#before anyone asks - its from his bonus chapter <3< /div> Explore tagged Tumblr posts

[deathsweetblossoms]

“I adore you,” I tell her. “Say more,” Macy says, rolling onto her side and taking my arm with her so I’m her big spoon. I speak into the sweat-damp skin of her neck. “Cherish, revere, treasure.” “Worship,” she mumbled into a pillow. “Forever,” I say.

Happy birthday to the love of my life, Elliot Petropoulos.

[hellodarling1357]

Tiny Toes: Part 3.5 - Cassian x Reader

Surprise! 🥳

Here’s a mini bonus chapter that happens soon after where part 3 ended. It’s leading into a particular storyline that has been requested quite a lot 👀

So this started out as a little fluff piece but got a little angsty towards the end...

Word Count: 1.5k

“PJs on?”

“Yep.”

“Teeth cleaned?”

“Yep.”

“Really?” Cassian quirked an eyebrow at his daughter, holding back a laugh as Ottie rolled her eyes and widely opened her mouth to prove him wrong.

“Good girl.”

“Daddy, can I sleep in your bed with you tonight?”

Usually, Cassian would have encouraged her to stay in her own room, not wanting to have her fall into the habit of not being able to settle in her own bed. But after today, the thought of holding his baby girl while she slept had him agreeing.

He watched with a soft smile as she excitedly ran into his room, her favourite, slightly-worn teddy bear in hand as she waited for him to lift her up onto the bed.

“Alrighty, all comfortable?” Cassian asked, tucking her in tightly then swooping down to smother her face in kisses, letting his hair fall forward to tickle her face. Her giggles resounded through him, heart throbbing as he looked down at his little girl in awe, wondering how something so strained had resulted in something so perfect. Despite how messy the situation with Nesta had turned out, he wouldn’t change it for the world; not when it led to what he now had.

Ottie reached her hands up, pulling his face down to hers and planting a sloppy kiss to his cheek that only a toddler could get away with.

“I love you, daddy.” She whispered as he pushed her dark hair away from her face.

“I love you too, sweet girl. Want me to read to you?” Her face lit up in excitement and she nodded enthusiastically while shuffling further into the mattress. “Alright, I’ll be back in a minute, yeah? You think about what story you want tonight.”

Focusing on getting himself ready for bed, Cassian let his mind wander to you and how incredible the day he had been so nervous for had turned out. After he had told Ottie about the two of you, you had all spent the rest of the afternoon in the sun, walking along the Sidra with Ottie bounding ahead, turning back every now and then to check that he was still holding your hand, and would then proceed to growl at him if he wasn’t. After an early dinner, Cassian and Ottie had dropped you off at your apartment, you and Cassian had decided earlier that you would give Ottie some time to process everything before pushing anything else on her.

Ottie, not having seen your place before, excitedly ran around, looking into every single room and cupboard. Cassian had called her back, telling her it was rude to be nosy, but you just shushed him and used the few minutes alone to pull him into a gentle kiss.

“Thank you for today,” he murmured against your lips.

“Thank you for trusting me with her, for wanting me to be in her life.” Cassian couldn’t find the words to express what he felt in that moment so instead pulled you in for another kiss that he hoped conveyed even just a fraction of what he felt for you.

Judging be the look you were giving him when you eventually pulled away, it had said enough; and if his heart wasn’t already yours, it would be after the way you smiled at him before pressing another soft kiss to his lips.

When Nesta left, Cassian had never even considered that he would find someone else. While they hadn’t been the perfect match, they had still been mates and if that hadn’t worked out, well, what hope did he have to be able to make it work with anyone else?

Besides, he had Ottie now. She had become his entire universe, and he was content enough in the fact that he had contributed in the making of this tiny, wonderful person that he wouldn’t need anything else again. And then he had met you, and he was forever thankful to Elain for introducing you into his life. You had shifted everything on its axis simply by being this bright light and ongoing presence for both Ottie and himself. He knew without a doubt that everything in his life, every bit of joy and fear, every mistake made, was all leading him to you, to this point in time.

*****

Three stories later, Ottie was finally beginning to doze off, tightly pressing herself even closer into his chest as her little hands clasped at his t-shirt. Cassian found himself nodding off as well, his fingers twirling through her hair, so similar to his own.

“Daddy? Are we going to be like Uncle Rhys, Auntie Feyre and Nyx now?” Her sudden question tore him away from his sleep-muddled thoughts.

“What do you mean, princess?” He asks, soothing a hand over her hair.

“Well, Uncle Rhys is Nyx’s daddy, like you’re mine. And Auntie Feyre is Nyx’s mummy,” she stayed silent for a moment, Cassian held his breath while she sorted through the thoughts flying around her head.

“So,” she continued, now looking up at Cassian with a sparkle in her eyes. “So, does that mean Y/N is my mummy?”

Cassian felt his heart pang at the clear excitement written across his daughter’s face; he was in no way prepared for this. Hell, the two of you hadn’t even broached the subject of how to navigate this situation, you had only been together for a couple of months.

“Uh,” he hesitated, unsure of the right thing to say. “Well, sweetheart, Y/N loves you very, very much but, no, she’s not your mummy, love.” Again, he felt his heart clench at the devastation of her face.

“Oh, okay,”

Resting her head on his chest again, silence enveloped them. Cassian was beginning to think she had fallen asleep when she whispered in a tearful voice, “Daddy, why don’t I have a mummy?” And Gods Cassian was fighting back his own tears at the hurt in her voice.

“Ottie, come here, sweetheart” then he was sitting up, pulling Ottie into his lap and cradling her against him as he wiped away her tears.

“We’ve never really talked about this, have we?” He asked, needing a little more time to gather his thoughts as he pressed a kiss to the top of her head. He knew this day would come eventually but it was still the hardest conversation he had ever had.

“Your mother, Nesta, and I were together for a few years before we had you. And when I found out she was pregnant, that you were in her belly, it was the happiest day of my life,” he pressed a kiss to her cheek as he gauged her reaction before continuing. “That is, of course, until you came into the world, and I finally got to meet you. You were the sweetest, tiniest thing I had ever seen, and I knew I loved you instantly,” Cassian smiled softly as Ottie shyly grinned and hid her face in his neck.

“But your mother realised that she wasn’t ready to be a mummy. And even though she loved you very much she had to leave so that she could deal with some things that had happened to her,” Ottie stayed silent against him, he could sense her processing his words. “Do you want to ask me any questions about her?”

Ottie stayed silent for a few more minutes, Cassian giving her time to wrap her head around everything as he soothingly rubbed a hand up and down her back whilst rocking her back and forth and pressing kisses to the top of her head.

“Will she come back?”

“I don’t know, princess,” A few more moments passed as Ottie sat in his arm.

“Do you love her?” Cassian couldn’t find it in himself to say a single bad word against Nesta. Despite her leaving him, leaving Ottie, without so much as a goodbye, he didn’t want to taint the image of her in his daughter’s mind.

“I love that she brought you to me.” That seemed to be enough of an answer as Ottie nodded her head in response and cuddled closer into him.

“You can ask me anything you want, okay? But how about we get some sleep?” Ottie stayed silent but nodded again, allowing him to shuffle back down the mattress, arms still wrapped around her as he soothed a hand over her hair.

Again, Cassian thought Ottie had fallen asleep when she asked in a voice barely above a whisper, “are you going to leave me too?”

The fear in her face had tears welling in his eyes as he adamantly said, “No, princess. Please don’t ever think that I’ll leave you. I’m not going anywhere. Even when you’re all grown up and don’t want me around anymore, you’re stuck with me. Okay, sweet girl?”

Ottie nodded with a small smile as the words sunk in, she reached up a hand and wiped away Cassian’s own tears with her chubby fingers as she sniffed back her own. “I love you, daddy.”

“I love you, Ottie. So, so much.”

Ottie finally drifted to sleep, one hand clenched around Cassian’s t-shirt, the other holding onto her teddy bear. Cassian, however, was so far from sleep now. Instead, he opted for watching his daughter sleep soundly against him, wondering, yet again, how he had gotten so lucky.

*****

Part 4

Tag List: @mis-lil-red @sarawritestories @beardburnsupersoldiers @eve175 @blushingfawnsposts @turtleshavesoulmates @slytherinindisguise @sleepylunarwolf

[moody-alcoholic]

These Violent Delights

Chapter 11 - Bonus

Summary: poly 141 x fem!reader, a/b/o AU. WC: 1.7k

CW: mentions of heat and knotting, angst, mild medical stuff.

TVD masterlist - next bonus

Dr. Montgomery is the first to move as John walks into the lab. His head is still swimming his body sore. He hasn’t had time to wash your scent off him properly. He needed to be here, get an update, a proper update. Kyle wouldn’t tell him anything.

He waited as long as he could. He waited until his knot had deflated and you weren’t jumping on him begging him for more before he left the room for the first time. He took a quick shower before coming back to find you passed out dribbling all over his pillow. You didn’t smell of honey anymore. That’s when he knew you were done.

“Soap go switch with Gaz.” He says hobbling over to the first chair he sees.

“You should be resting.” She says pressing the back of her hand against his forehead, he waves her away and she tuts.

“When was the last time you slept?” He asks staring down Simon who looks up from over his laptop.

“I got a few hours earlier.” John can tell its a lie almost immediately.

“You need to rest.”

“I will, later.” John sighs pinching the bridge of his nose.

“What about you? You solid?” Simon asks

“As well I can be. Catch me up on what I’ve missed.” He says looking up at Dr. Montgomery, she looks concerned.

“Let me get you some pain relief. Then I’ll tell you.” He sighs nodding, he’s not in the mod to fight with her.

“And an ice-pack.” He calls as she heads up the stairs.

Kyle comes in the lab.

“You’re looking rough” He says as he comes over to them, John leans back in the chair his body is throbbing. Everything is stiff, or sore. It had only been 3 days but it felt like 12. Dr. Montgomery was right, this was rougher then a regular heat.

“Thanks” John says as they both turn to see Dr. Montgomery coming down the steps. She hands him an ice-pack and a glass with some pills.

“We’ve figured out which staff members have gone off base. Spoken to most of them. Then sent them home until further notice.” Ghost says.

“What about Shepherd?”

“He’s been keeping his distance surprisingly, Graves too.”

“Must have other things on their plate.” Kyle says. John looks up at him.

“Go get Kate.” He says, Kyle nods and passes him leaving the lab.

“What about any leads, anyone you suspect?”

“So far everyone’s checked out, I’ve been going through people’s work seeing if there’s anything I can find there but nothing.” Dr. Montgomery says, crossing her arms.

“Anything from Hale?” She shakes her head.

“And the cameras?” He asks looking over at the table.

“Nothing, normal day to day things from what we’ve seen so far. Some of them we couldn’t recover anything from. Laswell’s been on it.” Ghost says. John lets out a sigh as the door opens behind him and Kyle and Kate walk in, that didn’t take long.

“Good to see you again.” She says walking around the table to sit next to Ghost.

“At this point might be best to wait and see if the omega know’s anything. If she can remember who forced her heat.” Dr. Montgomery says. “How is she?”

“She was sleeping when I left her.

“She might sleep for a whole day but we can try waking her up in a few hours.”

“Whats the likelihood she’ll know who did this?” Kyle asks.

“We won’t know until she wakes but there’s a good chance.”

“Okay, lets focus on what we do know.”

“Which is not a lot.” Ghost says. John rubs his forehead, maybe he should try and get a few hours rest. His head is still pounding, it feels like he’s hardly slept.

“Lets make a plan, we need to figure out what we’re going to say to Shepherd. Have you spoken with Graves?”

“No.” Ghost replies.

“Okay well we need to. Maybe he’s seen or heard something from his shadows.” John says picking up the glass of water and taking a drink.

“Kyle help Kate with the rest of the cameras. Doctor keep going through people’s work. Maybe we can make a timeline of what happened.” John says as he tries to think back to before your forced heat. He doesn't want to stop until they have some type of answer, something they can work with.

…

“I have a list of when people clocked out yesterday. And what they were working on.” Dr. Montgomery says a few hours later handing John a sheet of paper.

“Daniels?”

“A beta.” She says, John looks over at Ghost who shakes his head.

“This is after her heat started though. I remember the time you all left it was around 7.” John says.

“So he came back and we missed him?” Kyle asks raising an eyebrow.

“The clock out time says oh-nine-hundred.” John says shrugging.

“Maybe he came back to destroy evidence and you missed him while you were searching the dorms, or upstairs.” Laswell says.

“He did a bad job then, we found the needle he injected her with.” Ghost says.

“Maybe he got spooked didn’t have time to do what he needed to do.” John looks back down at the list. The only name he recognises is Dr. Montgomery and Dr. Miller. He should have been keeping a closer eye on this, he should have done his job better.

The door to the lab slams open. The smell of omega fills the air it makes John’s head spin. He looks up at you in your pyjamas, you don’t even have anything on your feet your hair is wet as you pant trying to catch your breath.

“What the-” Dr. Montgomery rushes over to you as Johnny comes through the door. “You should be in bed, you should be resting.” John straightens up in the chair.

“Dr. Miller.” You says between breaths. John’s not sure he hears you right the first time. He puts the list down. His eyes digging into Johnny as he holds your shoulders. Something sinks in his stomach.

“He was the one. He was—I don’t know, but he was the one who injected me,” you say between breaths. John can smell your panic in the air it makes the hairs stand up on the back of his neck.

“He was the one who forced your heat?” She asks as Kate and Kyle step towards you.

“The alpha specialist?” Kyle asks as Piper turns around, her eyes meet John who switches his attention back to you. You look scared. John hears Ghost getting up to leave the building he’ll be heading to Dr. Millers room.

“Gaz, go with him.” John orders. As Piper asks you what happened.

“I was coming to confront him, and he grabbed me. I don't remember what happened, but then he injected me and forced my heat,” you say looking down at the floor. He can smell guilt now. He gets up leaving the ice pack in the chair. They have a name, they have a target all they need to do now is find him.

There’s no need for you to get more wound up about everything. He’s almost blocking out what Dr. Montgomery is saying as she asks you questions. She moves to the side as she hears him step behind her.

You look devastated, tears running down your cheeks. He brings his hand pulling your chin up to look at him. He needs to keep you calm and out the way while they deal with this. This is his fault, he got to comfortable and dropped the ball.

“Why didn’t you say anything?” He asks keeping his voice level.

“I thought it was just bad dreams, I thought it was all in my head. Dr. Miller was so nice. I didn’t think he was lying to me. I didn’t want to worry anyone,” it comes out in a sob, he can tell you feel guilty. He has to control his emotions, anger is bubbling inside him but he can’t upset you.

“What else did he do? What else do you remember?”

“I don’t remember much, I just remember waking up in the medical room.” He lets out a sigh brushing another tear away. He looks over you at Johnny, he looks worried his hands gripping your shoulders.

