together is vampire, girl, crying, and before you know it, you are impulsively swinging Jungkooks door open. 

There are a few things you are expecting to find. Perhaps, a girl getting her throat ripped out. A room covered in blood. A sight that would undoubtedly be Lestats wet dream. 

But, to your surprise, there are none of those things. 

Just Jungkook, with one knee propped up on his messy bed, fingers digging into a soft pair of hips as he fucks the stranger into his mattress with enough force to make the person hang onto his nightstand for dear life.

You don’t even realize how long you've been staring until you hear Jungkook yelling, one arm in the air as he uses the other to cove his still hard manhood with one of his beige colored sheets. 

“Get the fuck out! Didn’t I tell you to never come in here?!” 

One look into his raven eyes, and you seem to come back down to reality, feet finally moving as you run out, slamming the door behind you before scuttling into your room, out of breath. 

You close your eyes, back against your door as you try to figure out what in the fuck just happened. 

You thought Jungkook was murdering someone, but instead, you just found him clapping cheeks. 

You feel like crying, quite honestly. You have always been like that, too sensitive for being scolded, too soft to be yelled at. You should have taken up Taehyungs offer and just stayed with him and Jimin, it would have been a hell of a lot better than making your already irate roommate dislike you even more. 

You don’t bother to remove your clothes as you slip into your bed, underneath the weight of your comforter. You try to think of anything other than the sight you’ve just seen, but it proves to be even harder than you think when you hear his bedroom door creak open, footsteps padding towards the front door before it opens, and then slams shut. 

You are going to hear it in the morning. 

The sun warms your skin as its golden rays peer through your blinds, light being the only thing you can see from behind your eyelids. 

For a moment you almost forget about last nights disconcerting events. Key word, almost.

Dread fills your empty stomach as you hear rustling coming from the kitchen just down the hall, signaling that Jungkook is awake. 

You have three options. 

Number one: pretend it never happened, go on about your business. 

Number two: just wait until he’s gone, then go make breakfast, and continue to avoid him at all costs. 

Number three: talk to him.

In your head, none of these will go particularly well. Pretending it never happened just isn’t going to happen, considering Jungkook practically jump at every opportunity he has to scold you. He will definitely give you hell for this one. 

Avoiding him is also literally impossible, since you literally live with him and will have to cross his path sometime or another. 

Talking to him, even with all the options being bad, is the best one. Perhaps he will understand once you explain to him that you were tipsy and totally misinterpreted what was going on. 

Or maybe the situation is just as helpless as you think it is. 

You open your door just enough to make sure Jungkook won’t see you as you scamper off to the bathroom, only catching sign of his back before you are in the clear. 

Emptying your bladder and brushing your teeth gives you time to think. Not nearly enough, though. But you figure if you brush any longer your gums will start to bleed, so it’s time to suck it up. 

You hype yourself up enough to actually feel semi confident as you walk out, giving your reflection a sigh. You look tired and scared, an image you don’t like. 

You know Jungkook knows you have entered the room, he’s a vampire, a stubborn and irritable one at that. But still, he leans against the counter with his broad back facing you as you sit at a bar stool opposite of him. 

He is sipping something out of a mug, what most people would presume to be coffee, but with all things considered you know better. Although, it probably is sort of like a vampires breakfast, so it doesn’t really bother you as much as it used to. 

It’s quiet until you speak, and you are sure he can sense the lump in your throat, the pounding of your pulse. Sure, like you've stated, you aren't scared of Jungkook by any means, but you are most definitely intimidated at times. 

It’s funny, because his appearance can sometimes juxtapose his personality and nature so much, that any one else would think of him as a soft young man with a charming smile and sweet eyes. 

If they only knew. 

“Listen, I really want to apologize for last night. I-I should have respected not only your wishes, but your privacy above all.” 

You take a deep breath, some of the blood returning to your face as you finally get your initial statement out into the open. 

He doesn’t reply for a few minutes, which should freak you out, but instead honestly gives you more time to breath properly before he finally does. 

“I honestly don’t know if you are an imbecile, or just human. Did you not hear what was going on? Did you just decide to barge in anyways despite specific instruction to never enter my room?”

Despite his words being venomous, his voice is eerily calm. Still, you hate how it’s making you stammer over your own words, how it’s making you feel inferior in a way that's unlike any other.

“T-That's the thing, I didn’t know what I was hearing exactly-” he cuts you off, whipping around to face you with both of his palms flat on top of the granite countertop. A gasp passes your lips as his wicked gaze meets your meek one, your eyes instinctively flicking to his chest as to avoid his malevolent stare.

“Oh I’m sorry, was the please Jungkook don’t stop, not a clear enough of an indication?!” 

At his voices rise in octave, you find yourself shuddering, trying to fight back the tears that burn the back of your throat. You don’t want him to see you cry, that's the last thing you;d ever want, in fact. For people like him, you feel as if it will only give them more of a reason to call you weak. 

“Cat got your tongue?” he spits as you fail to respond. It’s only a few more moments before you manage to find your voice 

“You know what I really heard before I barged in? What I thought was crying. And for a moment all I could see was an image of you, ripping some innocent girls throat out. For the first time, I was scared of you. Terrified, even.” 

His countenance twists into one of disgust and confusion, as if you’ve just used a slur. 

“And the worst part is that, after I realized I was wrong, I felt awful. Awful for going against your rules, awful for thinking you could ever do something like that. But the more I think about it, the more I realize that I wasn’t too far off the mark. Turns out you don't have to rip some ones throat out in order to be a vile person. I will be out of your hair by next week.”

He’s stunned, for the first time in a long time as you scoot away from the counter while wiping your cheeks free of the tears that spilled from your eyes, hopping off of the bar stool and disappearing into your room. 

He feels odd. No, he feels sick, if this is even what sick feels like. He can’t really remember the last time he felt like this, like if he had a beating heart, it would be bleeding out. Ok, that's dramatic, but he can’t explain it any other way. 

He doesn’t care if he hurts you, right? No. He does care, that's why he feels like this, right? You have never even shown an ounce of fear towards him, yet you were actually scared last night? Of him? 

No. No. This doesn’t feel right. You are Y/N, with an annoying bright smile and sweaters that are two times two large for your frame and who always manages to annoy him to the highest degree with your loud ass laughing whenever you’re watching Brooklyn 99. 

