#better decorate my mask since its not leaving my cute face for a while

[chapstickbrandchapstick]

About to leave for a 5-day music festival but guess WHO decides to visit me?? That's right - you guessed it - adult strep throat!!

[savnofilter]

Kinktober Day 2

b. katsuki 

☠️ warning(s): 𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕘𝕙 𝕙𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕤, bathroom sex, mirror sex, rough sex, squirting, established relationship.

☠️ genre: smut, holiday special.

☠️ words: 1.8k words [7 minutes, 10 seconds].

☠️ read more: kinktober(uary)

☠️ summary: after what felt like a long time (week) of you ignoring him over an argument, bakugo finally took the chance to fuck you in at the halloween party hosted by his friends. 

To explain how you were clinging onto your boyfriend and moaning out as he rutted into you at a sharply, fast, pace. Your back was pressed up the bathroom’s mirror, his thrusts so forceful he was worried that you two were going to break the mirror. A whole day’s worth of teasing and irking Bakugo had paid him off, the done deal being the clothing that dressed your legs and lightly gave the thiccness of your thighs the squeeze he loved to see.

It was almost comical. The car ride was almost silent, his eyes and hands struggling to keep themselves as he endured your wordless sassy-ness towards. The fact that you two had broken out into an argument before you had left the house and it was now you guys were hoping to the new location of Mina’s party and you were looking absolutely spectacular.

Besides, Bakugo has to hold himself back.

All-day he had to watch you parade around in your revealing outfit, the rendition no other than his own hero suit. Your skirt was cute but short, the obvious tank top accentuated your body and chest, the small but appropriate gauntlets lifting the creativity of the outfit along with the decorative mask. He had to proudly admit, you looked downright sexy and there was no debating about it. The problem was that he couldn’t touch you, at least that’s what your silent treatment towards him said. Bakugo wasn’t one to overstep boundaries, rather hearing you beg and ask him for more was a better alternative anyway.

Bakugo let out a breath of relief once you guys finally rolled up to Kaminari’s house, his clenched hands around the steering wheel calming down as he’s finally able to get out the tense care. He didn’t notice he was holding in his breath this whole time, or the fact his fists were clenched so tight they had turned white. The sight made you grin to yourself, unbuckling yourself and dropping down the mirror to look at yourself in the skimpy costume. He gave you a side-eye, his eyes appreciating the unique stretch your chest gave the material of the tank top, no matter your size successfully filling it out. He practically hopped out his seat once his door was open, not wanting to be the one to succumb to the silent challenge you had started.

Over what?! He didn’t know himself. All he could see was how the outfit made you look more beautiful than he had anticipated, figuring after last week's argument on whether or not you could’ve left the house in that one bra top you had insisted completely flew out his head without further thought. All he could think about now was the burning desire to pin you up somewhere inappropriate and fuck you there, leaving you to clench your thighs together to keep his cum from dripping anywhere that was to the public eye.

His eyes followed you from the moment you left the car on your own accord, not sparing him a glance as you walked into the party’s threshold. It took everything in him to not follow you closely, trying to show you he had control -- or rather convince himself. Bakugo growled before rolling his eyes, knowing that at some point at the other you guys would cross paths anyways.

“You look so amazing, Y/N! I bet Bakugo is going to be all over you by the end of the night, I know I would~” Ashido teased you, quirking her brows to tease you and make you giggle.

“We’ll see how it goes...” You teased back, glancing towards your boyfriend with a more than secretive look only he could read. You knew he was going to watch you, the feeling and thought exciting you.

After a long night of him unabashedly gawking at you, he had managed to whisk you away into the bathroom~ and fuck you raw. He held no remorse immediately sealing a kiss over your mouth and pressing his plump needing lips. His rough hands went to grab your thighs, not giving you enough time to melt into the kiss as he moved them down, his fingers dipping into the bands of the socks you wore that mocked his costume.

“You think you’re so fucking cute? Wearing this shit and teasing me all night?” He growls against your skin, nipping at the spot and roughly sucking on it. Your lips quirked up into a mischievous smile, breathy moans coming from your lips.

“Mmm, is it me or my clothes, Katsuki~?” You sass back. You knew what you were getting yourself into, the added excitement of someone possibly walking in while Bakugo was getting ready to fuck your brains out.

“Shut up.” He curtly responds, pulling away so he could work at getting your clothes off. His hands coming up to fiddle with the fashionable that sat on your waist, shirking off your skirt once he got it done, moving to get your top and shoulder parts off as well, the gauntlets staying on. You weren’t going to let him be the only one to undress, pressing up against him and leaning up to kiss him again. You bit onto his bottom lip and sucked on it, humming in delight when he took the opportunity to let his tongue wander into your mouth. Soon enough when you guys were both decently undressed, walking back before you could hit the sink, his hands hoisting you up on it and spreading your legs far enough so he could fit in it.

Both of your tongues battled for dominance, the two muscles seemingly not backing down from the same grudge that was held before. Bakugo had taken the time when he realized you were distracted to quickly align himself with your opening and thrusting into your dripping sex. He couldn’t help but smirk at how slick your hot core was, your stuck-up attitude being nothing but an act. Your tongue relaxed enough to be taken for him and dart his tongue to the back of your throat to poke at the sensitive walls. You choked at the feeling, your eyes blowing wide and nails digging into his bare shoulders to beg for mercy.

“Mmf--!” You tried pushing him back, him only doing so when he started to run out of air. You glared heavily at him as you both held the same look, a string of saliva connecting your panting mouths with wordless tension between you two. The string snapped when your head tilted back against the mirror, whimpering at the dull pain it caused you and only earning you a mocking chuckle from him. He lifted your thighs to your body, leaning up to watch your thicc thighs press against your folded body.

His hands were precisely placed to wear your thighs stopped at the middle of your thighs, his hands gripping the area tightly, his eyes admiring your body and all its glory. He hadn’t realized-a lie-about how much he missed seeing your body. You had taken up since that day a week ago you had silently declared that he would have to earn seeing you again although you guys lived in the same apartment.

Both of your brain cells left the room, the blue balls he had suffered were finally taking its advantage on you and you could never skip a good quickie with your boyfriend no matter the occasion. It was almost silent in the room minus the sound of his skin roughly slapping against yours and the shameless moans that left your mouth, his grunts accompanying your noises here and there. No fun banter added.

He made the dramatic motion of him pulling out randomly to confuse you, carefully dropping your thighs and dropping them down. Bakugo turns you around to bend you over and face the mirror, your brows rising and your breath hitching at the more than disheveled look of only about 15 minutes passing of you two being in that bathroom alone. He lifted one of your thighs and rested it on the sink again and thrust into you again. Your jaw dropped at the feeling, his cock hitting your g-spot at the angle he knew drove you crazy. Your eyes rolled back as he continued, his hands coming up and tugging your head back at an awkward angle to keep you watching yourself get fucked by him while also deeming his control over you at that moment.

Watching as your tits bounced with each motion, your bra failing to keep in place and had eventually let your breasts spill from his brute force. You shivered trying to hold onto the bars sink trying to brace yourself against his thrusts. He focused on so many things, leaving your cunt throbbing in wanton need as he exposed you and forced you to endure all the teasing you gave to him tenfold. Your words almost broken, not taking a super bright person to understand what you were trying to moan out.

“Are you going to fucking cum, babe?” He asks, tilting his head and talking in your ear, his warm breath teasing your skin and making you cringe. You nodded your head to the best of your ability, eyes watching his dark and lustful gaze, gladly taking his sadistic look without complaint. “Cum.”

Your body was rocked into oblivion. It took you some guidance, your hand coming down to rub your clit and making you cum in anticipation. Your moans were shaken as you finished, the push of your bladder giving you the push to squirt against your familiar fingers, your cum being able to coat the glass, and the rest in front of you with your liquid. The tight squeeze of your cunt provided a pussy-pocket like a squeeze, holding in his final grunt to pull out and cum on your bum, moving his hips to jerk some onto your thigh and some drips onto your socks. You grunt rolling your neck when his hand leaves its grip in your hair.

You breathed out once you were finished, the release of adrenaline catching up with you. He leaned against you while being able to keep himself up, nuzzling your neck and pressing his cock against you. You turn your head to look at his mess on your body, frowning as you attempt to wipe some of the jizz that stained your sock to no avail and pouting as it dawns upon you at the mess you two had made. “Aw… look at what you did Katsuki-”

“I wasn’t the only one in here!” He snaps back, narrowing his eyes at you and rolling his eyes at your annoying pout. He rests your thigh down and kisses your shoulder, his hands rubbing your hips and grinding his hard-on that somehow still packing an erection with the load he just blew. He laughed humorlessly as he looked at your astounded expression, his arms wrapping around your waist as he slowly sinks cock back into your cunt, enjoying the way your face twists in pleasure. He holds you in place as he kisses his way up your ear, his hips slowly rocking into you before taunting you in your ear.

“I’m not finished with you yet.”

[lazuli-bloom]

Roses and Styx

Chapter 1 - An Inconvenient Attachment

Beetlejuice x Reader

Word Count : 5365

Sure life wasn’t always easy, it had it’s ups and downs, but you were doing alright for yourself. Mostly. However when you find a strange sight while on your lunch break one autumn afternoon, your life gets all the more unusual.

Archive | Next Chapter

--=--=--

The sun beat down on you, unobstructed by a single cloud in the vibrant blue sky. A pleasant breeze wafted by, chilling the heat of the sun’s kiss. Summer was in its death throes, but stayed determined to linger as long as possible. It gave an odd contrast to the scenery. The blazing warmth of a summer sun illuminating the turning leaves and tombstones on that early October afternoon.

You sat on a stone bench enjoying your lunch in the quiet peace of the graveyard. Most people avoided visits to the cemetery, not wanting to keep the company of the dead. You, however, frequented it. With few visitors and lovely Gothic inspired architecture, the cemetery made a relaxing place for lunch breaks. Plus, it was only a short walk from your job.

While there were benches throughout the graveyard, your favorite spot was one off in the corner and closest to the gate. That day, however, there had been a funeral held in that corner of the cemetery. So as not to impose, you picked a different bench to occupy. You tried to not let your gaze stay fixed on the graveside service, but the task proved to be easier said than done. The funeral repeatedly pulled your attention back to it by partly virtue of being an event you’ve rarely seen.

Many people, dressed in black, all focused on one grave. Most of the figures standing there were adults, but among the crowd were children clinging onto parents. The group was too far to get a proper look at any of the mourners, but there was one that stuck out. A man, slightly broad in build, wore a peculiar striped suit with wide vertical bars in black and white. You noted the clothing choice as strange, but tried not to judge. Perhaps he wasn’t able to get a solid black suit on short notice.

The strange pattern of the suit made it easy to pick him out against the other mourners. He didn’t stay still. He moved around, seeming to want to get other’s attention only to be ignored. The man’s bizarre actions, coupled with the indifference of the crowd, were major reasons you kept glancing back to the funeral.

You shake your head and check your phone, almost two o’clock. Time to head back to work. You grab your trash and get up with a stretch. With one last glance back to the funeral, you find the striped suit man looking back your way. You pay him no mind and check your phone once more before heading to leave.

To wring the most time and relaxation out of your lunch, you amble back to the hardware store. You turn to the next street where brick shops sat side by side. On the corner was a shop with a rounded, sun-faded green awning stretched over most of the front facade. Your eye glanced over the printed “Rose Creek Hardware” in yellow letters for what must have been the millionth time.

The bell above the door chimed as you stepped inside. To your left an older mustached man stood behind the front counter. He wore a light blue button down under a green apron, both tight around his rounder stomach. He gave you a warm smile that you returned.

“Back from lunch already, Cass?”

“Yeah. It’s really nice out today, I can hardly believe it’s October already.”

“Hopefully, when I get the Halloween decorations up, it’ll give things a more autumn feel.”

“Can’t wait to see it, Mr. Turner! Oh, and is Sam still here? Or have they left already?”

“They’re still around. Sam was helping the new hire.”

You nod and make your way behind the counter to retrieve your apron. After you get the strings tied, you do a sweep of the store. You found Sam in the back corner pulling merchandise forward. They didn’t notice you straight away, so you softened your footsteps for your approach. You stayed at their back until they turned enough one way that you could slip around to their side and not get caught in Sam’s peripheral. Once close enough to the shelving yourself, you slap your hands down on a bare spot- “-Missed a spot!”

Sam seized up, grabbing the shelf for support. “Geez, dude! You trying to kill me?” A wide grin breaks across your face. You chuckle to yourself as Sam regained some composure. They took a breath, shot you a glare, and got back to work.

“Heard you were training the new guy.”

“Yeah, he left already.”

“What’s he like?”

“Eh. Kinda boring? White bread personified, if you ask me. Dude came in with a dress shirt and tie.”

You shrug and start helping pull forward items. While turning products to have labels front-facing you continue on with your conversation. “Sounds like all I’ll have left to talk to will be Mr. Turner.”

There was a pause in that moment, and a sting of sorrow poked at your heart. You do your best to smother the feeling and focus on your work. It’s better to cherish the moment. You force yourself to smile and keep your chat going.

“So, there was a funeral today-”

Sam groaned and rolled their eyes at you. “You went to that creepy graveyard again? How are you not haunted?”

“Hey! I told you, it’s close by and usually quiet. I enjoy taking my lunches there. Anyway, there was a funeral and one guy there was in a weird suit with black and white stripes. Kinda like the Hamburglar.”

“I swear. You’re a magnet for the weirdest shit. It’s all those shitty movies you watch that seep into your head. How the hell do you not get nightmares?”

You stay silent and look over the product in your hand as your mind wandered back to your most recent nightmare. Piercing blue dots masked in shadow, watching every move you made. You shake your head to dismiss the thought.

You huff out a small laugh. “Guess that stuff just doesn’t get to me.”

“Whatever. Just don’t let any of your weirdness rub off on my cat.”

You press your lips into a tight line and tap your finger against the pliers in hand. “You sure there isn’t anywhere else he can go?”

“Cassie, I already told you I checked.”

“I’m just worried. I don’t think this is a good idea. My apartment doesn’t allow pets.”

“It’s just for two weeks. I’ll pick him up on the sixteenth. Hell, that’s not even a full two weeks, just thirteen days. You’ll be fine.” Sam finished with their side of the aisle and took a step back. “When do you want me to drop him off?”

You breathe out through your nose and make a noise somewhere between a hum and a groan. “Seven should be alright. Donna’s always heads out to the bars on Saturdays, so it should be clear by then.”

“You need to lighten up and not worry so much. Maybe a cute roommate is exactly what you need.”

You don’t give a reply and go back to work. The two of you split off and start tackling other sections of the store. Time marched on, and all too soon, Sam’s last shift ended. Mr. Turner bid them a farewell with a handshake and handed Sam their last paycheck. You give them a small wave and focus back on your task. You knew full well you were going to see them later that night, so you didn’t see the point of having a drawn out goodbye right then.

Once Sam left, the rest of the day dragged on slower than a sloth on crutches. When there weren’t any customers needing help, you talked with Mr. Turner. It gave you something to do, sure, but time still crawled.

That day was one of the worst kinds you can have in retail. The kind that’s just slow enough you bored out of your mind, and peppered with enough customers that you couldn’t slack off and dick around on the store’s desktop. It’s like they coordinated to space themselves out to be the most annoying.

As grueling as it took to get there, five-thirty eventually rolled around. You and the boss took the last half hour to close the store. Sweep, wipe down the counters, count the till, all that good stuff. You were in the middle of dusting when Mr. Turner handed you an envelope. You thanked him and opened it to count the bills inside. Five whole Benjamins. With another thanks, you move the bills into your wallet and get back to dusting.

Once all finished, you headed out, followed by your boss. He locked the front door and walked with you around the side to the small parking lot. He hopped into his old pickup while you climbed into your little junker. The bucket of rust masquerading as a car was on its way out, but you planned on getting every mile out of it you could. Mr. Turner had driven off by the time you coaxed your car into starting. The car sputtered and hissed, but you got the clunker going.

The drive to your apartment complex was as mundane and silent as ever. Your only option for music was to sing it yourself, since the previous owner had beaten the hell out of the radio. CDs weren’t an option either as the owner before the last had stuffed the disc slot full of cookies. For what reason remained a mystery.

You drum your fingers on the steering wheel as you drove, watching familiar sites go by as you neared your apartment. Nicer well-kept buildings and streets slowly turned to the more rundown variety. The street grew more broken and in increasingly desperate need of repairs as you went.

Building after building, you passed by until finally it was time to turn off. You pull up to your complex’s parking lot, just as run down as the roads leading to it. Two buildings sat facing each other, both in contest for which one can be the most rundown. Your building nudged ahead of its twin with the recent addition of graffiti marring the exterior.

You park in your designated spot, managing to not bump up against the two cars encroaching on your space. You worm your way out without adding anymore dents to the black sedan, and head to the complex’s front door. Standing near the door with a cigarette between clawed yellowed fingers was a scrawny older woman with a perpetual sneer on her wrinkled face. Cold steel eyes narrowed at you as you dared to approach the harpy.

“Hi Donna. How are you?”

“Parker! Where’s the rest of your rent?”

You force a smile to mask the spike of irritation. This harpy is going to be the death of you. You clear your throat to help prevent your ire from bleeding out into your tone.

“Right here, Donna. I get my pay on Saturdays.”

“Not my problem. Rent is due in full on the first. Today is the third.”

“I tried paying you last Saturday, but you-”

“The first, you stupid child. Not Before. Not after.”

“Yes Donna, I know. I’m sorry, I needed to replace a flat tire an-.”

“I don’t want to hear your excuses. Just pay the rest of your rent and get out of my sight. You worthless leech, can’t even follow basic instructions.”

You press your lips into a tighter line to keep yourself from screaming at the horrid bat. It was best to bite your tongue and get the interaction over and done with as quick as you could. You pull out your wallet and hand over four bills. It was nice while it lasted.

Donna snatched the money from you and promptly counted it. Once satisfied, she took a long drag off her cigarette. She ordered you to leave while smoke seeped out of her mouth like a dragon.

You didn’t need to be told twice. You hurried off to your apartment, climbing the stairs to the second floor and making a beeline for your door at the end of the hall.

You shut the door, leaning against it and breathed out a deep breath. After calming yourself some, you set your keys on the counter by the door and step further into your little abode.

You make your way back to the small living room and crash on the dingy brown love-seat, tossing your phone onto the stained coffee table. You lean back and stare at the ceiling. A boring white painted over heavy popcorn texture, collecting all kinds of dust. You close your eyes and let your mind wander, wanting to squeeze some relaxation time out of the rest of the day. Too bad your phone rang.

Sam called to tell you they were on their way with the cat. You told them to be careful and not let Donna see them on the off chance that she hadn’t left for the bar yet. Sam, however, brushed aside your concerns and told you not to be so worried. You pinched the bridge of your nose and groaned at that. Sam wasn’t the one that had to deal with Donna and hopefully never will.

It wasn’t until a long while later that there was a knock at your front door. A quick check through the peephole showed you Sam was on the other side with a backpack and pet carrier. You open the door and hurry them inside. Sam stepped in, stopping in the space between the kitchen and living area, and looked over the place.

“Wow. This place is shitty.”

“Thanks, hadn’t noticed.”

Sam set the carrier down on your couch, and the cat inside growled in a low tone. Sam took off their backpack next and handed that one over to you.

“Here’s all of Rigel’s things; food, bowls, litter box, toys. I’ll be back in town to get the last of my stuff on the sixteenth, and I’ll pay you then.”

“I thought we agreed half now and half when you got back?”

“It’ll be easier to just pay you all at once.”

You drum your fingers on your thigh and let out a sigh. “Alright, fine. It will be nice to get two hundred dollars all at once.”

“See! You fuss over the smallest things.”

You change the topic by offering Sam something to drink but they declined. Sam still needed to pack up a few more boxes before the end of the night. You nod and give a small wave goodbye, only for Sam to pull you into a hug. Your muscles tense up, but you did your best to return Sam’s sudden hug.

There was a unique funk around Sam that made the hug even more challenging to bear. An overly strong lavender tried and failed to cover some mix of sweat and burnt coffee. Sam left shortly after, telling you to just call them should you need anything. You nodded and waved them off.

Once they left, you turn to Rigel stuck in his carrier. His hissing got louder the closer you got to the carrier, and was full on slashing at the front when you reached down to open it.

You recoil and let him be for the moment, choosing to set up his things in the bathroom instead. While your bathroom was on the smaller side, it seemed big enough for one cat to stay in. You pack up all the various toiletries that a bored cat might knock down and set out Rigel’s things. Litter box in the corner across from the shower stall, while his food and water were against the opposite wall between the door and the sink.

With that set up you go get the carrier. You did your best not to jostle it too much, but Rigel wasn’t pleased and let you know. He let out some of the most chilling demonic screeches as he knocked against the fabric carrier, desperate to break loose and slaughter you. You set the carrier down in the closet, closing one of the bi-fold doors so he had a dark corner to hide in. You braced yourself with a few steadying breaths before swiftly unzipping the front. Once open, you pull your hand back and leave the bathroom completely, making sure the door shut behind you.

You did your best to salvage the rest of your night, enjoying your cup of noodles while watching a movie. It was a B-Movie slasher about a supernatural being going on a killing spree in Las Vegas. And this somehow led to the being going to space in the next film. Overall, it was pretty cheesy, but got a few laughs from you.

Soon you had to wrap things up and head to bed. You sneak into the bathroom to swipe your toothbrush and clean them at the kitchen sink that night, and probably for the next two weeks. With a yawn and a stretch you change into sleepwear and crawl into your bed.

Sleep didn’t come to you easily, but it wasn’t a night full of endless tossing and turning, either. The rest you got didn’t feel like enough, as the buzzing of your alarm woke you too early for your liking.

You sat up rubbing your eyes and checked your phone for the time. The small screen on the back of the thin flip phone showed the time was seven o’ two. You heave out a sigh and pull the warm covers off.

While your body went through the motions of your morning routine, your mind wandered back to the images you saw in your dream. An island floated in the middle of a dark ocean with storm clouds rumbling high above. The cold wet sand pricked against your bare feet like needles, yet you kept on walking. You had found yourself on a rickety dock at least fifteen feet above the violent waves below. There was nothing around you, but you knew you weren’t alone. Down below, lurking beneath the water, two hungry orbs of blue glared up at you, waiting. Expecting. When you didn’t move from your perch, the beast thrashed at the pillars of the dock. You lost your footing and tumbled down to the abyss.

You shook your head, forcing your thoughts to jump back to the present. Chills ran down your spine as the nightmare crawled around in the back of your mind, clawing its way forward. You stuffed it as far back as possible and carried on with your morning.

You soon were out the door and on your way to work. You grip the toilet paper wrapped over your forearm, letting the lines of blood soak into it so it can better rest on your arm. Rigel had given you a few nasty scratches when you got him fresh water, the ungrateful bastard. At least there’s a first aid kit at work.

The bell above the door chimed as you looked at the time on your phone. The damn cat almost made you late for work. You make your way to the back room to grab your apron, only to bump into a man turning the corner. It took a second to get your bearings and notice you ran right into Mr. Turner.

“Oh shit. Sorry, sir.”

He laughed and waved you off. “Morning Cass, see you’re in a hurry.”

“Ah- no, well, kinda. I hit every red light getting here and-”

“You’re fine, don’t worry. No need to rush. Just get your apron and I’ll introduce you to the new guy.”

You nod and scurry back to grab the green apron. It hung by itself on the hooks, speckled in paint and smudges. By that point the thing was overdue to get tossed and replaced, but the same thing would end up happening to the next apron.

You throw it on and tie it behind yourself before going out to the sales floor. Mr. Turner stood next to a man younger than himself but older than you. The boss was the first to notice you and gave another wave. “There they are.”

The new guy turned and flashed you a wide smile, showing off straight white teeth in a hollow smile. Tamping down the disquiet, you force yourself to offer a smile in return. The man strode up to you and held out a hand. “Great to meet you, I’m Brandon! Mr. Turner was just telling me how great of a worker you are-” He squinted at your apron before going back to that fake smile- “Art. Interesting name.”

“Thanks,” you said, and hesitated a moment before taking his hand for a brief shake. On contact that strange buzz of discomfort shot from your palm through the rest of your arm. Once your hand was free, you fight the urge to rub off the non-existent traces of him. There wasn’t anything there, nothing real, and you knew that, but more than anything you wanted that feeling gone and the only way for it to leave was to brush it off. Why did people have to insist on handshakes, just needless physical contact with strangers? It’s stupid, and you hated it.

For the first half of your shift the boss had you go over the day-to-day tasks with Brandon. There were few customers in the store that Sunday morning, so you mostly had the guy pull forward merchandise and clean some shelves. Brandon did the tasks, but they all came with questions. Most of the questions were mundane things about the products stocked, store hours, and what times saw the most customers. The problem came when Brandon veered his questions towards you personally.

“So, is Art short for anything?”

“Artemis.”

Your answer was short and pointed. You already didn’t like that he was the type to read name tags over asking for someone’s name.

“Interesting. So you from around here?”

A shiver shot through you, and you’re quick to stop that line of questions. You ignore the question entirely, instead cutting in to tell him to finish front-facing the aisle while you go check on Mr. Turner.

The day dragged on until finally getting to your lunch break. Brandon, thankfully, caught on that you weren’t one to disclose much about yourself to a new face. However, that didn’t make the morning smooth sailing. You grab your lunch and speed off to the cemetery, eager to get a break from Brandon.

Your usual bench was free, and you took your place to enjoy lunch. Munching on your meal, you take in the sights, finding a serenity in the quiet. The sun shined brightly, causing some of the glossier headstones to reflect the rays. You hum to yourself and scan over the graveyard. To your surprise, you spotted someone in the far corner opposite you. Your brows furrowed, perplexed by the other. You watched the figure, curious of what they’re doing.

They wandered from gravestone to gravestone, kicking at the earth with hands stuffed into pockets. The build of the figure suggested a man, and one dressed in monochrome. You squint your eyes at them making sure you weren’t mistaken; but no, that was the same bizarre suit you saw a man wearing the day prior.

You keep your gaze fixed on him, wanting to figure out why he might be here a second day in a row visiting completely different graves. Did the man simply like to visit graveyards and have a limited wardrobe? If so, you didn’t want to comment on the matter out of fear of shattering the glass house.

You ate lunch with glances at the man. You wanted to piece together why he might be there. He wasn’t mourning; he moved from one grave to the next as if searching for something. The man in the weird suit went down one row of graves, heading away from you, only to hit the end and turn back for the next row.

You forced yourself to not look at him for fear of getting caught. But your curiosity burned, and you chanced a look up. He didn’t notice you, too engrossed in whatever he was doing. Embolden by that, you continue to munch away at your food and sneak glances at him. That is, until you swallowed wrong and went into a coughing fit.

You got your breathing under control a minute later and checked to see if he noticed. And oh boy, did he notice. The man was staring straight at you. It was awkward enough to get caught looking, but you noticed the man closing the gap between you two. He was still at the far end with well over two hundred feet between you, but you didn’t want to stick around and have that plummet to single digits.

Nope. You scoop up your belongings and speed-walk straight back to the store. You didn’t even chance a look behind you. Eyes forward and keep moving. You weren’t sure if he was actually still following; you didn’t hear any footsteps behind you. So that seemed like a good sign.

You blew past the door, bell violently chiming, and you made a beeline for the back. Your heart pounded against your ribs, wanting to break free and make a run for it. You take quick breaths, forcing the next to be longer than the last to get yourself to calm down. In the middle of collecting yourself, Mr. Turner walked into the back area with worry knitted on his brow.

“Cass, you alright? What’s wrong?”

“Is there a man in a striped suit in the store?”

He gave you a puzzled look, but left to do a sweep of the store. He came back half a minute later, shaking his head. “No, no one’s in the store dressed like that. What happened?”

“Nothing really. I just saw him in the cemetery and it looked like he was starting to follow me.”

He frowned. “Well, you just come to me if any creep is giving you a hard time. I’ll knock his teeth out for you.”

You manage a smile and nod. You take a few more breaths to calm down before you grab your apron. Things were going to be okay. The guy might not have even seen what store you went into. Heck, that guy probably didn’t even leave the cemetery. And even if he did, Mr. Turner was there to help you out of a tight spot. You smile a little brighter and step out onto the sales floor where you see the stripe suit guy looking at paint chips.

A strangled scream catches in your throat. You step back, dipping back into the employee’s only area of the store before he could see you. What the Hell were you going to do now? You couldn’t hide back there all day.

You push aside the fabric curtain dividing the sales floor from the back, and get a look at the man. With him much closer, you could see his green hair and the distressed look of his suit. He leaned forward, looking over the paint colors. Maybe he didn’t know you were back there. If so, you could wait in the back for a few minutes for him to just leave.