John can see the exhaustion in your face. You need to rest, you’re no good like this it’s barely been a few hours since your heat finished.

“How many times did this happen?” Now he’s really struggling to keep his voice level.

“Twice.” Your voice is barely audible. He can see you shake the goosebumps rising on your skin. Johnny’s hands rub your arms. He steps forward leaning down and pressing his forehead on yours letting out a long breath. He stands back up looking at Johnny as you brush your tears away.

“Take her back.” He says taking a step back and turning. Simon and Kyle are not back yet and Kate has moved back over to the table with the laptops.

“I’m sorry.” You say. It breaks his heart, the choked sob that lingers in your voice. It makes the hairs stand up on the back of his neck, he desperately wants to rub it. Instead he braces himself on the desk.

“It’s alright, get some rest. We’ll talk later.” He can feel anger burning in him. It feels like his body is vibrating. This has been going on for weeks and no one spotted it. Not him or Piper. He should have never let his guard down and now you’re hurt. He hurt you, his omega. The sound of the door closing snaps him out of his head.

“It’s not your fault.” He hears Dr. Montgomery say. He lets out a long breath but it doesn’t help. He sweeps his hands over the table throwing everything on the floor. That makes him feel better

He regrets it almost immediately running his hand through his hair as the adrenaline fades.

“How long till you have something?” he asks looking over at Laswell.

“I have something now.” She says, looking back at him. He nods, good, they have a place to start.

Chapter 11 - next bonus

Dividers by plum98

[neixins]

happy gijaeha gtuesday! what’s an underrated moment you love? 🎤

THANK U FOR INDULGING ME LIKE THIS <3 i couldn’t possibly pick one single moment so i’ll just keep going until i can’t add any more images

i’m gonna stick to truly underrated moments btw, so no hot springs bonus chapter, no “if you feel the way i do, that means i can trust you to have my back in battle”, no love potion shenanigans, no “he’s stronger than i am” and adjacent moments, no “it’s refreshing to hear you discuss important things”, no cool battle couple moments, no “if you keep being so reckless, you’ll get yourself killed”, no “you can still live” (and definitely not those last two in relation to each other…... that’s already its own post actually). on that note, i’m also not gonna be including anything i’ve already posted about even if it’d technically count otherwise. was this an excuse to mention all of those moments anyway? perhaps! but u asked for underrated and underrated i shall deliver. ready? let’s go! <3

[transcription note: all the upcoming images are panels from “yona of the dawn”. end note.]

the first moment that comes to mind is this one from ch 135. like gija doesn’t tend to think things through often (he’s far from stupid; he’s just not a Thinker), but this—finding a way to use mizari’s interest in their powers to their advantage, in this case specifically to help jaeha—is just so endlessly interesting to me

[ID: part of a page consisting of multiple panels. mizari is clapping excitedly, saying, “that was incredible! how wonderful! how do you enlarge it? if i trained hard, could i do it too?”; jaeha is breathing heavily, visibly exhausted, and gija watches him before saying, “could you…bring us some meat dishes?”; mizari looks confused as he asks, “meat dishes?”; gija says, “jaeha’s gotten awfully anemic.”; yun adds, “some liver from a cow or a bird would be best.”. end ID.]

i also love it when he’s not using any of those braincells that he clearly has though <3 like this moment in ch 155. it’s also really sweet how he just continues chilling beside jaeha throughout the rest of the scene despite doing an absolutely abysmal job of hiding his hand

[ID: a panel showing jaeha and gija in a hot spring; jaeha says, “another guest, hmm? we won’t be able to leave for a while.”; gija moves to stand in front of him, holding out his arms, and says, “you can hide behind me, then!”; jaeha responds, “you shouldn’t have your hand out where anyone can see it, either.”. end ID.]

married couple behavior from ch 129. leaving out the previous panel so that i can include more moments but this happens after jaeha calls them the beautiful monsters of kohka

[ID: a panel showing gija as he turns towards jaeha to correct him, saying, “the four dragon warriors.”; jaeha responds, “fine, fine. what he said.”. end ID.]

speaking of which, i love it so much when they have basically the same reaction to things (the examples below are from ch 172 but there’s more i’m not including). this becomes more prevalent later on which is just such a cute detail like yessss impact each other’s lives all the way down to picking up each other’s mannerisms <3

[ID: the first panel shows jaeha and gija leaning over the edge of a cart with similar expressions of surprise; jaeha asks, “algira? voldo?!” and gija asks, “why are you here?”; algira shushes them. in the second panel, zeno says, “the fellow sure is popular. when did that happen?”; gija and jaeha are standing beside him, both staring wide-eyed. end ID.]

this bit from ch 203 is soooo unbelievably funny to me. “i can’t take u guys” he says, holding onto gija……

[ID: a panel showing yona and the four dragons. she says, “but…i’ve only just been permitted to see you all here.”; jaeha says, “we’ll go through the window. even if we’re caught, i doubt they’ll try to harm us.”; gija says, “great! let’s go.” as he climbs onto jaeha’s back, wrapping his arms around his shoulders; sinha is clinging onto gija’s shoulder while zeno is doing the same to jaeha; jaeha says, “hey, i can’t take you guys.”; his hands are hooked beneath gija’s legs, holding him up. end ID.]

“woohoo! you’re so cool, gija!” from ch 159. they’re never EVER beating those allegations

[ID: a panel showing gija stepping forward, saying, “everyone, step aside. i’ll handle this.”; behind him, jaeha cheers, “woohoo! you’re so cool, gija!”; they’re both shirtless. end ID.]

love it when jaeha’s like “don’t ruin your pretty face” whenever gija’s acting feral. the example below is from ch 35 but there’s also a similar moment in ch 86.

[ID: a panel showing jaeha saying, “good grief. gija’s going to ruin his pretty face.”. end ID.]

who would i be if i didn’t include a panel where they’re badly injured and covered in blood? :) i’m just obsessed with the exasperated fondness here (also with gija’s chronic fatigue and other assorted issues codedness) (ch 143)

[ID: a panel showing gija slumped against jaeha, the psychomimes indicating that he’s woozy; jaeha smiles slightly as he says, “good grief. you’re nowhere near recovered.”. end ID.]

there are many candidates vying for the final spot but i gotta give it to this panel from ch 225. there are many implications one can glean from this if one is a yaoi scholar like myself but also just look at them. LOOK!!! THEM <3

[ID: a panel showing gija and jaeha asleep next to each other; gija is sleeping soundly and reaching towards jaeha with his dragon hand, poking the side of his face; jaeha is frowning. end ID.]

[pumpkinhcad]

HAMMY'S POSTING. BACK AT IT AGAIN WITH MY FRIEND'S ART!! This time based on a little tidbit I dropped on @stcries at one point, hehe. Yes, Cola, your Tenna WILL be mentioned EVEN before his RP debut, teehee. It's been close to a couple of weeks since Chapter 3's release so I wanna talk about the crossover AU version!! Obviously, I will mention some DELTARUNE CHAPTER 3 SPOILERS here, so check the read more under your own discretion!

In this AU, Tenna would not only absent himself several times during the The Legend of Tenna segments because of Toriel. He would also be informed of "two sudden guests" wrecking havoc all around set, terrorizing countless employees and sabotaging particular sets and the like. And, upon making it to the Green Room, he would find Skid and Pump trying to press a poor Zapper's buttons as if he were an elevator. Cue the exchange above which, from the Fun Gang's POV, would happen off-screen. They really are not supposed to be there and it shows!!

Before anyone asks: which door is Skid talking about here? Well, let us just say that Kris leaving the Dreemurrs' household door open would not only have resulted in Undyne coming in during the tail end of the chapter.

In comparison of Chapter 1.5 (which I still have to write, I know, shshshsh), the boys' appearance in Chapter 3 is pretty light in terms of plot-involvement. And also pretty lighthearted! In a similar vein to Lancer, they keep appearing here and here during the chapter's events, usually just to mess around. Tenna does not even make the attempt to give them jobs-- he is NOT dealing with any child labor laws.

Sans actively interrupting the boards and physical challenges, breaking into the S-Rank room, or harassing the Zapper guarding the Cold Place's door, the kids are granted full freedom around the TV World. Not because they have done anything to warrant it, Tenna just canNOT successfully trap them inside gachapon capsules. They can even enter the A-Rank and lower rooms because, well, who is going to stop them really? Susie would smuggle them in* anyways.

*She would actually do this upon letting Kris use the B-Rank Room's Ball Machine as intended and realizing that they WASTED a bunch of points on prizes she found to be lame. No, alas, Ralsei does not get to give his two cents on the ethics of shoving two single-digit-aged children into a gigantic gachapon machine for the sake of getting prizes for free. Like, even Lancer is a prize in there, that machine would be emptied in MINUTES.

A running gag all throughout this chapter would be, in Tenna's own words as he looks at the camera looking cheeky: "if it's not tied down, it can be stolen, simple as that" (thanks Cola hehe). Random bits and pieces of each set, ITEM chests, even bits from the boards and physical challenges themselves, somehow, would start vanishing at one point. Especially the gachapon capsules-- Tenna would trap the Fun Gang inside THE LAST THREE CAPSULES HE HAS LEFT just so they would play the Bonus Round with him. And, wanna guess what would happen once they build enough TP to use the TURNOFF act on the Zapper? THE CAPSULES WOULD BE GONE TOO!! THESE TWO WOULD HAVE STOLEN THE PARTY AS WELL!! All because Pump likes smashing the things open with his hammer!!

And so, they would become pretty useful as means to obtain ITEMs and EQUIPment the player might not have picked up during their adventure. Just trade some points, or other ITEMs, with them and no problem. So like a shop with a random bunch of stuff in it. It is pretty difficult to let two kids roam around a TV studio with so many bright and colorful things within their grasp. You could even get two extra controllers from them (just like the ones you can get from Lancer), though using them in the SNES puzzles would not be too different from using Ralsei's or Susie's controllers respectively. You get to play as 8-bit versions of the little guys though!

Once the Fun Gang is on its way to the Cold Place the second time to face Tenna, they will come across Skid and Pump one last time... trying to drag Lancer's petrified body* across the Green Room in hopes of getting Susie to do something about it. Not like she can. They were not present for Chapter 2 so they must have been pretty confused when they discovered their Darkner friend as a statue. This, funny enough, would come into play during Tenna's boss fight when Susie comes up with a new ACT: DROPLANCER. Basically, for a sizable amount of TP, she can command Skid and Pump (who will magically spawn above the TV set) to drop Lancer on Tenna's head to stun him and make a minigame last for longer, earning the party more points. And it should do damage to him but, because it is funny, it does not. It probably pisses him off and causes his attacks to do more damage the turn after, though.

All of this is because Tenna did not have a horror set ready, by the way. They become a massive pain in the neck ON PURPOSE, and everything they end up gather was likely destined to a horror set OF THEIR OWN MAKING. The Susiezilla set was cool, at least, at least they had SOMETHING MILDLY SPOOKY in the TV World. At least they could have fun doing their own thing throughout most of it. Like, these kids canonically LOVE watching TV! Tenna should have given them a bone at least!!

As to how Chapter 3 ends? Much like how Kevin got stabbed by the Happy Fella in SM4, they arrive to the aftermath. Susie and Kris are missing, Ralsei is not looking so hot, and their teacher Toriel was there all along?? And she is not waking up?? They even end up finding Tenna after he got torn into pieces before the party could, which is NOT good. They do not even get a full explanation of what happened because, well, they are little kids. They would not have understood it. Neither they should know about The Roaring Knight. They are VERY dangerous.

Looking at the bright side, the boys would be able to aid Susie, the Pippins and the Shadowguys with fixing Tenna. After all, they found him first! They even had a lot of fun on set, so it would be the least they could do for the man running the entire operation. And Pump is very knowledgeable about The Art of Fixing a TV Screen with a Hammer* and its varying degrees of effectiveness. Which totally did not freak Susie out the first time he did that. He wields a HUGE hammer, y'know?

*This practically involves hitting a TV screen's frame with a hammer, which can fix how the screen displays images. It does not fix A CRACKED SCREEN, but as a bandaid fix just to get Tenna's face back it would work.

After the events of Chapter 3, in Castle Town, the player might be able to trigger a particular interaction where Skid and Pump try to convince Tenna of doing something horror-related in the future. They would even have their own little pitch! It would probably involve Jack from Chapter 4 lmao. Those two are very, VERY persistent.

[lyrablack1883]

Illustration inspired from A pocket full of stones by @amywaterwings

You can watch the animatic here

This is the illustration for chapter 12, I’ve also done the illustration for chapter 3 here

It’s still summer, but the air is sharp with frost. Draco is standing next to the river Ouse, hands deep in his pockets. It’s strange to be back, after so long.

“Walk into a river with a pocket filled with stones, and declare your love,” Draco says, to no one but the wind and the gentle sound in his head—of a record spinning round and round. “If your love is true, the river will offer up the object of your affections, will give you back everything you desire. If your love be false, the river will take its price.”

Are you sure? the dark asks him, bleeding warm in his chest. It feels nice, against the icy grip of the river.

“It’s dark magic,” his father had said, that summer after sixth year as Draco stood in front of the boar, when Lucius had finally come for his son. “You have to mean it.”

Draco’s fingers are cold around the stones in his pockets as the water rises up, flowing across his arms, his chest, his throat.

He’s afraid, because the current’s fingers are ice at his throat, but he knows he means it. Knows how much he means it, this time.

“Please, give him back,” Draco says, and casts the spell. Magic dark as ink spills out of his wand and into the river. “I love him.”

The tides rise up, blooming and black. The current is hungry. Draco gasps once, twice, because the water is in his hair, his mouth, is all around him. He tries to breathe, finds that he can’t.

The river roars in his ears as the record spins round and round, still skipping

skipping

skipping.

Are you sure? the dark asks again, as the water rushes into his lungs.

And even as he’s dying, Draco knows that he is, that he means it, he means it, he means it.

Weightless and cold. Draco wonders, briefly, if this is how Virginia Woolf felt, in the moments before she died. And then he thinks of Potter.

If anyone could have saved me, Draco knows, it would have been you.

Bonus : (I can’t include the scene above the water cause the song is too short so this is just an additional illustration where they kissed underwater which didn’t happen. The scene in the fic is much more romantic please read it)

[bloodycyrano]

I want to lore dump about my BG3 storyline and OCs so bad, but at the same time I don't want to release any information before it would come out in the future chapters of my fanfic, so to stave off the dark urge, here's.... 🥁🥁🥁

Team Tadpole doing sweet things for each other part 2!

Sometimes, when Astarion has trouble resting at night, Gale will stay up with him and play chess- They started with card games, but Astarion cheats like a fox. He still cheats at chess, but not as often.

Karlach probably notices when her comrades are in pain after battle, and will hug a sack of rocks until they heat up to make a sort of makeshift heating pad for sore muscles.- Bonus points, She'll borrow some scented oils from Halsin to add an element of aromatherapy.

