#because ravens are drawn to shiny things

[dent-de-leon]

Oh…the raven perching on Molly’s grave and then flying away—it just feels different, knowing now that Lucien was fate touched—

[boothillssugarmomma]

sunday likes shiny stuff bc ravens likes shiny stuff, its just an idea

I love that idea! Birds all like shiny stuff so I could see him sneaking away with your jewelry and trinkets!

🎀🎀🎀🎀🎀🎀🎀🎀🎀🎀🎀🎀🎀🎀🎀🎀

Shiny Treasures

(Sunday x Fem!Reader)

cw-: lying Sunday, fluff, embarrassed boy, nervous boy 🤭

🎀 authorsnote: I literally was supposed to post this three weeks ago I'm so sorry 😭

please don't steal my work!

🎀Taglist🎀HSR Master List🎀 Other Lists🎀

Sunday had...a certain fondness for shiny things...a rather childish and unanticipated flaw to his character, really. No matter how small, insignificant or worthless they were.

Perhaps it had something to do with the halovians' innate desire for attention and glory, that would explain it. Or maybe it was because he was like a bird. But whatever the case, he was rather drawn to the gleam of precious gems and glittery accessories.

He sometimes tries to snatch your jewelry, thinking that you wouldn't notice, but fails miserably and you find that adorable.

"Hey hon do you know where that necklace I was wearing yesterday went?" You hum, peeking into his office.

Your boyfriend is hard at work, staring at some papers with concentration as he writes on them.

Sunday looked at you through the corner of his eye. His eyes looked a bit panicked before he started to concentrate on his papers again, but at this moment, he was just pretending.

"No, I don't...why my love?"

He answered with a simple reply. He thought that might work, right?

"Oh really?" You smile as you lean against the doorway. "I was going to wear it to that event we need to go to tonight."

Sunday stayed silent. And for some reason, his face started to redden a bit.

He knew that you weren't a fool. Why did he even think that you didn't know he stole your jewelry? Sunday sighed.

"Fine."

He opened his left drawer to carefully pick up your necklace and hold it out to you. Blushing as he looks away.

You snicker walking forward to lean down and kiss his forehead. "I know you like shiny things baby...but try to work on it?" Your voice soothes his embarrassment a bit.

Sunday looks at you, his face going even redder when you kissed his forehead.

"Mhm...I will...sorry"

He answered softly. He definitely didn't want to admit that he had an unhealthy obsession with shiny things, but he knew you already learned his secret anyways.

"Now...do you know where my rings are?" You glance into his eyes, yours have a hint of amusement while his are just plain panic.

"N-No..."

Sunday looked away. You knew he was lying again. He was bad at it, and he knew that you probably knew he was acting. You couldn't help but find that adorable.

"You must have placed them in our room...maybe on the nightstand!" He stammers a bit with his lie.

This wasn't like him and he hated it, the lying was killing him even if it couldn't be helped. He knew you weren't mad, you were amused, you loved his obsessions. But he still felt out of control with himself.

"Okkk..." You hum before kissing his nose. "So if I were to...check my nightstand in an hour...would they be back?" Your eyes narrow playfully as they gaze into his.

He blushed again. He really wasn't good at lying. Especially to you...his lovely girlfriend.

"Y-yes."

He replied. Sunday still found it quite difficult to look at you in the eyes while he was embarrassed like this. Why did he even steal them in the first place?

"Alright my little dove..." You smile softly, walking to the door before stopping and looking over your shoulder. "Oh and I wanted to tell you that I hung the suit you'll be wearing up on your door for when you get ready."

"T-Thank you, darling."

Sunday sighed of relief. He thought that you were going to keep asking him for jewelry back, reminding him of his little habit for the rest of the day. Sunday stood and followed to the door to grab his suit.

He quickly decided to give you a kiss on the cheek as a way to apologize for his silly behaviour.

"Let me know when you want me to help tie your tie. I'll be in our room." You smile before walking down the corridor out of his sight.

"Mhm, will do."

Sunday let out a heavy breath. Now that you're out of his sight, he has time to collect himself. He can't stop thinking about the feeling of your skin on his lips.

His thoughts always go crazy when you're around.

After he starts to prepare himself for the event, reading over his speech, making quick changes. He finally slips his suit on before glancing into his office mirror and remembering his tie.

He walks down the corridor where you had walked a bit previously into your shared room.

Glancing in he notices you sitting at your vanity, clearly doing your last preparations as well. His eyes soften as he watches you, his beautiful dove.

Finally he cleared his throat and spoke. "Hey, darling? Do you mind helping out a bit?" Holding the tie up he blushes embarrassed.

"Hmm?" You hum looking over your shoulder and glance at his undone tie. A warm laugh escapes your lips before you nod. "Cmere honey."

He walked over to you and wrapped his arms around your back. He looked at your neck, and decided to give a little peck to it. He then hid his face in your shoulders.

"I don't know why, but I feel quite embarrassed right now. I mean I should be able to do my own tie..." Sunday sighs softly. "Please Help me out, will you darling...?" He asked softly, his hot breath against your neck.

"Of course my love..." You hum, making quick work to turn around and start tying his tie.

His eyes catch a glint of light out of the corner of them. Glancing to your vanity he notices a pair of sparkly diamond earrings, ones he bought for you no doubt.

He caught himself looking at the earrings. But he was just so tempted to take them right now, but decided to try to restrain himself.

Sunday waited patiently for you to tie his tie. He found this kind of bonding with you wholesome...if only he wasn't thinking about those damned earrings.

He couldn't handle it anymore, so when you were distracted he used his arm length to his advantage and swiped the earrings, putting them in his pocket.

Sunday felt a sense of guilt, stealing your earrings, but he also felt satisfied. He had to act normal now, and hope you didn't notice he pocketed your earrings.

"All done!" You smile brightly as you turn to the mirror to show him. "God you look so handsome..."

His blush returns, even though he's used to your compliments...he can't ever get used to the notion that you're his. "Thank you, darling. You look absolutely stunning yourself."

He said, and gave you a smile. He wrapped his arm around you and kissed your hair lightly.

You both stand there for a few minutes, gazing at the mirror and at each other. But eventually the silence had to be broken.

"Ok! Go grab your speech and we can head out!" You smile patting his chest. He nods softly before you watch him walk to the door.

Sunday was obviously trying to rush out of the room, with a sense of panic in his mind that maybe you somehow noticed the earrings he just swiped.

"Oh and Sunday?"

His body tenses as he places a hand on the doorway. He gulps a bit before turning to you. "Y-Yes honey?"

"Earrings please." You snicker before holding your hand out. Eyes amused instead of angry.

"You noticed...?"

He asked, looking at your hand nervously. He slowly reached for his pocket and took out the earrings, reaching to hand them to you while looking away. He was as red as a flame spawn...

"It's hard not to when you bumped my waist with your hand while trying to reach for them..." You roll your eyes playfully.

He looks down at the ground, his wings drooping a bit. You gently cup his face and tilt his head upwards a bit.

"I could never get mad at my cute little dove..." You kiss his cheek. "Its kinda cute..."

"Heh...you mean that?"

He let out a sigh of relief. At least you didn't get mad at him for stealing your jewelry. He still had a hint of curiosity in his eyes though, wondering just how much jewelry you had.

Instead of asking he just gave you a small peck on the nose.

"My little Halovian..." You chuckle softly. "Such a jewelry snatcher." Walking to the front door, slipping your heels on. "Is your sister also like this?"

"Oh believe me...hah, she's worse."

"...remind me to never bring jewelry around her."

"Noted, my dear."

🎀End🎀

[noirapocalypto]

✧ ─── ᴄᴏᴠᴇɴ ⋆┊ᴛʜᴇ ʜᴀʟᴇꜱ

✧ ─── ᴏᴄ ⋆┊ꜱᴠʟᴇᴍ

Age: 29 Generation: 3rd Gender: Cis Male Species: Warlock • Demon Magic Type: Chaos • Shadow • Hedge Sexuality: Gay Astrological Sign: Aquarius Sun • Sagittarius Moon • Leo Rising Element: Spirit Languages Spoken: English • Cajun French • Arcani Occupation: Rapper • Music Producer Affiliations: Black Mage Records

───

✦ Born Isiah Layne Hale, he took the stage name SVLEM early on in his career. Now a days, it's not uncommon for him to go by his moniker in most social settings--such as interacting with fans and even in his social circle. However, his family and coven still refer to him by his real name.

✦ Salem is half demon on his father Bastien's side. He is the only one in his coven that's half-blooded.

✦ He is the fourth oldest of his generation, coming in neck and neck with his cousin Darcy--who is only a few months younger than him.

✦ Salem gets along with most of his cousins but is closest to Darcy due to their closeness in age. Neither have siblings and have developed an almost sibling like dynamic with one another.

✦ Salem grew up apart from his coven, having been born and raised in the Republic of Texas rather than in North Cal. Because of this--his elder cousins Silas and Avis often tease him about being "from the streets"--referring to his crime ridden, gang infested hometown.

✦ His childhood friends are Alec and Amirah. They met in their early teens and have been friends since. Though their careers have taken them on separate paths, they remain close and get together when they can. They also collab with one another and are often seen in each other's projects.

✦ Salem takes pride in his magical prowess--a lot of his skills have been self-taught with plenty of trial and error. He has a natural curiosity and a hunger for knowledge, especially drawn to more unorthodox methods than traditional. Salem is a very skilled and powerful warlock--though he sometimes struggles to keep himself reeled in. His magic is chaotic, and at times, unstable.

✦ He is one of the only two members of his coven (the other being Darcy) that were born with the ability to shapeshift into an animal form. Because of his coven's association with corvids, Salem's animal form is a raven.

✦ Salem excels in hedge magic and magic relating to the astral realm. He inherited this skill from his father Bastien, who's demonic lineage gave him the ability to astral project. Salem learned this from his father, and honed his skills as he grew older.

✦ Salem is very fond of tantric sex magic, something he begins to study and practice much more often once he enters a relationship. He enjoys feeling connected to his partner and feels the closest to him when they're intertwined; body and soul.