You close the curtain and slip your hands into your apron pockets. Your fingers brush over cool metal, and your thumb flicks up the slider on the side. It wasn’t much, but it was certainly better than nothing. Box cutter in hand, you look back out.

The stranger stayed put in front of the paint colors. You take a shallow breath, prepping yourself to go out. In the middle of psyching yourself up, you see Brandon wander over to the paint section. Hope bubbles up in you. The new guy can take care of him for you.

Brandon scanned over the section. He pushed down some color chips, looked over the desk before looking your way.

“Art! There you are.”

Brandon’s voice bellowed in the small store, not only earning a squeak from you but also causing the stranger to turn and look. You yank the curtain closed, hoping the man in the monochrome stripes didn’t get a good look at you.

Brandon parted the curtain a moment later and looked you over with knit brows and lips in a thin line. “Art, what are you doing back here? I don’t think it looks very professional for an employee to skulk around in the back all day.”

“The guy over at paint followed me from the cemetery.”

Brandon raised a brow at you. “There aren’t any customers in the store, and certainly not in paint, I would have seen them.” He pulled open the curtain with a flourish to reveal the man standing just on the other side. “See, no one’s there.”

Your eyes dart between the idiot holding back the curtain and the green-haired man tilting his head some with a grin plastered on his face. Thought processing came to a crawl as you tried making sense of what you were seeing. Your gaze lands on Brandon in the end.

“You don’t see anyone there?”

He rolled his eyes and looked back out to the sales floor. He then looked back at you with brows knitted further. “No, there’s no one there, Artemis. Perhaps you should stop taking your lunches in the cemetery if they’re just going to put scary thoughts in your head.”

Brandon frowned at you before stepping out onto the sales floor, going right through the man in the striped suit. He stopped to shiver, only to keep walking a second later. Once he left, your wide eyes landed on the man still standing there, still grinning and showing off sharp yellowed teeth.

“Hi there!”

Nope. Nope nope nope. You grab your box cutter and pull it out to point at the guy. And without a word you push aside the curtain more and go around the man. The man whined at your action and followed you.

“Come on babes! Don’t ignore me, I know you can see me!”

You keep walking, heading straight for Mr. Turner. He turns to you at your approach and the small smile fades from his face. “Cass? What’s wrong? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

The gravelly laugh behind you sent shivers down your spine. You did your best to shake off the feeling and forced a smile.

“I’m not feeling too good. I was hoping I could go home early today.”

His lips sink further into a frown, but he gave you a nod. “It’s fine by me. But what about that man you were talking about that followed you from the cemetery? Are you going to be okay?”

The man behind you continued to laugh. You tighten your hands into fists, the metal of the box cutter pressing hard into the flesh of your hand.

“Yeah, I’ll be okay Mr. Turner. See you tomorrow.”

He nodded, and you handed over your apron while keeping the box cutter in hand. You offer one last quick goodbye and head out the door, the bell only chiming once. You march down the sidewalk and hear the strange man continuing to talk.

“So, babes, where are we heading?”

You pause at your car door. You take a few quick breaths and finally respond to this... person. “I’m going home. I’m obviously not feeling well and seeing things that aren’t there.”

You slip into your car and promptly lock all the doors. You heave a sigh and lean against the steering wheel as your brain sorts through all this nonsense. A groan rumbles in your throat and you lean back in your seat. In your peripheral, the man in the striped suit sat in your passenger seat sporting a sharp grin. Well shit.

[crystalninjaphoenix]

The Winter Solstice

Fantasy Masks AU: Chapter Seven

A JSE Fanfic

Well after last week’s brief foray into writing for a different fandom, we return to the septics once again. The FM!septics to be exact. It’s the winter solstice, meaning there are holidays to celebrate! Chase, Jackie, and Henrik have a great day that totally doesn’t become suddenly serious near the end haha nope just fun times all around with some world building and character development :) Enjoy :)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

The day dawned cold and snowy, but nobody at Wyvernlair cared. Not when today was the winter solstice. This was a time for celebration! And with all the people in the camp, there was bound to be a big party. Preparations had been ongoing for the past few weeks. Food was made, games were planned, and time was set aside for those honoring the various holy days. When the day itself dawned, normal duties were put on hold so that everyone could join in. 

Chase woke up at sunrise. He had a quick breakfast—light, since there would be a lot of food at the feast planned for that night—and strolled about, taking in the changes. Everyone was bustling about as usual, but now they chattered with excitement. Some people had hung decorations outside their tents: replicas of snowflakes made from white-painted sticks, candles with carved designs set on the ground, pine branches and snippets of other winter-blooming plants scattered about. Combined with the white layer of snow, it was quite beautiful.

Yet, Chase felt a pang somewhere deep in his chest. Last year, he’d spent Longest Night with his family and the rest of the village. There’d been town celebrations in the square. He helped Quentin carve his first candle. And now? Now, he didn’t know where his family was.

“Chase!”

He was snapped out of his melancholy thoughts when he heard someone call his name. In the middle of turning to see who it was, that ‘someone’ barrelled straight into him. “Oof!” He was about to respond, but found he couldn’t, because he’d been wrapped in a tight bear hug.

“Sorry, did I knock the wind out of you? Sorry!” Jackie was too full of energy to notice he apologized twice. He gave Chase one last squeeze before breaking off the hug.

“It’s okay, just give me more warning next time.” Chase took a minute to catch his breath. “Well. Happy Longest Night, then?”

“Happy Longest Night, then!” Jackie repeated. He whirled his cloak around dramatically. It was still red, but slightly nicer, with a fur lining. His wolf mask was pushed back, sitting on his forehead. “You know the plan, right? We’re having games all day. War games, dice games, card games—a few strategy games, too, the ones we have the boards for in storage. Then there’s the feast later, and the Dark Vigil tonight.”

“Yea, I understand,” Chase said, a faint smile on his face. He couldn’t help it; Jackie was contagious. “How many people will be at the Vigil?”

“A fair share. Schneep won’t; he does something at moonrise instead.” Jackie shrugged. “Are you planning to do any of the games? What about archery?!”

Chase laughed. “No, no, I’m not good enough to compete in a war game. I’ll probably just drift around and join in where I can. Do you think anyone will be playing Luck of the Deal? I’m very good at that.”

Jackie rolled his eyes. “Everyone’s good at Luck of the Deal. That’s the whole thing about it, it’s luck.”

“You don’t know that. There’s skill involved, too,” Chase insisted.

Jackie patted his shoulder. “Whatever you say, Hunter. It’ll be some time before everything really gets going. Anything you want to do before that?”

“Umm...” Chase thought about it. “Well, is there anything I can do to help with the feast preparations? That’s usually a community thing, isn’t it?”

“Well we already have a lot of volunteers for cooking. They’ve already gotten started, in fact.” Jackie thought about it. “But if you want to help, you could put your hunting skills to the test in the surrounding woods. Always good to have more food than less, on these occasions. People would eat their plates, if it was possible.”

Chase laughed. “Oh, I know that. Amabel would eat us out of home on Longest Night. She must’ve gotten her appetite from Stacia’s side of the family.” Saying their names, the melancholy threatened to return.

“Honestly? I have a confession.” Jackie leaned closer. “I’m one of those types, too.”

“Oh? Somehow, that makes sense.”

“And somehow I’m offended.” Jackie gave him a playful shove. “If you want to go ahead, you know where the shortbows and arrows are. Oh!” His eyes widened as he remembered something. “But try not to shoot any pigeons. Those are important.”

“Important?” Chase put the pieces together. “You mean...messenger birds?”

Jackie nodded. “I don’t expect anyone to send messages on the solstice except for an emergency, but there might be some arriving that were sent a fews days, or even a week, ago. It takes a while to fly across the island.”

“Got it. I won’t shoot any pigeons.” Chase shook his head, a bit in awe. “Messenger birds.” He’d heard of them, but never seen them in use. Somehow, they seemed almost as magical as actual magic. Getting letters sent across the kingdom in a matter of days? That was amazing. “I’ll just head out, then.”

“Good luck, Chase!” Jackie said cheerfully, waving as he turned to leave. “Be back before noon, that’s when the fun will start!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

If possible, it was even colder out in the forest, away from the magic heat of the dragon bones. Chase clutched his jacket tighter and made sure his hat was securely on his head. He doubted that he’d find any animals out here. By Longest Night, most of them were hibernating. But it was worth a shot.

Snow crunched under his feet, so he slowed down, carefully placing every step so it wouldn’t make too much noise. There wasn’t a lot of foliage to hide behind in the winter, but he had made sure to grab a white jacket from storage to help him blend in. He’d also turned his hat inside out so that the red ribbon around it didn’t show. After a while, he found what he thought was a good spot to wait. So he settled down, nocking an arrow so it would be ready to fly at any moment.

The world became very still. The only sound he heard was his breath, accompanied by the small puffs of mist that breath caused in the cold. He made sure not to move a muscle.

Until there was a sudden sound. Footsteps, very light, being pursued by much heavier ones. His eyes darted towards the sound. The bare branches of a bush rustled, and suddenly a streak of brown fur dashed out in front of him followed by something much larger—

Chase reacted, letting go of the bow string and loosing the arrow. It shot through the air and landed solidly in the brown furry something. Shocked, he laughed in the rush of actually shooting something moving that fast. But then a voice cried, “I knew it!”

“Wh...?” And Chase finally noticed what the large something pursuing the small animal actually was. He looked up from his position near the ground to see...Lukas. It took him a moment to recognize him without his usual fox mask, but once the brown-auburn hair and tall longbow registered, his heart immediately sank with dread. “What are you doing—”

Lukas took an arrow out of the quiver on his back and nocked it, aiming at Chase. “Did you think you could take me out when nobody was looking?! Claim it was an accident?!”

“What in the world?!” Chase stood up. Slowly, of course, he didn’t want to get skewered by that massive arrow. “What are you talking about?”

“Don’t try to play dumb, you just tried to kill me!”

“I was shooting the rabbit!” He pointed at the small animal, which was, in fact, a rabbit.

“A likely cover story.”

All of a sudden, Chase felt hot rage rise up his throat. “I know you hate me but you don’t have to be an idiot about it!” he burst out.

That seemed to take Lukas by surprise. He blinked, and lowered his bow slightly.

“I don’t know what kind of trust issues you have or where they come from, but I’m sick of you always acting this way! I’ve been here for almost a full season now, and you still act like I’m about to stab you in the back the first opportunity I get! I know, you’re probably thinking something like ‘he’s playing a long game to get everyone to trust him,’ but let’s be honest, you’re just looking for any justification to be like this. I wouldn’t trust someone like me in your position either, but I wouldn’t be so obvious about it. You don’t have to like me, you don’t have to trust me, but elders be damned, you don’t have to stir up this much trouble for Jackie and Henrik and everyone else here!” Chase ran out of breath and was forced to stop. He waited silently for Lukas’s reaction.

For a while, there wasn’t one. Lukas just...stared at him. Then he lowered his bow fully, putting the arrow back in its quiver. “What are you doing out here?” he asked in a carefully-neutral tone.

“We have some time before the real celebrations start, so I thought I’d help out by trying to find more food for the feast,” Chase explained. He walked past Lukas and picked up the rabbit, trying not to feel sad. Something about shooting rabbits made him feel guilty. Maybe he respected how hard they worked to stay alive, running so swiftly. Or maybe he thought they were cute. “What are you doing out here?”

“The same thing,” Lukas answered.

Chase snorted. “And you decided to bring that monster of a bow for hunting?”

“It’s more powerful than yours,” Lukas retorted.

“Yes, but it’s also heavier and more cumbersome. I remember my second day here, Holly said that big bows like that were more suited for long range, while shortbows—” Chase waved his bow as an example. “—are better for mobility. Look at all these trees. Do you think you’re able to shoot long range in a forest? Not to mention if you miss, you’ll end up burying your arrow in a tree with all the force you need to fire it. That’ll just be a pain to pull out.”

“I know all this,” Lukas said irritably. “But I’m most familiar with this style of bow. I can make it work.”

“Maybe if you weren’t stomping around the woods,” Chase muttered.

“Excuse me?”

“You were running after the rabbit. Bad idea; you’ll never catch up with them. It’s better to wait and let the animals come to you. If you have to move, be quieter about it. And slow. Conserve your energy; animals get tired faster than humans.” Chase glanced downwards. “You’re wearing heavy boots, I see. Those will make a lot of sound no matter how much you try to be quiet. And your clothes stand out, too. Especially that red band on your wrist. It’s bright and you have to hide it. Like I did.” He turns his cap right-side out again, letting the red ribbon show.

“Hmm.” Lukas eyed him. He did that quite a lot, but somehow, it felt different this time. More...respectful. “Well. I’ll keep that in mind.” He turned away.

“Um...right.” Now that Lukas was leaving, Chase felt the sudden energy that had filled him starting to fade away. “I’ll...see you at the celebrations, then.”

Lukas didn’t say anything, but he raised his hand in acknowledgement, not stopping as he headed back to camp.

Well...that wasn’t too bad, all things considered. Lukas clearly didn’t think worse of him. And he had managed to shoot a rabbit, something he’d rarely done in all his years as a hunter. Though he’d only done that because the rabbit was too busy running from Lukas to notice him crouching nearby. So really, he should thank him.

Maybe later. For now, Chase headed back to camp, ready to join in on the festivities.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   

By the time Chase returned to Wyvernlair, the festivities were starting to get underway. Games, mostly. People gathered in circles playing cards, or in threes playing dice, or in pairs playing board games. Others clustered around the players, watching the game and shouting encouragement. Some food was already prepared. Plates of sweet buns and meat pies were passed around. Chase grabbed a couple buns as he looked around.

But though the camp inside the circle of dragon bones was crowded, most people were out on the combat field. That was where the war games were set up. Chase decided to stop by for a moment. Even if he wasn’t going to participate, he wanted to see how things were going.

Targets were set up for archers to test their skill. People had grabbed close-quarters training weapons and were sparring, onlookers cheering on their favored winner. Someone had dragged over a rock and a large branch, setting up a makeshift see-saw that people were standing on top of, trying to knife-fight without losing their balance. Chase shook his head at that particular event. He himself had some scars on his hands from knife-fights as a young man; they really weren’t worth the bragging rights. 

There was an especially large crowd gathered around one particular sparring match. Chase stopped, edging his way into the mass of people as he tried to see what was going on. Wait a minute...was that Jackie?

Indeed, Jackie was one of the sparring participants. And he was easily outclassing his opponent. He easily danced around jabs and swipes, not striking for a while, then jumped forward and hit his opponent on the side with his wooden practice sword. The crowd cheered, and the two participants backed away, shaking hands as they parted. Chase could’ve sworn he saw money change hands among the watchers.

“Anyone want to go for another round?” Jackie called to the crowd. “Doesn’t have to be to the first contact. What about to the ground?”

At that, a tall man grabbed a practice sword from a nearby rack, stepped forward, and announced, “I accept the challenge!” The crowd cheered again. “To the ground!”

Jackie grinned. “To the ground! Someone give us a count!”

In unison, the crowd started chanting, counting down from five as Jackie and his opponent started circling each other. Chase joined in. “Five!...Four!...Three!...Two!...One!...Clash!”

The two men immediately started going at each other with the practice swords, jabbing and backing up, swiping and dodging. The new opponent tried to make use of his height advantage, but Jackie was just too fast. The sparring lasted a few minutes and the crowd was enthralled for every second. Until Jackie managed to get behind his opponent and knock out his legs, making him fall to the ground. The crowd cheered. The opponent got up, looking no worse for wear and in good spirits. He shook hands with Jackie before leaving. Now Chase was sure he saw people exchanging money.

“He’s got skill, doesn’t he?”

Chase looked up, and saw Holly standing beside him. “Oh. Yea, he’s really good.”

Holly laughed. “That’s an understatement. You know he trained at Fíornear Field?” Chase nodded. “Well, so did I. But he could beat me in a fight nine times out of ten.”

“Really?” Chase asked, interested. “That many times? I thought it would’ve been closer between you two.”

“Everyone does. I say it’s the size difference. But what Jackie lacks in height, he makes up for in practice and sheer determination.” Holly watched as Jackie started sparring with another opponent. “Anyway, Chase. Come to watch or try your hand?”

Chase laughed. “No, no, just watching.”

“Well. In that case.” Holly leaned closer. “Care to try for chance?”

“You mean betting? Don’t tempt me.” Chase shook his head. “Besides, I can tell that betting against Jackie is a waste of time and money.”

“Doesn’t have to be at this spar. There’s many more war games to be had. I hear there’s axe throwing.”

“Axe throwing?” Chase perked up. “Alright, I have to see that. Lead the way.”

Holly laughed, and the two of them left, heading towards a set of targets. Indeed, some people had taken up throwing axes at these targets. Not competing against each other at the moment, only themselves, and also showing off for the passersby. Chase watched as one of the axe-throwers hit the center of her target. Then, surprisingly, he recognized the axe-thrower. “Nemet!” he called.

Nemet turned around, smiling at him. “Hello, Chase! How are you?”

“I’m doing fine. What are you...uh...I didn’t know you threw axes.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Is it so unexpected?”

Chase shrugged. “Well, you’re a doctor.”

“I am. I am a doctor who likes to throw axes.” Nemet picked up a throwing axe on the ground beside her. She held it back, paused to aim, and threw. It landed right next to the last one she threw. Holly and Chase clapped, impressed.

“Wanna shoot something, Brodyson?”

Chase yelped in surprise at the voice that came from behind him. He spun around to see Tripp grinning up at him. “You did that on purpose,” he accused.

“Maybe,” Tripp said. He was tossing a rock back and forth between his hands. Getting bored of that, he threw it to the side. Magically, the rock curved around, shooting for the target, where it bounced off the handle of one of Nemet’s axes. “Ah, almost a bull’s eye. Anyway, wanna shoot something, Brodyson? We could have a triple competition, axes versus arrows versus sorcery.”

“Hmm.” Chase considered it. “You know I had only planned to watch, but...that doesn’t sound too bad.”

“Don’t let him pressure you if you don’t want to, Chase,” Nemet said.

“No, do let him pressure you, I want to see this!” Holly insisted.

Chase laughed. “Alright, fine. Just a few rounds.”

Though as the afternoon passed, those few rounds stretched out into many. Chase had never been one for war games, but somehow, he didn’t mind.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  

Eventually, of course, came the main draw of the winter celebrations: the feast. The people who’d volunteered to cook had been preparing food all day, and shortly before sunset, declared it ready. Instantly, a good half of everyone dropped what they were doing and headed over to the cooking fires.

Chase wasn’t sure what to expect from the feast. Wyvernlair didn’t use tables for food, so would everyone be standing around with plates? But it seemed as though they’d found tables, if just for today. Probably borrowed from storage. Some of the meat stayed on the skewer, roasting over the fires to keep it hot until someone wanted it. But most food was lined up on the tables, free to take. Sweet buns and meat pies, of course, but also preserved fruits that had been kept for a special occasion like this, and tarts covered in sugar, and pumpkin pie, and roasted potatoes, and more than could be counted.

Everyone ate until they couldn’t anymore, washing down the food with water, juice, and ale. Chase savored it, mingling and talking with the other Phantoms. And for once, he didn’t feel out of place here.

Time passed. The sun set. And as the feast died down, most people began talking about the Dark Vigil, the ceremony used to honor the Elder of Dark and thank them for protecting humankind from the shadows. Chase yawned. They’d be holding that in the center of camp, where a spot had been cleared specifically for that purpose. But it would be some time before everyone was ready. So, Chase decided to slip out. He headed towards the outside of the skeleton, away from the noise and bustle.

The stars were beautiful tonight. It was clear, without any clouds fogging the view, and the moon was nearly full. Chase leaned back against the bone and stared upward. He hadn’t really had the opportunity to appreciate the world lately. It was all busy, working with the Masked Phantoms. But it was nice to slow down for a moment.

Some minutes passed in silence. Then, he heard footsteps approaching. And then, a small thud, the sound of stumbling, and a muttered “Shiesse!”

Chase looked over towards the sounds, already grinning. “You doing alright there, Henrik?”

With a huff, Henrik emerged from the darkness. “I would be better if I know no one heard that,” he muttered.

Chase laughed. “Anyway, how’re you doing? I haven’t seen you all day.”

“Ah, I am fine.” Henrik leaned against the bone next to Chase. “I have been stuck in a dice game for most of the evening. I almost missed the moonrise.”

“I see. Jackie told me you had to do something around then. Is it like the Dark Vigil?” Chase asked.

“Similar, in ways. Different, in others.” Henrik looked up at the sky. He pointed upwards, at the moon. “She is beautiful tonight, yes? I never understood why your Elders never come from the sky.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“Well, I understand there is the Winged Elder One, but they are for more weather, yes?” Henrik kept his eyes fixed skywards. “None of them are for the heavens.”

“Well why would they be?” Chase shrugged. “The sky’s beautiful and wonderful. But it’s so far away. We live on the earth. Shouldn’t we be more concerned with what’s down here?”

“Hmm. Perhaps.” Henrik sighed. He reached down his belt, removing his flask and taking a drink.

“Oh—” Chase started to say something, then stopped. It would probably be rude to ask, wouldn’t it?

Henrik looked over at him, and guessed what he was about to say. “Yes, I am still taking the medicine. It is...not something that goes away.”

“Sorry,” Chase mumbled. “I shouldn’t have—”

“Is okay,” Henrik said, giving him a small smile. “You are polite about it, so I do not mind.” He returned the flask to his belt. “Ah, though I am afraid I must change the subject now. I just remembered. We managed to get the materials for more plaster this week. So you can finally have a mask of your own!”

“I can?” Chase repeated.

“No need to sound so surprised,” Henrik chuckled.

“I did? I didn’t mean to. It just seems a bit...unreal.” Chase had left his borrowed mask, the hedgehog one, back in his tent. Most people had—or at least he assumed they had, since most of them were walking around without them.

“Yes, I understand.” Henrik nodded thoughtfully. “Do you want to wait?”

“Wait no, I didn’t say that—”

“I am just making sure.” Henrik playfully nudged his shoulder. “You will need to choose an animal, you know. Do you have anything in mind?”

“Oh right. I forgot about that part.” Chase thought about it for a moment. “What about...a deer?”

Henrik raised an eyebrow. “A deer?”

“Is that not allowed? I mean, Tripp’s mask has those ram horns so I figured antlers would—”

“No, is not that, I just suppose I did not expect that.”

Chase shrugged. “I like deer. They’re good animals. Um...do I have to make the mask myself, or...?”

“You can if you want, but if you’re not artistically inclined, someone else could do it easily enough. It’s not that difficult if you are...” Henrik trailed off. He was staring out into the trees, eyes fixed on a point. “Chase. Is something moving there?” And he pointed.

“Hm?” Chase peered into the darkness. Indeed, he could see the faint movement of shadows. “Oh, yea. It’s probably just an animal.” He paused. “That’s...getting closer?”

They looked at each other, but unsure what to do with this information, just turned back to watch the animal get closer. And closer. It was too small to be a threat, but Chase felt Henrik tense anyway. Eventually, the animal got close enough to make out what it was. “A...cat?” Chase asked, confused.

“A cat,” Henrik agreed.

“What’s a cat doing all the way out here?”

“I am not sure...” Henrik said slowly, brows lowered as he thought through the possibilities.

The cat continued its course, walking in a straight line up to the two of them. Chase crouched down and held out his hand. “Here, kitty.” Once it was close enough, the cat sniffed his hand. Then, satisfied, butted its head against it. Chase laughed. “Y’know I haven’t met that many cats. When I was young, maybe about twelve, Pastor Cait had a cat. We joked about that, since her name was so similar, ha. But it’s gone now. I don’t think the town had another cat since then. A couple dogs, but no cats.” He reached out and petted it. And after a few seconds of that, scooped up the cat and stood. “Does someone here have a cat?”

“No, there are no animals in camp,” Henrik said, still puzzled. “Does it have a collar?”

Chase checked. Difficult, given that the cat clearly didn’t like being held and was wriggling a bit. “Yea, right here.” He pointed to a braided leather collar around the cat’s neck. “No name, though. For the cat or its person.”

“Well. It is cold and snowy, and even with that fur, I don’t think the cat enjoys being out here,” Henrik stated. “Maybe we should take it into camp? We have that fire set up in the skull now, that could warm it up.”

“Good idea.”

The two of them headed back, passing between the dragon bones and into the main body of Wyvernlair. By now, the festivities were starting to die down. Games were ending, and a lot of people were getting ready to attend the Dark Vigil. Chase and Henrik walked quickly by, since the cat was really struggling against being held by this point. Luckily, it hadn’t used its claws yet, but Chase could already feel them digging into the fabric of his jacket.

They reached the skull soon, passing through the gap where it joined the rest of the bones and ending up inside. It was almost empty here. Except for two people and several birds. Chase blinked a bit at the surprising sight, but then remembered what Jackie had told him that morning. So these must be messenger birds, then. There were about seven of them, pigeons in a variety of colors; white, gray, brown, spotted. Actually, Jackie was here, too. Along with Ana, who Chase had figured out by now was the head of organization at Wyvernlair. They both seemed rather impatient, quickly putting away documents. Probably heading to the Vigil like most others.

Ana looked up, noticed Chase and Henrik, then turned to Jackie and said, “It’s your best friend and his best friend. They have a cat.”

“They have a what?” Jackie spun to look at them. “Oh elders, you have a cat. Where’d you get a cat?”

“It just wandered up,” Chase said. “We thought it might like to get out of the cold—ow!” The cat dug its claws into his skin, managing to pierce the jacket, and Chase instinctively opened his arms. Of course, the cat landed on its feet, and trotted over to the side of the fire, which was slowly dying but still giving off a lot of heat.

“I’ve never seen a cat like that before,” Jackie muttered. “That’s a really unique pattern, isn’t it?” The cat was mostly a brownish off-white, but its ears and tails were dark gray, almost black, and the tail had rings of lighter gray. Its legs were striped with light brown, and it had markings on its face of the same color. Big blue eyes stared up at the strange people.

“Oh!” Henrik’s eyes lit up. “I had not noticed outside! It was fairly dark. Oh, you are a pretty kitty, aren’t you?” He slowly approached the cat, and when it didn’t run away, bent over and started petting it.

Meanwhile, Ana was bored, and anxious to leave. She looked at Chase, and her eyes lit up with a strangely sly expression. “Hey, it’s Chase, isn’t it? Do you mind helping me open this?” She held out a small tube made of metal and leather. “I’ve been trying for a while, I think it’s stuck.”

“Um..sure,” Chase said warily. Was this going to be a joke of some kind? He took the small tube and turned it over in his hands. There was a door on the side of it, and after some effort, he figured out how to open it. Out fell three items. Two folded pieces of paper, made of pressed wood pulp and therefore pale brown, and a rolled-up piece of vellum tied with twine. “What’s this?”

“Messages,” Ana said, grinning. “Can you see names written on them?”

Chase looked down at the items, sorting through them. There was writing on the folded papers, but...well, it could just be his lack of reading skills, but it looked like absolute nonsense. “These are names?” he asked doubtfully.

Jackie and Henrik looked away from the cat, noticing the exchange between Chase and Ana. “What do you mean?” Jackie asked.

“These words written here, these are...names?” Chase shook his head. “I’ve just never heard names like this before. Um...here, I-I’ll try to read them. Uh...” He squinted at the writing in ink on the two papers. “This one is ‘Ee-uh-oo-koh’ and this one is...um...‘Ffssehffmuh.’ I think? The handwriting could be—”

Henrik’s eyes widened. Suddenly, he was right next to Chase, grabbing his arm and squeezing it tightly. “What is it?! The two papers?! Which one is—that one, can I see that one?”

“Whoa, hey, calm down!” Chase leaned back. “You mean this one?” He held out the paper with the ‘Fsefma’ name on it.

“Yes!” Henrik snatched it up, then retreated, unfolding it.

Jackie leaned over his shoulder, then grinned. “Oh, I see. Vsevna sent you a little letter, didn’t he? What’s it say? Is he confessing his love?”

“Shut up, Jackie,” Henrik said, holding the letter far away from him so he couldn’t read it. “Is just another report.”

Jackie laughed. “Yea, with your name on it. Come on, Henrik.”

“That does not mean anything.”

Chase, listening, raised an eyebrow. “So...I don’t know everything that’s going on, but I think I can figure out that this Fsefna person—”

“Vsevna,” Henrik corrected.

“...Vsefna—”

“Vsevna. It is important that you voice those sounds.”

“He’s the person you’re pining for, huh, Henrik?” Chase pressed on.