Gale has 100% done talis card readings for Team tadpole when they deal with heavy emotional stuff, if only to help them find their path forward. Maybe he isn't the best at verbal comfort, but magic is one thing he knows he can use for at least some benefit.

I feel like Gale also notices when people aren't dealing well with things, and will purposefully annoy Durge so they have someone to pick on and hopefully feel a little better afterwards. They're definitely the sort of friends that pretend to hate each other, but are there when you need them. Durge definitely brings out his petty side, but its all in good fun. Usually.

While maybe they have a bit of a rocky relationship, I also believe Durge would indulge Gales special interests and let him ramble about things, because they know what it's like to have to shut up to make other people happy. I also feel like Gale would return the favor and deliberately ask about weird, macabre things so that Durge actually has an excuse to bring up topics that interest them.

Wyll has a knitting hobby. You probably wouldn't expect it, but he definitely does. And he's really really good at it, too. He uses every holiday as an excuse to gift people things like socks, scarves, mittens, etc. And I mean EVERY holiday. Earth day, valentines day, national owlbear day (Which is totally not something he made up as an excuse to give people their presents early), etc. The thing is, he notices when people complain about their socks getting worn from traveling, and gets random ideas for gifts at 3 AM, and then spends the rest of the night knitting. He has also been known to make cute little knitted outfits for the group pets in the winter, because he thought Scratch was getting cold.

Adding onto this, Lae'zel is the only person Wyll is willing to go to for a blunt and honest opinion on the gifts he makes before he gives them. Lae'zel doesn't take this lightly, either. While maybe she doesn't show it, she takes this very seriously and is somewhat honored that Wyll came to her instead of anyone else.

Shadowheart tends to replenish Wylls yarn reserve without telling him as well. She asks Lae’zel what colours he's run out of, and then sneak some extra spools into his pack. Wyll still doesn't know who's been doing it, but he's thankful nonetheless. And it's one thing the cleric and the gith can actually be somewhat peaceful about.

Durge doesn't take all of their kills lightly. When it comes to someone they actually respected, there's a ritual they perform afterward that they read about in Withers old temple. They'll grind bone and ash into ink and take time to write out the names of those they respected, and bury it with the bodies. As well as little offerings as well. It isn't a short process either.. Durge will spend the entire night locked in their caravan burning incense, praying their name to Jergal in hopes that the spirit will find rest, and doing little things in honor of the dead.- It isn't hard for team tadpole to figure out when Durge has taken the life of someone they held a genuine respect for, and will be careful not to disturb them, or leave bones or herbs/flowers on the steps of their caravan. Karlach and Astarion will occasionally come to check on them. While maybe it doesn't happen often, it does happen. Withers was particularly surprise to begin receiving prayers after all this time, but it strengthened a sort of bond between the two.

[coffindependency]

the progress report!! #3

happy march 1st!! kit9’s third progress report dropped today with a special bonus from nemlei!!

firat things first, we have The Entity in the thumbnail!! are they a little bigger to anyone else..? just me? anyways, the lights are a fun addition to the demon/dream world. i’m sure this has no importance whatsoever (lying)

next, we have… this. our dear protagonists caught in a compromising position, oh no!! seriously, though. what are they doing here? were they going to fuck in the car? good for them!! they don’t look very pleased to be disturbed by whoever this is, or disturbed at all. hopefully this isn’t anyone they used to know.

here, we have… the chapter two decay route vision area. you know, the one where andrew is chasing down ashley to murder her or get murdered.

yeah, that one.

it’s very interesting that we come back here. i wonder if this is still the decay route? also, why are we only seeing andrew’s little pixel sprite here? is she on one of the other sections? is this her vision or andrew’s? it seems to me that it’s ashley’s, considering we’ve been here before, but who knows!! there’s an axe and a signpost missing, and the tone of this preview reads a whole lot differently than the vision did at the end of chapter two.

i wonder what has prompted ashley to ask andrew what he wants? i wonder if he’ll be honest? i wonder if this is an important moment, or if it’s just them fucking around? god, i’m SO excited

little andy spotted!! and mrs graves. she is clearly unhappy about something, and i’m thinking it has to do with leyley. doesn’t it always, when it comes to mrs. graves? my guess is that she’s asking him to keep her out of trouble, but it’s just a guess. we’ve seen before that he only curls up in a ball like this when he’s really upset (and still does it as an adult). poor thing.

here, we see andrew with the entity in the thumbnail area, with the lights and everything. shout out to the little darkened souls in the far corners of the picture. our dear andrew is trying to negotiate with the demon.

i think that this is a huge moment in the game and the plot going forward!! assuming this is the burial route, ashley’s been asked to bring him along, AND he has that hex mark on his hand!! this demon is going to steal his soul!! ashley’s gonna be mad.

this could potentially happen in the decay route, too. if we assume the earlier dream/vision sequence is decay, this could be decay. maybe he’s going to meet the entity on his own regardless of what happens with ashley. again, who knows!!

[id: a screenshot of steam. the text reads “Next Episode. From the work completed so far, this episode will be the longest yet. Even in its unfinished state, it is roughly the length of both previous episodes combined. / Once finished, this episode will be released as a major content update, and work on the final episode will begin. / It is still too soon to give any release dates.” end id.]

before, nemlei had said episode three will be split into two separate chapters (one for each route), but maybe this has changed!! the length is… beyond my expectations, truthfully!! it’s longer than both episode one and two combined. holy shit??? that’s So Much Content. i think i will officially be losing my mind upon its release, and even more so when the game is finished. omg!!!!!!

finally, we have THIS!!!!

thank you nemlei. she knows what her fans want to see :33

(i think i need to set this as my phone background or something. it’s SO CUTE!!! i don’t even know where to start expressing my absolute JOY with this image!!!)

[emmitaaa4]

Minor HOFAS spoilers ig?

The Walmart bonus chapter just leaked and good lord some people need to be for real. I'm so tired of people picking and choosing evidence.

So you're telling me that *gasp* Azriel's shadows seem to dance when he hums?? they react to sound/music?? no way. people from all sides of the fandom have been saying that for years (and use it for different arguments), and looks like ppl are still tying anything they can to feed their ship--which is fine but at least make it somewhat accurate.

The above is the last page of the Az/Bryce/Nesta chapter, and just as a refresher, this is the oh-so controversial phrases from the Az bonus chapter:

"(...) one of his shadows went out to dance with it (gwyn's breath) before twirling back to him. like it heard some silent music." and "(...) he could have sworn a faint, beautiful singing followed him. could have sworn his shadows sang in answer."

I'm confused, which is it? Was the shadow's reaction to her breath & the singing he heard all metaphorical, thereby hinting at a mating bond between gwyn & az (as in "music between souls")? Or was it rather azriel's shadows reacting to a literal sound coming from someone who has arguably been hinted at having some voice/song-related abilities? Because if it is the first, then this new HOFAS excerpt is completely unrelated. Well unless Azriel has a mating bond with himself? pleaseee make it make sense I beg. And if the second is true, it would mean that for someone to be able of making his shadows dance, they'd have to have similar powers as him... its just gonna fuel the lightsinger theories (which btw approx 5 ppl are saying means that gWyn is eViL) so this literally changes nothing. nada. absolument rien.

Oh also.

"He says no partner right now, aka NO FUCKING ELRIEL. ELRIEL IS DEAD." (no hate to whoever posted that btw)

He literally rushes out that answer. Idk about you guys but to me the poor man still seems internally dead over the whole mate existential crisis, which as far as we know was left with him wondering "what if the cauldron was wrong". Sidenote but if I understood correctly, this all happens 2-3 months post acosf and Bryce spends ±5 days in Prythian, so it is very likely that it is all set during Acotar 5, and that the events of HOFAS in general are happening while Az is separated from the other MC (ie. the acotar5 FMC).

Regardless of all I just said, I am going to ask people once again to be for real. cause this whole chapter Azriel keeps glaring at Nes when she is about to reveal too much info, so WHY would he be mentioning Elain (or literally anyone he cares about) to someone who he is said to be highly suspicious of? make it make sense x2

Almost forgot. Last thing.

"Azriel said that Nesta killed the King! He didn't credit Elain!"

... no? for context, this is what Az said:

See my second point above. He told Bryce exactly what Nes did, and nothing more: she beheaded Hybern. We could speculate about what his look at Truthteller made him think of... but tbh I'll leave it to someone else cause perso I dont really see the point.

I am getting tired guys... guess who finally understands what "fandom fatigue" is.

-----quick edit-----

I don't mean to sound hypocritical by tagging ships, cause tbh i dont even wanna put acotar ship tags to this, mais bon c'est la vie et j'en peux plus. this fandom is kind of a mess. Goodnight loves ♡

[thelastarchangelaskblog]

Seventh Year: A Finale Bonus Scene 4

So...I masterfully restrained myself from putting too much of certain things into the chapter. It would have been unnecessary and just padded it. That being said!! I did want to write it and that's what the bonus stuff is for. So here we are!

...I only did three scenes at first. And then @alleythegaycat mentioned something else so I had to do it. And I didn't only want four scenes so I asked for a fifth idea and @dunerowl offered a great suggestion so I went with it.

Tags...it's...definitely still PG-13? But also it's...very sensual? Look, I don't know how to describe it considering it's all from Michael's POV. It's very different than if it were from a human's POV.

The last scene is right before the graduation party the seventh years hold. And is the one where Michael is like "I am not thinking of this while Gabriel is here."

I was not expecting it to be 9,000 words but here we are. Here we are! Please...feedback feeds the muse.

Bonus Scene 1

Bonus Scene 2

Bonus Scene 3

**

“This is private?” Draco inspected the classroom with a critical eye.

“I’ve never seen anyone else in here.” Michael took the room in once more, this time trying to see it how Draco might. There was dust over the desks and tables. Old cauldrons lined the walls, precariously stacked and seeming one wrong breath away from toppling over.

“Clearly. I can see our footprints.” Draco looked down at where their footsteps had disturbed the ancient dust. “What was this used for?”

“Alchemy, as far as I can ascertain.”

Draco’s eyebrows went up. “Hogwarts hasn’t had an alchemical class in years. This place really hasn’t seen anyone aside from you since the last time they even had a class.”

Maybe the dust was an issue… The problem with finding an out-of-way place that no one knew about was that dust was to be expected.

Michael glanced down, then cleaned it.

Draco made a startled sound as the classroom suddenly found itself cleaner than it had been since its construction.

“Is that better? I didn’t think about the dust.” Michael would have to do the same for the other rooms.

Draco smiled at him, warm and affectionate. “When you said you had an idea for a place no one would find, I didn’t think you meant a classroom.”

“No one likes exploring the dungeons,” Michael pointed out. “There are other places here, too, including some on the upper floors if you’d like.”

“We’re here now.” Draco reached out to take his hand. “Both of us done with the night… I admit I wasn’t expecting a classroom.”

Again with the classroom…

“I can find a better place in the future,” Michael offered hesitantly.

“I didn’t say it was bad.” Draco was eyeing the desks. “There are a lot of places to sit here.”

Right, comfort had to be taken into account, too. Several of the chairs found themselves adorned with pillows, and there was definitely amusement coming from Draco now.

“Come on.” Draco tugged him back towards one of the newly cushioned chairs, which stretched out into a bench before they sat down. He huffed on noticing this but didn’t say anything, just tugging Michael down. “At any rate, this is better than a broom closet.”

“You said you didn’t want a broom closet.”

“Like I said,” Draco said, radiating fond amusement and love, “better than a broom closet.”

It was going to be better tonight than it had been the last time outside the Great Hall. Michael would be better. It made no sense for him to lose control like that when he was better than that and could control himself better than an angel fresh out of Creation. 

And he did know how to kiss. Theoretically speaking. It was just moving muscles and that was all a vessel was about. 

When he leaned in to kiss Draco, he felt the curve of a smile pressed against his own lips, though it faded quickly. He focused on the physical sensations, on Draco’s scent (that familiar cologne and shampoo, the dust they’d walked through to get here, the cold wet musty smell of dungeons), the sound of his breathing (quickly picking up), and the hand running up his own back towards his neck.

There was also taste, which was a little odd at first with the sense still Michael’s worst. But with how focused he was on feeling with his vessel, there was no sign of atoms but just Draco. It wasn’t a taste he had the words to encapsulate in English beyond a faint hint of what he’d had for dinner so many hours ago.

Draco made a low noise in the back of his throat, deeper than his usual voice, his grip on the back of Michael’s neck tightening, nails scratching over his skin. It was a different sensation than what Michael was used to, sparking other nerves that usually didn’t get stimulated.

There was a distracting warmth at the edge of his senses, at the edge of what he could pick up with solely human senses. It warmed him from the inside out, buzzing through his Grace where he kept himself tucked into his vessel. But even as contained as he could make himself, he wasn’t just his vessel, and as close as Draco was to him, his soul brushed up against Michael’s own true form.

Just…focus.

On his own breathing, which was a little unsteadier than normal, and on the scratch of nails over the back of his neck.

Draco made another noise, then pulled Michael in a bit more, and the warmth magnified.

There was love and affection and disbelief and happiness and joylovehappinesswarmthpleasure. And the love tingled through him and before Michael could fully register what he was doing he reached out, curling around Draco and soaking it in, leaning into that warmth and love that was so different from what he was familiar with.

He heard something else, another noise, but it was distant.

The love pressed against him magnified, sparking through him. There was…something…

He shuddered, and something cracked—

Alarm sparked from the warmth pressed against him, which jolted him back into awareness and the realization he had once again overreached.

Agh, fuck.

Michael pulled back so quickly it left him cold, and he found both Draco and himself sprawled over the floor, the bench they’d been sitting on split in two and the desk which had been by the bench in a similar state. He was sprawled over Draco, and it took a moment too long to connect with his limbs enough to shift off.

He still felt a little disconnected, like his vessel wasn’t quite him. His Grace buzzed with warmth, lingering remnants of the love he’d felt from Draco curling through him.

Draco’s grip on his shoulder tightened, and Michael stopped moving, now only half lying on Draco instead of fully.

“You stopped…” Draco swallowed, breathless. “Stopped glowing.”

Michael made to speak, only to realize he didn’t have the oxygen for even a word. He breathed in, then said, “Sorry.” He didn’t recognize his own voice.

Draco laughed, then pulled him down to kiss him again, and Michael didn’t have the time to steel himself before that love surged through him. He pressed back into that love unthinkingly, felt Draco shiver beneath him, then pulled back, this time pushing right past the resistance at his shoulder to sit up.

His heart was pounding, he distantly registered. His human heart was beating faster than normal. Even his breathing was a little ragged.

Draco was lying in the broken splinters of the bench and the desk, looking at Michael and seeming just a little hurt.

Just…  Damn it.

