#but HOLY FUCK IT DOES NOT HELP POTS

[yeonzzzn]

ask and yee shall receive 😘 sweet sunoo who's had a bad week and everything seems to piss him off, well this annoys you and you start to get snappy. eventually pushing him over the edge and he punishes you without any remorse 🤭😈

hehe hope this helps 😉💍

holy hell I am in love with this 😮‍💨😮‍💨😮‍💨 like thinking of sunoo as the little ray of sunshine but the moment you piss him off when he’s already irritated, he’s a demon and I love it

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no remorse: kim sunoo

pairing: sunoo x afab!reader word count: 2.2k

You nearly jumped out of your seat at the kitchen table and dropped your coffee cup to the floor upon hearing the sound of the apartment door slamming and rattling the photo frames on the wall.

Your boyfriend let out a loud groan of irritation, dropping his backpack to the floor with a loud thud kicking his shoes off, and tossing them across the living room.

You sat still in the kitchen, slowly tracing your eyes to the living room and seeing him drop onto the couch, dangling his legs over the armrest. After a few heartbeats, you finally spoke up, “Everything okay, Sun?”

Your boyfriend mumbled some words into the cushions of the couch. You set the coffee cup down and turned to face him, sitting in the chair, “I couldn’t hear you Sun, please can you repe—“

He quickly sat up on the couch, peering at you over the top of the couch, “I fucking said does it look like everything is okay?”

You narrowed your eyes at him, shifty turning back to face the table and take a sip of your hot coffee. You weren’t going to deal with the attitude today, not one bit. So you decided to ignore his comment and go back to doing what you were before he came home: relaxing and enjoying your coffee.

There was shuffling of Sunoo getting off the couch and walking to the kitchen, standing at the corner looking at you. You could see him through your peripherals, his arms were crossed and his lips pouting with a fire that blazed in his eyes. It honestly takes a lot to piss off Sunoo. He’d normally just give you attitude or be sassy and laugh off the rest. Very rarely does he genuinely get pissed off, but when he does…hell breaks loose.

Usually, you’re able to tame the demon that comes out. To reel him back into reality and calm him down. But some days—like today—there was no way to tame it, having to let whatever he was fighting for him to do it alone. You already tried speaking to him nicely and softly and he bit your head off, and you weren’t in the mood to try and calm him down. It wasn’t in the cards for today.

“Did you make enough for me too?” he asked, shifting his eyes from you to the coffee pot that was still clearly, half full.

It was obvious you made enough for the two of you, you always made sure to double up on anything you made so your sweet ray of sunshine could have some when he got the chance to.

But instead of speaking to him, you nod, taking another sip.

He stomps to the coffee pot, opening and slamming the cabinets and not very gently setting his favorite coffee cup that you made him for your anniversary last year with his initials, a sun, and a heart on it, down on the counter.

You gripped your cup, taking a deep breath to keep from snapping at him, wanting to keep the peace. You swallowed the last bit of your coffee, and slowly stood and walked to the sink to wash out your cup.

Sunoo continued his antics of not being gentle with the cup and even the coffee pot. Slamming the pot back into the machine. spilling what little was left onto the counter.

You aggressively finished washing the cup and tossed it onto the drying rack, your irritation now rising up. Sunoo clocked your attitude, only furthering his irritation, “What is up with you?”

You quickly face him, thinning your lips, watching as he takes two big gulps of his coffee, and tossing the cup into the sink behind you.

“We aren’t doing this,” you snapped, pointing your finger to the sink, “Wash it and wash out that attitude.”

Sunoo was having an absolutely terrible week, college was kicking his ass, his job was kicking his ass, none of his friends were available to hang out with him due to their schedules, and Sunoo didn’t want to bother you when you have your own college and work life to balance out. Sunoo knew he could go to you for anything and everything, but he couldn’t bring himself to drop his problems onto you when you just got promoted at work and had a major project coming up for one of your classes. He knew you didn’t deserve this attitude, but he couldn’t stop himself from dishing it out to you, his anger and frustration spilling out over the top.

So he raises a brow at you, getting even more pissy that you snapped at him, “Excuse you?”

Absolutely fucking not.

“Excuse me? Excuse YOU!” you scoffed, pointing your index finger into his chest, “You’re the one walking about here with a sour attitude, fix it!”

You tried to walk away, but Sunoo stepped out in front of you. But you didn’t let that stop your stride, shoving your shoulder into his as you walked past him, pushing him off to the side.

“YN!” he called after you, watching as you made your way to the bedroom, ignoring him completely, “YN!” he called again.

You slam the bedroom door, completely being done with him and his attitude.

Oh, but Sunoo wasn’t done with you.

Just as fast as you slammed it shut, he was shoving it open and kicking it closed with his foot. Hands on you immediately as he quickly turns you to face him, in one swift motion he’s bent down and gripping his hands to your thighs, lifting you up and tossing you onto the bed, “Think you can just speak to me like that and get away with it?” Suno hisses, dropping his jacket to the floor and placing a knee on the edge of the bed, slowly crawling to you, “Good girls don’t act that way.”

You sat up on your elbows, watching as he spread your legs with his knees, placing himself between them. Eyes locked with him as he came face to face with you. You tried to look angry with him but failed miserably at the touch of his fingers tracing up and down your thigh and brushing over your clothed cunt, shuttering underneath him.

“Got nothing more to say?” Sunoo teased, looping his fingers underneath your shirt and slowly moving up and up until your shirt was now across the room, “You were so snippy earlier, what happened?” he traced his fingers over your breasts, giving them both a squeeze then riding them up to the straps and sliding them down your arms, “Hmmm,” he hummed, reaching his hands behind your back to unclasp your bra and removing it from your body, “Should I fuck all this anger out? Punish you for giving me all this attitude?”

You swallowed, becoming so speechless as your boyfriend continued to undress you, leaving you bare to him. Sunoo loosened his tie and slid it off, taking both your arms and pinning them above you, tying your hands together through the pole of the headboard, “Perfect,” he chuckled, “Not getting to touch me while I fuck you dumb is the perfect punishment.”

And indeed it was. Sunoo knew it too, how much you loved touching him during sex. You couldn’t keep your hands off him. Tracing your hands over every inch of his body. Grabbing, scratching, and pulling him in any way possible while he’s buried so deep within your walls.

You were already squirming at being bound down and oh god did it send Sunoo crazy. He loved watching you squirm beneath him trying to get your hands free to touch him. He could read it all over your face on how badly this was affecting you. How wet your pussy was getting. Your slick was leaking out and already soaking the bed sheets.

He licked two fingers and slowly slid them into your cunt, loving the way you were already clenching around him, “So needy already?”

“Please Sun,” you begged, rolling your hips in time with his fingers working inside you, “I’m sorry.”

He laughed, using his free hand to hold your hips down, fucking his fingers in you faster, “Sorry won’t cut it here, princess. It’s too late for sorry.”

You arched your body when a third finger slipped into your cunt. He curled his fingers as he hit your sensitive spot, moving so fast and hard. The tension in your belly grew, knowing your release was near.

You tried to fight his hold on your hips, tried to lift them to reach your climax faster, but his hold was too strong. You clenched around him, feeling your sweet release approaching.

“No, no,” Sunoo sang, slipping his fingers from your sopping heat, “You cum when I let you.”

Tears filled your eyes when you looked at him, “Sun…please.”

He clicked his tongue and unbuttoned his shirt, tossing it somewhere off in the room and sliding his pants and boxers down to the floor with it, his hard cock slapping against his abdomen, “Please what, princess?”

He pumped himself as he waited for your answer, “Use your words, tell Sun what you want, ya?”

“Fuck me,” you cried, the tears not streaming to your cheek, “Please I-I need to f-feel you.”

Sunoo smirked. Ahh your words were music to his ears. He hummed as he placed your legs over his shoulders, folding you completely, “Only good girls get their boyfriend's cock, are you going to be good?”

You aggressively nodded, wanting nothing more than to feel him buried balls deep in your pussy.

He clicked his tongue again, lining his red anger tip to your entrance, “I don’t believe you, not with the attitude you gave earlier. Snapping at me like that, hurt my feelings, princess.”

You knew he was toying with you. Knew he loved seeing you so desperate for him. The sweet ray of sunshine that usually makes you love to you all night long wasn’t here right now. The demon side of him was. And he wasn’t going to let you walk off scoff-free.

You opened your mouth to beg, but he didn’t give you the chance, shoving himself into you so relentlessly. Not even giving you the time to adjust to him, before he’s sliding back out and pushing back in. Rutting his hips against yours.

Every ounce of anger Sunoo had built up over this long week was coming out with every thrust. With every squeeze of his hands on your waist and every hard kiss, he pressed to your lips.

You continued to squirm underneath him with your hands bound to the headboard, legs squeezing around his neck. Sunoo dropped his head, groaning out in pleasure of his airways being constricted against your thighs, “Fuck, princess, feel so fucking good.”

He tilted his head, taking the plush of your thighs between his teeth, biting hard as he sucked on your skin.

His hands moved from your waist to your bound wrists, fucking into you harder and faster.

“Sun!” you cried out, the pain feeling so good it made you dizzy. You tried once again to release your hands so you could touch him. But with how tightly he tied you and his grip on your wrist, they weren’t going anywhere. The knot in the pit of your stomach built up again and snapping just as quickly, “Sun!” you moaned out his name, him moaning against your thighs and snapping his hips roughy against yours to help you ride out your high.

You sank your head into the pillow, mouth gaping open as your body tingled from your release. But Sunoo didn’t slow down, he was so lost in the pleasure your cunt gave him. So intent to continue the punishment and fucking his anger out.

“Sunoo,” you whispered, wiggling your arms, “Sun,” overstimulation took over you. Feeling more dizzy and out of breath as his hard thrusts continued.

He completely ignored you, but finally let go of your thigh from his mouth, taking deep breaths with each thrust. His climax was approaching and he wasn’t stopping until his anger was pushed out along with his cum.

Leaving no remorse.

“Sun,” you started to whimper, it only being more music to his ears, hearing how fucked out he has you under him, how overstimulated he’s got you. Sweat dripped from his forehead and his thrust became more sloppy, but he didn’t let up. No no. And he wouldn’t. Not yet.

Even with his sloppy thrust, he kept pushing, surely leaving bruises on your hips from his rutting on yours.

You called to him again, almost slipping one hand free. But Sunoo clocked it, gripping his hands tighter to your wrists, “Don’t,” he warns, now throwing his head back and releasing a gasp, shooting his white ropes between your gummy folds.

He kept thrusting slowly, riding out his high then dropping his weight on you.

He released his grip on your wrist, letting you finally slip free from the tie, pushing his sweaty hair out of his face.

“I feel better,” Sun whispered, nuzzling his face into the crook of your neck, “I am so sorry princess.”

You removed your legs from his shoulders and wrapped them around his waist, massaging the top of his head.

“Me too, Sun,” you kissed his forehead, “Just talk to me next time.”

He nodded, cuddling you tighter

— perm taglist: @alvojake @ikeuverse @woniebae @shawnyle @kangnina @jwnghyuns @in-somnias-world @zyvlxqht @aaa-sia @wonniethepoo @addictedtohobi @eneiyri @sparklovespink @skzenhalove @fakeuwus @cherry-park @vousty @ladyartemesia @psh9 @cmoundiamante @enhaverse713586 @wondipity @lhsvibez @belowbun @jaeyunq @rikizm

[l0relaii]

I NEED MORE SMOKING WITH JOSH 😩 him best friends brother!Josh teaching you how to smoke a joint and shotgunning it into your mouth HOLY HELL

oh yeah i need him to teach me cuz i've never smoked pot 😭😭

i'm sitting here with my pink little cigarettes trying to imagine they're joints I'M METHOD ACTING FOR YOUU

thank you @nerd-space for helping me with this <33

part 2

you knew josh smoked. you'd smoke with him sometimes. regular cigs tho

arghh imagine doing that thing where you press the tip of your cig to his to light it 😵‍💫

you did notice his eyes were sometimes a bit red but you didn't ask him about it 🤷‍♀���

then one time hannah invited you over at their place when their parents were gone on some fancy holiday

you watched a movie with him and his sisters then you went out on the balcony for a smoke break

and you noticed his cigarette was a bit.. odd?

"i thought you smoked malboros?"

"this ain't a regular cigarette sweetheart"

"what? oh-OH"

you watched as he lit it up and inhaled deeply every muscle in his body relaxing

"want some?"

"i've never-"

"it's not that complicated, just like a regular one, here let me help you, open your mouth"

you hesitate at first, unsure of what he'll do but you obey.

you see him coming closer while taking a drag of his joint and blowing the smoke into your mouth

you cough a bit when the smoke gets to your lungs

"oh fuck, sorry-"

"no need to apologise, it's normal, you'll get used to it, you'll see it'll feel nice"

your mind is racing and you've got goosebumps all over your skin.

are you high or was this just from how close you got with him?

"am i high?"

"oh no, not yet, you'll need sum more for that"

"could you.. do that again? please?"

he grabs your waist with his free hand pulling you really close to him before blowing some more smoke down your throat

eventually he does give you the joint to try it yourself and you start to feel like you're a bit drunk

everything gets slower all of a sudden and your body gets tingly

your eyes become heavy and you can't escape the ache between your legs whenever he touches you

you see him sitting down on a chair and without thinking you sit in his lap putting the joint back between his lips

"fuuuckk.. that feels.. nice.."

are you talking about the high or about his thigh on which you are currently grinding?

"told ya"

[the-kr8tor]

Hello can you please do a jealous Hobie x reader

Where they were out at a party while at the party reader just happened to see one of her male best friends and they're like in a back room smoking together and Hobbit just happens to walk in to see readers male best friend blowing smoke in her mouth 😊🥰

You don't have to put in the smoking pot if you don't want to 😊😋

Hello hun! Thank you for your request! I changed some things, hope you don't mind!

Some drinking and smoking, a lot of cursing. 1.2k

ʕ⁠·⁠ᴥ⁠·⁠ʔ

You feel lightheaded, the booming music pounds into your skull, coupled with the bright strobe lights, and people screaming over the loud music trying to hear each other, you feel your social battery draining with every clink of glass.

Partying seemed like a good time for the first two hours of being there, but as the night continues on, you just want to go to bed, and wash the smell of cheap beer off of you.

The only good thing about this is spending time with Hobie.

You wince when another screech of a guitar riff booms out of the speakers, you lean towards Hobie's ear, an excuse falling on your lips.

"I'm gonna go to the loo for a bit"

"Sure, love. I'll watch your drink" Hobie moves your pint closer to his while he continues talking to his friend.

You slide off the booth, fixing your shirt. Weaving through the sea of people, you try to avoid crashing into them, the wc sign looks like a beacon, beckoning you for a much needed reprieve.

Suddenly you hear your name getting called, or rather screamed at you. You do a 180 trying to find who called you.

"Here! On your right!"

You're not sure if that was for you, still you looked to your right. Lo and behold you see your old high school mate, peeking behind the doors to the bar's balcony.

"David! Is that you?!" You squint trying to find his distinguishable features.