✦ Because his soul spirit is a raven, Salem displays several raven-like qualities, even when he's not shifted. He's playful, intelligent, clever, has an affinity for shiny things and especially holds grudges against those that have slighted him. He mates for life (deeply monogamous) and courts his partner the way a raven would court it's mate.

✦ Much like his wild raven counterparts, Salem seems to get along with lycans and most wolf-adjacent individuals. He's able to understand them and communicate with them while they're shifted. He has even been seen playing with his lycan friends in similar ways that ravens play with wolves out in the wild.

───

Tag List ⋆ @a-pirate ✧ @whitebalverines ✧ @togepies ✧ @ruvviks ✧ @mojaves ✧ @vivalasthedas ✧ @thesavagemuffin ✧ @veryfancydoilies ✧ @cccyberia64 ✧ @kidomega91

[ghostchems]

128, 130, and 32 with Terzo? 👀

"bend over and spread your legs" & "it's been along day why don't we help each other unwind" & "you wanna have sex with me" with bb

You are about ready to explode. This has easily been your worst day at the ministry in a long time. You felt like you were pulled in so many directions, trying to help Sister Imperator wrangle the ghouls all while attempting to keep up with your own typical library duties. It didn’t help that Imperator was in a sore mood to begin with.

You trudge back to your quarters, arms folded across your chest as your eyebrows knit together. So many frustrating thoughts from the day were running through your mind, including the fact that now you knew how to lure a ghoul down from off the ceiling (shiny object) and that you feel disgusting.

When you arrive at your quarters, the door is already open and a faint light pours from it. You sigh as you push the door open and see him, legs stretched out and comfortably laying on your bed.

“To what do I owe the pleasure, Papa?” You say blankly as you walk over to your reading chair and plop down into it. This isn’t the first time he’s shown up in your quarters, letting himself in to catch you when you return from your duties. Typically, he liked to bend your ear about ideas he had that didn’t exactly match up with the clergy’s ideology and you liked to listen because deep down you knew that some of the current ways that elders cling to are a thing of the past.

But today, you aren’t in the mood. You are slumped in your chair as you regard him tiredly. Terzo sits up in your bed and carefully crosses his legs. He looks at you curiously then runs a hand through his raven hair with a smirk.

“I’ve heard rumblings of you having a difficult day, cara.” He pats the spot on the bed next to him. “Come, sit.”

You hesitate for a moment, hoping to somehow convey how tired you are with your expression but you end up doing as he says, getting up to sit next to him on the bed. His hands immediately find your shoulders and start to massage them. You give a soft groan and lean back against him as he continues.

“It’s been a long day, cara, why don’t we help each other unwind?” Terzo purrs into your ear and suddenly you’re feeling very hot. His hands move up and down your arms as his lips graze just below your earlobe.

“You wanna have sex with me?” It comes out in a hushed, quick whisper before you’re able to stop yourself.

“Si, sorella.” He chuckles into your ear. “Why is that surprising?”

“I-It’s not surprising, I just… did someone send you here?”

Terzo stops for a moment, his fingertips just touching your arms now. He leans down and presses a kiss to your neck… then another and another. Your head tips back to give him more access as his soft lips brush over your neck.

“I came to help my favorite Sister of Sin unwind, cara.” He hums quietly before pressing one last kiss to you. “Now, bend over and spread your legs. Let Papa do all the work.”

There is no point in arguing. The way he is touching you is sending shivers down your spine and you are more than eager to continue feeling this way. You do as he says, resting your head on your elbows after you bend over. His fingers tug at the waistband of your pants and he pulls them off along with your underwear.

Your cheeks are on fire, burying your face into your arm while his hand squeezes your ass. Terzo presses a small kiss to one of your ass cheeks, chuckling as your body shudders. He grabs you by the hips and pulls you back, grinding himself against you. You can feel how hard he is through his pants and you give a soft groan.

He sheds his own pants and pushes the head of his cock against your entrance. You’re dripping for him, all you can think about is him taking you now, thoughts of the difficult day already far behind you.

Terzo eases his cock inside you, making sure to be gentle as you stretch around him. A long, drawn out moan spills from your lips once he’s into the hilt, feeling yourself clench around him. His fingers dig into your sides as he starts to thrust, keeping it at a slow pace. He leans down, his chest resting on your back and he moans against your ear.

“Th-thank you, Papa.” You gasp while your fingers dig into your comforter. “Thank you.”

Terzo gasps softly and you feel his hips stutter a bit at your words, only for him to pick up the pace. His teeth graze your neck, hands slipping underneath your shirt to cup your breasts. You moan deeply, burying your face in the sheets as he fucks you.

“Thank you, Papa!” You cry out again and a growl rips from his throat. Terzo buries himself inside of you as he cums, sharp gasps and pants filling your ear, his chest heaving against your back.

He rolls off of you and pulls you against him in the process, his fingers drifting down to your clit.

“So gracious.” Terzo purrs, resting his cheek against yours. Your body trembles against his while his spare hand teases your nipple. “We’re not done yet, cara.”

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

“Hello Miss Raven! I would like to give you a small gift. And a new look for Raven-San. I'm not an expert in dresses nor fashion in a sense but I hope you like it 😊. I also gave Evelyn a new look as well.

Bonus comic: (I kinda messed up with the grids so...)”

Oooh, how pretty 👀 (I stared at the background’s color gradient and little glitter particle effects first and foremost, haha…)

I don’t know if there was a specific theme you had in mind while designing the looks, but Miss Raven’s outfit reminds me of something one might wear to pray at a Japanese temple on New Year’s. It’s a combination of the hat, the hair, and the long fabric (that vaguely resembles the shape of a kimono). The sleeves and the flower detailing are more reminiscent of Pomefiore (whose dorm uniform, I believe, also takes inspiration from the kimono). It looks nice on her (though I keep wondering where her extra hair went XD anime magic concealed it, I guess)! I think my favorite part is the eyes though, they’re very big and expressive.

The outfit your OC’s wearing is a lot more modern in form (especially how she wears the jacket half zipped up with exposed shoulders). The colors of it remind me of yokai for some reason (red for oni, black for tengu). I think that’s the imagery I get because she’s standing next to Raven (whom I’ve already commented on, looks like she’s dressed to visit a Japanese shrine). My mind must be trying to piece together an outfit theme! The color of the gemstones pinned to her shirt remind me of J word—

Raven being drawn to shiny fabric 😌 ✨ How very… raven-like of her. Her reaction at the end was also very genuine and cute! That’s exactly her thought process, a very slow burn realization www

xavsjsvwjznwjwgwi(dRDs33fvw Fan artists always make J word looks like a supermodel or something in their fan art, dressing him up in all kinds of things 😩 When your OC mentions making a new coat for J*de, I think of this comment a friend made: “Why does he look like he dresses like the male lead in every K-drama ever. Like the turtleneck, trench coat, and expensive watch combo.” Make of that what you will 😂

Anyway, thank you for the fan art and the new outfit for Miss Raven ^^ The comic was also very charming! I quite enjoyed it~

[duderosiers]

antique shops, a monument to times past and the eternal want to both preserve and own it. jean-claude had dabbled in collecting them once upon a time, having a particular fondness for furniture and religious iconography for a few years before switching to art dealing. whenever a shop opened that sold them, he would surely be the first to peruse the wares, eyes looking out for gold or anything shiny like a ravenous magpie. the shop itself resembled a home more than a commercial place of business, something j.c found ultimately charming as he walked in, a bell overhead tingling as if to announce his arrival. he allowed himself to touch items, glad that there weren’t any sudden flashes for any memories to do with them – the mist was terrible, of course, those great beasts it brought about ugly but…there was a perk. jean-claude was no longer bombarded with memories he’d rather not see, no longer burdened by the cruel and unusual that had happened in the lives of many. the thirst and general hideous appearance were things he was learning to cope with – plus, he had matty now who quite easily soothed both itches with the curve of his smile and the affection deep in his eyes. what caught his eye was beautiful, a very small portrait of a dark-haired woman holding a book to her skirt. the expression on her face was placid, serene, the way many of the period were. it was hardly larger than a saucer, and yet, j.c was unexplainably drawn to it, the same way he was towards a lot of art. his walls at home in descray were full of it, some he’d done himself, others he’d bought. Taking it down, he flipped it around and read the tag on the back. a date, yet no signature – perhaps when he took the frame off, he’d find one. The Commandants Daughter, est. 1810, $15. not a bad price, the vampire tucked it under his arm for safe keeping and continued to look around. perhaps it was his sudden interest in his find, or the need to pick something else up but, jean-claude hadn’t acknowledged the strange feeling that had suddenly befell him. like a tug on an invisible string – it must be thalia. she was out of town, doing whatever the hell she wanted to, and he was worried but, trying not to be. though his progeny was angry at him and perfectly capable of looking after herself, j.c couldn’t help it. a part of him, a small part, did feel bad for what had happened, and despite his defiance towards thalia’s words he did still…read them. understand them, try not to internalize them. they were things he’d taught her, after all, then completely gone against them. they occupied his thoughts perhaps more than they should, causing him to be completely ignorant to anybody else in the shop - especially the owner. because when he did lay eyes on him, he froze up. the picture that he'd been holding clattered to the ground, glass frame smashing immediately because - no. no. nonononono not now not now not- not when it was going well when he'd made the commitment to move past that strong frame, those dark curls, eyes that he saw in his dreams in his nightmares - "oh mon dieu non,"

@antiquecritique

[wuxiaphoenix]

Cranky PSA: Children and Hardware Are Unmixy

I never thought I’d have to say this, but apparently some people really haven’t clued in. Hardware stores are not grocery stores. They are not child-safe. They’re barely adult-safe. Do not let your toddlers out of grabbing range.

Ace, Home Depot, Lowe’s, wherever - hardware stores are full of things that even adults have to treat with caution. Kids are ignorant. Kids that can’t read “Danger - Flammable” are in even more trouble.