In fact, he actually remembers being pissed off at first, at the fact that you never even batted an eye at anything he did that showcased his vampiric characteristics. He is a monster, he feeds on your kind. 

Why are you acting as if he is just like anyone else? 

Some where deep inside, Jungkook wanted you to see him as evil. That's what he’s thought of himself for an entire century. 

But having you cry because of him, admit that you were terrified, to see a dark cloud of sorrow above your head; it doesn't feel as satisfying as he thought it would. In fact, it doesn't feel good at all. It feels like it’s shredding his insides. 

What the fuck are you doing to him, and how does he make this right?

[dietaku]

Amazing Quest 1: Chapter 4

The fourth chapter. You know how it is. Thanks for reading!

Chapter 4: 2 Million Leagues Under the Sea!- We get another sepia tone flashback, this time of an only slightly-younger Hiro and Emilia. Emilia: Well… your form is good. But you swing your sword like a little girl. Hiro: I don’t like hurting people, sis. Besides, everyone knows YOU’RE the messiah the Pudding tribe has awaited! I’m only here because mom had that bottle of aged tequila lying around. Emilia: That has nothing to do with anything! You need to have more confidence! … Wait, I got just the ticket! Emilia runs behind Hiro and plays with his hair. Hiro: Um. What’re you doing? Emilia: I’m giving you a Pudding Warrior Knot in your hair. It’s an ancient custom of our tribe that when a Pudding Warrior comes of age, he gets one! Hiro: Oh. That’s pretty neat. Emilia finishes, presenting the now French braided hero, Hiro, we know now. Hiro: Somehow I feel more fabulous than before. Can’t quite place my finger on it. Emilia: It’s perfect! You’ll be beating up Dark Puddings before you know it! The scene fades, then returns, Hiro, Ozma, Kimyawa and Loyroll laid out on a beach. Hiro: Ungh. I wonder why I never dream in color. Hiro gets up and the others join him. You’ll soon discover this area is only one screen wide, so you’re left to exhaust every possibility until you investigate the water. Not just any water, though, the ONE specific square, just to the left of center. Many players wasted HOURS trying to find this event flag, and many people wrongly believed it was an anti-piracy measure. Nope. Just shoddy programming. The mermaid from before surfaces. Mermaid: So, thief, ready to pay up? Ozma: Hey! We don’t even HAVE a thief in this party! Hiro: Just a reasonable facsimile. Loyroll: You flatter me, as always. Mermaid: You yoinked the goods from that place without paying its rightful owner! Kimyawa: Isn’t that technically liberating it? Mermaid: QUIT CHANGING THE TOPIC! Kimyawa: What’s your name, Stranger-chan? Mermaid: I’m Mancala! Call me Manny and I’ll punch ya in the mug, got it?! I’m the number one marine merchant mermaid you’ll ever see in the sea! Ozma: Meh, mehmehmeh? Mancala: Ignoring that. The point is you took stolen property. So I’m gonna maroon you here until you pay up! Hiro: (Great. Now what do we do?!) You then get a prompt which can result in some different dialogue options. 1) Barter 2) Lie 3) Beg -Barter- Hiro: Okay. It was just a few things. Can’t be THAT expensive. What’s the tab? Mancala: Well… since you asked so nicely! Mancala brandishes an abacus and begins calculating. Mancala: The items total net value, plus the emotional damage to this delicate mermaid, plus interest, plus tax not withheld, plus tax withheld, social security, deducting the “asked so nicely” fee… it all tallies up to a measly 36 trillion gold! Ozma: Can I crush her head like an overripe melon? Hiro: T-trillion?! Are you MAD?! Mancala: If you’re nice, I’ll even include the “cute boy” deduction! That would knock it all the way down to 34! Loyroll: And certainly a deduction for yours truly, if I may be so bold? Mancala: I’m not into girls. … Much. Loyroll: Pardon? Hiro: There’s no way we have that much. That price is absurd. I refuse. Mancala: SAY WHAT NOW?! -Lie- Hiro: What if I told you I know of a great treasure?! It’d more than make up the difference! Mancala: Okay, I’m listening now. Kimyawa: Hiro-ni-chan! You DO?! You’ve been holding out on us?! Ozma: Hiro, how could you?! Loyroll: Most unfabulous of you, my friend. Hiro: … Mancala: … Hiro: Err. Friendship is a sacred treasure, above all material wealth in the Pudding society! Ozma: (So it was just a lie…) Mancala: *Sigh* -Beg- Hiro: Please don’t make me beg. I am not a proud man. Ozma, Kimyawa & Mancala: (This is about to get really hot…) Hiro: (Suddenly, my pride is flaring up within me and I don’t know why…) Loyroll: Well? We’re waiting. Hiro: On second thought, I think I’ll just take a moment to absorb the scenery instead. Mancala: (Darn…) Regardless of your choice, it comes back to here afterward. Mancala: This isn’t getting us anywhere! Hiro: Is there no way to come to an agreement on this? Mancala: Well… you could be my servants for a while! Y’know, help with this, that and the other for a bit and we could call it square! Hiro: I somehow get the impression you’re more ambitious than that. Mancala: Aww, you flirt~! Hiro: (Not the intended reaction. Why does it feel like my life is in danger now?) Ozma & Kimyawa: *Stare* Hiro: At any rate, we don’t have the kind of money on-hand to pay. So I guess we’ve no choice. Mancala: Well, you’re in luck! I just so happened to overhear some of the Dark Puddings talking about the Water Talisman. Hiro: You did? Where is it now?! Mancala: In the Octopus Garden. It’s some ancient ruins not far from my hometown, Mermania. Regrettably, those have been locked up tight since far back as anyone can remember. But I just so happen to know some juicy gossip that may lead us to a key. The Legendary Ice Key! Hiro: Sounds like a lead! Ozma: Or a diversion from the main plot. Poh-tay-toe, pah-tah-tow. Mancala: Either way, I need some henchmen and you need the talisman, right?! I knew it soon as I saw that birthmark! Hiro takes a moment to examine himself. Hiro: Okay, seriously, where is this birthmark you people keep going on about and why do I not see it? Mancala: But that whole “air-breather” problem… there’s only one fix for that! Hiro: Oh no, not another racket… Mancala: Calm down, calm down. It’s a Mermaid’s Kiss! Hiro: Oh. Is that some kind of stone? Or maybe a plant? Or— Mancala leaps from the water, her tail morphs into legs, allowing her to glomp Hiro. Accompanying in a loud, cartoonish “SMOOCH” sound effect, which always gets a giggle out of me. Hiro: W-whoa. That was… brusque. Ozma: *Furious* Kimyawa: *Envious* Loyroll: *Yawns* Are we ready to go now? Then we can enter the water and dive to the underwater map. Though, thanks to aquatic canyons, we can’t just go anywhere we want… yet. Our first stop is down south a ways at Mermania, a recurring city throughout the franchise. There, we can get the “Bikni” armors for our female party members, which give a serviceable boost in defense to each. Hiro and Loyroll can get the “Trnks” which are a step up, but not as huge of one. How does an