#been a while since i built a set and yeah. i really love doing small contained sets instead of big builds lmao

[edmunderson]

*new guy alert for @gloomiegalaxie's femboy friday*

[loveemii]

How the Kamaboko Trio eats you out ! !

Warnings: Pussy eating, cumming, squirting, and dirty talk (cursing a little on ino’s part)

- characters of are of age -

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Tanjiro:

You and Tanjiro have been in a fight recently, as you know Tanjiro; he wants to talk about it but you, don’t really know exactly how to express your feelings to him. (Nor anyone else for that matter..)

He tries to bring up the fight everyday since then but it slowly starts to annoy and irritate you, he noticed how you would leave the room quickly to make dinner or to clean the house.

“Y/n-”

Tanjiro followed you to the kitchen as you washed some leftover dishes. As you scrubbed the plates you felt a hand on your upper thigh, gripping the skin of your lower butt. “Are you still talking about the fight? I told you I’m ok, we’re ok!” Y/n added the last part in a more enthusiastic way.

“Can we please just talk about it?” Tanjiro’s eyes were full of love and care, Y/n sighed. “How about tomorrow ok? I’m not feeling up to it now.” Tanjiro have a warm smile and although she couldn’t see him as she was still washing dishes. He turned the faucet water off and Y/n gave him a questioning look, “I’ll do them later. For now, follow me; ok love?”

Y/n did as he said and followed him, he took her hand in his and they walked a few steps to the dinner table.

Tanjiro gently lifted up the skirt his girlfriend was wearing and kneeled, “Tanjiro-what’re doing..?” Y/n asked as her face flushed with blush. “Shh, just relax for me.”

Y/n was already wet, and Tanjiro’s tongue licked smoothly over her clit. She gripped the edges of he table and let out a sigh of relief, along with small moans; Tanjiro kept teasing her clit before teasing her entrance.

“T-Tanjiro, please~” Y/n whined for him to put his tongue inside, he listened to her moans and slid his tongue inside, there were a couple of slurping sounds before he pulled his tongue out and inserted two fingers, he began to fuck her with his hands lower and at a good pace while he sucked and nibbled on her clit.

Y/n moaned louder and louder while Tanjiro fucked her so good with his fingers, sliding them out he placed them in again slower teasing her further, but she was already close. Tanjiro kept sucking and licking on her clit although she was cumming, he liked to hear her overstimulated moans, Y/n gasps and moans with a breathy tone, “Fuck~”

———

Inosuke:

Y/n and Inosuke where out of the house, they usually don’t go out unless they need to. But sometimes on a rare occasion they like to visit the city; although Inosuke almost always causes havoc when he wants something for a lower price..

As they got home Y/n looked exhausted and Inosuke still had his bargaining face on which made him look angry, he was annoyed and glared at everything he saw. “Let’s go to bed Ino.” Y/n pleaded in a tired tone. “Yeah yeah, but next time I’m getting a lower price.” Inosuke hissed with his husky n raspy voice.

Y/n grabbed Inosuke’s hand and lead him into their shared bedroom, as Y/n began to change Inosuke noticed she had on her black laced bra and underwear; that set always turned him on.

Without saying a word Inosuke picked Y/n up in his arms bridal style. Her half naked body touching his rough abs; he laid her down on the bed as Y/n’s head rested over her pillow. Inosuke moved his pillow underneath her ass for support. “Inosuke, what are you doing?” Y/n asked as blush took over her cheeks, her fists were clenched to her sides.

“I wanna taste you, ok? So fucking be quiet and let me have you.” Inosuke spoke in a way he hasn’t in a while, usually when there is an intimate moment he doesn’t say much cursing words; but tonight was a little different.

Pulling her blacked laced panties down he kneels over the bed and built up enough saliva to spit on her already soaking wet pussy. “So fucking wet already, and all for me huh?” He teased as he sucked on Y/n’s clit a little before slurping her. “Inosuke~” Y/n squirmed as he clenched her fists even more turning her knuckles white.

Inosuke began to lick and suck on her clit faster like it was his last day on earth. He spit on her pussy again before rubbing his saliva all over and inside her with his skilled tongue. Y/n twitched and squirmed all while trying not to moan too much, “F-fuck~ Inosuke, s-so good~!”

He grabbed her legs and spread them ever further apart and lifted them back, he held onto Y/n like that fora while while he ate her out making her feel so fucking good. Inosuke stopped and looked up at Y/n’s blushing fucked face. “Stop moving so much or I’ll stop, want me to fucking stop?” Inosuke spoke hoarsely.

“M-mhm.” Y/n nodded her head wanting more of him, he then grabbed her thighs instead and continued on with that skilled tongue of his; “So goddamn filthy~ what a bitch you haven’t squirt yet..” Inosuke moved his tongue in n out of Y/n’s tight n wet pussy as a finger rubbed you clit violently.

Y/n remembering what Inosuke had said and tried her very best not to move so much although she was beginning to lose control of her twitches and movements. “Inosuke~ I’m so close~!” Her eyes shut tightly as her heart rate got higher n higher; she gripped the bedsheets and squirted all over his face; Inosuke swallowed of her liquid, as he continued to taste her insides Y/n bucked her hips up a little as she was in a daze of overstimulation.

Inosuke removed his mouth and Y/n was still squirting a little as it slowly came to an end. She was catching her breath before Inosuke licked his finger clean from her clit. He then stood up and leaned down to kiss Y/n, she tasted herself on his lips and placed a hand over his face as she deepened the kiss.

———

Zenitsu:

Y/n had just gotten out of the shower; like she always had done, she wore only a towel around her body as her hair gently dripped with cold water. Zenitsu was always in awe when he saw her walk to their room and close the door in darkness before turning on the light.

He decided to try and see if she was feeling up to any intimate time tonight. Zenitsu knocked on the door while she dropped her towel to the ground; Y/n stood behind the door careful to only let her boyfriend see her head and damp hair. “Yes?” Y/n asked as she opened the door to a crack.

Zenitsu’s face was already so pink with embarrassment; “Uh-I, wanted to ask if I could maybe..sorry it was stupid!” Zenitsu still gets so flustered with his girlfriend after 3 years of being with her; Y/n still always finds it cute.

Zenitsu backed up from the door hiding from her sight, “Zenitsu, you can come in if you want.” Y/n offered having an idea in her mind; “N-no it’s ok! You can change!”

She opened the door wider and Zenitsu couldn’t help but just look n stare n admire her beautiful naked body in front of him; it was a sight for his eyes. “Y/n-you look so beautiful.”

Zenitsu complimented as he walked towards her slowly; she grabbed his hand and pulled him in the room with a big smile. “Thank you Zen.” She blushed as their bodies touched.

The smile that was on Zenitsu’s face faded away slow; his gaze was more dim serious yet still shy. “Y/n..” She waited for him to continue, “please let me taste you.” Zenitsu spoke in what sounded like a beg.

Y/n’s face was flushed with blush as she gently nodded; her heart rate went up even faster with the adrenaline of Zenitsu’s cold hands on her bare hips. He lead her to the bed and laid her face down on his pillow; Y/n moved her head to the side as Zenitsu slowly spread her legs for him.

“Can I start..?” Zenitsu asked shyly in a small tone; Y/n nodded her head. “Yes, please~” Y/n sort of cooed at him and he felt an erection grow; he blushed even more and kneeled at the edge of the bed on both knees.

Zenitsu held one thigh in his hand while his other gently began to rub her already wet pussy; he moved to her clit and placed his tongue inside. Y/n lowly moaned as she gripped the bedsheet. Zenitsu flicked his tongue inside her pussy as he brutally rubbed her clit; he got more of an erection as he heard her moan even more and whine for him.

“Zenitsu~please!” Y/n whined n moaned in pleasure; all she could think about was how her shy boyfriend was fucking her with his tongue; he removed his tongue and switched; he placed two fingers inside and began to flick his tongue multiple times over her clit; “Z-Zenitsu~!”

Y/n moaned even louder as she sort of bounced her hips for more friction; Zenitsu put his tongue back inside her tight n wet pussy and flicked his tongue even faster in addiction to the taste.

After a few minutes of Zenitsu repeating his movements Y/n came all over his face; when she looked over at him who met her face by the pillow she saw all of her cum smothered on his face; he looked beautiful with her all over him.

Zenitsu lifted a finger up to his nose and took some cum off then licked his finger clean; “You taste amazing~” Y/n blushed and pulled him into a kiss getting some of her own cum on her face but Zenitsu licked it off.

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thank you for reading! i hope you enjoyed <33

- please excuse any spelling or grammar mistakes, thank you

[cailinsblog]

The Café by the Rink-Nico hischer

Nico hischer x reader

Masterlist

It was an ordinary Tuesday morning in Newark, New Jersey, when Nico Hischier first walked into *Maggie’s Corner Café*—a quaint, family-owned spot nestled just down the street from the Prudential Center. The place had an old-school charm, with mismatched furniture, the hum of indie music in the background, and the comforting aroma of freshly brewed coffee filling the air. It was a cozy hideaway, a far cry from the bustling streets just outside.

Y/N had been working there for a few months, ever since she moved to the city. She loved the routine—the familiar faces who came in for their daily fix of caffeine and conversation. Then, one day, Nico Hischier walked in.

He wasn’t wearing his Devils jersey, just a hoodie and a baseball cap, trying to blend in with the regulars. He ordered a black coffee with a shot of espresso. Simple. Direct.

"Coming right up," Y/N said, smiling at him without thinking too much of it. He was just another customer.

But the next day, Nico was back. And the next. Every morning, at exactly the same time, he’d walk in, and she’d already know what to make for him.

“Good morning, Neeks, your usual?” she’d say, her voice light and familiar.

Nico would chuckle, his eyes sparkling as he leaned against the counter. “You know it.”

It became their unspoken routine. While Nico’s fame followed him everywhere else, in the café, he was just a guy who loved a good cup of coffee. He’d sip it slowly, chat about the weather or the team, and then slip out just as quietly as he came.

But one morning, everything changed.

Nico walked in with an entourage. His teammates. They filled up the small café, taking seats at the corner booth and laughing amongst themselves. Y/N’s eyes widened in surprise, but she didn’t let it show. She greeted them all with a friendly smile, jotting down their coffee orders.

Nico leaned over the counter, his voice lowered but full of intention. “We’re getting coffee for the whole team today.”

Y/N raised an eyebrow, her smile still warm. “Okay... what can I get for you guys?”

Each player had their own preferences—lattes, cappuccinos, iced coffees—and Y/N moved quickly to get their orders just right. Nico stayed close, watching her work, a hint of pride in his eyes.

When she handed them their drinks, Nico pushed a stack of bills toward her. “For the team. They’ll be back. Keep doing what you’re doing.”

Y/N glanced down at the money, a little stunned. “You’re... seriously?”

“Yeah.” Nico smiled, his tone serious but kind. “The boys love your coffee. Trust me, it’s not just the caffeine.”

The team’s visits became more frequent after that. The café buzzed with excitement, not just from the regulars, but from the growing crowd of fans who started coming in, hoping to catch a glimpse of a player or hear an inside joke. As word spread, the New Jersey Devils started supporting the café, covering the costs to help it stay afloat. The little family-run café that once struggled to keep the doors open was now thriving, thanks to Nico’s quiet generosity.

One afternoon, as Nico sat by the window, Y/N came over to check on him, setting down a fresh cup of coffee.

“You’re always here,” she teased, a smile tugging at the corner of her lips. “Don’t you have a game to get to?”

“I do,” Nico replied, his voice low, “but I had to stop by. Got something for you.”

He handed her a small envelope. She took it, surprised. Inside was a note with the Devils logo on it.

“We’re sponsoring the café now,” he explained, watching her face as she processed the words. “The team wants to make sure you stay here for a long time.”

Y/N’s heart skipped. “Wait, really? You—you did this?”

Nico shrugged, a modest smile crossing his face. “It’s nothing. You’ve built something great here. We just wanted to help.”

A wave of emotion hit her. It wasn’t just about the business—it was about Nico’s belief in her, in the place she’d built with her own two hands. She couldn’t find the words to thank him, so she just nodded, touched.

And then, one evening, after another high-energy game, Nico found her sitting at the café, the place quieter than usual as the evening rush had passed. The lights above the counter were warm, the late-night hum of the city outside making everything feel a little more intimate.

“Hey,” Nico said, his voice soft. “Did you enjoy the game?”

“It was amazing,” she replied, smiling at him. “I never thought I’d be sitting courtside, watching you score.”

Nico grinned, his gaze lingering on her a moment longer than usual. “I think I made a goal just for you.”

Y/N laughed, shaking her head. “You didn’t have to. But thank you. It was... special.”

There was a quiet pause, and then, without another word, Nico stepped closer. His hand gently brushed against hers on the counter. The touch was electric, simple, but full of intent.

“Y/N,” he said, his voice a little unsure, like he was testing the waters. “I know this is a little crazy, but... I like spending time with you. More than just coffee and small talk.”

Y/N’s breath caught in her throat, her heart racing. “I like it too, Neeks.”

His name was a soft whisper on her lips. And that was all it took. The distance between them vanished in an instant, and Nico’s lips found hers in a kiss that was slow at first, almost tentative, as if they were both savoring the moment. It was gentle but filled with all the words neither of them had said yet—the unspoken truth of what had been building for months.

When they pulled apart, both of them were smiling, their eyes locking in a way that felt new but also familiar.

“Good morning, Neeks,” Y/N whispered, her voice soft and full of meaning. “Your usual?”

Nico chuckled, his thumb gently tracing her hand. “You know it,” he replied, his voice low, but there was no mistaking the smile on his lips.

And just like that, the coffee shop where it all began had become the place where everything changed. Where the ordinary became extraordinary. And where two people, brought together by a cup of coffee, found something more than either of them could have expected.

[changingplumbob]

Chatting about Dating Deanna - Shay Edition

Shay: So a little birdie told me you wanted a sneak peek of the villa?

Deanna: I may have been worried about living conditions

Shay: Oh honey you've not seen extreme living conditions until you've lived in my job. Don't worry, I may have been on Mad About Dodo but I used none of that in this build

Deanna: You built this yourself?

Shay: *remembers how the last time she tried to explain that she's living in a simulation the sim kept resetting* Yes?

Deanna: Well it looks like it belongs in Tartosa

Shay: YES! Let me tell you one time I was in Africa and asked where the wood was and everyone on the crew looked at me like I had two heads *shudders* apparently bricks were the better option

Deanna: So can I see inside?

Shay: Sure! Follow me!

Shay: This is the entryway. Felt like some nice green touches by the stairs. Then near the entrance to the hall to your room and a couple of contestant rooms we have some modern art with some more... historical pieces

Deanna: Is that a chinchilla by a skull?

Shay: Dire chinchilla I believe. Responsible for unspeakable amounts of death

Deanna: Is this my room?

Shay: I know it's a bit simple but you really won't be spending much time here beyond sleeping. Now, do you want to see the watcher's favourite part?

Shay: Did someone say split level kitchen and lounge???

Deanna: No

Shay: Well the watcher did! Isn't it glorious? I love the amount of light we were able to get in here. And the modular couch *squeals*

Deanna: It does look spacious

Shay: Well in the bigger rounds we will need to fit in you and six contestants at a time. Pus Devin and whoever is proposing the challenge

Shay: So the lawn on the right is... under construction? I mean there is a small area for when you do some group hangouts but the other side of it is empty so we can fit in some of the larger equipment for challenges

Deanna: Larger equipment being?

Shay: Oh you know, things the watcher can't be bothered building another lot for. Now back inside beyond the lounge we have what I like to call the wiggle room

Deanna: Wiggle room?

Shay: Not all the solo challenges need large equipment so this space is going to be swapped around for whatever it needs to be. Some might say the watcher just hates building but meh, this is why she has me

Shay: To the left of the lounge of course we have-

Deanna: THE POOL

Shay: Correct. Now there isn't any swimming challenges but there will be down time between the weeks where everyone needs to relax so we wanted a nice space. Don't tell anyone but the watcher is actually over the moon about how it came out

Deanna: Is that a contestants room I can see through the windows?

Shay: Yes. Except of course sims don't peer through windows so no one will actually notice during the challenge

*Deanna resets*

Shay: Fudge! Yes, contestants rooms. All are the same since they'll be swapping around a bunch. But they've got a bed, wardrobe and mirror. Computer of course for the skill building times

Deanna: Do we all have to share bathrooms?

Shay: With a villa this size? No. Ensuites for everyone! Now come inside and see the upstairs. It has my favourite view

Shay: Oh wait, do you like the kitchen?

Deanna: I like the idea of other people cooking for us

Shay: Sorry honey. While the contestants skill build you'll be on cooking and repair duty

Deanna: Really?

Shay: No pain no gain. Okay see the balcony up there? That's where we're going, using the stairs from the entry

Deanna: Okay, this view is nice

Shay: The watcher, I mean production company, still need to think of some scenes that can be up here. But yeah through the arch is more contestant rooms

Shay: So what's the verdict?

Deanna: It's cute! But... what if the contestants don't think I'm cute enough to stop watching tv for?

Shay: Are you kidding? You're adorable. It's going to be fine. There will be set times for socialising but yeah here and there it will just be up to contestants as to if they want to talk to you. We can't make them chat but... we can lock them out of their rooms for a bit

Deanna: *laughing* Let's not do anything that could get us sued

Dating Deanna has 5 spots left!

Interested in joining the chaos? Check out the below links for all the details and register interest by Christmas!