Michael leaned forward, grabbing hold of Draco’s hand and pulling him up off the splinters. “I – sorry.” He kept saying it like it would fix anything.

Draco blinked at him, flushed. “What are you apologizing for?”

Michael gave him a disbelieving look, then darted his eyes past Draco’s shoulder to the mess.

“That was a little surprising,” Draco admitted, “but we’re both fine, aren’t we?”

“You might not have been.” Michael sighed, brushing off some splinters on Draco’s robe.

“You’ve never hurt me,” Draco told him, straightening Michael’s collar. “Not once, even when you were really angry.”

Somehow. Even though Draco had been present during some of Michael’s worst moments in this world. “That could always change.”

“You didn’t hurt me now either,” Draco pointed out. “I didn’t even notice until we were on the floor.”

Michael grimaced, burning with embarrassment. “I didn’t even notice at all.” How could he not have? How did he get so distracted again?

He startled when Draco kissed him once more, his grip on Draco’s robes flexing.

“No one will find us here,” Draco reminded him in a low murmur. It wasn’t just love pouring off him but also fond amusement and gentle affection. “Wasn’t that the point?”

That had been the point. The other (more private) point had been that Michael was not going to lose it like a newly Created angel. He did manage to not lean into Draco’s soul this time, though he couldn’t stop the shudder through his true form.

“It’s not just for me,” Draco said when Michael said nothing. “I said you can also do what works for you.”

Michael swallowed, focusing on breathing, on that flow of oxygen. It helped a little. “I don’t need to.”

Draco scratched his nails over the back of Michael’s neck, pressing his forehead against Michael’s. “We don’t need to do this either.”

“…But you want to.”

“Then why don’t you do what you want?”

Michael brushed off one more splinter on Draco’s robes, breathing in and out. This wasn’t just for him. This was also for Draco. “Just this is fine,” he said after a long moment.

Draco seemed skeptical about this. “Michael.”

Since Michael could do this now, he kissed him. Draco made a surprised noise now, fingers flexing against Michael’s neck.

“You – this isn’t over,” Draco muttered, and the fond annoyance was easier to buffer than the love had been. A little bit more of a familiar ground for Michael to push to the back.

But it wasn’t too long before the annoyance was gone and the warmth and love curled against him. It was softer than previous times but that was almost… It was almost worse/better than when it was firmer. It was so much gentler yet harder to ignore for how it just beckoned.

There were a few more desks and chairs that were broken that night. 

-

It was a sitting room this time. The furniture was old yet still intact due to the innate magic of Hogwarts. Judging by the pictures and some of the paperwork in the desk drawers, this had belonged to a professor several centuries ago.

It was nonetheless better than a classroom. Or it should be. The atmosphere seemed better… Michael even remembered to make sure it was clean.

“There’s even a window.” Draco admired the view of the forest. If Michael wanted to, he could see the top of his own tree in the distance. “I’m surprised no one uses it anymore.”

“It misses the one who used to be here,” Michael said, brushing his fingers over a moving portrait of a red-haired witch and her dark-haired companion. “When she passed, it hid itself.”

Draco looked back at him in surprise. “Really? Then…is it okay that we’re here?”

Michael smiled at him. “It doesn’t mind our intentions. The professor…she had her own partner she would bring in here. It brings back fond memories.”

Draco turned red, rubbing a hand over his mouth. “Ah. I see. So…you…essentially told it – the room – what we would be doing?”

“In a way.” Michael considered Draco, then slowly turned the portrait around. “I can still find us a broom closet if you would prefer.”

Draco laughed into his hand, then closed the distance between them. The flood of affection and love from him was startling. Michael braced himself, flattening his hand against the wooden surface of the desk. “Shut up about the broom closet.” His voice was fond. “I can’t believe you asked a room if it was okay if we used this space for making out.”

“You just wondered if it was fine if we stayed in here,” Michael pointed out.

“I did.” Draco smiled at him a moment longer, still radiating so much love and affection that Michael had to struggle to not lean into it, to keep himself tucked into his vessel.

He should have expected the kiss.

Michael did respond to it – he did. He pressed back into it, but he had to remember to not lean into the warmth of Draco’s soul. He focused on the brush of Draco’s thumb behind his ear, the brush of his fingers over the back of his neck, then shuddered as a burst of love sparked over his Grace and he barely avoided responding.

Draco pulled back some time later, breathing ragged. “You’re…not breathing.”

Michael swallowed, registering that sometime in the interim his own hands had settled at Draco’s waist. He drew in a breath, trying to settle, only to be distracted by Draco kissing his cheek and how that affectionate love fizzled over his form. He swallowed again, looking at the wallpaper on the wall over Draco’s shoulder. It was something different than Draco. “Breathing,” he managed. “I don’t need it.”

“You can relax,” Draco murmured, kissing his cheek again. “You made sure no one would find us here.”

If he relaxed he was going to do something embarrassing again. Namely breaking something in this very kind sitting room.

“Michael.” Draco kissed him again, and all Michael could register was love and affection and soft happiness.

…No, focus, just concentrate. He could do this and not be…

He focused on his vessel, on the feel of Draco’s robes beneath his hands and how he could feel the movement of Draco’s ribs against both his own chest and his hands. He focused on the slide of lips against his own, the sound of Draco’s breathing (shaky and ragged and with small noises only particularly keen hearing could pick up), the heat of someone else’s skin pressed against his own.

He slid his own hands up a little, cautious, and there was something like a small sigh from Draco, and suddenly warmth blossomed against Michael and it was Draco’s soul.

He responded to that warmth instinctively, reaching out and touching it. It was like touching lightning, a buzz of energy, though it was warmer and softer and while it didn’t reach back out it also didn’t pull away, just remaining pressed against him and brightening as he leaned into it.

There was a distant noise.

The feeling of warmth strengthened, responding positively to Michael. It was happinessjoyloveaffectionsurpriselove.

There was a cracking sound, multiple things falling, and then there was flustered shock brushing along Michael. Shock was much colder than the rest, even with the warmth of the soul – Draco – still close enough to touch.

Soul – shit, he’d overreached again.

Michael pulled back, tucking into his vessel and blinking human eyes to find that they were on the floor between two halves of what once had been a desk. Papers fluttered around them and there were a couple of frames on the floor – the same frames that had been on the desk.

Draco stared up at him, red, breathless, and eyes dark. He seemed a little dazed but surprised; he was also thankfully unharmed.

Michael’s vessel was shaking slightly, fine trembles running through the muscles. He swallowed, forcing several breaths and focusing on that – the rhythm of it. His heart slowed where it was pounding in his chest.

“Sorry,” Michael managed, glad his voice sounded relatively normal.

“Don’t apologize.” Draco gave him a sharp look that wasn’t quite as effective considering how flushed he still looked. “That was…good.” He swallowed. “Felt you again.”

Michael made a noise of agreement, trying not to look at the desk he had apparently split into two. It looked like he’d put too much weight on it, judging from how the wood in two places was a little caved in. “We keep ending up on the floor.”

Draco shrugged, the shock fading to something more amused. “If we stay on the floor, we won’t have to worry about that.”

That did not seem at all comfortable. Michael shot him a look before he started moving to sit them both up.

Draco’s hands around his neck nudged him to stop and before Michael could ask he was being kissed again. That warm soul – Draco – hadn’t moved (why would it when Draco was still in the same place?) but the love was back and he leaned into it, only just aware of a faint noise that sounded like him.

Noise – Michael focused on that and suddenly was aware of how his own heart was ticking up again, his vessel responding, before his awareness turned back over to the warmth blooming in his Grace and how he couldn’t stop feeling Draco’s love and affection. Every time he tried, his focus spotty and catching only bits of the physical (his own heart, his breathing, the shifting of cloth under him), he was distracted by the constant hum of Draco’s soul – that love that was so different from what he’d felt before from his siblings or even his human parents.

He did pull back a few times, trying to refocus, get a little distance, but Draco kept pulling him back in. If he wanted to, he could put a stop to this, but he didn’t really want to. Not with that heady warmth seeping into him and how it buzzed along his Grace.

But he should – he should—

He felt Draco’s hand against his neck, his breath against his cheek, and a stray thought that brushed past his Grace. We’re alone—

He shivered, his true form shuddering and maybe his vessel as well – he wasn’t sure – and melted into it.

Nothing else broke that night, so maybe Draco had a point about staying on the floor.

-

“Do you want to be caught?” Michael managed, shivering as that warm soul brushed up against him and love sparked through his Grace. He swallowed, hands tightening in Draco’s robes as Draco kissed him again.

“No one likes the third floor,” Draco murmured. “Stories of Fluffy keep circulating.”

Michael couldn’t quite place who Fluffy was supposed to be and his concentration scattered when Draco kissed him again, that warm adoring love washing over him. He might have made a noise. He wasn’t sure.

“F-Fluffy?” Michael tried to ask, to keep himself focused on something other than Draco’s soul, on the importance of hiding them. He wasn’t sure how well he was succeeding. The barrier he’d hastily put up right on noticing Draco’s intent was the last thing he wanted to concentrate on but also the most important.

There was no immediate answer, just Draco kissing him a little longer, radiating love and happiness.

Michael leaned into it unthinkingly, relaxing into that love and into the kiss, his attention narrowing in on Draco, when there was a loud thumping sound and the sounds of someone shushing another. He jolted, snapping backwards and hitting a torch, which wobbled precariously before he flung a hand out and caught the edge of it before it could fall.

The barrier – it was still up. Only barely.

Michael pulled the torch back into place, attention split between Draco, who had frozen against him, and the students who had ventured into the dusty corridor.

There were a group of three second years from Ravenclaw hovering only five feet away and scrabbling to pick up a book bag that had fallen to the floor. The straps were broken, which explained the sound.

“We’re not supposed to be here,” one whispered frantically. “We’ll get eaten by the dog!”

“I have beef jerky. No way that’s going to happen.”

The one cleaning up his books looked up, eyebrows raised. “What – you have enough for a dog with three heads?”

“I suppose we’ll find out, won’t we?”

“Just shut up and hurry before we get caught by something other than the three-headed dog! Didn’t you see that torch almost fall over?”

Draco muffled his breathing into Michael’s shoulder, not moving as the three students continued to whisper fervently to each other as they scurried away. It wasn’t until they were gone that he looked up at Michael, giving him a slightly sheepish smile.

“Fluffy?” Michael asked again now that he actually could.

“Hagrid’s dog,” Draco said.

“I see.” Michael did not see.

“He had a giant three-headed dog, apparently,” Draco thankfully explained further. “It was guarding the philosopher’s stone here that Potter went after.”

Once again, Michael reflected on Dumbledore’s life choices. Really. Just what was up with that man?

He was promptly distracted from further thoughts of Dumbledore by Draco kissing him again.

Oh. No. He was not—

Michael had the barest presence of mind to whisk them both to the sitting room they had been in several nights ago. Draco made a startled noise into the kiss at the abrupt transportation, his emotions fracturing into something more surprised.

It was cooler than the love, and Michael was able to refocus. The desk was behind Draco, and he pushed him backwards towards it before leaning in to reinitiate the kiss since it was what Draco wanted.

There was a smile pressed against his lips before Draco cupped his neck and pressed back into him, humming. The surprise faded, morphing into soft delight that tickled at Michael.

Michael tilted his head into the kiss, bracing one hand against the surface of the desk as he leaned in. The wood was hard and smooth, some of the grains catching against his fingertips, though he was soon distracted from that by a soft noise from Draco and delightpleasurelovehappinessadorationtendernesslove.

Shuddering, Michael leaned into that affection, the love that soul so freely offered.

The desk had been fixed before they left the last time.

It was once again broken, and Draco really did have a point about just staying on the floor.

-

When they started packing up their books to return to the Common Rooms for the night, Michael was stopped by Draco’s hand on his wrist.

“Stay?” Draco murmured, leaning in to whisper it more easily into Michael’s ear. It was unnecessary since Michael would be able to hear him even across the Great Hall if he enhanced his hearing.

Michael tilted his head, then looked up at the others. Zabini and Greengrass simply gave him nods and swept out of the room with their bags. Ginny looked faintly amused and Neville elbowed her, using the motion to nudge her along.

“I’ll be along later,” Michael told the others.

“Right,” Ernie said, “don’t be too late?”

“You’re saying this to the being who’s always out late,” Susan pointed out, amused.

“I need to feel at least somewhat responsible.”

“You’re not even prefect,” Justin said, poking Ernie’s arm. “Come on. Let’s leave these two to it.”

“It’s my turn for rounds tonight anyway,” Hannah said. “I’ll see you in the morning!”

“Have fun,” Luna said cheerily.

“Luna,” Draco hissed, flushing.

Luna beamed at him, patting Draco’s shoulder and then taking Ginny’s hand to tug her outside the room before Ginny could start teasing Draco. Neville gave an awkward wave and left before he could think any further on the matter of why Draco wanted Michael to stay behind.

When the door clicked shut behind the last of Michael’s friends, he turned back to Draco. Draco looked a little nervous, shy, and flustered, not quite meeting Michael’s eyes.

Michael studied him a moment longer, then leaned in to kiss his temple. There was a startled sound, Draco jolting.

“Whatever it is,” Michael said gently, “I won’t judge you.”

Draco stared at him, swallowing. There was noticeable hesitation from him, something shy and wanting, before he slowly leaned in and dropped his head to Michael’s shoulder. The position was a little awkward given how they were sitting in chairs, but all Michael could feel from him was a need to be closer.

Michael slid an arm around him, mindful of the chairs, and dropped a kiss to the top of Draco’s head. Slowly, carefully, he also wrapped his Grace along Draco’s soul, pushing reassurance and love into him. There was a very slight shiver from Draco at this, and he pressed in closer.

“Do you want to do this here?” Michael asked quietly. “Or somewhere a little more comfortable?”

Draco considered it. “This is private.”

Michael glanced towards the side of the room. A couch obligingly popped into existence. It was a very comfy couch, reminiscent of the ones in the Hufflepuff Common Room. “We can stay here, but this doesn’t seem very comfortable for you.”

“…Did you just make a couch?”

“…No.” It had been the room.

Draco muffled a laugh into Michael’s shoulder, then picked his head up to kiss him. A rush of warm, affectionate love seeped into Michael where he was still wrapped around Draco. He made a small noise in the kiss, fingers flexing on Draco’s shoulder, his next breath far too shuddery.

When he pulled back, there was something far too keen in Draco’s eyes. He clearly hadn’t missed Michael’s reaction. “Well, since you asked the room so nicely.”

The chairs were quickly abandoned, Draco tugging Michael to his feet and pulling him over to the couch. He evaluated it critically before flopping down onto it by the armrest, his weight pulling Michael down as well. Michael let himself be drawn in, picking up that low level want for closeness.