armor that covers less protect more? It is one of the long, lost legendary mysteries of JRPGs. Anyways, if we talk around at the merchant’s guild here, we’ll learn that Mancala has lost her trader’s license 17 different times due to “questionable practices”. The others roll their eyes when they learn this news but refrain from commenting. After talking to enough merfolk, Mancala fans out from the party. Mancala: Okay! We got everything we need? The legendary ice key is held in the underwater volcano! Hiro: I’d question the physical possibilities but somehow I feel like I’d just be encouraging you at this point. Mancala: Oh, don’t be so glum, chum! It’s pretty much a straight line there! … With a few curves and bumps. And a giant, angry dragon at the bottom. Hiro: Ah. There’s the hitch. I was waiting for that. Loyroll: Slaying a dragon? It’s a tad cliché but I think we can handle that! Mancala: Then what’re we waiting for?! Let’s do it! Ozma: What? You mean stroll up to the dragon and punch it in the face? Mancala: … Yes? Ozma: Metal. Kimyawa: Sugoi, Ozma-chan! At this point we can move back to the ocean floor and the cave in the top-right area is open now. Had we gone he previously, Hiro would’ve met the Giant Sentient Block, a really existential gag that plagues AQ players for years to come. In fact, in the early-internet era, whether this pseudo-character even existed was up for debate, as most of his appearances in this game are very easily missed. The cave itself is pretty straight-forward, except about midway, where the current puzzles spell out great confusion for those who tried to brute force the puzzles, which would flush them down a comically oversized pit where you’d battle the Toilet Snake monster, which is obsessed with poison attacks. Otherwise, the local monsters like the Munchkinfish, Seaweeder, and Poof Fish are actually quite weak compared to other monsters around this level. Here you can find a Coral Abacus for Mancala, replacing the nonsense “TmSn” Abacus she comes with normally (the Japanese name is “Termite Snack” and I guess they were okay with letting everyone assume it meant “Thompson” or something!). Afterward, you just press on down the stairs… up until you enter the gameshow chamber. Yeah, that’s not a joke. The party fans out and stands behind a podium as a huge, anime octopus-man plops down in a suit and tie. Octopus: Welcome, ladies and gentlefish to Amazing Quest: The Game Show: The Video Game: Home Edition v. 1992! I’m your host, Otto! And you lucky heroes are in for a treat today! You get to try my quiz game challenge! Win and you’ll receive fabulous prizes! Fail and you get… well, nothing! Are we ready to play?! We then get a prompt of “Squid yeah!” or “Fin no!”, but obviously the game won’t let you progress until you at least TRY, so, yeah… Otto: Question 1 will be an easy one to get your feet wet! What tribe is Hiro from? We get a prompt between “Pudding”, “Protagonist” and “Team Laser Explosion”. The answer is quite obvious. Otto: Correct! Question 2: What is Ozma’s family name? This one is a little trickier, being given the possible answers “Trouble”, “Tohrubble” and “Toruble”. Just be aware of what her name REALLY is, and you’ll be fine. Otto: Great job! Really kraken ‘em up! Question 3: What mystical artifacts, when united, unleash a great and terrible power? The answers this time are: “The DisKord Stones”, “Hell’s Bells”, and “The Talismans”. Interestingly enough, the other options are shout-outs to DOS-era adventure titles, which AQ4 later also shouts out to. Otto: Whooo! Now we’re gilly getting into it! Question 4: What elemental affinity is the first boss of this game? The prompt is just Fire, Water and Pie, so the answer is obviously water as it was the monster in Fog Tower. If you say Pie, Otto’s arms drop to his sides, as he turns to face the player directly and will stare at you for 10 tedious, unnerving seconds before prompting you to try again. Otto: ALRIGHT! Last one and this one separates the squids from the suckers! Question 5: Which of these is NOT an element of magic?! The answer prompt this time is four options wide, including: “Music”, “Emotion”, “Boobs” and “Food”. You’d only know the answer to this if you read the instruction booklet – which specifically references the elements of magic in the AQ universe. This is kind of a jerk move by the game devs, as losing the manual in the early SNES era was a foregone conclusion by all but the most dedicated collectors. The answer is technically food, but the AQ manga series actually contradicts this during the “Great Pudding Cook-Off” arc. Otto: N-no way! What an amazing contestant we had on the show! Everyone, put your fins together for our new winners! A bunch of fish suddenly leap-on screen and shake about excitedly as the SNES strains to emulate the sound of uproaring applause. Then they retreat to whence they came. Otto: How do you feel? Hiro: A little drunk? Otto: YOU HEARD IT HERE, FOLKS! Now, enjoy your fabulous prizes! For answering all five correct, we get 3 “Fishy Hats” which are helmet upgrades that anyone in the party can put on. We’re then booted from the quiz room and resume our trek through for a few more rooms up until we reach the boss chamber. There, there’s a huge hole in the center of the room, glowing red. Hiro: I have to assume this is where the dragon awaits us. Mancala: Better go up and check just to be sure, Hiro! We’ll wait back here, where it’s safe! Hiro: *Sigh* Very well. One moment. Hiro walks to the lip and looks down. Hiro: Deep. But I don’t see anything. Hiro kicks a small stone from the lip down below, then puts a hand to his ear to listen for it. Hiro: … Deep. Very deep. But I still don’t— The screen begins violently shaking. Hiro: Well, I’ve been wrong before. -Boss Fight!- Trench Serpent LP: 7500 MP: 1000 This gigantic beast is a real threat at last! I hope you took the time to level up on your way here! Your best bet is use Kimyawa’s Fox Flip, if you’re leveled high enough to have it by now, which can briefly confuse the monster to some considerable effect. However, it mandates being quite a bit over-leveled to use here, so she may be money ahead to spam the Mirror of Kii. The serpent’s most dangerous move is “COWABUNGA!” which sends a killer tidal wave over the party – never mind that we’re already underwater during this fight. Your Pudding Swirls should be sufficient, provided you’re not careless. If you monitor your HP burn, you should come out on top. -Boss Fight!