Start with the hardware. These places are full of shiny things. Nuts, bolts, nails, magnets, bits of railing, you name it. Kids are like ravens, drawn to shiny; and young kids are further drawn to putting everything in their mouths. Picture the large, very large, section of nuts and bolts. Picture them vanishing down a kid’s gullet. It’s happened. Or, and more likely, picture them upending entire drawers to create the ultimate trip hazard. Very possibly yanking them down on their own heads.

Move to the cleaning supplies, many of which are meant for cleaning businesses, and so industrial-strength. As in strong enough and nasty enough stuff you don’t want to handle it without gloves, eye protection, and possibly hazmat clothes. Think muriatic acid. Think pool chlorine tabs. Think ammonia-based cleaners that all say “use with adequate ventilation” at the very least. Think.

Look outside to the plants. Many of them are toxic. Fertilizers can be toxic, or at least harmful to skin and eyes. Herbicides and pesticides are definitely toxic. And they’re all there on the shelves in easy grabbing range.

Let’s not even get into the paints, oils, kerosene, gasoline, and so many sharp objects throughout the entire building. All of which are packaged to be safe to handle... if you don’t drop it. Or puncture it. Or climb on it. Or sling it at someone. What do kids do? Right.

Last but not least, think about the business of the store itself. There is a lot of stock. Much of it is heavy items. All of it has to be stored, and then accessed when customers want it. Which means heavy equipment. Forklifts. Other lifts. Things where the users have to be strapped in, because it’s dangerous to have any part of your body outside. The whole store is outside, and while employees try to set up barriers, they try to keep customers out of hazard zones....

Well. You’ve never seen a toddler scuttle so fast as when they’re scampering right under a safety gate, heading straight for the big black-striped yellow machine with all the blinking lights that can squash them like a watermelon dropped from a hundred feet.

Fortunately she slowed down when I yelled. Fortunately, she listened to her father when he called her to come back out. Absent those two pieces of luck, she was heading right toward a lift that - if something went wrong - could have easily dropped something heavy enough to kill her. And the safety employee wouldn’t have seen her because he was watching for idiot adults trying to come through or around the gates into the working aisle. Not a pink blur at ground level.

These are hardware employees. They’re doing their best, but they’re busy, they’re overworked, and they are not trained to look after children.

If you take your kids into a hardware store, keeping them safe is your job. Think it through. Please.

[honey-minded-hivemind]

Hello! I have opened asks for anyone who has questions! Some AUs I am focused on right now include (but aren't limited to):

• 🐉WoF AUs (any of them!)

• 🧪Infected AU (my first ever au!)

• Dark X-Men Evolution AU (where the reader, Pietro, Kitty, and Kurt ended up dead in the past, but arrive a few years into the future only for their friends and family/groups to be platonic yanderes. Inspired by A Better World from Justice League and Same As It Never Was for TMNT 2003 edition)

• Regular AUs (where Reader is set in a reboot/reimagining of the shows/movies/media where they are there, and some characters, if not all, are platonic yamderes) (yes, I said yamderes. It's cute, isn't it?)

Bonus:

(Imagine the Reader just being the friendliest person ever, but their mutation is similar to Kurt's and Logan's. Like, can turn into a fluffy, feral angelic/demonic being. They could have horns, or extra limbs, maybe wings, or a tail or two. They could either look human but turn into that form due to emotional distress, or they just regularly look like that. Headcanons for them includes:

• Loves hot/questionable songs, but is explicitly asexual/possibly aromantic

• Collects coins, shiny bits of jewelry, keys, rocks, bones, even teeth and glass, because they are drawn to anything that gleams or shines or sparkles (like a raven)

• Actually tries to be friendly, even if someone is rude. Tries to do things the polite way first.. But if pushed too far, beware... they have claws for a reason...

• Enjoys hugs. Hugs with their arms (and any extra appendages, if they have them). Nuzzles and purrs when happy

• Can make pancakes. Their pancakes tastes heavenly...

[fizzigigsimmer]

Harringrove Hannibal AU Prt 3

I was thinking about my favorite scene in Hannibal, the night he turns himself in, and more about Steve... I think it goes something like this for Billy and Steve.

When The Ripper is caught it doesn’t happen with a bang but with a whimper. There’s no stake out and no grand showdown between law enforcement and the most dangerous serial murderer of the last twenty years like Steve had always expected. There’s just a call to Special Agent Jim Hopper’s cell phone in the dead of night and a raw voice on the other end rasping ‘He’s here. Hurry.’

Every cop in the entire state descends upon Steve’s little cabin on the lake, which before Billy had been Steve’s solitary retreat. During the three years that Steve and Billy have been playing cat and mouse Billy has been to the cabin numerous times, a few of them even as the rare invited guest. That says a lot to Hopper, who even on the night of Hargrove’s arrest pauses before he reaches the bottom step with his gun raised to point center at Billy’s chest, subconsciously unwilling to stain Steve’s sanctuary with blood. Billy has never had the same reluctance.

He showed up at the cabin three years ago in a shiny red sports car, striding right over the lines Steve has drawn around himself to keep the world at a distance. Invading Steve’s solitude like he invades Steve’s space whenever they are in the same proximity. He’d stood there in his GQ ready suit, looking around the rustic log cabin, corrupting the air of Steve’s intimate sanctum with the scent of his cologne. Occasionally over the years Steve will catch wisps of Billy here or there in the house or around the grounds, making him feel as if he is always watched and that Billy is always just a step out of sight. Can't tell if that is what his therapist describes as paranoia or what the heart would call wishful thinking.

That morning, Billy’s eyes took in the pictures tacked to his fridge of Steve’s partner Robin, along with Dustin and Mike from forensics. He’d lingered on the one photo Steve keeps of Will Byers and El, fellow members of the world’s most exclusive club.

They’d found the bodies of dozens of stollen kids, but only twelve survivors after the brutal massacre at Hawkins National Laboratory in the summer of 1978. The papers coined them the Hawkins Twelve.

Steve remembers the way he’d tensed when Billy had touched the faded polaroid, ready to snap and push until he drove Hargrove out of his space, because he doesn’t invite people here to the place Chief Hopper raised El and gave him and Will refuge from the ravenous curiosity of the public, for exactly this reason. But Billy just looked at the picture and then looked at Steve with those eyes that make Steve think of black holes and asked, “These your siblings?”

He’s the first one who sees it without having to be told.

Thinking of Will and El still brings a bitter pain to Steve’s chest. If Steve had known then what he knows now… he’s not sure he wouldn’t still do it the same way. That he wouldn’t have invited Billy to sit down at his table and offered to get him a drink. That Billy wouldn’t still be here with him now. He’s never met anyone with the kind of pull that Billy has. ‘Look at me’ those eyes demand, right before his hands tear you asunder.

Asunder. That’s a Robin word. Robin had this thing with words, this ongoing love affair with their rhyme and their origin; but mostly she just liked teaching Steve new ones by way of adding them to a whiteboard in the breakroom and tallying the ones he knows, and giving him shit for the ones he doesn’t. It’s an odd little game, but they were always an odd little pair – before Billy.

“I think we’re stuck in a zero sum game Harrington.” Billy says from where he kneels between Steve’s parted knees in the cabins single bedroom, ten minutes before the call. About thirty minutes before the police and the FBI have the place surrounded. In the darkness of the unlit room he looks like Steve’s lover, shirtless, hair matted on one side and sticking up in tufts in the back, but there’s enough moonlight shining through the window to highlight the flaws in the illusion. The bruising of his knuckles and the deep scratches on his chest. His hands cradle Steve’s thighs, his flesh mottled and cut up to match Billy’s, and settle on his hips, the pad of one thumb stroking over a protruding hip bone. His brow furrowing ever so slightly in displeasure a the thinness he finds there – the product of lengthy periods of sleeplessness and low appetite.

It’s so ridiculous, that concern in the face of the carnage of the last three years – what Billy has put his his mind and his body through. His heart through. Steve huffs a small laugh. Mostly at himself. Because there’s blood in his teeth and he can still taste Brenner’s flesh in his mouth, from when he bit the man like a cornered animal in a cage. He’d been drugged at the time but he still hazily recalls it, along with the heat in Billy’s eyes and the proud slash of his smile. Love is a zero sum game. Or at least that’s what people say.

“Baby?” Billy’s tone is seeking but the hot hands at Steve’s side are demanding as they squeeze. Always have been, always will be, and Steve sighs. He raises a hand to tuck the hair fallen in front of Billy’s face behind his ears and look his fill at the beautiful face beneath. Billy turns into the palm of his hand but sharp eyes devoid of empathy stay locked on Steve. Those eyes burn, full of hunger and carefully controlled desperation. They are past the stage in the game when they can hide from one another.

Billy wants to start a new chapter.  To build on the ashes of their burned bridges and crumbled cities. Steve wants to burn. But even more so, he wants Billy to burn.

Hopper thinks Billy is a sociopath but Steve knows he’s not. Steve’s the numb one. Steve’s the one who went cold and struggles to feel things or know the difference between dreams and waking. Billy feels everything. He overflows with feeling. Burns bright with them like a dying star and even now… even now Steve just wants to curl up in the center of his heat and let Billy flow through his veins until he burns like a sun.

“You had to take her too. You can’t help herself.” Steve says, grounding himself for this one last play. This final shot aimed right at the heart, he has held back through all the death and all the loss. But Billy has finally gone too far. He needs to know and there is only one way to show him.

“Buckley made her own choices Steve. I’m sorry that it wasn’t you.” Billy says, soft with the cruelty of care. The unspoken implication being that Robin may have chosen to distance herself, Billy wants to be closer. As if Steve would reward him for ruining the closest thing that he has had to a friend since before the lab, that wasn’t of the lab and smothering the last little bit of light in his dark world.

“You don’t want me to have anything if it’s not you. You want me to look at you and never look away because it’s the only thing that will make you finally feel seen. You call me baby not because it gets under my skin but because I’m under yours.” Steve cradles the sides of Billy’s face tenderly with the hands that Billy has taped, memorizing the supple feel of his skin and the softness of the hair on the back of his head.

Steeling himself Steve pulls away, letting his hands drop as he pulls the trigger and shoots dead what has lived between them for three long, vibrant, years.