"Yeah! Get your arse over here!" He opens the door fully for you.

Scrambling towards the door, you try to push past dancers. Finally entering the balcony, your best friend hugs you tightly, slightly lifting you off the floor. You giggle at your reunion.

"Holy shit, duck! Long time no see!" He pulls away, taking a good look at you. "I haven't seen you since graduation! You look fucking fit!"

"Shut it, you arse!" you playfully slap his arm.

"Come, it's quieter over there" he leads you towards the railings, bringing out a fancy case of smokes. "You want a ciggie?" He offers you one. You take it.

You whistle at the fancy engravings on the cigarette case.

"Wow, Daddy dearest is still paying your bills? You daddy's boy" you tease him as he helps you light your cigarette with a matching lighter to the fancy case. "Fucking hell, even the lighter!"

"Shut up! It was a gift!" He teasingly shoves you. "Do you remember when we used to sneak around chain smoking in our attic?"

"Yeah, we almost burned your dad's postcard collection" you laugh at the memory.

"So how're you?"

You two get to talking, exchanging stories, remembering fond memories, until you get to talking about your love life.

"Ooh, little duckie has a man" he jokingly blows smoke on your face.

Meanwhile Hobie leans against the doorway, watching the interaction. He got worried when you didn't come back to the table. Basically searching the entire bar, he finally found you cozying up to an unknown man.

See Hobie isn't usually a jealous person, whenever someone flirts with you, while he's sidled up close to you, egging them on.

"Can I have that drink too?"

"Oh shit, look at that black card, you're loaded bruv"

"She has two left feet, I'm available though"

"Mate, you like the Ramones too? What's your favourite song?"

"Oof, nice shoes bruv"

He does this because he trusts you fully, at the end of the day, he's the one who goes home with you. Of course whenever someone gets a little too touchy, or invades your personal space, he jumps to being protective. If they don't let up, he's more than ready to square up.

When he sees the blond blowing smoke on your face as you giggle, it's the same smile you give him, he sees the man lightly push your shoulder. Something snaps at him, his ears ring, he didn't even catch what the man said.

Hobie stomps towards you, not noticing him, you continue on smiling and talking to your friend.

Feeling a familiar arm snaking around your waist, you look towards Hobie, His eyes glare angrily at your friend, a dark aura emanates from him.

Hobie's knuckles shake as he clenches it tighter, he's ready to strike.

Noticing his emotion, you quickly try to douse his anger, but he opens his mouth before you.

"Who the fuck are you?" He holds on to your waist tighter "and why the fuck are you flirting with her?"

Some nosy people start looking towards your way. You try to speak up, but again David beats you to it.

"I'm guessing this is your man? I'm David a –"

"Fuck off, David" he barks out "stay the fuck away" he angrily points at your friend.

David gestures in surrender "alright, mate, calm down, she's all yours" Hobie already turned his back away. David winks at you, thank god, Hobie didn't catch that.

Hobie guides you by your hand, you try to explain but he couldn't hear you through the blaring music.

He brings you outside, Hobie heads towards an alley, you follow closely behind, trying to get his attention.

"Hobie! Will you stop?"

Hobie kicks an abandoned box, sending it flying across the alley.

"Shit, I'm sorry" he breathes heavily, his left eye twitches. "Fuck, you okay?" Hobie finally turns towards you.

"Yeah, are you okay? I've never seen you so angry" you cross the gap between you, you tentatively try to hold him. "Just breathe" your hands hover over his arms.

He takes a deep breath, slowly calming down. Hobie pinches the space between his eyes.

"Better?" You rub his arms lovingly.

"Yeah" he avoids your eyes, his eyebrows still knit together in anger.

You can finally explain everything "Hey, David's a close friend of mine since highschool, trust me you don't have to worry about him" you hug his torso.

"I'm not jealous"

"Sure, of course not" you cup his jaw, he finally looks you in the eye.

"I'm not bloody jealous" he huffs, looping his fingers through the belt loop of your jeans, bringing you closer to him.

"I know" you placate him "but hypothetically if you were, you don't have to worry, you're it for me, babe"

You move your hands over his neck, guiding him down towards your face. "Whether it's an old friend, or some stranger, know that they'll never replace you in my life, I love you Hobie Brown, never forget that"

Hobie looks into your eyes, searching for an ounce of dishonesty, he found none, except for love and affection towards him.

He drops his forehead on yours, savoring all the love that oozes out of you. You close your eyes as you rub circles over his neck, trying to ease the tension folded into his muscles.

"Love you too. let's go home, yeah?" He reluctantly pulls away, holding your gaze.

You nod enthusiastically, "does that love extend to apologizing to David?" You ask, testing the waters.

Hobie tilts his head, with a slight glare, non verbally saying 'why would I do that?'

Understanding what he means, you continue "I invited him to lunch tomorrow" you smile, gauging his reaction.

Hobie drops his head on your shoulder with a slight thump, he groans, realizing he needs to make peace with your friend.

ʕ⁠·⁠ᴥ⁠·⁠ʔ

Hope you liked it angel! Thank you again for requesting, and for being patient ❤️❤️❤️

[thefreakandthehair]

my fiance walked into the kitchen last night to me in a rolling stones tee shirt and sweatpants, glass of wine in hand, bopping around to linkin park while cooking for easter. and it gave me a cute lil idea! enjoy!

It's a strange thing, holidays with a large family.

Eddie and Wayne don't really do Easter, it having been just the two of them for so many years. Sure, Eddie had woken up to baskets with plastic grass of various pastel colors when he was a kid, when Wayne was determined to give Eddie as normal of an upbringing as possible, but they've never had to plan a meal. There've never been assignments, or coordination, or questions like Who's bringing the mashed potatoes? Either Wayne grabs them at the store, or they don’t have them. Easy peasy.

This year is different. Easter 1987 brings friends, family, and a list that looks a lot like a menu on Steve Harrington's refrigerator. Eddie's name is scrawled in Steve's handwriting next to mashed potatoes, which explains why there's a huge pot of water on the stove and five pounds of potatoes glaring at him on Steve's counter. 

It doesn’t take much to convince Steve, who’s lovesick beyond words unbeknownst to Eddie, to let him take over his larger, better-equipped kitchen for the occasion. A simple pout and the fluttering of his eyelashes as he makes his case: "Please, Stevie? Take pity on poor ol' Eddie with his lack of a stand mixer and counterspace?” 

So he finds himself at the counter, music blasting at what feels like a soothing billion and five decibels, cutting potatoes like the cookbook he finds in the clutter of the trailer illustrates and bopping around to Dio’s Holy Diver. He isn’t much of a cook but there’s something comforting about the monotonous repetition of peeling and cutting, and plopping them into the pot of water. Comforting enough, in fact, that he doesn’t feel Steve’s eyes on him from the doorway, watching with a warm, fond smile. 

Steve watches and lets his thoughts drift, just for a moment, to future holidays. Of Memorial Day picnics, and Fourth of July pool parties, of birthdays, and Thanksgivings, and Christmases, and in all of them, every version and every iteration his hysterical, lovesick brain can conjure in that doorway, he wants this. He wants Eddie with wild hair just barely holding onto the elastic tying it back, with sweatpants that show his level of comfort around Steve, that show he can relax and not put on all of the airs he typically does for his look. Shit, he even wants to hear fucking Dio playing in the kitchen from the goddamn garage if it signals Eddie being present. 

He’s not sure when he started moving, but his body pulls him into the kitchen like the magnet holding the menu to the refrigerator door. 

“Hey,” he says, striding up to stand next to Eddie at the counter. “Need some help?” 

Eddie smiles and takes a sip of the beer Steve hasn’t seen until now, another indicator of Eddie making himself right at home. 

“The King assisting the lowly cook here? In the Castle kitchen? I’m honored.” Eddie fakes what Steve assumes is supposed to be a courtesy. He chuckles and hip bumps Eddie when he straightens back out. 

“Oh shut it and scoot over.” Steve’s voice betrays him, too syrupy and sweet to carry any annoyance, and Eddie notices. He turns just slightly, watching as Steve rummages through a drawer for a second knife. 

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d think you actually want to spend your morning making mashed potatoes with me, Steve.” 

He’s caught. Steve’s caught, hook, line, and sinker, and something about the genuine curiosity and hope in Eddie’s voice makes that okay. He doesn’t mind being caught when he’s in the safety of this domestic bubble with Eddie, because that’s what it is. It’s safe. 

The first round of potatoes don’t come out well. Their first kiss over the gloppy, gummy potatoes though? That goes perfectly.

[aggravatetheaxe]

dethklok plays WoW

Nathan - main tank. Horde of course. Probably orc. His only toon. Absolutely a blood death knight both for aesthetic and because you know he's pulling top dps in addition to holding agg on everything in the room. Guild leader, does not take his title seriously but will still kick your ass if you bail on raid night. likes pvp but prefers pve

Pickles - plays mostly trolls, has 2 or 3 toons, probably also has an ugly forsaken and an ugly goblin (although goblin is a later race so depends on the year). Cat druid, often forced to spec into healing because mythic dungeons are only 5 man. But prefers to be cat or combat rogue. Incredible dps when he's allowed to do dps. not nurturing at all as a healer, WILL let you die if you piss him off (unless you're Nathan, but Nathan never dies). loves both pvp and pve but gets super steamed during pvp

Skwisgaar - paladin paladin paladin. Belf, of course. has secret female alts as well as secret ally alts. constantly adding his girlfriends to the guild and taking shit from the bank without asking. But he doesn't get in trouble because his dps is second to none - topping the charts even over Nathan. Ret pally, could technically heal with holy but his dps is just so insane that they can't afford to have him healing. pvp is beneath him

Toki - altaholic. Lots of female toons, lots of ally toons, gets bullied for both. Really wants to main a hunter so he can have a bunch of cute animal companions (and because it would be easier dps) but the others say that's gay so his main is a frost DK. the others make him spec into unholy because his crowd control brings clusters together so that Skwis and Nathan can wipe them out. So, so fucking angry that he never gets to do any actual dps because his plagues never get the chance to stack - and despite knowing it's a DOT issue the others clown on him for being the absolute bottom of the dps chart. pvp is too hard for him, no one protects him and everyone picks on him

Murderface - orc arms warrior and tauren fury warrior, dps but mostly off tank. makes cringe jokes (abt both native americans and milking) if tauren. One secret ally toon (human no less), also a warrior, that he uses to /walk around stormwind and RP badly. constantly brags about his dps but he's actually garbage, only above toki. makes a big deal out of his rank in the guild but he actually has no bank privileges. loves self harm through pvp

Charles - undead disc priest. a few alts, equal numbers male and female but almost all undead. probably a GM. heals when pickles is on dps and there's room or in a raid setting. guild treasurer, full bank permissions, has to constantly police the boys and spends thankless hours filling the bank back up with pots, food, etc. Also in charge of recruiting, so he should just be guild lead at this point but he dutifully never complains :) plays an affliction warlock and a couple rogues (combat and assassination) on a different server, when the boys give him one free fucking moment to do his own thing

Magnus - used to be a super powerful destro warlock that matched skwisgaar in dps. was super involved in the guild, help build it into what it was, contributed lots of materials, consumables, and money to the bank. Recruited some of their best players. after a horrific falling out (he was the asshole in the situation; controlling, etc) he was kicked from the guild and replaced. has since (due to wotlk) abandoned his warlock for a death knight. now he has a forever grudge and badmouths dethklok any chance he gets, but the majority of the server knows he's the drama so he has trouble finding others to play with. because of this he's been forced to switch over to alliance side. hence he falls in with...

MMA & the revengencers: MMA is yet another DK, probably blood, guild lead of the revengencers - rival guild to dethklok, constantly butting heads with them in pvp, ganking their low level members/alts, just generally being a nuisance. MMA wants revenge for Nathan (with the help of GM charles) getting his OG account banned

Edgar - human arcane mage main ("actually, the rotation is quite simple"). has lots of female alts. treasurer of the revengencers, takes everything way way way too seriously. Definitely works for blizzard or is a GM. very tense, sometimes outright hostile, relationship with Charles despite being essentially coworkers. "umm you sir have won the internet" "updoot" guy in chat. full collection of mounts, even the rare and/or limited edition ones

[nessagigglebox]

Chapter 27 Xaden POV Fourth Wing Favorite Quotes

“Shit like that is why I keep my inconvenient feelings about Violet to my damned self, no matter how good she looks today or how delectable she smells sitting next to me, like some kind of citrus that makes me want to bury my face in the side of her neck and see just how pink I can get her cheeks to flush. No, if I did that, every rider in this room would look at her differently, and not in a good way. Leave it to me to fall for the one woman on the Continent I can never fucking have.”

“Still, I'd put myself right between her and Liam, ignoring his knowing little smirk, when I took the chair closest to Violet. There's nothing going on there, but he can back the fuck up when I'm around.”

“My mind runs through three other battle strategies, then stutters on a fourth as I glance in Violet's direction and catch her lips pursing in concentration. Gods, that mouth. I dream about that mouth. Fantasize about that mouth. That kiss is burned into my memory like a relic, taunting me with what will never happen again, with what I never should have tasted in the first place.”

“My chest tightens annoyingly. Whatever look Violet shot her sister, it was obviously in our defense, and damn if that doesn't hit me straight between the ribs.”

The wispy silver bond solidifies, an emotion - pride —dancing down the pathway even though Violet doesn't move a muscle. Holy shit, we really are connected. This could be —

"Dangerous? Reckless? An unaffordable distraction?" Sgaeyl snaps, and I swear I hear her teeth clash.

"Fun." There's no denying the bond between us when it's shining at me like a fucking mage light. "We can pretend I'm not here, just for the sake of the exercise." I put my figurine on the table and settle in my chair, then wrap my arm around the back of Violet's seat and enjoy the sight of Dain grinding his teeth. "Give Aetos here the position we all know he craves." His jaw flexes, and I leave my arm planted like a battle marker. The command, he can have. I'm mildly curious to see what he does with it. But that's the only position I'm ceding to the spoiled whiner.

"Don't be a dick," Violet whispers.

"You haven't even seen me start to be a dick." I send the words down the bond.

Her head whips toward mine, her lips parting as she openly gawks at me.

It worked. My heart stumbles, and I bite back a laugh. I was wrong.

This isn't just fun, it's instantly vital to my existence. I turn toward her, letting a corner of my mouth rise, and look straight into those hypnotic hazel eyes. "You're staring. It's going to get awkward in about thirty seconds if you don't stop."

"How?" She spits out the whisper like an accusation.

"The same way you talk to Sgaeyl. We're all gloriously, annoyingly linked.

This is just one of the perks. Though I'm starting to wish I'd tried it sooner.

The look on your face is priceless." I wink and turn my attention back to the seething pot of jealousy boiling over across the table.

"You're. The. Wingleader." Dain chokes out the words, and I can't help but wonder if he's submitting to my rank or accusing me of inappropriate behavior with a subordinate.

Not that I give a fuck either way. If it were safe for Violet, I'd be ecstatically guilty of inappropriate behavior. Wickedly inappropriate. In my bed. In hers. On a table in the Archives. In the bathing chamber and every room with a door to lock so no one else can see what's mine. I'd be so decadently inappropriate that her voice would turn hoarse from screaming my name every single day.