Contestant List, Challenge Overview, Joey's Contestant Creation Walkthrough, F.A.Q, All In Guide

@daedriyth, @cawthorntales, @igglemouse, @corrienteallita please let me know if you will be a couple of days late. On my 26th/USA's 25th I will be contacting those who have offered to do filler sims for empty slots and don't want to give away the spot for your sim if your game is just playing up (like the game does). But you are of course allowed to submit your sims up until then, so you still have a week for final touches. @abbysimsfun you have told me your sim is queued so don't worry, I know she's coming.

[iliveforyouilongforyouvesuvia]

how would main 6 react if mc were a mermaid???

The Arcana HCs: M6 with a merfolk MC

~ thanks so much anon, this is a prompt I never would have thought of on my own and I'm loving how fun it is! enjoy ~

While it certainly influences how you function, being merfolk isn't the biggest deal to you. Vesuvians live in a bustling port city, with the world's most unusual people setting up shop on their doorsteps. They don't bat an eyelash at people of other species.

At first you refrained from mentioning it because you didn't have any memories and weren't ready to open that can of worms while you were still relearning to walk. By the time your shop had two mysterious visitors in one night, the people around you didn't know because you had no reason to go swimming with anyone and you never brought it up. You could change back and forth at will pretty easily, so you never associated anything unpleasant with it, besides how messy bath time could get if you felt the need to polish your scales.

Julian

It was your turn to clean the house, and you thought you'd take advantage of the dirty bathroom floor and do some tail maintenance

You avoided doing this when it was his turn because it really did make a big mess and you felt bad having him clean it up

So you're really getting in there (it's been over a month), removing dull and chipped scales, scraping out the gunk that's built up, scrubbing and polishing and making chaos

And then you hear his loud "I'm hooooome!" as the front door slams closed, and you respond with "in the bathroom!", and it's not until you're making eye contact with a gaping doctor that you realize

You forgot to tell him

And also the bathroom looks like a sea debris tornado hit it

He's got a million questions running through his mind, since when were you merfolk, why didn't he know this about you, was he not paying close enough attention, were you shy about it for some reason, whoah that's cool anatomy, why are there scales everywhere, if you're not wearing anything on your tail does that mean it's naked

He only manages a small squeak

You laugh and apologize for not telling him sooner, it just slipped your mind

He spends the next hour watching you groom, the doctor in him asking so many questions (with your permission) about how it works

It will hit him later that he's a pirate in love with a merfolk and the dramatic appeal of it will make him insufferable for weeks

Asra

They already knew, they've been one of your closest friends for years

The crazy part was when you woke up without any memories after he brought you back, and that meant that you didn't know

It's been its own challenge to take care of you this first week, you're disoriented and dysfunctional, and they're so relieved to have you back, but they don't have any experience with caring for someone in your state

So yeah, it was a week before he decided to try giving you a proper bath

It's going smoothly, you were surprisingly chill when they lowered you into the water

But for the first time you are feeling yourself submerged, and you're suddenly aware of the sensation of wanting to stretch out your legs after being curled up, so you do

Now Asra's turning around from grabbing the soap to see you thrashing wildly, tail out and very startled by what your body is doing

He's able to calm you down and help you figure out how to switch back and forth, but he's also noticing the state your tail is in

You had spent all your time before the plague caring for others, and it's been sitting dormant since you woke up, it needs the same rehab that the rest of your body does

But what breaks their heart the most is how your scales are all dull, some of them cracked or chipped or peeling, and they don't know the first thing about tail care, and clearly neither do you at the moment

Which is why every merfolk trader in Vesuvia knows his name now

They spent countless afternoons in the markets asking questions, taking notes, and collecting the right products

He doesn't mind the mess, which is why he never thinks to help you clean it up

Nadia

She has been wanting to take you to her childhood haunts since she met you, and now it's finally happening!

It's been months since she suggested it, you've both been very busy rebuilding Vesuvia, and she likes planning things out so they'll be perfect

But now you're taking a week at her summer palace getaway by the sea, and you literally don't have any memories of the last time you were able to swim somewhere like this

As soon as she's ready to go down to the water with you you're diving in

To say you're ecstatic is an understatement

You're very happy living as a human, but right now you're really getting to experience your roots and it's incredible

Nadia's surprised, to say the least

You never mentioned it, she never noticed any signs of it, is this why you eat so much seafood?

Should she instruct the palace chefs to expand your food options? Should she facilitate more moments like this where you can swim? Does your tail need regular exercise? Why didn't she see this when you used her bath?

Now you're circling back to the sand to invite her in with you, and realizing that you didn't give her any warning that you'd take off like that

She approaches you with a list of questions, but they die in her throat when she sees you in your element

You're glowing from the exercise, your face is shining with excitement and happiness, and your form in the water is the most breathtaking thing she's ever seen

She'll take your hand and let you pull her through the water

She makes multiple adjustments when you get back to the palace to make sure you're well provided for

Muriel

He lives off of the land, nobody is more comfortable with non-human species than he is

Though he doesn't interact with many water affiliated species, he's a trees and rocks kinda guy

He could sense that you weren't fully human from the time he met you, but he never thought it was worth bringing it up

You are you, whatever that is, just the fact that you run a shop and talk to people all day long is way more remarkable to him

But he does notice after a while of living together that you begin to get antsy, you keep stretching out your legs and taking weirdly big breaths

You end up suggesting to him that the two of you go down to the shore a little ways away from the city to camp over night

He's happy to do that, if that's what's been bothering you

Really, you just want full access to a body of water. Muriel doesn't have a tub anywhere in the hut and the forest is all streams, you haven't been able to swim or clean up properly in weeks

You'd been planning to help him set up camp when you arrived, but just the sight of the sun glinting off of the waves has you sprinting to the shoreline

As soon as he sees the way you dive in and shift, it clicks for him

Now the restlessness makes sense, why didn't you say anything earlier?

He's very happy to get everything organized by himself, you do come back and offer to help but he sends you back to the water with a shy request for eel, if you can find it

You do find it, and you have a delicious dinner together

He builds you a bath outside where the water can flow through it

He goes with you to the shore every time you need to take care of your tail now to watch you swim (and help you carry back the eels)

Portia

She had her suspicions before you two even got together

She grew up on the coast and spent years on a pirate ship, she's plenty familiar with what merfolk are like

She just noticed all the little clues, exactly like a detective from one of her favorite books

The unusually fluid way your chest moved when you inhaled, your preference for fresh seafood, the way you always folded your legs together when you were resting, your uncanny sense of smell

She was a little surprised that you never talked about it, but she figured maybe living as a human was your personal preference or perhaps you had bad memories associated with it

So she never brought it up, and you never thought to tell her

One afternoon the two of you are strolling through the marketplace together, picking up groceries and odds and ends to have around the cottage

She's keeping an eye out for new toys for Pepi, and then she hears you casually mention that oh yeah, you're running low on polish

What silver polish, there's tubs of it at home

Oh, scale polish, that makes sense - wait - you're talking about your tail, this is new, Arcana help her how does she respond

You see her fumbling and realize you never mentioned it before, and now you're both frantically explaining yourselves to each other in the middle of the marketplace

As soon as she realizes you're comfortable being open about it, she's all in

She clears her schedule for "tail day" every few weeks and will sit on the bathroom floor with you, hair tied up and sleeves rolled back, helping you reach all the tricky spots and telling you stories so you don't get bored

Lucio

He didn't really find out in the best moment

He doesn't know something unless you spell it out for him, so the concept of you being anything besides human never came close to touching his brain

So to say he was blindsided is an understatement

The two of you were on one of your more intense jobs, cornering and freeing a villager who'd accepted a deal with a demon and subsequently gone crazy

The sheepish look he gave you when you first got the details of the assignment will make you smile for years

Anyways, you two are perfectly suited for the job

He's in charge of tracking and trapping your target, and then while they're distracted, you'll leap in and break their chains

At least that's how it was supposed to go

The target noticed you too early and cast a spell to revert you to your true form, since they could sense you were using some kind of magic to appear as you did and assumed they were calling a bluff

You can still use magic in mer form, it's just awkward to do so sprawled across a leafy forest floor

You free the villager easily since they're so caught off guard, but the spell's effects linger for another hour

Lucio has to carry you back with an apologetic villager trailing behind you

At first he's a little hurt, why were you hiding such a pretty thing from him?

But once you tell him it slipped your mind to mention it, he's all over it

Now he regularly begs you to shift for him anytime it's remotely convenient, so he can admire and play with your tail some more

[heart4gyu]

ten months love || heeseung x reader

note: i just thought of this out of nowhere idk but it turned out so cute ! it’s just sweet and lots of fluff ^_^ also not proofread per usual but yeah ENJOYY <33 wc: 1,889 words

you didn’t meet in a really significant way. no meet cute or anything like that, just a shared class and mutual friends.

the first time you talked to each other one on one was at small house party. just a bunch of close friends, light drinking and hanging out.

some of you had decided to go out and sit by the pool, no swimming though since it was too cold. you all talked for a while, about anything and everything and had some laughs.

in high school you never really had a friend group like this, you were close and you knew you’d be friends with them for a long time.

one by one everyone started to head inside; “i’m cold”, “i’m gonna go grab another drink”, “ugh i left my phone inside” they’d say as they retreated inside the house.

then it was just you and heeseung. he was the one you were least close with. but something about him made you want to get to know him.

you were intrigued by him. the way he was loud and energetic around the friend group but reserved and quiet on his own or around people he didn’t know.

to your surprise he spoke first, “do you like legos?”

it was random and completely out of no where. you’d just been sitting there in silence so you wondered how he had gotten to that thought. you just wanted to know what he was thinking, understand what was going on in his head.

“uh yeah, i think they’re cool,” you replied, after a second .

the pool chair squeaked as he laid back, copying the position you were in. “i bought a new set, it’s a bouquet of flowers,” he said, looking up at the stars with you.

you don’t know why but it brought a smile to your face. “that’s nice… i’ve never built a lego set,” you said.

“oh really?!” he said, genuine surprise in his voice as he turned to look at you.

“yeah,” you said, chuckling a bit at his reaction. “i mean they’re nice to look at and all but i just never thought to build one myself.”

“well, why don’t we build mine together? you can come over after our class tomorrow,” he said, and the amount of eye contact he kept made you look away.

“i’d love to,” you said, looking up at the night sky then back at him to share an appreciative smile.

he smiled back before looking back up at the stars. and you two sat out there pointing out constellations and talking about aliens until it got late and too cold to be out there.

that weekend, he came over to your dorm and you two assembled the pretty bouquet together. you didn’t know how intimate building lego sets could be until this day but it completely destroyed any sort of awkwardness that was between you.

after the flower bouquet hangout, you two were practically inseparable. everytime you hung out, you brought up something that sparked your next hang out idea.

the first time you went to his apartment, you saw his toy story figurines and he suggested that over the weekend you two could have a toy story movie marathon. you talked about things you enjoyed in your childhood, then you mentioned the mario movie and you both went to watch that together too.

he said that he was really good at all the mario games. he said he was good at any type of games and you suggested you both go to an arcade to see who’s better. and when the day ended in a tie, he challenged you to a basketball match instead. of course he beat you, but when you suggested a volleyball rematch next weekend, there was just no way he’d beat you then.

and just like that, every weekend or every other day piled up and two months had passed. even if you didn’t hang out, you two would text everyday.

you texted about everything. your days, your favorite things, your families, your worries and fears.

you could and did talk to him about everything. and those two months turned to five months. and he introduced you to his brother when he invited you to watch him play basketball.

not only that but your girl friends started to tease you about how close you two had been getting. you’d just roll your eyes and brush them off, “it’s not like that,” you’d say.

you thought they couldn’t be more wrong. you really cared about him and now he was one of your best friends. and the way your heart fluttered when his hands would brush yours as you both reached in to grab popcorn or steal the basketball from each other or attach a stubborn lego piece or to press the arcade machine buttons had nothing to do with any growing feelings towards him.

no it couldn’t. he was your friend. and you’d never had a friend like this so you wouldn’t dare say anything to him to ruin it.

and as seven months passed your day hangouts turned into sleepovers. even on your first sleepover, you were already comfortable enough with each other to sleep on the same bed.

it wasn’t weird or awkward. it was actually perfect. you laid a good distance away from each other and talked all night. neither one of you stopped to watch whatever was playing on the tv.

you both slept over at each others houses all the time now. you had clothes at his apartment and he had a toothbrush at yours.

by the eighth there wouldn’t even be a plan, he’d just come over and you’d lay around on the couch, binging a new show.

or you would go over and get your assignments done at his place to help you focus more.

in the ninth month, you two were just basically attached at the hip, an accessory to the other, a package deal.

you would grocery shop together, study together, be each others plus ones at parties.

but it did get frustrating the more people started to ask if you were together together. you hated explaining to everyone that he was just your friend.

… though what you hated even more was when someone asked if you and heeseung were dating, then when you’d explain that you were just friends, they’d ask you to introduce them to him.

they’d ask you for his number or be friends with you to get to him. you didn’t know the feeling you felt in your heart in these moments.

he was your friend, your best friend. so it shouldn’t be jealousy… but you just wanted him all to yourself.

“i think he’s talking to someone.” no, you knew. you knew for a fact that the only person he spent his time with was you.

you lied and you felt guilty. you felt bad keeping him to yourself, knowing that you’d never ruin your friendship by letting yourself feel anything more for him.

you keep him to yourself because deep down you know that you are in lov-

no.

no you couldn’t be in love with him.

you love him. just like any other best friends love each other.

before you knew it, you’d been friends with him for ten months. and you found yourselves right back in the same place you were when you had first talked to each other.

except this time, it was summer and you both sat at the edge of the pool, legs dipped into the water.

it was just the two of you outside, as you watched the sun setting in the distance. you don’t know when everyone snuck back inside but of course you didn’t mind.

there was quite literally no space in between the two of you, just how you always were. and you sat silently watching the ripples in the pool as you both kicked your feet around.

“you know, this is the exact place we were when we first really talked to each other,” he said, filling the silence.

a smile made its way to your lips at the memory, “yeah… ten months ago,” you said, turning to look at him.

his eyes finding yours, and you watched as his eyes dropped down to your lips just for a second. and you had to make yourself look away before the blush reached your cheeks.

he laughed awkwardly as he turned to look in the same direction as you. the sun was almost completely gone now. and for some reason the moment was tense as you avoided looking over at him again.

“back then, i couldn’t even think of anything to say to you. now, we basically live together,” he said. you could see him turn his head to you but you just looked down at the water.

the pool lights turned on then. “i know… i wanted to get to know you too, you’ve always seemed interesting to me,” you admitted, and he laughed to himself.

“can i tell you something? it’s a secret,” he said, angling himself so that he’s facing you more. you looked up him, a genuine look in your eyes.

“you know you can tell me anything,” you said, a sweet smile on your lips. he looked down at them again before he looked away.

“the first time jay introduced you to us, the only thing i could think was that you were the prettiest girl i’d ever seen. and that first time we talked, i only brought up legos because i wanted to build that bouquet with you. i wanted to hang out with you because i was crushing on you since i first laid my eyes on you,” he said, looking at you, hesitantly.

you couldn’t believe the words coming out of his mouth even though your heart was screaming at you to tell him how you’ve felt too. “… so all this time,” you started, still at a loss for words.

“yes… all this time. and the more time i spend with you, i think the more i fall for you,” he said, almost whispering. his cheeks and ears had turned a light shade of red, and he was fidgeting with his fingers.

you stayed silent as you thought to yourself what this all meant. “… uh- it’s- it’s okay if you don’t feel the same, i just thought you should know-,” he began to ramble before you cut him off.

your lips pressed to his, as you caressed his cheek with a hand. it was quick, just enough to show him how you felt. and when you pulled away, he was still shocked but a smile made its way to his lips.

he sighed in relief, leaning his forehead onto yours and holding the hand that was still on his hot cheek. he leaned in and kissed you again, more slow and gentle this time.

“if you’d have me, i’d really really like to be your boyfriend,” he said, leaning back and taking hold of both your hands in the space between you.

“heeseung, i’d love for you to be my boyfriend,” you replied, a soft blush rising to your cheeks. both of you smiling like lovesick fools, as he wrapped an around your shoulder to bring you into his side.

[lilimonarch]

The little ways I learned I loved you in this little paradise - Haikyu!! Oneshot

WC: ~4686

Daichi is a flower shop owner desperately trying to get his business off the ground. Sugawara is wedding-planner in desperate need of flower arrangements and a reliable business partner. Slowly, Daichi realizes their bond may be more than just business partners.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/58839904

~

“Please be open, please be open, please!”

This was the final chance Daichi would have to make his dreams come true, he figured as much while he fidgeted with the bucket of roses in the front of the flower shop which he affectionately called his pride and joy. Opening only a few months earlier, he was already faced with the troubles of owning a small business.

Particularly, the solitude which came from starting it alone.

He had previously worked in larger flower businesses in the city, but he strived for so much more than that. Daichi wanted that personal connection with his customers, not to be another face in the crowd. Yet, the world had not been kind, and the business of The Flower Patch had been much too slow to reasonably keep up for much longer.

His head perked up at the pleading voice, the familiarity of the doorbell ringing on entrance. “Welcome to The Flower Patch, yes, we are open. How can I help you?” He turned his head to see a man slightly shorter than himself, ashen gray hair, and an exasperated smile.

“Oh, thank goodness. Hi, do you do wedding arrangements?”

“Yeah, I can do that.”