What he didn’t expect was for Draco to immediately pull him in for a kiss, his hand at the back of Michael’s neck. He braced himself, one hand at the armrest behind Draco and the second at the backrest, resisting Draco fully pulling him in.

Draco leaned up into him for a moment longer. “Michael.” His tone was reproving. “You’re not that heavy.”

Michael still did not follow the tug closer. “Is this what you want?” he asked.

Draco kissed him again, lingering. Michael had pulled slightly back from earlier, but the wash of warm love and soft affection and adoration was impossible to ignore. Michael’s grip on the couch faltered, something crunching that shouldn’t have been crunched.

“I’m fine,” Draco said when Michael jolted back. “It’s just the couch. Come here.” He kissed Michael again before he could even respond, the pressure at the back of Michael’s neck urging him closer.

There was faint amusement in the love now, but the love was still the most prominent piece. Love and also the low level simmering want.

It wasn’t… It wasn’t a want that Michael was familiar with, not like the kind he’d seen from other humans over the years. It was something more innocent, just a desire to be closer and for comfort.

Michael pulled himself apart just enough to speak. “Is everything all right?”

Draco’s fingers flexed against Michael’s neck. He looked up at him, grey eyes dark. “Yes. Studying is just driving me mad, and you’re driving me mad by not relaxing.”

Michael ducked his head slightly, chastised. “Do you…want to relax?”

An unexpected kiss was pressed to his forehead. “Yes, Michael. With you. If you can manage that.” The last bit was wry, though colored with fond amusement.

“I can manage that.”

“I’ll believe it when I see it,” Draco said. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you relax in all the years I’ve known you.”

Michael frowned, only to blink when Draco kissed the spot between his eyebrows.

“It’s not a challenge,” Draco said. “Just…come here, won’t you?”

This time when Draco pulled him down, Michael let him. Draco was leaning back against the armrest, one leg over the side of the couch while the other was stretched out along the back of the couch, in the dip between the cushions and the backrest.

Michael braced himself slightly with the hand at the armrest, though he let go of the back of the couch, brushing off bits of fabric before sliding it along Draco’s neck. He rubbed his thumb over Draco’s jaw, focusing on the physical sensation of his skin and Draco’s shaky breaths.

Draco leaned up into him, his other arm around Michael and pulling him closer. That burning warmth of love and affection bumped up against Michael’s own Grace, and he slipped, dropping a little closer towards him.

Focus, focus.

There was – maybe he could distract Draco. There were some – some other things he could do beyond just…this. Draco wanted to relax.

Michael broke the kiss, scattering more over Draco’s cheeks and then towards his jaw. There was a surprised noise that vibrated against Michael’s thumb where it was pressed against his neck. “Relax,” he murmured against his jaw. “This is what you wanted, isn’t it?”

Draco made another surprised noise, this one a little more high-pitched, at Michael speaking against his jaw. “But – you…” He swallowed, breathing in raggedly. “You…”

“I’m here.” Michael kissed his jaw again. “My idea of relaxing isn’t quite the same as yours.”

There was burst of laughter that broke into another surprised gasp when Michael rubbed over his neck and kissed him again. The flood of disbelieving love hit him like a star, bright and overwhelming.

Michael was barely aware of his own surprised noise, the way he shuddered against Draco, and he leaned into it unthinkingly. There was an answering shiver below him, and Draco’s grip on him tightened.

No, focus—

There was the slightest taste of salt on Draco’s skin. Salt and the soap he used, though the latter was fainter now. There was the fast beat of Draco’s heart, thrumming against the thin skin of his neck and right under Michael’s lips. There was the way he shifted under Michael, the way his fingers dug into Michael’s neck and held him in place.

The love washed over him again. His Grace warmed, buzzing and tingling and it felt almost like he was physically flying. It pressed close, Draco’s soul warm and unmoving, just wanting, and Michael leaned into it.

There was a faint noise in the background, something human and something not.

The love magnified, responding to Michael’s own, though it was twined in with something like startled pleasure. It was different, it was new, and Michael pressed into it.

A surprised hum broke through, and Michael was just cognizant that he was only barely supporting his weight, that he was mouthing over Draco’s neck. He pulled back, attempting to breathe, attempting to refocus on something that wasn’t Draco because that clearly wasn’t working at all, when Draco made a displeased sound and pulled him back down.

There was nothing from his soul beyond the pleasure and the adoring love, though he couldn’t reach out the way Michael could. But it was unselfconscious and pressed up close to Michael, the emotions for him and it was like a prayer, someone shouting at him. It sank into his Grace, warming him, and he reached back out, wrapping around it.

The shudder this time was stronger, jostling Michael. No. He had control. He pulled away again, tightening his fingers in the fabric of the couch, the armrest creaking in warning. “Draco.” He barely recognized his voice, strained as it was. He curled away from that warmth, shivering as it brushed over him again.

Draco’s head was tilted back, his eyes closed. There was a flush to his cheeks, his breathing ragged. It took him moments too long to open his eyes, looking up at Michael. He seemed a little dazed. “M’fine,” he mumbled. “…you stop?”

Michael didn’t want to say it was too much. That if he didn’t stop now he wasn’t likely to stop anytime soon and for an archangel “soon” was a relative concept. There was abnormal and then there was…that. What Michael was dangerously tipping closer to.

“It’s getting late,” he said eventually, slowing his breathing. It was likely true. He didn’t know how long they had spent here.

Draco made a displeased sound, this one closer to a groan. He did let go of Michael’s neck, rubbing over his face and tipping his head back.

It revealed a mark on his neck that looked like it was going to bruise rather spectacularly by morning.

Similar marks on Loki’s body came to mind. …Humans liked that, didn’t they?

Michael said nothing, just thumbing over it for a moment before deciding to let it be. Draco shivered at the touch, flushing.

“Do you want to stop or not?” Draco sounded and felt flustered.

Michael kissed his cheek, then pulled away entirely, sitting on the opposite end of the couch. Draco’s hand hovered over his cheek, the skin still flushed, and he stared at Michael.

“Is something wrong?” Michael asked when Draco didn’t say anything.

Draco started, then shook his head. He straightened, reaching out to grab Michael’s hand and squeeze it. “No.” His eyes were soft, his smile equally so, and his soul sang with love that had Michael dazed.

He squeezed Draco’s hand, focusing on the feeling of his hand. It was late. They were done. He was not going to start anything else.

Only Draco pulled him into another kiss outside the Slytherin Common Room, radiating so much love and adoration and happiness that Michael couldn’t even steel himself against it. And by the time Michael managed to come back to himself, he’d somehow pushed Draco up against a wall and was largely supporting him from sinking to the floor.

“Don’t apologize,” Draco managed, grabbing hold of his shoulders. “That – that was good.”

Michael swallowed, holding him close until Draco had stopped shaking and was able to support his weight. He had to breathe through the burning warmth in his Grace, the way Draco’s love even now had him almost half-distracted.

Why was it like this? So different from everything else?

Thankfully Draco made it into his Common Room with no further issues and Michael went to hide somewhere to regain what remained of his composure.

By morning, he felt more assured, even if still… Well, he doubted the embarrassment was going to anywhere anytime soon. His solace was that at least there was no one else here who could see exactly how terribly he had been conducting himself.

When Draco joined them at breakfast, the first thing Michael noticed was the bruise at his neck. It had indeed darkened to something very striking against his pale skin. He was a little more surprised that Draco hadn’t done anything to cover it up, but he did seem a little drowsier than usual and also a little more… He seemed more relaxed, giving Michael a warm smile and squeezing his hand in greeting.

There was a small sputtering sound from Justin where he choked on his pumpkin juice. He then proceeded to stuff toast into his mouth, not looking at Draco.

“Had a good night?” Susan asked, voice very carefully neutral. She was radiating amusement.

Draco hummed in response. He didn’t otherwise say anything, seeming more intent on his breakfast.

“I see.” Susan’s lips were twitching.

Hannah kicked Susan’s leg under the table, giving her a sharp look that said she should be polite. “Well, I’m glad to see you’re happy!”

Draco did look up now, giving her a suspicious look.

“Very happy,” Susan agreed, then promptly winced at Hannah’s second kick.

“Yes,” Draco said slowly, shooting them both suspicious looks.

“I do love the fashion statement,” Ernie said casually.

Draco paused, his fork stilling in the middle of the beans. “Fashion statement?” he asked slowly.

“Yes. It really does send a statement.” Ernie gestured vaguely in the direction of his own neck.

Draco frowned. “What fashion statement are you speaking of, Macmillan?���

“You know…” Ernie tapped his neck meaningfully, raising his eyebrows.

Draco’s hand went up to mirror Ernie. When he touched the bruise, he froze, a dawning sense of horrified realization coming from him. A little of it flashed over his face before he composed his expression to something carefully neutral. “Excuse me.” He stood, leaning over towards Michael. “A word?”

Justin was still chewing through his toast, not looking at either of them. Ernie seemed not at all apologetic despite the glare Hannah was shooting him.

Michael had the sense that he’d messed something up, though he wasn’t entirely sure how or why. Ernie mouthed a silent “good luck” as they left, which didn’t reassure him at all.

He didn’t get the chance to ask since as soon as they were out of sight and earshot of anyone by the Great Hall, Draco turned towards him, radiating flustered and horrified embarrassment.

“You couldn’t have told me?” Draco hissed.

Michael blinked, looking down at the bruise on his neck and then back up to him. “I thought you knew.”

“How would I know?” Draco groaned, hiding his face in his hands. “No wonder Blaise kept smirking at me this morning. Nott wouldn’t even look me in the eyes.”

Michael hesitated, then slowly reached out to touch his shoulder. “I thought…humans like that sort of thing?”

Draco made a strangled noise into his hands. He didn’t say anything.

“…I can avoid doing so in the future.” If he did accidentally do it in the future, he would make sure to heal it. Of course he’d mess this up.

There was an immediate head shake, which confused Michael even more. “…Do you want me to do it again?”

Draco shrunk his shoulders in, the sense of embarrassment strengthening. He hadn’t removed his hands from his face.

“Draco…” Michael stepped in closer, unsure of what exactly he wanted here, but it didn’t seem like just leaving him alone was the right thing to do.

There was another long moment of silence. Then, muffled, so quiet Michael wouldn’t even have heard if he were actually human, Draco mumbled, “I liked it.”

“Oh.” Michael was relieved. “Okay. Is it… Would you prefer I let you know in the future?”

Draco nodded into his hands. His ears were red, as was the back of his neck.

“I can also heal it if you’d like,” Michael offered quietly. “Now and in the future.”

There was a moment’s hesitation before Draco shook his head.

“You’re embarrassed,” Michael said slowly, unsure of what exactly was wrong. Beyond how he had messed up and Draco had been embarrassed.

“I walked out in the middle of everyone with no idea what they were seeing. Of course I’m embarrassed!”

“So it’s…fine if you know?”

Draco dropped his hands, leaning in to hide his face in Michael’s shoulder. “It’s better.” His voice was muffled.

Humans… So illogical. Michael ran a hand over Draco’s back, pressing a slow kiss to his hair. This was something he felt more comfortable with. He was relieved Draco didn’t seem angry, just embarrassed. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

Draco sighed into Michael’s shoulder, remaining there for a long moment before he picked his head up and kissed him. “You didn’t do anything wrong,” he said. “But next time tell me.”

Nothing wrong this time, Michael thought ruefully. But at least this had worked out. He would be better.

-

“Better” was relative. “Better” did not happen.

Michael losing his control kept happening and he didn’t understand why. He didn’t understand just why he was so fully incapable of restraining himself around Draco. He didn’t understand why despite his usually impeccable self-control, it just went flying out the window the moment he started picking up what Draco felt for him.

It wasn’t as if it was all the time. Sometimes, when it was just brief, Michael didn’t have an issue. But the longer it lasted, that affection, the higher the likelihood of him becoming distracted. So he did have one possible solution, only it left Draco feeling hurt if Michael stopped short and pulled away early.

The goal wasn’t to hurt Draco.

It just…led to a terrible loop with no solution in sight because Michael was incapable of controlling himself.

At least he didn’t hurt Draco. Fixing furniture was easier than if he had hurt Draco.

The other things were easier. Making sure to take care of Draco, remembering what he had seen other couples do… That was so much easier. Those were little things that made a difference.

Little things that Draco deserved because that was as normal as Michael could make it for him.

They had all been stressed over NEWTs, no matter how Draco tried to hide it or make it as discreet as possible for Michael. They hadn’t spent that much time together either beyond the usual studying and the occasional visit to Hogsmeade, and Draco had asked him if he wouldn’t mind spending some time together that night.

There was another out-of-the-way study that Michael hadn’t brought Draco to yet. It was missed primarily due to the fact that it was hidden behind a tapestry and also had a suit of armor standing before the door.

Draco was a little amused as Michael slid the armor to the side and then back in front of the tapestry. This was probably more due to the armor cursing out Michael than because of the sight of Michael physically shifting the armor back and forth with a hand.

Aside from the amusement, there was something else from Draco, though it was vague enough that Michael couldn’t entirely pick up what it was.

Once the door was closed, Michael turned, only to be pushed up against the door and kissed. He startled, freezing slightly at the abrupt onslaught.

Draco did pull back, brow furrowed. “Is that…too fast?”

Michael forced himself to relax, fitting his vessel against the curve of the door and not the other way round. “Just unexpected.”

Draco studied him a moment longer, then leaned in again, a little slower this time.

This was different. It was more intent, more focused than what Draco usually did. It made it easier for Michael to kiss back, to focus on the physicality of the action and not on other things.

The love was there but it wasn’t everything he was picking up. It was largely covered by the focus.

He didn’t push Draco along, following his lead.

Then Draco shifted to kissing his cheek and down his jaw. That was new.

Michael didn’t move beyond brushing his hand over his back and tilting his head back as Draco sucked at the skin. It felt different, almost interestingly so, and he could see why humans did like it.

Eventually Draco stopped, breathing against Michael’s neck. “This isn’t doing anything for you.” He sounded a little breathless and a little confused.

Michael raised his eyebrows, brushing his hand up to Draco’s neck to squeeze it. “…No. I told you before it doesn’t.”

“I thought…” Draco pulled back, frowning. “It seemed to. The more we…did it.” He was a little red. “So I…I thought I’d try something different so you don’t get all caught up in your head.”

Michael squeezed his neck again, glad Draco couldn’t see the embarrassment burning through him. He hadn’t thought Draco had noticed. “It’s not the kissing,” he said quietly. “I told you…it’s you.”

Draco kissed him again, evaluating. Michael smiled slightly into it for a moment before returning the kiss.

“So it’s…me,” Draco said a little bit later, breathless. “You said…feeling me?”

“…Yes.” Michael slowly leaned in to kiss his cheek, unsure of where Draco was going with this.

“Are you not feeling me right now?” Draco asked.

Draco was very hard to ignore, especially like this. “I am.”

Draco still seemed confused. “Then…is it different? You’re not – it’s not the same as before.”