“But I don’t want to be there anymore Hargrove. I’m letting you go. I’m not going to look for you and I don’t want to know if Hop ever catches you. It doesn’t matter to me anymore. You’ve won.You killed who I was and you left nothing to salvage. I’m dead to me. And now you’re dead to me too.”

Billy doesn’t say anything. Steve knows that Billy can see the lies in it, as well as the truth. The truth is always the most effective weapon, and the truth is after this latest brush with death and the loss of his best friend Steve is done. He won’t let Billy matter to him anymore. That’s what matters.  

Billy’s fingers dig into his sides as he takes a slow breath, nostrils flared. Billy could kill him for this. Probably wants to. But Billy could always kill him and will probably always want to, just a little.  

The night that Billy Hargrove is arrested he leaves Steve’s bedroom without a word. He makes a single call from the kitchen on the landline this place is old enough to have, and grabs a packet of smokes and a lighter from the junk drawer and goes to the porch to smoke and contemplate what Hopper should find when he gets here.

Steve’s body will be the thing that finally breaks Hopper. Not the dead daughter or the crazy surrogate one, but the golden boy.The child he turned into a weapon to hunt his own demons with. There’s more than one way Steve’s body can put an end to Billy’s pain, to the raw ache in his chest and the hunger that gnaws at his belly with unfulfilled desires for closeness and understanding. He knows better than this. Despises that he let himself get so tangled up and wrapped up in a useless dream he shouldn’t even want.  

The thing is this whole thing started with a game. Hopper dangling Steve in front of Billy’s nose, knowing he wouldn’t be able to resist the honey trap. Billy playing Hopper and Steve against each other, trying to wiggle his way inside Steve’s head under the guise of turning Hops golden boy into his tragic downfall; but truthfully, he’d really wanted to get inside of Steve because he was just plain fascinated. Enthralled. Steve’s a survivor like him. Different cage and different murder at the end, but like recognizes like.

And now he can’t imagine a better friend or partner to shape the rest of his days around. That’s what gives life meaning, he has realized.  

Maybe a little too late. Billy’s never been good with going slow or taking time to nurture things. Hasn’t had a single good reason to practice or anyone to practice on even if he did. Harrington’s punishing him. Killing his darlings just to spite him the same way Billy has killed all of his. And when he views it like that, Billy can’t help but smile around his cigarette.  

If Harrington wants to see him suffer, he supposes that’s fair. All considered.

“Your move Pretty Boy.” He says to the darkened dwelling behind him as he hears the first wail of a siren in the distance.

[insidefantasy]

she is like a raven drawn to that which is shiny, only except that instead she is drawn to that which has beauty. curious green eyes gazing up at the male curiously, lashes batting slowly at him as fingers twirl at a piece of her ginger hair. "hello..." she murmurs, every move intentional as lips curve up into a smile. she's always been a flirt, always craving attention (that which she hadn't received from her parents who instead opted to give her money) and this time was no different. "may i ask what it is that you're reading?"

truly, she rarely read more than what she was assigned. she much rather would focus on her dancing, or on spending time with lavinia or the other girls. or in this particular case, speaking to a handsome boy and if that meant showing feigned interest in literature, then she would. truth be told, it wasn't necessarily that she had anything against books, it was just that she always felt so dumb when reading them. she felt foolish and stupid when there were things she didn't understand, because authors rarely were straight up with what they meant, instead of saying somebody had beautiful blue eyes they would go on a tangent about the color of the ocean and how even that didn't compare to the color of that somebodies eyes. it was rather ridiculous, she thought. why couldn't people just say something as it was and mean it that way.

@wehavefoundthestars

[drheartstealer]

Raven Harpy Law, though... He’d be so cute. I want to pat his feathers and help him preen them. He’d be human sized and bigger, and he’d be a grumpy birb. He’s inexplicably drawn to the shinies because he’s a corvid. Just imagine him doing birb things like playing in the snow, rolling up and down. Hehehe

[twistedmusings]

Doing Anything for Heat

“Do you always refer to yourself in third person when writing these up?” 

“Legalities, Prefect, although I do not expect you to know anything about that.” 

Guess who can’t write as much anymore because she got a nasty bite at work! So yes, I was working on requests so diligently and then bam--this happens. 

As an apology for my late ass writings, please take this mini scenario for the Octavinelle Trio! Azul’s SSR card got translated and I just...god I love these boys so much q wq  Reader: [G/N]  Warnings: Casual flirting, possessive thoughts from all the boys and just MC striking up a contract with Azul and taking a very creative approach towards it~ 

“[Y/N]!!!!” Grimm pulls at your arm as you sit down across from Azul, the man holding out a contract to you as he tilts his head with a smile. “What will it be, Prefect?” 

Your hands sweat as you rub them on your legs. “Hehe~ Little Shrimp looks so scared~” 

The contract is placed in front of you slowly, Azul taking care of minding his manners as you lean back and go over the simple specifications. Made simpler, of course, since Azul had ‘such’ a kind heart. 

What a con artist. 

Winter was hitting Night Raven College hard but was hitting Ramshackle even harder. 

How many blankets had you bought from Sam’s shop? Ten? Twenty? You honestly didn’t know but you and Grimm were close to freezing some night and you had just about enough of living in an ice cube for a dorm. 

You were acting out of desperation. 

And, ever the businessman, Azul had stretched out his hand for your unfortunate soul. 

“Bring sixty customers during our lunch rush tomorrow and Azul Ashengrotto will personally see that a heater is installed in Ramshackle the same day.” 

You put the contract down and look him in the eye. “Do you always refer to yourself in third person when writing these up?” 

“Legalities, Prefect, although I do not expect you to know anything about that.” 

Great, more insults towards your intelligence. 

Sixty customers. If you were to break that down it would be ten from each dorm not counting Octavinelle. You could rope Ace and Deuce to come, guilt trip Jack for not helping you with that assignment due last night, kindly ask Epel to make his way over here and maybe if you promised Sebek that you would listen to him rant about his dorm leader he would reluctantly agree. 

But that wouldn’t be near enough. 

Azul clicks his tongue while Jade speaks up, “We will have to take that answer today, [Y/N]-san. If not, I guess maybe we could let you take some blankets from Octavinelle--” 

“Fine! Fine.” you sign your name on the dotted line and hand the contract back to Azul, the other grinning as he handed it towards his right-hand man. “How wonderful! I’ll be waiting with baited breath to see what you bring us tomorrow~” 

You give Azul the fakest smile you can muster, waving goodbye to the twins as you make your way out of the lounge with Grimm by your side. “Fgnaaa~! We are screwed! [Y/N] how could you! We are going to be stuck waiting tables for ETERNITY now!” 

“Not if we bring them what they asked for.” you bite your bottom lip as you look at the Monstro Lounge, your eyes falling on the small stage. 

Oh right. Some students played here. Well, students deemed worthy enough to play. You remember the Music Club trying to do a gig here but failing miserably the moment Lilia opened his mouth. Despite the failure, it did bring some people in to get Azul over the red. 

A floorshow. 

That’s right! A floorshow! 

“Grimm!” you grab the cat and bring him close as he freaks out. 

“What--what!” 

“I got it!” you hold him out in front of you, “We are going to have to let go of our pride a bit and this experience might humble us but...we will have heat!’ 

“[Y/N] you are scaring me--” 

Grimm barely gets to say what he wants as he is dragged back into your arms, your feet running as fast as you can into Mr.S’s shop for the stuff that you will need.

--------

“Ah! Little Shrimp!” 

Jade looks up from the numbers he was crunching, smiling as he sees you approaching the table. You wave at Floyd and nod politely towards Jade, sitting down and tapping your fingers against the bar. 

“You are here rather late, [Y/N]-san. We have two hours until closing time.” 

“I’m just…putting my plan into action. Azul said he wanted sixty by tomorrow, after all.” Floyd grins as he finishes cleaning up the remaining glasses. 

“Eh? You are doing something tonight, little Shrimp?” 

“...yes.” 

He leans close, smiling wider as he sees a certain change in your appearance. The Monstro Lounge was always dark in order to provide a more atmospheric mood at night but with the little light he had to work with he could clearly see traces of makeup all over your face. “Little Shrimp looks so shiny...just like a pearl.” You pull away as he tries to get closer, putting your hand out to stop him and turn your attention towards Jade. “Right. Do you have a backroom next to the stage? I just need to get some things ready--” 

“Go into the kitchen, farthest door to the back. There should be a door that leads you towards the back of the stage.” “Do you guys have a light booth--” “Next to the stage.” Jade’s eyes shine, interested in what you are about to pull off, “Do you need our help--” 

“Nope that is alright I can take care of this myself thank you.” 

Both twins watch you trot towards the kitchen, Grimm following close behind and about three ghosts ‘matching’ his step. 

“...Floyd.” 

“Yes?” 

“Call Azul. I think he’ll be interested to see what is going on.”

--------

“For heat. For heat. For heat!” 

You were doing this because of your situation. The situation was desperate so you had to take desperate measures. 

Grimm clears his throat as you finish fixing his bowtie, the transparent fabric looking beautiful with the stitched shells all over it. 

“Are the ghosts ready?” you ask. 

“Just waiting for the curtains to close.” 

The crowd goes quiet as you press a few buttons and close them, hushing the late night crowd as you step onto the stage. You try to step softly so that the click of your heels won’t be heard while Grimm opens up the rather large shell in the middle of the stage. This was usually used as a promotional device, customers taking pictures inside it to promote their visits to the lounge. It had a soft cushiony seat inside and could fit a whole student. 

You give a thumbs up to your other roommates, the ghosts smiling as their instruments manifested in front of them. 

Spectral instruments really came in handy in these situations. “Breathe...Breathe…” you sit down inside the shell and pull your legs up with you, fixing the train of your dress and touching the small shell tiara on your head. It was fashioned after King Triton after all, maybe Azul would get the reference?

Or rather, you hoped Azul wasn’t watching at all. “Okay...close it, Grimm.” He nods and brings the top of the shell down slowly, trapping you both inside as he gave the cue to start up the lights. This was all for a heater...and maybe some tuna. 