Daichi was not too sure how to describe the feeling, but it appeared the stranger who randomly entered his flower shop was going to change everything, he could feel it. “Well, it’s just me, but I can assure you I have experience making flower arrangements from arches to centerpieces,” Daichi started, internally praying the man did not look down on his newness to the business owner world and rush out the door the second Daichi took out his portfolio. “My name is Sawamura Daichi, and it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“Thank you, Sawamura. Sugawara Koushi, or just the wedding planner,” the man smiled and held out his hand for a handshake. Daichi handed Sugawara a book full of images from flowers he had arranged from since he was sixteen to now, well into his twenties. While Sugawara flipped through the book (a good sign he was not planning on simply marching out of the store just yet), Daichi could not stop from analyzing the man across the counter.

Despite the gray hair, Sugawara seemed so young and bright, other than the eyebags under his eyes. They were hardly noticeable, but Daichi was always a stickler for those characteristics. “Oh my gosh, is this you?” Sugawara piped up, and Daichi looked at the page his current-almost-customer was looking at.

A teenage Daichi sitting in front of a wedding arc, a mixture of flowers blending into an almost sunset-like gradient. It was one of his first successful arches, an arc he had set on doing for his sister. One of the few arches full of color, compared to the white and pale arrangements he was used to.

Daichi kept forgetting to remove the picture due to his own appearance in it and will forever internally curse at himself for not getting a sole picture of the arch for portfolio. “Aww, look at you. Just a little guy, very sweet,” Sugawara commented, and Daichi covered his face to hide the flush. “And this arrangement? It’s absolutely gorgeous, and I need one just like it.”

“Really?”

Sugawara looked at him with eyes practically aglow, the face people get when they are too excited about a plan which has barely come together in their own heads, let alone a plan built enough to share with friends, not including Daichi who just so happened to be a stranger to Sugawara up until this point. “Yes, my florist bailed on me, but she was such a jerk. You, my friend, how would you be interested in a partnership? You do my flowers; I bring you business.”

Daichi must have been right; this was just the turnaround he needed for this business. “Yes!” He grinned, shaking Sugawara’s hand which was too soft for even his own sanity and wellbeing. “Absolutely, yes!”

~

The arc Sugawara had briefly mentioned in their first encounter had not been too far off from what he needed ordered for a lovely couple getting married… today, right now. The original plan was for Daichi to have everything set for Sugawara to pick up, but one thing led to another, and here Daichi was, standing at the venue with his pickup truck full of flowers.

It was awkward, seeing decorators and venue organizers bustling around the site trying to get everything ready, and Daichi stood outside his truck waiting for Sugawara.

“Hey, Sawamura?”

Daichi looks up to see Sugawara, clipboard in hand with a black button-up and dress pants which flow to the bottom of his ankles. His heart skipped a beat, but he shook his head in attempts to stay focused. “Right, your flowers?”

“Thank you so much,” Sugawara grinned, not waiting a second until the trunk door was down to climb in and start handing the flowers to decorator assistance. “I’m so sorry I couldn’t come get them, it’s pretty busy around here and I got busy.”

“It’s completely fine!” Daichi reassures him, helping to move the flowers into other people's hands and clear his truck. It has been ages since Daichi had actively seen a wedding being put together, another truck pulling in with a large three-tiered cake. “I can tell. Don’t worry, I’ll get out of your way.”

“You’re never going to be in my way,” Sugawara rolls his eyes, slamming the pickup trunk closed. “I’ll make it up to you, I promise.”

“Again, I don’t mind it at all. I’d deliver them much further for you,” the last comment slips out of his mouth and catches him off guard just as much as it does Sugawara, Daichi immediately moving to cover his face before the blush grows. “I’m heading out now. If you need anything, just call.”

“Right. Thanks!”

The encounter and sudden flirtatious comment keeps Daichi on his toes for the rest of his busy hours at the flower shop, and it continues to plague his mind when he’s cleaning up in the quiet hours. “God, what am I doing?” He shakes his head, rearranging some roses potted near the front counter. At least the night would be able to calm him, his busy hours were over and hardly anyone popped in past 6 pm.

“Sawamura!”

Well, anyone except Sugawara. “Welcome to The Flower Patch, what can I do for you?”

“Not me, just the wedding planner. By the way, the flowers were beautiful,” Sugawara comes in, his shirt buttoned high now with its two top buttons unbuttoned, a much more relaxed and fitting appearance for Sugawara. “The couple was so pleased with how everything went, thank goodness. It was really stressing me out,” Sugawara admits before putting a small white box on the table.

“What’s this?”

“Me trying to make it up to you.”

Daichi shakes his head, slowly going to open the box. “Suga, you didn’t have to. Delivering the flowers is part of my job,” Daichi sighs before opening the box, a generous slice of chocolate cake sitting in it. He could already see Sugawara grinning at the way Daichi’s face lit up. “Aww, Sugawara.”

“You should call me Suga more often,” Sugawara smiles before leaning against the front counter. “And I insist, you were eyeing the cake earlier. Snuck a piece away, it’s the least I could do.” He looks up at Daichi, hands reaching across the counter while he sports a mischievous grin.

Daichi’s heart skips a beat. He has to put the box down on the counter before he drops it. Play it cool, play it cool. “Well, thanks. I really appreciate it, Sugawara.”

“No Suga?” Sugawara frowns, getting a nervous laugh out of Daichi.

Daichi takes a deep breath, trying to calm his heart which is on the border of heading out to the races. “Nice try, Sugawara. Thank you for the cake. I look forward to future business with you.”

The shop goes silent before both burst out in laughter. It starts with a small chuckle from Sugawara before he doubles against the counter in giggles, Daichi following suit until the wedding planner composes himself to get up. “Fine, fine. I’ll see you, Sawamura.”

“Yeah, see you.”

~

The store is technically closed when Daichi hears the familiar ring of the bell. A few months after the first wedding he did with Sugawara, and it appears that Sugawara was the second chance at his life as an independent businessowner. Nowadays, his flower shop is bustling with people, and there is no reason for Daichi to keep The Flower Patch open so late anymore.

Nowadays, he spends the extra hours on arrangement designs (if he is not working on wedding business). Flower combinations, color gradients he may not have considered before, it is all so much more freeing. He still does not leave for home until nine, because although the public would notice Daichi’s shop closes at six, it stays open for three extra hours for one single person.

“Welcome to The Flower Patch, what can I do for you?” Daichi responds to the bell.

“Not me, just the wedding planner and my dear Daichi, you are going to hate me for this one,” Sugawara bursts through the unlocked door, disturbing the silence of The Flower Patch, as he typically did.

Daichi stops arranging a bouquet of orange roses for the fifth time that minute, crossing his arms and looking Sugawara up and down. “Suga, I could never hate you. Any business is good business.”

Sugawara shakes his head, slapping down a file of papers on the front counter. “This really rich couple is getting married, small but expensive wedding. Picture it, the wealthy cosplay small country.”

Daichi lets out a small laugh, reaching out for the file, conveniently using orange roses. Orange rose centerpiece, twigs and sticks, almost resembling a campfire. “Suga… at this rate, every client of yours is wealthy,” he jokes, flipping through the pages. “This stuff is easy, shouldn’t take more than two months to get the job done.”

Silence.

Daichi looks at Sugawara.

“Sugawara?”

Sugawara blinks twice.

“About that…” Sugawara gulps and Daichi’s eyes narrow. “They are getting married in two weeks.”

“Two weeks?” Daichi’s eyes widen, and his sudden positivity is stripped away. “To go to the market, find the flowers, hydrate them, and arrange thirty centerpieces by hand? Are you crazy?” Daichi shakes his head. “Thirty? Market shopping typically takes three days, and you’re telling me I have two weeks to get the entire thing job?”

“Yeah, I know, but please!” Sugawara sighs, closing up the file for Daichi. “The wife, she’s an influencer. The couple offered to pay a 35% increase for the rush.”

Thirty-five? That is a lot of money.

“I can see it on your face. It is a lot of money,” Sugawara commented. “Daichi, I swear I’ll never ask you to do something like this again, but just this once. Heck, I’ll find some high school volunteer to help if you need it, but please.”

“No need for that,” Daichi looked at the orange rose bouquet in the front of his shop, Sugawara’s pleading face, and his hands, slightly coarse from his flower work. “I’ll do it.”

“Really?”

“Yeah!” Daichi said the words without hesitation, but he could already tell he would slightly regret his decision. The arranging part was the easy bit, all the prep-work was going to be the killer, not to mention still trying to keep his shop open.

Despite all that, he could not say no, not to Sugawara. Not to his pleading face, upbeat smile, not to him. Daichi looked at Sugawara from across the counter, the way his face lit up from a positive response, his grin stretching from ear to ear. “You’re amazing!” Sugawara grinned before jumping up and heading to the door. “If you have any questions, just message me. Thank you so much, you’re awesome!”

And then he left.

Daichi looked at the door and then at his hands, suddenly shaking. His heart was racing in his chest, and he almost admitted it to himself, the obvious elephant in the room. “You sure are something, Suga,” he shook his head and took the file, heading to the back of the shop to start scheduling purchases for the flower arrangements.

Daichi did not admit it that night.

A part of him wanted to, but he couldn’t.

~

There were about thirty centerpieces highlighting orange roses in the back of Daichi’s shop as he scrolled through his laptop for emails about other business, only about six in the morning. His hands shook as he clicked through digital folders of payment trackers, lists of pending orders, all the works. Nowadays, the shop is closed on Sundays, but Daichi stayed through the night to finish those arrangements for Sugawara.

He had not realized it as Sunday until Sugawara at around four in the morning messaged him a chirpy Good morning! I’ll be there around seven for the flowers.

Daichi was not the most used to pulling all-nighters, not even when school was at its hardest, but here he was. Essentially, for Sugawara. Maybe it was exhaustive delirium bringing all these thoughts to his brain, but Daichi knows he would never do this for anyone else.

The third yawn that hour slips out from under him, and he shakes his head to move to the back of his shop, making sure the flowers are correctly protected and hydrated, ready to go for when Sugawara gets here. Each organized, Sugawara’s order label named correctly, everything was finally set to go with about an hour to spare.

The back of the shop was quite a switch from the front, not many windows to be bright and comforting to possible customers, but functional enough for Daichi to work on his projects, not to mention, a slightly older velvet couch for when his back hurt from arrangement work standing or sitting on a stool in his workspace.

The exhaustion was truly getting the best of him as he subconsciously moved to the small velvet couch with his laptop to get a change of pace while checking emails on the laptop, now sitting on his laptop. Not too much later, he found his eyes slipping shut with only the sound of his laptop fan running disturbing the silence.

When he woke up, the flowers were gone, and his awkward sitting position on the couch with his laptop had been switched to him laying down with a hoodie covering his torso, laptop placed neatly down on the ground beside him. Daichi jumped up with a start, looking around to where his arrangements had gone. When he reached for his phone in his pocket, his first notification was a message from his favorite wedding planner.

Hi Daichi! You left the back door unlocked. You were completely knocked out when I came by, so I didn’t want to wake you up. I took them, don’t worry.

Daichi felt relieved.

You’re so amazing! Your favorite wedding planner falls in love with the flowers more and more every day! <3

Daichi eyed the last text, looking at how the sweater which covered him like a blanket was not even his, it was Sugawara’s. It was slightly small if Daichi were to actively put it on, and it had the smell of Sugawara’s signature cologne.

His heart sank to his stomach. “You really are something, Suga,” he shook his head, watching his hands to start to shake.

Finally, he decided to admit it to himself.

“I think I’m falling in love with you.”

~

“Welcome to the Flower Patch, how can I help you?” Daichi says on instinct, cleaning the counter from another busy day at the flower shop while Sugawara enters. Days have gotten busier, not that he was complaining. More work for him meant more money, which meant more flowers to work with.

Daichi waited for Sugawara’s usual “just the wedding planner!” Joke from his one and only wedding planner, but the quip never came as Sugawara pulled up a scarf to his face, sneezing into the fabric and looking absolutely miserable. “I’m checking in progress for the rose heart for the wedding next week,” and sounding even worse, his voice a wreck.

“Er… Suga? Are you okay?” Daichi stops to properly look at his wedding planner, dark circles under his eyes and pale skin. “You don’t sound too great.”

“Thanks, I think I’m coming down with something,” Sugawara sighed, rubbing his eyes and clearing his throat. “Hell, and I have two weddings and an anniversary ceremony to plan by the end of the month,” Sugawara goes to the front counter and leans his head against the cool granite.

“I thought you weren’t going to stress yourself out like that anymore,” Daichi looks at Sugawara, his head against the granite with only his fluffy gray hair to be seen. “You shouldn’t be out, let alone working.” As his professional partner, Daichi should send him home because professionalism and he did not even need to check to know the other was sporting a fever.

As his friend with questionable closeness, Daichi reached across the counter, running his fingers through Sugawara’s hand. “Suga, you’re running a fever. I mean it, you could’ve texted me,” he says, feeling his heart shatter as Sugawara groans at the touch. “Worry about the arrangement when you’re not burning up. You should go home.”

The silence is on the edge of something much more than platonic, Sugawara still having his head down against the counter, Daichi’s heart racing in his chest. The silence needs to be filled with something, anything to keep Daichi’s mind from wandering. Anything to keep him from saying the words he so desperately wants to say.

I’m in love with you.

Sugawara coughs twice, Daichi frowns and continues to run his fingers through his silky gray hair. “Am I… am I a good person?” Sugawara looks up at Daichi, his chin resting on the counter while his face is a fevered flush. There are tears in his eyes, starting to roll down his cheeks.

“What? Suga…” Daichi reaches to wipe his tears, hand traveling from the top of his cheek to holding Sugawara’s chin. “You’re an awesome person. You’re just not feeling well, that’s all.” And a little delirious, it appears.

“If I’m always working, I don’t have to worry about love,” Sugawara sniffles, and that’s the sentence which causes Daichi to move from across the counter to the side where Sugawara is standing, holding out his arms as his wedding-planner practically falls into Daichi’s embrace, burying his face into the crook of his neck. “But then I’m always alone, and I don’t want to go home alone. Please, Daichi.”

Daichi sighs and holds Sugawara close to him, slowly moving to sit on the linoleum floors with Sugawara leaning against his shoulder, coughs turning into quiet sobs. “Sugawara—”

“Nobody gets me like you do, Daichi,” Sugawara confesses, reaching for Daichi’s hand. It is intimate, and Daichi looks down at Sugawara who is clearly out of it. His voice is already dying in his throat, and the eyebags under his eyes are highlighted from fevered pallor.

Daichi knows now is not the right time.

“I’ll take you home. Come on, you deserve to rest, okay?” Daichi continues to wipe tears from a now empty dam. “Then we can worry about all the projects together,” he comments, slowly helping Sugawara up.

He looks Sugawara deep into his eyes, mouth going agape when Sugawara moves to wrap his arms around Daichi’s neck, staying in that hold. Daichi cautiously moves to bring his hands around Sugawara, lips hovering over Sugawara’s neck.

“I’m so tired…”

“Yeah, figured as much.”

Kiss him.

Don’t.

Daichi shakes his head and lowers, moving to carry Sugawara in his arms. “I got you, don’t worry,” he sighs, carrying his wedding-planner into his car, buckling his seatbelt, his gaze lands on Sugawara, almost half-way to passing out.

“I love you.”

The words tumble out of Daichi’s mouth, a whisper unheard by the entire world other than Daichi himself. He shuts the passenger’s door and moves to the drivers’ seat, starting to drive to Sugawara’s home.

~

Daichi was getting sick of weddings.

He was tired of seeing Sugawara run himself into the ground with work before bouncing back like nothing ever happened, and it’s not the easiest to be in the wedding business surrounded by love but never having any himself.

It’s even harder to be in the wedding business with the person who stole his heart.

Daichi has admitted it over and over again, whenever they spent late nights video chatting about work, or casually as of late, Daichi was so smitten over his wedding planner, it was not even fair. Especially since it seemed Sugawara, at least in Daichi’s mind, was definitely not looking for a romantic partner.

It’s still a bad memory, a fevered Sugawara sobbing into Daichi about his stressors on solitude. Why worry about love when there’s work, and they love their work.

It was Valentine’s Day rush, when every hour was rush hour, and days like these reminded Daichi that it may be time to hire extra help. “I’ll take the next person!” Daichi shouted from behind the counter as a teenager came with a bouquet of flowers and the most bashful expression on his face. Daichi let out a small chuckle. “You look a little flustered there—”

The boy nodded his head while pulling out his wallet. “Is it bad that I’m confessing on Valentine’s Day?” He looked up at Daichi, not that the flower shop owner was any more qualified to be giving advice.

Love advice? That’s probably more in Sugawara’s department. Daichi thought to himself. “Well, with flowers in hand is probably a good way to do it. I wish you luck,” Daichi smiles, handing the flowers all neatly arranged and returning the boy his change.

“Thanks! You too!”

Before Daichi could even question the comment, the teenager was out the door. “Flowers, huh? With flowers in hand, on Valentine’s Day,” Daichi looked at all the flowers in his shop, and then all the extra flowers in the back reserved for future arrangements.

The next customer came to the register, a bouquet of tulips in hand. “One second, I’ll be right with you,” Daichi gave a curt nod before rushing to the back of the shop for where he kept his cellphone, opening Sugawara’s contact.

He writes a text.

Hey— Can you come by the Flower Shop tonight around seven? If you’re not busy.

Hardly a second passes before he gets a response, his heart racing in his chest.