Henrik was slowly turning red. “I say nothing.”

“Right,” Chase said, grinning. “So, who is he?”

“He’s another one of the Phantoms,” Jackie said, sensing that Henrik wasn’t going to answer. “He and Yuko—that’s the other name on that second paper. Last we heard, they were in the Southern Moors with the rest of their crew. They said they’d scout it out for a bit more, then move on. These are probably their reports. Or...Yuko’s is a report, at least.”

“Shush,” Henrik muttered. He retreated a few steps away from the others, clutching the letter. As he passed Ana, he shot her a glare. “You make Chase open that on purpose.”

Ana just smiled. “Same results, right? Anyway, that’s the last capsule. Do you mind if I head out now?”

“No, go ahead, Ana. Send Harrison to take care of the birds,” Jackie said. She nodded, and left the skull. He then looked at Chase. “Uh...can I have the other two things?”

“Oh right.” Chase forgot he was still holding the other paper and the vellum scroll. He handed them over to Jackie, and the metal tube as well. “I’m surprised. That’s a lot for a bird to carry.”

“Well these guys are trained for it.” Jackie gestured at the pigeons, now strutting around the table. “Especially Mokin here, who had this stuff.” He patted the wings of a particular pigeon, mostly white but with brown wings, which had strangely curly feathers. “They all deserve the best seeds before we send them out again. Anyway.” Jackie unfolded the paper with Yuko’s name on it, scanning the words written there. At first, he looked excited to get a letter from this person. But the more he read, the more serious his expression became. “Henrik.”

Henrik looked away from his own letter, picking up on the tone in Jackie’s voice. “What is it?”

“I...read this while I open this scroll.” Jackie passed Henrik the letter, then began working on the twine knot holding the vellum shut.

Henrik read the letter quickly, and soon his expression matched Jackie’s. “Oh. Oh, Schwestern. Oh, no.”

Chase started to back up, feeling he shouldn’t listen to something like this. But Jackie noticed him leaving and said, “No, it’s fine, Chase. We should tell everyone this, anyway. Tomorrow, maybe.”

“What is it?” Chase asked anxiously.

“Well...you remember we told you about Marvin, right?” Jackie said slowly. “About how he went out on his own and we sometimes get reports of him?” He waited for Chase to nod before continuing. “This...was a report about him. Apparently, he was in the Moors. But...he didn’t just cause chaos and leave. He’s been...caught.”

“Caught?” Chase repeated numbly.

Jackie managed to untie the twine, and unrolled the vellum, scanning what was written there. He nodded grimly. “Yep. You know what this is?” He turned it around so Chase could see.

“That’s...a royal declaration, isn’t it?” Chase asked slowly. He recognized the format, and the royal seal in the corner. “Um...‘The King...announces a...mighty...triumph.’”

“You do not have to keep going, Chase,” Henrik said bitterly. “There are better words to read than that.” He took the declaration from Jackie, glancing at it for just a moment. “I see. Marvin is accused of attempting to kill the King and some other nobility. They caught him in the act, and now...they plan to execute him. Four weeks from now.”

Jackie looked over at the cat, now sitting and licking its paws, and gasped. “Henrik. You don’t think that’s his cat, do you?!”

“What? I suppose perhaps. But if it is, how did it get all the way up here?” Henrik sounded puzzled. “It takes a week or two to get to the Moors from here, and that is for humans on horseback. For a cat...”

“Wizardry?” Jackie guessed. “I don’t know, it was just a thought, since he likes cats so much.”

Everyone fell silent. Henrik looked back at the royal declaration, reading it slowly, taking in the information. “So...how are we going to do this?”

“Do what?” Jackie asked.

Henrik stared at him in surprise. “Well, we have to rescue him, of course.” Jackie didn’t say anything. “Do not tell me that you’re going to let your grudge stand in the way!”

“No, it’s not that!” Jackie protested. “It’s just—you read the letter, right? Yuko said that these declarations were sent everywhere. Since when has the King announced his next move like this? Everything he does, he does in secret. I mean, damn, the Phantoms are just rumors, and we’ve been taking serious action for years now. He’s hushed up so much, why wouldn’t he just make Marvin...you know, disappear? Why a public execution?”

“You think it is a trap,” Henrik stated.

“Well...yes,” Jackie admitted.

“That is fair, but if it’s a trap, who is he planning to catch? If he wants information about us, he could get it from Marvin.”

“But Marvin hasn’t been part of the group for a year now! His information would be out of date.”

“This does not change the fact that there is no guarantee it’s a trap in the first place. Perhaps he wants to strike fear into the population. Given his actions, it seems likely.”

“If it does turn out to be a trap, though, we can’t afford to lose anyone!”

Chase coughed awkwardly. Jackie and Henrik jumped, then turned to him, looking embarrassed to be fighting while he was still there. “You know...I don’t know if I have any place in this. I mean, you two are in charge, after all. But...I think you should try to get him back.”

Henrik and Jackie looked at each other, then back to Chase. “Are you trying to say something?” Jackie asked.

“I just...” Chase paused for a moment, searching for the words. “I don’t think...you should leave someone behind. He was still part of the Phantoms, right? Didn’t he help create it? A-and weren’t you three...Well. You don’t have to talk to him after we rescue him, but it just doesn’t seem right to leave someone behind in this situation. I know you had your fight and all, but maybe...this could be...you know.” He paused. “Also, I want to know if this cat is his or if some random cat just wandered by.”

Jackie laughed. “Yea, that would be good to know, wouldn’t it?” He sighed, and his expression fell, becoming serious as he was lost in thought.

Henrik leaned closer to him and rested a hand on his shoulder. “Jackie. Chase is right, this does not mean he is rejoining the group. You do not even have to go. But...we should do it. Marvin does not deserve this.”

After a moment, Jackie nodded. “You’re both right. Of course. Even though he was an ass last time we talked, that doesn’t mean I want Marvin dead.” He took a deep breath. “But we should prepare for the possibility of a trap. Just in case.”

“Of course we will,” Henrik assured him.

“...Hey. Chase.” Jackie gave him a smile. “Thank you. I-I don’t know what it is about you, but you know what to say. It’s really easy to talk to you about stuff like this.”

“It’s not a problem,” Chase said, returning the smile. “But, um...I think the Vigil is happening soon, so if we want to go—”

“Shit, I almost forgot about that!” Jackie gasped. “Henrik, I don’t want to leave the cat alone, can you look after it or something?”

“Don’t worry, I will take it to my tent,” Henrik said. “You two go and...is it alright to wish you fun? In a ceremony like this?”

“Come on, Schneep, you’ve lived here for over a decade, don’t talk like it’s so strange to you,” Jackie chuckled.

“I think it’s fun,” Chase said.

“Well, you two go have fun, then,” Henrik said. “I will see you later. Tomorrow, if not tonight.”

“Thanks, Schneep.” Jackie gave him a quick one-armed hug, then headed towards the skull entrance. “Let’s go, Chase. We don’t want to be late.”

They almost were. The Dark Vigil was about to start when they arrived, shuffling into the crowd. Everyone stood in a circle around a set of candles, one blue and the rest black, which were in turn set in a circle around several smooth, round pieces of black onyx. Three people stood inside, lighting the candles.

After the candles were alight, everyone sat on the ground, clashing a bit as they all tried to make room. Then once everyone was sitting with their legs crossed, the three in the center started the Vigil. They spoke the traditional lines, describing the Elder of Dark—their vague appearance, their actions, their history with the other Elders—and finished it by thanking them for their guardianship. Everyone joined in on the final part: “As you stand and watch vigil, so shall we this night.” And then silence fell.

During the silence of the Dark Vigil, each individual offered their thoughts about those who needed protection. In the past, Chase had asked for his family to be alright. For them all to stay healthy and happy. Today, he asked for that again. He wished, silently, desperately, for them to be safe. And not just them, but everyone else who had disappeared from his town, as well as all the other mountain towns that had been destroyed. He thought about Henrik and Jackie and all the other Phantoms he’d met here, and wished for them to have luck in this fight against the King. He thought about Marvin, someone who he’d never met but who was dear to his friends, and wished for them to be able to rescue him.

As Chase stared at the candle flames, he thought he saw...something. He wasn’t sure what. A shape in the smoke. The shape of a four-legged animal, with...antlers. A deer.

Then as was the tradition, the candles were extinguished, and the night was left in darkness.

[kats-random-writing]

Happy New Year

Happy New Year Everyone!! we made it! its been one hell of a year, but we did it, I gotta say I’m so proud of everyone! ❤️

also! looks who’s back writing agin? ME, i hope you like this fic, its a little longer then a drabble cuz I’m a wordy bitch apparently, but i like it and hope you guys do to, all art in this fic was by me too.

Happy New Year

Shigaraki X Reader

 1475 words

16+ please, theres swearing and stuff, also mention of unwanted touching. 

_______________________________________________________________________

The league was your home, you were surprised how easily you fit in, but I guess when you put a bunch of “misfits” together they all know how it feels to be an outcast.  

You joined shortly after Toga and Dabi, but not for the same reasons, see they followed stain, you not so much, you believed in Shigaraki.  You’d been following his exploits as best you could, and had seen his growth from inexperienced leader to now, a terrifying force to be reckoned with.  You believed in him.  And it had nothing to do with the fact that you kind of thought he was attractive. Nope! Definitely not! He was a good leader for a cause you believed in, that’s it, totally!

Moving in the league, was…..not what you expected, it was chaotic, loud, and perfect.  Everyone took care of each other, they also loved to annoy one another. Like you said, it’s  your home, and the rest of the “villains”, your family.

You had all been ordered to lay low over the holidays, expecting more hero movement on the surface, it was the safest thing to do. So all of you were piled in the common space before the bar, it had shitty decorations courtesy of Toga and Yourself. Nobody really argued so they stayed up, even though Christmas was over and it was New Year’s Eve. 

“So then I punched him, and his nose started to bleed!” Togas excited tone pulled you from your thoughts, “IT WAS SO CUTE! ALL THAT BLOOD, ALL OVER HIS FACE!.....he ran away though” she puzzled. 

“Yeah cuz you punched him, crazy!” Dabi threw back his head  laughing.  Toga pouted and reached out to smack him

 “HEY! Don’t be rude! He looked better with the blood, besides at least he wanted to kiss me!” She said triumphantly, “it’s not like you have people lining up to kiss you!” She threw back at him.

He rolled his eyes, and smirked, pulling his stapes in a way you thought must hurt

 “You’d be surprised” 

“NO WAY”

 Laughter erupted around the room, as you watched Dabi just sip his drink, the smirk never leaving his face. 

“Why are you all so fucking loud?” A new voice joins the conversation as your leader Shigaraki trudges into the room, “it’s almost midnight, I’m trying to sleep” 

He makes his way across the room to his empty armchair.  

“I’m sorry! ~BUT ITS NEW YEARS~”  twice manages to interrupt himself to answer Shigaraki. 

“We’re staying in tonight like you ordered”  Dabi glares “Since it’s “too dangerous”” the patchwork villain air quoted around dangerous.  

“Yeah! New Years should be out! Having fun, meeting cute people to kiss!” Toga chimed in! 

“Whatever” is the only response you get.

“Your turn y/n!” Twice near shouts, reviving the conversation, “best~OR WORST~ New Years ~ KISS~” 

Your cheeks redden at the thought of going into detail of some of your New Years of the past, 

“Um, well…...OH OKAY! Got one, so this one time a few years ago I was at the bar, right. And I’m talking with this guy all night and we’re hitting it off~” you realize you now have ALL eyes on you, and your cheeks fade back to that deep crimson. “~ and um, yeah so we do the count down and at midnight we kiss and, ok he was shit at kissing anyways so my plans for the evening are shot already, THEN! IN. THE. BAR. this motherfucker tries to feel me up! So I’m like “no let’s just kiss, Kay?” Rolling your eyes you continue 

“He’s like sure thing babe” you here a few chuckles your deepened “dude bro” voice.

“Then this asshole immediately starts groping me again” 

“Fucker” 

“No way”

“Ew~WHAT A HORRIBLE MAN”

As you could’ve predicted all your friends exclaimed in disgust.  But there’s voice you didn’t expect 

“What did you do?” 

His red eyes seem to stare into your very soul, as his left hand reaches up to start scratching his neck.  Your cheeks darken again, you swear you're probably as red as his eyes, not that you’ve taken much time thinking about his eyes, or him, totally.

“Um well….I..I...I” you stutter under his gaze, “I uh, hehe, I pulled his hand off me, and  broke his wrist, Then left” you shrug and try to sound nonchalant, a hard thing to do when Shigaraki is staring you down, like he can’t decide whether to hug you or kill you.  You don’t even hear the rest of your friends' responses to your story, not until Shigaraki nods and turns his stunning eyes from yours.

“TWO MINUTES UNTIL MIDNIGHT!! Kurogiri! Turn on the tv!” 

The shadowy man behind the bar simply nods before picking up the remote and turning on the New Years count down

“Oh great leader” Dabi begins sarcastically “what about you?  Best, worst…..or any, New Year’s Eve kisses to date.” 

The hush that fell over the small room was deafening....and if you thought your blush was bad going into your own kissing stories - you must look like a  lobster thinking about hearing Shigaraki’s.

All eyes shift between the two men, until finally 

“fuck off you burnt chicken nugget” 

“I guess that answers that question” Dabi laughs as he rises from his seat, reaching for his jacket. “ I’m gonna go to the roof for a smoke” 

“But you're gonna miss the countdown!” Toga wines.

“And? Not like I’m gonna kiss any of you.” He states as he walks down the hall and out of sight. 

While toga drags on about Dabi abandoning the group, a realization dawns on you, as though someone striped away all the clouds and the sun was shining on you for the first time, Shigaraki, you long time -totally not crush- has never had a New Years kiss.  This revelation also gives you an idea.  And whether it’s a good or bad idea you're still not sure but for now? You’ve made up your mind.  It’s the perfect time to make your move.  You look at the tv one last time, less than a minute. Your heart feels like it’s gonna beat out of your chest.  

You rise from your seat and go stand next to Toga, and try to turn your attention back to the screen.

Ten

Nine

Eight

~holy shit~

Seven

~you’re actually about to do it~

Six

Five 

Four

~shitshitshitshitshit~

Three

Two

~here goes nothing~

One

HAPPY NEW YEAR 

As Twice and Toga cheer you reach and grab Togas face to quickly press a kiss to her cheek, she quickly grabs your face to kiss your cheek as well.  She also lightly bites your cheek before releasing you, both giggling. 

You quickly cross the room to Twice, holding your hands out, letting him close the distance he places his masked face into your waiting hands.  You lean down to kiss his forehead. “happy new year~I LOVE YOU!”

                                          You swear you float across the room, your pounding heart is all you can hear, the heat in your cheeks, all you can feel and as you look up again you are standing before Shigaraki Tomura. 

He’s of course looking down at his phone.

You take a breath, then another.  Then reach down placing one hand on the chair behind his head, bringing his attention to you, your right hand you reach under to hold his chin, and guide his head up so your eyes meet.

Looking deeply for any sign he might be truly uncomfortable, but you only see shock, confusion and maybe even a hint of excitement. You gaze down to his lips, while licking your own whisper “happy new year Tomura” and bringing your head down, to finally touch your lips to his.

He’s stiff, frozen and for a moment your terrified you’ve made a mistake, you hold steady and continue the kiss, and after a few seconds he melts into your touch, tilting his head to match you and opening himself up to you, quickly you step closer to him, making him arch his back to continue the contact, you move your hands sending one  to cup his face and the other to run through his hair, his hands alternate between the chair arms and space between your bodies. 

Your both breathing heavy, when you hear “Y/N…..Holy shit” 

Snapping back to reality to realize all eyes are locked onto the two of you, Twices head snapping between you and Tomura, and Toga.  It was Toga who spoke, she’s still standing wide eyed and mouth hanging open. 

“Happy new year??” You shrug as you sit down on Shigaraki’s lap, his arms protectively wrap around you, careful not to actually touch you with his gloved fingers. You smile and think to yourself, it’s gonna be a good year!

[andypantsx3]

in cinders | 2 | preparations

pairing: Todoroki Shouto / Reader

length: 24,362 words / 9 chapters

summary: You’re just trying to fairy godmother your best friend into a happily ever after. If only the prince would stop hanging around and cooperate.

tags: cinderella AU, prince!Shouto, romance, misunderstandings, reader-insert

warnings: aged up characters, eventual smut

In the weeks that led up to the ball, you had your hands full.

Literally, some days, since your plans relied heavily on your long history of bribery via pastry.

Hagakure, Ashido, and Kaminari had not been easy to convince. You’d had to beg and plead and pilfer any sweet cake you could get your hands on, cashing in every favor and ounce of goodwill you’d stored up over the long years. Between your shifts, you’d spent almost every hour of the last weeks in their respective quarters, pleading with them sometimes into the wee hours of the morning. Kaminari had required the firmest touch, scared out of his mind at the thought of retribution from the notoriously foul-tempered Captain Bakugou for leaving his post.

But one week out from the ball, you had the makings of a plan and the raw materials needed for its implementation.

The one unexpected hurdle was Ochako herself.

“Go to the ball?” she gasped the evening when you revealed your plan. “Me?”

The two of you had been readying for bed in the small storage room that doubled as your shared sleeping quarters. She stood frozen over her bed where she’d been about to climb in.

You smiled coaxingly. “Just picture it, Ochako! The pink fluffy dress! Dancing with a handsome noble! I have it all arranged.”

She looked doubtful. “I don’t know about all this.”

You fixed her with a dead-eyed look. “Have I ever led you astray?”

She stared back. “Well, no, but--”

You waved her off. “Then just trust me.”

She stayed standing as you flopped onto your straw pallet. A stalk had escaped from its covering and poked you insistently in the back.

“Ochako, I want you to be happy,” you said, sighing.

She blinked. “Are you sure this has nothing to do with getting back at Kamiko for what she said the other week?”

You couldn’t help the guilty look that flashed across your face. “Only a little.”

Ochako huffed a small laugh, but quickly sobered. “Y/N, you’ll be whipped if they find you out. And me!”

You shot up in bed. “They won’t! And I wouldn’t let anything happen to you. I have a plan.”

Ochako finally sank into the straw of her own mattress. “I don’t even know how to dance.”

You grinned. “You will tomorrow morning. I roped the palace dance instructor into teaching you a few basic steps. Did you know honey cakes are her husband’s secret weakness?”

Ochako fidgeted. “Y/N, I have work tomorrow morning.”

You stretched. “No, I have work tomorrow morning. Your half day of rest has mysteriously been extended.”

You heard the straw of her mattress rustle. “You...you shouldn’t have done this for me.”

You smiled to yourself. “Maybe not, but at this point I’ve filched so many pastries that we might as well see it through.”

A soft chuckle issued from her side of the room. “You must really love cleaning those fireplaces. The housekeeper will be so furious if she finds out - she’ll have you up to your eyeballs in the kitchen hearths for the rest of your days.”

You laughed. “Lucky for me I look rather fetching in black.”

She laughed again before a friendly silence descended on the room, and you heard no more argument from her. You dropped off to sleep, satisfied.

In the morning, you were less satisfied having to be out of bed in the cold, pre-dawn hours on what was usually your one morning off. But it was worth it for Ochako. Almost more than that, it was worth it entirely for the purpose of wiping the smug smile off Kamiko’s infuriatingly cherubic face. Ochako was going to become a fucking princess, as far as you were concerned, and if all went well, she could have you trained to be her ladies’ maid.

As you let yourself into the kitchens to light the fires and put on water for the morning's tea, you let yourself imagine it, smugly watching Kamiko clean the chambers of the girl she had once made fun of. If you planned on calling for Ochako’s linens to be changed way more often than was necessary, well, that was nobody’s business but your own.

The chambermaid in question eyed you suspiciously when she came into the kitchens hours later for her breakfast. “Isn’t it Ochako’s morning to be on shift? Where is the little wench?”

You shrugged, stoking the fire with more interest than usual. “She’s not feeling well. I’m to cover her morning off. Got her schedule memorized, do you?”

Kamiko wore an expression like she’d bit into a tart to find it full of ants. “Don’t test me, cinders. I’d hate for Rikido to have to look into where all his missing sweets have gone.”

You froze, then forced yourself to relax. There was no way for her to know you’d been running a small but successful pastry ring out of the kitchen for years. If she had, you’d have already been reported into your next lifetime.

“I’m sure I don’t know what you mean.” You fixed her with your most innocent look.

She sneered, “I’m sure you don’t.”

You rolled your eyes but ignored her and set about the rest of your work with enthusiasm. Right at this very minute Ochako was learning the steps that would waltz her straight onto the throne. Petty revenge could come later.

The rest of the day dragged, but you attacked your chores with unusual vigor. At night, you returned to your room to find Ochako bouncing excitedly around the room, sweeping into elegant curtsies.

“Y/N!” she exclaimed as you entered, looking tired but pleased. “You’re back!”

You sank thankfully onto your pallet, glad to be off your feet. “How’d it go?”

“Wonderful!” she smiled. “Dance mistress says my steps are rather basic at this point, but they would go a long way in getting me through any fete.”

You chuckled. “Little does she know which fete.”

Ochako smiled. “Do you really think I’ll look like I belong?”

You sat up and rustled around underneath your pallet, digging out something blindly pink and thrusting it in front of her.

“With this, you will,” you gestured with it meaningfully. Ochako took in the sight of the dress, eyes widening.

Though unfinished, you thought you’d done a rather good job. With Mina’s help, you’d been able to procure enough of the bright fabric and tailor it to current trends. The bodice was close-fit to the torso, but swept out in a dramatic waterfall of fabric at the hips, meant to emphasize the wearer’s hourglass shape. Mina’s tiny, perfect stitches decorated the collar and sleeves, while your own fumbling attempts had been hidden closer to the waist and skirt hem, further from the eye. Once the dress was set with the lace Hagakure had ferreted out of the laundry rooms, Ochako would be indistinguishable from any noblewoman in that room.

Ochako gasped. “It’s perfect!”

You smirked, then turned to your mattress, pulling out a matching mask, embroidered with small roses done in a light pink thread. It was much better than your stitching on her dress. This, you thought, was your masterwork. A perfect example that you would be well-suited to being Ochako’s ladies’ maid, once given the proper training.

“Y/N, I can’t believe this!” she said, taking the mask and dress in hand. She ran her fingers over it lovingly, the way you’d been setting a proprietary hand to the prince’s birthday books. You could tell she liked it.

“You may repay me in a tidal wave of fine foods once you’re a noblewoman,” you laughed. "You can teach me how to read and let me spend Sundays lounging."

She blushed. “You don’t actually think I’d catch anyone’s eye.”

You certainly did. Ochako was shy, but there was no arguing her good looks. Even without her sweet-tempered charm, she could have reeled Prince Shouto in by her cute face and ample bosom alone.

“Of course you will,” you said. “If you don’t have at least three proposals by the end of the night, I will eat Kamiko’s apron.”

She chuckled. “Why Kamiko’s?”

“Well if you don't, I'll still need mine, won’t I?”

She laughed again, and you took the garments from her, stowing them safely away under your mattress again.

The two of you settled down to bed, feeling giddy. Only three more days, you thought, until your weeks of work paid off.

The three days passed quickly in a flurry of chores and midnight sewing. Your fingers were raw from the stitching and you spent every shift bleary-eyed from the nights spent hunched over Ochako’s dress, but this was the evening it would all become worth it.

Or it would be, if Ochako hadn’t suddenly come down with a case of cold feet.

“I don’t think I can do it,” she fretted that morning, spooning over her thick porridge. “I feel sick.”

You gaped at her. “Ochako, you will climb into that fluffy monstrosity or so help me I will feed you to Captain Bakugou.”

This didn’t even make her laugh and your heart thumped in your chest. Was she really going to back out? Did she really feel so self-consciously? You hadn’t accounted for this in your plan.

“You have to go,” you said, feeling a little brittle yourself. “Ochako, you’ve wanted to so badly.”

She scratched a pale fingertip against the rough wood of the servant’s dining table. “I don’t know if I can. I’m so nervous.”

You ducked down to look into her face. “You’re going to look so beautiful and you know the dances,” you said. “You’re going to be incredible. What more would make you less nervous?”

She was silent a moment, the scritch of her nail the only sound in the drafty dark of the pre-dawn kitchens.

“Would you go with me?”

You raised an eyebrow. “What?”

“To the ball!” she said, turning to you. “You could come with me!”

You scowled. You had in no way intended to go to the ball yourself, looking forward to spending the evening most servants had off tucked up in your bed with the scraps from the dinner preparations. You’d been eyeing the buckwheat noodles the prince so loved and had fully intended to see what all the fuss had been about.

Besides that, you’d only accounted for Ochako going. You’d produced one dress and one mask, and even those had taken weeks of multiple people pinching fabrics and sewing late into the night. It wasn't like you could magic more garments out of the air.

“Ochako, I don’t have any clothes,” you said. “I can’t go.”

“Please!” she cried, latching on to one of your threadbare sleeves. “I don’t think I can do it without you.”

You were saved from responding by the first trickle of servants pouring into the kitchens for breakfast. You closed your mouth, thinking hard as you got up to fetch hot water for those stations above you, serving them tea and fetching them plates.

An idea had dawned on you by the time the crush of servants cleared out after their hasty breakfasts. The thought of pulling it off made you stiff with fear - as there were so many factors that could go wrong -- but it was worth the risk.

You thought about it long into the day, Ochako shooting you nervous looks. You would have to be careful, but you thought you could make it work.

As the day faded, the lanterns were lit. The ball would begin soon, and servants made their way to an early bed. You left Ochako to prepare in your bedroom, stealing into the dark and empty laundry rooms.

If Ochako wanted you to be there, then you would make it happen. You were going to fairy godmother this self-conscious girl into a happily ever after.

[ethanharli]

Requested: Nah.

Pairing(s): Asra x Top Male Reader

Warning(s): Some Angst, Flashbacks, Mentions of heartbreak, Sudden confession, Cliffhanger, Long, Sister Nadia.

A/n- I brought this over from my Wattpad, and I edited it a bit but this is the longest One-Shot I've ever made, just fifty words away from three thousand :")).

_______________

A frustrated groan slipped past my lips as I fumbled with the sleeves of my costume, it may sound silly but its true. I refuse to wear anything that could reveal my torso, besides my face of course but that's only because its not covered in ink. Now don't get me wrong, the art adoring my body is nothing but beautiful, yet some of its a bit much for the public eye, and I hate attention. Guess Muriel and I are the same in that regard. After adjusting the sleeves I slipped on my rings and emerald necklace that clung tightly around my throat, which didn't bother me in the slightest bit as I drag my pierced tongue over my bottom lip. Finishing up with a few things I quickly locked up my house and headed on my way to the palace, Nadia had invited me over for the Masquerade this year since the last one ended with Lucio and the Devil trying to take over.

I really have to admire that apprentice, their magic is quiet fascinating. With a small smirk I slipped on my wolfs mask, nothing original but the black and vibrant neon of purple and green helping it stand out, even if only by the slightest. The journey to the palace was quite fun, watching people light up fireworks and drink to their hearts content without a worry in the world. Yet it was a whole new world once I entered the palace gates, making my way towards the ball room in hopes to run into my sister, but Nadia is nowhere to be found. "Should've expected as much, she is the Countess after all" I muttered with a proud smile, if only my familiar where here to keep me company but sadly having a grey wolf in this crowd isn't such a good idea, poor thing would be trampled despite her large size.

Taking a glass of wine I sipped it slowly, enjoying the bubbly feeling of it going down my throat. Yet a slither around my ankle caught my attention, and I froze at the sight of a familiar snake, looking up at me with their cute tilted head. "Friend!" Faust cheered, happily slithering up my body to rest on my shoulders, "Yes Faust, it's good to see you again" A pained smile forced at my lips, scratching softly under Faust's chin. If Faust's here then Asra and his apprentice must be close by, I should've expected as much. "Miss you" My heart tightened at the words, forcing the breath out my lungs painfully, and here I thought I could enjoy the Masquerade without running into anyone else, but I guess even an over packed Masquerade can't hide me from them. "I missed you too Faust-" My words were cut off by a familiar voice, merely a couple feet behind me, yelling for the beautiful creature wrapped around my shoulders.

"Im sorry Faust but I really should be leaving, please don't tell Asra I was here alright?" I asked as worry started to pool in the pit of my stomach, however Faust simply tilted her head, watching me curiously. Nevertheless I made a slow pace to the exit, not wanting to rise any sort of suspicion as Asra yells a bit louder. And there he is, my savior. Putting on a small smile I took a drink from a waiters tray, walking up to Julian without seeming any bit out of place, then once the right moment hit I brushed my shoulder against his and shrugged Faust onto him, not once turning back to look at them. However I knew I wasn't out in the clear just yet since a pair of eyes followed me as I left the room.