But though she'd be the best thing that ever happened to me, I'd be the worst thing that ever happened to her. The truth of it sinks like a stone in my stomach.

"Why are you even here?" Dain whines. "No offense, sir, but we weren't exactly expecting senior leadership on this trip."

"Yes, why are you here?" Sgaeyl doesn't disguise the mockery in her tone.

"You're more than aware that Sgaeyl and Tairn are mated." My voice stays respectfully level. "It was your idea to bring the daggers." I'm careful to only speak down Sgaeyl's bond.

"It seemed a prudent course of action, considering your insufferable intolerance to being separated from the general's daughter." She huffs.

"Three days?" Dain fires back, leaning in. "You couldn't make it three days?"

"Insufferable? That's a bit far."

"Where's Violet now?'" she mocks. "What is she doing? Is she thinking of me? Is she missing me? Is she getting closer to Aetos? Does she dream about that kiss? How many days until Violet's -'"

"Point fucking taken." She's going to be unbearable on the flight home.

"It has nothing to do with him." Violet slams her dragon figurine on the table. "That's up to Tairn and Sgaeyl."

And there she goes again, defending me. Fuck, I love this woman.

"You never considered that it was you I couldn't stay away from?" I ask her. She jabs the point of her elbow into my biceps, and I fight the upward curve of my mouth. I love that she isn't scared of me, that she'll call me out in a way no one else besides Sgaeyl does. Everything she does - even blatantly elbowing me in front of her squad —turns me on. I'm fucked on every level known to man when it comes to Violet Sorrengail. "Now, now, you’ll give our litte communication secret away if you can' keep from being so….violent”

Of course you rush to defend him," Dain whines yet again. "Though how you can forget that this guy wanted to kill you six months ago is beyond me."

He's not lying, but that was when i hated the idea of her, before I knew her -loved her.

Violet stiffens. "I cannot believe you went there."

The hurt in her tone sets my teeth on edge. "Good job remaining professional, Actos." I scratch the relic on my neck to remind him exactly who the fuck I am. "Really shows those leadership qualities to their best advantage."

A rider stationed here whistles. "Do you boys just want to whip it out and measure? It would be faster."

Liam stifles what's obviously a laugh, and I shoot him a sideways look.

"You want to do your job?" Violet's smile practically drips venomous sugar as she turns it on Dain. "I mean, how you can forget you're the squad leader is beyond me."

Fucking love her.

Panic skitters down the silver bond.

"Relax. I's just me." I crook a finger, and a strand of shadow solidifies to skim along Violet's cheek.

"Fuck me," a rider to the left says.

"I can surround this entire outpost, but I think that might freak some people out." I close my hands, and the shadows jolt back to their natural state, letting light pour in through the windows. Damn, that was fun. It was even worth the threat assessment I'm getting from Mira. Violet tenses like she spotted it, too. "I hope you didn't get any ideas while we were in the dark there."

She lifts her middle finger without even looking my way, and a laugh sneaks past my lips as Mira leads us through the rest of the exercise.

"Wasn't my choice." I shrug. Lying is easy, except when it comes to Violet. I haven't quite figured that one out yet.

The truth of the words stings. I might be accomplishing a very risky run, but Sgaeyl is right. We're here because I couldn’t concentrate for shit knowing that Violet was this close to the border. I chose Violet over my wing.

"And next year? When you're a brand-new lieutenant? What shit is she going to miss out on then?" Mira asks.

Yeah, fuck if I know. At this rate, they'll have to station me at Basgiath if I can't get my shit under control and get over —

"Love isn't something you get over," Sgaeyl reminds me. "Why do you think I flew you all the way out here?"

"To mock me while cavorting with your mate."

"I didn't say it was without its perks."

Fuck. What are the rules when it comes to interfering with sisters? Am I supposed to step in? Let Violet handle it? Lewellen let Liam and me beat the shit out of each other when we fought, but I'm not sure that's the right approach here. I'm also not about to infantilize Violet when her sister is doing a damned good job of it herself.

The way she's made? She's fucking perfect. Everything about her is what makes her... Violet.

Or so help me, Dunne, I will throw her over my damned shoulder right in front of everyone.

That approaching drift- and whoever is responsible for compromising the power supply tor the wards - will kill her if given the chance, and that's not something id ever let happen.

"Approaching," Sgaeyl informs me.

But damn, her courage has me tripping over my feelings for her.

"Not fast enough."

Violet isn't going to leave of her own accord; I can see it in her eyes, feel it in the tense lines of her back. I drop my shields, and her emotions hurtle down the bond. Determination. Fear-

She's going to bolt.

And there's only one way to stop her. I lift my hands from her waist to the velvet-soft skin of her cheeks, memorizing every color in her eyes as I cup the back of her neck, preparing to commit what she'll think is an unforgivable sin.

I kiss her. It's hard and raw, wild and desperate, and the way she opens for me, kissing me back with abandon, nearly takes me out at the knees.

Gods, I'll never get enough of this woman. Her mind. Her tenacity. Her mouth.

I kiss her like this might be the last time she'll let me, like this is an alternate reality and there's a chance she could love me back.

I kiss her like she's mine.

It's a stolen moment —it can never be anything more —but it's ours.

Wingbeats approach, and I ignore them, stroking my tongue against hers again and again, keeping my hands at the nape of her neck by sheer force of will, denying the urge to explore every curve, every hollow of her tight body. I've never wanted anyone the way I want her, never craved a woman's laugh as much as her touch or needed her trust more than my next breath. Only Violet.

I tear my mouth away, the steady pulses of wings undeniable as Tairn and Sgaeyl approach. Wind gusts, catching the loosened strands of her hair as I lean my forehead against hers. "Leave for me, Violet."

She stiffens, accusation filling her eyes so quickly that I know she's figured out that I just used our attraction to distract her. "I will hate you for this." Ouch.

"Yeah." I nod, accepting the consequences of my actions. "I can live With that." I can live with anything as long as she's still breathing, so I drop my hands to her arms and force them out at her sides, "Arms up. Hold tight."

"Fuck. You." She hisses out the words as a shadow falls over us, and I hit the floor, catching myself with my hands as a black claw fills the space I just occupied, hooking Violet's arms and snatching her into the sky.

"She'll never forgive me," I tell Sgaeyl as she lands on the narrow perch ahead of me. "Especially if something happens to her sister."

She tilts her head, staring at me with typical impatience as I launch to my feet and sprint down the rampart toward her. We're airborne in seconds, her wings pummeling the air before I even reach the seat. "If she can't forgive you for the least of your transgressions, then she doesn't deserve you."

"I don't think she'll see it that way." I get a good grip on her scales and settle in for the flight.

"Then you'd better start praying to your gods that her sister survives."

So pretty much the whole chapter 😍 Rebecca just pull a “Midnight Sun” already. I’m dying over here 🥹

[sexhaver]

bailey and i just finished watching season 2 of Vampire Diaries (yes i know we're late to the party) and holy shit this show walked so Riverdale could run(?). thots in no particular order (spoiler warning for a tv show from 2009):

my favorite part about the show as a whole is how injuries to plot-essential characters operate on Looney Toons logic. there are multiple rings floating around the series that straight up revive the wearer from being killed by a supernatural being. something like 5 characters have been saved from death by drinking vampire blood. the main character's brother is shot in the chest with a normal-ass handgun, dies, and is then resurrected by a witch literally five minutes later. without exaggeration, over 70% of the main cast has died and been revived at least once (not "oh wow you almost died but we saved you", they explicitly say the character is dead and then revived). when people mock the concept of "plot armor", this show is what they're making fun of.

the list of things that actually permanently kill vampires is pretty short which means they all resolve their disagreements by impaling each other nonfatally in the stomach or stabbing each other nonfatally directly in the jugular. again, like Looney Toons

the fucking Vampire Super Speed special effects are so unbelievably funny and get used multiple times per episode, like please watch this video and then slow it down im dying here

the main impetus behind the scriptwriting of season 2 seemed to be figuring out what face every actor was best at making and then writing their character into situations where they make that face. Damon does the shit-eating grin, Stefan does the mouth-slightly-agape-puppy-dog-eyes thing, Elena scream-cries about her friends, Caroline laugh-cries about her friends, Jeremy looks like a teenager in a D.A.R.E. PSA from the 90s who just found out his best friend smokes pot and is digusted/disappointed in him, Matt has a thousand-yard-stare and looks like he's always wondering what the fuck is going on (because he is)

there were multiple points during this season where i said "i fucking hate this show so much dude" and walked out of the room. the first and most dire of these was when Elijah paused dramatically before announcing "Klaus... is a vampire... born of a werewolf bloodline." like i said, this walked so Riverdale could run (or some other form of ambulation)

i love how the last death of this season, after an entire episode of multiple important characters being sacrificed on an altar, came from a small-town cop unnecessarily escalating a situation, ignoring advice from a civilian on the scene, restraining said civilian for having the audacity to offer to help, and then immediately accidentally shooting her teenage brother in the chest. literally the most realistic death on the show so far

[spurgie-cousin]

I've noticed a few conservative women taking pot shots at Dolly Parton and her Cowboys outfit and as someone who has worked directly with the Dolly Parton Imagination Library program, I am seething‼️‼️ Dolly has exhibited more Jesus-like behavior in probably the last month than their bitter asses probably have their whole lives.

Dollys program mails out literally MILLIONS of free early educational books a month. both to kids that wouldn't have them otherwise and kids whose parents just want to build up libraries and it can last for literally their entire childhoods.

Dolly also does so much for her historically impoverished hometown and areas like it, like it's literally so much this post would be 5 pages long if I listed it all out, and she does the majority of it out of her own pocket and with the goal that the cycles of poverty can be broken.

So like what the fuck does the Transformed Housewife do that's Jesus-like? What kids or families or communities does she try to help in the spirit of improving as many lives as possible, hmm??

I'm just so tired of conservative women who do nothing but bring down other women and shame other families for their choices thinking that's what spreading the message of Jesus is, like get so fucked. You're not a good or holy person you're just a goddamn asshole who puts more negativity into the world than the people you demonize.

[nbofvoid]

Breaking Day

Written for the dreamnblade christmas event @alterdnbweek is holding this year.

Day 21 Prompts: Healthy Start; "I can't lose you"

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

The rules for becoming an admin are clear. There's tests, trials, a whole bunch of background checks and lisences you have to get, and a final one where you get a Secret and you can't let anyone learn that Secret. It doesn't matter what situation might come up, who might be asking, or how things might change if the Secret is revealed. You do not share the Secret.

Dream forces his breathing to stay steady, keeps pressing down on Techno's torso as the blood keeps seeping between his fingers. Techno's unconsious, body completely limp and his breathing shallow and ragged. The wounds are too wide, too varied for him to take care of on his own and the obsidian cell is not a suitible place to be tending them in the first place.

Revival is coiling in the back of his throat, wants to spill from his lips becuase it would help Techno. It would force the wounds to close, reverse the blood loss, have Techno back to his best state instead of this.

He has no clue what Quackity and Sam did, just that it's stopping Techno from healing. He can't even ask because Techno was already unconsious when they dumped him back in the cell. His only hope to figuring it out is to look at the wounds, but he can't. Not when every time his hands shift or his pressure lets up, more blood gushes out.

"Please don't die," he mouths to himself, shifting to try and keep his arms from giving out. "You always say you can't die so don't be a fucking liar now. You still owe me, got it. I can't lose you."

Techno's breathing only seems to get shallower, chest hardly rising under his pressing hands. Revival shoves against his lips. Trying to spill out to stop whatever is happening and he bites his tounge hard enough he tastes blood. He can't risk losing the single thing that might let him get them both out of here if Pandora's defenses shift enough.

His hand slips, blood pouring out of one gash as he scrambles to cover it again. It's slick and warm against the creeping chill spreading across Techno's skin and he has no idea how much more blood Techno can risk loosing.

There's the sound of something distant, but he ignores it. It doesn't matter if Sam or Quackity are back. It doesn't matter if someone else is being dragged into prison. It doesn't even matter if someone else is coming to visit him for some reason. All he cares about now is trying to keep Techno alive.

It's horrible because he knows there's no way he can actually do that without using Revival.

His gut is hollow as his arms keep shaking. He's not going to be able to keep the blood from spilling out for much longer and he's not sure he's going to be able to handle that.

"Holy shit!"

There's hands pressing over his, turning red from the blood and he blinks at Philza as he's shoved back.

"Heal pots! Now!" the avian snaps and there's rushing footsteps and a shattering as a thrown one breaks on the stone in between the three of them.

It doesn't look like it does anything to heal the wounds on Techno, but Dream feels better physically.

"I have more!" Nikki says, skidding to a stop at Techno's head.

He blinks, finally processing that this isn't the cell. This isn't obsidian blocks all around him bleeding lava level heat. It's stone and bricks and tourchlight and Philza, Nikki, and Ranboo closing in to help take care of Techno.

"Ranboo, take care of Dream," Philza says. "Niki, just pour all of them over him."

Ranboo tugs him away and he follows the hands in a daze as they poke at his own injuries. He opens his mouth-

Snaps it shut as Revival tries to tumble out with the blood flowing over his chin.

Ranboo whirrs, "Did- Did you bite your tounge?"

He nods slowly, eyes focusing on where Techno is still prone, still unconsious, bleeding through the cloths being pressed against his torso. Glowing health and healing potions are sitting on the surface of the red blood, pooling under and aaround their knees with each new one opened and turned over Techno.

Philza curses, "These aren't doing enough, but I don't want to risk him choking on something."

"What even happened?" Niki asks, glancing up at him.

He stares at her, wishing he had an answer and that he could feasibly say anything when Revival is trying to be shared. Niki doesn't try to press for an answer and just looks back down at Techno. She grabs a soaked piece of cloth and presses it over Philza's hands. She pulls out something small and dives back down with quick motions.

Ranboo is twitching, hands fluttering as they keep check on the various bruises and bumps littering his skin, "Do you, uh, need, need a potion?"

He shakes his head, fighting to keep from biting at his tounge again as he watches Philza and Niki keep working on helping Techno. He's not sure what exactly they're doing right now, but it's more than he was able to do.

"I'm not sure this is going to be enough," Philza says, slowly pulling his hands away. His breath hitches, but there's no sudden gush of blood which is a huge improvement over back in the cell. The potions are still shimmering on top of the blood and hopefully there's a chance their power will start working now.

Philza looks over at him, "Sorry about having to ask, mate, but think you can force all of us off ther server?"

He blinks, tilting his head in confusion and Philza adds, "Thing's are going to be really bad in about twelve hours. It'd be better if none of us are here."

"What do you mean?" Ranboo asks.

"...It's a thing. Looks nice at first, but really, really not something you want to be in when it happens," Philza says and the dancing around the explanation is familiar.

He lifts a hand, all of it shaking and hesitantly points at his clamped mouth. They stare at him, confusion on their faces as well and he gestures a bit harder. He can't open his mouth, can't risk Revival escaping to explain what he means.