- Hiro: Whew… that was surprising. Mancala: Look! The Ice Key! A banana in a block of ice floats down to Hiro’s hands. Hiro: I lack the words. As usual. Mancala: We have it! Now we can go to the Octopus’ Garden! Hiro: Tell me it’s not a quiz game. Mancala: Probably not! Loyroll: Life is far more fun when you never know what comes next, right? Hiro: I guess so. At this point we –can- go on to the next area, if we wanted to. However, a hilarious and easily-missed Easter egg awaits those who return back to Zaius and Heston. The people gather at a neutral ground once you walk into one of the cities. Hiro: Okay. Everyone. Watch very carefully. I’m gonna bring peaceful resolution to this once and for all. Hiro brandishes his sword, then cuts the Ice Key clean in half. Mancala: HIRO! WHAT THE HELL?! Hiro: Just watch. This is going some place. Hiro takes the banana free of the ice, then peels it from center-out on both ends. Crowd: WHAT?! N-no way! No one has ever… how did he DO THAT?! Hiro: See? Now you understand: there’s more than just two ways to do something! And each is equally valid. And now we all learned an important lesson, right? Crowd: HE HAS ANGERED THE VOLCANO GODS! Hiro: Beg pardon? The camera pans out as a nearby mountain erupts into a volcano, the magma pours out and wipes out both villages in a flash. It then cuts back to the party. Mancala: Oh. Right. This place is ruled by the twin brother gods of volcanoes: Rilk and Klir. They also had very particular food habits. And banana peeling was one of their sacred doctrines. Hiro: … How was I supposed to know that? So with two more destroyed cities under our belts, we find the Melted Blade, a new sword for Hiro as we return to the sea for the Octopus Garden. The garden is a 3D maze, using a really curious fixed-perspective isometric view and water spouts that move Hiro up and down as you run through. People have wasted HOURS of their lives here due to the numerous deadends and confusing layout. This is also only the first screen. The second area has moving platforms which Hiro must traverse in order to cross a river. For some reason, this ordeal seems quite nostalgic, doesn’t it? The third area introduces the garden’s true gimmick – the octopus jars and the red and blue octopi. When you get here, the party fans out. Mancala: Ah. I’ve heard of this room. We have to approach it from a certain angle! Hiro: I don’t suppose you know what it is? Mancala: Grandma said this: red octopi are friendly and will pull you near them for a closer look! Blue octopi are shy and if approached, will politely move you away from their homes! But don’t fear – neither will harm you! Hiro: What on Earth does THAT mean?! Mancala: I dunno. Why? Hiro: … Kimyawa: Nii-chan, I think I understand! The octopi-tachi are different colors here. Red will pull us near from far away and blue will push us from near to far. And the room is full of holes in the floor. So, to progress, we need octopi-tachi to move us from one spot to another. Hiro: So the riddle lies in the color and the distance. I see. This is the most head-scratching moments in the game, not due to the base mechanics, but to how fiendishly clever the rooms that lie ahead really are. As explained, red octopi reach out three or four spaces ahead to grab us, but will ignore us if we’re one or two spaces out from them, and blue octopi ignore us at distances of three or greater, and will move us away from them three to four spaces if we approach. Using this knowledge we must move about the map step by step to progress. The first room is very simple and just a test of how each works. The second room adds more walls and holes in the floor to test your critical thinking. The third room adds floors that collapse once stepped on (which reset if you leave and come back) and the final room adds conveyer belts for a touch of twitch-reflex testing! Even with random encounters turned off for these moments, this still routinely gets ranked in the top 5 most hair-pullingly frustrating dungeons in the series. Once you get to the end, we see another pit not unlike the underwater volcano end area. Mancala: Oh? Is this the center area of the Octopus Garden? Ozma: Ugh. Not a recolor boss fight. How uncreative can you get? The area rumbles as a large, purple Trench Serpent rises from below. Kimyawa: Ozma-chan, Snake-san didn’t like that comment. Hiro: Get ready, everyone! Before the battle can begin, something flashes across the screen, and the serpent roars, sinking back into the abyss. Hiro: Wait, what? Who was that?! ?: Light Puddings! Prepare yourselves! Ozma: Uh. Strictly speaking only one among us is a Pudding! A tall, slender man with an oversized tower shield on each arm stands before the party. Man: I am Praetorian Mih! Hiro: Of course you are. Loyroll: I understand your frustration, my friend, but you must admit, he’s got style! Mih: You’ve done enough damage, Light Pudding! It’s time your little escapade— Hiro: Excuse me. Mih: What? Hiro: How are you breathing right now? Did you kiss a mermaid too? Mih: Huh? Hiro: We’re underwater, so I just wanted to know if we did the same thing is all or if there was a better way. Mih: Kiss a mermaid? What are you on about? Everyone knows mermaids aren’t real. Mancala: *Ahem* Mih: Bah! I tire of this. Enough banter! Have at you! -Boss Battle!- Praetorian Mih LP: 8800 MP: 750 Praetorian Mih is every bit the human wall his massive design and dual-wielding shields might indicate, coupled with by far the most LP of anything we’ve yet encountered. The best thing to do is to use Ozma’s Table Flip in hopes it reduces this giant’s defenses and use Pudding Swirl with Hiro and Kimyawa in order to give him the offensive edge needed to compete. Loyroll should use the Mirror of Kii, exploiting Mih’s middling magic defenses. Mih’s most annoying ability will be “Safe & Sound”, a special technique accompanied by an unusually cool trumpet solo which will render him virtually invincible for two rounds before he opens up with a party-wide physical blow. However, if you can weather this, he has a 3 turn cooldown on the ability, so he cannot spam it. You’ll have to play the endurance game just as much as he does, but if you keep it up, you’ll send him packing. -Boss Battle!- Mih: Hahaha! Not bad. Not bad at all. But it will take way more than that to defeat the Human Wall, Praetorian Mih! Hiro: How many more times are you going to introduce yourself?! Loyroll: It seems our unstoppable tempo has met with an unmoving mountain! Kimyawa: Nii-chan, I think you’re mixing your metaphors. Ozma: Don’t give up. I have an idea! But I’ll need your help, Mancala! Mancala: Huh? Uh. Okay! Lay it on me! What’s the plan?! Ozma palms Mancala’s head in her hand. Mancala: Eh? Wait, what— Ozma then hurls Mancala head-first into Mih, who slides back as she impacts, coming to the rim of the pit behind him. Mancala falls flat, stars circling her head. Mancala: BARF! Mih: Hahahaa! You must be truly desperate to resort to such flailing, desperate measures! Ozma: Oh, am I? Mih: Huh? What did you…? Oh no! Mih panics, desperately attempting to run as the cliff below him gives out and he plummets into the pit below. After a few seconds of a whistling, falling sound, we hear a violent crash below. Kimyawa: Yatta! Hiro: That was, uh, a creative way of dealing with that. Ozma: I’m pretty pleased with myself. Mancala: My poor head… I’m gonna feel that for weeks! Ozma: Oh, walk it off. Mancala: How do you walk off a headache?! Hiro: C’mon, guys. The water talisman must be… huh? Do you guys hear something? The area rumbles distantly. Suddenly, an explosion rockets up