Being out in the hall felt a lot better then being so close to him. Especially when I'm not ready to face him just yet, hell I don't even think I have the power to look at him without freezing up, how stupid of me to think I could come back here. "[Y/n]?" The sound of Nadia's voice finally got me to relax a bit, letting the tension in my shoulders drop, "Hey Sis, it's been a while" I smiled down at her, watching as her eyes soften before pulling me into a tight embrace that I gladly returned. "Where'd you go? You told me that you were going to talk to Asra after what happened with Lucio and the Devil but it was only him that came back, he said he didn't know where you ran off to and when I tried to ask what happened he'd never answer!" Her crimson eyes glare up at me as they slowly fill with tears that I quickly brushed away.

"Its okay Nadi, Im back now and I plan to stay, I missed my little sister way to much to be gone for so long" I chuckled, trying to lighten up the mood even only for a second, before she looks at my costume with not very well hidden disgust. "You've really never had an eye for fashion have you?" She sighs, taking my hand and dragging me down the hall where Portia was standing. Once her eyes met mine her face lit up in realization, "[Y/n]! You're back!" She jumped up to hug me, which I returned with a ruffle of her long hair.

"Portia could you please get my dear brother to one of the guest rooms so he can change?" Nadi smiled and Portia couldn't have answered any happier, "Yes milady! Now c'mon [Y/n] lets get you a new costume!" She cheered, dragging me away by the sleeve of my shirt. Somewhere in the back of my mind I knew this wasn't going to end well, and by the time I was pushed in the room with a new set of clothing I knew I was right. The clothing was way to revealing for my liking, even though the color and fabric made me look elegant and right at home. The top exposed my arms and most of my chest, the 'V' stopping right above my waist which the pants hugged tightly, yet the rest of it was baggy except the bottom of it, which also hugged my ankles nicely.

But my tattoos and scars were out in the open. The skulls, flowers, and chains that decorate my body glowed a faint blue color, as if cheering that they were finally free from my always concealed clothing.

I didn't want to wear it, every part of my mind was screaming to tear it off but I couldn't. My sister picked this out for me and this is her party, I'll do it for her if not for myself. Sliding my mask back on I headed out the room, looking down at Portia with a nervous smile as she stared at the art in wonder, "I never knew you had these!" She pouted, looking as If I had betrayed her somehow. I could only reached out and pat her head, trying to ignore the eyes that locked onto me, "Im not very fond of them, so I always hid them, Im sorry for not telling you sooner." She merely rolled her eyes and smiled at me before realization yet again broke on her face, "I need to go tell the rest you're here! Stay put!" My eyes widened as I tried to stop her, but she was already out of reach before I could, and the slithery presence was back at my feet.

"Friend!"

Fucking hell.

At that moment I felt the fight to run away slowly drain from me, I knew I couldn't avoid him forever, no matter how hard I tried. Even so, with what resistance was left in me I headed towards the garden with Faust resting peacefully on my shoulders, and stayed put by the fountain, letting my eyes flutter shut for a mere moment.

_____

My palms started to sweat as I looked down into those mesmerizing lavender eyes that watched me with an amused glint, "Asra I-" The words got caught in my throat for the millionth time now, and even I was getting impatient with myself. But can you blame me? Asra looked so majestic under the moonlight, with the stars that practically glowed in his eye's, I don't think I've ever thought it was possible to feel so relaxed and intimidated at the same time.

"[Y/n], are you okay?" He asked, his voice barley above a whisper as he slowly reached up, softly brushing his fingers against my cheek. A flutter in my chest caused the chains on my body to recoil slightly, and thankfully he didn't notice the change, "No, I just can't hold it in anymore Asra" My hand clenched tightly on my sleeves, nearly causing them to rip while Asra brushed a lock of hair of of my face. "Hold in what?" He smiled, but my eyes drifted to his chest, looking where the mark on his heart is hiding, causing me to reluctantly pull away from his touch.

It was a simple friendly gesture he's always done to calm me down, to bring me back from whatever clouded my thoughts. So when I pulled away he reached out again, slower this time, as if any rushed movement would send me away. "Asra stop" He looked a bit shocked when I grabbed his wrist, but my grip was gentle, cause I'm more afraid of hurting him than anyone else. However the negative thoughts practically swallowed my mind whole as I rejected his magic from flowing into me. The mark on his chest was the only thing I could look at, cause it reminds me everyday that he gave up some of his heart for his apprentice, to bring them back. Jealousy truly is a cruel thing.

"Nevermind, it was foolish of me to think I even had a chance" I whispered with a bitter chuckle, taking a step back I crossed my arms, turning my broken gaze towards the sky. "Forget it, just go back to your apprentice, they need you more than I do" I don't know why my words came out laced in such malice and sorrow, but they did, and that seemed to earn a glare back from him. "What's wrong with you? Ever since you found out about my deal its like all you want to do is run away from me and push me away, if you have something to say to me then go ahead and say it, but do not drag them into this."

The chain around my neck tightened, slowly crushing at my windpipe as I clenched my fists and smiled softly to myself. I knew I'd regret what I did next, I knew it would weigh on me forever, I knew it would cause me much more pain then it did right then, but I did it anyway. Ill have to thank Ilya if this works, putting on my best face I turned towards Asra and scoffed, tilting my head a bit, like I usually do when pissed off, even though this is just a lovely facade. "Don't even bother, its not like you'd care anyways, would you? All you care about is that apprentice of yours, you even gave up part of your heart for them" I let the words flow, nearly letting the tears pool in my eyes when I spat them out.

"Is that really what you think?" He hissed, knuckles turning white from how tightly he was grasping his sleeves, but I didn't let myself falter under his gaze. "Asra I don't have to think it when I know its true, we've known each other since we were kids, you can't fool me" I scoffed, glaring back into his lavender eyes, keeping that gaze was a lot harder then I thought it would be. Before he could speak up I made sure to cut him off, "You love 'em, that's the only reason you'd do it right? Because you love them? Let me guess, you couldn't live without them could you?" I rolled my eyes, looking off to my left, practically feeling his breath hitch for a moment, confirming what I needed to know.

Im sorry Asra.

You don't have to forgive me.

Because I highly doubt these chains will go anywhere, I can never be free. Even with you by my side, the one person that keeps me together, the one person that I'd risk everything for.

Im so sorry.

"Just leave already, its not like you want to be here anyways right? So just leave me alone, I don't want you here."

_____

I don't remember much after that, but I do know he left, and I was left alone to wallow in my own despair. The chains got tighter over the year, so tight that the only thing keeping me breathing is all the techniques I've learned, and the fact I learned how to hold my breath for a long while. A few tears slip past my [E/c] eyes, that Faust happily wipes away with her tail, rubbing her face against my cheek, "Friend!" She smiles, curling against me, it felt so good to have her around again. Even if this'll be the last time.

The chains tighten a slight fraction, forcing me to hold my breath. "[Y/n]?" My body tensed at how my name rolled off his lips, it felt like a distant dream, like this isn't actually happening, but one look at him and I know its real. My god has he always looked so gorgeous? Or am I going crazy? Probably both. Once [E/c] met Lavender I knew I was done, his hairs pushed back like last year though the mask kinda looks the same, with only a few added touches, and his costume definitely gets him to stand out above the rest, just a beautiful array of bright colors clashing against his mixed skin, it hugs his figure perfectly. He looks like a god amongst the light of the fountain.

"Its me" I sighed out, reluctantly turning my gaze back to my feet. I couldn't help the surprise when he moved in front of me, placing both hands on my cheeks, looking into my eyes with such relief that I could hardly believe it. His touch sent shivers down my spine, slowly I started to breathe again as the chains retract a bit, I had clearly forgotten how revealing my clothes are, cause once the chains pulled back Asra's eyes shifted to them.  "How long have you had these?" He asked, trailing his hands down to trace the marking with a soft touch, "Asra wait-" Yet the mark appears, the same one he has, just mine glowed a faint blue in the center of my chest.

His eyes widened seeing the mark, keeping his eyes on it as if it were to attack at any moment, "You've never had chains, its always been your skulls and flowers, is it because of this? Why didn't you tell me about this?" He looked hurt, the same hurt in his eyes that he had a year ago when we last talked.

"What was your deal?"

Oh how I wanted to tell him, but the chains tightened at the thought, yet I pushed through it, Im tired of lying, I'm tired of keeping everything in, Im tired of it all, "That I couldn't be open anymore, that I wouldn't be able to speak my mind freely like I once did." A small cough ripped out my throat as a blue glow tried to burn past the chains, failing miserably. "What? Why?" He looked stunned, I don't blame him, I've always been one to speak my mind and tell everyone how I'm feeling, to be honest to myself and them without a care about what others thought.

But..

"I was scared, there's something I've always wanted to say, but I never could because I've always been so afraid about what would happen after, what if it went wrong? What if I messed up? What if I said something wrong? What if you-" My mouth snapped shut as quickly as it could, now I certainly can't avoid this, cause those lavender eyes stare at me with such intensity I might just burn away. His hands slowly moved up to my neck, letting his magic aid in pulling the chain away from my neck, allowing me to breath freely. "What about me?" He asked softly, keeping his gaze fixed on mine as my hands unconsciously travel to his hips.

I guess it's now or never..

Building what up whatever courage I had left, I pulled Asra against my chest, using one hand to push his mask out the way, before claiming his lips with mine.

[jazminebrightxx]

TRICK OR TREAT

Author: @jazminebrightxx

Pairing: Isaac lahey x fem! Reader

Warnings: curse words but mostly just fluff

Request: Oo could i please get an isaac lahey x reader fluffy one shot? Maybe it would be the readers first kiss or something and its with isaac and rly cute and all. Anything fluffy would be fine really! Thank you sm

Authors note: I wanted to get into the spirit with your requests I hope this is okay!! This is me clearing my drafts. I hope I did your request justice and sorry it’s late :(

Halloween was Y/N’s favorite time of year, the atmosphere in the streets filled her with seretonin and nostalgia. Growing up in beacon hills had its perks, the wether was never usually bad so trick or treating was always a go as a kid.

Y/N had a small but strong group of friends, the six friends had been through a lot together, the supernatural had made itself known in beacon hills, kanimas, werewolves, banshees the whole lot...all real.

Y/N found it hard to believe at times and sometimes she wished she never had gotten involved with it. But if it wasn’t for the supernatural, she wouldn’t have met quite a few of her friends.

Holidays were a chance for the pack to relax, they loved to celebrate at any change they get, Christmas, thanksgiving and now Halloween. Which is why Y/N stood in Lydia martins bedroom in a cop costume.

“I feel ridiculous” she pulled at the leather pants Lydia had let her borrow, the strawberry blonde smiled, giving the other girl in the room a knowing look “you look hot”

“Besides, the flyer said it’s mandatory to dress up” Alison added, fixing her lipstick in the mirror, she had opted for the grease look, sandy to be precise, Scott matching with her and going as Danny “I know but...it’s so tight”

“Y/N, it fits you like a glove.” Lydia started again, slapping Y/N’s hand when she pulled at the fabric again “stop, you look amazing, Isaac won’t know what hit him”

“Lydia...” Y/N started sitting down on Lydia’s bed “don’t ‘Lydia’ me, we all have eyes Y/N, we can see the chemistry” Y/N smiled lightly, she’d been seeing Isaac in private for about two weeks now, well...they were a thing...yeah it’s complicated. Let’s just say, Y/N liked Isaac...a lot.

“Enough chit chat, are we ready?” Lydia fixed the hairband on her head. Her costume was a matching Fred and daphne look with Stiles. The three girls grabbed their stuff and headed to the car.

The drive to the haunted house was quick enough, a couple minutes and they were pulling into the parking lot of the ‘haunted mansion’ “holy crap...that’s a big house” Y/N stared at the spooky themed mansion infront of them, surrounded with teens and decorations.

“Anyone nervous yet..?” Lydia smirked, Y/N gulped at the clowns outside, shaking off a dark feeling, she’d been through worse “nope”

“Good, let’s meet the guys”

***

They were late...as usual. The three boys in question. Scott, Stiles and Isaac always had a tendency to be late, now was no different “they said they were on the way 30 minutes ago where the hell are they!?” Lydia huffed as she watched teens leave the house, some laughing or some with terrified looks on their faces.

Y/N stared at the clowns and big spiders, shivers sending down her spine, the more she thought about it the more she didn’t want to go into the house. Taking her out of her thoughts, a cold hand places itself on her shoulder, she jumps back in surprise, a gasp leaving her lips. Isaac stood behind her, an orange jumpsuit hanging from his body as he smirked

“Did I scare you” his voice is filled with amusement. Y/N fixed herself, shaking her head “no...your hands are cold” Isaac looks at his hands, only now feeling the pinch of cold. “Huh, never noticed, sorry”

Scott and Stiles made their way up, laughing at eachother “okay! Who’s ready to get scared” Scott’s over enthusiastic demeanor didn’t go unnoticed, Alison just laughed, linking her arm with him “come on Danny, let’s go before you burst someone’s eardrum”

Stiles walked off with Lydia, giving issac a knowing wink and a quick smile sent at Y/N, which she returned. Isaac cleared his throat. “Uh...shall we?” Y/N smiled, nodding her head and following after him. The two made their way to the line.

Isaac noticed the nervous look on her face, rubbing her back, gaining her attention “nervous?” Y/N sighed, knowing she had to be honest since he’d know if she was lying “honestly, yeah. I’ve a pretty bad fear of clowns” He noticed her heartbeat had quickened a bit. “Don’t worry, I’ll be here the entire time, I’ll protect you” he smirked at his last sentence, making the girl feel slightly better, she smiled greatfully “thanks, Isaac”

The line went pretty quickly, plenty of teens running out of the house as fast as they could, Y/N was still nervous but knowing her friends...and Isaac were there made her feel better. Now, it was their turn, the six teens made their way into a dark hall, a small neon light at the end guiding them.

The first half of the house was easy enough, a few jump scares and screams coming from the actors in the hallways. Adrenaline pumped inside her veins, the further she went into the house, the closer she inched to Isaac. Then the pack was split up, Isaac and Y/N entered a room, a very scary and dark room. The hairs stood on the back of Y/N’s neck.

Just when her nerves had started to die down a loud scream rang in her ears and a hand reached out from behind the curtain, she looked over her shoulder to see a creepy girl with her hand on Y/N’s shoulder, she jumps back into Isaac “nice, creepy lady...nice lady”

Isaac grabbed hold of her hand, pulling her out of the room, both laughing hysterically. “Nice lady, nice lady” Isaac mocked her sharp tone, sending them both into another round of laughs before another scream was heard, a creepy looking man with scars running at them. The two ran down the hall, hand in hand. Stopping when they cut a corner. Isaac rested his hand on his heart, panting lightly. “I think my heart stopped”

The two continued down the hallways, a few more jumps and scares later and they were at the last room. “Okay, pretty harmless...” a loud chainsaw rings in the pairs ears, a scary man with a mask holding the tool over his head and laughing maniacally. This time, Y/N was the one to grab Isaac’s hand, dragging him at the speed of light out of the room and into the open.

The fresh air hit her skin and felt like she hadn’t felt it in years, she smiled breathlessly as she watched her friends all chatting. She gave Isaac a look, both making their way to the pack. “I think I had about seven minor heart attacks in there” Stiles was breatheless as he spoke in his usual spastic manner.

The pack chatted for a little longer before deciding to head back to Scott’s house for food. All making their way to their respective cars, before Y/N could get into the car, Isaac makes himself known. “Can I talk to you for a second?”

Alison and Lydia gave Y/N a knowing look “we’ll wait here” they smiled at the girl who nodded, heading off with Isaac. He took her behind a tree, she smiled again “you gonna kill me, Lahey?”

“The opposite, actually...” he rubbed the back of his neck with a smile. “Listen, Y/N. I really like you, and I have for a while now so...” Y/N looked at Isaac surprised, never really thinking she’d hear those words drop from his mouth, she smiled, confidence suddenly filling her. She lifted her face towards his, quickly connecting their lips. The kiss was soft, a sigh escaped from Isaac as he lifted his hand to hold her cheek.

Once they pulled apart, Isaac rested his head on hers a soft smile on his face “you didn’t let me finish” Y/N smiled and chuckled “when have I ever?” Isaac laughed, wrapping an arm around her and hugging her. “So does this mean you’ll be my girlfriend?”

“Hmm, I’ll have to think about that one” Isaac rolled his eyes, shaking his head “of course, dummy”

——————

[unmaskedagain]

Marinette Vs Santa

A quick Christmas drabble.

  How did Marinette find out she was adopted? Well… her little half-brother tried to kill her.

           Also, that’s how she found out her biological dad was Batman. Because… why not. As if her life wasn’t weird enough already.

           And to think Marinette had been secretly writing Santa every year since she was three to like nine asking for a sibling of her own. She didn’t think it would ever happen

           Then one day, on a cold December night, as Ladybug ran across rooftops to see as many of the Christmas decorations as possible. Suddenly every instinct she had told her to duck. And she did just narrowly avoided a sword to the throat.

           Marinette readied herself to fight an Akuma, only to see an angry ten-year-old with a sword and a mask. He was dressed in green, red, and gold.

“Die, usurper!” He roared and attacked her again.

           Ladybug dodged and jumped every attempt to kill her and tried to resist the urge to punch a child.

           Eventually she got the better of the kid, and ended up hog tying him.

           Marinette put her hands on her knees as she struggled to catch her breath, “Who. Are. You. Nightmare. Child?” She asked in between breaths. Ladybug picked up the fallen sword and pointed at him. “And what is your problem? What did I even do to you?”

“You are Marinette Dupain-Cheng, first born blood child of our father.” He hissed at her, “I am our father’s rightful heir; not you.”

           Our father?  Did her dad have a lovechild? Did he cheat on her mom? No, Tom Dupain would never.

“What?” Marinette pinched her nose. “You want to be head baker?”

“Fool!” He tsk’d at her. “I’ve no interest in your adoptive parents’ holdings. I will follow Father’s footsteps and rule the night. I will be Batman. Not you, sister. Kneel before me and renounce your heirship, and I will spare your life.”

           …Wait Adoptive? Batman? Sister?

           Marinette just stared at him. Not saying a word. For a while. Awhile he insulted her.

           She looked out at the colorful lights that glowed against the freshly fallen snow and sense of peace that filled the air, and Marinette whispered the only thing on her mind…

“Fuck Santa.”

           The boy stopped struggled and gave her a perplexed look, “What? What does the jolly fat man have to do with anything? Why has he made you angry, sister? I will avenge you.”

You just tried to kill me, she wanted to say.

           Marinette just rolled her eyes, “Never mind. We need to talk.” She picked him and tossed him over her shoulder. “In my room.”

           Running across Paris with a struggling kid on your shoulder and a sword in your hand wasn’t easy.

            When she got to her room, she dropped the kid on her bed as gently as possible. “Do not escape,” She ordered. “If you do, do not destroy my room. I’m going to ask my parents if…” If they’re really her parents. Why didn’t they tell her?  Why? Just Why? “What you say is true. I won’t mention Batman.”

           Or the psychotic ten-year-old she had tied up in her room. Who may or may not be her brother.

           Marinette de-transformed. Tikki hid in her hair before anyone could see her.

           She came back to her room half an hour later with a cheese plate, full of veggies, fruits and crackers. And a tray full of chocolate chip Christmas cookies and two glasses of milk. She sat them down at the desk.

           The boy glared at her.

“You were right,” Marinette sighed. “I was adopted. My birth mom was just nineteen when she had me. The sister of one of my mom’s friends.”

           The news had been a blow. Her parents had kept repeating how much they loved her and how they had been planning on telling her when she was older. Older than fourteen. They wanted to know how she found out. She said her little brother had gotten in contact with her.

           Marinette eyed the still tied up boy… her brother. He no longer struggled against his bonds, just stared with an angry expression on his face. “I don’t want to be Batman,” She told him. “The title is all yours. I like being Ladybug. It’s a name I earned, worked hard for. A name I’m proud of and will not part with easily. Is that something you can understand?”

           He stared at her for a moment before nodding slowly, “You created your own hero persona to find the terror entrapping your city; all by yourself. …Father did the same.”

           He said the last part with a sad tone that Marinette’s new found big sisterly instincts go haywire. “And you think just because you’re his… partner,” She said, instead of sidekick because she was sure that word would get her killed. “And not a solo hero, that he will find you unworthy of being his heir.” Marinette sat down next to him, and patted his hair softly. “Did you ever think that because he is the one who’s training you, that because you fight by his side, that he’d trust you more? Trust you to take up his mantle in the way he can’t trust me. He doesn’t know what I’m capable of entirely. But he knows exactly what you can do because he taught you.”

           Her brother scoffed but his face lost some of its anger and he seemed to relax.

“I’m going to untie you now,” She told him. “Do not attack me.”

           When he was untied and given back his sword, which he sheathed, Marinette brought over the food. “You know my name,” She said after he took a bite a cookie and seemed pleased with it. “What’s yours?”

“Damian,” He answered. “Damian Al-Ghul Wayne. How did you obtained magical powers? And what is the creature that thought it could hide from me?”

           Marinette just blink. Because Dammit Tikki. The pink ball of fluff out with a chastised look on her face. Unfortunately that look meant nothing as all the other Kwami Marinette now protected as Guardian thought that meant they could come out to.

           Plagg straight to Damian and sat on his lap, “Cheese. Now.”

           Marinette face-palmed. The Kwami had taken trying to declare dominance ever since Ladybug took the ring back from Chat Noir.

           Damian could only stare at the being, animal, and sprite as he reached slowly for a piece of cheese from the selection of food and handed it the small creature. That was all the other Kwami needed to rush to him for attention. Damian was easily mesmerized by the little creatures and saw no issue in showing them affection. Apart from the fact that Oracle, and Father, and thus the rest of the family were watching the feed, through the mask, while they attempt to locate him. Damian could only disable their trackers for so long. Annoying as she was, Oracle was a genius.

“Okay, little brother,” Marinette shrugged. “You tell me your story. I’ll tell you mine.”

           And so they did. The two siblings spent the next few hours telling the other all about their history. Neither were happy.

           Marinette was beyond furious that her little brother was raised by ruthless assassins, cast into the role of Robin (though mostly by his own doing), constantly risked his life, and had little no childhood.

           Damian was pissed, which was putting it nicely. His beloved sister had no training when she was charged with the task of defending the city as the hero Ladybug and fight a supernatural terrorist, dealt with sexual harassment from her once trusted partner, then her master died in battle but not before he bestowed one of the most powerful magical artifacts of all time to a teenager. To top it all off, his sweet sister was being bullied by a pathological liar who turned all her friends against her, nearly got her expelled, leaving her with little to no Allies to aid her in her fight against evil. Marinette had cried at the end of her tale.

           …He was going burn Paris to the ground.

           Little did he know, the Batfamily found it hard not to agree as they watched the livestream from the Batplane?

           Dick had gone from jumping up and down at the sight of his adorable new sister, Marinette. She was a hero called Ladybug, how cute was that? To being rather angry at what she had to put up with. It was too much pressure for a kid, superhero, superpowers, or not.

“What do we do?” Tim asked.

           Batman was still having trouble processing. He had another daughter; a beautiful little girl who seemed to have taken after him without ever having known the man. Nature versus Nurture, he supposed; nature won. Marinette who had been fighting to save her city like he fought to save his. Who was her mother? Why didn’t she tell Bruce he had another child? Granted Brucie wasn’t who most people thought would be an ideal father but still… Hadn’t he proved himself?

“Find Hawkmoth,” Jason growled. “Punch a hole through his face. And Send Steph and Cass to have a “Talk”, he air quoted. “With that Lila chick. While we have a little talk of our own with Chat Noir. End of story.”

           Cass nodded, gleefully, that little girl would pay for what she did to Cassandra’s sister. And if she was lucky, Lila would even live to tell the tale.

           Stephanie was wondering if the Batfamily, her sort of-adopted family, could really get away with murder.

           …Who was she kidding? They totally could.

“We don’t… kill?” Batman said as he turned around and stalked away. “I’ll inform Alfred of the development.” Maybe have him prepare a room, he thought with hope. He’d like his daughter to visit and feel at home whenever she could.

           When Batman left the area, Tim looked around at his siblings, “Did that sound like a question to anyone else?”

           Marinette and Damian fell asleep next to each other, with the Kwami cuddled close. The next morning she woke not only to sound to the sound of the Kwami but to the sight of five additional vigilantes heroes, in addition to the one from the night before, hovering around her room.

           Two girls who were discussing with Trixx and long about their abilities. A hero in mostly black and red, who sat on Marinette’s top bunk with Marinette’s laptop on his lap, and Pollen on his shoulder. Damian still had Plagg with him, which Marinette wanted to tsk at because she told him not to play favorites. A blue, clearly the oldest, was laying on the floor playing with the remaining Kwami like they were puppies.

           She sat up in her bed and tried to wipe the sleep from her eyes. She glared at Damian, “Want to explain?”

“Mornin, sunshine,” A guy in a redmask said, with Barkk on his shoulder, as he chopped on a leftover cookie, not noticing the way Tikki glared at him. “Name’s Red Hood. Real name Jason. Dad’s downstairs talking to your parents.”

           Dad?

           She glared even harder at Damian. He shrugged, “Marinette, these are our… brothers and sisters.” He said. “They were adopted.”

“You should get better security on your computer,” The hero on her bed said. “Name’s Tim. I go by Red Robin.”

“Cassandra,” One the girl introduced. “Blackbat.”

“Stephanie. Batgirl,” The other said.

“I’m Dick!” The one on the floor laughed. “Nightwing. Welcome to the family.”

Tim continued, “I’ve located all personal information on Lila Rossi. I believe we can now move forward with the plan.”

Jason clapped his hands together, “Awesome. Operation: Get That Bitch is a go.”

Marinette just started at them. Six. She had six siblings. One for every year ever asked for a sibling for Christmas. She just had one thing to say as she tossed the covers back over her head to hide from the world…

“Fuck. Santa.”

           Finding out Bruce Wayne, cough Batman cough, was her father was one thing. Meeting him in person was another. He stared at her with cool blue eyes that made Marinette realize she probably should’ve questioned where she got her own long before.

           Her parents had been surprised when Bruce Wayne walked into their bakery and asked to speak with them alone. Even more so, when he claimed to be the biological father of their daughter. It had been long conversation between the three. But Bruce made it clear that he had interest of just taking Marinette from them. However, he would like visitations and for her to spend time with him over the summers. And to take her out for the day so she could meet her siblings. Also, about adding Wayne to her last name.

           So that was how Marinette found herself sitting in one of the most expensive restaurants in all of Paris, in the best dress she ever designed herself, with her… family.

           The initial awkwardness was broken up by all her siblings. Though they seemed to know to how to behave in public, they had no problems messing with each other and teasing.

“How long have you been into fashion, Marinette?” Bruce, her Papa, (As her dad would always be her dad).

           She smiled, “Since I was really little. It’s my dream to have my own line.”

           Bruce’s eyes got bright at the chance to help his daughter, “I can help you with that. I can drum up a connect or two, to get you started.”

“He’ll throw money at it until someone cracks,” Jason translated which cause Marinette to laugh and Bruce to glare.

Marinette discovered Damian had snuck Plagg with him to the restaurant.

           Marinette just groaned.

“You brought Tikki!” Damian defended.

“I’m the holder of her Miraculous,” She hissed back as low as she could. “Paris’s main and sometimes only hero. I need her.”

           Damian huffed, “That’s no reason he shouldn’t be allowed to attend as well. He’s with me.”

           Before Marinette could continue the arugment…

“Wayne?” Gabriel Agreste asked, tailed by Natalie, Adrien, Chloe, and Chloe’s parents: Audrey Bourgeois and André Bourgeois. “Bruce Wayne?”

           Bruce put on his most charming smile as he stood up, “Yes and you are?” He put out his hand.

           Gabriel shook it, clearly wondering why the billionaire was there. “Gabriel Agreste.”

           Bruce nodded, “The fashion designer.”

“This is my son Adrien,” Gabriel introduced. “My assistant Nathalie. My longtime friend Audrey Bourgeois, of the Style Queen, and André Bourgeois, mayor of Paris, and their lovely daughter. We’re here for a quick lunch.”

“Same,,” Bruce nodded. “I’m here with my children. My eldest Dick, followed by Jason, Cassandra, Stephanie, Tim, Marinette and my youngest Damian.” He introduced them.

           At the sound her name, all the newcomers eyes went to Marinette. She gave them a small wave, “Good to see you again.”