Like I’d be busy tonight. I was just about to ask if I could pop in. Funny, right? I’ll see you at seven!

Daichi cannot help the smitten sigh which escapes his throat as he puts away his phone to finish the rush day at his shop. Then? A flower arrangement, and to see why Sugawara wanted to pop in.

Daichi prays it’s not another rushed order. It was worth it for the money, at that point in time, but it was definitely no longer an option left on the table.

Actually, Daichi prays it’s nothing business related. He just wants to see Sugawara, for no business reason, just to be with him.

His inner monologue is interrupted by the bell on the register desk ringing. “Coming!” He rushes back to finish his day the best he can.

~

The rush of Valentine’s Day has ended, and it’s 6:45 in the evening. Daichi is standing by the register, fixated on the bell above the door. He’s exhausted, his hands are rough from all the flower work of the day, but nothing matters more than the bell above the door and the arrangement sitting on the counter.

The arrangement: the second Daichi shut his doors, he immediately went to work on the most heartfelt flower arrangement he could conjure up. It was less aesthetic than a lot of his newer pieces, but it was raw. A few flowers in warmer hues, a little homage to the first arrangements Daichi ever made for Sugawara, the first sample that caught Sugawara’s eye in the portfolio he showed him during their first meeting. Tulips, because Daichi had learned Sugawara adored Tulips and was saddened they were not used in weddings more often. There was one rose, a light pink hue, because it went with the sunset gradient, and it was the one thing that really gave the arrangement a more than friends look.

The bell rings, Daichi perks up. He’s grinning ear to ear and trying to hide the obvious blush on his face. “Welcome to The Flower Patch, how can I help you?” He jokes, getting a nervous chuckle out of Sugawara.

“Not me, just the wedding planner,” Sugawara said with a bit of a sigh. “Happy Valentine’s Day. Was it busy?”

“You have no idea.”

They both share a laugh, and Daichi’s eyes keep flipping between the gorgeous view of Sugawara and the flower arrangement on the counter. “Are there any business updates I should know about?”

Sugawara, for the first time in ages, shook his head. “No, I just didn’t want to be a loser and spend tonight in my apartment. This is nice, having your wedding planner over even after a busy day.”

“You’re more than a wedding planner.”

“Daichi?”

The words just tumble out of Daichi’s mouth before he realizes what he said, and now Sugawara is staring at him with doe eyes, staring for clarification. “I’m sorry if I’m being unprofessional, but I see you as so much more than the wedding planner I work with,” Daichi can feel his hands shaking in his sweater pockets. “You’re amazing, the most amazing person I’ve ever even been able to talk to and it kills me to think you aren’t capable of finding love because every time I look at you, I want to kiss you more and more.”

They both blush, Daichi lets out a stuttered breath. “With consent! Of course— I mean, that’s why I haven’t kissed you. Even when you were sick— okay, let me backtrack really quickly,” he shakes his head, nerves calming down when Sugawara laughs at his only slight disaster of a confession.

Daichi reaches for the arrangement on the counter, holding it in his hands. “I know this sounds like a marriage proposal, but I want to take care of you, give you that love you deserve, love better than the couples you see and work with every day,” he holds out the arrangement. “I didn’t think I was ever going to have a crush on someone ever again, let alone fall in love, but here we are. I…”

Daichi takes a deep breath and for the first time, he says the words he had been dwelling over for ages to Sugawara’s face.

“I love you.”

Daichi keeps his arms out with the flowers in hand, desperate for any answer at all as Sugawara stands there with wide eyes.

He starts to cry.

“Suga?” Daichi starts to panic, setting down the arrangement on the counter and rushing over to comfort his closest confidant. “Hey, what’s wrong? Was it something I said? I’m sorry if—”

Sugawara moves to bring his arms around Daichi’s neck, looking up with teary eyes and fluttery breaths. He’s smiling through the tears, flustered blush on his face. “Daichi, I came here to confess to you. Beat me to the punch, didn’t you?” The breath lands on Daichi’s lips, and he’s never been closer to kissing him. “It definitely wasn’t going to be as romantic as this, though.”

“You’re a wedding planner, aren’t you supposed to be the romantic one?” Daichi shakes his head, moving his arms around Sugawara’s waist as his grin spreads across his face.

“Fine, fine. I guess you’re right,” Sugawara rolls his eyes through the tears before pulling Daichi closer, leaning in so their lips meet. It is soft, sweet, and beyond their wildest dreams.

It is paradise.

[freelafan4life545]

2 fics in one day. Dang.

At this point, @shamandigi-blog is my assistant. BTW, congrats! You're now a part of my blog business. Just a least give me some ideas for fics once in a while or monthly. Which ever feels comfortable. And don't let the title go into your head.

All others, make sure you send your fic requests or ideas as I'm always taking those for consideration.

Enjoy reading!

In Their Spirit

The apartment was quiet, save for the soft hum of the fridge in the corner and the faint, rhythmic ticking of the wall clock. Fry stood by the window, gazing out at the New New York skyline. He absentmindedly twirled the ring on his finger, the light of the setting sun casting a warm glow on the city. His and Leela’s wedding anniversary should’ve been a celebration, but today, his thoughts were elsewhere.

Leela was in the kitchen, carefully arranging a small anniversary dinner for the two of them, humming a soft tune as she worked. She had prepared everything—Fry’s favorite meal, dessert, and a bottle of their favorite champagne. Yet, despite the effort, Fry couldn’t shake the feeling of emptiness that gnawed at him.

“Leela…” Fry’s voice was soft, almost hesitant.

She turned, setting the glass of champagne on the table before walking over to him. “Yeah, Fry? Something wrong?”

He let out a deep sigh, his voice thick with emotion. “I’ve just been thinking about my parents… I mean, it’s our anniversary, and I wish they could’ve been here. To see this. To see you.”

Leela’s heart ached at the pain in his eyes. She stepped forward and placed a hand on his arm, feeling the warmth of his skin beneath her touch. Fry hadn’t spoken much about his parents in the years since he was frozen, but moments like these brought the grief rushing back.

“I know, Fry,” she said gently, her voice steady and comforting. “I wish they could’ve been here too. But you know… they’re always with us. In spirit.”

Fry stared out the window, lost in thought. “I know. But I always wonder what they would’ve thought about you. I mean, my dad… I just can’t picture him being happy with me marrying you, Leela. I know he’d have said something awful. He was never kind, and the last thing I want is for him to have ruined something so perfect.”

Leela took a small step closer to him, her hand gently squeezing his arm. She could feel the pain that still lingered from his father’s harsh words, the memories that had shaped Fry into the person he was today.

“Fry…” she said softly. “I can’t change the past. I can’t undo the things your dad might’ve said. But I know one thing for sure: I love you, and I’m proud to be your wife. What matters is the life we’ve built together, and your parents would’ve seen that, too. They would’ve seen how happy you are, how happy we are.”

Fry’s eyes softened as he looked at her, the warmth of her presence grounding him. “You really think so?”

Leela smiled, her heart full of tenderness. “I do. Your parents may not have been here, but they’ve always been with us. In the way you look at me, in the way you laugh… in the way you love me. They’re here, Fry. In the best parts of you.”

Fry swallowed hard, his eyes glistening. “I… I never thought of it like that.”

Leela’s thumb traced the back of his hand, offering silent comfort. “It’s true. And I’m sure they would’ve loved me. Not because of who I am, but because of how much you love me.”

Fry chuckled softly, his voice shaky. “I’m glad you think so. It just feels like they missed out. They missed seeing you, seeing how perfect we are together.”

Leela leaned into him, resting her head on his shoulder. “Well, they’re still here. They’ll always be part of us.”

He wrapped his arm around her, pulling her close. The weight of the moment hung between them, but there was a calmness now, a sense of peace that he hadn’t felt earlier. He kissed the top of her head, his voice quiet but filled with gratitude.

“I don’t know what I’d do without you, Leela. Thank you for always being there for me. I just… I wish I could’ve shared this moment with them. I want them to know how happy you’ve made me.”

Leela smiled against his shoulder. “They know, Fry. Wherever they are, they know.”

The quiet comfort of the moment settled around them, and for the first time that day, Fry didn’t feel the ache of missing his parents quite as sharply. Leela was right. They were always with him, not in the form of memories or voices, but in the love they had given him.

And in that love, Fry found the strength to face the future.

The dinner was ready, but the warmth between them—the understanding, the unspoken bond of two people who had weathered so much together—was more than enough to celebrate their love.

“Happy anniversary, Leela,” Fry whispered, pulling her a little closer.

Leela looked up at him, her eyes sparkling with affection. “Happy anniversary, Fry. I love you.”

“I love you too,” he replied, kissing her gently.

And for that moment, Fry knew his parents were there, in spirit, watching over them with pride.

💜🧡

[cynical-mystic]

Commentary prompt!

--

Not for the first time, Claude wonders just why Sylvain invited Felix to join their weekly tea and chess time, despite Sylvain’s explanation that he wants the two of them to get to know each other better. Instead of learning more about Felix, Claude’s guard has gone up tenfold, helped along by the fact that he soon realizes he can’t ever really know Felix, not like Sylvain does. The face of the one person he’d ever thought of as a friend as a child flashes behind his eyes and he has to focus on not breaking the teacup in his hands.

“That’s just because you don’t care about strategy,” Sylvain says, waving off Felix’s complaint as he studies the board. “You’re all go, go, go, you rarely stop and think.”

“Look who’s talking!” Felix snaps. “You’re the fool who’ll throw himself in front of anyone being attacked if there’s the slightest chance they might get hurt.”

Crack!

Umber and vermilion eyes turn to him, but Claude is already grabbing for a napkin to wipe up the small amount of tea that was left in the cup he just broke. Thankfully it was his turn to provide the tea set, so he doesn’t have to worry too much about replacing the damn thing. Sylvain leans over to take the pieces from Claude while Felix watches, eyebrow raised.

“You okay, Claude?” Sylvain asks.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” he says, still not looking at him. “Just a stupid accident.”

Claude knows that the only reason why Sylvain accepts this as easily as he does is because Felix is there; otherwise, he’d press Claude for what actually happened.

Once everything is clean, he realizes his hands are shaking, so he clenches his fists.

“I think I’m going to have to bow out early,” Claude says, reaching out to knock over his king. “Sylvain, do you think you can take care of all of this?”

“Sure, but–”

Claude all but knocks his chair over getting up and walking away.

Jose, I love you, but did you really have to pick the one scene in that fic where I wrote it and was like "I'm not even quite sure why this is the way it is?" 😅😂🤣 Thanks for the submission! I love this fic so freaking much. I'm putting the rest under a cut because we get kind of long. Hope you enjoy!

This excerpt is from Chapter 9, "Proof of Pain," in Tangled Winds, the first entry in my Green Sarabhas series. I wrote this fic in a month and a half, and it's the longest thing I've ever written.

Not for the first time, Claude wonders just why Sylvain invited Felix to join their weekly tea and chess time, despite Sylvain’s explanation that he wants the two of them to get to know each other better. Instead of learning more about Felix, Claude’s guard has gone up tenfold, helped along by the fact that he soon realizes he can’t ever really know Felix, not like Sylvain does. The face of the one person he’d ever thought of as a friend as a child flashes behind his eyes and he has to focus on not breaking the teacup in his hands.

Okay, so you know that writing advice that says to write what you know? When I write, I put so much of myself into what I'm working on that sometimes I can go back and say "ah yes, I know exactly what I was trying to work through while I was writing this."

This is not one of those times!

In this fic, Claude is so insecure. There's this through line of this childhood friend that betrayed him and essentially ruined his ability to trust other people. For this scene specifically, Claude is struggling with the concept of letting Felix into his life. He's built a relationship with Sylvain to the point where he trusts him, but he knows next to nothing about Felix, and the one thing he does know is that Felix has been friends with Sylvain since they were children. Claude's assumption here is that, no matter how close he and Felix may wind up getting, Felix's first loyalty will always be to Sylvain.

For someone trying to build allies to help him when he takes the Almyran throne, that won't work.

For a scared, lonely boy who wants absolute assurance that he's the most important thing to the people he cares about, that won't work.

“That’s just because you don’t care about strategy,” Sylvain says, waving off Felix’s complaint as he studies the board. “You’re all go, go, go, you rarely stop and think.”

“Look who’s talking!” Felix snaps. “You’re the fool who’ll throw himself in front of anyone being attacked if there’s the slightest chance they might get hurt.”

Crack!

Correct me if I'm wrong, but Claude hasn't seen Sylvain in real battle yet, and has no idea how much of a self-sacrificing idiot the boy he loves is. The fact that this revelation comes from Felix reinforces the idea that Claude will never be enough for Sylvain, and that he'll always need Felix too.

While emotionally healthy, well-adjusted adults know that you can be the most important person to someone while they still have other friends who fill niches you can't, Claude is none of those things here.

The reminder that Sylvain could die and therefore leave Claude by doing something Claude can't really fathom doing himself at this point certainly doesn't help.

Umber and vermilion eyes turn to him, but Claude is already grabbing for a napkin to wipe up the small amount of tea that was left in the cup he just broke. Thankfully it was his turn to provide the tea set, so he doesn’t have to worry too much about replacing the damn thing. Sylvain leans over to take the pieces from Claude while Felix watches, eyebrow raised.

Okay, I will claim this paragraph as me protecting and not just being possessed by these idiots like I was while I wrote this entire series.

When I'm panicking, I tend to focus on mundane details as well, and when I try to remember things later, sometimes I'll pick out those mundane things instead of the thing that made me panic. It's a comfort thing, something I can relatively control.

“You okay, Claude?” Sylvain asks.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” he says, still not looking at him. “Just a stupid accident.”

Claude's thoughts here: Don't show weakness, don't show weakness, don't show- because in Claude's world, weakness is severely punished.

Claude knows that the only reason why Sylvain accepts this as easily as he does is because Felix is there; otherwise, he’d press Claude for what actually happened.

Anyone else use situations like this to their advantage? No, just me? 😅 Maybe there's more of myself in this scene than I thought.

Once everything is clean, he realizes his hands are shaking, so he clenches his fists.

“I think I’m going to have to bow out early,” Claude says, reaching out to knock over his king. “Sylvain, do you think you can take care of all of this?”

I'd like to focus on Claude's king for a moment. This fic was supposed to be "Sylvain and Claude get to know each other over chess after Claude harbors Sylvain for a night and gets curious," and while it spun widely out of my control, I went into this with no plan, so we're still clinging to the vestiges of that original idea here.

Also, I really don't think Claude would be able to stand leaving a game hanging like that.

Now that I think about it, it's also kind of symbolic of Claude's general submission in this situation. Instead of facing his fear and talking it out in the moment, he's leaving.

“Sure, but–”

Claude all but knocks his chair over getting up and walking away.

This is meant to portray the haste with which Claude gets up and flees. I'm not quite sure how exactly he would go about almost knocking his chair over while he stands, but that level of detail is typically irrelevant to me.

I love this ship, I love these three, and I love this entire series. Thanks again, @astaraxion, for the ask, and for being the best beta a person could ask for, and for being my friend. 🧡💜

[rust-bearer]

Ahhhhhhhh I got some childhood nostalgia and I just had to throw it onto the zombie apocalypse au. Probably could’ve just made a small post for this but I dunno, been a while since I did zombie stuff so I figured I’d let you in on it.

Was doing a little spring (?) cleaning and found my old Nintendo NES system I got a while back, cause y’know, absolute fucking nerd for most Mario games over here, and I was like… you know what. The zombie kids would probably love something like this.

I’d bet money that Swindle probably made sure their mansion farmhouse had solar panels built into it before everyone moved in. Based on where things take place, like, that might not be all that reasonable? I mean, where I live solar panels are common and highly encouraged if you can afford the original investment, and I’d bet he saw a way out of paying such high prices for utilities and just went all 🤑🤑!!!! with it because, well, of course he did.

Cue Swindle arguing with poor self-employed dude from Texas who’s explaining why they can’t just install solar panels where the house is, there’s little to no reliable sunlight and the trees would cover most of the rays and the house’s roof isn’t positioned right!! and—but Swindle is having NONE of it. He gets the solar panels, goes on to get into a whole debate with his bank to try to throw the charges off as fraud.

Anyway…. Solar panels kind of sort of mean somewhat reliable power? In the right circumstances maybe? OR. ORRRR you could do generators. Do both is what I’d do if I wasn’t broke but hey, it’s Swindle, he’s probably got more money than the fucking… whoever is the richest person or something.

SO. My overall hc is that Blast Off is the sort of resident techy person of the group, and I’d bet anything that on his occasional trips out to find good and interesting stuff to mess around with in his office/room/living quarters/etc, he brings back one of those old Nintendo consoles for the kids (and himself) to play with. The good thing is that he has one of those old-fashioned televisions as well, and it pairs really well with the NES console to give some nice sort of 80s vibes. Thank god for the solar panels, or… maybe the generators. Both?

Good news: the children love it! Blast Off gets a kick out of setting it up for them, and since it requires no internet, they’re good to go!

Bad news: once they get to a rather difficult level in one of the various Mario games Blast Off owns (projecting onto him because Mario is fucking AWESOME), nobody sleeps without hearing the cries of frustration from one of the few kids after they’ve lost the level for the umpteenth time. To everyone’s surprise, about three days’ into the struggle, Onslaught takes on the task of overcoming the problem level. Cue him sitting up at three am with all the kids snoozing around him, hunched over with glazed red eyes as he’s got a death grip on the controller and stares so hard at the tv as it depicts the whole “GAME OVER” title for the millionth time. He doesn’t get much sleep that night, and only stops trying to beat the game after Blast Off comes out and threatens to turn off the entire system because he “can hear the stupid machine from all the way across the house every single time Onslaught loses the level and it’s starting to get annoying.”