from the pit, sending the party skyward. Hiro: He exploded?! Loyroll: Not just him! The serpent too! Hiro: BECAUSE THAT MAKES SO MUCH SENSE, RIGHT?! Something shiny flies among the party. Kimyawa: Sugoi! The water talisman! Guy-nii-chan! Ozma: I got it! Ozma grabs Mancala’s tail and swings her around, causing Mancala to grab it. Mancala: STOP THAT, YOU CRAZY BITCH! Ozma: But it just feels SO RIGHT! How can it be wrong?! Ozma learns the Dual Tech – Fish Slap! She’ll grab Mancala’s tail and swing her about like a flail, dealing great damage to a single target. This move deals water-type damage. And we get the Water Talisman! Ozma: The important thing is that we got the Water Talisman now, right? Hiro: No! The important thing is that we’re ABOUT TO FALL AND DIE!!! Ozma: Such a gloomy gus… The party is then viewed falling, crash-landing in a seaside village on the opposite side of one of the underwater canyons that previously prevented our passage from Mermania. They pick themselves up and survey the town. Mancala: Oh! I know where this is! This is Trackland, the town known for its enormous race track and horrible, crippling gambling debt! Hiro: That seems… informative. Never heard of a place that bagged on their own town when they were naming it. Ozma: Might as well have a look around. I don’t see anything else we can do for now. Here we can buy some upgrades, like Kimyawa’s CatCap helmet, Ozma’s Blaz Knuckles and Hiro’s Shing Sword, provided you didn’t find the Melted Blade earlier. By talking to the locals, we learn the Dark Puddings have already ransacked their town, and now their sole joy remains in the race track – famous for being so long it’s also the main highway to the next town! We then go to talk to the operations manager to find a means down said road. Hiro: Hello. We were wondering if it would be alright to head down the race track to the next town. Ops Guy: No, no, no. You don’t “head down” the race track. You RACE down it! That’s why they call it a RACE track! Mancala: Yeah? Then why do they call something you drive on a parkway and something you park on a driveway?! Ops Guy: Look, I don’t make the rules – I just enforce them. If you try any funny business, I’ll run your butts down and drag you back here for the biggest lecture of your lives! So race properly or don’t race at all! The party leaves the room, then spreads out again. Hiro: Well, so much for the direct route. Ozma: Anyone have any ideas? Loyroll: Why not do what he said? After all, a race sounds like fun! No one can keep up with our tempo! Mancala: We can’t just run the track. We’d pass out from exhaustion before we hit the midway. We need something we can ride. We need a pack mule! Hiro: A town renowned for its race track? Well, there has to be a ranch nearby with animals for such an occasion. Let’s ask around. Heading over to the ranch on the east side of town we can talk to the rancher – a strangely feminine man in a long, white trench coat. Hiro: We need— Rancher: A monster for the race, right? Hiro: Wow, you’re— Rancher: I am pretty awesome. Moreover, you’re wasting your time. The Dark Puddings raided my ranch last month and I’m still putting the pieces back together. Hiro: Isn’t there anything— Rancher: Yeah, if you get a few million going spare, I could lend you one of my thoroughbreds I’ve been raising. Hiro: We don’t have— Rancher: Neither does anyone else, bro. If you want the bargain bin, you’re in luck. This way. Hiro: Are you going to let me— Rancher: No. The rancher leads us over to one particular pen where a sad, squat lizard-like creature with a camel’s hump, two wings and two tails, weighed down by mace-like appendages crawls out. It coughs out dust on Hiro’s boots. Hiro: Is it dying? Rancher: I can only hope. This here is the bottom of the bottom of the barrel. This is the last of the Griffohumps. Hiro: Okay, you’re gonna need to explain that one to me. Rancher: It’s half griffon, half camel-dog. Its eyes also don’t align properly and it’s wantonly flatulent. I’ll let you take it for 100 gold. Take it or leave it. Hiro: Well, that’s a very reasonable price. For an unreasonable animal. I was thinking more of something like a horse… Rancher: Then you’re out of luck, chum. What little I have left other than this guy is for rebuilding and repopulating my ranch. Hiro: Looks like I don’t have much of a choice. We then get a Yes/No prompt, which is entirely pointless as saying no means we just walk around town until we go back and say Yes. In the GBA remake, however, if Kimyawa is level 37 (really, only a few levels higher than the average for this segment) and knows her Fox Inferno technique, this entire segment takes on an entirely DIFFERENT connotation as Kimyawa can replace the Griffohump as our pet in this minigame. But that’s creepy. So I’ll stick with the SNES version, thank you very much. The Griffohump is then dropped into a special Virtual Pet-style menu, which we can access whenever we want by speaking with the rancher. We’re then prompted to name the little guy – his default name is “Stinky”. We can feed it either mundane items, or special items the rancher will offer to sell us, which influence its stats. We can train it in minigames, or by fighting it like it was a monster encounter – which is the most effective means to raise it. Unequip the party and let it beat on the party and its stats will skyrocket, especially if it KOs the party. We can also have Hiro pet it and talk to it, which makes Hiro spout off nonsense jokes that were poorly translated from their original Japanese counterparts. You may persist in doing this as long as you’d like or until you hit the ludicrous 999 stat caps. Really, if you get it to around 150 in everything, Energy, Speed, Acceleration and Defense, you don’t need anything more than that. Return to the ops guy. Ops Guy: You again?! Didn’t you hear me?! Hiro: We’d like to enter the race properly now! Ops Guy: Really now? Well, that’s an entirely different story. Ready to begin? We then get a Yes/No prompt. Select Yes to continue. Ops Guy: Alright! To the starting line! This cues up the race minigame, with Hiro sitting astride the Griffohump, who is barely larger than his owner. The race itself involves running to the right-hand side of the screen as other racers try to jump on/over us. We’re ranked as we go and we must be in one of the top three places in order to win the minigame. Failure to do so drops us off where we started the race and Hiro mumbling something about “Not being on his A-Game today”. Clearing in higher ranks nets us better money and item rewards, but nothing worth freaking out over just yet – but they do get better as the plot progresses. But if we manage to win in 1st, 2nd or 3rd, we reach the chapter’s end! Narrator: And thus, Hiro and his party, riding gallantly atop Stinky, gracefully coast across the valley. What awaits them ahead? Only time will tell… We then get the Griffohump Feather, a key item we can use to access the virtual pet minigame from anywhere, anytime! Don’t forget to feed him from time to time!