Philza's expression clears, eyes widening under his hat, "Dream. If it's a fight right now, let go. I'll back you no matter what happens."

He hesitates, because it was drilled into his head before he was allowed to run this server that if he shared the Secret, he was going to be punished. But Philza looks serious in a way he hasn't since Doomsday and he is old enough to have sway on the council.

Dream opens his mouth-

"ꖎ╎⍊ᒷ."*

Tumbles from his throat and the power of it makes his head spin. Things shift around. Twisting all over the server and he can't even try to track all of it as things change.

He blinks up at the ceiling, breathing heavy and he can hear the others panting as well. There's a groan and he slowly turns his head, all of his nerves screaming that he shouldn't be moving, but it's worth it to see Techno struggling to sit up, breathing just as heavy, but without the raspy shallowness it had before. There's still a disturbing amount of blood on and around him, but he's clearly better and Dream passes out.

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

*Live

AU Notes:

techno technically has a Secret, but his is a more complicated situation than being an admin. normally the obvious side of it is that he heals rapidly, but there’s more that doesn’t come out unless specific circumstances are met.

dream was only dragged through when the stasis chamber activated because the server itself was actively trying to not be destroyed and its solution was to make sure both of them got to help.

dream did allude to having a way to revive the dead and they know Tommy had the book used on him, but that’s considered okay for the people on his server to know. they just can’t know about the raw aspect of it which was what was fighting to be spoken.

This is an AU that frankly could use an entire other post just explaining the headcanon going on with how admins and Secrets work plus Techno’s whole thing in it.

[dailyoyo]

GGs ranked by how quickly they would resort to murdering their friends if they were stuck in a timeloop (Real edition)

my sincerest fucking apologies to pseud for what ive done to their blog.

THAT SAID: on account of this being very long and very grim to the point that most of it is too grimdark to even be funny anymore i am putting it under a readmore. This is a half-joke half-serious post about the ggs getting stuck in a time loop and murdering each other so like. you get what you click on.

also these are all specifically based aroudn our interps/jet set radio paradox obviously so bear that in mind lol

RULES TO MINIMIZE VARIABLES: only one of them knows they're in a time loop, each is a separate scenario where the listed character is the one who knows and remembers. they do not know why the loop is happening and they do not know how to stop it. the span of time the loop happens is relatively normal, though dangerous enough events happen (maybe just normal jsr stuff) that people may accidentally die during it depending on the exempt character's actions. everyone who dies during a loop is alive again when the date rolls back over. everything is back to square one. no consequences. 14. Pots pots is a dog, even if a highly intelligent one. assuming he can even grasp the idea of a time loop (unlikely) i believe it is even further unlikely that he would recognize it as a bad thing. very possible he just stays in the time loop contentedly forever 13. Soda it takes like a week (or until the first "someone dies and comes back") for him to even notice he's in a timeloop (general apathy/depression?). but when he does notice he's pretty together about it. obviously he wants out but he's literally got all the time in the world, he doesn't need to do stupid traumatic shit just to see what happens. he's got this.

12. Jazz WHY WOULD MURDER EVEN BE PART OF THIS EQUATION WHAT THE FUCK? shes not gonna kill anybody and would think its super fucked to even raise the idea. how is that supposed to help. That said. she does keep repeatedly explaining she's in a time loop almost every loop and it is getting to the point that she kiiiiinda wants to strangle someone or two as stress relief because by god is she stressed. she Won't, she's got more sense than that, but. But…

11. Boogie i think she never really goes full murdermode or anything and the very idea of that happening would shock and disturb her, but surprisingly early on she gives into the impulse to push one of the other ggs into traffic (it doesn't matter anyway, right?) and watches them get ran over. and she's like O_O oh jesus fuck that was horrible. and she never kills anyone again during the loops but it HAUNTS her and makes her nervous abt the idea that she COULD do it again.

10. Gum she's mostly level headed, i think, so she wouldn't be quick to resort to madness. but give her enough time and she starts feeling desperate and does some scary shit in the hopes that maybe somehow they'll at least remember next time. like more than anything i think it's the isolation of it that gets to her. maybe she doesn't progress to outright intentional murder, maybe she only tries it once or twice to see if it fixes anything (it doesn't). while she doesn't go full-blown axe-crazy she DOES become incredibly dangerous and desperate to just not be the only one who remembers.

9. Garam while his nerves end up aaaabsolutely shot and he loses all his patience to see the same day happening over and over, i think it would honestly take a while for him to become a danger to the ggs. he'd rather take out his stress on Literally Anything Else. that said he'd reach a point where he accidentally kills someone for real (whether a gg or an unrelated party) and it fucks him up reallll bad, but whether it fucks him up in a "fine whatever i can kill people who cares" way or a "I NEED TO BE CAREFUL THIS NEVER HAPPENS AGAIN HOLY FUCK" way depends on the circumstances.

8. Beat honestly? unless something in particular causes him to suspect one of the ggs is responsible for the loop, it takes a while for it to even occur to him that killing his friends is an option. like maybe he might end up killing the GGs' enemies and maybe even rivals, but if you brought up the idea of killing his FRIENDS to him he'd be like "wait huh??? but why even????" that said, though, keep him in there long enough and he might develop a severe god complex and start doing it purely to power trip.

7. Combo putting him in a time loop i think would really be the last straw in his miserable life. maybe he deserves the right to kill someone at this point really. while he focuses intently on trying to find a way to break the loop, as it all begins to grate on him he really just stops giving a shit about much of anything. the murder isn't a constant thing, more like one or two good ol' kill em all style breakdowns, and obviously it only makes him feel sick to his stomach when the date rolls over, but what can he even do about it?

6. Clutch he tries to play it cool at first and not think about it too hard but it isnt long before a sort of prey animal panic is invoked in him and hes like. I gotta get outta here. I gotta get out of here. Oh my god i gotta get the hell out of here. and it doesn't help that hes really not close with these guys yknow. and any concern from the ggs he reacts to with escalating violence until he reaches the point he's killing them multiple times in hopes that gives him a way out. eventually he just gives up

5. Corn at first the thought of killing his friends doesnt even cross his mind but he becomes increasingly desperate to understand what's happening and soon enough it's a last resort. it's all very methodical testing the limits of the loop and himself, not explaining anything to anyone else because they'll forget anyway and becoming increasingly hostile and isolationist. he doesn't want to but He's out of options. He has to FIGURE IT OUT.

4. Roboy what bothers him more than anything else is the feeling of helplessness over the whole thing and even if the others COULD help him he's not going to try to get their help. he kills the other ggs to feel less powerless, like he has any sort of control over the situation, and all it does is make him feel worse and worse and worse. maybe eventually reaches a point where he starts deleting his memories of the resets in the hopes this breaks the vicious feedback loop but all it does is ensure the cycle never ends.

3. Yoyo If you put yoyo in a situation where nothing he does matters and none of his actions have consequences he will do increasingly crazy dumb shit because it's not like it matters anyway. and he will undergo EXTREMELY RAPID psychological decay that DOES end in him killing members of the ggs just to see what effect it has both on the loop and on others' psyches. and he will just assume that the loop is forever and ever with no way to ever break it.

2. Cube cube upon realizing she and she alone is in a timeloop will rapidly come to the conclusion that she is in actual literal hell. everything wrong with her will come to the surface at once. she will suffer a severe psychological break SO fast and the streets will run red. maybe she's enjoying it. maybe she isn't. but she is convinced this HAS to happen. and that she deserves it. 1. Mew As soon as Mew finds out that deaths don't stick she's going to massacre all of the GGs just to see how it feels. just once. to try it. it's fine. it doesn't matter. Where did she get that higurashi cleaver

bonus: with the way i joke about zero beat maybe he doesnt even notice hes in a time loop until After hes maimed someone to death. i dont know man. im lying. who fucking give a shit

[theresa-of-liechtenstein]

it’s the final countdown (last rehearsal before concert)

retrieved my violin and folder from the arts basement because i was not about to haul my laptop and thermodynamics notebook across campus to get to the theater (which, funnily, is nowhere near the arts building) and found myself in conversation with the principal trombone of wind ensemble (whom i’ve interacted with not infrequently) as we mutually briefed each other on the general mood in our respective camps given the circumstances (joint concert)

summary: orchestra thinks they’re cooked, but are probably not; wind ensemble thinks they’re cooked, and probably are

the interaction taught me that people actually find tita conductor scary, which like. okay, yeah, i’ve been frightened by her before, but that was because of the trauma, not because of her. sure she can be firm enough that her ratemyprofessor rating is a 3.3 and she gets reviews claiming she doesn’t extend basic respect even up to last month, but tita conductor is at her core a deeply sentimental, kind, and whimsical woman and it’s very hard to be scared of someone like that—her tendency to stare at you with her big brown eyes aside. if anything my fear lies in disappointing her

okay sidenote because i looked her up on ratemyprofessor for that single bit. what the fuck are these people on. i may be biased because of the whole post-trauma thing or the whole i know stuff about her past because she told me thing or the whole accidentally becoming one of her special little helpers thing but like i’ve literally never seen her be anything but patient and kind to anyone even when it was totally undeserved (and i count in this too btw)? like idk if it’s just because my music director trauma was that bad that everything is frolicking through the daisies in comparison but hello? if someone is firm about getting the sound they want without taking fucking pot shots at you in the process i don’t think it makes them a cunt at all. might leave a review just to balance it out because wtf is going on here. anyways you didn’t choose to read the rehearsalpost for this. tangent over

got to the theater with my co-principal in tow (also was in the locker room), unpacked, and got settled on stage. we are so back in business baby

the professor who normally helps hold down the back stands emailed me on sunday night informing me he wouldn’t be able to play in the fall concert because he was just too stressed. i assumed he had also informed tita conductor so i didn’t tell her and just emailed back wishing him well.

while taking attendance tita conductor looked at my section, squinted at the back stands to figure out why there were empty seats there, and said, her tone a little lost, “who—who’s—um,” and looked a little desperately around before asking, “em?” and looking at me, to which i said in my gentlest tone, “dr. [surname] won’t be joining us for the fall concert” thinking i was just reminding her, to which she physically startled and said “well i didn’t know about that”

we are taking the two dvořák movements we’re playing out of order so we end our set on the first movement. which is so funny but tita conductor wanted the photo finish and the third movement does end kind of anticlimactically. this program is so goofy honestly

it was my co-principal’s first time playing anything in the theater and the first time we got cut off she made a face and said “it’s so dry in here” welcome to our world lmao

the brass misheard what rehearsal marker tita conductor was starting on (supposed to be G) and tita conductor waved us all to stop and called louder to the back “G! G as in gosh almighty! G!”

holy fuck the britten was actually good? unfortunately we have the goofy ass keyboard which i feel betrayed about because i thought we were getting a celesta. damn it. but other than that the movements actually sounded pretty good??? which i was shocked by

the goofy midcentury christmas opera suite has an opening that sounded hellish the first time we read it this quarter but actually sounds pretty melodic now

tita conductor turned to the firsts and asked them, “can you sing this melody by heart?” to which littlebrothercore concertmaster looked cherubically up at her and began singing his part. tita conductor hastily cut him off, saying, “i mean, i’m just asking if you can. if you do it in the shower or whatnot. i’d really suggest that you do” 😭😭😭😭😭😭

viola friend, ate dean, my co-principal, and i all lost it

however, tita conductor wasn’t quite done there; she turned to us and asked the outside stands to move with her so as not to obscure an interesting harmony by saying “let’s have eye contact there”. girl i already know at least you and i are having enough eye contact. more times than necessary i might add

amazingly enough tita conductor actually ended rehearsal five minutes early, saying “um, i think i’m gonna do something unprecedented in the history of my tenure at [university], which is: i think we’re done” girl help 😭

coming up: first concert of graduate school tomorrow. let’s fucking get it lads

[i-love-sweet-william]

out of context pre-stozyers #7

it's been a long while. I have a lot of drafts that were just Not Done Enough that have been sitting around for...literal years at this point. but I decided to maybe try to post some anyway

so uhhh have Richie/stozier's early pov of Will + Notes

—

R: my roommate might legit be a zombie. I've never met anyone That dead inside before and I grew up with Bill (...do you think it's a William Thing??) dude's only tethered to the land of the living by like a few spider threads and a pot of coffee

S: wow. what a description. I'm sure he'd appreciate hearing that

R: hey do not snitch on me! you're not allowed to repeat the shit I confess in confidence!

-

R: I really think I can work with this. his music taste is impeccable and his band t-shirts are worn to optimal softness. this is gonna be a good final year. I can feel it. in my balls.

S: lovely

-

R: I can't tell if he's ignoring me or just mentally peaced out from brain matter withdrawal....or maybe he's listening to full albums in his head and my instrumental-less voice simply isn't worth pausing for. should I—

S: do not fucking serenade him in your dormitory just to test that theory.....at least do it outside so you can be properly witnessed and viciously mocked by the student body

R: you're so right, I'll report back to you tomorrow

-

R: (quietly) bro I swear to god I think he buys espresso off the black market to shoot directly into his veins like heroin.

S: is that really what you called to tell me. I'm hanging up—

R: wait wait wait! no okay listen, forget the zombie thing, I feel bad now, and I'm only telling you this because you'll never meet him and I can't just ask what's going on because I'm physically incapable of discussing Serious Shit in a Serious Way and I don't wanna make shit awkward the first week into the semester and it would be—

S: Richie.

R: right okay—

so listen. in a previous fandom, there was a character with Big Hospital Trauma and I...I used T shots to prompt angst. I had a trans guy who was chill about his shit like he wasn't trying to hide it or anything but also didn't feel the need to explain it unless asked, so the character with Hospital Trauma would see the needles or just the very specific marks left by needles and immediately assume the worst, that their new friend was secretly on death's door and would die shortly after they bonded.

Richie doesn't have hospital trauma but he still got worried that maybe whatever the medication was for was why Will had so little energy and felt a little bad about possibly having judged uh tHE EXHAUSTION OF FIGHTING SOME UNSPECIFIED CHRONIC OR TERMINAL ILLNESS (he previously assumed it was just exhaustion from moving in so it was fair game to mock). anyway Will's not sick but he is autistic and traumatized and fucking tired.

btw Will took a gap year so he's the same age as the losers but one year behind in college. that's not important. but I'm mentioning everything else why not go off on one more unnecessary detail. aight back to stozier dialogue

-

R: he gives me these serious "done with your shit" vibes—

S: you get those vibes from everyone.

R: ......okay, first of all, Rude. second, there are multiple types of "done with your shit" vibes, and his are like yours. like for instance today the way he begged me to shut the fuck up and tried to light me on fire with intense eye contact alone reminded me of you...almost feels like I'm at home.

S: he seems competent. I like him

-

R: Will shared caffeine with me today and I felt so fucking soft holy shit, I mean I'm saving it for tonight I didn't wanna crash in class [sometimes caffeine helps chill out ADHD people, some can even use it as a sleep aid, and I chose to give Richie that trait], but—

S: maybe he was trying to knock you out

R: what? nah.......oh shit maybe....no......you think— 

-

R: b..bro. y'know th.....y'know that Eyebrow Thing Ben does when he's...really into some poetry shit. W—Will has a Thing. but it's f—it's fuckin...he sticks his tongue out—like just a tiny bit—and it's. it's so fucking blessed. holy fuckin shit.