So yeah, I looovveeeee the old Nintendo games (specifically Mario games though) and I LOVE zombie headcanons, so I had to throw them both together! I think that’s it for now though.

God Swindle commits so much tax fraud. He does it, and does tons of it, but they can never make any of the charges stick if they ever even come up with a charge at all. Very mr sticky fingers, very ‘I donate a lot to the police every year…’ and whoops they just so happen to lose evidence and whoops, that ‘speeding ticket’ a new officer wrote up is all gone now. And so is the new officer. Though that’s also more inline with- everyone else in the family, too.

I think Swindle would be genuinely interested in casinos. He likes them on a financial level, of course, but he really has an interest in them on other levels too. If he cared enough he might’ve opened one himself, but that’s a lot of playing nice with people 24/7, too public facing. He’d definitely have friends who own them. ‘Friends’. Maybe visits them sometime, does some networking, the works. Vortex ironically is the one who might understand the ‘appeal’ of it the best, but he thinks it’s really boring; he’d rather ruin someone’s life and do it 1 on 1, not string hordes of people along for ever. Bleh.

I’d like to imagine it’s a combination of Blast Off AND First Aid coming up with the video games thing. Blast Off has a few, has a passing interest in them, but restoration as a hobby is the lowest on his list of interests. He initially balks, though, when the kids clamor to play too. Because they’ll get it dirty, or won’t play it right, or they’ll be too loud, really- but he eventually decides it’s not a bad idea. Lets them play Pong, of all things. Eventually he brings it up to First Aid, and First Aid mentions that he’d been trying to find some game consoles or the like, things they can play that won’t kill their power (handheld would be nice), but it’s- he never really cared a lot before, not since he was younger, and he doesn’t know what to look for anymore. So Blast Off goes with him next time they scavenge, despite Onslaught making a face about it.

First Aid hotly debates himself whether it would be psychologically harmful or helpful to bring the children games where they kill zombies.

[loveroftoomanyfandoms]

Angel of God, My Guardian Dear Chapter 11: Matt

Rating: Explicit (18+, MINORS DNI)

Pairing: Matt Murdock x F!Reader

Story Summary: While speaking at a local school for visually impaired youth, Matt runs into his childhood best friend, with whom he lost touch almost 20 years prior.

Warnings/Tags: None.

Word Count: ~2,900

A/N: Shirtless Matt at the beach. 'Nuff said. 🥵

"It was really nice of your aunt to let us use her car," Matt said a couple of hours later as he and Y/N headed to the beach.

"Yeah, it was," Y/N replied, "but I'm extra glad she did because then I could take you where I really wanted to." 

Matt smiled. "Which is where, exactly? We've been driving south for over an hour, so I'm assuming we're off the mainland."

Y/N took one hand off the wheel and linked her fingers through Matt's. "You would assume correctly, my love. We're in the Keys, heading to Islamorada."

Matt furrowed his brow as he quickly translated the Spanish. " Islamorada … 'purple island'?"

"Yep, or 'Island Home', depending on which origin story you believe. The first story goes that Islamorada was named by Spanish explorers who were amazed by all of the purple here. There's tons of purple flowers and purple sea snails, and at sunset, the horizon even has a purple hue." 

Matt nodded. "That really is a lot of purple. So what's the other story?"

"That it was named after a ship that had been built here called 'Island Home', but that the name sounded better in Spanish."

Matt chuckled. "Ah. Personally, I think I like the purple story better. It's more romantic."

Y/N gave his hand a little squeeze. "Yeah, I like that one too." 

"So do you and your aunt come to the Keys often?"

"Mmhmm." Y/N let out a light laugh. "Actually, one of the first places Aunt Ruth took me to was the Hemingway House in Key West. Not gonna lie, I thought it was pretty damn cool at the time."

Matt grinned, picturing teenage Y/N geeking out over Ernest Hemingway's manuscripts and writing instruments. "I bet."

"We'd visit a lot of museums and go on a lot of picnics and hikes and stuff like that," Y/N continued, "especially when I first moved here. After I started college though we didn't have time to do as much, although we still try to at least get in a picnic at the beach or hike at one of the parks whenever I visit if we have time." 

"So is this island your favorite?"

Y/N huffed out a happy sigh. "Yeah, it is. The second I set foot on the sand at Anne's Beach I knew I wanted to share it with you."

Matt smiled softly at her. "I'm glad we're getting the chance."

Y/N squeezed his hand. "I am too."

She made a turn into a parking lot. "We're here."

Y/N parked and cut the engine off. "It should be pretty quiet since all of the tourists are either in Miami or Key West and most of the locals will be at other beaches since the water's really too shallow to swim in here. It'll likely mostly just be windsurfers or people picnicking like us."

Matt nodded as they got out of the car. "Okay. Good to know."

Y/N opened the trunk and got the cooler and tote bag with their things out. "Would you mind carrying the tote bag?"

"No, of course not." Matt took it from her. "Need me to get the cooler too?"

"Nah, I got it." Y/N grabbed the cooler and took Matt's hand in her free one. "Come on, sweetheart, this way."

She led him down a small stairway to the sandy shore below, then walked a little to their right. "Okay, this should be good. What do you think?"

Matt tilted his head, listening for conversations between the smattering of other beach-goers, then nodded after determining that they were far enough away to not be a bother. "Yeah, this is good."

Y/N spread the blanket out and they sat. 

She unzipped the beach tote. "So the first thing we need to do is to put on sunscreen. We definitely don't want to get sunburned."

Matt nodded, then pulled his shirt up and over his head. "Right."

He smirked as the sound of Y/N's heartbeat picked up. "Like what you see, angel?"

Y/N huffed out a breathy laugh. "Uh, yeah . Let me just say that if teenage me had seen teenage you shirtless at the beach I definitely would've had a difficult time keeping my feelings for you a secret."

A chuckle rumbled through Matt's chest. "Mmm, wouldn't have been fair, though, now would it?"

"What do you mean?" Y/N asked, an adorably confused tone in her voice.

Matt reached out and trailed his fingers across one of Y/N's bare shoulders. "I still wouldn't have been able to admire you in a swimsuit… at least, not in public, anyway. Can't guarantee I wouldn't have wanted to drag you off somewhere private so I could… 'see' what it looked like."

He could feel the heat radiating from Y/N's face even through the hot Florida sun. "Jesus, Matt," she breathed out.

Matt smirked. "And you know, it's probably a good thing you're in a tank top and shorts, because I honestly don't know if I'd be able to handle not being able to admire you in a swimsuit now , either -- not to say I wouldn't like to privately admire you in this too, of course."

His smirk spread into a full-blown shit-eating grin as Y/N swallowed audibly. He still couldn't believe that she had always returned his childhood feelings for her and admittedly loved riling her up so he could bask in the evidence of her mutual attraction to him. "So, sunscreen?"

Y/N took a sharp breath. "Oh, uh, yeah."

They quickly took care of any exposed skin on their fronts, then Y/N moved behind Matt. "Want me to do your back?"

Matt nodded. "Sure. Thanks, angel."

Y/N pumped a few dollops of sunscreen onto her fingers and rubbed her hands together a couple of times. "Let me know if it's too cold."

Matt nodded again. "Okay."

He arched into Y/N's touch as she started gently rubbing the sunscreen into his skin, starting with the back of his neck and working her way down his back and shoulders. "Shit, that feels good."

Y/N huffed out a light laugh. "You know, if you ever want me to give you a massage or do some skincare on you, I'd be happy to. I'm sure I can find some massage oils and facial moisturizers that won't be too overwhelming for you."

Matt groaned under his breath as she continued downward, her thumbs applying a comforting pressure to his spine. "I'll probably take you up on that offer soon. This feels heavenly."

"Okay. Just let me know when." 

"Will do."

Y/N finished applying sunscreen to Matt's back. "Okay, all done."

Matt took the bottle of sunscreen from her. "Here, I'll get your neck and shoulders."

Y/N moved back in front of him and turned her back to him. "Thanks, Matty."

Matt pressed a gentle kiss to the side of her neck, smiling against her skin as he heard Y/N's heart flutter. "Mmm, love you."

"Love you too," Y/N replied, turning her head and giving Matt a quick kiss on the lips.

Matt warmed up some sunscreen in his hands and carefully applied it to the back of Y/N's neck and shoulders, taking extra care to not get any on her clothes. "Okay, you're all set."

Y/N handed Matt a moistened towelette to wipe his hands with. "Thanks, sweetheart."

"No problem, angel." Matt gave her another kiss then began pulling containers out of the cooler, pausing to read the Braille labels on each one before opening it and setting it down on the blanket, arranging everything before grabbing 2 bottles of water.

He handed one to Y/N. "Here you go, sweetheart."

Y/N opened it and took a small sip. "Thanks, Matty."

They spent the next hour eating and basking in the sunlight, just enjoying the peace and serenity of each other's company, then packed up the containers and set them back in the cooler.

Matt sat back and stretched his legs out on the blanket. "I get why you wanted to bring me out here. It reminds me of when we'd get the yard to ourselves at St. Agnes -- except with the added sound of the ocean."

Y/N sighed, sounding completely at peace. "Yeah, me too. I'm glad you like it." 

Matt took Y/N's hand and gave it a squeeze. "And speaking of getting the yard at St. Agnes to ourselves, that reminds me… want to read for a bit before we take our walk?"

"Yeah, sure." Y/N pulled her phone out of her pocket and tapped at it. "Let's see… ok, so in keeping with the theme of us finally getting to do things we didn't get to do together as teenagers, I figured we could finally read the book that we were supposed to start right before I moved. Locked in Time, by Lois Duncan."

Matt tilted his head. "Yeah, I remember that title. Remind me what it's about?"

"It's about a girl who moves to this creepy plantation in Louisiana to live with her dad and new step family and weird stuff starts happening."

"Oh, right, yeah, I remember now." Matt nodded with a grin. "That was during your 'spooky horror book' phase where we read nothing but R.L. Stine and Christopher Pike novels."

Y/N huffed out a laugh. "Hey, I never heard you complain!"

Matt shook his head. "That's because I didn't have a problem with it. I liked mostly everything we read, especially those books of spooky short stories you would check out of the school library every couple of weeks." 

"Oh, yeah." Y/N laughed again. "I think I single-handedly kept those books in circulation."

She shifted to cross her legs. "Wanna get comfy?"

Matt nodded and turned to lay his head in her lap. "Sure. Thanks."

"No problem, sweetheart. Okay, this one's pretty short so it shouldn't take too terribly long to finish -- probably just a couple of days depending on how much we get through out here reading." 

Matt shrugged. "I'm not in a hurry if you aren't."

"Well, there's one other place I want to take you but we're not on a time limit -- well, not yet, anyway." Y/N cleared her throat. "Okay, so, Locked in Time, by Lois Duncan. Chapter 1 -- " When I look in the mirror, the girl I see there is pretty. I know that sounds vain, but I don’t mean it that way. When you’re seventeen and a half, being pretty comes with the territory…"

Matt really hadn't been exaggerating when he had told Y/N that she had been his favorite audiobook narrator -- even the professionally-narrated audio versions of Matt's favorite books from when they were kids weren't quite as captivating as they had been hearing them being read by Y/N for the first time.

A content rumble went through his chest as Y/N absentmindedly started running her fingers through his hair. 

"It still seemed like springtime, a fragile season of cool, sweet mornings --" Y/N cut herself off with a giggle. "You are such a cat, you know that? You're literally purring."

Matt grinned. "Says the one who's petting me."

Y/N lightly tapped him on the nose then continued stroking his hair. " Anyway, where was I? Oh yeah -- ' It still seemed like springtime, a fragile season of cool, sweet mornings and pale lemon sunlight. It was the last I would see of that sort of weather'."

Matt could picture the novel playing out like a film in his mind as Y/N continued narrating the story, from Nore meeting her new step family, becoming suspicious of her new stepmother… and her new stepbrother's attempt at murdering her.

Finally Y/N paused. "Okay, I think this is probably a good stopping point for now… Oh gosh, yeah, we've been reading for two and a half hours straight."

Matt sat up. "I'm enjoying the story so far. It's very descriptive."

He stretched, rubbing the back of his neck to ease the tiny bit of stiffness that had gathered while he had been laying in Y/N's lap.

Y/N put her phone in her pocket. "Ready to go take that walk? Limber up a bit before the long ride home?"

Matt nodded. "Yeah, sounds good."

He gestured to the cooler and tote bag. "Did you want to put this stuff in the car before our walk?"

"Actually, yeah, that's not a bad idea," Y/N replied.

Matt pulled his shirt back on then they gathered their belongings and put them back in the trunk of Ms. Y/L/N's car.

Matt held his hand out to Y/N with a grin as they headed towards the boardwalk. "Do you mind if I hold your hand? I might need you to guide me."

Y/N laughed and took it, intertwining her fingers with his. "No, Matty, I don't mind at all."

Matt took in his surroundings as they strolled hand-in-hand down the boardwalk. He could hear the birds calling from the trees, taste the salt in the sea air, and smell the freshness of the ocean, but the only thing he cared about was the sound of the steady heartbeat of the woman he loved standing next to him, the taste of her lips as she pressed them to Matt's own, and the smell of her natural scent as Matt held her in his arms.

He could feel Y/N looking at him. "Whatcha thinking about?" she asked.

Marry me, Matt thought.

Instead he shook his head. "You know how you once asked me if I missed being able to see, and I told you that if I had the ability to see one more thing, just for a moment, I wished that I could see the sky one more time?"

Y/N gave his hand a gentle squeeze. "Yeah."

"I changed my mind."

Y/N let out a sigh. "You'd want to see the ocean, right? Yeah, I totally get it."

"Uh uh." Matt shook his head. "I'd want to see you."

Y/N suddenly stopped walking as her head turned towards him. "What? Matt--"

Matt took her other hand in his and turned her to fully face him. "No, wait, just hear me out. I already know you'd be just as beautiful as I picture you, but I figured if I knew for sure what you looked like… I'd maybe be able to picture what our children would look like one day too."

He could hear Y/N's heartbeat speed up. "You want to have kids with me?" she asked in a small voice.

"Well yeah, I mean…" Matt paused. "When I said I want to build a life with you, I meant it, angel. I want everything."

He smiled softly, already imagining the pitter-patter of little feet running around them. "We'd need to get a much bigger place first though."

Y/N huffed out a watery laugh. "'Much' bigger? How many kids are you planning on us having?"

Matt shrugged. "Just a couple, but we'd also need a guest room for your aunt when she came to stay, and maybe an office."

He could hear Y/N chewing on her lip."I was thinking about moving back to Hell's Kitchen once my lease is up anyway," she hedged, "so I could… maybe start looking? Just to see if there's anything out there?"

Matt nodded. "Yeah, that sounds like a good idea." 

Y/N trailed her hands up Matt's chest. "And just for the record, I've always imagined our kids looking like their handsome dad, because between seeing you and seeing pictures of your dad I can definitely tell that the Murdock genes are strong."

She leaned up and gave him a kiss. "No matter who they look like, I think we'll make some beautiful babies one day."

Matt laughed. "Definitely."

Y/N stepped back and took his hand once again.

They continued their stroll down to the end of the boardwalk, then turned around and headed back in the other direction.

Once they had gotten back to the car, Y/N grabbed another bottle of water for each of them from the cooler. "Okay, we should probably get going. We have one more stop and I want to try to get back to the mainland before it gets too dark."

Matt nodded. "Okay."

They climbed into the car, bucked their seatbelts, and soon were back on the road. 

Y/N re-linked her fingers through Matt's as they headed back towards the mainland. "You hungry?" 

Matt nodded, lunch having been several hours behind them. "I could eat."

"Good, because I figured since we had a nice picnic lunch that I'd also treat you to a true southern Floridian dinner. There's this wonderful restaurant in Key Largo that Aunt Ruth and I go to whenever we come down to the Keys. Their seafood is freshly caught every day and is processed at the restaurant itself."

Matt smiled. "That sounds great."

He gave her hand a squeeze. "Thank you for today, by the way. I had a really great time."

"I'm glad." Y/N squeezed his hand back. "And I did too."

They fell into a comfortable silence, Matt thinking back to their conversation on the boardwalk and what he had really wanted to say.

He knew without a doubt that Y/N was still the person he wanted to spend the rest of his life with and he didn't want to have to wait to be able to call her his wife.

I've got some plans to make.

[crusherthedoctor]

A positive ask: your top 5 Sonic stories? :)

In chronological order:

Sonic CD: This might be cheating since the actual plot is just "Eggman's kidnapping animals again but this time he also turned a planet into a Chain Chomp", but I love, love, love the visual storytelling at work here. Sonic was always more thoughtful and grounded than most when it came to the green aesop (including that one cartoon that claimed to be a Sonic cartoon but wasn't), and CD is the pinnacle of why. Seeing all the different ways the pasts and futures compare is always a joy, and it drives home how serious Eggman's threat really is to any world.

Sonic 3 & Knuckles: In no small part due to the level cutscenes and big set pieces, this game makes the journey feel like an epic quest. And while other games may highlight aspects of his character better (Forces highlighting his cleverness for just one example), I feel that this game is arguably the best overall use of Eggman, showing how he operates as a villain, and showing how dedicated he is to repairing the Death Egg no matter what it takes. The endgame is one of the best in the series, and a Super Sonic finale actually felt exciting rather than played out.