-----

-At first he wanted to laugh as he saw the curtain slowly being drawn back, when was the last time they used this stage? Student players just weren’t ‘in’ as much anymore and he had to keep up with the trends. What were you planning to do with this? 

-Yet his mouth clicked shut as the lights landed right on the shell, the music starting as your voice rang out softly from inside. 

-He barely paid attention to the band as the shell slowly opened, Grimm flying out elegantly as he opened it while your frame was slowly being revealed to him as every student’s jaw almost hit the floor. 

-Azul clutched his cane as he watched you cradle your legs close to yourself, the lyrics completely blowing past him as you stretch yourself out to show off the outfit you had on. It seemed to shine like a pearl under the lights, your chest being accentuated by how snug it fit against your frame. 

-He licked his lips when his eyes landed on your undecorated neck. It was as if you were begging for it to be decorated with bites. Surely he could make a nice necklace for you. 

-Dammit he should have sat closer, students were actually getting up from their booths and moving to any tables that were closer to the stage as you start getting up, the train of fabric in your outfit resembling the top of a shell as it brushes across the ground as you make your way to the floor. 

-He bites his bottom lip as he sees you making your way around the tables, your voice soft and melodic as the students watch the performance flabbergasted. You are letting your fingers glide against the tables, winking at some of the more bold students who put out their hands so they could touch yours.

-If you were to look at his face you would see no trace of emotion but inside his head he was screaming at you to pass by his table already don’t you know anything about customer service? 

-You finally make eye contact with the table he was sitting at, Azul feeling a shiver go up his spine at how your flirtatious eyes suddenly turned nervous. Nobody else had gotten that look.

-Again, he needed to see you looking at him like that again. 

 -So this is what you were planning. How interesting~ 

-He watched from behind Azul, taking off his coat and laying it on the back of the plush booth as he took in your form. Where had you gotten such a cute outfit, he wondered. The color made you shine like the rarest pearl and every time the light hit you just right he could see the glitter in your eyelids as you started to approach their table. 

-You made eye contact with him, clearly trying to keep up the act of ‘mysterious’ floor show guest but failing as his eyes took you in the closer you got. 

-The students groan when they see you sit right next to Azul, pressing close to him as he dares to put an arm around your waist and squeeze. Oh he could bet Azul was happy with how jealous all the students looked. 

-Jade couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped him when you took Azul’s hat and shoved it in his face before pulling away as quickly as possible. 

-He follows your movements as you walk behind him, the sudden hand on his back making him hum in thought as the idea of pinning you right to the back of the booth so you would sing only to him suddenly seeming like the only thing to do in this situation. 

-You really had no idea what you could awaken in him if you kept playing around. 

-His eyes meet yours as you start walking away but his hand catches your wrist as he tugs you back to him--!

-But Jade, ever the unpredictable man, only presses his lips to your hand before letting you go.

-You were doing a floor show for the customers after all. Didn’t mean that he wouldn’t be talking to you later~ 

-Floyd had moved himself to the table closest to the stage, tie undone and smile wider than anyone had ever seen as he watched you pay attention to almost every table. The table he was sitting at had been filled with students who deemed themselves rather lucky to get so close only for them to scram when they saw who was approaching it.  

-He waves at you when you finally make eye contact with him, licking his lips and smiling as he sees your reluctance to get near him. 

-Which he didn’t mind, the fact that you were so wary of him made you all the more adorable. 

-You try your best to be as flirty as you had before, merely touching his hand as he holds it out to you but for Floyd that is not enough. The moment your fingers pressed against his palm, he snatched your wrist and brought you to his lap, students gasping as his hands landed on your sides. 

-Oh the material was so soft! He ran his fingers up and down as you press hand to his chest while you sang the last few notes of the song. 

-Floyd couldn’t help the little giggle as he saw the embarrassment on your face, your hand clearly pushing on his chest but his hands clearly weren’t letting you go. What were you going to do, little Shrimp? 

-His eyes widen at your sudden improvisation, your hands taking his and pressing them to your face so he could cup your cheeks. Instinctively he pulled you closer as the song suddenly stopped---

”Floyd-senpai, I have to go.” 

-The whisper is only for him to hear as you catch him off guard with that soft look and pull away, you holding out the last note of the song as if you had planned to be caught by him all along. 

-He clicks his tongue and leans back, eyes watching you go back up the stage and sitting inside the shell as you pull your legs closer to you before blowing a kiss to the now applauding crowd as Grimm closed the shell. 

-Surely the kiss had been for him, right? If it had been for any of these other bottom feeders...well no matter. Even if it hadn’t been for him, Floyd would make sure to squeeze you real tight the moment you got off stage. 

-----

You lay down on the cushion as you put your arms over your eyes, groaning as you tried to get your thoughts together. 

If this worked out the way you thought it would, word of mouth would get around and you would bring around sixty customers so that they could partake in what they had missed tonight. 

Has it cost you your dignity? Yes. 

Was the outfit embarrassing? Yes. 

Did you have to flirt with all three Octavinelle members so they would see that you were serious about finally going to sleep without shivering? Yes and yes. 

At least it was over. 

“Yo Grimm. Can you open this? I want to change!” 

Your hands tap the top of the shell, sighing in relief as it slowly opened. 

Only for you to yelp as hands pin you down to the cushion, a very familiar face grinning down at you as Floyd laughs merrily. 

“Ahaha~! Nee, that kiss was for me, right Little Shrimpy? You blew that my way, right?” 

Jade sighs and steps behind his brother, pulling him up by the collar so that you could get your bearings. 

“It was at the customers, Floyd. I believe [Y/N]-san wanted this to be spoken about tomorrow, correct?” 

You nod as he lets go of Floyd and holds out his hand for you to take. 

“What an interesting plan...right Azul?” 

The Octavinelle dorm leader isn’t really looking at you, he is still staring at everything that you had on taking it as much as he could before your voice brought him back. “So...how did I do?” 

Azul blinks before smiling as he steps close and holds out his arm for you to take. 

“I have yet to see the terms of the contract be met but...we can discuss how you did in my office. Mind telling me how you came up with this plan? ” 

“Y--Yeah! Sure!” 

You take Azul’s arm and speak about your thought process, not noticing the grins on the eel’s faces as they hold themselves back until they reach Azul’s office. 

How nice, it would be the first time you would be staying over at Octavinelle, even if you didn’t know it yet.  

[honey--fics]

Worth it - Jotaro x Reader

(Cw: choking, a bit of blood, degration, face fucking)

Word count: 1.8K

Getting degraded and fucked silly in a hotel and then caught afterwards🙏🙏🙏

🍒

The hotel is dark and silent, with bright moonlight spilling into your tiny hotel room—the other crusaders sleeping soundly in the nearby rooms. All, that is, except your lover, Jotaro Kujo.

The knock on your door that you had been anticipating finally arrived, and you leapt to your feet to answer it. You have a lot of pent-up emotions and thoughts as a teenager—wanting only to just to set them free. Fortunately, Jotaro needs to as much as you do. As a result, you and him established an unspoken routine that only the two of you were aware of.

When you were staying in hotels, you could have one midnight visit from each other.

It should be bitterly cold—after all, Egypt was like an iceberg at night—but you're hot. insatiably hot as you softly pull open the creaky door and hastily, and Jotaro connects his lips with yours, shutting the room door with his forearm and making you stumble backwards in shock.

You kiss him back—making out deliciously with your lover as he leads you slowly onto your soft hotel bed, loving how his lips slotted perfectly with yours. You moaned softly into the kiss, helping him tug the black trench coat off his shoulders before he pins you onto the plush white quilts of the hotel bed. You wrap your legs around his waist and you part your lips from his with a gasp, filling you burning lungs with much needed air. His kisses were always so addicting.

His soft raven hair was tousled and his black trench coat lay carelessly on the floor as you looked into his dark teal eyes. As he gently kisses your lips again, you run your fingers through his hair and play with the wavy locks.

"that was fast."

As you purred, an annoyed grunt vibrated from his throat, eyes half-lidded. That is, before he lowered his head and rolled his hot breath over the crook of your neck, pressing his lips against your skin. He planted tiny kisses on the pillar of your neck and began sucking hickies near your collarbone, working his way up and abruptly shutting you up.

You hum with satisfaction as he marks your throat, pulling his hair and craning your neck in the opposite direction to allow him more access. Low moans and soft sucking sounds filled the room, and arousal started to pool deliciously in your stomach. Jotaro bites the crook of your neck and back, making you scream, before sucking and licking over the bloody mark almost apologetically, his rough hands caressing your breasts.

“Jotaro..”

His hands eventually reach your sides, exploring your body until catching the hem of your oversized shirt and yanking it off, leaving you fully naked. With a click of his tongue, he expresses his dissatisfaction.

“Were you completely naked down there? You were expecting this, weren't you, slut?” The low rumble and degrading words making you sigh with arousal. Your face flushes with embarrassment as you watch him hungrily examine your naked body and moves his hand forward, riveting your nipple between two fingers. You groan softly, enjoying how he teases you and arching to his touch as he leans down to licks a hot stripe across your breast. You bite your lower lip and keep your eyes shut as his hands wander across your stomach, leaving a trail of fire in their wake.

Several more licks later, He backs away and tosses his loose tank top over his head, carelessly onto the floor. The dull clinking of metal made your heart skip a beat as he loosen his belts as well. You both quickly shifted positions and you admired the deep scars that strewn across his toned stomach and the way his muscles rippled as he moved.

He sat back, his back resting against the wooden headboard as he pulled his cock out of the zipper of his pants. He sighed, stroking it a few times, watching as you positioned yourself over him. It was perfectly long and thick,, flushing red at the tip. You held eye contact with him and got down, wiping your sweaty hands on the bed before conspicuously putting them on his thighs. You press your lips at the base of his dick before slowly sticking your tongue out flat and licking up the vein of it, relishing the heavy, salty taste of his skin on your tongue.

He sighed in pleasure while he watched you take the whole thing into your mouth. He looked handsome even from this angle, his lips slightly parted, watching you intensely with soft red dusting his cheeks.

Perfect.