“Dupain-Cheng!” Chloe gasped.

           Damian growled, “Dupain-Cheng-Wayne.” As he glared passed her at the blond boy, the former Chat Noir.

           The blond girl was stunned, “How could you not tell me?”

           Hadn’t the two moved passed their difference and become friends? The two girls, and Kagami and united together when the liar seemed to take hold of the rest of the class.

“No one knew,” Marinette defended. I didn’t even know, she wanted to add. But they had discussed and agreed on the story that Bruce and an unknown woman gave up Marinette to the Dupain-Chengs when she was born. Nothing scandalous about it.

           Gabriel paused as he tried to think of what to say. How did he not know there was Wayne living in Paris, that his son was classmates with a Wayne. The girl had power in her pinky when she was still in Nappies, then either of the older Bourgeois had currently in their entire bodies. She would’ve been a much better playmate for his son than Chloe; the vapid, girl that she was.

           Audrey was thinking nearly the same thing. “Such a brilliant daughter you have, Brucie,” She smoozed. “I still can’t believe she turned down the internship I offered her. I want her to come to New York with me, you know?”

           Bruce beamed, “I’m glad someone sees her brilliance.”

           This went on for a while as each of the parents tried their hands at flattering the billionaire.  Bruce finally had enough and all but dismissed them

“I’m glad our children our such good friends,” Gabriel said finally as he turned to leave.

           Marinette fought he urge to scoff. Adrien was not her friend.

           The boy in question looked anywhere but at Marinette as he left. He had chosen to side with the other students when the Ice’d out Marinette until the girl stopped being a bully and being mean to Lila. Even if he knew it wasn’t true. Most declared they weren’t her friends anymore. Alya said she’d never be friends with Marinette again.

Coward, Damian nearly hissed. When they were gone, he turned to Marinette, “The blond girl is your alley, correct?” He asked. “Your Queen?”

           Marinette nodded, “There’s Luka and Kagami as well.”

“I will test to ensure they are worthy to fight at her side,” He declared.

           The others nodded. Bruce got a dark look on his face, “We all will.” He would not allow his daughter to suffer another Chat Noir.

           That was it, Marinette thought as she threw down the sliver napkin, she was starting to hate Christmas.

           The end of the weekend the entire world knew that Marinette was Bruce Wayne’s daughter. This made going to school Monday morning a huge spectacle as paparazzi crowded the outside the bakery and outside the school. Each one trying to get the attention of Wayne’s crown jewel, new Princess of Gotham, as the media dubbed her.

           Suffice to say, Bruce had taken her to school that day flagged by Dick and Tim as her other siblings combed the city for traces of Hawkmoth.

           The principle had practically fallen over himself to speak with the Bruce Wayne. But quickly hid in the shadows, when the first thing Bruce said to him was, “Ah, yes, you’re the man who expelled my daughter without a proper investigation. I’ll be talking to you later. So will my lawyers.”

           Marinette tried to hide her blushing face her father walked her to class. Students did everything they could to get a look at her. Chloe and Kagami waited outside her classroom, that was practically bursting with noise.

           However She practically drop dead when Tim complimented Kagami’s sword fighting skill and offered to duel her, and Kagami blushed. Blushed. Kagami?

           Marinette shook her head as she kissed her father and brothers goodbye. This world just didn’t make sense anymore.

           The two other girls flanked Marinette’s side as they walked into class. All noise stopped instantly. Marinette didn’t even bother spare the other kids a glance as the three took a seat in back of the class.

           Chloe quickly pulled her into a conversation of the places she’d see that summer in New York.

“I’ll be spending the end of Christmas break in Gotham too,” Marinette said shyly. “I’ll open my presents there. Papa wants me there for the Wayne Ball was I can be properly introduced to society.”

           And not because Bruce Wayne was scared of what Alfred would do if he didn’t get to mean his new granddaughter before the new year. That and Martha Kent were the ultimate overprotective grandparents.

“A Ball?” Lila squeaked, poorly concealed jealously on her face. She still couldn’t believe the little twit was Wayne. IF she had, Lila would’ve been a hell of a lot nicer. No wonder Marientte always knew when Lila was lying. She probably knew the celebrities through her father. “You’re going to the Waynes’ Annual New Year’s Ball.”

“Everyone goes,” Rose awe’d. “It’s basically a red carpet event. I watch every year. And Selena Gomez had the most beautiful dress on last time.”

           Juleka hummed in agreement, “Clara Nightingale looked like a princess.”

           Marinette just shrugged as each of her classmates offered their input on what the Ball would be like. She wasn’t about to make nice with them. They had turned their backs on her, betrayed her trust. Her brothers and sisters had warned her to be watchful for phony friends.

           Alya, who’s face had been turning steadily more red, as the classmates speculated who Marinette would meet. “Girl!” She burst. “How could not tell me?”

           Marinette raised a thin eyebrow, “We’re not friends, Alya, by your own declaration. I don’t believe I have to tell you anything. And even when we were friends, I only knew you for two years. Why would I tell a journalist anything important about me?”

“She was right not to,” Kagami stated, “With how quickly you all turned on her, I’m surprised she ever told you anything at all.”

           Alya flinched back as if slapped. So did a few other students.

“It’s not fair,” Alya continued as if nothing happened. “I could’ve gotten so many interviews. OH! I could with you to the Ball. It’ll be bomb.”

           The three girls in the backrow just stared at her.

“We. Are. Not. Friends,” Marinette repeated slowly. “Kagami and Chloe, and their families are invited because Kagami. And. Chloe. Are. My. Friends. In fact, my only friends in class. Luka is invited as well as well as his family,” She turned to Juleka who turned bright red. “Luka will receive invite tonight. If you attend with him, I will do my best to be polite. My father allowed me to invite them so I would have additional company if it gets too busy. The Ball is invitation only.”

           Allowed? He insisted. Marinette doesn’t even know how he found out all their names and who their families were. For reason, Marinette had the gut instinct to blame a redhead and Tim. Batman wanted to test his daughter’s team. And if they were lacking… Well, he’d promised to shape them up. Or else.

“I’m going to the Wayne Ball!” Chloe shouted. “And you didn’t tell me. It’s mere weeks away. I need a dress. I need to tell Mother.”

           Kagami had frozen. She knew well that the Wayne Ball wasn’t just any high society event. It was the High society event. Her family had never been elite and rich enough to receive an invitation. “I thank you for the invitation,” She bowed her head. “It will be a pleasure to attend.” She paused as she pulled out her phone and stood up. “I must also tell Mother.” And with, she quickly left the room.

           Which was much more polite than Chloe who called her mom then and there.

“Mama!” Chloe sang, “Marinette invited us to the Wayne Ball this year!”

“WHAT!” Was heard from the receiver.

           Marinette giggled. She ignored the glare Alya sent her.

           Rose grasped Juleka’s arm and jumped up and down. “You’re going to the ball. Ahhhh!” She screamed. “What will you wear? Your hair? You have to take pictures.” Rose suddenly reared back and took a deep breath. “You’re going to walk the red carpet.”

“You know, Marinette,” Lila smiled sweetly. “I would be honored to help you navigate the world of a celebrity. The ball will be so stressful. If you needed me there, I’d be happy to attend.”

“No, thank you,” Marinette said. “My siblings have promised to guide me through. It will be a bonding experience.”

           Lila forced a smile on her face, “Of course.” She fought the desire to scream and throw a tantrum. How could this happen?

           Adrien on the other hand fought to keep the smile on his face. His father would not be pleased. He had instructed Adrien to get close to Marinette, and thus the Wayne family. Adrien hadn’t had the courage to tell his father that they weren’t friends anymore. And that because of the lack of friendship, the Agreste were not invited to the party of the year.

           Marinette went to bed that day with a smile on her face. The Christmas season may have started off rocky but it would get better.

           Suddenly her phone started buzzing like it was on fire.

           The first text she read was from Chloe: You’re dating Roy Queen?!!!!

           Marinette’s entirely body froze. Who?

           Suddenly, she got another text… From Jason: Hey Baby Bats, I need a favor! Can you fake date my friend Roy. I already told everyone you guys were a thing. Bruce is freaking out! Thanks! Love you.

           Her mouth dropped, raged filled her entire body. And then she remembered how she joked with Alya that she wanted a boyfriend last year for Christmas last year.

“FUCK SANTA!”

[shimmeringclouds]

Ichimatsu - A Winter Carnival

𝘍𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳!𝘐𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘴𝘶 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘊𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥!𝘙𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳

DISCLAIMER: Our reader is not in a relationship, she is just the child of Ichimatsu. There is no romantic relationship between these characters and others.

"Papa!" you called from the front door, your small hands struggling to pull on your shoes. Footsteps sounded behind you, and you heard a soft chuckle.

"Papa, my shoes won't get on!" you cried, cheeks puffed as you pouted. You felt his large hands lift you up from the floor, standing you upright and taking your shoes from you, kneeling down.

"You've got them on the wrong feet, kitten," Ichimatsu laughed, guiding your tiny feet into your boots. You pouted, muttering about how shoes didn't make sense. After securing your shoes, he adjusted your coat and scarf, making sure you were nice and snug in your warm clothing before heading out into the winter air.

The front door slid open, a similar looking face peeking through the doorway.

"Are you guys ready yet?" Karamatsu called, smiling softly down at his niece. A bright smile broke out onto your face at the sight of him, quickly running over into his arms.

"Karama-chan!" You squealed as he lifted you up, resting you onto his hip. Ichimatsu frowned slightly at the attention you had given his shitty brother instead of him, but refrained from saying anything.

"Yeah, we're coming.." he grunted, standing up and following his brother out the door. His other siblings stood in a small group, attempting to warm themselves against the chilly air. Spotting you both, they all broke out into smiles.

"Little [Y/N]!" Todomatsu cooed, taking multiple pictures of you. Osomatsu came over and patted your head with a grin.

"Are you ready for the best time with your favourite uncle?" He teased, earning a jab in the ribs from Choromatsu. Jyushimatsu took you from Karamatsu's arms and places you onto his broad shoulders, securely holding your small frame in place before lightly jogging around, his contagious laughter filling the air.

Ichimatsu watched on with a small smile before shuffling along with his brothers, muttering to Jyushimatsu to "be careful."

With the extra height you were given, you could make out the faint lights of the carnival a few roads down, eagerly exclaiming to the sextuplets about it.

"That time of the year already, huh?" Osomatsu mused, walking alongside Ichimatsu and Karamatsu, whilst the other three stayed close to you. "The winter carnival is back again."

"Time has flown fast indeed, burazza," Karamatsu agreed. "It seems that [Y/N] is also growing up quite fast. As expected of Ichimatsu's fatherhood!" He pointed with a flourish to his brother, who only rolled his eyes.

"We all know I have no idea what I'm doing," he watched you carefully. "It's all thanks to mom. She's better at this than any of us could be, seeing as she raised six of us."

"Man!" Osomatsu cried out. "I still can't believe you've got a kid first! This is totally unfair.. I'm the eldest, dammit!"

The air around then grew slightly chillier, a cold breeze wafting by the small group. Ichimatsu's hands dug deeper into his coat pockets, his head hanging lower. The elder two glanced at each other before sighing.

"...Are you gonna visit again today?" Karamatsu asked cautiously, his hands unsure of wether they should pat his younger brother or keep them to himself. The silence was stifling, even if it was brief.

"...Yeah..." Ichimatsu finally answered. "But afterwards. I don't wanna ruin the mood." Your bright laughter carried over to him. "Maybe I'll leave [Y/N] with you guys while I go..."

"Let's all go together."

Both heads snapped towards Osomatsu, who had his hands casually folded behind his head.

"I mean, why not? It's been a while since the rest of us have been, anyway. Might as well go while we have the chance."

There were only a handful of times when their shitty eldest would speak something sensible, and every time, it would leave whoever had heard him in shock.

Ichimatsu was the first to snap out of it, huffing out a smile as he glanced from you to the full moon above him.

"Do whatever you want."

»»-----　♔　-----««

"Papa! We're here, we're here!" You yelled excitedly over all the chatter, your legs kicking about as Jyushimatsu placed you down on the ground. You quickly ran over to your father, hooking your smaller hand into his larger one.

Soft fairy lights were strung around the carnival area, leaving a dim glow over each stall and pathway. Decorations of snowflakes and angels glittered from above, filling your eyes with fragments of light. Few piles of snow were scattered along the ground from previous snowfall, adding a sort of mystical touch that you loved.

It was already bustling with crowds of people, flitting from stall to stall like moths to a flame, eager to take a look at what had been brought this year, excited murmurs drifting through the air.

"Can we get the candy apples again? Please please please?" You pointed at the stall, the enticing scent of caramel and sweet apples luring you in.

"Only if we share it," he replied, allowing you to tug him over to the stall.

"I want some too!" Jyushimatsu joined in, bouncing alongside you. You giggled as the others also chimed in, seeing your dad's brow twitch.

The candy was placed into your hands, the weight of the apple making the stick wobble in your hands.

"Don't drop it now," Ichimatsu warned. He swiftly placed his hands over your own, guiding the apple into your mouth. You could only take a few small bites though, with most of the caramel smearing onto your lips and cheeks.

"Aww, that was so cute!" Todomatsu squealed, already taking a wipe and gently smoothing it over your face and hands. You squirmed at the sensation, giggles spluttering from your lips at the ticklish feeling. Choromatsu bent down next to you.

"Do you wanna try catching some goldfish?" He gestures to the next stall. "It's really easy. I can teach you!"

You nodded instantly, already running ahead at the mention of the golden fishes. You peered into the tub, awing at the clusters of shimmering fishes glistening in the stall's lamp light, the water enlarging their size.

"Papa, I really want one!" You bit your lip, eyes widening into what they called your 'kitten eyes,' hoping Ichimatsu would give in. It seemed all too easy as the man blocked his eyes after a moment.

"Only if you catch one. Then you can keep it, okay?" He watched as Choromatsu taught you how to guide the fish gently into the net, muttering soft words of encouragement after you failed the first few times. Eventually, though, you were able to successfully catch one, shouting happily as your fish was placed into its water filled bag.

"Well done, [Y/N]!" Choromatsu patted your head as a reward, allowing you to run over to your father and jump into his arms.

"Did you see me, Papa?!" Your arms waves around in exaggeration as you explained in oh-so-much detail how you caught the goldfish. Ichimatsu placed a chaste kiss on your forehead.

"I saw. I'm really proud of you, kitten."

His heart warmed at the sight of your joy, knowing that his daughter was as happy as she could be. The others watched from the side, identical smiles on their faces as they watched their brother be the father he truly could be.

You all spent a good few hours at the festival. Whether it was enjoying the tasty delicacies and sweets from almost every stall — thanks to Osomatsu and Jyushimatsu's cravings — or when you had all bought your own masks delicately painted to look like youkai from urban Japanese legends, you all had fun all the same.

However, being the young child you were, you didn't have the energy to keep going for much longer. You rubbed your eyes as you yawned heavily, clutching onto Ichimatsu's clothing as you started to sway a little. Noticing this, Ichimatsu knelt down in front of you.

"Tired?" He asked, moving your hands away. You shook your head, adamant on staying awake.

"I wanna stay longer! I wanna play more..." you yawned, "...more games with you and everyone!"

"I think we should head back home, [Y/N]." Ichimatsu was not deterred by your pouting, although he felt a jolt of pain as your eyes started welling up with tears.

"But I don't wanna..!"

"Is your Papa being mean again?" Osomatsu wandered over, picking you up and holding you. "Seriously, Ichimatsu. Stop making the kid cry!" There was teasing glint in his eye as he made sure your head was buried into his shoudker before winking at his brother.

"C'mon, little [Y/N], cheer up! Osoma-chan is here to rescue you!"

Ichimatsu sighed, walking away from the group for a moment to slip to another stall. He eyed the large displays of flowers and bouquets, before settling onto a tall bunch of purple hyacinths and soft pink camelias, all fully bloomed and vibrant.

"Can I help you, sir?" The florist beamed. Ichimatsu pointed towards the flowers he had seen, watching idly as the woman picked them up and began wrapping them in a nice bouquet, complete with a purple bow.

"Have a nice evening!" She had called out as he made his way back, surprised to see that Choromatsu was holding his sleeping daughter against his chest.

"Ah, you're back, burazza!" Karamatsu oatyed his shoulder. He eyed the flowers for a moment before grinning softly. "It seems [Y/N] has fallen asleep whilst you were gone. Perhaps we should hurry to our next destination?"

Ichimatsu only nodded, his grip on the flowers tightening slightly as he began leading the group down a different path home. Only, they weren't heading home.

The journey was mostly silent, with each brother either making quiet conversation with one another, or simply admiring the night sky. Your sleeping form was passed between the six, each one carefully cradling you until someone else offered to hold you, eventually settling into Ichimatsu's free arm. You grumbled, burying your face deeper into the crook of his neck.

A stone arch came into view, a set of iron gates still open. Ichimatsu held no hesitation as he walked through, his brothers falling silent behind him. A small cat scurried over to him, winding itself gently around his legs before trotting ahead, glancing back as it waited for the group to catch up.

They passed rows of tall gravestones, intricately decorated with Japanese writings and fresh flowers, before stopping at a certain one. The cat had laid itself down beside it, curling up comfortably after nudging it's head lovingly over the stone.

A familiar name was engraved onto the stone; a name that the Matsuno family would never forget. A flash of memory ran through Ichimatsu's mind as he took a deep breath. It never got easier, not matter how many times he came by.

He placed the bunch of flowers onto the flat platform before kneeling down, making sure you were comfortable before speaking softly.

"It's me again... And I've brought [Y/N], too."

A breeze swept by. He swore it was warmer than before.

"My shitty brothers tagged along, too. Sorry about them."

"Hey!" A few exclaimed, although there was no anger behind it.

Ichimatsu continued his conversation in silence, all his thoughts, happy or worrying, coming to the forefront of his mind. He snapped out of it briefly when he felt you shuffle in his arms.

You raised your head, drowsily rubbing your eyes again as you glanced around, your shimmering gaze finally settling on the grave in front of you. A tired smile broke out onto your lips.

"Mama..." you mumbled. Your eyes still felt heavy as you reached out, fingers barely brushing over the stone. "I love you, mama..."

You fell back to sleep, leaving the others in silence once more. They all gazed at you with adoration, exchanging smiled with one another as Ichimatsu stood up.

He muttered something under his breath before turning, his head low as he made his way back to the entrance, his grip on you a little tighter than before.

He had lost his wife too soon. But, he had been left with you, the most precious gift he could ever ask for. At least you had her eyes, he had always thought, big and bright, full of wonder. He couldn't lose you, too. He would care for you with all the love he had in him.

The warm breeze swept by again, rustling through your hair and wafting over Ichimatsu's face. It carried a whisper of a voice that made him pause.

'I love you, too.'

[angeliccynthious]

h a h look at the thing I did- All the vessels + Grimmchild,, and I’ll be sort of... talking about them further below. Wowie finally using this feature-- Basically its me recapping them as characters and how they are in the AU. This is going to be a long read god I’m so sorry :<

Ghost- Ghost is the energetic one of the vessels. They just do whatever they want, they literally often do not care a lot about what they do. Ghost likes helping others, because they just wanna fix a lot of things. They like making friends, and just-- having fun. Who wouldn’t? There are rare times Ghost gets mad, and when they do- they go big Shade Lord mode. In conclusion Ghost is just a very.. chaotic.. fun-loving-- andd-- helpful baby. We love them. - But onto how they appear once more- Basically, since this AU is a mix of both the dream no more ending and as well as the embrace the void ending,, this basically has Ghost go full on shade lord in their fight with Radi. They disappear afterwards, only leaving their shell behind. They are presumed to be dead by Hornet. As described quite a bit ago (when I first talked about this AU), Ghost is just.. verryyyy angry as the Shade Lord. They finally appear in Dirtmouth, lashing out and just being a ng y. They try to attack Hornet, but no, Hollow stops them-- fighting them off even in their weak form. Eventually they are given time to run back into the home they and Hornet have been staying in to retrieve Ghosts shell. Why do they retrieve Ghosts shell? Well, because they are aware that  Shade Lord = Ghost. They just carefully lay their shell on the ground and sort of.. apologize. They do this by speaking to Ghost through void, void beings can do that right? Surely. Though eventually, Ghost calms down and accepts their shell, fitting their big Shade Lord form into their tiny shell. Then going to their siblings to... hug them.. strangely enough. Hollow would of course hug them back. Anddd-- thats that. Another thing that Ghost does is revive PK, Radi, and even get NKG up in the real world too. One more is that they too ‘revive’ their siblings Clematis (aka the Greenpath Vessel) and Beryl (Lost Kin/Broken Vessel) by getting Mask Maker to fix their shells and then they just yeeted them into the Abyss. After a moment, they go and retrieve them, and bring them to their parents so they can deal with them then. They too sort of helped Godseeker get out of the Junk Pit, because who wants to live in garbage? They do a lot of stuff. They are happy to help. Grimmchild- Ah yes, my favorite. Grimmchild in general is.. less.. childish than she was, of course she’d be less childish- She’s an adult. She has more sense than she used to, she’s much smarter, though still retains those silly aspects of hers. She’s rather protective, over Ghost mostly, and usually is always with and around them. best friends for life. She’s the one who generally calms Ghost down when they get angry. - Alrighty, so-- After Ghost presumably had died, Grimmchild was very sad, quite sad. She usually sought out Hornet or Hollow for comfort, but generally it was Hollow who’d give her pats and let her lay on their head. Hornet on the other hand, was quite busy,, doing Hornet things of course :> When Ghost returned, and was brought back to the house- oh-- what did Grimmchild do? Well, she literally tackled them to the ground in a hug (the way this bat lookin child hugs) because ‘oh my god, best friend is back, hi friend, you okay friend?’ and so on, just really happy to see them. And truly-- truly-- ever since then you can never see these two apart. How Lovely. Grimmchild has a good enough relationship with her ‘aunt’ Radi, generally it started off.. not that well but as time passed Radi decided to tolerate her (and Ghost) enough to actually be nice. Grimmchild usually seeks out Radi for advice and so on, some of the rare times that she’s away from Ghost. But when Ghost does allow her dear ol dad to actually exist in the real world (with their ultimate goddamn shade lord powers.. pff..), she’s very happy, very appreciative. Then theres the dilemma of her taking on the name ‘Grimm’ and her fathers name too basically being Grimm. She just calls him dad but usually they get confused on which Grimm someone is calling for. Silly. Clematis- Okie dokie, third one! and its the precious short baby, Clematis. Aka of course.. the Greenpath vessel. Clematis is a very meek fellow, and they generally like and appreciate being alone. They do sometimes like company, but peace and quiet is better than that. It’s quite obvious here, Clematis is not very social. They are not very skilled at socializing but a certain someone is gonna help em. - As stated before, yeah, Clematis gets basically revived alongside Beryl and given to PK and WL so they can properly take care of their goddamn kids. Even then, Clematis often hid in places that gave them such peace and quiet that they’d fall asleep there. It’d take a long while to find them. They are somewhat close with their mother, since she’d often take them to garden with her when they weren’t hiding. They formed a somewhat bond with Beryl, but Beryl eventually pushed them away because of how damn mean they are. Bad Beryl. Later in life, when Clematis is an.. adult? sure, they’ve reached their own prime form. Very short though for a vessel. By then, they are living alone in Greenpath. Somehow someway, they come to befriend the oh so lovely Lace, who’s just been seeking out someone who does not absolutely dislike her. The two become friends, and she just comes by often to have this one person who understands where she’s coming from. Both were very lonely, now they besties. And now, a fun fact, those flowers decorated them and their moss collar are clematis flowers. They generally are quite pretty. And oh-- Clematis likes to grow flowers as they did back in Queens Gardens with their mama. Beryl- Beryl! I love them, but god are they mean. As said, Beryl is.. quite mean,, quite stubborn. They feel as if they don’t need anyone, just preferring to do things their way. They don’t really like their family at all, and show it by once more- being a big ol bitch. Strangely enough though, the only person in their family they aren’t..really...that mean to-- is Lil Lady. Their littlest sister. They actually are nicer to her, one of the only moments they are gentle and nice are when they interacted with her. Sometimes, they are actually nicer to other people as well. That rarely happens though. - Yada yada- even when they are being taken care of by their parents they dislike them. PK is a bit distant as always, WL tries to give them love but they say no. They don’t want anything from these people. Since they already did grow a bit beforehand, they are the first out of the two revived siblings to reach their prime form. They once were nicer to Clematis, now the two barely interact. It’s kinda sad. (It’s not fully Beryl’s fault, Clematis just barely interacts with people anymore) During this time, a young Lil Lady gave them the ‘necklace’ that they still do wear to this day. They are sometimes teased for it. (Their little sister made it for them, don’t j ud g e) Beryl generally likes fighting, its very fun for them. So when Hornet asked them if they would like to be one of her knights, they ‘happily’ obliged. Then being one of her knights, they are constantly told off by Hollow, who’s one of her other knights because they don’t like to listen to orders. And they often get into little fights with Lace, who too is a knight of Hornets, because oh my lets step on the shortest one who you never agree with. Either way, Beryl isn’t totally terrible- but they never planned on listening to their parents when they tried to teach them to do better. Even though they are a bitch, their fellow knights (and family) will come to their aid if they need it. Hollow- FINALLY- the last one. Oh my god...I’m mostly taking this from the recent post I did about Hollow and their own reference. Hehe. Hollow is a very gentle vessel, and too is protective, mostly over their family. They have a deep care for those who they are related to, of course of course. They too hold deep respect for their parents, and for the most part, is somewhat ‘closer’ to PK, due to the fact he was the one who mostly.. raised them back then. They still are close with their mother of course. They are very friendly, but not as friendly as Ghost. More reserved?? sure. They are the one who usually keeps their fellow knights in check. - It all starts off with Hornet finding them strangely alive after the black egg is no more, and her helping them get to Dirtmouth and-- get patched up. After quite a while of recovery, the whole big shade lord thing happens-- and-- Hollow sees it fit to apologize to Ghost for everything, for leaving them to fall back into the Abyss. They are happy that Ghost accepts their apology and literally carries them back into the house. How cute. Afterwards, Hornet decides to finally take these two to see the White Lady. Oh at last, Hollow gets to face their mother. And so, they do. The moment is... quite emotional for the poor bean. They feel so guilty, that they weren’t truly empty, and WL reassures them with the notion that it was not them who failed their parents, it was their parents who failed them. She’s going to actually try to be a proper mother.. huh.. finally. And so, Hornet leaves Hollow with WL, Ghost coming along with her because they too feel as if those two deserve some time to fix things a bit. Ah, and once more-- a bit of a timeskip. Hollow has been living quite well with their mother, with her having unbound herself and gaining some of her sight back, enough that she is able to walk around without bumping into anything lmao. They get along quite well. When Ghost brings PK around, and Hornet finally drags him to Queens Gardens-- another emotional moment for Hollow. They go and embrace their father and wont let go until he asks them too..they’re just too damn happy to see him, though there is still that guilt of them failing him. PK himself is guilty. Then from that, and PK’s reunion with WL, they live.. quite happily, quite comfortably, and Hollow accepts their two siblings whenever Ghost is to bring them around. They are generally pleasant to their smaller sibs. But oh,, when their newest sibling finally arrives- Lil Lady- OH GOD- are they a loving big big sibling. They sort of,, cared for her a lot, and whenever PK and WL needed a break? They were there. Of course, they are a good influence on her, and Beryl is the bad influence. Though in general they have spent much more time with their little sister than Beryl has. Soon enough, when Hornet finally ascends to the throne, Hollow too is requested to be one of her knights, and of course they’d accept. This is their sister here. Whenever she is to need help, they help, and whenever their fellow knights need help, they are there. They feel useful like this, and Hornet does greatly appreciate their company and how they can easily split up Lace and Beryl from their constant fights. They’re truly an older sibling, scolding those two. And lastly, the whole Radi thing. I did explain this in that post about Hollow- but I’ll say it here too. Hollow wanted closure for everything, so they’ve gone and forgiven most people who have.. hurt them? yeah. This includes Radi. Radi doesn’t really want to be forgiven, she knows she did horrible things, and she isn’t the most guilty about them. But either way, they forgive her, and they somewhat become.. acquaintances?? friends?? They don’t really know. She’s just not as mean as she was to them before.. OH GOD- AND IM DONE AAAAAAAA This is a whole mess I tried my be s t whoever has read this whole thing, I thank you for reading my bullshit.

[brideofcthulhu10]

Behold another Lost Boys holiday special! It was between this and Valentine’s day, but honestly I love writing Christmas specials, its such a cozy time despite the high suicide rates, but lets not get into that. A BIG SHOUT OUT TO @imlostinsantacarla FOR HELPING ME EDIT MY FINAL DRAFT!