Sonic Adventure 1: I have my issues with it, and not just the obvious one, but I would say it's one of the 3D plots that holds up the best. Chaos is still the top-tier giant monster thanks to how he's built up and how he has more to him other than "he's a monster, fight it", Eggman has a great showing until That One Moment, I appreciate Tails' arc and Gamma's story - even if the latter is kind of irrelevant to most of the overarching stuff, which is one of my aforementioned issues - and I like how it focused on one aspect of previous lore (Angel Island) and expanded upon it in a way that felt natural, which is much better than haphazardly trying to connect absolutely every bit of lore and making the world feel smaller like what Flynn tends to do. Out of all the monster-themed stories in the games, the original reigns supreme.

Sonic Colours: Yeah yeah, I know Sonic said that one line that everyone hates and ironically loves to repeat more times than Sonic himself actually said it, but no matter your stance on the writing for everyone not named Eggman, the intergalactic theme park concept is just inherently fun, and the game really gets its mileage out of it with all the different attractions and announcements from the rotund one. Not to mention, using such a flashy setup as a ploy to convert innocent aliens into rabid beasts is quintessentially Eggman, since it would be his benefit to screw others over while having childlike fun at the same time. Like SA1, there are some details I would change, but overall I really do get a kick out of it.

Sonic Forces: The most controversial choice, I'm sure. Yes, this is mostly based on What Could Have Been, but unlike the majority of unironic '06 fans, I can actually acknowledge that; the setup of Eggman finally conquering the planet is just too good to pass up. And besides, however flawed in execution it may admittedly be, I still think it had a lot of good moments. Eggman still got to show a whole lot of underhanded deviousness, and other characters ended up well too, like Shadow. And I still like Infinite in all his edgy glory, because no matter how tryhard he is, he somehow still feels less so than Scourge or Surge.

Other game plots/concepts I like: - Eggman dumping Sonic on an island purely to murder his ass in over-the-top ways in SEGA Sonic Arcade. Simple yet brutal, I love it. - While I may not care for Heroes' plot as it is, the idea of a robot copying Chaos' data entices me. With Eggman's unused SA2 line about him vowing to conquer the world with his own power, him using said data to create his own Perfect Chaos (metaphorically, not literally) would be a great way to expand on that. - Battle is a little overly talky in its structure for my liking, and certain characters were unflattering (*coughAmycough*), but building up Emerl and his friendship with the group, only to then be forced to put a bullet in him when he goes apeshit, is what I call a power move. They played it really well… minus the obligatory upstaging of Eggman. - Solaris had the most potential out of all the post-Chaos monsters, and it could have worked as a deliberate contrast to Chaos. Iblis and Mephiles, on the other hand, can fuck right off. - Erazor and his relationship with Shahra, and how Sonic ultimately deals with him. - Robot pirates in Rush Adventure. Cause robot pirates are fun. - Eggman attempting a sort-of corporate takeover in Zero Gravity.

- Sonic being willing to do the right thing even if he's demonized for it in Black Knight. - Eggman successfully controlling the Time Eater in Generations. - Eggman clawing his way back to his rightful status in Lost World. - Giant robot that felt more like a worthy titan than the actual Titans in Mania. - Team Sonic Racing having a mysterious shady newcomer organize a tournament, and it turns out they DON'T have malicious motives for it… I dunno, there's something wholesome about it. Maybe it's because Big got to be right about something. :>

Non-game plots/concepts I like: - Eggman faking a "New Villain usurped me, you gotta stop him uwu" narrative in order to lure Sonic into a trap in the OVA. - The Helen episode of Sonic X. <3 - Eggman becoming a Super Eggman in the second movie, and in a way that's tailor-made for his characteristics at that. - Eggman creating a bio-mechanical virus with a devoted simp at his side SHOULD HAVE WENT DOWN A LOT BETTER THAN IT DID GRRRRRRRR

I know most of these revolve around Eggman, but I never claimed to not be a fanboy. :P And being the Bowser to Sonic's Mario, 90% of all Sonic plots start from his machinations, so it'd be hard to ignore him anyway.

[mannanoo]

Everybody has an origin story

Major Character Death (Previous event) Teen and Up Audiences Dream SMP Foolish Centric Word Count: 2,848 Completed

Everybody has an origin story. They don't always have to be bathed in blood, but sometimes there's no other option.

"Dream said to me once that every hero has an origin story." It was startling to Foolish to hear Tommy sound so quiet. The teen had been keeping him company and filling the silence with noise as Foolish decorated his summer home. He'd been sat on the base of the sphinx statue talking up a storm for most of the day, and Foolish had been happy to listen. At some point, Tommy had fallen quiet, after regaling Foolish with another story about how he saved Tubbo from... Something. Honestly, he wasn't quite sure what the teen had been on about in the last story, but he didn't want to burst Tommy's bubble as he seemed to be having one of his better days, especially since Wilbur had been revived.

But the quiet statement made Foolish pause and turn to look at him, only to see Tommy with his head bowed, brow furrowed as he stared at the sandstone floor beneath him. It took a moment for Foolish to answer.

"He did?"

"Yeah... When Tubbo and I were in his vault. Said if I wanted to be a hero, I'd need an origin story, before he threatened to kill Tubbo." If Foolish didn't know the teen better, he would've thought he didn't care, but Foolish could see the way Tommy's brow furrowed deeper, and the minute way his fists tightened to grip the loose fabric of his jacket that was thrown over his lap after he'd complained about the desert sun. He could almost see the cogs turning in the teen's brain as both of them thought of what to say next. There was silence, as Foolish gently put the glowstone back into his inventory and climbed down the scaffolding a bit, to jump down to the base of the sphinx, setting himself down next to Tommy. He was small, smaller than he'd been in a while, but he'd found it was easy to talk to people when he was at a more "human" height. They stayed in silence for a few moments longer before Tommy spoke up again.

"What did you do before this server? Like, before all the wars and fighting and stuff? Puffy thinks that my "origin story" doesn't have to be anything to do with L'Manberg, but I don't know."

Foolish stayed silent for a moment, before leaning back on his hands and looking up at his summer home with a large sigh. "I don't actually remember much before becoming a god. And as a god, I mostly just... Fought. Lots of wars and people killing each other, not I guess not much has changed in the grand scheme of things."

"I thought you were always a god."

"No, I was human once. Or... Shark hybrid maybe? I think I fused with a totem and became a god? I'm not really sure."

"So, was that your origin story then? You fused with a totem and forget shit?"

"Maybe. There's probably more to it than that, but I guess too long story, short; yeah, that's my origin story."

"So... You think Puffy's right?"

"That you're origin story doesn't have to be fighting in a war? Yeah, I mean, Puffy's right about most things. Besides, Dream's the bad guy right? He was probably just spouting some crap to make you give up hope, that's what the villains do. And the worst ones make you think about them after they're gone." He nudged Tommy's shoulder and gently smiled at him ad the teen looked up at him shyly. They stayed in companionable silence as the sun began to rise.

"Do you ever think about what you're life could've been if all the fighting didn't happen? Like... If you never got involved in wars and revolutions?"

"Sometimes. But I also know I probably wouldn't know anyone here if I didn't fight. I probably wouldn't know Eret, probably would never have met Puffy or got Finley and Foolish Jr. I wouldn't have had the chance to build this place, or anything else I've built, I probably wouldn't have even realised how much I love building if not for the fighting!" Foolish let out a small laugh. His face fell again as he saw Tommy's incredulous look. "I know all the fighting seems so much right now Tommy, but I promise it won't last forever. And I promise that you've got people on your side; you've got me, and Puffy and Eret, and you've got Tubbo and Ranboo. No matter what Tommy, you're not alone and we're gonna do everything we can to stop anymore wars and revolution. Or, at least keep you kids out of it. You've all done enough fighting for a few lifetimes." Tommy looked like he was about to argue, before he settled and just nodded at Foolish.

"Thanks Big Man." They continued sitting in silence as the final dregs of night lightened to day. Foolish jumped down from the base of the statue, slightly startling Tommy as his boots cracked against the floor.

"You can stay here and tell me more stories if you want Tommy. My home is yours. But I definitely need to continue decorating. It's pretty empty in here, don't ya think?" He smiled up at the teen, and Tommy grinned before starting off on another of his stories.

"Do you know how L'Manberg actually started?"

"Wasn't it just a drug van Wilbur owned?" Foolish smiled and Tommy barked out a laugh as Foolish climbed up the scaffolding to where he'd abandoned placing glowstone into a mural just to the side of the main entrance of his summer home.

"Well yeah, but first we had to liberate the server of all the dangerous drug stuff, like brewing stands and blaze rods! So we went to Tubbo first because obviously and then..." Tommy continued his story, not even focused of whether or not Foolish was listening, though he had no need to worry regardless.

*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*

After Tommy had left, Foolish stayed sat at the base of the sphinx, looking up at the mural he'd created around the entrance of his summer home. The picture in front of him, the two humans facing away from each other. Neither had any proper facial features and the details of their clothes were extremely minimal, but there was something so achingly familiar about both figures, and not just because he'd made the mural himself.

Truly, if Foolish thought about it, most of the designs he put into his personal builds, he never really thought about them. He'd just go through the motions, letting himself place blocks where he felt was right and it always worked, but it always left a void in his heart. Like something was missing just out of his reach.

He stared up at the right hand figure of the mural, taking in the curled hair that fell just over the face. The loose clothing of reds and whites pushed at Foolish's memories, leaving that void in his heart aching and widening.

He took a breath, leaning his head back against the statue's base, closing his eyes and letting the warmth of the setting sun lull him into comfort and sleep.

*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*

"Foolish! Come on, it's just a little further!" Foolish opened his eyes, taking in the dense trees surrounding him. He looked towards where the voice came from, seeing just a glance of a flowing red cloak. It was partially transparent, revealing the cropped white shirt and low riding black trousers underneath. He moved towards the figure, getting a better view of the person who knew him.

As he pushed a tree branch out of his way, he caught a glimpse of his hand. His human hand. Not a trace of gold anywhere on it. It lacked Foolish's usually rings and chains, as well as any trace of his totem side. He went to turn his hand around, but found his body wasn't moving the way he wanted. He continued on towards the figure, that was still partially obscured from his view. But now, he could see most of the persons figure, only his face hidden from him now. It was like there was a fog in front of this persons face, hiding his eyes away from Foolish's gaze. He tried to speak up, ask who was there, but his body still refused to answer. There was something familiar about this person, and the situation, but he just couldn't remember.

"I'm coming! Just wait a moment ____!" His mouth moved without him. The name that came from his lips, was jumbled and muffled, making it impossible to make out. A deep laugh came from the figure before him, a gentle hand lifting to cover his mouth as Foolish finally caught up. The fog didn't lift, but something about being around this person lifted Foolish's spirits, filling that hole he'd felt in his soul for quite some time. Gently and carefully, like a stream from... He didn't know the name, but he knew it, deep in his heart. This person was his friend, and he knew them. Like they were written directly on his heart and soul.

"You're so slow Foolish. Come on, they're just up ahead! I saw them a few days ago, and I followed them and found this place, and I thought you'd love it! It's such a cool looking place, and I think it's abandoned so you could probably do something with it!" They spoke quickly and excitedly, grabbing onto Foolish's hand-his ungilded hand, it was still so weird to see after so long-and pulling him along, easily weaving the two of them over bulging tree roots and underneath low hanging branches. Their excitement was contagious, spreading to Foolish as easily as water drops from leaves, leaving the both of them smiling and laughing.

Laughing enough that he didn't notice when jumping over tree roots quickly became hopping over red, pulsing vines.

Enough that he didn't notice when the forest grew silent, save from the gentle crackling of near fires.

Enough, that by the time they were in front of this abandoned temple, Foolish could do nothing to try to avert whatever was coming.

He couldn't speak. His panic was welling in his chest, overwhelming the sense of safety and comfort from before. The dread was overflowing, and he started trying to pull their hands backwards, trying everything he could to try and speak, to warn this person it wasn't safe. Anything to get them both away from there and back to safety.

But nothing happened.

He could feel himself still smiling, gazing wondrously at the temple before them, the vines weaving in and out of the marble pillars, blending into the crimson hyphae window frames. He screamed silently as his body moved forward of its own accord, bringing his friend along with him. He could feel their eyes on him as they moved forward, hands and fingers still intertwined. He watched as he free hand brushed over the vines wrapped around the closest pillar, and shivered inwardly as it pulsed beneath his fingers, quickly matching the rhythm of his own heart. He turned towards his faceless friend, and he could feel the grin splitting his face.

"Let's go inside! I want to see what else this place has!" He could feel his excitement, but it was overshadowed easily by his dread. He knew those vines, knew what they were, what they did to people.

He wanted to get away, but he was trapped. Trapped inside his own body and mind in a... Memory? Of before he was a god?

Whatever this was, he didn't want to see it.

He shut his eyes. He knew it would do no good for this past version of himself, but at least now he wouldn't have to see it again.

Their hands stayed together as they explored. He felt more aware of his surroundings. He could hear the far of footsteps, the fire crackling. He could feel the torches light up as they walked down corridors and through empty room after empty room. He could feel the cold sinking into his bones and chilling his skin as they descended together down stairwell after stairwell, curling around and around and leading them further into darkness and damp.

He could tell without looking they were in a basement. He could feel the oppressive force of the Blood Vines, knew that they had been growing and getting more concentrated as they delved further into the temple.

"Woah... What is that?" He heard his friend say, and against his better judgement, he opened his eyes. He knew what he'd see.

He was right. But, Prime how he wished he was wrong.

There in front of them, was the Egg. The Red Egg that had been tormenting the server, had changed his friends and torn people apart.

Had killed him. Had made people he thought were his friends, sacrifice him.

He couldn't move even if he wanted to, as his body and his friend stepped towards the Egg, brushing their hands over the vines. He could hear footsteps moving towards them both, but he knew that neither of them had actually heard them. Knew that neither of them were aware that they weren't alone in that room. That they weren't aware of the danger in front of them and quickly surrounding them.

Foolish's hand slipped from his friend's as they stepped towards the Egg, taking note of the swirling patterns on the Egg and the way the Vines curled around it protectively, reaching out towards their hands and ankles, curling around them possessively.

He felt hands snatch out and grab onto him tightly, yanking him backwards, away from the Egg and the Vines. He looked up and saw his friend suffering the same fate, and felt a knife press against his neck. Their face was still clouded by fog, by Foolish knew they were scared, he could practically feel the fear emanating of them, despite them not having a blade pressed into their neck. He wanted to scream out, to fight against the hands and blade keeping him trapped.

A new figure stepped out of the dark. Their face was clouded like Foolish's friend's, but so was most of his body. It was like he was looking at them through the heat haze and fog in the nether.

"A worthy sacrifice I should think. The Egg does seem to love it's hybrids. Continue with the sacrifice then dispose of the mortal. They're not worth the trouble." The voice seemed to weave and drift throughout the dungeon. Foolish could do nothing as he was pushed forward, chest and cheek pressed against the Egg, facing his trapped friend. The blade pressed deeper into his neck, and just as it cut straight through the flesh, he yelled out:

"Run! Get out of here E-"

*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*

Foolish woke with a start. He hunched over, hanging his head between his knees, panting as sweat dripped down his neck and forehead. His eyes were wide, the moon was high in the sky, shining down and illuminating the sphinx and his curled up form. He held his hands in front of him, flexing his fingers, counting the rings and moving the chains around so they sat properly. The gold tips of his fingers glittered in the moonlight and he focused on the shine they provided as he got his breathing under control.

There was silence in his summer home. No mobs would spawn within its boundaries, and there was no one he was sharing it with.

He felt... So alone. More alone than he'd felt in a long time.

The feeling of warmth from his dream had fled, leaving nothing but the cold reality.

He'd been a human-shark hybrid. He'd had a friend who looked out for him and for things that he'd like.

They'd looked out for him and been the last thing he'd seen.

He'd been sacrificed to The Egg that plagued the SMP now.

The Egg that was tearing his friends apart and poisoning their minds.

The Egg he'd been sacrificed to only a few weeks ago.

The Egg that dampened his god given powers.

He looked up at the mural in front of him, stared at the figure with the curled brown hair falling in front of their face. The warmth from his dream returned. It was small, and barely there, but it gave him some comfort as he slowed stood up and moved towards it. He held his head upwards, staring at the featureless face of the mural, reaching his hand out to brush against the gold detailing at the bottom of the mural.

A tear fell down his face, then another and another, until there were too many to even attempt to brush away. "I'm sorry... I'm so sorry. I'll remember you, I promise. I'll remember you and I won't forget you again. I'm so sorry." His whispers seemed to reverberate throughout the building. His cries and whispered promises seemed to echo as the moon fell and the sun began it's slow rise.

"I promise I won't leave you behind again, Eret."

[brsb4hls]

Kinda ranty iwtv review ahead.

When I finally got the chance to watch iwtv I found it meh. Which was weird to me, I was so excited about it.

Been trying to find out why for over a week.

I think I figured out now what I didn't like.

1. A small thing, the music. It didn' fit the scenes and simply sucked.

2. The atmosphere. The show kept the gore but ditched the gothic part of that horror genre imo.

This might partially be due to the fact that the act of blood drinking is pretty much de-mystified in the show. First, it's not a stand in for sex anymore, since there's actual sex. Not a bad thing per se of course, but different vibes.

Secondly, the "experiencing the whole life of a human via their memories when drinking their blood" part obvi couldn't really be put into the show.