S: are you okay

R: no. no I'm fucking not. I might cry. I'm having a fucking meltdown over a mlem. fuck.

-

R: I heard the cutest softest most angelic laugh in the world today ohhh my god. like if you took Bev's warmth, and Eddie's innocence, and your upsettingly persistent aversion to expressing loud positive emotion which prevents anything more than a sinister little nightmare giggle, and rolled them all into one. that's Will's 

S: ..........I'm sorry, sinister li—?

R: I said what I said. and I still love and cherish it because it's a part of you💜

S: disgusting, thank you

-

R: your #1 source for new Byers trivia is back babey, today we've uncovered the movie snack of choice and the method w—

S: Please just get to it

R: reese's pieces. one at a time. like a fuckin.....hamster eating seeds. it gives the same effect as watching Mike lift hay bales with his massive sexy arms and then 5 minutes later be delicately eating little berries or some shit. except the hay bales are stage props and the berries are imposter m&ms

S: I'm gonna pretend you didn't just insult reese's pieces like that

-

R: he always seems moments from passing out so I wanted to share my energy through osmosis and tried to hold him and you won't fucking believe what happened

S: he punched you in the face

R: he let me!! just carried on with his business like I didn't even exist!!! what does that mean?!?! did he not even know I was there?? did he know and not care because he's already adjusted to my glorious presence??? is he actually just chill about it and I finally have a compliant body pillow after three years of loneliness???? I NEED TO KNOW THE TRUTH—but I was too shook in the moment to ask

S: .........good luck with figuring that out

Stan's not worried or anything like he's had 20 years to get used to how touchy Richie is. he genuinely wouldn't mind if Richie had a person to use like a "body pillow" when he's away from all his Losers, and doesn't see an issue if Will ends up okay with being an outlet for Richie's pent up physical affections. besides Will doesn't seem to have shown any particular interest anyway

......and that's because he's the type of aro that just doesn't even think about romance shit unless someone asks him to think about it (or there's literally someone standing in front of him giving a confession). however if asked, he would still label himself gay because the last time he had to think about it he came to the conclusion that, hypothetically, if he were to be in a relationship, it would probably be with another guy. but he has no interest in searching for specific terms for himself when he could spend his time like.....having fun instead of having a perpetual identity crisis. if he's not in or pursuing a relationship, why should it matter to him??

meanwhile Stan's the type of aro that Did think about hypothetical relationships but never pursued one, but also wouldn't mind if someone did want one with him, so he just had to say yes when Richie eventually asked about going out with him. Stan only starts pursuing Will because he's half of stozier and it would feel weird to him to let Richie "do all the work" when it was a Mutual decision to see if Will had any interest in Them.

also Stan's aware of more terms, he Wanted to study up, and is aware of his place on asexual spectrum (and wears a black ring to silently display it), but since he's been in a long term relationship with Richie he's less concerned with claiming arospec

okay jesus christ I'll shut the fuck up none of this is important but There's A Lot Okay

-

S: what's wrong with your voice, it sounds like after we—

R: listen man.....I was legit blasted into the stratosphere like Team Rocket and then dropped back to earth just as hard. let me catch my fucking breath

S: you...do mean mentally right? what'd he do this time

R: .....yeah, mentally. mind: blown, worldview: shook, lessons: learned.

-

R: I used the Platonic Pleasure Zone on him

S: you what

R: I used—

S: no don't fucking repeat it I heard you the first time. why the fuck do you insist on saying that. no one says that besides you

R: do you wanna know how he reacted or not

S: *deep fucking breath* carry on

R: (instantly softer voice) like a tired kitten holy fuck....I thought he was actually gonna fall asleep until—uh...........I spoke

S: uh huh. did you tell him you Used The Platonic Pleasure Zone

R: yes

S: and did he go for a chokehold

R: No but there was a very sexy shirt grab and even sexier glare

btw the "platonic pleasure zone" just refers to like.....back pat/shoulder squeeze/hair ruffle level intimacy that Can feel really nice and soft but can Also be done in a casual way that doesn't mean anything. but Richie uses that shit specifically in a soft comfy way, and Will is too stupid to notice anything unusual until Richie verbally states what he's doing

-

R: (whispering) he sings.....

S: (also quiet for some reason) like for a minor?

R: no dude........just.......I don't even know if he knows he's doing it but he's doing it and I'm having palpitations it's too much.....it's too quiet to be on purpose it's gotta be unintentional right?? no one should be allowed to be this soft I can't do this I'm....bro next time Ima send you a fucking recording I don't give a fUck—

-

R: after weeks of patient training, I am now able to cradle the William in my lap. I saw the face of god the first several attempts, but now we can cuddle in peace. we've learned to navigate this cramped habitat. we live in harmony.

S: why are you suddenly talking like he's a feral animal—

R: because he absolutely is and it's great. I could perish any day now but it would be okay because he'd make my death quick.

S: wh....what did I miss

R: nothing at all don't worry about it~👍

-

R: where was he in previous years. what universe was he hiding in. I needed him. I wanna bring him home with me. do you think it's legal to take him across state lines??

S: well don't just fucking toss him in the trunk. I'm not out here studying to be a lawyer. use your words like a functional human being.

R: ........you think I'm functional??? that's the most romantic thing you've ever said to me.....

S: let's not get ahead of ourselves. I said "like" a functional human being

-

in the first post I said "Stan's seen some of Will's drawings online" but now....now you get to know more of the Context of Stan seeing those "drawings". if anyone doesn't like the idea of an asexual Will drawing vent porn and didn't see that coming, now would be the time to stop reading

R: (ultra high speed) okay I know this sounds like a fuckin joke but I am being so serious rn when I say I think I've been rooming with one nastyass motherfucker, holy fucking shit—

S: what—

R: I mean you would not believe the shit I just saw and there was so much of it bro like deadass he might be a freak—

S: R—

R: Our kind of freak.

S: …

R: .........

S: .............oh.

R: .........................should I try to find out?? I mean of course I'm gonna find out. how fuckin insane would it be for my sweet innocent caffeine-fueled feral child to have been One Of Us this whole fucking time, how the fuck could I not notice—

-

R: disclaimer, I got permission to expose his filth blog like this...after. exposing all of us. to him....but Anyways uh jesus fucking christ dude how tf did he manage to be so active without me noticing.....I'll text you the blog name I forgot how he said it already, shouldn't even have a pronunciation, some random shit like...vuh.....vufi..bifim…

S: ............vwhbfmbu? [first letter in s1 ep titles]

R: yeah that! how tf did you say that out loud.......wait. have you been...?? no...no. Stan. Stanley. Stanford. hey. answer me. do not hang up. Staniel. you look at porn without me? and on the fucking regular if you're familiar with that Literal Gay Keysmash of a username! what kind of—I can't believe this!! the betrayal!!! STANLEY!!!!!

-

from here to the end, stozier is texting at various points during the following days but like.....make Richie's messages barely decipherable and split into numerous tiny texts (which is why Stan's able to interrupt), and give Stan's messages uncomfortably proper capitalization/punctuation

R: do you think Will knows he's a monsterfucker?? his tag usage is sHIT

S: he's not a monsterfucker there is literally no fucking happening

R: babe you don't gotta fuck to be a Fucker. I mean just look in the mirror

S: jesus fucking christ

R: you looked in the mirror and saw selfcest? that's hot.

S: you're going to hell god told me himself

R: oh shit god's there too??? Spicy [Stan turned off his phone after that] wait come back!! we haven't determined whether he knows or not!!!

-

R: do you think he had an Awakening, or just always knew but didn't know it was a thing to be known? do you think he had any gross friends like we had each other, or kept it to himself until I fucked up his perfect record? do you think he's just here for the eldritch horror shit, or thinks about shit that's actually possible too? do you think he—

S: he's literally like 5 feet away from you why are you asking me Any of this

R: .......dude do you want him to die??? I thought he was gonna have an aneurysm when I first told him I found his forbidden sketchbook, and he had one foot in the grave by the time he gave up that blog name. if I ask for more details directly he might just vanish from this plane of existence. we gotta be Delicate

S: you've never been delicate in your fucking life

-

R: maybe he's tired all the time because he expends all his energy in secret. I mean I've never caught him drawing in that sketchbook and Also never caught him jacking off. coincidence? I Think The Fuck Not

S: go to sleep Richard

-

R: I gotta admit......for not having any reaction to hen tie jokes he makes good tentacle porn

S: they're vines

R: ok sure but I'm not gonna say "vine porn" that just sounds like 6 second videos of—

S: and it's hardly porn. this is some aesthetic shit

R: ......buddy if I can get off on it, it's porn

S: you can get off on anything your opinion doesn't fucking count. you could get off on two lines of shitty chicken scratch in a bathroom stall.

R: you underestimate me. I can even get off on Nothing thanks to all the memories you've given me

S: compliments won't make me change my mind

-

R: what if like—

S: you know what? give me his number. I'll fucking ask him myself

R: .....my heart says don't do this, Will is already suffering. but my hand says 618-555-0189

S: you sure took a lot of convincing

—

Stan was just gonna message Will real briefly (preferably like a Normal Person who Didn't have memories of old posts/tags Will had probably forgotten he ever typed), see if he could get a couple of Richie's dumb questions answered, and then leave him alone. clearly that didn't happen. they bonded over roasting Richie.

if you want to know the general vibe of what's going on in Will's art, just think of various ways to be trapped/restrained.

for instance like the vines that caught Hopper in s2. or for clown reference, there's also "spiderwebs" but it's visually more like that corpse pile at the end of s1 that Will was stuck in. so it's "hardly porn" in that yeah there's no fucking, and it does have An Aesthetic, but like....you're not gonna make it your phone lockscreen and try to convince some random person who sees it that it's 100% sfw.

it's vent porn in that he draws when he feels Some Kind Of Way but he tends not to draw the faces of whoever/whatever is restrained. but when he does, it could be any kind of emotion. whether it's panicked or defiant or just resigned or even out cold. or something else.

[bacon-sandwich-of-dionysus]

Bloodhound. (A Ghost x AFAB!reader fic)

Act One, Chapter Four: The Fool

Hey all! I hope you enjoy this chapter as I had a lot of fun writing this one! :)

As per usual, apologies for any grammar mistakes. Exam season is coming in thick and fast too, around May to June, so momentum for this fic will be slowing down by a lot. You guys have been so patient so far and I'm very grateful for it.

Word count: 6,327

Warnings: Threats of violence, strong language, horror elements, Y/N having a bit of a moment, and Ghost and Soap being a pair of daft himbos.

Ghost and Soap really are the epitome of 'tweedle-dumb and tweedle-dumber'. Yes, Ghost is mean and moody, hot and broody, but I also believe that when he gets comfortable with someone, he loses about 95% of his intelligence.

“Aha!” He got out a small red bag with a white cross on it. “Roll it up so I can see what we’re dealing with here.”

23 shifted awkwardly, refusing.

Graves sighed, “Kid, you gotta help me out. I’m the one with the first aid kit and you’re the one with the bleeding knee. Let me have a look and try to sort this out.”

Again, she refused, shrinking away from him a little. Phillip rolled his eyes under his mask and then made for her, reaching forward to bring her closer to him. The child soldier backed up even further, almost falling off the tree stump she was sitting on as she swatted his hand away.  He muttered a curse under his breath and turned around.

“72,” he called, “could you tell your, uh… Could you tell 23 here that I need her to show me the injury so I can fix it?”

“He’s not got any intentions of hurting you, 23,” 72 said, not looking up from her crossword, “You can see for yourself.”

Eventually, the younger of the two girls came around and rolled up her trouser leg to expose her knee. Graves winced a little as the injury was revealed. It was a nasty scrape, not too deep, but it definitely looked like it hurt. The joint itself was a little swollen too.

“I think you might have sprained it,” he remarked, bringing the leg closer to his concealed face.

“It really hurts.”

“I’m sure it does, hun.”

As he got to cleaning up the blood and debris of gravel with an antiseptic wipe, 7629 approached and set down a small bowl beside him.

“Thanks.”

“You better eat quickly. I think Valeria’s gonna be up soon.”

“Roger.”

He briefly stopped tending to 23, removing his hand from her leg to feel around for the release-mechanism on his canister-less mask. Phillip couldn’t remember how exactly he ended up with no canisters on his face, but, then again, he couldn’t exactly remember how ended up unconscious, on top of Valeria… who was also unconscious, looking like she had just escaped from an animal attack. The woman’s clothes had been torn in a pattern of scratch marks, with a shallow but still painful bite on her shoulder.

He was still puzzled as to how she got those slashes and how he ended up covered in blood too, with bite marks of his own littering his forearms…  because he was still denying it was him.

Phillip was also denying that he had any part to play in 23’s sprained and bloody knee.

No one had told him anything useful about what had happened to the kid too, just that she had tripped trying to run away from someone. 72 had mentioned offhandedly that she had gone looking for him once the dust had settled and the pack had cleared the area of hostiles but…yeah, at this point he’d rather not know.

He took a spoonful of whatever 7418 had cooked up in that cheap-looking iron pot, only to almost faint from sheer delight.

Phillip never thought he’d see the day when he’d experience a ‘foodgasm’.

“Holy shit!” he said with a mouthful of the stuff, “What the fuck did you do to this, ‘418?!”

7418 shrugged, shaking his head as he chuckled, watching over the bubbling pot.

Graves was certain it had to be mutton or something, the texture reminding him of lamb. He had no idea how 7418 had managed to make something so good from mere camping food. He knew the guy had brought little jars of spices with him, catching the scent of them as he walked past 7418’s rucksack every now and then. The other guys, who had known him longer, appeared to have this running gag about him being the Las Almas cartel’s cook, as opposed to an ex-sicario, as shown by 7152 slapping him lightly on the back and addressing him as ‘Chef Ramsey’.

Anyways, Graves took one more spoonful of his dinner and quickly got back to patching up 23.

“I don’t want this getting any worse,” he mumbled as he got out a large plaster, “You stay close to 72 and you don’t get into the heat of the action. Got it?”

“Yes, sir,” she sighed.

“I’m not having two kids dying on my watch. You help when I say you can, and you stay out of it when I say you do.”

She nodded.

“And that goes for you too, 72!”

The other girl gave him a thumbs-up, still working through her crossword. 

Phillip shuddered at the mere thought of losing these two. Sure, he wasn’t exactly a good person per se, but the man had morals. Children. Children were where he would draw the line. Furthermore, judging by how the other guys didn’t really have much regard for them, he knew he would have to take it upon himself to ensure their safety. Graves just hoped they wouldn’t make that too difficult for him. 

He pouted a little as he saw 23’s melancholy expression. 

“You’re fine, 23.” 

That didn’t really do much to cheer her up.

Then, Graves had an idea. He got up and moved a few feet to kneel down by the supply bags. After retrieving the desired item, he returned to kneeling before 23, presenting it to her.

“Hey!” he called for her attention, “At least your little camcorder didn’t break during your fall.”