Fun Fact! My husband, David (yes, that is actually his name) actually does have the bah humbug hat I mention in the head canons. He’s a heavy metal goth so when I found it at the store I had to get it for him. And you just know if our David found that, he wouldn’t be able to resist it!

Christmas with the Boys

Alright, so the whole touchy, feely and mushy feelings that surround even the topic of Christmas time is not something any of the boys will ever openly admit to enjoying. After all, they see themselves as these bad ass brutal killers who thrive off of death instead of holding hands and caroling with the goodie goodies of this coastal town. 

Yet, it's challenging for them not to get sucked into the glitz and glam of the holiday season. Everything is a big deal in Santa Carla. Dia De Los Muertos, Halloween, Thanksgiving- everything! But especially Christmas.

Christmas in Santa Carla dwarfs the frenzy craze of Halloween. The entirety of the boardwalk is decked out with red and green lights that are tightly wound around palm trees, red bulbous bows are wrapped tightly around street lamps, the reds and whites of velvety fabric swirl down the posts, creating the effect of candy canes. All the store windows are painted to appear frosted, or covered with painted snowmen whilst several rooftops are covered with white felt in which mimics the texture and sight of snow. Even the boats in the harbour are all extravagantly decorated in a sea of lights that parade around brightly at night in every color imaginable.

Between the dates of the 30th of November all the way to the 24th of December the city of Santa Carla hosts a plethora of wondrous events in it's annual Holiday Festival. Large green, white and red kiosks are erected, selling a wide range of baubles and treats, from delectable chocolate coated rice krispy Santa Clauses, elf candy apples caked in a plethora of dark chocolate and peppermint, to a variety of Holiday hats, masks and even hand made costumes by the many local artists. Even hand carved candles in wondrous scents of pine, mint, or spice.

Currently, David possesses a black fur Santa hat which he acquired on a night out that boasts the words "Bah Humbug" proudly sewn over the front. It's the only holiday attire he'll even humor. Last time Marko attempted to place reindeer antlers on his head, David had set them on fire roasting atop a pan of chestnuts. Now it's not to say that he's a grinch persay. Rather, the complex and intense emotions that come hand in hand with Christmas can leave him perpetually indifferent at best, disdainful at worst. The whole occasion leaves him displeased. After all, he was an orphan who had been almost eagerly abandoned by his hooker mother left to fend for himself from the beginning, and  of course never met his father. Even she could not identify which of her many clients may have been responsible. Most of his mortal life he had lived as a street rat, barely making ends meet by picking the pockets of tourists and Santa Carla citizens oblivious to the true dangers of the lower side of town. The rich and uppity classes who often snubbed their entitled noses his way would never suspect as he lurks between alleyways, leaving them cornered at knife point. It was scarce that he ever did see a kind face in the sea of those who had little interest for anyone that was not themselves. Back then it was rather uncommon for anyone to step outside their own little lives, which led to most interactions, outside of the other boys, having been met with great hostility, thus he had learned to be just as equally hostile in turn. Even the mere thought of anyone suddenly dawning a false kindness due to a certain time of year simply agitated David. It rattled him to the very core in a way very few other things did. Why bother with the lies? Couldn't people just face the very basic fact that they weren't nearly as charitable as they often deemed themselves to be? I mean, the young man had seen firsthand a family having previously snubbed a dirty homeless man with appalled disdain at the sight of his muddied clothes and dirt stained skin, only to then begin volunteering at a soup kitchen to purge whatever guilt they carried on their conscience once the holiday season began. The whole ordeal was pitiful! Nevertheless, - more so for Paul and Marko's sakes than his own -, he did humor these traditions amongst the holiday's festivities. Ruining a good time just wasn't his style. Unless they started fucking singing.

Most traditions David could tolerate, some he even enjoyed slightly; although he would never be caught dead admitting something as embarrassing as that! However, he just couldn't stand Christmas carols! They were the bain to his immortal existence. The repetitive nature of these overly cheery jingles left him covering his ears lest they nest in his brain leaving him humming the same damn melody for weeks. This was the case because the dynamic duo of dumbasses were well aware of his hatred for Rudolph the Red Nosed fuckin' roadkill! Stupid red nosed abomination. 

“OOOOOOH-,” Paul begins with cheerful mischief.

“Don’t. You. Fucking. Dare.” David seethes through tightly clenched teeth, eyes screwed shut in indignance. 

Paul hesitates. He looks at Marko. Marko looks at Paul. Wicked grins of agreement spread wide like wildfire across their faces as their master plan comes into play. Full throttle. What’s more fun than annoying the shit out of David? One on the left, the other on the opposite side of the cave on the right. This was nothing but Divine perfection if you asked the two troublesome vampires.

“OOOOOH DASHING THROUGH THE SNOW!” Paul belted out at full volume.

“IN A ONE HORSE OPEN SLEIGH!” Marko followed in suit, the widest eerie grin plastered on his face.

“OVER THE HILLS WE GOOOO” Paul howled enthusiastically. 

“I WILL FUCKING KILL YOU BOTH!” David's voice hit a whole new octave it had never in all his life so far. All the while Dwayne had opted to vacate the room lest he be caught in the middle of the escalating madness with Laddie in tow. He loved these guys, but not enough to dive head first into their fuckery.

Paul thrives during the Christmas holidays! How could he not? The food, the punk rock covers of Christmas songs, the absolute babes prancing around the town in Santa hats under mistletoe?! He loved it all! You can find him sneaking under mistletoe with many sweet honeys on a constant basis, regardless of whether or not he's acquainted with them. Most do roll their eyes or laugh it off, but every once in a blue moon the guy will get a little lovin' from a beach babe in the Yuletide mood. What else could he ask for? You can bet he’ll run into the woods December first, and quite literally RIP a pine tree out of the ground to bring home like a wee carrot being plucked from the ground. The bigger the better! He may even drag Dwayne or Marko along with him if it's too big for him to carry himself. And all the boozy drinks he can concoct up? This boy is in his element! Mulled wine, spiked eggnog, candy cane vodka, butterscotch bourbon hot chocolate?! Yes! David straight up refuses to try anything that Paul creates himself (remember the concoction he made in Max's kitchen? Those poor goldfish....) which is also another reason why he has Dwayne help him. Or rather, the other boys insist the most responsible of them monitors the blonde lest he poison them with some sickly brew. That, and the fact that Dwayne's the least likely out of all of them to blow up the damn kitchen!

Dwayne is indeed the designated cook during the holiday rush, albeit a field even he tends to struggle. Avoiding the kitchen catching aflame, perfecting his craft lest he blow up the stove, leaving only a pile of ash in its wake. As previously mentioned, ever since the dreadful chain of events that lead to the unfortunate destruction of Max's kitchen, this raven haired vampire has attempted his hand at learning to use a stove properly: Although he often finds himself forgetting ingredients either in the midst of cooking or after the final product is done and he's taken a big bite. 

“Shit! I forgot the milk and eggs!” Dwayne grumbled with a mouthful of dry crumbs, a true disgrace of a cookie.

Paul always gives him crap for it of course.

“Oooh I just thought you were going for a sandy, dusty dry cookie kinda thing.”

"Yeah man, these taste like ass!" Marko would cough out in midst of choking. 

"And what, like you dumbasses could do any better," Dwayne retorts with a huff. Only Star manages to have any manners when testing his failed baking endeavors.

"Well I mean, the taste isn't that bad. Just a little dry is all."

"At least Marko wouldn't be choking to death." David would mutter from the darkest corner of the room, a little late in the conversation.

In all honesty, Dwayne's biggest motivation when it came to improving his skills was obviously Laddie. The kid never got much of a Christmas whilst living with his mom, so now that he was with the boys, he wanted to ensure that Christmas's were something that Laddie would remember for all eternity. Though granted, it is quite the mess when he was helping in the kitchen. But when the mini vamp grins from ear to ear whilst coated in flour and rapidly stirring an overflowing bowl of chunky cookie dough--the sight is too freaking cute!

Since Laddie joined the boys, they participate in Secret Santa every single year, which definitely includes Paul bursting through the entrance of the hotel as Santa on Christmas day. We won't talk about the fact that each year he almost falls flat on his face and swears, ruining the surprise for the kid. 

"Santa where are your reindeer," he'd question, to which Santa Paul scoffs

"Pff, reindeer, I don't need any fucki- Ow," cut off by a firm and covert kick to the shin from Star, Paul quickly changes his response. "Oh! Ho ho, well, you see little boy, Santa can fly too! On his, uh, uhm… magic motorcycle! Yeah, that!"

But it's okay because Laddie already KNEW (he figured it out a year or two ago after Paul's beard fell off not once, but three times), he just doesn't have the heart to tell any of them because, well Paul really gets into it. And he knows the others are playing along for his sake. But to be fair, Laddie would have to be pretty dumb to believe it was Santa. I mean, the beard Paul's wearing is hanging half off his face by this point! But anyway, just like Paul's style, the entirety of the goody two shoes schpiel is thrown out the window, replaced with sleeves that have been ripped off, muddy boots, spiked bracelets and his Metallica shirt in full view beneath his flared red coat. He calls this BIKER CLAUS!

Laddie is not a squasher of traditions! But there was the one time that David had to intervene when Paul and Dwayne thought it would be great to use Laddie as the star at the top of the tree. David practically had a heart attack. Well, that's impossible but it still felt like he was having one!  

“Ho ho ho! Now, don’t be a bitch, little David or Santa will have to give you coal.” Paul stated mockingly to David, brows furrowed. 

“Well, Santa,” David scolds, a wry smile developing on his face when setting down the eight year old now off to shake his presents beneath their behemoth of a tree. “You best be careful. You never know what's in those milk and cookies, hm?”

Each year Marko buys bird toys for the pigeons in the hotel. Well, buy is probably the wrong word. More like he liberates the stores of their stock. And then for the next six months, David has to hear the agonizing jingle of bells. David almost roasted one pigeon in particular that kept flying over him to drop the ball with a bell in it on his head. That was Paul's entertainment for the next five hours, hell, he'd try to find it if the bird lost it and give it back. Marko defends the pigeon. Between running through stores buying up surprises for his friends, he's helping Paul throw out decorations for the cave. The dollar store has some surprisingly unexpected treasures, allowing him to deck the fucking halls to the max. Tinsel here, ornaments there,  tiny light up trees to hide around the caves, a butt ton of cinnamon pine cones which he ends up throwing back and forth with Paul.

And Paul often steals his gifts or goes dumpster diving for any hidden gems. He forgets to take the tags off of them the majority of the time, which is always an indicator whether or not its new. Any time Star asks where he got them from he refuses to answer. Just gets up and walks away. But for David's gift? Well this lucky bastard has found coal in the dumpster and chucks it to David when he's not looking and he sighs deeply in disappointment because this is the third year Paul has done this. 

 "Huh? What? Who did that? Wasn't me. Somebody's throwing stuff."

Other than that he'll find a fat bag of charcoal and just tape the name David on it. David is certainly not amused. Dwayne will actually try to figure out what the others want, and has the sense to save the money taken from their previous meals. After all, they're dead, they wouldn't have much use for it anyway. He's not about to waste his hypnosis on some poor cashier. That would be a waste of time in his eyes. 

When Christmas did arrive the tree was piled with mysterious boxes crudely mashed and taped together with bows and ribbons underneath it. It's obvious which ones are from Star since those gifts are wrapped in neatly pressed paper, wound tight beneath curled ribbons that remind the boys of her hair. Marko often goes on a food run rather than allow them all to be subjected to a potentially charred turkey, no offense to Dwayne of course. So, with a table covered from end to end with copious bowls of gravy, potatoes, candied sweet potatoes, a beast of a turkey in the center packed to the brim with cornbread stuffing, the boys cram into their chairs knocking back beers and spiked cider. Keeping to their own traditions, after fattening up, they gather around the tree and play card games, just as they had over eighty years ago on that frigid night. David still slays them in poker, and Marko is an utter dark horse when it comes to blackjack. Paul insists they try Go Fish. No one ever wants to play Go Fish. Closer towards the end of the night Dwayne will slip away to Jasper's shrine and bring him a fresh glass of rum as well as unwrapping what he got him that year. While Dwayne is there, the other boys will join him - omitting Star and Laddie left unaware of the Lost Boy they'd never met - in celebrating the last hour or so of the Holiday season with their fallen comrade.

Although Christmas time is often about uncomfortable mushy moments and emotions that create deep, unfamiliar times for David. The entire ordeal becomes that for everyone of the boys and Star. But God forbid anyone who even mentions it! I mean, it's kinda obvious though considering he's spending it with the people he always called family, knee deep in traditions that are sentimental to himself and the boys. There's a fluster of emotions running rampant during this particular Holiday Season, and although the blonde brooding vampire decides to squint at it with skepticism he savors these moments, knowing like Jasper, it could all be swept away with a single ray of light or the foolish hand of a hunter. So as they sit, drunk, full, and laughing beside Jasper's grave he can't help but smile at the sentimentality of it all. Christmas is a pain in the ass, but… it's a pain he'll gladly sit through for his brothers.

[foreficfandom]

Mystic Messenger - Their Favorite Gift From MC

-- Zen: Customized Bracelet --

Zen’s sort of an excessive person so he’s almost always the one giving you gifts. He doesn’t want for much and the stuff he does - like skincare products - you used to buy for him but he eventually convinced you to buy it also for yourself so you could do sheet masks together.

When you do buy gifts for him, it can be a bit difficult. His fans send him a bunch of stuff all the time, like baked goods, or fanart, or neckties. He, of course, is a lot happier when you decide to hand him something, but it’s almost never something he’s ever gotten before.

You have to outsource. So you order a custom-stamped leather bracelet from an indie crafter, something he can wear while rehearsing without worrying about it falling off. On the outside, you have ‘I love you’, and on the inside ‘Zen x MC’. 

You give it to him for Valentine’s, his favorite holiday. Zen dedicates the entire day to you and him, and pushes aside the many packages from his fans for later. 

You hand him a little box, and he opens it to gasp dramatically at the bracelet, immediately putting it on and exploring the texture of the leather. The lightly-colored tan matches his complexion perfectly.

First, a kiss for you, then its 904709 selfies with him proudly modeling his gift. It goes on his social media to a slight ruckus, because Zen’s never shown off any gifts he’s gotten before. 

“My love is so thoughtful!!! Such a beautiful bracelet <3333″

Your name isn’t on the outside to maintain privacy, which proves to be a good idea since that picture is circulated like crazy to mixed reactions.

Zen doesn’t care, this is by far the best gift he’s ever gotten. He hugs you tightly and promises to wear it always.

-- Yoosung: Vinyl Laptop Stickers --

You like to buy knick-knacks for each other on occasion. Yoosung’s wallet isn’t packing so he can only get you stuff once and a while, and you return the favor with other little things.

And Yoosung is also kinda already surrounded by little trinkets and other stuff he’s collected on his own. Little figurines and toys from vending machines, plastic reward favors from convenience stores, character-themed pens and mugs and phone charms. 

It can get a little cluttered. His backpack alone is heavily decorated with pinback buttons and enamel pins, and you know he’s home just by the jingling of the many charms hanging off the zippers.

He’s also of a romantic and ‘cute’ mind, so when you give him practical gifts of a headset holder for his gaming desktop, he’s pleased but ... he prefers it when your gifts aren’t quite so banal.

You eventually do some deep surfing for his upcoming birthday, and find this adorable pack of laptop stickers based off of LOLOL characters. These wouldn’t take up anymore of his space, and he could still carry them with him. So during his birthday dinner, you give it to him over cake and he opens it with a gasp. 

“It’s ... oh, it’s so cute! It’s perfect, MC!” He hugs you tightly and immediately has you help him stick them on. 

He uses this laptop for school, bringing it with him on most days, so it was the perfect gift to remember you by. Whenever he opens his laptop in the student lounge, or in class, he sees all those bright colors reminding him of his favorite pastime, but also he thinks of you and how much you love each other.

-- Jaehee: Promise Ring --

You’ve gotten her spice giftboxes for her cooking, a set of cozy loungewear for the both of you, and other cute things she absolutely adores.

But her true favorite? Her engagement ring. A dainty little band that matches yours perfectly. You had proposed to her during a beautiful evening in the park, making her tear up. 

“We’re partners, now,” you said. She gave a watery smile and put her ring on proudly.

South Korea wouldn’t allow marriage between you two, so these rings promised more than a union. It promised a brighter future in the face of adversity. It promised progress in the name of love and equality. 

Jaehee struggles with societal expectations for a woman like her. This ring was like a shield against the worse thoughts, or an anchor during the more tremulous times. She had chosen to pursue you against the world’s wishes, and it was the best decision she’s ever made.

You and her wear the rings 24/7. To an onlooker, it just seemed like the two of you were separately engaged people. But she knows differently. A proud little secret. 

Customers sometimes make comments about them. She’d be ringing them up, and they’ll notice the brilliant white sapphire. “When’s the date?” some have asked. She stammered,  “It’s in the making.” The customer nodded, and wished her a happy union. 

She twists the ring around her finger, looking at you wistfully. It will be a happy union. One day!

-- Jumin: Custom-Made Cologne --

What the heck do you gift the man who could have anything he wanted? Material possessions are never a strain for him. He grew up knowing that any toy, any trinket, any new technology or experience he desired, he would get. He’d ask for ice cream and his father’d purchase an entire chain. 

His current self rarely buys indulgences. He’s had years of being fulfilled already. But he definitely buys gifts for you, almost to ridiculous levels. You can see from the diversity of gifts that he has a reach for any product or merchandise, anywhere at any time. 

When it came time to get him a gift, you had asked the RFA for advice. And everyone was as clueless as you were. Even Jihyun wasn’t sure; the two of them have almost never exchanged gifts throughout the long years of their friendship, since they knew the other was showered in generosity already. 

“You’re gonna have to go custom. Something that can’t be bought,” Zen suggested. So when Jumin announced that he had to go to Birmingham for a business meeting, you came along with him. Which you seldom do, since it’s two days of Jumin being stuck at meetings leaving you to your own devices. But you had a plan.

You looked up a luxury custom perfumery, and with the help of an expert nez you crafted a bottle that would complement him perfectly. On the bottle was a label that said “Love Forever by MC”. 

So for his birthday, he accepted his gift with grace and asked where you bought it. “This bottle doesn’t look like its from Clive Christian, is it? Maybe it’s Dior ...” 

You explained where you got it, and giggled when his mouth dropped open in surprise. He opened it, sniffed, and his smile grew bigger ‘cause it was so much more special now. It was made under your hand, something that will never be replicated. His and his only. 

He loves wearing it to work. It’s so wonderful to be surrounded by a smell that reminds him of you. 

-- Saeyoung: Fingerprint Charm --

He’s a surprisingly complicated man to gift. Like Jumin, he neither lacks nor wants for material needs. Sometimes you’ve given him cute candies or hand-knitted mittens for winter, and meanwhile he’ll give you ridiculously advanced robot cats or he’ll bust out his packing wallet and boom, you’ve got a new Gucci clutch bag.

He kinda knows that he’s hard to gift. So whenever you shyly hand over a six-pack of gag-flavored soda for Christmas or something, he makes a big show of loving it and thanking you with kisses and nuzzles. And he does love it! He’s never had gifts before, not from V or Rika or his co-workers, and definitely not from his mother. Just the thought that someone cared enough to surprise him with trinkets is so heartwarming.

But your anniversary was coming up. It marked the day that Saeyoung’s life turned around a complete 180 for the better. A very important day, one that you couldn’t mark with an exotic beef jerky bouquet or whatever.

One day, while touring a small art fair, you found an indie jeweler who offered custom fingerprint charms. You set up a date to come in and make a mold by pressing your thumb into a block of sand, which was cast into a mold and into which steel was poured. 

You gave it to him over a late-night car ride date. He took the charm out of the little bag and stared at it, you explained what it was. “That’s my very own fingerprint right there. I hope it’s something you can carry with you, and remember me by.”

He was silent for a few long seconds. You saw that his hand was shaking. So you reached over and kissed him, he embraced you tightly and said with a wavering voice, “Thank you.” A sniffle, and he was back to his cheery self. You helped him put it on his keychain, next to his car keys. 

He loves it dearly. Especially when he fingers the print and feels the groves, imagining your hand.

-- Saeran: Sweater --

For a long while, Saeran couldn’t live a proper civilian life and spent many days holed up at home, stuck in an anxious and depressive slump. Any venture outside was an ordeal for him. Bit by bit, through therapy and medication, he regained his confidence.

You found this sweater online, and you knew how much he liked wearing sweaters at home. It had this quote on it that the both of you were familiar with. It had been one of the repeated self-forgiving phrases his therapist suggested. Saeran took to that phrase particularly well. He repeats it in his mind when he feels himself on the verge of a breakdown, and it helps de-escalate. 

You knew you had to buy it. But keeping it secret from Saeran was kinda a challenge because he likes to tour around your internet history when he’s bored. Not for malicious reasons, he’s just curious and wants to know what kind of stuff you like to re-tweet, or what shops you frequent. 

So with Saeyoung’s help, you ordered the sweater under a guise Saeran wouldn’t be able to crack without some effort, and it ended up being a legit surprise when you handed Saeran his gift. 

You watched his eyes trace the quote carefully, and at his fingers tracing the screenprinted flowers. He was quiet for a long while, just exploring the sweater thoroughly.

He can’t remember the last time he’s gotten a gift. Maybe it had been never. His eyes teared up.

You hugged him close and stroked his hair like he said he enjoys. It was almost hard for him to accept this from you; he’d spent years trying to approve others under threat of violence, and he’s rarely gotten to experience true generosity. 

He wears it at least once a week. It’s his absolute favorite article of clothing forever and ever. 

-- Jihyun: Filled Scrapbook -- 

For the holidays, Jihyun had given you a beautiful set of jewelry over dinner, along with a framed photo of yourself that he had taken some time before. He rarely decides to spoil you with his riches, but sometimes the occasion calls for it. 

How can you match up with his generosity? You knew Jihyun would be charmed with whatever you gave him, but you wanted your gift to mean something. 

Once your anniversary began to creep up, you had an idea and began working on your project two weeks in advance - it was going to be a beautiful scrapbook of not just Jihyun’s photos, but also little momentos and decorations on every page, detailing particular moments of your life together up to this point. 

You scoured his instagram, printing out copies onto photo paper and cutting and pasting. You folded within old plane, bus, and boat tickets. There were sightseeing brochures from trips abroad, old restaurant menus, stamps from envelopes he had sent you. You wrote messages and captions with multicolored ink. 

Extra special were the pages dedicated to when the two of you moved into the new apartment together, and when V was officially recovered from retina surgery, and also the first RFA party he co-hosted with you. Some pages touched on more sad subjects.

Finally, you finished the scrapbook just in time for the anniversary, and it was all worth it to see Jihyun completely blown away by the effort you put into it. He spent several minutes on every page, talking them over with you and reminiscing. 

He managed to hold in his tears until the last page, which you kept empty except for a calligraphy script that said, “... and into the beyond.”

[darkhymns-fic]

When Life is a Song

Genis narrowed his eyes, looking up at Lloyd and Colette both. “You two… What kind of dancing was that?” He frowned, standing on his tip toes, trying his best to be tall, though in comparison to his already tall friends, this only slightly worked. “How about we leave some room for Martel, huh?"

In which there is awkward dancing, awkward confessions, and awkward musings about a sleeping Goddess.

Fandom: Tales of Symphonia Characters/Pairing: Lloyd Irving/Colette Brunel, Genis Sage, Raine Sage Rating: G Mirror Link: AO3 Notes: This was a secret santa gift made for @poesby​ for the Colloyd discord server! Thanks so much for being a part of it! I had so much fun with this prompt.

-

It was at a school dance that Lloyd first realized he was in love with Colette.

That dance happened just a year before Colette would be off on her journey to regenerate the world, Lloyd remembered. No oracles had come down to Sylvarant, and no Desians had gone to attack the Martel Temple where she would train and take her lessons on the scriptures of the Angels. It was still just in the tail-end of spring, before the air would grow more humid with the coming of summer. The farmer’s crops had yielded their share, and the treaty still kept them safe, as far as everyone was concerned.

It was the Professor that had arranged the school dance to begin with, which had always confused Lloyd back then, even though she claimed that it was to celebrate a successful school year. Only years later, after the journey, would he realize that perhaps this had been his teacher’s way of giving Colette what had been denied her for so long. Never allowed outside of the village, with sometimes her entire days being holed up in that temple, Colette barely got to just relax and enjoy the normalcy that everyone else had. 

But of course, Raine had to make that be a part of school somehow.

“Lloyd! Why are you so late?!” Genis was standing at the wooden door to the Iselian schoolhouse, hands on his hips, and looking very displeased. The air around them was warm, even in the early evening, carrying the scent of the oak trees that surrounded the village. “The party started a half hour ago!”

“Gah, sorry!” Lloyd said, rushing up to the entrance as if he had just run all the way from his house. Which, well, he did! Once he realized he was late… “Noishe doesn’t like to walk around the forest at night, and it’s really dark! Monsters are also kind of a pain…”

Genis wasn’t convinced. He eyed Lloyd’s outfit. “And you just wore the same thing you wear every day to a party ever since you were 13?”

“It’s not the same thing!” Lloyd proudly pointed at his familiar red jacket, but specifically at the buttons that lined up his torso and sleeves. “See? These are golden buttons! This is my fancy jacket!”

“…That’s stupid. You can barely even tell they’re different in the light!”

“At least I’m not wearing a lame bowtie,” Lloyd argued back. Bright red and decorating Genis’ little suit like he was a doll, Lloyd would have teased more had he not felt Raine’s sudden smack across the back of his head, his only warning being the slow smile on Genis’ face just a half-second before.

“Don’t be rude, Lloyd. And you are very late. This is going to affect your grade, you know.”

“What?! I’m being graded for a school party?!” But he barely got to argue, already being pushed along into the schoolhouse by Genis. To think that he’d have to go to school still on a weekend…

He hadn’t realized how that night would be so important to him then.

The schoolhouse wasn’t big, containing only one room for the entire class. But with the desks put away, replaced with tables of home-cooked food from local chefs in the village, and fun party decorations that lined the walls, it looked so entirely different. Streamers that were a multitude of colors flowed down from the ceiling, and even some balloons were tied around the place, some having cut loose and now floating way up high to the wooden beams overhead.

And honestly, to Lloyd, it still felt a bit like another school day with the other students here too. The girls who always gossiped in the corner were chatting away in the very same place, but wearing different dresses that looked like the colors of the grass outside. And the boys that he remembered being part of Professor Sage’s fan club were milled about in a small group, sneaking occasional glances towards the door where Lloyd and Genis came through, groaning when seeing their teacher wasn’t with them. They always had more and more members than he thought…

But the ages of everyone also ranged all over the place, from those being as old as him, to others as young as seven. He could already see a group of the youngest students trying to play tag with each other while flitting about the tables, treating the party as if it was just another recess period. That was what happened when everyone in the village had their classes at one place and with just one room.

But through all that, through all the people he recognized and the color that brightened the walls, he searched for her, barely finding a trace.

“Where’s Colette?” he finally asked Genis.

The boy pointed to the back of the classroom-turned party hall. “Over there when I last saw her. She tripped, and well…”

Lloyd winced, knowing exactly what that meant. “Ah man, again?” Hopefully she was okay, but then again this was the usual for her.

“She didn’t mess with my decorations at least, but I made sure Raine healed her of any injuries.” Genis nodded, looking proud of himself for that decision. “Anyway, I don’t think she’s moved from their since.”

“Why aren’t you hanging out her? She’s probably been really bored of this party!” Now Lloyd was starting to feel bad about being late if Colette had been by herself this whole time.

“Hey! It’s not boring!” Genis argued. “Besides, I can’t hang out as I’m in charge of chaperoning. Well, sis is, but I’m helping out!”

Lloyd tilted his head. “Chapa what?”

Genis frowned. “...Just go to her.”

Honestly, Lloyd didn’t need to be told twice, already heading off while Genis was still talking. “Whatever you say!!” Saying the last bit in a shout was not exactly the smartest move, the sound traveling easily in the room and making heads turn; from the kids playing tag, to the boys still gossiping, openly wondering why Raine wasn’t here yet…

It made her head turn too, just in time.

Underneath the dim lights of the set table lamps and the stars outside, he saw Colette, still brushing away the wood chips from her dress. A familiar-shaped hole was just behind her, which was about her very height and width. Maybe something that Lloyd could help fix up later…

But it was at his sudden shout, bouncing across the room that took her attention, made her turn to see him coming over. “Lloyd! You finally made it!”