3. Daniel. What the hell. Ok, there's the aged up thing, I could live with that. But due to his newly constructed history with Louis, Daniel is missing the wonder, scepticism and in the end downright horror when confronted with an actual vampire.

He's just sassy, bitchy and judgemental all the time, which kinda shapes how Louis in those scenes is presented to the audience.

There's not even respect, like, basic respect for another being who's guest you are. Feels totally off.

(Also I personally love book-Daniel and Armands relationship, so kinda miffed I wont get that).

4. The biggest point: Lestat's and Louis' relationship. There are multiple factors here.

First, the beginning. In the books Lestat was drawn to a deeply depressed Louis with a death wish.

Show Louis attracted Lestat by being assertive and very clear of his boundaries (if you take the most positive spin on his confrontation with his brother).

That sets off an entirely different dynamic. Also, show Louis pretty much has his shit together given the circumstances. He has to run his buisiness while being surrounded by bigotted racists and he's managing kinda well. (Until he rightfully explodes).

He also seems to turn to drinking animal blood not out of guilt or shame, but reason.

It's more like blood is blood and less clean up that way.

Louis doesn't huddle in the sewers, bawling and hating himself while munching on pest rats.

Which interestingly makes show Louis much more likable, because, ngl, book Louis took my last nerve. I was relieved to get Lestat's perspective in the second book, which was much more entertaining.

So, show Louis is likable and relatable, which changes the dynamic. In addition to to that Claudia becomes his sworn ally, so those two built a front against Lestat.

(Rightfully so, Lestat treats them like shit.)

But it divides Louis and Lestat further.

Plus by making Louis more self confident and assertive, it actually feels worse that they added that horrible scene where Lestat beat him up and dropped him (totally unnecessary btw, he was hovering above the ground in the first or second ep already, it was clear he could do that).

It felt like building the character up to tear him down more if that makes sense.

There are things I did like though:

*Like I said, I actually like Anderson's Louis more than book Louis, just not in that combination.

*Sam Reid does an amazing job as Lestat, everyone already knows that of course, and there's just no arguing here.

*Both actors have crazy good chemistry (which yeah, would be even better if not for the changed dynamics, I mean, they're pretty much end game in the books, they should work well together).

*Armand is perfect. He is ridiculously gorgeous while also appearing very calm and collected with a side of creepy. Which is exactly how Armand should be given the way he is described in the books (he's not 17 in the show, but I still think he's a great choice).

All in all it's not a bad adaption, it has some great scenes and I will keep watching, I'm just not blown away by it.

I would love for people to add to this, since it's probs a more unpoplular opinion, so discussion is always interesting.

Also, full disclosure, I ditched my Anne Rice books years ago, so I might remember stuff wrongly, please point that out to me.

[chrisevanslovesposts]

Lone Gunman

Arrow masterlist

A couple days ago Oliver built a work out thing made of bricks, pipes, and chains. He threw a chain over the medal bar on the ceiling and hooked it around a big pipe and put three bricks on the pipe. That's what he was lifting at the moment while Charlie hung from on a different medal bar by her feet. As her face met her toes there was a loud crash and she jumped, accidentally unhooking her feet from the bar, and she fell landing on her back hitting her head a bit.

"Damn it, Oliver!" She yelled after standing up and taking a deep breath from getting the wind knocked out of her.

The looked over at him and the bricks were broken in the ground. 3 weeks. That how long it been since everything started. Charlie was getting more and fit, she has the starting of a six pack out line, which is really proud of. She go up the salmon ladder without falling, she still working on going down. She actually almost broke her jaw on it a couple days ago cause when she brought the bar up to go down she hit the underneath of her jaw really hard. It was sore for 4 days. She could hang from the ceiling for 15 minutes before getting light headed cause of all her blood rushing to her head. She can do 50 pushups in a 2 minute and 30 sending time span. As she builds muscle Oliver is also teaching her to fight. Just recently he taught her how to shoot a bow but she is yet to hit the middle of the target. Oliver put a shirt on and sat down at the computer and started typing a bunch of stuff. Charlie took a drink of water before putting her sweatshirt over her sports bra. She looked at the computer over his shoulder.

"James Holder." Charlie said

"Yeah, his corporation put defective smoke detectors in low-income housing in the glades. There been a bunch of fire and entirely too many funerals." Oliver said as he opened the small book and looked for Holder's name and finally finding it on page 4.

"Okay." Charlie said as Oliver got his bow out them went and changed.

"Alright, see ya, love you." Charlie said as they did their handshake.

"Love you too." Oliver said hugging her then he left.

Charlie took a shower while Oliver was gone and changed back into her regular clothes.

As she sat down Oliver came in and set his bow and quiver down.

"So?" She asked as he started grabbing a bunch of stuff.

"I got shot." Oliver said

"What!" Charlie said getting up and walking over to him just for him to go and take her seat and set everything down on the table.

"It's fine. I'm fine. I just got get the bullet out." Oliver said as Charlie just stared,"Charlie, I'm fine. Here help me get the built out." Oliver said handing her tweezers and gauze.

She took and sat down on the table. She dug the billet out then cleaned and stitched the wound. Once down Oliver put a white shirt on and the shoulder has blood on it.

"Ollie really white?" Charlie asked as she clicked the mouse on the computer. Oliver sat down and marked James off the list.

"So how did you get shot anyways?" Charlie asked

"Uh well some guy shot him from the building across from his. I don't know who." Oliver said as he made a face before standing up. As he stood he just about fell catching himself on the desk.

He went over to where the the gauze and bullet where sat and moved the gauze around to find the bullet before touching his wounded arm. He ran over to his brown box and pulled something out, tripping on the way, he ate it then grabbed a water bottle and drank it before passing out.

"Ollie.... Ollie. Oliver!" Charlie said getting up and walking over to him,"Oliver!" She yelled shaking him before grabbing her phone and calling the first person she could think of, "Hey, you know where my dads old factory is? Okay I need you to come here NOW." Charlie yelled before hanging up. 

She tried to pick up Oliver and put him on the desk. But she only succeeded in getting blood all over her white shirt.Her phone buzzed and the person she called texted her that he was here. She ran outside and saw him she ran over to him, grabbing his hand and pulling him inside, but before they went in she stopped at the top of the stairs.

"Are you okay? You shirt is all bloody. Are you hurt?" He kept asking a bunch of question.

"Theodore, I'm gonna tell you something and I want you to prepare yourself for it." Charlie said and he stared at her for a moment before slowly nodding his head.

"Okay. You know the vigilantly that's been running around?" Charlie asked him and he nodded his head.

"That's.... Thats Oliver. Oliver is the vigilantly." Charlie told him and he stared at her.

"He got shot and well I don't know I got the bullet out of him, cleaned his wound, then suddenly he was tripping everywhere then he took something and passed out." Charlie told as he continued to stare at her.

After a minute or two Charlie just pulled him down the stairs and as they reached the bottom he looked around and his eye bugged out of his head. Charlie pulled him to Oliver and he just stood there and stared at Oliver.

"Hey! Come on. Help me." Charlie said snapping her eyes in front of his face. He shook his head before quickly grabbing Oliver and putting him on the table as Charlie cleared it off.

 "Uhhh. Okay where's the bullet?" Theodore asked as he pulled Oliver sleeve up to see the wound.

"Here." Charlie handed him the bullet. Theodore looked at it before looking at Oliver wound, which was gushing blood.

"He was poisoned. The bullet was laced with whatever it was." Theodore said

"Get me some gauze." Theodore said and Charlie grabbed gauze as Theodore pulled Oliver stitches out.

Once Charlie got the gauze he also asked for water which she gave. He poured water over Oliver wound then cleaned it with gauze so he could see the wound but the moment he moved the gauze away to look it filled right back up with blood.

"I can see anything. He blooding to much." Theodore pouring more water on his wound. As he went to clean it with the gauze Oliver shot up. He looked down at Theodore then Charlie then his wound. He stood up and walked over to Charlie 

"Why is here?" He asked her 

"Because I freaked out and didn't know who to call. You passed out, Oliver. I'm sorry I don't remember ever going to college for nursing or a doctorate." Charlie told him

"Charlie, you don't just get to pick and choose who we tell about this. It's my secret, besides how do we know we can trust him." Oliver yelled.

"We can trust. We can Trush you, right?" Charlie looked over at Theodore who nodded his head

"Yeah, I'm not gonna tell anyone." Theodore said

"See." Charlie pointed at him

"We can't just trust him by his word." Oliver yelled.

"God, Oliver. If he wanted to go and tell someone he would have done it a long time ago." Charlie pointed at before the computer beeped.

" damn it." Oliver looking at the computer before grabbing his sweat shirt.

"Come on." Oliver said to the two.

"My shirt though." Charlie pointed out.

She walked over to her bag and pulled out an extra button up. She took her off and out on her new one. When she looked up Oliver had an annoyed looked and Theodore was staring at her with wide eyes.

"Alright." She said before they all walked to the house.

When they walked in they went to the living room where they saw Moira talking to police officers and Thea sitting on the couch. They all walked up to Diggle was standing in the entrance of the living room.

"What happened. Thea okay?" Oliver asked him.

"The cops brought her home, she and some of her friends broke into a store, tried in some dresses last night. Lit up the breathalyzer like a Christmas tree. So how was your evening, guys?" Diggle asked that caused all three of them to look from Thea to him.

"You mean after we said we were going upstairs to talk about something at dinner and never came back?" Charlie asked

"I guess from now, I'll be listening to your conversations too." Diggle said. Charlie and Oliver walked past him going into the living room just as Moira finished talking to the police.

"My wife and I appreciate it. I'll see you out." Walter said

"Thank you." Moira said before turning to Thea as they walked out.

"Last time it was public intoxication. This time breaking and entering. My, how we are moving up in the criminal world." Moira said as Thea stood up and smiled.

"You know, when you pay off the store owners, you should check out the merchandise. They got some pretty killer outfits." Thea said

"Thea go get ready for school." Moira pointed upstairs.

"Uh, you know, I was thinking of taking a sick day." Thea crossed her arms.

"Fine, then get some sleep." Moira shook her head and Thea smiled

"You look like crap." Thea told her older siblings as she passed them.

"You're letting her play hooky?" Charlie asked as they walked over to Moira.

"When your sister gets like this it's best to give her, her space." Moira told them.

"She testing you." Charlie said

"Yes. Who's she learn that from?" Moira looked at Oliver

"Mom. When I was her age, you and dad let me get away with murder. Looking back, I could have used less space and more parenting." Oliver said before walking away with Charlie in tow.

%

That night Oliver, Charlie, and Theodore went to the warehouse and Oliver tested the blood on the gauze.

"The bullet was laced with curare. A very rare and deadly poison. The killers unique MO. He's killed all over the world. Interpol even has a code name for him. Dead shot."  Oliver said as he typed on the computer. Charlie looked over at Theodore and he looked like he'd seen a ghost.

"You okay, Theodore?" Charlie asked

"Yeah, yeah." He said then sat down in the other chair.

%

Charlie got up and got dressed. 

She walked to Oliver room where he was putting his socks and shoes on.

"Where gonna show Tommy and Diggle the warehouse."Oliver told her as she sat down on the bed.

"What! So you're gonna tell them about all this too. After yelling at me about telling Theodore." Charlie asked

"No, no. Where gonna suggest that we turn it into a club. And keep the downstairs locker up all the time. Remember I just put that door there with the lock?" Oliver asked as Charlie nodded her head.

"Okay." She said. They called Tommy and then they went to the warehouse with Diggle and Theodore.Oliver opened the door and they all walked in.

"So what do you think? Great spot for a nightclub or what?" Oliver asked

"Sweet. Though I gotta tell you, man if you're thinking about calling it Queens I don't think you're gonna get the clientele that you were hoping for." Tommy said

"Private office." Oliver said pointing to the lock door.

"For your private one-on-one meetings I would imagine." Tommy smiled slapping Oliver's arm.

"Hopefully the occasional two-on-one meeting." Oliver said and Tommy laughed

"Man, are you sure you want to do this? It's not like you really have any experience in running a... well, running anything. How about tomorrow night the three of us we go and scope out the competition. There's a new club opening downtown. It's called poison. Max Fuller owns it." Tommy said and Oliver looked at him.

"Max Fuller?" Oliver asked

"Mm-hm." Tommy nodded his head as Oliver nodded a long.

"I slept with his fiancé." Oliver said.

"Before the wedding." Tommy said like it was no big deal.

"It was at the rehearsal dinner." Oliver said.

"Rehearsal dinner is technically before the wedding. Right?"Tommy said as both boy broke out in laughter and Charlie stood there and she looked over at Diggle and Theodore who didn't look that impressed either.

"And besides, who's stays mad at a castaway?" Tommy said as his phone ringer.

"Ah, damn it, I gotta roll. Anyway, I'll see ya later, man. Bye, Charles. Good place, see you." Tommy said saying bye to Diggle and Theodore as well before walking out.

"So, what do you think?" Oliver asked the two body guards who looked at each other then back at him.

"We'll, we're here to provide security, sir, not a commentary." Diggle told him.

"Oh, come on, Dig... Theo, do me favor. Speak freely, please." Oliver smiled.

"We'll, this is The Glades, right? Your rich white friends wouldn't come to this neighborhood on a bet." Diggle said

"I am Oliver Queen, this is Charlie Queen, right? People would stand in line for three hours if we opened a club." Oliver said.

"And no one who actually lives in The Glades would see a penny of those cover charges." Theodore said.

"We make it a successful business... we gentrify the neighborhood." Oliver said

"I was wondering when we would get to that. The white knight and secretly strong princess swooping in to save the disenfranchised. All by their lonesome with no help from anybody." Diggle smiled.

"Wow. You don't think very much of me, do you? Come on at least Charles. She mature." Oliver said.

"No, actually, sir, I have a very high regard for how perceptive you are. Sir." Diggle smiled

"And for... Charles. She is very much more mature then you. And has a clean record. I think quite high of her." Diggle said then walked out. Oliver left and Charlie and Theodore went downstairs. Charlie went behind the wall and changed into leggings and a sports bra before coming back out.

"We are working out. Change." Charlie told him throwing him a bag.

"What's this?" He asked

"It's workout clothes and other things you need to leave here." Charlie said

"How do you know my size?" He asked after looking in the bag to find workout clothes, hair brush, tooth brush, deodorant things like that.

"I actually guessed but nice to know I got it right." She said before pointing at the wall.

"Alright behind there is the well bathroom so guess except the plumbing isn't all the way installed here yet, but it's almost finished so go change. When we are done we'll take showers behind there. We only have one right now but after our showers I'm gonna work on the walls to next one which is right beside the other one just with a wall in between them." Charlie said Theodore went behind the wall and out his clothes on.

"It's fine if I don't wear a shirt right. Do I have to or..?" He asked

"No, it's fine. Hurry up." Charlie said

"Okay, okay." He said and came out in basketball shorts, long underwear underneath them, and tennis shoes.

Charlie looked at him and his hard abs where on full display and Charlie eyes got wide as she turned around trying to hide her blush.

"Alright first thing first. Salmon ladder." Charlie then jumped onto the bar.

She went all the way to the top. Once at the top she stopped for a moment before going down 2. She went down another but the bar slipped and she fell onto her back and like always knocking the wind out of her self.

"Charlie!" Theodore yelled walking over to her and helping her up.

"I'm fine, I'm fine. I've fell off of that like 50 times." Charlie waved her hand coughing and giving him the bar.

He went up and down with ease. Then they went to the metal and hooked their feet on it. Charlie face met her feet and Theodore did what she did. After 10 minutes they dropped down.

"Alright now it's just whatever normal workout you would do if your working out." Charlie told as she got on the ground and started doing push ups. Theodore did pulls ups on the salmon ladder. After about 20 minutes of them doing random works out Oliver came back with a smooshed bullet. He put it under a microscope.

"That's 7.62 millimeter round." Theodore told our of breath.

"Yeah, the money trials leads back to the Bratva, the Russian mob." Oliver told them

He left again said he was going to deal with the Russians. Charlie took a shower then put her regular clothes back on. Theodore took a shower and put his suit back on. But of course he has to torture Charlie and he came out of the shower in his pants and shoes. She out his button up on with out buttoning it up. He sat down across from her as she tried to focus on her books and not the abs that we're across from her. Eventually out of aggravation of not being able to pay attention she set her book down

After a while Oliver came back and Theodore button his shirt up, put his tie on, and put his blazer on.

%

Oliver, Tommy, and Charlie all walked into Max Fuller club with Diggle and Theodore behind them.

"Oh,my, this is gonna be killer." Tommy said as the guard open the gate for them and they walked in.

"If Max Fuller sees me here, I agree." Oliver said

"Ah, if you wanna run a business you've gotta take a few risks." Tommy said "Mr. Queen." They heard behind them and turned to see the guard not letting Diggle or Theodore in.

"Oh! I have never seen this man before in my life." Oliver pointed at them and the guard nodded as the two body guards rolled their heads.

Tommy laughed as they walked all the way in. They went to the bar where they saw Laurel surprisingly.

"Oh, wow! Doesn't you going out and having fun violate some kinda law, you know, like the ones that are carved on a stone tablet?" Tommy said as they walked up to her.

"That's cute, Tommy." Laurel said annoyingly.

"Thanks." Tommy smiled

"I can see you two are up to your old hunting patterns. You is who I'm surprised see." Laurel pointed at Charlie who laughed.

"Just seeing what passes for fun in Starling City after five years." Oliver told her.