Your nose will eventually brush against his hip, and your lips will be wrapped around the hilt of his cock. The thick tip grazed the back of your neck, but you bravely overcame your gag reflex, contracting your throat around his length and making him quietly groan, taking a handful of your hair. You batted your eyelashes at him before hollowing out your cheeks and started to go up and down slowly, making him let out a long, drawn out “fuck.”

With the hand gripping your hair, he began to thrust his hips upwards into your mouth—deciding he wanted to set the pace, and that you were going too slow for his liking. You let a muffled moan slip out between your lips while he began fucking your face roughly, your hair in a tight hold as he thrusted ruthlessly into your mouth, a mix of drool and precum dribbling down your chin and onto this pants as you fought your gag reflex, tears welling in your eyes, and running down your face from the pain.

He let out a low chuckle. “You look like such a whore right now.” His cock was rubbing against the inside of your cheek as your tongue swirled around his length. You could hardly breathe as his thrusts became more and more abrasive, the world spinning around you. You were about to pat his thigh and force him to let go, but he let out a low groan and finally pulled your lips away from him—a string of spit connecting your lips to his fully erect and twitching cock.

You pant, trying to catch your breath and begin to rub your thighs together. A pool of arousal is filling your stomach, and all you can think about is taking his thick cock. You rest your hands on his strong thighs and look up at him.

He grabs your chin and rubs the spit and precum on your lips sloppily, sighing at the arousing sight, and gripped your waist tightly while you looked into his darken eyes.

“Please Jojo, please, please fuck me.” You breathe, a whine in your tone. You arch your back while his large hands are gripped onto you, writhing in aching arousal. He clicks his tongue, watching you writhe, begging to be fucked. His jaw clenched and his cock twitched as he watched you start grinding on the sheets under you, and quickly hauled you effortlessly onto his lap.

“You wanna be fucked? I’ll give you some cock, you little slut.”

He brings you up with a bruising grip, and you eagerly align him with your entrance, practically drooling. You try and slowly ease your way down, but as soon as the thick head of his cock is in your cunt, he slams you down, and you both moan in unison as your throbbing pussy is filled to the brim, and your clit is pressed against his pelvis. It was so easy to enter without lube either, since your cunny was practically drooling for him. How adorable. You started moving your hips, not caring how much it stung, letting out shamelessly loud, desperate, slutty moans—bouncing over and over on this cock, loving how he rubbed against your walls deliciously as you slowly adjusted to his size.

Your eyelashes were fluttering and curses spilled from your lips until one of Jotaro’s huge hands squeezed your hip, supporting you, and another wrapped around your throat roughly. “We don’t want the rest of the group to hear you, do we?” He rumbled, the loud slapping of skin on skin filling the room as you both rock your hips, his lips slightly parted and sweat shiny on his skin. He watched the way his cock went in and out of your cunt and lolled his head back, groaning.

With Jotaro’s tight grip on your throat you drool, your lip quivering as pathetic moans leave your lips. The world spun around you because of the lack of oxygen, but you didn’t mind. Not with jotaro's thick cock going in and out of you.

“Jotaro, jojo..”

you pant heavily, feeling your heart race and your clit throbbing—nearing a huge orgasm.

“Please, please, please—oh fuck—I'm gonna cum!”

You whine loudly, biting your lip while your eyes roll back —frantically chasing your orgasm with high pitched moans escaping your lips as whimpers. His hips began snapping forward with more force, and you could tell he was close by the way he panted—his eyebrows furrowed and his sweet groans growing louder.

“Fuck, I can feel you tightening around me.”

He hissed, snapping his hips against you sloppily, his pelvis hitting you clit and making you cry out.

As you clutched his firm wrist with shaking hands, he tightened his grasp, and all it took was another hard slap of his pelvis against your swollen clit to set you off. You scream with delight, gasping as his bruising grip relaxes and grips your cheek, grinding his thumb against your tongue.

Your screams are muffled and a guttural growl escapes him, biting down on your shoulder and releasing. He bucks into your cunny sloppily —shooting loads of his thick white cum inside of you—all the while groaning hoarsely. He quickly releases you from his grip and you gasp, panting for air as he pulls you off of him, and lays you down under the covers next to him, exhausted. He bends over the bed and throws over his oversized tank top for you to wear and tucks his dick back into his pants.

You press yourself against your lover, sighing as he wraps an arm around you. “You were so good for me.” He whispered, massaging your back as you both tried to regain composure, sleepiness plaguing both of you. Eventually though, you both slowly fell into a deep slumber near the crack of dawn.

…

“Come on, we’re late.” Jotaro had his hands in his pockets, back to his usual stoic self as your trembling legs made it through the hallways of the hotel. You smile, babbling about your troubles as if he didn’t fuck you silly just last night. You were wearing a concealer to hide the bruises, cuts, and hickies on your neck, and try your best to control you walking—even though it stings to move your legs. Eventually you make it to them, sitting at a round, clothed table near the entrances of the dining hall, plates full of exotic food. All eyes are on you both as you two get seated next to each other. Suspiciously, you notice their conversation stopped right when you sat down. Joseph elbows his grandson’s ribs, making him glare coldly at the senior.

“What.”

“Sounded like someone had a fun night, eh?”

Jotaro’s eyes widened minimally listening to his grandpa’s chuckles, but he just grumbled.

“Gigi, what do you mean? Nothing happened.” He replied dryly.

Meanwhile, your face heated up, shocked. Were they able to hear you moan? That would be so embarrassing—

“Actually, last night I heard some strange sounds. Originally I thought I was an enemy stand user..” Kakyoin cleared his throat uncomfortably, trying to stay composed. He stirred cream into his coffee while he talked. “Until I heard someone ask jotaro to fuck them.” The red head couldn’t help but let the edge of his mouth slant into a smirk as your face reddened even more. With your face in your hands, you groaned in embarrassment. Your worst nightmare had come true. Even jotaro seemed a bit embarrassed, a finger on the rim of his cap, hiding his eyes as he looked down. He only sat back as Joseph’s booming laughter brought attention from nearby diners.

“Do not worry, ma cherie, atleast you enjoyed yourself. I didn’t know you were into choking..” Polnareff, who was sitting next to you, wrapped an arm around you and snickered. You thought you were gonna cry.

Everyone around you laughed except for you and Jotaro, but it's fine I guess, you can live with this. It was worth it.

[vinyls-and-valentines]

[Image Description 1: A screenshot from the movie What We Do In The Shadows, featuring the character Vladislav, played by Jemaine Clement, captioned as: “Kobra, when someone asks why they wear so much dark make-up despite being a killjoy”. The character is facing the viewer and looking to the left of the image with a serious expression, while saying: “I call this look Dead, But Delicious”. /End Description. Image Description 2: A bust shot of Lady Gaga, wearing a matching pink hat and clothes, captioned as: “Val: (quote) I’m stealing Poison’s color— (unquote) / The Girl, listening to hs little villain monologue knowing damn well red was Kobra’s color”. The woman is grinning with her teeth showing, holding her hands together as she says, “I have to laugh”. /End Description. Image Description 3: The “I see this as an absolute win” meme, captioned as: “Jet and Kobra getting kicked out by Tommy for being obnoxious before paying for the things they got”. It shows The Hulk wearing a dark blue jump suit and standing with a grin behind a computer desk with several monitors. /End Description. Image Description 4: A screenshot featuring Salem from the 1996 show Sabrina the Teenage Witch, captioned as: “Cherri Cola: (quote) Oh, come on, Shiny— what’d I even do? (unquote) / Party Poison:”. Salem is a black cat, wearing a pair of miniature round glasses, with a book open in front of him as he says: “It says here you’re a bitch”. /End Description. Image Description 5: Black text against a pink background reading: “I’ve got 99 problems and Bad Words returning from hiatus could solve at least 73 of them”. /End Description. Image Description 6: An edited version of the “store-bough is fine meme”, showing a person wearing a witch had waving a hand dismissively and saying, “If you can’t summon the Fabulous Killjoys’ spirits directly from Hell, leaving a letter at Raven’s Manor is fine.” /End Description. Image Description 7: A screenshot from the show Who’s Line Is It Anyways?, featuring a person wearing a black button down shirt and a red tie, given the line “The world’s angriest girl” which is also displayed on-screen. Val Velocity’s hair, mask and vampire teeth necklace were poorly drawn on top of the image. /End Description. Image Description 8: A completely hot pink pie chart titled “what to do tonight”. The key next to the chart shows the pink means “thinking about [a panel showing C.A.T, with its mouth open and looking happily at someone off-screen]”. /End Description.]

Hi, i'm back on my bullshit~

Also, bonus meme because @tasteofamnesia’s Cherri Cola lives in my head rent-free </3

[Image Description: An image of a cinnamon toast crunch piece with a cartoony frowning expression, captioned as: “Cherri Cola thinking it found its purpose, before dying and getting brought back to life by the Witch again:”. The original caption of the image reads: “What the cinnamon toast fuck is this”. /End Description.]

[spideymarvelws]

 had so much fun writing the first scene dude... i feel like as a fanfic writer its a sin i haven’t written anything like it yet lmfaoo (to be fair i probably have but I just dont rem💀) anyways i hope you enjoy!

REPOST BECAUSE OF TAGS!!!

Main Masterlist / Add Yourself To My Taglist / Prompt List

Prompt : 9. “Then what are you waiting for?”

Warnings : just some cute floof, some cursing here and there

Word Count : 2.2k

Hesitation

Technoblade x GN!Reader

It was always peaceful in the tundra right before the sun set. Not only did the orange and red colours that reflected off the shiny snow send a wave of tranquility through the lands. It was a specific time where all the animals would go back into their homes before the mobs spawned at night fall, leaving the lands in complete silence.

Phil loved working at this time, getting small tasks done around the house that he wasn’t able to do throughout the day. Whether it was washing the dishes or dusting out the book shelves. Maybe even lounged around near the fireplace, planning out what he had to do the next day. It was always quiet, void of distractions to keep him from doing them.

But of course, with peace always came chaos.

“YOU CHEATED!”

“NO I DIDN’T!”

“YES YOU DID!”