And for one moment, Lloyd slowed his steps.

Back then, maybe Lloyd hadn’t understood what he felt just yet. Colette’s dress was different from her usual one, still covering her from head to toe. But it was more flowy than her usual, the edges trimmed with lace, her hem printed with star-shaped patterns. It was a summer dress perfect for the warm air outside, the kind that would let her feel the summer breeze. Her hair was also tied up in a bun, showing off more of her face, such as the red on her cheeks, and the dimples that formed whenever she smiled.

Lloyd hadn’t understood why his heart had beat so strangely back then, why he took a moment to speak… and why he suddenly felt a little ashamed at how he dressed, wishing he had gotten something cooler, like a cape, or maybe even a party mask… “Uh, hey Colette! Why are still over here?”

Colette laughed, though she looked nervous as she did so, still brushing away more invisible dust from her dress. “Ah, well, I messed up…”

She gestured to that hole, scratching her cheek in embarrassment. “I’m not even sure how I did it this time!”

“Oh right… It must be all these balloons here,” Lloyd offered as an explanation. “They’re in the way of the floor a lot!”

“Aw, but they’re really cute. I was afraid I’d pop them if I get too close.”

Lloyd reached out to one balloon floating nearby, its pink color so bright and pastel-shaded that it drew the eye a bit. “Nah, there’s no way these can just pop that easily!” He took its string, pulling it to him quickly. “You just gotta-” Pop!

The sound made both Lloyd and Colette flinch, along with a few other people who stood nearby. From the front of the room, he heard Genis yell out to him. “Lloyd! Careful with those!”

“Er, sorry about that!” Now Lloyd held a completely deflated balloon by its string, smiling at Colette shamefacedly. “Guess we both should be careful…”

Colette giggled. “It’s okay, I’m just happy you’re here. I thought that maybe you wouldn’t come.”

“No way! I uh, did kinda forget for a little bit, but then I remembered!”

Her smile was gentle in that dim light, and it was different than what Lloyd was used to, even though he was always seeing Colette’s smiles each day. How come…? She spoke again, breaking the brief little spell he was under. “And you have new clothes too! I really like those golden buttons.”

Lloyd stood there in shock. She noticed! “Y-yeah! It’s my fancy set! See, look, look!” He turned around, showing off the white ribbon strips that streamed from his collar, looking the usual to the untrained eye until…

“Oh! There’s patterns on it!” Colette said, reaching out to hold one of the ribbons, so softly in her hands. “They look like little dogs!”

“Hehe. I was using Noishe as a subject to make these! I still gotta get better at sewing though…” He turned back around, while Colette still held onto that ribbon, tracing the shape along the surface. He stared at what she wore as well, so used to her thick overcoat and not the dress that fluttered about her legs freely. “And, uh, you look pretty great too!”

“Hehe, thanks. Usually the Church doesn’t want me to but… they said it was okay for tonight.” Her voice lowered a fraction, her fingers still twiddling with the ribbons until the note of a flute floated in the air. She dropped it in surprise, raising her head. “Oh!”

Lloyd turned around, seeing some of the other students gathered near the very front of the classroom (party room?); one girl was holding up the flute that played softly, while a spectacled boy was by her side, strumming a guitar, and another was holding up a triangle, waiting for the perfect moment to strike it… “Isn’t that the music club?” he asked aloud.

“Oh, they’re playing for the party! That’s so nice.” Colette clasped her hands to her chest as some of the other students moved from their groups to go out into the middle of the room. The music was still in its beginning phases, but the tune was finding its place, delivering a rhythm that even the youngest student could jump around to. The song was simple, the beat easy to nod heads to.

“Wow…” Lloyd hadn’t expected this party to be much of anything, but the music stirred something in his chest. Did Iselia do stuff like this often? Was this what he was missing living so far off in the forests with his dad? He looked at Colette, finding her suddenly very quiet, eyes rapt to the front of the room.

“Colette, what’s up?” he asked.

“Hm? Ah nothing! Well maybe just, um, Lloyd…” Her voice held something soft that he didn’t understand, not just yet still, but it made him give her his full attention either way. The candlelight within the lamps shone off her tied-up hair, illuminated the stars on her dress, all as the music stirred louder around them. “Do you think… you want to try dancing?”

Lloyd only felt a twinge of nervousness – just a bit. But not enough to make him hesitate or refuse. With a grin, he held out his hand for Colette to take. “Yeah! Just uh, I haven’t ever danced before.”

“Hehe, that’s okay! I haven’t done anything like this before either, I think.”

“So that sounds like a pretty good excuse to try it then,” he teased, feeling her hand go in his. It always felt so natural to hold her hand like this, like it was just the right size when her palm pressed against his. His heart went ba-dump! all the sudden, but he only focused on Colette, walking with her to the floor, hearing that same flute play with more energy, the student musicians giving it all they had.

On the way, Colette caught the edge of her shoe against a small pile of confetti on the ground. Lloyd reached out with both arms to catch her, pulling her up. “Oh, uh, watch out for those!” It was literally just paper Colette had tripped on but somehow that was enough…

“Ah, I’m sorry… I’m just too clumsy.” She bit her lip. “Maybe this is silly…”

“Didn’t you just say you wanted to try?” Lloyd asked, genuinely wondering. And they were already here, weren’t they? A brief glance to their surroundings showed him how everyone else danced too; many of them just excitedly moving around each other in erratic patterns, while others interlocked their arms together, skipping across the floor. Genis was to the side, arms crossed, looking out over the place with a certain pride, with Raine finally not far behind. She was taking a red pen to a piece of paper she held in her hand… She really was grading people right now!

He had a few ideas on how he couldn’t fail on this.

Lloyd quickly looped his right arm into Colette’s left, keeping her close. He heard her lightly gasp, but she didn’t move away, her cheek brushing against his shoulder as she turned to him. “How about this? You definitely can’t fall if we dance this way!”

Colette looked radiant before nodding in approval. The warm light over her hair made it glow, and she gripped Lloyd’s arm back just as tightly. “Okay!”

Lloyd had no idea what song was playing, or if it was a mish-mash of many at once. (The students were still learning, after all). But as he took Colette out to the floor, he made sure to keep her standing upright. The most he knew about dancing was a few dwarven jigs, and Lloyd quickly kicked out his legs to imitate such a thing, moving to the beat of the song(s). “Dad taught me this!”

“Oh, I wanna try!” Colette saw and then attempted to follow through. The hem of her dress flew along with her, and already Lloyd could see her tilt a bit backwards at the motion. But he kept hold of her fast, and even when she lost her balance, soon she was falling back against his arm safely. “Ah! I almost fell again…”

“But you didn’t! See? I won’t drop you, promise.”

Colette’s face was nearby, a few stray blonde strands already slipping from her bun. “Okay, I trust you!”

Even as they tried out their dwarven steps that a few people raised an eyebrow at, Lloyd felt the night rush around him. They were clumsy on their feet, and they bumped into other pairs that were also out on the floor. But even through all the stumbles, Lloyd felt his cheeks ache with a constant smile.

Even for a party that he was being graded on, this wasn’t so bad at all.

Still, there were a few hiccups along their dancing journey. Colette would somehow, through by her own little miracles, accidently step on someone else’s toes, earning a complaint from the victim. “Sorry!” she’d say, and then trip over another person, and then sometimes, even accidentally planting her heel against the tip of Lloyd’s boots.

“Ah! Oh no…”

“Hey, that’s nothing!” Lloyd reassured, the pain simply brief and then forgotten. But he’d have to carry her closer, or hold her nearer to avoid everyone else. “Just follow my lead!”

“I thought I was…”

“Oh, watch out for that other balloon!” he warned before neatly whisking Colette off her feet, saving her from accidentally popping the party decoration. “Phew. Just in time.”

“S-Sorry about that!” Colette giggled, hands placed on his shoulders as he held her up by the waist. Her cheeks were red from their dancing, and she was catching her breath, all while she grinned so wide.

Lloyd didn’t move for a few moments, staring at her before finally getting the idea to set her down. “No more apologizing, remember?” he teased, one hand slipping from her side while the other lingered. Because they were going to keep dancing! Unless she was tired? “Did you wanna keep going?”

Colette nodded, and the relief in Lloyd was so palpable, he wondered then just what he would have felt if she had said no. The music still went in their same beat, bringing everyone else on the floor into more energetic movement. A pair of young children swerved around them both, one of them bumping against Colette’s leg and offsetting the precarious balance she always had.

With hardly any sound, she fell forward. Lloyd caught her deftly by the waist once more, because it was natural to do so. She was always so light between his fingers.

“Still not letting you fall,” he said to her with a smile, helping her stand up just a bit. “No matter how many little kids run into you!” In this room right now, that was a very high probability.

“Hehe…I’ll do the same for you!” Colette said, straightening, but only a bit. She was leaning against his chest, head tilted downward. He still held her, and she felt perfect against his palms. “Wow, those buttons are really shiny…”

“Told ya they were!” Lloyd said with pride, having made sure to extra polish them before coming over. But even with that, and the frenzy of the students around them who still danced to the music, he felt a little calmer then usual. Colette hadn’t moved away and he didn’t want to question why.

“Sorry,” she whispered again, hands reaching up to clasp before her chest. But her knuckles just brushed against the front of his jacket. Her fingers loosened their hold on each other. “Just trying not to trip…”

She was shuffling her feet across the floor. Lloyd found that he did the same, keeping the slow, slow pace with her.

Were they still dancing? It didn’t match the music, or everyone else around them…but he liked it.

“Dork, don’t apologize,” he chided once again, but softer. Would she be able to hear him through the noise? But she was so near, she must have. Her hands finally let go of each other to press against his jacket lightly. “But, this works out, doesn’t it?”

“Hm?” Colette, eyes half-lidded, raised them to meet Lloyd’s own.

“If you’re tired but don’t wanna stop dancing, we can just do this.” This seemed like the perfect solution, that and holding Colette this way made him feel so warm. “Right?”

“Yeah, hehe.” She nodded, her cheeks still a bit red, her hair still reflecting the dim light of the room. “Just tired… And, you don’t mind?”

He had more to say, but the way she looked up at him made his words catch in his throat for a short moment. How to say that he really, honestly, liked this so much? “I don’t mind…” he told her, and as she lingered in his hold, he wanted to say something more. “Hey, um…”

Colette gave him all her attention, a hand now over one of those bright buttons of his. “Yes, Lloyd?”

Something that his voice was doing, his own brain barely able to catch up. But with Colette, it felt natural still. Along with…

“Do you think…that maybe you and I could-”

“Noooope!”

And then he felt a sudden force between them, with Colette somehow further away from him? But she looked just as confused in the position, her hands held up in the air with surprise. Huh? What is-?

It was only the tell-tale peek of silver hair that brought Lloyd’s eyes down to see Genis was right in-between them, hands pressed against their stomachs as he pushed. “Red flag, you two!”

Both Lloyd and Colette blinked, looking down at their tiny friend, who was doing all he can to stretch out his arms. “Oh, Genis!” said Colette, smiling down at him, even though she was still very confused. “Um, is something wrong?”

Lloyd was less nice about it. “Yeah, what gives? Ow!” Also, Genis was pushing on his stomach way too hard!

Genis narrowed his eyes, looking up at Lloyd and Colette both. “You two… What kind of dancing was that?” He frowned, standing on his tip toes, trying his best to be tall, though in comparison to his already tall friends, this only slightly worked. “How about we leave some room for Martel, huh?”

That… made no sense to Lloyd at all. “What are you talking about?”

“But… Martel isn’t here though.” Colette argued, though she sounded just as confused. “I mean, I guess she is everywhere technically… Oh, Genis! Can you talk to Martel? Is she dancing with us?” Then a softer question, her concern so apparent. “Are we squeezing her too tight?

“N-No! It’s an expression!” Genis sighed, putting down his arms but still standing in-between them. “You’re getting way too lovey-dovey in here. You’re just lucky my sis isn’t watching right now.”

And that was it, the moment Lloyd completely understood what he had been feeling all evening just then. He could only hope the light was dim enough to not show off his blush, and that the crack in his voice was unnoticeable. “K-Knock it off!” Had that been it all along?

Colette also looked a little shocked…. Though maybe for different reasons. “I didn’t know Martel would be so angry…” She bowed her head to Genis. “I’ll tell her I’m sorry.”

“Colette, I just said it was an expression! Agh, forget it.” Genis still hadn’t gotten out of their way, which probably made Lloyd more annoyed at his friend then he had ever been. “I have to watch out for you guys all the time.”

“No you don’t!” Lloyd argued. “We’re older than you!”

“Sometimes I honestly wonder about that.”

Colette was more patient than Lloyd, but her hands still hovered over her chest, fiddling with her fingers as she could only just stand and wait. “Um, does this mean we’re not allowed to dance anymore?”

Genis sighed and waved away the question, already stepping away. “Go ahead, but again: No lovey dovey stuff. It’s weird!”

Lloyd was about to protest that it wasn’t that lovey! Even if the memory of holding Colette close got his heart racing just a little bit… But Colette stepped forward, taking Lloyd’s right hand in her left, while placing her other hand on his shoulder. The way she took over made him lose his very track of thought.

“Is something like this okay? Oh, maybe you can dance with us too, Genis!”

Genis flushed then. “No way! I’m still chaperoning! So you two better keep those hands where I can see them!” Pointing at his two friends, Genis walked off, maneuvering easily between other dancing pairs across the floor.

Lloyd stood there now, gripping her hand tightly in his, unused to this somewhat fancy dancing position she had gotten them into. “Is he still watching us?” Lloyd asked Colette, who still faced the direction Genis had gone off to.

Colette leaned past his shoulder slightly, the loose collar of her dress falling gently across her neck. The sight made him consider a few new feelings in him. “A little bit… But he keeps looking at the musicians a lot!”

“Genis always wanted to play that flute,” Lloyd said, letting his other hand fall to her waist again. Again, fitting so perfectly against his palm. “Um, did you still wanna dance?”

She smiled up at him, and even though she wasn’t as near, the sight of it got him feeling warm. “Only if you want to.”

So Lloyd took her hand and they tried again to dance across the floor with the others, not as slow as before, but careful to not trip Colette’s feet. Still, he had to swerve her out of the way of an excited third-grader, or another couple that kept stepping too near their pace. It was only a matter of time before Colette tripped again!

“If we danced outside it’d probably easier…” he whined aloud, needing to make another quick swerve to the left to keep Colette from running into a table. “More room to move around, also way less stuffy than in here!” That was also one other issue; having so many people packed into one large room made him yearn for fresh air.

“Hehe, and the moon outside looks really pretty too.” Colette turned her head to the windows, where the torches that served as Iselia’s light helped illuminate the dirt roads outside.

“You think so? I guess it kinda does.” Lloyd looked too, then back to Colette. She blinked up at him as he shifted his hands to hold both of her own. “Is Genis still watching?”

A soft pause, but she looked again past him. Her loose hair tumbled just past the shell of her ear. She then giggled. “He’s now trying to play the flute too!”

Perfect. He shared with her a grin, all while still holding her hands, that he had shared with her so much over the years, the kind that he knew Colette would recognize what it meant.

“So,” he started to ask, tilting his head towards the door. He had again seen the night sky outside, how inviting it looked, with the stars so intensely bright, with even the upright torches so warm. “Wanna sneak out?”

The party was festive, with music that was now accompanied by a few off-beat tunes from a certain flute. But it was always nicer when it was just the two of them anyway.

“Oh…” Colette breathed, and then he saw the hint of a smile at the corner of her lips. “You think we could?”

“Genis is distracted.” Another piercing flute note that made Lloyd wince slightly. Yeah, he was definitely distracted. “It’s now or never!”

He barely had to wait for Colette to decide – who already locked his arm in hers, head just slightly touching his shoulder.

“Just so I don’t trip,” she said, winking at him.

Lloyd knew exactly what he was feeling then, and it only made him smile. “Yeah!”

With the two of them together, they had all the awkward grace of a stumbling newborn deer, but it hadn’t mattered much. They had rushed out from the schoolhouse, once again underneath the soothing dark sky. Lloyd quickly ushered Colette, their boots stepping hard on the wooden doorsteps. “Come on, come on!”

“I am!” Colette agreed, but her eyes had caught something else, just behind them as they finally got out into the open world before them. “Oh, is that the Professor…?”

Lloyd swore he felt his blood leave his face at the mention of it. He dared to turn, saw that familiar frown framed by silver hair as their teacher stomped after them. “Uhhh let’s go right now! Hurry!”

“Waa! O-Okay!” And somehow, in their mad dash away from the schoolhouse, Colette didn’t trip or slow down. She held fast to Lloyd’s arm, and rushed alongside him down the Iselian roads. Dirt kicked up at their travel, but neither really cared at all.

-

“Okay…I think we lost her,” Lloyd said as stopped at a nearby hill to catch his breath. It was a place that overlooked Iselia, but still stayed clear of the forests where monsters roamed. He winced then, remembering. “Man…I probably got detention for a week now.”

Colette was also panting a bit, but each breath she let out was like an airy giggle, making her shoulders shake. “We ran so fast! I think I tore my dress a little too!”

“Huh!?” Lloyd snapped his head up towards her, and then immediately saw that tear on the hem of her outfit. “Dammit, it must have been when we ran past that tree and a branch got you… Argh, I’m sorry.”

“Why are you apologizing?” Colette asked, sticking out her tongue at him. “But if you really wanted, maybe you can fix it for me later.”

“Oh, yeah! I can do that!” Lloyd figured he could use the practice at sewing. If he could stitch up the face of a dog into his ribbons, he could fix up a dress!

“And besides, we can dance out here.” Colette reached forward to grasp his hands. “Like you said?”

“Heh, already? There’s no music this time, but we don’t need it!” And he went to grasp her hand in his, the other settling on her waist. “And no people to trip you.”

“Yeah! Unless you do.” Another tease, prompting out a ‘Hey!’ from Lloyd but she only laughed, and so did he. The night air was comfortable, and the flowers that were near surrounded them with the scent of pollen, mixed in with the pine from the forest.

And then – another trip.

Colette this time got her boot caught up in a tangled nest of grass stalks and weeds. She fell back, pulling Lloyd down with her until they were both sitting on the grass, legs askew.

“You let me fall!” she told him with a grin.

“I didn’t think you could even fall now!” Lloyd protested. He sat up straighter in the grass, hands still on Colette as he helped her do the same. “I want a do-over.”

It must have been something from before that made him still keep his hand in hers, that made his thumb brush against her dress, now not only torn, but stained from the grass. He hoped she wouldn’t be in trouble, not with her grandmother, or the Church, or with Professor Sage who had just saw them sneak out…

“Lloyd…” Colette asked, and her voice was now more serious than before. It made him pause, wondering. Maybe he was being too weird with her now, and she didn’t like it and- “Didn’t you want to ask me something before?”

Oh. He hadn’t expected that. There was no warm candlelight to color her hair, but the moon made it shine even more, highlighted the many ruffles and folds of her dress.

“Haha, um…” He did know. He knew exactly what he wanted to ask, even before he understood the significance. “It’s too lame though.”

“I won’t think so,” Colette reassured him.

“Why do you say that?” he asked, curious.

“Because it’s you, Lloyd. I know I’ll be okay with what you want to say.”

She was okay with being with him too, away from the party, their hands still clasped.

“Ah well…” he hedged, feeling suddenly so childish in all the wrong ways. “Maybe it’s a weird thing to ask.”

At that, Colette only looked even more curious, looking up at him. No crowd to continually make her trip, or the well-meaning friend of theirs to keep them from getting too close, or the teacher who probably already had their grades set.

It was just Colette, and no one else.

“Do you think, um…” Lloyd started, worried for an interruption; from the sky, from the forest nearby, or from Colette. But she waited for him to move on, to be brave enough in what to say. “Do you think you and I could be…I dunno, uh… more than…” It was sounding worse by the minute, even as he couldn’t stop holding her. “More than friends?”

It was the best he could say, and he only hoped that the silence that followed would be merciful enough. Maybe Colette would only make fun of him a little bit.

“Lloyd, is this your way of asking to kiss me?”

Huh?! Wait, is it?! He blinked, staring at Colette, who seemed to have also made her own little gamble on what should happen next. Her cheeks were still flushed, even long after they had stopped dancing and running, and laughing…

Maybe it was dumb, to take her bet just then. But he leaned down to kiss her, just like he wanted to at the dance so suddenly before being pushed away. It was quick and tinged with a bit of panic, but he felt Colette press against him, not turning away.

He was already laughing in mid-kiss, pulling away only to cup her face in his hands. “You’re really a dork.”

“So are you,” she told him, matching his smile. But then there was something so sad in her eyes then, that it made Lloyd pause.

“Oh…was it that bad?” he asked. It had been his first kiss! Not exactly something one could practice…

“No, not that! It was… really nice.” Colette reached up to brush her fingers against his hands, happy to keep him near. “I’m just thinking about what Genis said.”

Lloyd’s mind stilled. “You were thinking of Genis when you kissed me?”

“Not like that!” she argued with a pout. “It’s just, what he said, I can’t stop thinking about it.”

Lloyd let his hands fall from her cheeks to rest on her shoulders. “You’re gonna have to remind me what he said because I completely forgot.” Really, Genis was the last thing on his mind right now!

Colette wavered, hands now brushing from his wrists down to his arms, always continually touching him. He hoped she would keep doing that. “Lloyd, do you think…Martel would be okay with this?”

That had been unexpected, a weird splash of cold water that just got dumped on his head. “Um, why are we talking about Church things right now?” As if talking about Genis after their kiss wasn’t weird enough!

“Maybe she wouldn’t… Because I’m supposed to…” Then she trailed off, stopped.

Lloyd saw the defeat her eyes, a pain in them that he hadn’t understood back then. There had been so much he didn’t truly get until it was too late.

Maybe what he said next was careless, but the feeling gripped his ribs, wanting to be known. “It doesn’t matter what Martel thinks,” he said, and saw Colette’s eyes widen. “I mean! Well…this doesn’t have anything to do with her, does it?”

Colette blinked, her hands gripping his tight. “It doesn’t?” she repeated, thinking it over.

“I mean, not that she’s not important!” All he ever heard about Martel was how important she was, especially to Colette, a Chosen! He didn’t want to make her feel bad, but how best could he explain? “It’s just, well, this isn’t part of being a Chosen. So… it doesn’t have anything to do with her, right? Just us.” He paused, thinking it over again, liking that so much suddenly. “It’s just us right now.”

Colette still hesitated, and suddenly he was understanding that whatever she struggled with now, she had struggled with for years and years. All of it unraveling right before him, in his very hold.

“But anything I do… has to do with Martel.” She looked down, right at those golden buttons of his. “So, shouldn’t I…”

Lloyd tried one last thing, a thrown-out fact in class that he had somehow been able to retain. “But Martel is asleep. Would she even know what you’re doing?”

Colette didn’t say anything, silent, considering.

“And besides…” Lloyd continued. “Martel is supposed to be good and kind. So, even if she was awake and everything…why wouldn’t she want her Chosen to be happy?”

Still Colette stayed silent, still, she would not say anything.

Lloyd worried just then he had messed up, but he couldn’t take back what he meant. “But it only matters if you like this.” He grinned nervously, his lips still tingling from remembered warmth. “Because I definitely do.”

“…Me too,” Colette said, staring up at him again. The words came out fast, all as she looked up at him. “I- I really liked it!”

He hadn’t expected such intensity in her eyes. “Colette?”

“I do too, I really do, I-” she said it even faster, as if she was releasing something held insider her for so long, and then she moved to kiss him again, surprising him with the force of it. But he was eager to learn, eager to take whatever Colette was giving him right now. He held her close, kissing Colette underneath the many stars.

And if Martel really was watching and disapproving them right now in her sleep, Lloyd thought, then he didn’t care. Not if Colette wanted this too. She deserved to want things, and he promised since then, that he would keep helping her believe that with every part of her heart.

[tetrakys10]

Sweet Elite episode 9

It’s Halloween at Arlington academy, and we get a nice, lighthearted episode to make up for all the angst we went through lately. Long post below the cut.

The episode starts during preparations for the official Arlington Halloween party, you have a chance to ask someone to help you with putting up some decorations. Our favourite senior shows up to explain that this person will be the one we spend most time with during the episode. Whatever LI you chose, you have a chance to get to know them better and raise your infinity meter.

The following day we notice Ellie, Tayler and Tegan acting strange, we have a choice to follow them or not, not sure what happens if you chicken out, but if you go ahead you find out that they are building a robotic Arlingtonator to scare Tadashi on Halloween.

Afterwards, scholar suddenly remembers that they don’t have a costume yet and it’s very late for last minute shopping, so they end up buying a simple witch hat online. I don’t know if this changes between male and female scholar, but my two girls look really really cute.

(The one on the left is Tetrakys who is romancing Axel, the one on the right is Nyx who is on Tegan’s route.)

Then we go back to class, science class specifically, and realise that we don’t understand what the teacher is talking about and we need help. Luckily, depending on the person you chose to spend time with, someone will come to your help and organise a study group where your chosen crush will also be present.

Now, allow me to digress for a moment.

---

I don’t like when my scholar proves to be less capable than the others, she is a scholarship student, she should be smarter. While on Tegan’s route this part only slightly annoyed me but I soon got over it, on Axel’s route it was worse. Because, firstly, Tetrakys is in the science department, so not undertanding the science lecture and needing help is more serious and I would completely freak out. Second, the person who came to her rescue was... Claire. FREAKING CLAIRE. I hate Claire. Ok... I don’t hate hate her, but she really got on my bad side for multiple reasons:

1) The first time I played I was trying to pursue Tadashy, I didn’t know that, when the meter is the same, you get the illustration of the first person in aphabetical order. Which was... Claire.

2) Scholar was amazing during the department competition, she did a great interview, came up with the best idea and saved the day when things went downhill, and she ended up third place behind effing Claire who, of all things, was spending her time MANUALLY COPYING her notes for her classmates instead of scanning them.

3) When we were all helping Tadashi and people where looking for someone to help him write his speech I thought that it was finally our moment since our contribution that far had been to just buy computer parts online... and instead... they picked Claire! For the sole reason that apparently everyone loves her...??? We nailed the interview in episode 4!

And now, Claire again saves the day coming to our rescue using her superior intellect to explain the lecture for us...

It’s clear we will never be best friends.

---

Anyway, moving aside from my dislike of a 2D fictional character, we at least end up spending a bit more time with our crush, and even see some teasing from the other characters pointing out how that person was excited to have us in the study group.

Following this, we are asked to join a meeting with all the LIs except Tadashi, where Ellie explains that they have been organising a secret party and we are going to trick Tadashi to join it. One group is going to attend the official Arlington party and get Tadashi away with an excuse, another will stay at the dorm and prepare things. Scholar is always part of the kidnapping party.

While going back to the dorms we assist at a conversation between Karolina and Neha talking about an important fashion show that is going to happen soon at Arlington, a hint to the next plot I guess, probably Neha and/or Karolina’s arc.

Then it’s finally time for the party. We wear our hat (first illustration) and go to the gym. Once there we manage to take Tadashi away saying that we saw the Arlingtonator luriking in the dorms corridors, Tadashi believes us because Alistar is there too. We see Tadashi trying to put a brave face and not show how freaked out he actually is, we take him to the dorms and at the right time the Arlingtonator appears, scaring the crap out of him. Everyone laughs and the real party can finally start. They put Tadashi in a Pikachu onsie and crazy makeup

he is a good sport and lets people do whatever they want to him (he must be really greatful for the help everyone gave him during his whole ordeal). This is where we get the second illustration depending on the group we chose to spend time with.

Then we are told (but we don’t see it) that more time goes by chatting, playing, doing tarots, and finally telling scary stories. We see only the last bit of it before we hear some noises from the corridor, it’s the custodians who are making rounds. Time to end the party and rush back to our room. Before we can close the door someone burges into the room right behind us. We wait in the dark for the custodians to go away and then we find out that it’s the LI we chose to spend time at the beginning of the episode. There’s a cute scene between the two, then they leave and the episode ends.

---

What I liked

I liked the episode in general, I think we needed something lighthearted and fun, and there were lots of funny moments there. I loved how everyone ganged up on Tadashi because he is the perfect sacrificial lamb 🤭🤭🤭 but you could tell they were also doing it for him, to make him have fun and distract him after everything he had gone through, and he appreciated it. That’s real friendship.