"Ah. Well, I'm sure you'll find that it just hasn't been the same without you." Laurel told him.

"Big brother! And big sister!" Thea said running up and hugging them both.

"Oh! I am so wasted right now. There is.... There is four of you two." Thea smiled as Laurel and Tommy turned away awkwardly

"I thought you were grounded." Oliver said

"I am. And thank you, thank you for that, by the way." Thea smiled

"You're done for the night." Charlie said putting her around Thea as Oliver grabbed her hand.

"Oh, what are you gonna do? Tell mom?" Thea asked

"Thea! You are hanging with the wrong people." Oliver said

"You're one to talk. Uh, how much do you know about your own so-called friends over here?" Thea pointed at Tommy and Laurel as The twins looked at each other already knowing what she was talking about.

"Oh, Thea, maybe you should-"

"Tommy. I think your BFF has a right to know." Thea said

"Thea, let's go." Charlie said

"Well, I guess they never told you that they've been screwing while you were gone." Thea told Oliver and both Charlie and Oliver both kept a straight face as Laurel and Tommy looked disappointed in themselves.

"Look, man, i-"

"Tommy. It's okay." Oliver said calmly like it was normal

"Us three, we're done for the night." Oliver said pointing between the three siblings then pulling Thea with him.

"Take your hands off of me." Thea yelled pulling her arm out of his grip.

"You're not my father and you are not my mother. And you're barely my siblings." Thea said then walked away

"Well, well. Look at this. Oliver Queen." Some said from behind them but all recognized the voice.

"Max Fuller." Oliver said plastering a fake smile and turning to him.

"How you been?" Oliver asked

"Happy you drowned." Max said and Oliver smile disappeared.

Max grabbed Oliver and drug him to the back and Tommy followed after. Charlie and Laurel looked at each other before walking after to. Max was standing in front of the curtain so Charlie kneed him making fall then punched him in the face as hard as she could

"So is this over, Max? Or you gonna have your boys pound on me and her next?" Charlie asked as the body guards stopped beating up Tommy and Oliver.

"You four consider himself banned for life. Get the hell out of my place!" Max yelled at them.

"Your club sucks anyway!" Tommy yelled after him

"You guys okay?" Charlie asked

"Where'd you learn to do that?" Tommy asked as Charlie looked at Oliver

"Well, I had an older brother beating me up when I younger all the time, I learned a few things from it." Charlie said. Laurel turned to walk out but Oliver stopped her

"Laurel. What Thea said." Oliver said and she turned back to him.

"Oliver, Tommy and I don't need your blessing. And I don't need your forgiveness." Laurel said then walked out.

They walked back over to Diggle and Theodore and they both smiled at the bruises on them. Charlie had bruise on her knuckles and on her cheek bone cause she accidentally elbowed her self... in face. Diggle took them someplace to eat called big belly burger. None of them knew what it was except Theodore and Diggle.

"Why don't you guys, uh, take a seat and I will grab a couple burgers and some ice for those faces." Diggle said as they walked in and him and Theodore waved at one of waitresses that waved back.

"The girls pretty cute." Tommy said waving at her.

"That's my sister-in-law." Diggle said

"Who I will never speak to or look at... ever. Gonna grab a booth." Tommy said walking away.

"She's not wearing a wedding ring. Brother out of the picture?" Oliver asked as Charlie looked at Theodore, remembering when he told her about how Diggle's brother dead.

"Yeah, you could say that." Diggle said then him and Theodore walked over to waitress. Oliver and Charlie went and sat across from Tommy in the booth.

"Look, man... about Laurel. I was gonna tell you. I was just trying to figure out the right way." Tommy said

"To tell someone that you slept with their girlfriend after they went missing and we're then presumed dead. What, there's no greeting card for that?" Oliver said and they both chuckled.

"Look, it was wrong. And I'm sorry." Tommy told him.

"Tommy. I was dead." Oliver said

"No, man, y-you were with Laurel. And whether you were dead, or as it turns out alive on a deserted island, you are my friend. And me being with Laurel violated that friendship in about 50 different ways." Tommy said

"Thank you. But it's okay." Oliver said and Tommy gave him a look.

"You are being really chill about this....I-" Tommy said before Oliver phone started ringing. He answered before saying hello. He started talking in Russian before placing his phone on his chest.

"It's a Russian model calling me. Can we... Can I have a moment, please?" Oliver asked and Tommy asked as Charlie stood up dusting her pants off.

"I can see now why you were able to be to chill. Enjoy." Tommy said standing up and him and Charlie walked away. Charlie looked over at Oliver and watched him stand and nod his head at her. She nodded her head at him before looking over Theodore and nodding her head and he nodded back.

"I've got to use the rest room." Charlie told Tommy who nodded his head. She went to the restroom and opened the window and crawled out.

"Okay so the Russian told me where he's staying so you stay here with everyone, make up something about me not feeling or something I don't know, meet me at home." Oliver told and she nodded her head.

"Okay love you." Charlie said as they did there handshake.

"Love you too." Oliver hugged her before walking off. Charlie crawled back through the window and walked out.

"Hey, where'd Oliver go?" Tommy asked

"Uh, oh he texted me said he didn't feel good." Charlie told him, "Actually I'm getting tired bye." Charlie said fake yawning.

"Okay, bye." Tommy said. Charlie went to the warehouse where Oliver was already. 

"I got a laptop. I need someone to hack it cause I obviously can't. Someone trust worthy." Oliver as he sat the bullet hole laptop on the table.

"Uh.. Maybe someone at Queen Consolidated." Charlie said as Oliver changed.

"Yeah, we'll go tomorrow." Oliver said.

They went home and Charlie felt right asleep from exhaustion.

%

Charlie and Oliver walked into an office where they saw a blonde girl, with a red pen in her mouth, glasses, and a pink button up sitting a chair watching from typing on her computer and writing on a piece of paper. As she turned to write on the paper Oliver and Charlie walked in front of her desk.

"Ahem. Felicity Smoak?" Oliver said and she turned to them taking the pen out of her mouth.

"Hi. I'm Charlie Queen. This is my brother Oliver Queen." Charlie pointed between herself and her twin.

"Of course. I know, who you two are, you're Mrs. Queen and Mr. Queen. iconic duo. The calm and mature one and the immature party animal. The best twins in the city." Felicity said as she looked between them before realizing what she said, "Sorry." She silently said looking down at her desk.

"Mr. and Mrs. Queen were our parents ." Charlie smiled

"Right, but your fathers dead. I mean, he drowned. But you didn't. And Mrs. Queen is married to Walter. W-which means you could come down to the IT Department and listen to me babble. Which will end. In three... two, one." Felicity said turning away before looking back at them as they both plastered the same smile, their fathers smile. Both Charlie and Oliver looked a lot like their father, well, with exception of the couple similarity's to their mother here and there.

"I'm having some trouble with my computer and they told me that you were the person to come and see." Oliver said setting the computer on her desk.

"I was at my coffee shop surfing the web and I split a latte on it." Oliver said as Charlie looked at him like he was stupid.

"Really?" Felicity asked as her hand traced over the bullet holes.

"Yeah." Oliver crossed.

"Cause these look like bullet holes." Felicity said like it wasn't obvious.

"My coffee shop is in a bad neighborhood." Oliver said and Felicity turned her head to the side and looked at him, making him smile.

"If there is anything that you can salvage from it... I would really appreciate it." Oliver said and Felicity stared at him for moment.

"Mm-hm." She nodded her head. 

To Charlie it was obvious that Felicity was swooned by Oliver, just like there other girls. But what made this different was that it was also obvious to her that Oliver was slightly swooned by her as well. They pulled up to chairs and sat down beside at her desk. Oliver sat right beside her staring at the screen while she did her work.

"It looks like blue prints." Felicity said

"Do you know what or?" Oliver asked

"The exchange building." Felicity looked at him.

"Never heard of it." Oliver said

"It's where the Unidac Industry's auction is scheduled to take place." She told him and he made a face.

"I thought you said this was your laptop." Felicity said

"Yes." Oliver nodded his head as Charlie just faced Palmed behind him.

"Look, I don't wanna get in the middle of some Shakespearian Family drama thing." Felicity said as Oliver looked between her and the computer

"What?" He asked clueless

"Mr. Steele marrying your mom." Felicity said as now Charlie and Oliver both looked clueless.

"Claudius, Gertrude...... Hamlet?" Felicity said like it was obvious.

"I didn't study Shakespeare at any of the four schools that I dropped out of. Actually Charlie didn't study it either at the one school she went to." Oliver said pointing at Charlie who nodded along.

"Mr. Steele is trying to buy Unidac Industries. And you've got a company laptop associated with one of the guys he's competing against." Felicity explained

"Floyd Lawton." Oliver said confidently.

"No. Warren Patel. Who's Floyd Lawton?" Felicity said as the twins looked at each other before Oliver looked back at the screen.

"He is an employee of Mr. Patel, evidently." Oliver said before looking at the blueprints. They soon left and went to the warehouse.

"Okay. So we can't do this alone. There is 3 buildings there and I can cover all of them. It's time to bring the SCPD into this." Oliver said as Charlie just stared at them.

"Oliver you can't just show up there in your costume and tell them about this and leave without being hurt, killed, or put in jail." Charlie yelled at him.

"I'll meet him outback and.... Do something where he can't look at me. I'll figure it out when I get there. Bye." Oliver said walking out.

"Oliver!" Charlie yelled as he walked back.

She sat down and took a deep breath to calm her self down. She looked around noticing wrap for hands when you fight on the table. Charlie changed and grabbed it, she wrapped her hands before finding something to punch. She went with the concrete wall. She knew it would and she could possible break her hand but at the moment she did care. She punched it once or twice wincing both times but kept punching. Oliver came back after 30 minutes perfectly fine. He walked in and Charlie looked at him swear pouring down her head the now almost red wrap that use to white was covered in blood. Oliver took a shower before putting on a tuxedo.

"Charlie stop, we have to go. Besides everyone will noticed your hands we don't want to make them more noticeable. Come on, you've been doing that for 40 minutes." Oliver pulling arm making her stop.

She shook head as head and to the wrap off her hands to find 8 busted and bleeding knuckles. She grabbed her clothes then went and took a shower. Once out she got dressed and did her hair.

Her knuckles were bruised and busted but Charlie didn't care if someone asked about it she would just say when she walking home someone attacked her so she punched him a bunch.  Oliver and Charlie walked in and were in the top floor where they saw Warren Patel getting arrested. They walked in and as they walked past the doors Quentin walked up to them.

"Oh, don't you scrub up nice?" Quentin said

"Here to support my family." Oliver said

"Yeah, me, too. God help me." Quentin said

"Thank you." Oliver said and Quentin scoffed and walked away. Charlie and Oliver walked over to Diggle and Theodore.

"Dig, Theo. Got your eyes open?" Oliver asked

"That's what we're here for, sir." Diggle said

"That and answering patronizing questions." Theo said

"This guys out of time, if he's gonna do something it's gone happen before the auction." Oliver said and Theo nodded as he listen and Diggle looked at him like he was crazy.

"Sir?" Diggle asked

"I heard the story on the radio." Oliver told Diggle

"Oliver. Charlie. So pleased you guys were able to attend. Huh." Walter told as they walked over to him.

"Walter, the police said that some of the Unidac bidders were mudered. I just think that we should be a little bit more careful." Oliver sias

"My mothers already lost a husband." Charlie finished

"Well, if Moira shared your guys concern she wouldn't have come, and she definitely wouldn't have brought your sister." Walter pointed at there little sister. Oliver went to say something before him and Charlie both looked over to see Moira and Thea talking. They walked over to there mother sister.

"Hi." Oliver smiled

"Guys, what a wonderful surprise." Moira said as Oliver waved over Diggle and Theodore, Diggle with a slight more panicked look.

"Theo, take Charlie with you." Oliver told him and he nodded his head.

"What? No, Oliver." Charlie said as everyone looked at him confused except for Theodore.

Suddenly there was a boom that made everyone get on the ground trying to duck. Everything worked in slow motion for Charlie. Everyone went down slowly before Oliver slowly said something to Theodore and Diggle who nodded and said something. Oliver pointed at Moira and Thea as well as Charlie as he ran away. Diggle moved Thea and Moira outside before running back in to follow Oliver. Charlie frozen her spot heard someone yelling beside her. She turned slowly and saw Theodore with a panicked look as he tired to move her.

"Charlie!" He said in slow motion waving his hand in front of her face. Slowly everything went back to normal, "Charlie come on." Theodore yelled and she turned walking outside with his hand around her, "You okay?" He asked once outside. 

"Yeah, come on we got to go." Charlie nodded her head before pulling his hand with her. 

They went to the warehouse where they waited 10 minutes for Oliver to walk in. But that's not what left the surprised expressions on there face, it was that Oliver was carrying Diggle in.

"What the-." Charlie said Oliver cleared the table and set him on it.

Oliver grabbed a bag of stuff and water and started mixing it and while he did that Charlie and Theodore  noticed the bullet wound on Diggle. Oliver finished and made John drink it. He took off his hoodie and they all stood there for a 10 minutes before Diggle coughed. He looked around before rolling over and he saw them all stood there. Theodore and Charlie in there outfits from the biding and Oliver in his vigilante outfit.

"Hey." Oliver said as Diggle sat up and stared at them

[null40410]

The Last One

He fumbles with the camera for a second, showing a glimpse of the space age-esque small habitable indoor room he's in, with almost complete darkness outside, save for a couple of small bright dots in the distance. He then shows his face and sets the camera down.

"Hellooooo...! My name is... pssh, um... Grun'gthar, Achilles, Aizine-4620ac-9, Eon, ...Robert? I dunno. I've had alot of names in my time. I'm about... 30...? ish? trillion years old, aaand I'm one of the first humans to ever exist. And now, the last living thing in the universe."

He smiles for a moment.

"Uh, I'm here with..." he turns the camera to the side and points out the side window, showing the last few stars left "...the last four- oh, there goes another one." One of the stars explodes into a supernova, but then quickly disappears into nothingness. "Heh, the last three stars in existence..." He turns the camera back over to himself and looks at his watch. "And about... 20 minutes away from the end of the universe."

He stares off-camera for a few seconds before continuing.

"Um, I originally was what was colloquially known as a caveman, but then for some reason when I was about 28 or something, I just suddenly stopped aging or getting hurt or, anything like that. Still don't know why, but I stopped being confused about it after a while.

I do have a theory as to why I am the way I am, though. The second-generation Venians really helped me in trying to understand. For some reason, at that specific moment in time when everything started, I sort of ‘stopped’ being recognized by the universe, if that makes any sense, and so natural laws just kinda stopped applying to me. Like I was frozen in time or something.

After a few years, I noticed that everyone around me was starting to look all wrinkly. Heh, I soon came to realize that that was called 'aging'. Funny thing. Anyway, after everyone around me kept dying, I kept moving to other tribes... adopting their culture, languages, what have you. I guess after a few thousand years, I started to feel more like a chameleon than a human. I've helped build and lived in empires that rose and fell, seen the Egyptian pyramids being made, and watched as the Great Wall stretched across China. I saw the Renaissance, the Industrial Revolution, the dawn of the digital age... I even saw humans take their first steps on Mars. Fun fact though– aliens? Yeah, they’ve been around for a long time, visiting Earth since even when I was a kid. They didn't live very long, and we tried to preserve our memory of them, but eventually everyone who wasn't me died, and our attempts at passing down our stories didn't exactly pan out. It was even worse when the–... well… never mind.

During the 20th to 22nd centuries, people started to realize that I don't age, and big governments, corporations, practically everyone was trying to get their hands on me. I still don't understand why they were so aggressive and insisted on using force… of course it failed, because, you know, invincible, immortal, whatever.

I wasn't a fan of the publicity, so I decided to take a break from civilization for a little while. Fast forward a few thousand years, and suddenly, space travel is the norm. I was impressed, but not surprised. I was able to reintegrate back into society without much trouble. Bah! I'm going on a tangent again. I tend to do that, sorry.

But, uh... being immortal isn't all it's cracked up to be. Sure, it's cool to see the universe evolve, but it's also... lonely. Everyone you know, everyone you love... they all eventually die. I've had countless families, countless friends... and countless heartbreaks. Eventually, you just... stop getting close to people. It's easier that way. It especially helps when you’re the last one standing on a planet where you’ve seen everything that was ever built slowly erode and crumble into dust, being flooded, submerged in lava, frozen over a hundred times, all that apocalyptic jazz."

He pauses, looking wistfully out at the stars.

"So, why am I doing this? I guess... for posterity? For whatever comes next? Closure? Maybe in the next universe, someone will find this recording and know that I was here. That I existed. Maybe it'll serve as a warning, or a lesson, or... just a story."

He smiles softly, a hint of sadness in his eyes.

"I guess, in a way, this is my legacy. Not the wars I fought in, or the people I saved or killed, or the civilizations I helped build or destroyed. But this. Me, sitting here. At the end of everything, just... talking."

He glances at his watch again.

"Well, time's almost up. Just a few more minutes now. Whatever happens next... I'm ready. If there's a new universe, maybe I'll get to see it. If not... then it's been a hell of a ride."

He looks directly into the camera.

"So, to whoever finds this... hello. And goodbye."

He chuckles softly, the sound bittersweet.

"And, uh... note to self: probably shouldn't have brought the camera. Doubt there'll be video after the next Big Bang. If there even is one."

He sits back, the camera capturing the last moments of the universe as the final star begins to explode. There’s a loud bang and the screen fades to nothingness and the recording ends.