[needs-to-stop-looking-at-yigas]

Okay but now that Mipha has reeled Link in, what if she needs to consult her wingman/bff Kohga for sex tips??

One, fuck you for saying 'reeled him in', thats hilarious. Two, this can only end in total disaster. Let's go!

“Ah, don’t act like we didn’t catch that, you little guppy you!”

Kohga had invited Mipha over for their weekly tea, and she was escorted by none other than Link. Knight who wielded the Master sword, silent hero, and Mipha’s boyfriend. As in, hand holding, snack sharing, and as he just saw, smooching basis. Mipha covered the lower half of her face, blushing up quite the storm as she walked into their base. Kohga nudged her shoulder as he walked her inside, practically giddy to see his little fishy so happy.

“It’s n-nothing! Really it wasn’t!”

“He planted a big, fat smooch, right on your fishy face! I saw it! Sooga saw it too, right?”

Sooga, as ever, clung to his Master’s hip. He nodded.

“Plus your lipstick is just a pinch smudged, your highness.”

Mipha checked her lipstick, as if she was caught doing something so lewd. Kohga pulled her chair out for her once they sat down at the dining table, chuckling as he took his own seat.

“I remember MY first boyfriend. I was no worse than you were. All giddy and excited. Though, my first boyfriend wasn’t as cute as yours, so hats off.”

Kohga motioned for one of the blade masters to bring over their tea and afternoon crepes. Her favorite dessert, made from fresh whipped cream, wildberries, and some fleet lotus seed sauce to top it all off. She nodded in thanks, ever the polite thing.

“Well, thank you, Kohga. It’s very sweet of you, helping me talk to Link. I think I’d stil be pining, if not for you.”

Kohga waved his hand, taking a sip of his tea.

“Eh, you would’ve gotten him eventually. You’re a cute little thing, he’d have to be blind. Or gay. Kinda thought it’d be the second one if anything, but hey.”

Mipha chuckled at that, helping herself to a bite of the crepe. He could tell she loved his cooking, given the way her eyes just seemed to light up. Kohga honestly and truly loved seeing her so happy. Though, he could sense she was...distracted. He took another sip of his drink.

“Alright, what’s eating you?”

“Pardon?”

“Something’s on your mind. Talk to me. Is it Zelda? I can take care of her.”

Mipha shook her head wildly.

“No! No no no, it’s not worth killing her over!”

Kohga held his hands up a bit in defense.

“I MEANT setting her up with a date. Jeez, murder isn’t the FIRST thing I go to. Even though I do it with style, don’t I Sooga?”

“Yes, Master Kohga.”

Mipha sighed in relief.

“Oh, good. Well, no, it’s not Zelda. We’ve talked about this, and she said she was happy for us. Even though she looked saddened, I can tell her feelings are true and sincere.”

“So...what’s the problem, then?”

Mipha held onto her tail fin, hiding her face in it. Whatever it was, it was clearly something embarrassing. Kohga motioned for her to get on with it, and she groaned a bit.

“Well...Link and I...are planning to...uhm…”

“Make love?”

Sooga interjected. Mipha nodded, practically burning up in her seat. Kohga threw his head back in laughter, smacking the table.

“Seriously?! Thought you guys were gonna be total prudes and WAIT! I fail to see a problem. Is it your dad? He seems like a real ‘wed before bed’ kinda guy.”

Mipha shook her head.

“While father does think like that, it is not his body he is offering. It is mine.”

Kohga nodded in agreement, taking a sip of his tea. His own dad was kinda like that, not that Kohga ever cared.

“Good on you! Proud of you, lil’ Princess. Though, the problem is what exactly?”

Mipha fumbled with her hands, before forcing herself to come out with it.

“I’ve never...done that before. I’ve only ever kissed one other man before, and that was one time. I’m...worried I won’t please him. So, since you and Sooga are very comfortable with one another, I was wondering...if you’d have advice for my first time?”

Kohga sat there for a second, deep in thought. Sure he acted goofy here and there, but Mipha was trusting him with something HUGE. The first time was one you don’t forget, ESPECIALLY when it was someone you really, really liked. In Kohga’s opinion, the vibe of the first time could make or break a relationship. She was coming to HIM for this, and it wasn’t something he was going to take lightly. He polished off his tea, before nodding at her.

“Okay. First things first, stuff you gotta tell ANYONE for their first time. You know, don’t get pressured into anything you don’t want. Don’t expect something wild and perfect, you guys are BOTH learning and exploring. And have fun with it! It’s supposed to be a fun thing, so it’s okay to laugh, to mess up, to just do things wrong. Long as it’s comfortable for you.”

While his words were true, he could tell Mipha was expecting way more. He probably just recycled some stuff she’d heard from ANYONE on this subject. He looked around, as if he didn’t want to be caught telling her some kind of secret.