A small smile crept onto her face as she took it from him, eager to start flicking through any footage she captured. A warmth found itself building in Phillip’s chest as he watched on, relief sweeping over him as he saw some colour and some cheeriness return to his lamia. 

That was when someone lightly tapped him on the shoulder. 

“She’s up, 7223.”

He nodded and thanked 7629. Then, he got up, told 23 to stay put and 72 to watch over her, before taking his leave. Not wanting his food to go cold, Phillip took his bowl with him, wolfing down a few more spoonfuls as his fellow soldier led him to where they had put Valeria.

Her eyes fluttered open, and Valeria was quick to pick up on the fact both her arms and her legs had been restrained. The wilderness which engulfed Las Almas was where she found herself. With a grunt, she struggled a little against the restraints, to test how securely they had been wrapped around her. Her legs had been bound by wiry rope and her arms were brought around and secured together behind her. Well, behind a tree. Valeria had been cuffed to a tree trunk. 

As her vision cleared up, she saw three figures approaching from the small gathering a few metres ahead. She kept her head high, not wanting to show any sign of weakness. However, her captors could easily see through her facade of confidence, hearing her heart race inside her chest. 7629 couldn’t help but salivate a little, hackles raising, his mind filled with blood-drunk thoughts of a tasty meal. 

Graves too could sense her blood rushing through her body. So… much… of… it. He shook away the urges, a little unnerved by them. 

“So,” Valeria sighed, shoulders slumping a little, “what do you want this time, lobos?”

“We have a job for you.” The one in the middle spoke.

More specifically, the American one. 

Valeria felt a shiver run down her spine. He was the one who half-ate Alvaro and almost devoured her too.

“Job?” she scoffed, putting on a mask of her own, of being unfazed and unafraid, “I don’t take orders anymore. I can offer intel to the Foundation, but I won’t do jobs.”

“You see, that’s the problem.” The American one feigned an apologetic sigh. “We have all the intel we need so bartering your way out of this with information ain’t gonna help.”

His voice was much clearer with his mouthpiece removed and mask drawn up to reveal some of his face. Now, Valeria knew why she recognised him from the scuffle.

“Graves?” she asked, almost timidly, “Phillip Graves, is that you?”

“Hi, Valeria.” He grinned, his voice coming out almost like a purr. 

Her heart threatened to burst, blood rushing in her ears. She could feel herself begin to quiver a little. 

“I saw you die. Your tank exploded. You would have been literal pieces…”

“It’s amazing what we can achieve with modern medicine, isn’t it?” he chuckled, resting his hands on his knees as he leaned in. 

This was bad. This was really bad. The Foundation wanted him to be here for a reason. They wanted him here because he had connections. He was very much relevant to whatever task these lot were undertaking.

Alejandro, Rudy, and the rest were in grave danger. 

Her tan skin had paled a little, breaths becoming shallow, as she stared at him with wide eyes. 

“What does the Foundation want with the Vaqueros?”

“It’s not the Vaqueros we’re after.”

Valeria chewed on the inside of her cheek, already dreading the answer to her next question. The woman prayed that they already knew the information she was about to divulge in her question, or she would end up giving those boys away.

“What does the Foundation want with Task Force 141?”

“A client has a target we need to make a Son out of,” another spoke up from behind Phillip, “and we need you to deliver the infection.”

Valeria felt a cold sensation run through her. 

“Why me?”

“Does it matter?”

The woman had an idea. Most likely, it was to keep the element of surprise for when they’d extract their new packmate. On the other hand, though, they could’ve kidnapped anyone else to do that. This was personal. Well, she sighed, that is the Foundation. They held grudges and they held power. No one, ex-lamia or ex-gorgon, was ever truly a free woman.

She didn’t want to do this. She really didn’t. Infecting someone with this… that would be delivering them a fate worse than death. Valeria was sick but there were still a few morals lingering at the back of her mind. Morals that were coming to the forefront now. The angel on her shoulder was screaming at her to just let them kill her and find someone else to be their personal postman. 

Graves tilted his head to one side, impatience growing as Valeria’s silence dragged on. 

Whilst Valeria’s reluctance was the dominant, screeching voice inside her head, her logical side was still very much part of this internal debate… and it argued well. 

Death for her was… not ideal. 

Valeria didn’t want to die but she also didn’t want to be part of this twisted game of ‘Pass the Parcel’. 

“Well,” the logical part of her argued, “you wouldn’t really be part of this game, not voluntarily, anyway.”

 Besides, word was, on the street, that a runaway lamia was sighted in their hepta-plate armour just on the outskirts of Las Almas. Yes, it wouldn’t be ideal to foist another problem onto that poor person but… wouldn’t they mind helping a fellow sister out? Valeria prayed that the rogue lamia would stay long enough to cross paths with the monster she was about to help create. 

Her hands were tied, both literally and figuratively.

Valeria swallowed hard, desperately trying to cling to her slipping facade of fearless strength. 

One of the hounds behind Phillip growled, hackles raising a little. 

“Valeria,” 7418 began, “do you want to know what we’re having for dinner tonight?”

He pointed to the bowl of food Graves had set on the ground. 

No, she didn’t want to know. 

He chuckled. 

"Te lo diré, de todos modos. ¡Es uno de tus sicarios y será mejor que empieces a cumplir o te unirás a ellos en un maldito caldo!"

"I'll tell you, anyway. He's one of your hitmen and you'd better start complying or join them in a damn broth!" was what he had said.

She sighed resignedly, horrified but not surprised. They were nothing but animals after all. At this point, Arcadian Sons gloating about which friend of hers they had eaten wouldn’t do much but cement the fact that they were rotten to the core, infected with both disease and whatever long-harboured spite had been brewing away inside them from their time as corpses.

She really should have been grateful that they hadn’t made a meal out of her yet. The fact that they were choosing conversation over tearing her throat out was something not to be taken lightly.

“At this point, boys, I don’t care. Kill, eat, pillage, destroy… I…”

Valeria couldn’t even bring herself to say it. ‘El Sin Nombre’ had given her an illusion of control and now, she had found she, in fact, had only been playing pretend. Those men were always so good at reminding her of who she was. They were an annoying constant which bridged the gap between her old and new life. Valeria loved power, until now, because now she had realised she had never even had a true taste of it. Valeria had been merely toying with the idea. 

Real power was holed up in the heart of the Foundation, wearing a white coat and ticking boxes on a checklist. 

Real power was also lording over her, dangling these men, these puppets, over her head, as if to say, “You’re still mine.”

It was always wise to recognise when you only have one choice, and Valeria could see it now. She had to do what she was told. The woman just hoped that there was someone else further down the line who could minimise the damage that would ensue from making this decision. 

“I’ll do it. I’ll lure them out and infect the target. Give me all the information I need.”

Her voice had no emotion. That passionate, brazen cartel queen was gone. All that was left was someone tired. Someone who just wanted this to be over and done with. Like that, the woman was back to square one. Broken and afraid, with nowhere to go but to the Mexican military, with the hopes that maybe she could make a living putting some of her skills to good use. 

“Muy bien.” Graves smiled.

“On the condition,” Valeria added, “you leave me be… for good.”

“You know we can’t promise that.” 7629 spoke up. 

It was worth a try, Valeria supposed. 

Graves turned around to address the men, “I’ll give Valeria, here, the intel she needs to complete the job. I’ll inform both you and her of what the agreed signal will be to notify success. Once we receive that signal, we’ll plan for the extraction. Understood, boys?”

“Yup!”

“Yup!”

Phillip nodded and returned to Valeria. 

“Your target is…”

Oh God…

She braced herself. 

“... Simon Riley.”

Huh?

“Who?” the woman asked, brows furrowing.

Graves smiled, fangs glinting in the dim light of the central campfire. 

“You may know him as ‘Ghost’.”

Her stomach dropped. 

“This is some reunion! Don’t you agree?” Phillip chuckled, picking up his bowl and taking his leave, “I’ll tell you all you need in ten, Valeria.”

She cast her gaze to the ground, staring daggers into the soil, too afraid to direct them at Graves’ back; lest he sensed her look of indignation and did something about it.

“We’re not too different, you and I, Commander Graves.” 

He halted, a little unnerved by her robotic, yet somewhat condescending, tone. 

Turning around, Phillip looked at Valeria with a concealed face of slight confusion. 

“What do you mean?”

“We’re both trapped- slaves to the Foundation. You’ll never be rid of them, you know. This is only just the beginning.”

She slowly moved to meet his face, head resting against the tree bark, her body not bothered enough to correct her slumped posture. 

“Uniforms were always limitations for you and now look where you are, what you are.”

“I’ll cope,” he replied, through clenched teeth. 

“You’re already struggling.” 

She was just trying to stir him up, to try and get one over him. He wasn’t going to give in and entertain her, though. Valeria would just have to remain bound to a tree until they’d have need of her for their plan. 

“By blood, we are bound,” the woman chuckled wryly, “You’ll be a soldier forever now, Graves.”

“Well, not forever,” he spoke patronisingly, setting down in front of her again, “One day, I’ll die and then I’ll be a soldier no more.”

“That’s if the Foundation is merciful.” 

Cold ran through him. Graves growled a string of obscenities under his breath and got back up, shaking his head. Valeria followed him with her eyes, watching him finish his meal and press down on his mask. Once again, he was back to being a faceless monster, any remnants of his humanity being locked away under that awful, awful mask.

***

You were pacing back and forth in the small supply closet you had managed to find. You should’ve waited with Soap, not been a coward. However, you also knew that you’d probably end up sitting there for five minutes, jigging your leg up and down, before becoming too restless and running away anyways. There was really only one option here.

Sighing, you stopped your pacing and leaned against a wall, before sinking down and landing on your bum. You drew your knees to your chest, hugging them as you contemplated just how much trouble you were in with Laswell. 

Could you even quantify it? 

A little whimper escaped your lips. 

How on Earth were you a lamia? You were the most spineless coward you knew!

Perhaps that was why everyone else had died that night except for you. 

Oh God… 

How could people in the army voluntarily do this?!

Which then begged the question of why you had decided to take up that challenge to go against Ghost.

‘Ego’ was most likely the answer. 

You wanted to impress, to fit in, to befriend them, maybe start a few inside jokes. You thought that’s what army men liked doing: beating each other up and then cracking jokes about it. 

The problem was that you were no army man, and you didn’t really find entertainment in beating your mates up. You didn’t really like violence altogether. 

You wanted to be a normal person, have a normal job, you know? Take trains, type on computers, drink expensive drinks from… what was that place called that people spoke about… ‘Barstucks’?

Laswell could sense it in you from the moment you arrived: a monster trying to become human. You thought, maybe because she had experience in that department, she could teach you a few things. 

Now, you had your doubts. Maybe she hadn’t had that experience. After all, she was in the military, using the same skills, just for different bosses. Laswell was still a lamia, just not the Foundation’s. 

Other free women you had heard about had either gone into crime or… well, didn’t last very long.

Maybe you couldn’t be a normal human. 

You buried your face into your knees. 

Laswell had been running all over the place to find you. She had asked Gaz, gone back to see if you had returned to Soap, grabbed Price by the shoulders and shaken him, raving on about how you were… well, the best she could put was ‘fragile’. 

She supposed the one good thing to come out of this was that in the hour she had spent hunting around, building up a small party consisting of Gaz, Rudy, Price and Alejandro, Ghost had managed to recover somewhat.

Soap was so happy when he saw Ghost come out of the medical room, a little sore but mostly alright. He had practically leapt out of his seat, fussing over the man the moment he had made his exit.

“Steamin’ Jesus!” Soap rejoiced, feeling relieved upon seeing Ghost look like his usual, albeit slightly mysterious, self.

“Relax, Johnny, it’s not like I was going to die.” Ghost sighed, rolling his shoulders, his body still waking up.

“I was more worried for yer future kids!” The Scotsman elbowed Ghost playfully.

“For a second I was too but the doc said I was fine. Apparently, I was just ‘shocked’.”

“Shocked?!” Soap couldn’t believe it, “Are you telling me that Y/N actually managed to gain the element of surprise over you?”

Ghost shrugged. 

“No way! Someone actually did it! Someone out-Ghosted you!” 

Soap couldn’t help but laugh a little.

“I’m glad you’re having fun at my expense.”

“Come on! It’s a bit funny. That tiny, little-”

“Okay, Y/N isn’t that small.”

“Well, compared to you, anyways. That little minx! They absolutely out-Ghosted you!”

Ghost sighed… and then realised something. Y/N definitely packed quite a punch. Quite a big punch. Almost too big of a punch, for someone of their size. 

“Speaking of Y/N,” he looked over to Soap, before continuing in a hushed voice, “Don’t you think they were a bit too strong?”

Soap cast his mind back to the fight. Yeah. Now that he thought about it, there was a moment that he could only describe as… odd. You had thrown Ghost over your shoulder like he was nothing but a sack of potatoes. Pairing that with the rather strong handshake you had introduced yourself with to MacTavish… hmm… He stroked his chin. Strange.  

“Aye. I mean, Y/N had, uh, quite a firm handshake too.”

“What do you mean?” Ghost asked, raising an eyebrow under his mask.

“When I shook hands with them, yesterday, I… They held onto me quite, you know, strongly. Felt like they were going to take my arm with them!”

“Something’s off about them.”

“Sure! But Laswell did say they were weirdly socialised from a young age or something.”

“Having an odd upbringing doesn’t make you freakishly strong, Soap.” Ghost shook his head, letting out a breathy laugh. 

“Oh, and how would you know that, Simon?”

He remained quiet, looking at Soap knowingly, before quickening his pace.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” MacTavish asked.

He chased after Ghost, breaking into a light jog. 

“Oi! Simon! What do yer mean by that?!”

Suddenly, Ghost stopped in his tracks. 

“Do you hear that?” 

“What?”

“Come here.”

Ghost gestured for the man to press his ear against the door of the supply closet. Soap did so, after picking away at some of the peeling paint. He did a few seconds’ worth of listening before looking back at his friend. 

“Is someone in there?”

“Yeah. I think so.”

“Who hangs around in a broom cupboard?”

“Let’s find out, shall we?”

Gently, Ghost opened the door, light spilling into the darkness. He looked this way and that, sticking his head into the closet. 

You held your breath, shrinking into the shadows, hoping they’d lose interest soon. 

“I don’t see anyone, Ghost.”

He hummed in reply, though it wasn’t in agreement. 

“Hello?”

“Lt, with all due respect, I think you’re talking into a void right now.”

“Shh!” Ghost snapped back. 

Soap rolled his eyes, before catching sight of a vending machine sitting by the doorway to the canteen. 

“While you’re poking through broom cupboards, I’m gonna go grab a snack. Want anything?”

Ghost didn’t reply, instead taking a step into the closet. 

MacTavish shrugged, letting Ghost continue his investigation whilst he went to get himself a cereal bar or something. He thought he needed one after the day he’d had. Ghost would probably want one too, though Soap knew the man would begrudgingly take it from him… as he always did. Ghost seldom liked to rely on others, and it was a recent breakthrough for MacTavish to get him to even take offered food. 