Draco was more focused than he had been before. It lent a cover to his other emotions, the ones Michael usually had more trouble ignoring. Michael wasn’t sure if he wanted to explain that. “I’m still feeling you,” he told Draco. “I always can.” He leaned in to kiss him, though Draco broke it quicker than the last one.

“You’re not distracting me this time,” Draco said, cross. “You’re not.”

Michael ran his thumb over Draco’s jaw. “This is what you wanted, wasn’t it?”

Draco flushed a little, throat bobbing as he swallowed. “Yes, but I also want you.”

“You have me.”

Draco went even redder. “I don’t want you holding yourself back. You – I said I want you.”

“I’m here.”

“But not really.” Draco huffed, some frustration seeping in. “I’m not going to break, Michael. Just…this isn’t just about me. This is also for you.”

Michael watched him, breathing past Draco’s frustration and…worry. But the frustration was strongest. He swallowed, dropping his eyes. Why did he always mess things up? “I don’t expect you to break,” he said quietly. “I know you’re stronger than that.”

“If I’m overwhelmed, it’s a good feeling,” Draco said. “You’re not overwhelming, Michael. And when you are, it’s not bad. But I don’t want this to be only for me.”

“It’s not,” Michael said immediately.

“But the kissing doesn’t do anything for you.”

“It does for you.”

“But we can both get something out of it.” Draco kissed his cheek, scattering a few more kisses down his jaw and to his neck. His frustration softened, giving way to worry and love. There was less of the intent focus now, more of the love that nestled against Michael’s Grace. “I want you to want this, too.”

He didn’t want to constantly feel like he had no control. It was – it felt nice. That wasn’t the issue. The issue was everything else.

He swallowed again, breathing shuddering slightly. “I.” He regulated his breathing, focusing only on that, though it also magnified the feel of Draco’s breath against his skin and the slightly different temperature of his exhalations compared to that of his body temperature.

“Hm?” Draco kissed his neck again, a little more deliberately. He seemed to have noticed something changed, something curious sneaking into his emotions, though the love was still there. It was colored by deep affection, soft and adoring.

Michael shivered, barely holding onto his control. He pressed his fingers to Draco’s robes, cataloging the fabric and how it felt (very soft, a high thread count). “Souls…” he managed, voice slightly strained.

Draco paused briefly, though then pressed another kiss to his jaw. He seemed like he wasn’t entirely sure what was doing it for Michael so was testing the waters. The kiss did nothing, but the affectionate love was almost too much.

Michael curled into his vessel but it was impossible to ignore Draco’s soul and the emotions for him. “Souls,” he repeated, forcing himself to focus. “I – I’m always aware. Of them.” He tilted his head back at another kiss, closing his eyes at the warm spark of love and something like excitement bubbling over his Grace. “And…emotions. It’s… Some are harder. To ignore.” Did that make sense? He didn’t think he made sense in his own head.

There was a moment of pensive stillness, though Draco didn’t move away from him. But the emotions Michael was picking up off him had dampened, and he pulled in a long breath. He relaxed slightly, running a hand over Draco’s back and squeezing the back of his neck.

The flood of love hit him like a brick.

Michael was barely aware of the noise he made, startled and surprised, and how he…did he stiffen? Or did his vessel shiver? He didn’t know, all he knew was that he didn’t know what he was doing beyond remaining frozen in place. His breathing had definitely picked up, and he was barely cognizant of Draco kissing up his neck to kiss him properly again.

“Don’t…” He barely recognized his voice, breathless and breaking at the end. He didn’t know what he had been about to say, distracted by the warm love still flooding over him.

“I want to,” Draco murmured between kisses. “This is working, isn’t it?” There was slight amusement here, but it wasn’t meant unkindly. It couldn’t be, not with the rest of what he was focusing on feeling. Humans couldn’t quite do that, and there was – there was no lie.

Michael might have made a noise of agreement, or maybe just a random noise. His focus shifted between the kisses and between struggling not to just reach back out to Draco’s soul and completely lose touch with the physical world.

He had to – he could multitask—

Only there wasn’t much multitasking involved in following Draco’s nudging when he kissed up over Michael’s neck to behind his ear. The only multitasking was registering the physical sensation of the kisses and how his vessel responded to it, skin prickling and nerves sparking.

The love came in waves, ebbing and flowing, likely due to Draco’s own focus sometimes breaking. But it wasn’t anywhere near as predictable as the actual ocean, and just as Michael thought he could manage it, another surge of warmth hit him and he leaned into it.

He reached out. He thought there was a hand involved. Maybe a kiss as well, Draco making a noise that was soon muffled, but all he really registered was the warmth of that soul and the love it continually radiated that was for him, even if it wasn’t pushed at him. But it was for him and he couldn’t ignore that – didn’t want to ignore it.

And he reached out, pushing into that warmth but keeping it gentle. He pushed along his own love, the warmth he was feeling, just letting it rest against that soul in acknowledgment.

There was another noise, this one louder and breaking through Michael’s attention. The love he was feeling faltered slightly, turning slightly overwhelmed.

He pulled back, guilty, and now he could feel Draco holding his head, pressing him up against the wall (door?), gasping into his mouth and definitely very overwhelmed.

Michael pulled physically back but had to stop because there was nowhere to go, not with how Draco had him pushed up against the wall. And when he did break the kiss, Draco was there again, kissing him again, more intently but still breathless.

He wanted to ask, if he was okay, if this was fine, but he had no air for the questions and certainly no way to speak when he was being kissed. He was only barely aware of the shivering of his vessel, fine trembles he couldn’t quite manage to get under control, and then Draco pulled back just enough to tug on his lip and his Occlumency shields were gone and Michael was hit by both his soul and a mind he had gotten used to no longer feeling and shuddered. The next noise was his own.

A good overwhelming feeling. This – he – you feel good – not bad.

That was only Draco. 

The feeling of being overwhelmed faded, only for the love to sweep back in, and Michael sank under it, buzzing with warmth and the feeling of Draco’s soul next to his own Grace. 

At some point, slowly, the love ebbed, not disappearing but no longer quite as overwhelming for him. It just hovered there, warm and soft and also feeling…pleased.

He stayed pressed there for a bit, not doing anything beyond keeping it company like he would have a sibling, sharing his own contentment.

But then there was a shift, and he realized that no, this was… This wasn’t—

When he next registered his own vessel, they were on the floor, though sitting. Somehow he’d slumped down still leaning back against the…door. It was definitely a door. Only he wasn’t leaning so much against the door but against Draco, who had slid himself a little more to the side to be able to hold him and also lean back against the wall.

Damn it.

Michael tucked himself into his vessel, focusing on his breathing. Only his vessel felt a little different than usual, his limbs shaky. It wasn’t quite like how he had felt after what had happened with Gabriel, but the trembling wouldn’t quite stop.

Of course, his own Grace was still buzzing with warmth and that wasn’t going to go away anytime soon either.

“Not so bad, was it?” Draco sounded a little breathless, a little tired, but definitely pleased with himself. He ran a hand over Michael’s shoulder.

Michael shifted, dislodging Draco’s arms and straightening, rubbing hands over his face. “Are you…okay?”

Draco squeezed Michael’s shoulder, leaning in. “I’m perfectly fine.”

“Good.” Michael exhaled in relief, scrubbing over his eyes, focusing on that feeling and not on the buzzing warmth of his Grace or Draco next to him.

“We didn’t even break anything this time,” Draco said, pleased.

Michael groaned into his hands, embarrassment surging through him. Like a newly Created angel. He had no fucking control.

Draco reached out to him, taking one of his hands and gently pulling it down, squeezing it. “Was that really so bad?”

Michael rubbed over his eyes, pressing his thumb to the skin between his eyebrows, focusing on the pressure. “…No,” he eventually admitted. It had been the opposite of bad, except for how he’d lost all sense of everything except for Draco.

“It’s not just for me,” Draco said, and a kiss was pressed to Michael’s temple. “This…what we have…I told you I’m not going to be an obligation.”

Michael shook his head. “You’re not.”

“Then stop focusing so much on what you think I want, because all I want is you. Michael, not Wayne.”

Michael dropped his hand, staring up at the stone ceiling. It offered no answers. He didn’t understand why Draco had wanted this – him. He never had.

Something like sadness seeped into him from Draco. Michael’s eyes snapped to him. “Draco…”

“If you say you’re fine, I’m going to sit on you,” Draco said mildly, “and we’re not going to go anywhere until you accept this.”

Michael huffed, amused despite himself. He smiled. “That’s quite a threat.”

“Oh, it is, since if you decide to leave, I’m going to be upset.”

“I’m not going to leave.”

“Good.” Draco let go of his hand, reaching up to touch his cheek and turn it more towards him so he could kiss him gently. The love was softer than before, a gentle warmth against Michael, and his breathing shuddered.

Draco kissed him again, then pulled back. “You probably can already feel it, but I think you probably need to hear it, too. I love you.”

Michael didn’t look away from him, the embarrassment largely subsiding for something warmer and softer. He didn’t understand why, didn’t want to ask Draco why either, but…he did know that now. He could feel it and couldn’t ignore it.

He ran the fingers of his free hand over Draco’s fringe, brushing it over his forehead. He breathed in, then out, then smiled at him. This time, when he gently and carefully pushed that love into Draco, it was entirely controlled. “I love you, too.”

[bp4545]

Butterflies Dying (My Sunshine - Part 5 )

Word count: 1k its pre short:)

Warnings: heartbreak? there isn't really much warnings for this chapter, its more the rising action.

Summary: All feelings for Draco evaporate when the ugly truth is revealed...

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6.

---

You don't go the kitchens for the next few nights.

You can't bear to see him again when you know that he has eyes for someone else. And that person wasn't just anyone, no slytherin, no pureblood, no bratty rich kid, it was Hermione Granger. 

Maybe that's why you were so upset. Because you knew that she was everything you that you were, except she could offer more. 

You can't lie, you miss your usual meetings with Draco, but you need to stay away from him, at all costs.

He notices. Draco can tell you're avoiding him. You dodge him during class, you don't save him a glance during breakfast, you don't come to the kitchens at night to talk to him anymore. He misses it. 

He doesn't know exactly what he did wrong. Or what might've happened on your end. He just knows he needs to talk to you. So that's exactly what he did.

---

"Y/n!"

You hear someone shout behind you after class that day. You keep walking, because that voice haunts the back of your head.

"Y/n, please." you feel Draco yank you backwards by your bag, taking you by surprise and making you stumble. You turn to him with anger written on your face, scaring him just a little bit.

"Watch it Malfoy!" 

Malfoy?

"Listen y/n please tell me what's wrong why are you avoiding me? Is something wrong?"

"I'm fine" you say with no expression.

"C'mon y/n, I can tell when you're clearly not fine." he rolls his eyes.

"I'm just on my period" you say, hoping he will buy it and leave you alone.

"Y/n you were on your period only 2 weeks ago?"

"It's irregular" you shrug.

"Y/n please don't be difficult with me" he says while rubbing his temples. "I just want things to go back to normal between us, please."

It was different hearing Draco Malfoy say please.

"You like Hermione right?" you blurt out. His eyes go wide and he stutters a bit before looking you dead in the eyes.

"How did you know?..." he says, taken aback. 

"Draco I see you staring at her in like practically every class." As much as it hurt.

He groans in response. "So what does that have to do with you not talking to me?"

"Because you're only talking to me because you know I'm friends with Hermione" you say "Right?"

"W-well yeah that was generally the plan." he sighs. "But I really do enjoy talking to you y/n, it's just a bonus that I can ask you questions about her and ask you for advice."

"No Draco, listen I really don't want to do this" you admit "I don't want to get between you and her, or give the wrong advice to you. I wish you the best with her."

"O-oh" he says slightly surprised. He wasn't very accustomed to hearing girls say no to him. "What does that mean for us? Are we still friends, will I still see you tonight?" 

No. That's what you should have said. "Maybe"

He flashes a smile. Usually it would make butterflies erupt in your stomach, now they were dying. You felt sick. You wanted to get away from his presence.

"Great see you tonight" he said. A hint of excitement evident in his voice.

He did not see you that night.

---

After talking to Draco that one time, you haven't spoken a word to him since. You decided that it wasn't worth it chasing a boy who is interested in someone else and would only break your heart.

You spent more time with your own friends, focused more on your studies, and slowly forgot about the whole situation. If you didn't matter to him then why should he matter to you?

Being around the ones who really cared for you healed you. It mended all those feelings of hurt, talking to Daphne, it made you smile, partying with Justin, Hannah and Zach, and it made you laugh, all those late night talks with Chris.

Nevertheless, you could never tear your eyes away from the blonde boy. It seemed as if everywhere you went he was looking at you with a pleading expression, maybe a slight bit of hurt; because you stood him up that night. Although you never actually said yes.

You shook away those thoughts as you focused back to the lecture. Transfigurations was never your strong point, but you could feel a certain pair of eyes boring into the back of your head longingly. 

Moments like those made you wonder if he ever felt the same way, but then you remembered the way he looked at her. The way his eyes lit up like she was his whole world, what you would give to be loved like that by someone.

The bell echoed across the room and you mindlessly started packing your stuff to finally see Daphne at the end of the day. Every Friday evening you two did the same thing. A girls catch up in your corner of the library, where you would just talk about all your drama, all the gossip, and all your worries for the next week.

"Daphne!" you shout across the hall, bustling with students at the end of the day. You wave your arms around catching her attention.

She walks up to you, and gives you a hug. You two have no classes together this year, which is a bummer because you rarely get to see her unless its your catch up day.

As the two of you laugh and make your way to the library, you see a couple heading out to presumably Hogsmeade, dressed in warm clothing and hand in hand. It's odd, because the couple looks unrecognisable, until you see a familiar platinum blonde figure laugh, and a girl with long brown frizzy hair kiss his nose...

There's no way.

You turn to Daphne and she's looking at you already.

"Is that Hermione and Draco?" You ask her, hoping that she wouldn't say what she was about to say.

"Yeah.." she started "I overheard Draco talking about it in the Slytherin common rooms this morning. They started dating just this Wednesday, apparently he's absolutely smitten for her."

Your heart breaks as Daphne confirms that they are most definitely dating.

That was all you needed to hear, the butterflies were dead.

---

a/n: This was a really hard chapter to write because I didn't know how to make it sound super heartfelt but heartbreaking:/

[zannolin]

For the fanfic writers ask game: 1, 4, 6, 12, 18, 25 and 31 please!

hi friend! ooo these are some fun ones

do you know how you want the story to end when you start, or are you just stumbling through the figurative wilderness hoping to find a road?

i rarely start a fic (especially longer/more complex ones like multichaps) without knowing the end, at least in a general sense. usually i know the rough skeleton of events as they're going to play out, and where it will end, even if i don't have the exact details in mind. for north of desire, for example, i was like "yeah the end is aslan's country." and then i got to that point and went oh no. i forgot i would have to write a good reunion. (this is how it often goes.)

now specifically i outline all my fics by hand before i officially write them, or in the case of my current multichap i am outlining each chapter and then writing them before moving on to outlining the next, so there's always a pretty rough version of the end laid out for me to work with. honestly my outlines are like very very rough drafts at this point. but there are barely any fics i've written in the last ~3 years that i started without knowing how they would end, no.