The door cracked open, slamming against the wall behind it making the blonde jump from the sudden noise. He was ready to pick up his sword by his side until he recognised the voices of his house mates, shouting like little children.

Phil sighed, continuing to wash the dishes in front of him. While the bickering tended to amuse him at times, right then he just wanted to stay in the silence. He was quick to grab a pear of earplugs from his chest, pushing them snugly into his ear, blocking out the noise you both brought into the house while humming a small tune.

“There’s no way that your horse is faster that Carl! That’s just not possible!” Techno shook his head, his entire body still except for his left foot tapping consistently on the floor, “It’s just not possible.”

“Okay-” you pointed your finger in his face, “First off, her name is Raven and secondly, you just can’t admit that she’s better than Carl.” you crossed your arms on your chest, looking up at the piglin with teasing eyes.

Tech threw his head back with a groan, turning around gruffly and taking off his cape along with the skull mask covering his face.

“I won’t admit it because it isn't true!” he turned back to face you, mimicking your stance and tilting his head slightly to the side.

You raised your eyebrows at his response, nodding slowly, “Alright, alright,” you slowly took of your cloak, bunching it up and throwing it at him, his reflexes catching it before the fabric hit his chest, “Maybe it’s just the ridder and not the horse.”

Techno gasped, “You take that back.” he threw your cloak to the side.

You hummed, looking up and faking a thinking face, “Nah... I don’t think I will, I said what I said.” you stepped closer to the hybrid, sizing up his figure, “And what are you going to do about it?”

Techno squinted his eyes, a small smirk making its way to his face before he grabbed you by the waist, throwing you over his shoulder and walking away from the entrance into the living room.

“Hey!” You pounded at his back, wiggling in his tight grip, “Put me down you loaf!”

He laughed at your words but obliged, throwing you on the couch near the fireplace. Before you could sit up, he crawled over your form, knee besides one side of your waist with his other foot planted on the floor, keeping him steady hovering over you.

“Techno-” you chuckled nervously, trying your best not to stray away from his intense gaze, fighting the heat starting to rise to your face. Your hands pushed at his chest, weakening when he brought his face closer to yours, making you feel smaller than you already were.

He didn’t say anything, instead his fingers dug into your stomach, wiggling them across the fabric of your shirt. Your laugher filled the air, high pitched and bouncing off the walls of the cottage. You tried your best to control them, not wanting to give in to the blood god’s actions so quickly. But your hands on your stomach did nothing to stop his.

“Oh. My. God! Techno! Stop you fucking- oh god!”

“Take it back Y/n!” he laughed along with you, continuing his assault on your stomach, “Take it back or I swear to god you’re going to loose a canon life from being too ticklish.”

“NEVER!” you shouted between laugher, screaming when his hands began to move faster, knocking the breath out of your lungs. In the heat of the moment, he took your wrists into his fist, pinning them above your head, keeping your hands from interfering with his plans.

“Say. It.” even with one hand we was doing enough to keep you squirming underneath him, desperate for an escape.

“Okay! Okay! You- You’re a good rider Techno! You’re a good rider!” you finally admitted, your body falling limp against the cushions when he finally raised his fingers from your stomach.

Techno laughed at your state, leaning back with a cocky smirk on his face, “Glad to know we could come to an agreement,”

“I hate you,” you mumbled, your head rolling to the side on your shoulder as you caught your breath. You closed eyes in relief that the past few minutes were over, nearly falling asleep with the amount of energy you spent laughing.

Techno chuckled, taking your chin into his fingers, turning your head to look back at him, “Is that so?”

You nodded, fluttering your eyes open to look up at the pink haired man. Your breath hitched when you noticed how close his face was to yours. His entire presence felt suddenly close, his chest puffed out with long breaths, his legs practically tangled with yours, his face hovering over you, radiating heat you didn’t notice while he was tickling you. You watched as his face lit up red, his piglin ears straightening out of the side of his head, probably taking in the proximity as well.

Techno wasn’t one to get flustered often, but when he did it was always with the people he cared about. He trusted them enough to let that blood god persona he put on fade away leaving behind his shy, nerdy side you always adored. The side of techno who would read by the fireplace with Steve sat snuggly in his lap, the Techno who would spend hours trying to fix his glasses that broke constantly in his strong grip only having to craft a new one. The Techno who would grumble about compliments from you and Phil but the subtle spread of pink across his face told everyone otherwise. The Techno you grew to love the more and more he let you it.

He began to get a lot more playful with you as you friendship grew. When you moved in with him out in the snow it only increased drastically. It wasn’t out of the ordinary for the both of you to end up in this position or something similar to it (like the time he pinned you down during training), but he would always stop before things got too intimate and while it hurt, you’ve grown to accept it. You were glad to be his friend, his companion. You would take his friendship over not knowing him at all any time of the day.

You waited for him to pull back. To stand up and dust off his clothes, offering you his hand to pull you up with him and continue that night like normal. But he stayed, his dark, dull eyes staying down at you with a shine you’ve never seen up close before.

Techno didn’t know what to do either. He didn’t know what was prompted him to stay in this position, the sudden confidence that pushed him to keep his hand on your face, his lips so close to yours.  Maybe it was the voices in his head, annoyed with the constant stares and thoughts of adoration when you rode Raven around in the snow, your cape flowing beautifully behind you, face showing nothing but pure joy. They were relentless, calling him out on every emotion he was feeling because of you.

He wanted to move for your sake, he was the one on top of you in the first place, pinning you down. You were probably being polite not shoving him off of you, even if you’ve never done it before, he just always pulled away before you could. But he couldn’t, his muscles stiff and unable to move.

A small part of his brain told him you wanted this too, but he ignored it for his own sanity.

“Techno-” you whispered but before you could continue, the hybrid immediately took the single word as a protest, finally letting go of your hands but keeping his body close.

“Shit I’m sorry that- that was probably a bit much.”

You giggled softly, “No- uh, it was fine tech, no worries,”

He looked down at your bright smile glowing in his face.

“You’re really beautiful Y/n,” he whispered, letting the rough pads of his fingers trail down the side of your face, blushing when you nudged them with your cheek, accepting the comfort.

“You think so?” you whispered back, looking up at him with doe eyes.

“I-” he started, his breath hot against the tip of your nose as he glanced down to your lips, quickly looking back into your eyes. Why weren’t you moving? Why weren’t you cringing, laughing at the thought of ever kissing him?

“You- Do you want this.” you whispered, letting his thumb pull down at your bottom lip, watching as the plush skin softly bounced back.

He nodded, shivering when you tangled your fingers into his pick curls, pulling his face down and nudging your nose against his. He closed his eyes, a small, cute snort coming from the back of his throat at the affection.

“Then what are you waiting for?”

“FUCK!”

You jumped at the sudden curse, Techno falling off of you and on to the floor besides the couch. Before you could process what just happened, the curse sounded again followed by a crash, both of your senses on high alert when you realised it was Phil’s voice coming from the kitchen. You rushed to grab your weapons from nearby, quickly pulling yourself together on the fact that your friend was in trouble.

You both ran as fast as you could, Techno in front of you with his sword drawn while you were behind loading your cross bow with an arrow. He barged into the kitchen, holding his blade in the air, ready to attack but all he was met with was a pair of wings slapping him in the face.

You dove under the large feathers, bumping the winged man to alert him of your presence.

“Oh... hey guys!” He smiled, taking out something from his ears and resting them on the kitchen counter. He sent a pointed look to the weapons in your hands, crossing his arms over his chest in confusion, “Why the weapons?”

“Are you alright?” Techno said, rubbing his nose from the hit.

“We heard you scream, thought you were in trouble.”

Phil chuckled nervously, “Sorry, my bad,” he turned around to face the both of you, “I just dropped a plate.”

You and Techno let out an audible sigh, dropping your weapons to the floor with a clank. You didn’t know how many times your heart could deal with the sudden bursts of adrenaline. Walking up to Techno, you took his hand away from his face, inspecting the soft red mark across his face from the whip of feathers. No matter how small the attack, you always made sure to check up on him, even when he didn’t need it.

But with your delicate touch came memories of the events that just happened

“Were- were you here the entire time?” Techno said hesitantly, looking up at his father with worried eyes. You took in his words, immediately pulling away from the hybrid, ignoring his small noise of protest.

“Yes, but i put in some ear plugs,” he pointed to them on the counter.

“Oh!” you piped in, “That’s- That’s good.”

“Was there something I missed?” he crossed his arms over his chest, looking at the both of you curiously.

“Nothing!” You both shouted at the same time, chuckling nervously.

“Okay?” Phil dragged out, pointing back to the sink, “Well, I’ll just-”

“Yeah! You- uh, get to that phil,” you began walking backwards, bounced into the edge of the counter. You played off the pain with a quick thumbs up and walking quickly out of the kitchen, mumbling curses under your breath.

“Are they alright mate?” Phil asked his son who seemed to be lost in his own world, staring at the spot you were once in, “Techno?”

“I- what?” He shook his head, “Uh, yeah- they’re,” he let out a small sigh, letting  his hand pass over his face, “Yeah, they’re fine.”

“Are you alright?”

Techno didn’t respond for a while, stuck in his own thought. Phil turned to his son, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder, “Tech?”

“I think-” He let out a shaky breath, “I think I love them.”

...

IM SORRY FOR ENDING IT SO SUDDENLY

it was just getting to long and i didn’t want to loose motivation writing more😭

Permanent Taglist (Dream SMP) : @ossinsworld @lunarinnit @starstruckllamapuppy @shio-yuki @lovelychasbug @alice-blue-skies @chaosofsmarty @imamybubbles

Technoblade Taglist : @hyumiid @whenpugzfly @sammyxn @jackalopedoodles @notmesimpingfortechno @immadatmostthings

Crossed out mean couldn't tag :(

[zealous-whispers-of-us-redux]

a different kind of song

(A/N: no one ever asked for this, but there isn't enough merman!Bucky/reader fics out there, lol. Also, her song is basically "Siren Song" by Margaret Atwood)

Warning- allusions to sexual assault. Do NOT read if that bothers you!