Soap wandered off to pursue some sugary delights as Ghost fully immersed himself in the darkness of the supply closet. 

Someone was here, he knew it. The lieutenant had developed a sense for these types of situations, it was like he could sniff a person out. Anyways, he peered around, lifting miscellaneous bits and pieces off the ground, seeing if anyone lay under them. 

You shrunk away even further, hoping he’d drop it and leave, wanting to be alone. 

Unfortunately, Ghost found you. He removed the bundle of brooms and mops which had sheltered your sulking body. 

“Y/N?”

You looked up at him before your eyes fell to the ground. 

“Go away.” You mumbled. 

“Wow. You kick me in the balls and now you’re telling me to ‘go away’. Awfully kind of you,” he chuckled, taking a seat beside you, wincing a little as he landed on a sore spot.

You shuffled away from him, withdrawing further and further into your cocoon of sadness. You reminded Ghost of a kicked puppy, which was kind of ironic seeing as you were the one who had done the kicking, but anyways, he wasn’t oblivious, he could tell you weren’t happy. 

“Usually when I see someone realising they’ve fucked up, it makes me feel quite good,” Ghost remarked, “but for some reason, Y/N, you’re really bringing my mood down looking like this.”

You grumbled something, but he couldn’t make out what it was, your knees muffling your voice.

“How long have you been sulking in this broom cupboard?”

Again, you mumbled something. 

“What was that?”

“I’m not sulking,” you growled.

“It looks like you’re sulking.”

Finally, you released yourself from your prison and stretched your legs out, sighing. 

“I… I just feel bad, Ghost. I didn’t mean to-”

“I know you didn’t.”

You turned to face him, a little surprised.

“You looked scared,” he admitted, staring ahead, “I wasn’t going to hurt you. You know that, right?”

“I look scared?”

“Yeah. When I was coming to help you up. you looked at me, but I…” He scratched the back of his head, trying to find the words. “I don’t think you saw me.”

Being in this profession long enough, Ghost knew the signs of trauma when he saw them. Sure, he wasn’t exactly the leader of this motley crew, that title belonged to Price, but he was still a lieutenant. He still had to take care of people in some form, and while you weren’t really part of anyone’s group, that caring instinct took hold of him. 

You sat there in silence, face twisting a little as you digested his sentence. Ghost turned to look at you, leaning in a little but being measured about it, hoping to not frighten you off. 

“Are you okay, Y/N? I’m not usually good with this, but do you need to talk to someone?”

Your lip wibbled, tears forming in your eyes. You didn’t know what was happening, but this surge of emotion overcame you. Body trembling, shoulders tensing, you felt it coming up your throat. 

You cried. 

You cried and cried and cried. 

Tears streamed down your cheeks and into your hands as you brought them to your face. As you clutched your head, fingers threatening to dig into your eyes, Ghost just sat there, unsure of what to do. 

He had expected that you would start howling like a banshee, but it never came to that. Instead, muffled sobs and sniffles filled the silence of the supply closet. 

As you trembled, you felt a light touch on your shoulder and back. Then, a force pulled you until you hit something fairly solid. 

Instinctually, you nestled into his warmth, still crying. Ghost stared off into the distance, letting you have this moment, unjudged, to just let it all out. 

Laswell had said you had been through a lot, and now, he was certain of it. 

Several footsteps sounded outside, suggesting the presence of a group of people hurrying along the corridor. The murmur of voices came along with it, growing louder as the party drew nearer. 

“Okay, this is the last place we haven’t checked.” Ghost recognised Price’s gravelly voice. 

“I’ll have a look inside, you lot keep an eye out for them around here,” Kate replied.

She came in, only to see you resting against Ghost, eyes squeezed shut as you continued to cry. 

Laswell made to approach, but Ghost raised his hand.

“Give them a moment. I’ll let Y/N know you wanted to see them.” He whispered. 

She let out a sigh. 

“If you start feeling weird, leave them and eat raisins.”

Before Ghost could ask one of the many questions floating around his head after that bizarre statement, Kate left. 

Go eat raisins? 

The way she had said it almost sounded like medical advice. What did Kate mean by that? 

His eyes narrowed a little, but he wasn't going to pay too much attention to it. He supposed if it came to it, he’d just do as she said and ask his questions later. Ghost was pretty sure he wouldn’t start ‘feeling strange’. 

However, gradually, Ghost began to notice an unfamiliar sensation overcome him: profound sadness. The feeling sort of made itself home at the back of his mind, being just about ignorable, but he found it curious. This probably sounded nuts saying it aloud, but Ghost felt as though this emotion didn’t belong to him. 

He looked at you. You had stopped crying now and had resorted to staring off into space, your tear-stained face haloed by the light pooling in from the open door. You had entered the numbness stage, not really feeling anything. Although, you did know things were still intense, bubbling just under the surface, because you could sense it had transferred to Ghost, like a faint, developing stain on his mind. 

It was probably best to conclude this ‘exchange’ and go your separate ways. 

“Sorry,” you mumbled, wiping away some of your tears from his shirt with your sleeve, “Your top is probably really gross now.”

He let out a small chuckle as he watched you do your best to neaten yourself up, moving your hair aside and wiping away any signs of sadness on your face. 

As you made to get up, you felt him gently stop you. 

A lump in your throat formed as you locked eyes with him.

Ghost wanted to ask who you were, what you were, knowing full well you had had some effect on him… However, there was a time and place for those questions, and he understood that you probably wouldn’t like being interrogated. And so, he let you leave.

“Go eat raisins, they’ll, uh, help,” you blurted out before spinning on your heel and scampering off.

Raisins, again. Ghost’s brows knitted together under his mask. He decided he would take that advice… just in case.

Finally, you had space to breathe… well, you thought you did. Your hopes were quickly quashed as you halted at the sight of Laswell, standing a few feet ahead of you, down the corridor, arms folded, unimpressed.

You gulped.

She ushered you into the bathroom and closed the door. Then, she took a deep breath, before returning to face you.

“Y/N… I…” she sighed, scratching the back of her neck, “Look, if you want to blend into normal society, you gotta-”

“I’m leaving,” you cut her off, “I don’t think I’m any good here.”

Laswell was shocked.

“Y/N, no. You can’t. I still haven’t sorted out-”

“It’s fine. Just put it on my lexicon.”

“I don’t have a lexicon to transfer the information to yours.”

“What?”

She pinched the bridge of her nose.

“This is my point. People out there don’t have lexicons. The guys here aren’t anything like the Arcadian Sons back at the Foundation. They’re not as strong. They can’t change. None of it. You’re not weak here.”

Laswell made to approach you and felt her heart sink a little as she watched you back up.

“Y/N, I can help you find a way to keep the Foundation off your tail but once you’re out there, you need to understand that you are not weak. We lamias are insanely potent, and that potency can seriously hurt people. You have to promise me that you’ll be careful. Being human isn’t easy.”

“Laswell, I wasn’t going to hurt him!” you shook your head, voice shaking a little as you laughed, nervously, “I know that these guys and the people out there are not the same as those in the Foundation. I’m not stupid!”

“I just need you to be careful. I have seriously hurt people and I don’t want you to make the same mistake.”

“I won’t.”

“You won’t?”

“Yes, I-”

“Shh!”

Laswell’s demeanour suddenly changed. She looked about, alert, pupils dilated.

“Someone’s eavesdropping.”

You tried to suss out who it was too, looking about just as Kate was.

“Who?” you asked.

Soap stood on the other side of the door, plastered against the wall, covering his mouth.

“Mactavish,” Laswell whispered under her breath.

Soap shuddered.

He looked down and saw the handle on the door begin to turn. Almost immediately, he took off.

The door swung open, and Kate peered out to an empty corridor. She hoped Soap hadn’t heard too much, sighing resignedly.

“Y/N,” she kept composed, continuing the conversation, “don’t overthink this. Just be aware of your strengths. The world’s not made of glass, but it easily can be if you’re not careful. I’m still working on contacting someone who can get your records deleted and make you officially not Red Room property, but it’s gonna take some time. Stay here in the meantime and keep calm, I don’t need you turning my boys into messes.”

“I’ll do my best. And I’m sorry about earlier.”

“Learn your lesson and stick to where I can keep an eye on you.”

You nodded, your mind wandering back to Ghost.

Laswell picked up on it.

“Ghost’s a good one. But don’t crowd him, he likes being mysterious and aloof.”

She chuckled as she watched you flounder, trying to excuse your sudden interest.

“Take care of yourself, Y/N.”

“Thanks, Kate. I’ll try.”

***

Ghost, for some odd reason, had volunteered to be on night watch again. Everyone was surprised and seriously discouraged him, especially after his little accident with you. However, all pleas for him to just go to bed fell on deaf ears. He was stubborn as a mule and adamant to be on lookout for the night.

Soap had initially joined the discouragement but soon was elated to have his mate with him. They both trekked the halls, looking around for any signs worthy of suspicion.  

It had been a pretty quiet night, with little to nothing happening.

That was until the howling started.

Soap had gone from reclining in his chair on the ‘front porch’ of the base to sitting bolt upright, gun at the ready. Ghost gestured for him to lower his weapon.

“What was that?” Soap whispered.

Ghost shrugged, throwing a raisin up in the air, only to miss it as he tried to catch it with his mouth.

“Coyotes or something.”

“Nah!” Soap shook his head. “That’s too deep to belong to a coyote. It almost sounds like a person!”

“Coyotes sometimes sound like that,” Ghost remarked, stretching his legs out, “Remember when we were interrogating Hassan? Those coyotes sounded like a bunch of wailing women.”

“Freaky stuff.”

He watched Soap swallow hard, reclining back into his seat, albeit reluctantly.

“Awooo…” Ghost let out, with a snicker.

“Simon, that’s not funny.”

“Awooo! A-A-Awoooo!” The lieutenant howled into the night.

“Simon, shut up!”

Soap struck at him, lightly, only to then whip his head around at the sound.

“AWOOOOOO!” the forest replied.

Soap felt chills run up and down his spine. Ghost watched his face grow pale.

“Come on, Johnny, let’s go inside if you’re that spooked.”

He got up from the dinky chair and gestured for Soap to follow and he did so, not taking his eyes off the trees, deeply unnerved by the sounds of the night.

As they walked down the corridors, Soap stopped by your bag. He shined his torch at it, curiosity spurring him on to investigate.

“Those are Y/N’s things,” Ghost spoke with a stern voice, “Leave ‘em.”

“You know,” Soap mumbled as he squatted down before the open duffel bag, something shining between the lips of the open zip, “I think Y/N might be something supernatural, and so is Laswell.”

“Laswell?” Ghost raised an eyebrow under his balaclava.

“Aye. I think they’re both the same… thing?”

“Johnny, I don’t think we should be looking through Y/N’s shit. Let’s keep moving-”

CRASH!

“Soap!” Ghost snapped.

MacTavish’s eyes widened as he investigated the spilt contents of your bag, lightly holding a sleeve of your hepta-plate armour.

“What is this stuff?”

Now, Ghost was curious. He knelt down beside Soap, peering at it.

“It’s… shiny.”

He ran his finger over the scale-like texture of your chest piece, only to then reach the centre. There was a larger chunk at the heart of the armour and, wanting to see if it was a button or something, he gently gave it two taps.

They both gasped as they watched the entire raiment vanish from existence, only to then fizzle back like a glitching television screen.

“Oh my God,” was all Soap could say.

Ghost was stunned into silence, feeling the foreign fabric between his thumb and index finger.

“Who is Y/N?” he muttered, examining how the scales of your armour reflected the torchlight, iridescent, like the shell of a beetle.

As Ghost was about to activate the shroud mechanism again, someone from behind spoke up.

“What are you two doing?”

They both stood up and turned around, hearts kicking up a notch as they realised it was you.

You had your arms folded over your chest, your foot tapping on the floor as you eagerly awaited their excuses for going through your things.

“Y/N!” Soap remarked, “Uh…”

Ghost knew the Scotsman was going to start digging a hole for the two of them, hence why he elbowed him. Soap promptly shut up.

“I see you’re having another late-night stroll.” Ghost gestured at your… uh… clearly-being-up-ness.

[vlovebug]

yes, another hcs page I'm sorry I just can't stop 😥

beware grammar mistakes ╯︿╰

val alone hc:

he gets bitchy when someone tells him what to do

he can tell a medical emergency is going to happen (serves dog behavior)

he carries things that may help someone with a disability but never medications that need to be prescribed by a doctor ofc (pots, diabetes, seizures, etc.)

he has medical knowledge ( why do i keep bringing this one up)

likes to sharpen his nails

has knifes in his shoes ( why? idk)

sometimes he talks and just can't stop (real)

sometimes talking takes too much energy ( real)

he's a bit sadistic ( only if it's asked of him)

he expects rough touches after soft ones

he shares the most gruesome facts ever ( best ways to get to the heart, how to gut someone or something, etc.) (he and spelldon work well for each other for a reason)

bc we don't know his dad, I'm saying he never existed ( gift from Eros or just pop in his mom's womb one day) ( holy mary that you?)

he's a great hunter ( bat)

I feel like if a kid likes him he lets them hang off of him

he doesn't bite when he's a bat, it's more like making a paper cut with his nails and drinking from it.

human children scare him, they're just so fucking mean T_T

he has a blanket hoodie that covers 70% of his body ( they're so comfy)

his body takes on the temperature of the climate around him ( dead bodies do this) yet he's always on the colder side ( 50-50 chance I'm keeping this hc)

hes a slut for pumpkin pie

Demisexual and intersex? ( all of Eros's creations are intersex in my eyes/ incubus or succubus)

doesn't know how to tie a tie to save his life.

his body doesn't build muscle but he is strong

will eat lemons like people eat oranges

vampires can't gain or lose weight ( or get taller unless it's from a spell or something) he's the same weight and height as when he died (idk where I was going with this....)

he walks away to not punch someone when they make him mad ( idk if I said this or not) (now that im looking back this... this ones stupid)

he stares at people but doesn't realize it

he only writes with the pen/cil between his pointer finger and middle finger ( I do this sometimes and it feels great )

this is an explanation for the height I gave Valentine (5'2), in 800 ad ( yes 800 it's the closest I could find to 410ad leave me alone.) the average height for males was 167cm( 5'4) to 173cm (5'6) and I think he's a little under the percentile for his age group back in ad ( this doesn't make sense does it), so I put him in 5'2-5'3 without heeled shoes on because of this. ( if the height percentiles for 800 ad are wrong let me know I just used Google so idk if it's right or not)

he wears contacts ( is he blind ? We will never know.)

he laughs at people who say pink is only for girls

he took a liking to a human once, and they died. big sad

Don't play hide and seek with him.

he is oblivious when he's around someone he trusts, he doesn't do it on purpose it just kinda happens (for example is paying attention to his surroundings) so there's a bunch of safety stuff on shit so he doesn't hurt himself or brake anything ( this was the explanation for the one hc I made with spelldon)

Don't make bets with this man. he will win every time. ( he's made people go broke bc of how competitive he gets.