“But...if you want something more...helpful than that, I can give you a little tip.”

Mipha’s eyes lit up in interest. Kohga motioned for Sooga to sit down next to him.

“Put your hair down for me, imma show her something.”

Sooga looked puzzled, as well as Mipha, but he obeyed, untying his hair, and lightly shaking it to help it settle. Mipha was clearly a bit surprised by seeing his hair down, as it wasn’t a common thing for a yiga to do, but that didn’t matter right now.

“Okay, so I know Link’s type, completely. He’s the strong, silent pretty boy. I can tell he likes his hair played with by just that alone, but have you SEEN all the way he styles it? This is a trick he’s gonna love, guaranteed. Now, flat hand,you’re gonna run your fingers through his scalp, like so.”

“Master Kohga, I don’t think it’s app-”

The second he felt Kohga’s fingers run through his scalp, he silenced himself.

“Then you make a fist. Don’t YANK, but have a little bit of ‘oomph’ in your pull. Watch.”

Kohga ran his fingers through his scalp again, before grabbing a good chunk of his hair, and pulling it back, making Sooga’s head fall back. Sooga’s fingers gripped the chair below him.

“See? Sooga here loves that shit. Don’t be afraid to get a nice handful, really shrunch up some of that pretty hair. Now this is something SOOGA likes, but you should test it out on Link, I’m pretty sure he’s just as much of a slut as Sooga is.”

Sooga was about to retort against such a claim, when Kohga moved his mask up, just enough for his lips, and started to nibble at his ear. His teeth ran along his earlobe, slowly and steadily. It made Sooga visibly squirm in his seat, and had Mipha not been staring at them, aghast, he knew he wouldn’t be able to stop himself from moaning. It was so slow, so careful, so FIRM. He never wanted Kohga to stop. He pulled away however, finally letting go of his hair. Kohga put his mask back down, shrugging.

“Pair that up with some neck nibbles too, I can pretty much guarantee he’ll be fawning over you. That’s my advice. Okay, you can go now Sooga.”

“I...uhm...think I need to stay sitting down, for just a moment.”

“God, you’re easy.”

Kohga rolled his eyes. Mipha could only gawk as the man next to him sat there, legs closed, and mask into his shaky palm. Mipha opened her mouth to speak, but found her words unable to escape. Kohga chuckled, shaking his head.

“I know how to treat boys. You gotta have a nice, firm hand. In every case. Either way, you got it, Mipha. He clearly likes you for you. Right Sooga?”

Sooga gave a meek nod, still lost in the sensation of his hair in his master’s clutches. 

Suffice to say, Link was in for quite the surprise.

[the-energon-hole]

Hello there lovely! Could I request headcanons about tfp Smokescreen and Bumblebee taking their human s/o’s on a date to the drive in? Maybe they start a heavy make out session with Smokes and Bee using their holoforms? (Can be nsfw if you’re up for it) Thank you!! 😙

((A/N - So it’s been a crazy ass month for me so I haven’t updated since then. I apologize this is a little different from what you asked but I still think it’s cute, it was just hard for me to write with my anxiety beign all over the place and my job security up in the air, ya know?))

❗Long post, continued under “Read More” tag❗

Bumblebee

-He was a romantic at the core of his spark, and always felt so inspired whenever one of those cheesy romantic movies were showing on the TV in the background of the hustle and bustle of the Autobot base. The kids thought those movies were dumb, and they hated seeing scenes where humans were kissing in some super dim light setting, but when he saw those things he couldn’t help but let his processor lend itself to thoughts of both you and him in those silly situations. He thought of the two of you smooching passionately after a sad situation underneath the pouring rain while you wept happily once the two of you would part, he couldn’t help but let his spark get all fluttery whenever the image of your face popped up into his processor. He hasn’t told anyone about these feelings he is having though, considering how powerfully the kids react to those cheesy movies it wasn’t a real wonder why he would prefer to keep these things to himself, though he can’t help but wonder if he would even be able to pull anything like that off considering that he was about four hundred times your size and couldn’t be seen in public doing these kinds of things. It hit him after a few days of thinking about it- holoforms! He has tried once before to manifest one, but it was a form that was actually pretty hard to maintain… how does Arcee manage to do it so well? He would ask her, but he knows for a fact she would tease him about his fuzzy feelings towards you, and really he didn’t want to deal with all of that at the moment so he did what he always did in situations like this- practice in secret until he can get it right.

-Everyone noticed how sluggish and tired he was over the past few weeks, but his excuse was that he was a little restless at the current atmosphere of the war, to which Optimus gave him more time off from patrol to rest and everyone else kindly taking over his patrol shifts. He had more time to practice this way, and yeah he felt a little bad for inadvertently tricking everyone into doing his work for him, but once he was finally able to master the art of a walking and talking holoform- well it was almost like all of his guilt washed away in those noisy feelings of wanting to embrace you the way only another human can. It was unexplored territory for this to be happening, a human and a cybertronian being so into each other, and he tries really hard to accommodate you and your smaller size but he just can’t help but feel guilty that he can’t treat you the way he sees in the movies and from couples walking around the streets of Jasper. It was more than just those squishy feelings he gets inside whenever you were around him, it was more than the small ache he feels in his spark whenever you have to walk away from him and return to your human life outside of this chaotic war, and it was more than just his selfish need to show off to you that he really did value your companionship over everyone elses and that he wanted to just swaddle you away from all this conflict and strife and be with you forever. It was about you, it was about how no matter how hard he tried he will never be a human, it was about how no matter what he did or how he did it he would never be able to give you the life that you wanted… it broke his spark to know that one day he is going to have to leave potentially, if not that, you would grow old and frail and sick long before he even leaves his place as a young budding mech by Cybertronian terms. Maybe that was why he needed to do this- maybe, just maybe it was about giving you a semblance of normalcy that you needed so you can always have the loving memory of the two of you together just doing mundane human things. He wanted to experience them with you, and nothing was going to stop him from doing that- this war be damned!