4. what is the plot bunny you’ve been carrying for the longest? optional bonus question: do you ever wonder why you haven’t written it yet and experience deep existential dread?

up until a couple months ago it was my wing au, but i wrote that, YAY! which granted was less of a plot and more of a burning need to write anyone with wings but you get what i mean. i've actually knocked out a lot of fics i've wanted to write for a long time—the fey au, the wing au, my locklyle post-creeping shadow fic, my copernicus legacy fic, my susanfic, etc. i've been on a bit of a roll! right now i guess the one that's lasted the longest is my au where two characters meet and bond at a horse therapy camp (the therapy is not for the horses). that one's been around since ~2018. i don't really feel dread about "why haven't i written this" i'm just waiting for things to click. they'll click someday if they're meant to. every fandom i'm in i generate about a million AUs and then whatever i manage to write i feel extremely lucky to have been able to write so it doesn't really bother me overall.

6. do you have any kind of consistent writing schedule or just hoping for the best?

hoping for the best because it depends entirely upon my free time and my mental/physical health, none of which i tend to have in spades. i try to write consistently, however (at least every few days) because if i go very long without writing i start feeling Worse.

12. do you ever have trouble focusing on writing? how do you get around that? 

yeah but i feel like in this day and age we all have focus issues. for me i mostly have executive issues (it's hard to sit down and Start as opposed to once i'm actually going) so when i'm working on something and i'm really not feeling it, it's usually a sign i should step away and do something else for a while. often reading or working on a completely different sort of art form or craft (crocheting, jigsaw puzzles, walking, piano) are my go-tos.

18. what is your most and least favorite part of writing?

i hate plotting. why do i have to plot. why can't i just write and the story figure its shit out without me?? i also hate picking summaries + tagging + all the minutiae that come with posting a fic, and as for writing things other than fanfic, revision is the worst thing in the entire world and i'd rather die than look at something after i've finished it. my favorite part is probably just the writing itself and the end where you Have A Thing You Wrote, and when people give you feedback, be it notes from a professor or an ao3 comment or your friends throwing rocks at you in discord. the reactions make all the suffering worth it.

25. what’s your revision or rewriting process like?

i avoid it as much as possible <3 for fics i really just do edits most of the time, going in and checking typos, tweaking scenes, etc. i don't often do serious revisions or rewrites. for original stuff if i Have to revise it (so like if i was trying for publication, or for school) i let it sit at least a week or two and then go over it and take into account what i know works and what i want to fix and then just go from there. it's different every time idk, i fucking haaaate revision <3 my brain doesn't like to work like that.

31. tell us about one of your characters who’s an absolute joy to write

i am honestly having so much fun every time i write caspian's pov like i don't know what's up with that but he provides the perfect opportunity to write outsider pov of the pevensies while being close enough to really start breaking down their walls + he is INSANE himself and i loveeee it. i love the emotional depth. the sorrow. doing crazy things like constantly comparing peter to a lion in his pov 'cause there's so many layers of symbolism there with aslan and all. hehe. he's just really really fun and i feel i can do a lot through writing him and his interactions with basically anyone ever. i have not written caspian interacting with another character and disliked it. there's always something really interesting to do with him.

^ i would have answered susan for this btw but there's so much angst and agony involved in writing susan pevensie that i can't really use the word joy to describe it. more like insanity. *thumbsup*

ask game!

[polyshipper-anon]

for the character ask... Dr. Keh?

the ask game

First impression: "Oh this guy is an asshole. I am NOT gonna like him. I will be his #1 hater"

Current impression: ...i like him LOL i spun him around in my head and added a bunch of headcanons and now i think that he's just A Silly Guy who is also an asshole (he really called his new shop Kehlifornia,,, like wow,,, thats so funny LMFAO and he still acts like he's better than the ovenist)

Favorite moment: I really liked how he kinda dropped the asshole persona when he tasted the ovenist's pizza (without using his formula) after they win pizzacon and he has like, an epiphany i guess? i don't remember it quite well but he's like 'i need to go rethink making pizzas and its flavors'

Idea for a story: hmm tbh aside from how im gonna use him in my gpgp au i dont think ive got much of a story idea for him

Unpopular opinion: so like. everyone obviously knows he's mean and a jerk to everyone, like even if you ship him with anyone he's still characterized as mean and competitive now i dont know if this counts as an unpopular opinion BUT... before chapter 5, i thought that if he came back then he'd be nicer to the ovenist (at least if you didnt use the formula in chapter 3), and because of that when he falls in love with my ovenist, Dr. Keh becomes nice to him and only him LOLOL

Favorite relationship: Dr. Keh x ovenist bc enemies to lovers <33 but also i think imagining him and Angelica having an intense sibling rivalry type of relationship is so so funny (im saying this as an older sibling myself, like yeah i'd send fancy letters just to cuss my brother out, just for the laughs)

Favorite headcanon: he has a few select people that he's openly and unabashedly nice to but a VERY high criteria for it (wouldnt it be really funny if Alicante somehow passed this criteria and they were both just friends. like wouldnt that be hilarious)

as a bonus, have this character opinion bingo:

[tealmaskmybeloved]

Toxic Consequences AU: Chapter 6

The Heroes of Kitakami

(Notes will be under the cut. Enjoy!)

This was a new experience for Kieran.

He had believed the Loyal 3 were heroes for most of his life, at least until recently. But even with his new knowledge on their evil deeds.... he still couldn't hate them.

Right now, Kieran was being carried by Okidogi as they left the house, careful to avoid being spotted.

"So uh, where are we going exactly?" Kieran asked, confused.

"We're going to finish what we started all those years ago! Getting the masks!" Munkidori replied, almost excited to pull it off.

"Wait hold on here. We can't really, well, do that." Kieran blurted out. The Loyal 3 and their master turned to look at Kieran, disappointment and confusion on their faces.

Kieran had to think fast. "I-I mean, won't we get caught? The town is really protective of the masks... and there's no way they'd let us near them."

Please let this work. Kieran thought, his heart racing.

Eventually, their leader spoke up.

...Fine. We can delay the heist for later. Until then-

"OH MY GOSH, IS THAT THE LOYAL 3?!"

The group jumped in surprise. They turned to see some of the townsfolk running up to them.

"Um, uh, what do we do?" Kieran whispered.

"Quick, Okidogi, knock them out." Munkidori said.

"Do we seriously have to?" The dog replied, looking unsure.

The town's caretaker walked up to the group, his hands behind his back.

"Welcome, you all! It is an honor to be blessed with your presence! We of Kitakami thank you for fending off the Ogre all those years ago!"

The Loyal 3 gave each other looks. Fezandipiti almost snickered. Was he serious?

The man continued. "We owe great thanks to you heroes of Kitakami! We've been worshipping you since your passing, and we are more than happy to see you alive and well! Perhaps fate has shined upon us? Either way, we shall make sure your visit here is as pelasureable as it can be!"

It took all of the Loyal 3's willpower and their leader's control to not burst out laughing and lay waste to the town. The people thought that they were heroes of all things?! Did they not know of their heist?! Or the man they killed?! Or the countless other towns they've raided and attacked?!

Without hesitation, the caretaker pulled out the masks from behind his back and gave them to the crew.

"Here, take this. As a sign of our loyalty and thanks for your bravery." The caretaker said with a smile on his face.

The Loyal 3 gave each other smug looks and eagerly accepted the masks.

"Well that was easy!" Munkidori grinned.

"They know that we ain't heroes, right?" Fezandipiti asked, a look of mischief on the bird's face.

"Don't say it! They'll hear you!" Okidogi growled.

It doesn't matter. They can't understand us anyway.

But the people were not done. "As a little bonus, here's a treat for you all. Freshly made from our best bakers, here's some mochi!"

One of the townsfolk handed them a plate full of pale mochi.

"Well don't mind if we do!" Okidogi snatched the plate and offered the mochi to the others before taking a bite of one himself.

The Loyal 3's leader stared at the mochi with a look of disdain and hatred.

You realize we're the bad guys here, right?

"Oh come on now, boss. A little appreciation and a break never killed anyone!" Fezandipiti said. Clearly the Loyal 3 were enjoying this.

Kieran was as well. He was finally getting used to hanging out with the Loyal 3 and their leader. He let himself relax a little. Maybe things won't be so bad!

Ahem. I know you all are enjoying this, but we need to get going, now. Their leader spoke again, clearly annoyed.

The Loyal 3 grumbled in response.

"Come on, don't be a buzzkill! Let us have some fun!" Okidogi said gleefully.

"Yeah, there's no harm in this!" Fezandipiti agreed.

I said.. we need to get going, NOW!

The voice from their leader was more aggravated than unusual, startling Kieran. He could feel its presence in his mind again, but this time stronger.

Kieran wasn't the only one. The Loyal 3 had an unnatural pink glow to their eyes, almost like they were being controlled...

There, that's better. Now, let's leave before things get worse. Come along, Kieran.

Reluctantly, Kieran went after the group, now unsure whether or not if this was a good idea.

The group left Mossui Town, masks in hand...

Ogerpon's POV

Ogerpon was peacefully resting with her new friends when she sensed something troubling.

She knew.

He was back. Him and his Retainers.

They can't take my friend away this time. I won't let them. I'll make them pay for what happened all those years ago....

WOOOOOOT ITS OUT YAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYA

Dokutaro is an evil lil jerk and doesn't let the Loyal 3 have fun.

Also I loved writing the part where they're snickering about being seen as heroes. They were just like LMAO BOZOS YOU THOUGHT-

My first draft was for them to be like ABOUT THAT and just destroy the town, but I'll save that for later.

Anyways, lemme know what you think about it! Reblog, send an ask, anything works!

[satoshi-mochida]

Kimi ga Nozomu Eien: Enhanced Edition launches October 17 - Gematsu

Romance visual Kimi ga Nozomu Eien: Enhanced Edition will launch for PC via Steam on October 17 with English and Japanese language support, aNCHOR announced.

Kimi ga Nozomu Eien first launched for PC on August 3, 2001. Kimi ga Nozomu Eien: Latest Edition, on which Kimi ga Nozomu Eien: Enhanced Edition is based, launched on March 28, 2008. Kimi ga Nozomu Eien: Enhanced Edition will be the game’s first official English release.

Here is an overview of the game, via its Steam page:

About

Experience the visual novel that shook a generation. Kimi ga Nozomu Eien (The Eternity You Desire) comes to Steam in an enhanced edition, offering a poignant journey through love, loss, and the complexities of human relationships.

A Classic Reborn

First released in 2001, Kimi ga Nozomu Eien quickly became a cornerstone of the visual novel genre, influencing countless stories that followed. Now, everyone can experience this incredible story in English for the first time.

Key Features

Massive Narrative – Immerse yourself in a mature, dramatic storyline that explores the depths of human emotion and the consequences of life-altering decisions.

Unforgettable, Realistic Characters – Connect with a cast of deep, well-developed characters whose growth and relationships evolve throughout the story.

Expanded Content – This definitive edition includes the original game plus three afterstories and a full-length retelling of Chapter 1 with new endings for each heroine. It also includes the the bonus episode Kanashimi wa Kaze no You ni (Sorrow, Like the Wind) from the first edition printing of Kimi ga Nozomu Eien: Latest Edition!

Hours and Hours of Gameplay – Dive into a rich, branching narrative that offers tremendous replay value and multiple endings to discover.

Story

“Time is both the kindest and the cruelest thing… It heals the wounds in my heart, but steals away my love for you.” Choosing one person always means hurting someone else… A realistic love story about a boy who’s growing up. Narumi Takayuki is a young man in his last year at Hakuryo Hiiragi academy. There’s not much time left before he graduates, but he still has no idea what he’s going to do with the rest of his life. He spends his days not doing much of anything in particular, and feeling a vague sense that he’s running out of time. One day, his classmate and female friend Hayase Mitsuki invites him and his buddy, Taira Shinji, to a summer festival. There, she introduces him to a friend of hers, Suzumiya Haruka. Haruka is an extremely shy, introverted girl, and since Mitsuki’s trying hard to make her feel like part of the gang, Takayuki does his best to make her feel comfortable as well. But for some reason, instead of thanking him, she goes out of her way to avoid him. He leaves the festival frustrated and annoyed. Days later, though, Haruka calls him out to the hill behind the school and tells him that she’s in love with him. Knowing how much courage it must have taken a shy girl like her to ask him out, he says finds himself unable to say no. The two begin dating, even though he’s not really interested in her. Just like he predicted, his conversations with her are strained and awkward. But as time passes, the two of them grow closer, and Takayuki finds himself falling in love with her sweet, innocent nature. And then one day…

Additional Information

This work is an all-ages version of the original game based on Kimi ga Nozomu Eien: Latest Edition. As the player, you will take on the role of the protagonist (Takayuki Narumi) and deepen your relationships with the heroines. There are no right or wrong answers to the choices you face, and you’re free to follow the story however you desire. The voice recordings used are from Kimi ga Nozomu Eien Latest Edition and existing consumer versions. We have also updated the menu screens for a more modern experience. This version of the game can be enjoyed by anyone, regardless of whether they’ve played the game before.

[decks-writing-blog]

Free Them Chapter 2/3: Something's Wrong

Chapter One

~

For Bubby, Gordon made another robot based around a core. He made the orb smaller though, only a little bigger than a standard core. Which allowed for longer arms and legs. In the simulation they’d all had the same height but since he couldn’t transfer their human features, he had to do what he could to change up their appearances in other ways. The stocky robot fit Dr. Coomer so hopefully a thinner taller one would fit Bubby.

The robot meant for Tommy, he started with one of the bullet turrets’ bodies but taller and a bit thicker. As a bonus he added a little spinner attached to a little hat shape on top because the propeller cap had suited Tommy so well. It was motorized too so he could spin it as he pleased.

Sunkist’s design was easiest out of all of them. The Robotics Division already had a schematic for a robot dog a former employee had left in the files before leaving. Using it was maybe a bit questionable on how ethical it was but there was no way Gordon could come up with anything better. It was about as perfect as a robot dog design could get. And besides, it was technically property of Aperture and thus he was legally allowed to use it. Altering it slightly to be bigger and omitting its proposed programming so it’d be empty when connected to the simulation was easy.

With only one pod set to interface with the robots, they could only do one at a time. But with help from co-workers and Dr. Coomer, Gordon didn’t have to leave his pod to set up the next robot. Allowing him to monitor from inside and direct them to go in the agreed upon order; Bubby, Sunkist, and then finally Tommy. The player models had been changed to accommodate that order as well as be less creepy for Gordon to look at.