Summary: The sea swallowed her whole, and she was reborn with saltwater on her tongue and webs between her fingers.

🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊

She did not remember her life as a human. All she remembered was the war, and the hunger, and the men raiding her village. She remembered the sweat-soaked skin of a warrior snatching her up as she cried out for help. She felt the slide of his body, his blade against her throat. Then when he had finished, she remembered being thrown away into the deepest part of the sea, left to die. But she was blessed by the primordial sea god Phorcys, a child of Artemis, and was allowed to live again. Her new body was formed from misery and blood, and the reward for her suffering was eternal life with the chance to kill as many humans as she wished with no divine interference. The killing of human men, for men were the chosen victims of any siren. Women were not drawn in by their song, and if, by chance, a woman stumbled across a siren, that siren would leave her alone.

Slowly, she began to forget the trappings of humanity, the sound of her mother's voice, and the taste of human food. She aged with the world, hidden deep beneath the waves. Countless men fell prey to her beautiful song, and she learned how to kill quickly. She grew to love the taste of flesh, the sound of someone drowning. She forgot what it was like to be lonely. 

Now, she only knew starvation.

An all-encompassing hunger clawing at her belly made her whine with pain. Humans had avoided this part of the sea for a few years, and she last ate three months ago. She'd had to survive solely on fish, which, while technically food, were not filling nor even tasty. She was beginning to hate fish.

There were no boats; she checked three times in the past hour. It was dangerous for her to be so close to the surface because the air outside was toxic. There was also a very likely chance that she would be spotted by anyone who could harm her. But she was so hungry that she forgot herself. She floated just beneath the surface and sang, letting her voice ring out through the water, enticing any man into approaching. The setting sun shined down on the outcrop of rocks above her.

And there! A flash of something!

She sang louder, opening her eyes underwater. There was a man with darker hair than she had ever seen lying on a gigantic rock. He was acceptable, she guessed. She barely knew what that meant.

He had yet to notice her, dumb as he was. She could see her song was affecting him as his eyes started to close, and his hand inched unconsciously closer to the water. His finger just barely skimmed the surface before she lunged, yanking him into the sea with her. He began to fight back as she dragged him down to the sandy bottom. Thrashing against her hold, he scrabbled to gain purchase on her body, but to no avail. Her skin was as hard as stony coral and difficult to cut. She sang her trumph, mocking him as she brought him up to break the surface, only to bring him right back down.

But this man had a tail, and she did not realize it until it hit her in the face. She squawked in surprise, her song cutting off. The merman twisted out of her slackened grip. She snarled, baring her teeth as she swam at him. Sirens were stronger than mer, especially in deeper waters, so it did not take much to grab him again. They wrestled, flipping over each other. She sliced his side with one of her nails; his tail knocked the wind out of her. He pulled her lure too hard, and she made a pained sound, biting at his hand. He cried out as she ate clean through one of his webs. Blood leaked into the water, making her ravenous.

"This is the one song everyone would like to learn: the song that is irresistible," she began, "The song that forces men to leap overboard in squadrons, even though they see the beached skulls!"

The merman ceased struggling. He stared at her, his eyes growing vast and dreamy. She grinned toothily. She had only had mer meat once before. It was harder to draw in mermen than human men, so because of that, she was only able to entice a single merman. But that was years ago, and he wasn't nearly as delicious to look at as this mer.

She dropped the tone of her voice to a seductive curl. "This is the song that nobody knows because anyone who has heard it is dead, and others can't remember. Shall I tell you a secret? And if I promise to, will you come nearer? I will tell my secret to you, to you, only to you. Come closer, closer to me."

She lifted her finger, tempting him to come over so that she could take a bite. The merman swam closer until their chests were pressed together. He said something in a language that she had never heard before.

"This song is a cry for help, my dear. Help me! Only you, only you can, for you are unique!" she cried sadly.

His tail curled around hers, and she frightened at the gentle touch broken out of her song. She spat and gnashed her teeth, but still, his tail stayed where it was. He opened his mouth and said something, but she still could not understand. She went to bite his nose off, but he leaned forward and pressed his mouth to hers so plainly that she stilled. She was not sure what was happening. She was not sure what she was supposed to be doing. She floated there, letting him mash his mouth against hers. His mouth tasted bizarre.

Finally, the merman stopped. He pulled away only minutely, still looking spellbound. Strange. Her song had ended. Why did he continue to look at her like that? He reached out and lifted her chin to meet his eyes. His own were darting back and forth across her face, searching for something. He spoke more things that she didn't understand.

"Uhh-h- hello," the merman said in a language she could understand. "Hi."

"Why were you crushing your mouth onto mine?" she asked.

"What, never heard of kissin' before?"

His smile was much too pleasant. That was unacceptable. Food was never supposed to look nice. She wanted to claw the smile right off of his face.

"Kissing?"

"Yeah, touchin' lips. Usually done as a sign of love or, you know, desire."

"Desire?"

"Sweet Thetis, you're fuckin' gorgeous," said the merman, ignoring her confusion.

His hand shot out to touch her lure, but he thought better of it and withdrew.

"What does that mean?" she asked.

His smile grew bigger, how funny: "Beautiful. Pretty."

"Pretty? What's that?"

"You know, like when you find a shiny thing, an' you wanna keep it forever?"

"I do not know," she grumbled (How dare this mer make her feel unintelligent!). "I have never had shiny things."

"Never had… Hold on, my pretty one."

Mystified, she waited just as he'd asked as he ruffled through a pouch that she had not noticed before. She had never seen anything like it and wondered where she could acquire one. Of course, she never had a reason to have a bag since she had no use for possessions. Perhaps it could hold weapons! Or bones to snack on!

"Ah-ha!" the merman said, thrusting something in her direction.

She stared at the thing in his hand.

"Looks even prettier underneath your lights," he said, avoiding her eyes.

"What is it?" she replied, her hand darting out nervously to touch it.

She pulled back almost instantly, but the merman grabbed her wrist.

"It's called gold," he explained, tipping it into her hands. "The humans use it to get other shiny things. D'you like it?"

"I am not sure. I do not know what I like."

"You can keep it."

"What kind of trickery is this?"

"No tricks. As I said, you're beautiful, and beautiful things should have beautiful things."

"No tricks, certainly, but what do you want in exchange?"

For the first time tonight, he looked sheepish. She noticed that his stomach was turning pink, but for what reason, she was unsure. She wondered what he was trying to work up the nerve to say.

"Well, er, matin' season is comin' up," he began.

"Not yet."

"Right, it isn't for a few months yet, but I was taught to woo the mer, er, the creature that I choose with shiny things. It's my first matin' season, you see."

"Mhm."

"An' the wooin' part takes a while. An' then there's the courtin' stage, which takes even longer."

"If you need a mate, there are mer all around this area during this time."

"Well- heh." The merman rubbed the back of his neck. "I-I'd like it to be you."

"Why?"

"Because you're the most beautiful thing I've ever seen."

"Ah."

"I have more shiny things if you want 'em," the mer said, reaching for his pouch.

She shrugged. "I have no use for them."

"You don't gotta have a use for 'em. Where's your home cave? I can bring 'em there."

"I do not have a home cave," she said.

"Oh, right, where is your family's cave, then?"

"I have no family."

"No family? You mean, you're out here all by yourself?"

"Yes."

"Aren't you lonely?"

"What is lonely?" she asked.

"Sad, because you have no one with ya."

"What is sad?"

"Whaddya mean, 'what is sad?' It's sad! Don't you know what that is?" the merman twisted his face up like he was in distress, though what kind she was not sure.

"I only know hunger," she told him.

His eyes lost some of their shine. "Oh, yeah, right. How long's it been since you ate properly anyway? You don't look so good."

"I have not caught a human in months."

"D'you need help huntin'?"

"Can you ensnare a human with your singing?"

"No, but I know some good spots for fish."

"I am not in the mood for fish," she said.

"You just haven't found the right kind," the merman replied, closing his left eye.

He turned tail, swimming away from her before glancing back to see if she would follow him. The hunger in her belly was making her act quite strange in that she was willing to go along with this merman. She felt, oh, what's the word, she knew this, like mer, she was curious. She decided to follow him, keeping a bit of distance between them until the merman flipped around in an impressive display of tailfins and long dark hair, and decided they would swim side by side. His hand kept brushing hers, trying to grab onto her fingers for some reason. She tugged away, unsure of what he was trying to do. She still had not yet decided if she wanted to mate with him anyway. Sirens did not mate in the same way that mer did, that much she knew. They called it breeding, and it was over in a frenzy of teeth and claws. There were no gifts of shiny things or "kisses."

"What's yer name?" the merman asked.

The question stunned her. She could not remember her name before the sea took her in, and she had no use for a name now. No one else called to her. Her name was simply another memory, another casualty to add to her list.

"I do not know," she said.

"You know what a name is, right? Like, I'm Bucky, for example."

Her fingers drifted up to her lips, searching for her name. If she remembered the shape of her mouth as she spoke it aloud, perhaps she could remember the correct sounds. She thought back as far as she could, to the feeling of water filling her lungs, to the sounds of screams, to the smell of a fire burning down her village, to her blood staining her tongue. She wanted to remember her name. She had not even realized this was something she had lost until she needed it.

Then there was a flash of memory, jagged and cutting. Her heart began to race. In her mind, she heard it. Her mother had been crying. Her mother had been screaming at the men to stop. Her mother had been shrieking to let go of her, let go of my daughter. Her mother yelling at her to be brave, hold her breath, be strong, my love, my dear. Her mother. She remembered her mother.

Her lips parted, and she whispered the name into the water. The merman, Bucky, repeated it.

"Again," she said.

He did, and oh, she felt something new, something besides hunger. A hole opened in her chest. Her lower lip wobbled, and then she was singing a new song, never before heard from a siren. It echoed around her and Bucky, reaching out to the farthest depths of the sea. It was filled with desperation, isolation, and salvation, but it was hope and home too.

"Is this what sad is?" she asked Bucky once her song was over.

"Yeah, it is," he answered, curling his tail around hers.

When he went to wrap her up in his arms, she let him, falling into his embrace.