-You were a little surprised when Bumblebee wanted to go see a movie at the drive in that was kind of a ways away from the city of Jasper, but you figured it was the only way he can see new movies without exposing himself as an alien robot to prying eyes, also the nearest drive in is home to a local teenage scene and some of them might recognize him as “Jack’s Other Cool Ride” or “Raf’s Mom’s Car”. Besides it could be fun to go on a long car ride with just Bee, you can both bump up your favorite music while the windows are rolled down so you can feel the passing crisp night air hot your face in a strange adrenalin pumping way- it was a win win for you despite having to travel a long distance mainly because on top of being able to see that new thriller movie you were interested in, you would be able to spend some one on one time with him without so many outside distractions beyond your control. It was fun to relax and unwind with Bee as you zipped down the freeway most likely breaking all kinds of speed limit laws- but there were no cops around to stop the two of you from having fun, besides Bee wasn’t just any old car, if he had to he can stop himself safely at almost any speed he was going because he didn’t have to worry about his breaks being worn away over time. Once the thrill of the drive was over and you paid to see the new movie at the drive up counter you took your place parking up close to the screen on an incline so you could see the entire screen from your close position- it was imperative to skt close because the last time you didnt a rude middle aged soccer mom.blocked your view with jer ugly SUV and her kids screamed so loud you could hear them from inside the confines of the cab. You were so caught up in the action scene of this movie that you all but missed the warm electric crackling in the air as you were equating it to just being so immersed in the amazing special effects, you nearly jumped out of your seat though when you felt an arm snake around your waist from the passenger’s seat next to you as you let out a cry that probably every other car in the lot could hear. You were about to flail around in a panic until you heard Bee’s crackling voice coming from the new figure that somehow managed to get into the autobot without you knowing- and it hit you like a ton of bricks that this strange looking boy was actually Bumblebee in his new holoform. The next shriek you gave was one of joy- you had no idea Bee was strong enough to create an actual tangible holoform! You’ve heard Arcee and Optimus talk about how difficult this kind of thing can be, you were so proud of him that you couldn’t help but lunge at this new form and leave a nice smooch on his cheek. He was taken aback by the action, but in a good way, as he couldn’t help the bright flush that invaded his face after you pulled away from.him to sit back in your seat.

Smokescreen

-He tries to be suave and smooth when he is around you, but it feels like anytime he says or does something super cool it gets counteracted by him doing something stupid. Once he gave you a compliment that he could actually see made you flush a little under his heated gaze, bit then he got toppled over by Bee running past him in a hurry to get somewhere- he fell right on his faceplate and he can still hear you laughing at him for looking a fool in that moment. There was also once were he was cuddling with you so see sweetly that he panicked and jumped high in the air as Ultra Magnus came rushing into the room to alert him of an upcoming mission, you laughed then to at his scared and stressed face which just made him feel the fool once again. He just wanted to be like those guys in those action movies you like to watch- the cool suave guys who wear tuxedos and drive cool cars, the guy who always gets the girl in the end no matter what dire situation they were in. Sure, you can argue that he already has you, but he has you in a way that is strange and alien with him being a, well, alien. This was all different and a new experience for everyone involved- it took a lot of communication and a lot of vulnerability to keep things going the way they were, which is a good thing don’t misunderstand him, he just sometimes wants to surprise you with something that makes your jaw drop and your eyes sparkle the way they did when you first found out he was a transforming robot. It was kind of hard to be smooth when you both discuss what it was that you were going to do next. Spontaneous courtship is what you can call what he seeks, but he knows he needs to do it on your level, and he has a plan that is crazy enough to work. The hard part? Keeping that plan a secret as you were able to read him like an open book so well sometimes that it was a little scary.

-Ok, maybe he was exaggerating when he said the hardest part about this whole thing was keeping it a secret- that was actually the easy part. The hard part was actually training himself to possess a holoform that reflected what he thought he would look like as a human. Was he making himself to handsome? Was he making himself to muscular? Would his hair color be dirty blonde or light brown? These possibilities were endless and that was what was causing him stress unlike anything he had ever felt before- and he has fought against the big bad Megatron himself! Optimus was the one that was able to quell his insecurities about the whole situation- reminding him that you would love him and be attracted to him no matter what form he took, because the outer body wasn’t who he was, his spark was who he was and that was the part that you fell in love with. He got all fuzzy after hearing Optimus Prime validate what it was that the two of you shared together but it mostly reminded him of why he wanted to do this for you in the first place. It doesn’t matter how suave he is and it doesn’t matter what he looks like- all that matters was that you were happy and that he can show you that through hard work on his end he can give you at least a little semblance of what a normal human relationship should be like. That’s all he really wants, to see your eyes glow bright and your smile to take up half of your face as he surprises you with something special that took him a long time to create. This wasn’t about him, this was about you and your happiness, and he was willing to go the distance proving just how much he really cares about you and needs you in his life.

-It was a wonderful and unexpected surprise to say the least as Smokescreen wasn’t normally the one to initiate an outing between the two of you, it was normally yourself that had to convince him to go somewhere fun and different. You would have never thought to pick a drive in theater, mainly because they were slowly going out of style and you had to travel to the next town over to go to one, but it was the best place to be considering it wouldn’t be strange for you to just sit in your car the whole time. It was easy enough to find a good spot and to get comfortable in Smokescreen’s cab, it helped to remember that it was a weeknight and most people had things they had to do the next day like school and work so the parking lot was relatively empty. It helped create an air of intimacy as you mentioned how nice the setting sun looked over the horizon of the empty black top behind the movie’s big screen, it painted the sky a beautiful purple and blue color as the time of twilight began to set in- you were so distracted that you almost didn’t hear the sound Smokescreen made to get your attention. He seemed nervous about something as he revealed to you that the reason he brought you here was to show you something he has been working on in secrete, you were no rocket scientist but you knew he was hiding something from you these past few weeks, you just hope that it’s something good and not detrimental to your psyche. You were awestruck as you watched the air in the passenger’s seat next to you begin to crackle and glow with some kind of electric phenomenon that made the atmosphere feel so warm and inviting. It only took about less than a minute for the noises to settle and for a figure to appear in the once empty seat, Smokescreen told you it was his holoform- and it was his way of wanting to give you a sense of normalcy in this relationship- you were overcome with emotion as you launched yourself to him as you felt a few tears slip out from your eyes as you wrapped your arms around his neck- he felt real, like a real human being. You loved him as he was as an Autobot and Cybertronian, but this, this felt so nice to just hold him like this. You two barely even registered the movie beginning in the background as the two of you just held each other and laughed- both of you feeling relieved and both of you basking in the presents of their loved one.

(08/29/18)