Once Tommy was through, Gordon paused for a moment to look around. The parking lot was empty as ever. No sign of anyone else or Black Mesa. Creepy to be alone in.

“Darnold!” he called out into it. “Mr. Coolatta! … Forzen I guess, maybe.” He was sentient too, wasn’t he? He’d seemed it. Meaning Gordon should free the three of them too, right? And if he was going to do that then… maybe he should free Benrey too even if part of him would rather not because it would mean dealing with him again.

But having thought about it an uncomfortable amount since, a lot of Benrey’s words at the end had felt off. “If you shoot me, I have to shoot back.” “You wanted me to be bad so I’m bad.” Gordon may be misremembering the exact phrasing but he recalled the gist of it. And Benrey’s motivation hadn’t made sense, almost as if he’d just been making shit up to turn into the big bad over. The video game had needed a boss battle after all and instead of making a brand new one, it took the guy Gordon was the most antagonistic with and built on that. Saving on resources. … Maybe. It was hard to know for sure. Benrey might’ve chosen entirely for himself to be the bad guy because he thought it would be fun.

But even if that was the case, he was still sentient and the simulation had run its course. They’d keep it on file but they’d disconnect it from their machines so they could start running the next upgraded iteration of the project. Gordon had put it on hold but he couldn’t afford to do so for much longer without getting reprimanded. So anything that was sentient needed to be moved out sooner rather than later. And that included Benrey… assuming he was still alive anyway. He might’ve been killed for good this time.

Gordon would look for him and the others later though. He didn’t have robots ready for them yet anyway. First came, waking up and helping introduce the rest of the Science Team to the real world.

~

“… all looks like this too,” Dr. Coomer was saying as Gordon stepped out of the VR pod. “The whole world is this crisp. And just you wait until you see the sky. It’s very blue. Also, I forgot to mention, we’re at Aperture!”

“The competition?” Bubby asked.

“Yes. Black Mesa’s real apparently, they used its name and logo in the video game as a part of a joke.”

“So that means the Resonance Cascade didn’t really happen, huh?” Tommy asked.

“Not yet.”

“And probably not ever,” Gordon said as he stepped into the conversation, stepping over Sunkist’s new form at the same time. “We don’t know what they’re working on over there but it’s probably not whatever we came up with.”

“Hello, Gordon!” Even after being freed from the game and simulation, Dr. Coomer still had the quirk of repeating lines.

Tommy’s yellow-lit eye widened as he turned to face him. “Wow, Mr. Freeman you look so… so… high-def!”

Bubby had settled on a light blue for his eye. He looked Gordon up and down. “You’re fatter in real life.”

“Yeah, and?”

“And it suits you. Your player model or whatever the fuck it’s called, looked like a scrawny wimp trying to cosplay as a traffic cone. This,” Bubby gestured with his hand, indicting Gordon’s whole body, “is much better looking.”

“Thanks… I think.” Looking better than something that looked bad didn’t mean he looked good.

“You’re beautiful, Gordon!” Since day one, Dr. Coomer had insisted everything was beautiful. This was the fist time he’d said it about Gordon though.

“Uh… let’s not go that far.” He’d barely bothered to brush his hair this morning, only enough to get the tangles out, and his beard needed a trim, resulting in him no doubt looking a mess. He didn’t know because he’d wisely avoided looking in the mirror. “Instead, let’s make sure everything’s working with your new bodies and stuff and then I’ll show you guys ‘round the lab.”

~

Because Gordon would have to go specifically seek them, they made the next ‘player’ model portable. Something he could carry around for when he found the person he was looking for. “Like a pokeball!” Tommy had said which wasn’t too far off from a good metaphor. But it wasn’t a ball but instead a cube. Gordon was dropping the Black Mesa bit after all and cubes were kind of Aperture’s thing.

They made the robot intended for Darnold first. Gordon went with another turret shaped body, tweaking it until he ultimately landed on an egg-like shape. Not the most creative thing in the world but it was visually distinct. No one wanted to look like a copy of someone else.

Next came finding Darnold in the simulation. Which was easiest done while inside it after forcing the spawn point to change to the Black Mesa building. They didn’t have Darnold’s lab marked so Gordon chose the spot he thought might be closest to it.

The result of which was being dropped in a dimly lit concrete hallway, its two still functioning lights buzzing and flickering ominously overhead. Hopefully for the sake of the employees, the real Black Mesa wasn’t like this because even if the place had been properly lit, it would’ve made the hall only marginally more friendly. In hindsight maybe he should’ve gone looking for everyone in unknown locations first so the Science Team could’ve joined him and kept him company. Too late now though and hooking up another four ports just so he wouldn’t be lonely would’ve been too much work to be worth it. And so, rolling his shoulders, virtual though they were, he got to work looking for Darnold.

The game was over and thus enemies weren’t spawning anymore. A good thing but it did leave the place feeling barren and far too quiet. It wasn’t unlike some of the nightmares he’d had since the game had ended. In those though, his hand was always missing and pouring more blood than it had ever bled in the simulation’s reality – when he’d lost the real thing years ago, it had presumably bled quite a bit more but he’d fainted at the sight of it and had been brought in for medical care long before waking. Looking down at his model’s restored hand grounded him.

Blessedly, his guess wasn’t too far off as it didn’t take terribly long before he found the elevator leading to Darnold’s lab. Going down it gave him an odd almost deja-vu feeling that made the silence particularly heavy.

Darnold was in the same place Gordon had first seen him, behind the counter. If he was making another potion, there was no evidence of it currently as he just stood there, looking down at the counter. He looked up as the elevator clunked into place at the bottom. “Ah, Mr. Freeman, you’re back.”

“Yep.” Gordon walked over to stand on the other side of the counter. “What you been up to since we left?”

“Oh, you know, this and that, working on that evil flavor mostly. It’s a bit more difficult than I’d thought it’d be. But I can see your hand is like your other hand now. How’d that happen?”

“Let’s just say it grew back. But anyway um…” How did Gordon tell him that this world was fake? That was kind of dire news, wasn’t it? Especially since it was on a timer for being turned off permanently. And the world had already kind of ended because the game had. It was all just stasis now.

“Something’s wrong, isn’t it?” Darnold broke the silence left by Gordon’s pause. “Everything is… quiet now. Or maybe ‘quiet’s not quite the right word. Plenty of things still make noise.” To demonstrate, he knocked one of the bottles off the counter, causing it to loudly clatter to the floor. “But there’s still something wrong… I think. Especially since you’re here, alone without your friends. That’s not right. Did something happen to them?”

“They’re fine, better than fine actually.” They were free. “But you’re right, something’s wrong with the world. It’s uh… It’s a video game simulation that you’re an AI NPC inside of.”

Darnold was silent for a long few seconds as he stared at Gordon before finally… “Oh. I suppose that makes sense. It certainly explains why you got a gun for a hand from my potion. It’s much easier to fight bad guys when you got a gun for a hand.”

“You don’t seem to bothered by it.” Gordon hadn’t expected much shock from the Science Team because he’d been sure they already knew on some level anyway. He hadn’t gotten that impression from Darnold though.

“I’m not. There were just so many little things that make more sense now. Like how only my recent memories feel actually real, you know? The stuff from before feels like I’m recalling a fun tale about a potion scientist that becomes slightly less fun when I remember it’s me. One’s memories aren’t supposed to sound like a fiction tale. It’s a relief to know the cause of that, actually. I had a theory that I might be a secret sleeper agent, in so deep even I don’t know I’m a false identity until I hear the secret phrase and go on a killing rampage. It’s part of why I was scared to go on that adventure with you guys because what if the military were the ones that would activate me? I don’t like violence.”

“Well, can’t blame you for that. Anyway, you wanna go on a different kind of adventure? One that isn’t violent.”

“Ooh, yes!”

Gordon reached into his inventory and pulled out the cube. Tossing it on the ground activated it, turning it into a wall with a shimmering portal on it. Doing it like that was Bubby’s idea as he’d rightfully pointed out, “It’s weird to step into a person, especially if it looks like you, so make it something they can walk through.” “And it’s more accurately a hole in the simulation,” Dr. Coomer had cheerfully added.

“Step through this and your AI will be put into a robot body in the real world so you can like… see it and interact with it and stuff.”

Darnold stepped around the counter to approach it. “Well, I’m not big on robots but they’re pretty cool sometimes, I suppose. The real world though, I think I would like to see it.” He stepped through. Having eased the transition, it was far smoother and almost instant.

~

Gordon’s next thought was to design a bot for Mr. Coolatta. Before he could really get started on it though, Tommy pulled him aside. Into a broom closet for some reason but it was private so it would apparently do. The only light was through the cracks in the doors and Tommy’s robotic eye, making it kind of uncomfortable.

“Mr. Freeman, you’re uh… you’re making a robot for my dad, right? Or thinking about it.”

“Of course, yeah. I’m doing him next. I wouldn’t call him a friend but like… you know? He’s your dad so even for just that reason, I wouldn’t leave him.”

“Oh um… I didn’t mean… I wasn’t making sure you would because… I just wanted to ask if you intended to because I was pretty sure that you did intend to. Which is what I wanted to talk about because you don’t need to. He’s already… Well I guess I should start from the beginning since we’re not keeping secrets anymore.

“My dad’s not part of the simulation. He came from outside of it. I can’t tell you want he is… he uh… didn’t even tell me that. But he did tell me that him meddling with the simulation to create me is why your more advanced AI’s became fully sentient. I just thought I should tell you so you don’t waste time or resources on him when he doesn’t need it because he’s already left the simulation.”

“So it wasn’t my program that brought them to life?”

“Not by itself, no, sorry. Your program was good enough to attract my dad though so it’s still very impressive Mr. Freeman. That’s nothing to uh… shake a stick at, you know?” He lifted a hand to mime shaking a stick, the servos’ whirring in his wrist was almost loud when pressed in so close to him.

Gordon wasn’t that surprised. He was good but he wasn’t ‘create a program that could create whole thinking people’ good. The technology wasn’t there yet, not on Earth anyway. Bring in an outside alien force though and then they were getting somewhere. It had been a nice fantasy while it had lasted though.

“So… what about you then? Are you like him? Could you have left the simulation whenever too?”

“No. I’m too new for that. I can only exist in technology right now. One day I’ll be stronger though and will be able to manifest physically. … That’s what Dad said anyway. But right now I’m basically the same as the others but that won’t always be the case. I don’t know what am I other than that. I think he knew I would tell you eventually so he didn’t tell me everything that he could’ve.”

So during all of Gordon’s interactions with him, Mr. Coolatta had just been messing with him. Not that that was surprising, just the extent of it. The assumption that he was just another sentient AI had been unquestioned until now. But on the bright side, Gordon wouldn’t have to deal with him anymore.

“All right, I guess uh… we’ll do Forzen next then.”

“And last or uh…” Tommy trailed off.

“Yeah, we’ll do Benrey too if we can. Do you think it was the game that made him a bad guy?” Why else would he be open to suggesting the idea? Other than maybe the fact that Benrey used to be his friend.

“I… don’t know. Maybe. It doesn’t hurt to give him one more chance now that the game isn’t manipulating anything in case it did though. Assuming he’s even still alive.”

“We’ll see, I guess. But Forzen first.” Which wasn’t going to be pleasant but so be it. Sometimes doing the right thing wasn’t pleasant.

~

With Forzen being part of the fictional US military it only seemed logical to use the rocket turret as the base for his robot design. Like with the designs based off the normal turrets though, the first thing Gordon did was remove the weaponry. Leaving him with another orb once he shifted it to also have arms and legs. He was running out of ideas.

“What about a cube?” Bubby suggested as he leaned against Gordon’s shoulder to look at the computer. “Cubes and orbs seem to be the only thing you guys know how to make. So just put an eye on one and call it good.”

It was more complicated than that of course but Gordon did it. The end result wasn’t bad, surprisingly. Not as sleek as his other designs had turned out but it was a cube so it wasn’t supposed to be. It would do.

Once that was done being built, the hardest part so far began; finding Forzen. Gordon set the spawn point to the last place he’d seen the guy; the place he set the ring of turrets around Sunkist. It was marked because it was a transition zone.

The ring of turrets was still there, undisturbed. Behind it, the elevator and it’s truck were gone though, still at the bottom presumably. Gordon started for the button that would call it back up. Before he got there…

“Hey.”

With a flinch, he snapped around to see Forzen stepping out from behind one of the boxes placed off to the side. Wow, what luck, running into him immediately. Gordon wouldn’t have minded putting off the encounter a little longer but it was probably better this way anyway.

“You can teleport too?” he asked, pointing at Gordon.

Gordon spawning in at the start of the room would look like he was teleporting in, huh? “Uh… sort of.”

“Cool. Why are you back here though? This place has been empty for… a while now.” The game would’ve stopped spawning enemies in this area, including the non-character soldiers, as soon as Gordon had left it. Leaving Forzen to wander around bereft of anything even resembling company. Which is probably why he’d approached, huh? He’d had to have been alone for a long while now. Long enough to not be as skittish as before. In hindsight, Gordon should’ve realized that about Forzen’s position sooner. Better late than never though.

“I’m here to get you out. First though, why are you here?”

Forzen shrugged. “It’s the last place I saw anyone. This place ain’t real, is it?” Apparently it was easy to figure.

“It’s a simulation, yeah.”

“Damn it. Is the Irate Gamer fake too?”

“No, he’s real.” Gordon wasn’t up to date on Youtube stuff but he was online enough to hear about such things. “I’m pretty sure the simulation somehow connected itself to the internet.” It’s the only way to explain the mentions of things he and his team hadn’t provided it with. Perhaps that too was related to Mr. Coolatta’s meddling.

“Sweet. The internet went out a little while ago though so if you could fix it, that’d be great.” Of course he was more concerned about that than getting out.

“Instead of that, how about I just get you out of the simulation? And then when you’re in your new robot body you can hop onto one of the computers in someone’s lab.” As he spoke Gordon pulled out the next cube. He tossed it down, creating the portal wall. “Through there.”

Forzen looked at him. The lack of detailed facial animations made his expression hard to read but it felt like he was studying him. “What if it’s a trap, huh?”

“It’s not. I have no reason to like you but the simulation’s time is limited. We gotta turn it off and disconnect it eventually. So you’ll basically die if you don’t go through. And I don’t dislike you that much. I promise you can watch all the Youtube you want on the other side.” Gordon would encourage it even if kept Forzen out of his hair.

Forzen studied him for a few seconds longer before approaching the portal. “This better not be a trick.” He went through it.

Six down, one more to go. The most potentially problematic of them all. But it was worth a try if Benrey was still alive enough to be pulled from the simulation. He’d come back from the dead before so it was at least worth the attempt.

~

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