I also liked that it feels like the company really listens to their players’ feedback and takes it into account. There were two main problems that I had found in the past few episodes: the fact that we were spending very little time with our LI, not advancing the relationship, and the fact that we were forced to spend time with all 10 of them equally, again reducing the amount of time with the characters we really want to focus on. This time they made up for both, by chosing our crush at the beginning we were able to spend more time with them and with just a few selected other characters. No one is forgotten, we eventually meet and talk to everyone, but it doesn’t feel like the time is equally shared and the game feels more focused and with a proper direction.

Another thing I really liked were the costumes. They were so damn on point. For everyone. They really capture the essence of the characters and I love when a game is able to stay true to its characters’ personalities even with the little things. And they all looked so damn good. Alistair as a firefighter?? HELLO MISTER! Raquel as a cheeky pirate, Ellie as a deadly Alice and... Axel 😍 Axel was some kind of modernised version of the Phantom of the Opera (I think) and HELLO??? This is one of my big bias, he looked so good 😍 I have only one complain: he took the mask off too soon 😭 he should’ve worn it the whole time 😭 I don’t care that it was too hot, it was hot in other ways too if you know what I mean...

One last thing I’d like to add is that I think the art was really pretty. I am totally useless when it comes to art, but to my ignorant eyes it looks like the artist is making lots of progress.

What I didn’t like

There’s only one thing, actually, and this is probably just a matter of personal taste. I thought that the writing lacked heat when it came to the romantic parts. I think that it was pretty good with comic and fluffy moments, but there was little passion. And I know this is a game aimed at a young audience so that’s why I said that maybe the problem is me, maybe I’ve just outgrown this type of games, but I also think that you don’t have to go all bang bang to describe heat between characters. Scholars says multiple times that she feels attraction towards the LI, and I read it but I didn’t feel it. I’m happy that I waited to play Axel’s route before making up my mind, because that’s actually better. And yes, Axel is more forward than Tegan, so there’s that, but it also felt like Axel’s romantic moments were more developped than Tegan’s as if the writer was more interested in him, if it makes any sense. However, even with Axel, I think they could’ve pushed more.

This is the first time in a long while that I’m in the mood to rewrite the scene of a game the way I have it in my head, maybe this will help me get out of my writing slump.

---

Anyway, all in all, I’m pretty happy. Looking forward to episode 10!

[mystic-kitten-writer]

Eden [M] ︳Prologue

Pairing: Dabi x Reader

Genre: Smut with plot; romance, angst and some fluff to unfold.

Rating: NSFW-ish

Warning: Mild dirty talking, mild dry humping, mild degradation, and inappropriate touching.

Words: 5300+

Notes: Happy valentine’s everyone~! I hope you had a fantastic day/evening, and here is a lil’ present for you all. It’s the prologue of ‘Eden’, and hopefully you guys get a taste of this new, upcoming, series.

Please note, updates are going to be slow. At the moment, ‘Limerence’ is my main series (Greek Mythology is my side project). But once Limerence is done, Eden will be my main focus! Tags aren’t working (why am I not surprised) - but hopefully that fixes itself soon and appears in people’s feed.

Thank you for reading, and please don’t be shy to leave a like or comment, take care~!

Masterlist ︳01

❤ Buy me a coffee? ❤

It seems he managed to wander into a garden, and he was starving for a taste of that forbidden fruit. And now that he got a taste, he was not going to let go. His fingertips were engraved with sin, burning her skin with every touch, chin dripping of her sweet juices. “Fuck.” He grunted under his breath because he knew – this was more than just a quick taste.

Savory

(flower); spice, interested.

           “Ah, you’re a lifesaver!” Izuku Midoriya declared, face flushed as his head bounced up and down. His dark green hair flew everywhere, a pretty contrast from his pink freckled cheeks. He was the living definition of ‘rookie’ – filled with an unreasonable amount of energy and enthusiasm. You’re surprised you didn’t see his face plastered beside the word in every dictionary around the world.

           But it was that same energy, desire to be a hero, that had your lips curving upwards, a kittenish smile painting your rose-coloured lips. How could you not shoot him one of your infamous smiles, brushing back your hair as you mused. He’s a ball of motivation and joy – a real hero in the works.

           “If Recovery Girl finds out I healed you despite her orders, she’ll have my head,” you advised with a click of your tongue, truth lingering in your statement. After showing up to work slightly hungover – courtesy of Midnight’s refusal to accept ‘no’ for an answer for bar-hopping – the last thing you wanted was to be caught healing Midoriya.

           As if he could read your mind, the green-haired boy moaned under his breath.

           You wiped the last bit of ointment onto his skin, wrapping his wounds, spotting the way his shoulders slumped for a moment – remorse painting his face. But just like that, he puffed out his chest, a sudden resolve overcoming him.

           “I’m sorry. But I can’t let All Might down – I need to push myself-”

           “Keep pushing yourself, and you won’t have any of ‘yourself’ left to be a hero.” You interjected, causing Midoriya’s mouth to shut close, taking in the weight of your words. He stared at you with those large eyes of his, watching your fingers ease their way off his bruised limbs, the bandages new and tightly wrapped.

           “Recovery Girl is going to whip All Might’s ass if she finds out you were hurt - again.” You spoke honestly, causing the pink tint of his cheeks to turn into a darker hue. His freckles almost blended in with the flush, nodding his head furiously at your in-direct warning.

           It was at times hard to believe that this naïve, well-natured boy was Katsuki Bakugo`s supposed ‘rival.’ It was like comparing apples and oranges – this year’s students were something else. Your hands fell over your lap, leaning into Midoriya, you gaze meeting his.

           One for all…

           “Come on, let’s get going before we get caught. I’ll wrap up a few herbs for your mom to smash up. Make sure you rub it into your skin after your bath. It should numb the pain and stop the bruising and swelling.” You spoke, shooting him another cheeky smile, a weak attempt to wipe that look off his face.

           With a tired sigh, you pushed yourself off your seat, the sound of your black heels clicking against the white tiles of your office, filling the quietness. It was as you strolled around, eyes scanning the dozens of tiny planters that hung along the walls, you realized how late it has gotten.

           The sun was setting; the campus eerily quiet as most of the students were already home. Shit – and you still have to make dinner. Your index finger fell over your pouting lips; eyes eagerly searching for that one particular pot-

           “Ah- there it is.” You hummed pleasantly, reaching forward. The tan planter fell over your desk with a soft thud, your fingers dancing over the dirt until you felt it.

           The roots were starting to stretch, the shoot wiggling its way from the soil, pushing and shoving the dirt painfully slow before breaking the surface. “Come on, baby.” You muttered softly, focusing on the energy of the plant. And you swore, because you could feel the annoyance of the plant, undoubtedly grumbling a faint ‘fuck you, you forgot to water me last night,’ before spouting into a perfectly formed leaf.

           “Hero alias; Eden. Real name; Y/N. Quirk; Bioterra – can take any seed or spore and manipulate them in movement or growth…” Midoriya muffled under his breath. You let out an airy laugh hearing Midoryia mumbling to himself, clipping the newly formed seed leaves carefully, before thanking the plant.

           You prefer not to piss off the seedling. Afterall – this little babe has saved your ass far too many times to count.

           Looking over your shoulder to Midoriya, you tossed the last of the herbs into a cute little baggy. “If you keep mumbling under your breath like that, you’ll end up just scaring all the villains away.” you teased, and Midoriya scratched his head.

           “I never saw your quirk before – it’s really pretty!” He gushed, and it was then you realized that the boy was no longer patiently sitting on the examination table, but eagerly hovering over your study with a pen and book in hand. Where and when did he even-

           “Word of caution, Midoriya, while I may be the sidekick of Recovery Girl – don’t think for a second that all I can do is heal. I can grow some pretty toxic things. Get too close, and you might cease to exist.” You warned wickedly, wiggling your brows at him. But rather than deterring the curious boy, it seemed to have done the opposite.

           His mouth widened, lips racing, “If that’s the case, does that mean you’re immune to all poisons or toxins created by plants? Does that mean no plants can cause an effect on you, whether its good or bad? Does that mean you can’t heal yourself with your medicine-”

           “Midoriya. Just because you’re my favourite doesn’t mean I won’t force-feed you some valerian root for some quiet.” Midoriya’s face stoned at your threat, instantly bowing up and down. “S-sorry-” Midoriya began to stutter before a sultry singing cut him off.

           “You sure you aren’t a sadist, a villain?”

           Both of you shifted your attention to the entrance, eager to find the owner of that vibrating tone.

           “Good evening, Midnight.” You spoke, smiling radiantly to your best friend, as your arms fell over the shy Midoriya. His green eyes widened, studying the pro-hero up and down in interest – no doubt he was thinking about the rated 18+ hero’s quirk. And given a chance, he would ask her thousands of questions like he has done to you since the start of the school year.

           The stunning deep hue of purple against her red mask brought out the teasing glimmer in her eyes. Midnight cocked her head to the side, arms crossing over her chest, emphasizing her ample bust as she stepped into the room.

           “You’re not doing some unauthorized healing, are you?” Midnight pestered, cocking an eyebrow as she eyed the fresh bandages decorating Midoriya’s fingers. In a flash, your hands squeezed Midoriya’s shoulders, shaking your head with a falsely sweet smile on your lips.

           “Of course, not – I’m just showing Midoriya here, my quirk! It’s getting late; we can talk more tomorrow.” Your grip loosened, shoving the boy forward. While Midoriya was undoubtedly naïve, he wasn’t dumb. He quickly got the hint, stepping forward before waving at the both of you, “Thank you for demonstrating your quirk, see you tomorrow!”

           He dashed away from the voluptuous dominatrix, the sound of his heavy feet running down the empty hallways of UA slowly fading the further he ran. The moment he was out of earshot, Midnight twirled her whip, purring.

           “Lying to a teacher, how naughty of you.” Midnight snickered, tapping her chin as she inched her way forward. Her skin-tight costume only seemed to accentuate her sex appeal, and you rolled your eyes.

           “What are you going to do, spank me?” you challenged with your tongue sticking out. Your hands made haste with sweeping up the dirt that littered your counter, giving your seedling a lil’ treat for working so hard today.

           Midnight laughed obnoxiously loud, “You’ll enjoy that too much, you kinky bitch.”

           “And that, I won’t deny.” You giggled back, already knowing Midnight was snooping around your office, sniffing all the flowers that were blooming. She, in particular, loved the darker hued flowers, saying it matched her aesthetic.

           Placing the planter back into its spot, you turned on your heel, reaching for your purse that you left on the floor. “What are you doing here so late, anywho?” You pondered, swinging the strap over your shoulder, checking for your house keys and wallet.

           Midnight sighed dramatically, taking another whiff of the roses, “Meetings. I could use a drink, girl.”

           “Well, count me out, I’m starving, and it’s late.” You stated, shutting the window of your office, and locking it. It was officially dark outside, the streetlights looking like twinkling stars. Time moves faster when you’re having fun.

           “Oh, come on! You’re young and sexy, go out. Get drunk – better yet, find yourself a hot daddy.” Midnight argued, waltzing over to your side in a flash, tone rising with passion. “Just because you work for UA doesn’t mean you can’t live a little. You’re starting to turn into your grandmother – work, work, work.”

           You pouted, “Please don’t compare me to my grandmother.”

           Don’t get it wrong; you loved and respected your grandmother – Recovery Girl.

           She was the first hero of the family, the family pride. Hell – she was the reason why you even wanted to become a hero. She used to take you to her workplace when you a mere toddler, showing you off to all her co-workers, bragging how you’re going to be the next big thing. She was the definition of a proud grandmother.

           That’s why you worked your ass off, becoming the second hero in the family – and next-in-line to become UA’s healer once the old lady decides to retire.

           “Come on, one drink? Maybe I can hook you up with some of my friends. They know how to treat a woman. Want a submissive, a dom, ou- maybe a switch?” Midnight insisted and at that point, you huffed loudly. You saw the stars in her eyes the more she talked about the possibility of hooking you up with one of her friends. This woman-

           Linking arms with the sex addict of a friend you had, you shut your office door behind the both of you, walking through the deserted hallways. The hallways of UA was dead, all the classroom doors locked, blinds lowered so only the poorly functioning lights of the school could guide you out of this prison.

           “Don’t ignore me! I have yet to see you with someone. What do you want? What are you looking for, girl?” Midnight groused under her breath.

           What do you want…?

           Your mouth opened, a sly smirk on your face. “You know what I want? I want a fuck buddy, no feelings. Just good, hot, rough sex.”

           “And I know a friend who can do just that!” Midnight blurted, but you merely shook your head.

           “I already have someone.”

           Midnight’s eyes widen, stopping abruptly in the dimly light hallway. “You have someone? Excuse me, who is this person and since when? You haven’t gotten laid in god knows how long, and it shows.”

           You grinned mischievously, leaning into her. Midnight was on her tippy-toes, eyes and ears eagerly waiting for the spicy gossip. Her hands clasped together, leather whip firmly caught in between her tight grasp. If only she knew.

           “They’re the best. Their name is ‘dildo,’ and they’re always ready to get down whenever I need them.” You whispered.

           The moment Midnight realized what you were saying, the look of utter annoyance was clear as day.

           “You’re fucking ridiculous, Eden.” Midnight fumed, throwing her arms up in defeat as she stormed forward. You laughed from behind her, watching the way she cursed under her breath, her whip swinging back and forth. To be fair, you’re surprised she didn’t use it on you.

           “You love me, Midnight!” You screamed from behind her, and she merely shot you a glare over her shoulder, lips pressed together, trying to hold back a grin. “If you were my toy, I would’ve beaten your ass till it’s purple and blue.”

           You shoot her a kiss, playfully slapping your own ass as she raged. “I can’t wait till you find someone. And I hope they put you in your damn place. Fuck you till you can’t walk.”

           “That’s the goal!” You chirped, earning another hiss from the queen of lust, herself.

           The cold breeze that funnelled its way through the mutedly lit alleyway in which you walked was borderline painful. Your dress suddenly seemed far too short for the summer weather, your arms wrapping around yourself as you grumbled. The temperature seemed to drop in a matter of minutes – the twenty-minute walk from the school to home seemed like a journey.

           It was unreasonably dark, and the brisk air added an uncomfortable feeling in your gut. Not even the flicking neon signs that littered the city seemed to lift the mood – the atmosphere dark and grungy. The faster you get home, the better.

           Your fingers dug into your purse strap, tugging it closer to your body as your UA lanyard bounced off your chest. The bobbing of your identification card matched your heartbeat at this point, your stomach screaming to get some food inside of it.

           Pace hast, you turned the corner abruptly -“You gotta be fucking kidding me.”

           Four men, of medium build, laughing obnoxiously loud and recking of alcohol crowded the already narrow alleyway. Their words were heavily slurred, arms wrapped around each other as they struggled to walk forward. Their clothing was old and dirty, and your nose scrunched up – god even the smell of shitty alcohol smelt better than whatever odour they were emitting.

           Your footsteps eased, cautiously walking behind them.

           They were moving forward, slowly, but they were moving. The smart thing to do would be to walk back and take a long way home  - but that means it’ll take longer for you to cook dinner, take a hot bath, and have a steamy session with your lovely date called ‘dildo.’

           You have the patience for neither.

           With a frustrated huff, you brushed your hair back, letting your gaze fall back onto the ground. Come on, it was a Monday night, and you just wanted to get home. Was that too much to ask?

           Trying to lessen the sound of your heels against the broken concrete, your steps were sluggish. If someone were to be watching behind you, they would’ve thought you didn’t know how to walk in heels. So fucking stupid, these dumb, drunk, idiots-

           “Heeeey maaaan, come over hereeee. We just wanna taaaalk.” A man shouted, and you felt your blood freeze. Your head snapped upwards, hearing the men starting to speak brasher, the slurring of their speech clear.

           Was he talking to you?

           No, they couldn’t be.

           Their backs were still facing you, staggering back and forth as the men seemed to puff in demeanour. Your eyes narrowed, observing one of the men walking hastily, his hands reaching for his back pocket. If he wasn’t talking to you, then that can only mean – he was trying to catch up to someone.

           “Don’t ignore meee, you skinny shit. Come hereee before I add more scaars.”

           Not caring anymore if you made noise, your pace quicken, swaying side to side to catch a glimpse of who this man could be chasing. They can’t honestly be planning on mugging someone; they can barely walk, let alone mug someone. A tired sigh escaped your lips – time to play the hero.

           Your fingers trailed into your purse, grabbing rose seeds, feeling the vines starting to rise over your fingers-

           Heat.

           The sound of your plants whimpering, retreating into your purse as blue flames flooded your vision had your eyes widening, a hostile shiver running up your spine.

           Ashes floated into the clear night sky, the smell of burnt flesh taking over the stench of alcohol as you instinctively pressed your body against the brick walls, seeking any form of coolness. You could feel the hot air rush past your ears, hair flipping for a split moment. Sweat beaded down your forehead – these flames…

           They were explosive.

           Uncontrolled.

           Pure rage.

           But most importantly - absolutely stunning.

           Your long nails dug into the brick wall, shamelessly staring at the light show in front of you rather than saving the other three men. The diverse hues of blue, clashing and mixing like a wild dance. Did that dirty, drunk man unleash this power, such a beauty?

           You quickly realized how wrong you were.

           The ash that was floating in the sky, the smell of rotting flesh – that was him.

           “You’re fucking nuts, man! You killed him – you burnt him alive!” The men screamed, their speech no longer slurred, bringing you back to the reality of the situation. And as the realization of the sight in front of you unfolded, you found yourself swallowing.

           The low-slung chuckle that caught your attention, a snicker that carried in the cold breeze, had your skin rising and lips parting.

           “Well, aren’t you an observant one. It seems I did…wanna be next?” a man spoke, voice raspy, contemptuous in tone.

           You pressed yourself off the brick wall, desperate to seek the man who caused the flips in your stomach. His voice alone was eargasmic, and when you stumbled back, heels clicking loudly, you realized you not only caught the attention of the three drunk men but the man with blue flames, as well.

           The azure embers that lingered in the cold air reflected the streetlights, highlighting a tall, lean man at the end of the shady alleyway. The way his thin lips curved upwards, a sinister smirk emerging as he licked his lips in delight.

           His light skin contrasted against the seared scars that littered his face and neck, staples piercing his flesh in a sadistic fashion. But yet, in some messed up way – the look suited him. The darkness of night adding an air of mystic and dangerous enchantment around him.

           “Well…hello there, doll.” He mused, tilting his head to the side, black hair falling over his eyes. You could feel it, the way his gaze trailed up and down your body, a wild look flashing – appreciating what his eyes were settling upon. You swallowed, a needy flush overcoming your skin, because fuck.

           He was sexy – the type of man, your parents, warned you about. The type of guy, your friends, told you not to associate with because all he was going to do was fuck and dip. You couldn’t strip your gaze away from the man, and he seemed to notice. He let out a small snicker, raising a brow as you gawked shamelessly.

           “Y-you’re a hero from UA! Save us, stop him, arrest him. He killed our friend-” The three men shouted, running towards you with desperation in their eyes. It was their loud and unwanted voices that snapped you out of it.

           What were you doing?

           Here you are, blatantly checking out some stranger – a stranger with an overpowered quirk who just murdered a man. But the enigmatic stranger continued to stare with a look of amusement, even daring to take a step closer.

           “A hero? Oh, this is becoming a lot more work than I wanted.” he snuffled under his breath, eyes half-lidded. The men ignored the man’s commentary, staring at you with annoyance.

           “Do something, you useless women! We don’t pay our taxes for you to look pretty.” One of them shouted, their spit striking your face. Oh - hell no.

           “As if you guys even pay your fucking taxes. Maybe if you didn’t get piss drunk and try to mug the man, your friend would be alive.” You shouted heatedly, stepping forward and shoving the man back. He was getting far too close for comfort – he needs to learn something about personal space.

           The man’s eyes widen, stumbling back a few steps before narrowing his gaze. “This damn psycho killed someone!”

           “He was defending himself against you morons.” You fumed, hands balling into fists. You may be a hero, but you weren’t forgiving. That was the problem nowadays; people could not take responsibility for their damn actions. Starting fights, getting their asses kicked, and then crying wolf. And of course, you had all these ‘heroes,’ eagerly picking up the pieces of their messes to fuel their damn ego.

           “If you’re smart, you’ll leave before I report this whole incident. And I can guarantee it’ll be you three going to jail.”

           “You can’t report shit if you’re dead.” The man sneered before raising his hand. There in his grasp was a small dagger, the moonlight bouncing off the thin blade. So enraged by this man’s ignorance, you failed to notice the way his hand lingered into his jacket pocket.

           You could feel the blood drain from your face, impulsively cowering away from the blade. He caught you out, and you were surely going to pay now, shit-

           That was when you spotted it, the dash of black, a pretty hand reaching for the idiotic drunk. The manic smile that painted the blue flamed stranger’s face, a lust-filled look as his hand outstretched over the man.

           His long boney fingers wrapped around the side of his head, clawing into the skin of his face. You saw the terror etched into the drunken man – eyes shifting to look at your unexpected hero — the last thing he would ever see.

           “Burn.” The stranger whistled, and that was when you felt the overwhelming heat once again.

           An explosion of blue fumes flared before you, and the man who held the knife didn’t get a chance even to scream – incinerated in seconds. There wasn’t an ounce of control or restraint in this man’s flames, just pure and utter chaos. Smoke fluttered from the man’s skin, eyes crazed as he grinned, the flames ceased in intensity.

           Ashes and embers erupted into the air, the sound of the blade hitting the ground echoing between the brick walls. The stranger let his hand drop to his side, before tilting his head to your direction. That was when you spotted it — one of the untouched men was reaching for the burnt knife that laid on the ground.

           “Oh no, you don’t-” You hissed, the tipsy man staring up at you in surprise. But his resolve was set in stone, eager to get revenge for his now two dead buddies. The hot blade twisted in his hand, holding it tight as he swung down.

           He wasn’t aiming for you at all – he was trying to injury your anti-hero.

           You lunged forward, chest clashing with your newly developed crush, arms reaching around his neck. The inebriated man swung, and right before the blade could come in contact with your dark hero, your hands tightly gripped the man’s wrist, nails digging into his skin.

           “Let. Go.” You threatened, teeth clenching as you tried to hold him back.

           “Dude, the fuck are you doing? They’re heroes – they’ll kill us with their damn quirks. Run.” The only reasonable man of the two shouted, and that was all it took. The weapon slipped from his fingers, hitting the floor, and your grasp loosened.

           He whipped his hands from your touch, spitting on the ground where you stood as he ran down the alleyway with his only remaining friend. “Let’s get out of here.” They slurred, the sound of their shoes drumming against the concrete – turning the corner and out of sight.

           A drained gasp escaped you, arms going limp as your forehead rested against the man who saved your ass. Holy fuck – talk about a giant cluster fuck. The air around you smelt like death and fire, sparks spreading across the block, courtesy of the night breeze.

           How are you going to explain this? All the paperwork and details – you really outdid yourself tonight, didn’t you?

           “Hmm…he wasn’t lying; you’re a ‘hero’ from UA.” A dark voice droned into your ear. His hot breath tickled your neck, skin tingling in bliss, and your head shot upwards. That’s when you took in how utterly striking the man; you currently had your arms wrapped around, was.

           His eyes were magnetic, a turquoise so damn vibrant and clear your mouth dropped.

           Being as up close as you were, you could appreciate the silver piercings that decorated his nose and ears — an unpredicted attractive mix with his purple and red coloured scars. Overall, his features were soft, despite his attitude and whisky-like voice, although his jaw could probably cut diamonds with how damn sharp it was.

           Damn, he was attractive, and you couldn’t help but feel your breath getting heavy the further you gawked. Midnight was right – you were sex-starved, and the way you studied this man up and down like a damn snack, was the proof.

           His lips curved upwards to a smile that even the devil himself would swoon, noticing how your eyes scanned him with longing. Your fingers brushed his long black locks by accident, and you could feel your heartbeat pounding in your ears.

           “Do all UA heroes dress like this? Short dresses, low necklines?” The man chuckled, his fingers playing with the lanyard that was perfectly nestled between your breasts. Your cheeks flared, feeling his calloused fingers against your cleavage. His touch was far from tender, purposely letting the ID roll between his fingers, conveniently pulling your neckline further down your torso.

           And the worst part was you weren’t mad at his erotic touch as much as the comment, nipples hardening at the thought of this going further.

           “I beg your pardon?” You retorted, and the stranger merely laughed, licking his lips as he leaned closer to your face.

           “Oh, you can beg all you want, doll.”

           Fuck, this man knows what he’s doing. You snickered under your breath, untangling your arms away from his shoulders, pulling the lanyard that he played with away. “Thank you for saving my ass back there.”

           He smirked, running his hands messily through his hair before stepping forward. Your bottom lip rolled between your teeth, eyes fluttering as you watched the way the man before you dominated. He was rolling his shoulders back, each step of his lazy in demeanour, eyeing you like how a predator stalks its prey.

           “You come here often? Walk down these sketchy alleyways for fun.”

           “I’m kind of a hero, and unfortunately, walking in creepy alleyways is in the job description.”

           “Is eye-fucking people also included in that job description?”

           “Nope, that’s something I do on my own time.” You grinned, earning a handsome one back. He licked his lips, hands falling into his pants pockets as he stepped closer. You didn’t even realize the little dance that was happening.

           Both of you, stepping closer and father between words, walking in circles as you bantered pointlessly. The fact that this man killed two people was lost to the wind (literally) – you were a hero, sure, but you never said that you were good at it.

           “Personal time…that means you’re on your way home. Good to know.”

           “Plan on stalking?”

           He merely shrugged his shoulders, eyes falling back to your breasts without a care in the world. “Mm…maybe. Y/N – pro hero, Eden.” He muttered under his breath. This time you didn’t bother stopping him, the way he outstretched his hand, jerking on the ID card and drawing you closer to his body.

           Both of your eyes were glossed over, a heat building between your damn legs as he studied every curve in the dress you wore. It wasn’t even skimpy or short, but the way his eyes lingered – you would’ve thought you were wearing nothing but lingerie if you didn’t know better.

           “Next time, wear something shorter.”

           “Excuse me?” you blurted, and he merely laughed, letting go of the makeshift leash. But now that you were close, he seemed to take advantage. His hands fell over your hips, drawing you up against his body, his scared skin brushing against your jaw.

           “You see, doll, boobs are great and all, but that ass you got? I much rather have my hands on that.” He growled into your ear, and you couldn’t stop your small moan. Your hands fell over his shoulders, and you couldn’t even wrap your head around the fact that his hands were running up and down your thighs, shoving you backwards.

           Your back hit the wall roughly, him growling into your ear as he licked down your neck with a low grunt. “F-Fuck, what’s your name?” You blurted, and you could hear him chuckle breathlessly, listening to your gasping sighs.

           “Dabi – that’s the name that you’re going to be screaming.” He grunted, his hips thrusting into yours. You could feel his arousal, hard and heavy, rubbing perfectly against your parted legs. Your head tossed back, another mewl escaping your lips as his fingers dug into your thighs, rubbing his hardening cock against your wet heat.

           “Fuck, you’re nasty, a perfect lil’ slut for me, right doll?”

           His words had you purring.

           “Dabi-” you gasped, and the flashing lights of blue and red caught your attention. The sounds of sirens were clear in the dead of night, and they were rapidly approaching. A pout formed on your lips, eyes shutting close for a moment as you swore because the wet mess between your legs was far more concerning.

           You blew frustratingly; you’ve got to be fucking kidding-

           “Told you I’d have you begging.” Dabi chuckled, thrusting his dick perfectly against your sopping panties one last time, before pulling back. He licked his lips, and you couldn’t help but whine under your breath, seeing that bulge in between his legs – something you so desperately wanted your mouth over.

           “See you soon, Y/N, my delicious lil’ fruit.” He teased, before stuffing his hands back into his pants and running off.

           Your face was flushed, your breasts practically falling out of your dress, your thighs and ass on full display. You watched as Dabi managed to mix into the darkness as if he wasn’t even here a minute ago, dry humping you against the wall.

           “Over here- that’s where people reported the noise.” A few voices bellowed, and in a flash, you pulled down your dress, running back down the same alleyway you came from. Here you were, speedily walking down the very route you should’ve taken to begin with.

           If you had taken this path from the start, you would’ve been already home, dinner cooked, and probably in bed.

           But you couldn’t stop the cheeky smirk on your face, your hands falling over your neck, where his lips practically ravished. You were sure there were going to be some marks, although faint, and that thought made you wetter.

           It seems like Mr. Dildo found himself a new name for tonight – Dabi.

Copyright © 2020 Mystic-Kitten, inc. all rights reserved. No reposting, modifying, or translations of any kind allowed. Thank you for your cooperation.

Disclaimer: I do not own any Avatar characters portrayed in this story besides Ying Yue Jiang, Lia, Kima, and any future creations.

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