has a great poker face

hes related to cupid but doesnt know how

he wears underclothing everyday and night ( he's modest ig) ( ignore my old art bc of this :D)

hes scared of kismet (fate or destiny)

mad val is very rare and the reason is cus he's scary af

has a harder time getting over baby gates even tho he can fly ( he forgets )

his nails and teeth can detract and attract ( like enid's from Wednesday)

can be summoned by a summoning circle

He is part incubus but doesn't do sexual favors cus ew ( 50% vampire, 50% incubus)

He's an enigma

His bat form is a fruit bat :D

He can't eat if somes around him

spelldon alone hc:

he wears alot of snake jewls

can't STAND fake friends

he's got RBF ( resting bitch face)

he judges people by accident and makes a face every time, Val called it the face of judgment ( I can't think of a name for it :()

has a great poker face

gay and demisexual

turns people into animals on purpose

he can be extermly cruel.

likes holding hands

very touchy

him and his sister act like its.giz on tiktok ( i think) ( outside source wow )

they like harassing each other in stupid ways

she has pushed him down the stairs more times than he can count

has actually really soft and gentle with the innocent

he likes to admire val when he zoned out cus he wont get yelled at for staring

He is competitive but not as much as Val

he is full god ( i say he is but idk if his dad was god or not, so fuck it)

he uses his hands and magic more in fights than actual weapons

he finds it amusing that people forget how much monsters are monsters till they get like scared ( no Brittny you can't fix him he eats people.)

he has certain things he lets no one touch, not even val

spelldon is like 6'0-6'3 because hes the son of a goddess ( or two depends) so he got them good-good genes. ( give)

he tigtens jar on purpose cus he forgets that val is also strong and can open anything, so he gets sad when val opens shit he tightens cus he wanted to open it for him ( loser )

somehow always has a book on him, no clue where he puts it.

his hair is in either dreads or twists ( I know dreads are kinda of like twists but they stay that way but idk how that works:,0)

piercings galore (def has snake bites + tongue)

steps over baby gates but sometimes trips

has a pet snake

SPELLTINE:

Val has a garden that has pretty much all of the herbs and funus that spell needs for spells or potions

they can carry each other pretty easly

they both have quite places where they go when they need personal time

spell has a shit ton of piercings ( as i said earlier), val doesn't but he wears more jewelry that can be slipped off ( rings, bracelets, necklaces , etc.)

they make things for eachother

val likes grabbing spell and taking him really high into the air and dropping him and grabbing him before he hits the ground ( with permission and a heads up ofc)

They are smart until they're together then they turn stupid

BC spell can see Kismet and such, he tells very veg ones to Val if he's like extremely panicked

they both get moonstruck

misanthropy. both of them.

they cover the table's sides so the other doesn't hit their head when they get something under them

spell with do anything Val tells him to ( within reason ofc, but he really does always say yes)

val teaches spell how to certain weapons but gets confused why he goes all red

val once got the folded test paper of doom and spell laughed at his face then he got the folded test paper of doom then it was vals turn to laugh at him.

spell keeps a drawing of val on him cus he cant get a photo

they played hide and seek once. spell said never again.

they throw water on each other when stressed ( cold water to the face helps calm someone down cus its cold, google it I cant explain)

val likes to climb up spells shirt while being a bat, it freaks spell out cus he cant find him then boom something ice cold is claiming up his back

olive theory, spell like them val doesn't

picky eater and the one who eats what they give them, spell is the one that eats the stuff val gives him

spell holds vals blood bags to that they warm up, his body temp is high af

parts of them glow in the dark ( eyes, vals body markings, certain pricing of spells glow in the dark, vals nails {dont ask why I've come to this conclusion I just did})

compliments that actually seem more like insults to others

disturbing insults

If they share meals they eat in different rooms

( I'm so sorry this is so long, it was supposed to be three different posts)

[bbcphile]

Personal post alert!

I am so fucking tired of the fact that any attempt to treat one of my chronic medical conditions makes the others worse. It’s like the worst game of whack-a-mole ever, because no matter what happens, not only does the mole pop up again, but I keep getting hit with a hammer!

For instance, my doctor wants me to increase my mestinon dose to treat POTS and help control my heart rate, improve brain fog and muscle activation, and reduce fatigue. It makes sense! It’s a miracle med for so many people!

But for me, I can only increase my dose by a 1/4 tablet at a time (anything more and I’m having utterly agonizing stomach cramps and dry heaving. Ugh), and even that is flaring my MCAS and hEDS. It is definitely increasing muscle activation, because it is causing all the muscles in my body to cramp, so everything hurts, but worse than that, they are cramping so forcefully that they are pulling bones and joints so hard they’re out of position, so now several vertebrae, ribs, fingers, carpal bones, and one shoulder and knee are partially dislocated, and holy shit does that hurt!

It also is currently increasing the brain fog and fatigue, but I’m also in enough pain that I can’t actually fall asleep if I try to nap. This is saying a lot, because I have narcolepsy, too, so I’m usually fighting to stay awake.

It does not help that my brain decided now would be a GREAT time to give me back trauma memories I had blocked out (gee, thanks, dissociative barriers. 🙃 Ya know, my writing meta about trauma was NOT ACTUALLY AN INVITATION to remind me how bad experiencing it is), so every day is an “adventure” because I don’t know if it’s going to be a “compartmentalize the shit out of everything and write 4k words” day or a “have all the feelings and everything is terrible” day, and the oscillations between the two and everything that goes with it is exhausting.

All this to say: uggggggghhhhhh.

(Telepathic hugs or cute animal photos or fic/art recs about my blorbos would be greatly appreciated.)

[ravenrambles6229]

Titanium Ninja actually kind of fucks, though

So I rewatched the last episode of season 3. A pretty mid season, right? Well that final episode fucks in all the ways that made my brain vibrate as a 12 year old. So let’s fucking go I need everyone to appreciate this episode.

First up, ninjas trapped in space. Alright. There’s already no solution to this that isn’t bullshit, so just make it cool. Well, I like that they had to use their abilities and knowledge to make the ship instead of tornado of creation-ing it. Really shows how much they’re capable of when they work together!

“How we holding up?” “Bubblegum and a wish!” As they fucking send it. What a legendary line. It burned itself into my brain for years to come and is a part of my standard lexicon.

“Hasn’t Ninjago suffered enough already?” She asks, on season 3 out of what is now 17.

Overlord’s face is kinda silly but the mech honestly kinda slaps.

“My heart has reached critical mass, it appears my unlimited energy is in fact limited!” “Critical mass? You mean it’s gonna blow up?” “Don’t worry about me!” AHJGHSJKG See kids, this is what we call foreshadowing.

Okay but seriously, now that they’re in the atmosphere, they use their elemental powers to shield themselves as they come in from from orbit like goddamn meteors. Is it bullshit? Yes. Do I care? Absolutely the fuck not.

Skales saying they can’t help the people of Ninjago then doing it anyway? Love him for that. Because he presumably sees the ninjas and is like “ugh these fuckers again. Well if they did it once-”

The city recognizing the ninja as they plummet towards the earth as multicolored meteors? There had better be folk songs about this. I’m surprised there isn’t a church. Saviors from the stars here to kill Satan.

Man, people still getting a haircut as the Overlord attacks. Frickin iconic. No wonder people handled season 9 so well.

Pixal on her lil bike.

Also the ninja being caught by their vehicles. Does it make sense? Not really. But the animation for it is cool so once again, I am fully on board.

“A few parachutes would have been nice!” “Friends and family make a good substitute!” Fuck, I love Kai so much.

City fortress. Cloaked in blacks and reds in a dusky sky. What a sick image.

The fact that they were prepared to throw hands with the Overlord even before Borg came to them with a solution. These lil heroes I love them so much.

Lloyd biking through a hole in a window while Cole just WHAM. I love them both so much.

“Go back, and our probability of making it to the temple exponentially diminishes!” “This isn’t about numbers, Zane! It’s about family!” AAAGH the fact that that line came from Kai! Also, foreshadowing!

Cole whooping even as he’s running from certain doom, what an icon.

Lol the ancient seal of the temple being helped by a convenient barrier.

“Let me get this straight, you want us to get close to a guy with armor that, with one touch, will make us toast, and you want us to give him a pill?” “Precisely!” Oh Borg, never change. Unironically my favorite side character, I love this genius idiot so much. He’s just like “well if anyone can do it, it’s you lunatics” and it still feels like pot calling kettle black.

Zane offering his armor to Pixal!!! I love him! Even though he’s so big on probability, he’s so willing to give up his own safety for others!

“I shall see you again.” AAGH

Magic armor toysets!!

The ninja ninja-ing over rooftops will never not make my brain whir.

Okay the golden spiderweb thing goes kinda hard as a villain aesthetic, though. Great way to make the normally heroic golden colors look all evil!

That shot of the ninja, these tiny lil dudes, against this giant evil robot kicks so much ass though.

“Then attack the people.” Holy SHIT Pythor! What a dick move! And the fact that its his former second-in-command that comes to offer the people refuge is so good!

“That was ALL YOU’VE GOT!?” It sure was, but these ninjas are the masters of asspulls so watch yourself.

Okay now we’re getting to the scene. The scene. One of the best scenes in the show, and I am prepared to die on this hill. Actually, I’m prepared to kill on this hill. Because this scene is just fantastic, and has stuck with me vividly for years, even after I fell off the show back around season seven. If you had come up to 16-year-old Raven and told her to quote this scene, she probably could have done so.

“Support me friends, for one last time.” Never does Zane ever think of this as anything less than a group effort. Even here, he’s asking for their support! And they do what little they can!

Then this GOAT just fuckin grabs the armor and demands “Let! My! Friends! Go!” His voice cracking, as the music swells! The way he’s writhing makes him look like he’s in genuine agony but pushing through it anyway!

“Go where, doomed ninja?”

Then they show his fucking heartbeat! It’s robotic, but also very much so a human pulse! Because Zane is as alive as anyone! Then his faceplate falls off!

And you can see the Overlord’s expression change here as he starts running calculations, getting worried!

“The golden weapons are too powerful for you to behold! Your survival chance is ZERO!” “This isn’t about numbers. It’s about family!” What can I even say about this exchange? First of all, the Overlord is appealing to Zane’s survival, rather than his chance of SUCCESS. In all likelihood, he KNOWS that Zane is a threat right now, because that robot is channeling the power of his own armor. But Zane is not swayed by his own chance of survival.

Killing the moment a bit, looks like Zane is programmed in some wacky ass C++. Wonder if Dr. Julien could help me with my Arduino homework. Never was good with stepper motors. Anyway back to drama.

Then the ninja desperately wondering why Zane isn’t letting go, but Wu realizes. “He’s protecting us!”

“I! Am! A Nindroid! And Ninja! Never quit! Go ninja, Go!” There’s so much here. It’s like when he found his true potential on an infinitely larger scale. The Overlord will not hurt his friends, because he knows who he is: A nindroid that never quits, built to protect those who cannot protect themselves.

Also, “Go ninja, go!” Amazing how the addition of one extra “go” completely changes the mood. It sounds desperate, like he’s telling himself to go, to take the plunge, to give everything up, and he DOES that.

Then he just. Fuckin. Goes. What I imagine is happening here is that he is directly powering himself with the golden armor, channeling the Overlord’s golden power THROUGH his heart to boost his own elemental power. Completely frying himself in the process, but able to literally produce the power to kill Satan. 

“No Zane! No!” It being Jay, the one often considered the meek one, to be the first to run after Zane. As Wu has to force them all away, because he can’t lose all his ninja.

Then. The music change. The MUSIC CHANGE. This song. Let me tell you something. I just recently got back into Ninjago. And I was getting caught up on what I missed. Well, I was listening to a music compilation, and suddenly, this song started playing. I Ratatouilled so hard, y’all. I had a flashback to Zane having flashbacks, because this music is absolutely stunning.

His heartbeat plays over the music. The sounds of the fight fade away. As he recounts his time with his brothers. His time meeting his father again, even if it was for only a few short months.

“There’s something special about you Zane.” Cut to Pixal. Then cut to him smiling.

“I know who I am!”

“You were built to protect those who cannot protect themselves.” That’s it. That is the microcosm of Zane’s character. He protects people. He protects his family. And Zane can die happily if it means he has fulfilled that directive.

As he flatlines. Holy hell. I cannot stress enough the impact this had on me as a child.

One final (for now) NOOOOO from the Overlord, then it’s all quiet. The tower light goes out. The manhole freezes over. The robots break. It’s eerily soft compared to what was just happening. Like a single, soft exhale of breath.

Kai looks at a damaged “New Ninjago City” sign. This is symbolism.

And Cole finds a piece of Zane’s body! Is this the only surviving piece? It must be, and that’s devastating! Granted, a kids show probably can’t show what is essentially a corpse, but they don’t even have anything to bury!

Him comforting Nya as she starts to sob. Jay just looking away softly. And Borg. “I used to think technology would be the answer to all of our problems.”

Then it cuts to the memorial.

“Then I saw technology invent new problems. Devastating problems. And then, a Nindroid named Zane saved us all. He was the perfect balance between us and technology.” And nothing encapsulates that better than the heartbeat from a few seconds ago. The heartbeat of a human contained in a machine.

“Technology can improve our lives, but so can people.” The fact that they don’t fully demonize technology, which would be hypocritical seeing as Zane is technology. Instead, it’s all about balance!

“Our city will find its way again, but this time, with Zane as our compass.” Couple things here. First off. That this takes place in a park rather than an urban sprawl. Second, that the photo of Zane is of his season 1 outfit is nice! And that they’re going to look to Zane as an example of what technology should be.

And Zane gets a statue! I love this a lot. I love that it shows up in later seasons. Later on, Zane says he doesn’t need a statue. But it’s not even just about Zane, it’s for the people to remember Zane and his sacrifice by. To remember the mistakes that he fixed so that they don’t repeat them. The Titanium Ninja, a strong metal to act as a foundation for their future. It’s not complex symbolism, but it’s still extremely effective! No wonder I lost my mind at age 12.

Then his falcon sits on his shoulder, with the leitmotif playing! Agh! Just stab me in the heart already, show!

“So, what happens after this?” “I don’t know.” “And I don’t care. Today’s about Zane.” I have a lot of thoughts about this. First up, Jay completely not acknowledging the love triangle right now. He doesn’t care about that, because today IS about Zane. It’s so humanizing. And next up, we know what happens after this. In their grief, the ninja fracture. It’s tragic, but they’re all so devastated by their grief that they don’t know how to carry on together. This is a recurring thing in the show. When Nya becomes the sea, the team splits up. When Lloyd thought his friends died in Sons of Garmadon, he nearly gave up everything. For better or worse, these ninja need each other, they are a very tight-knit family. I wonder if the new series can touch on how they deal with being separated from each other on longer terms. Either way, this family loves each other so much, and I love that,

Kai being the one to give a eulogy. Literally I could type out that entire speech and point to line after line just being like Look! Look at this line! It’s amazingly eloquent, especially coming from Kai. Out of all the ninja, he’s always been the most family-oriented. He’s powered by brotherhood, and Zane continues to power him. We see this in season 4, when he visits Zane’s statue, that he still thinks about Zane every single day, still looking to him for guidance. He has so much love and respect for his family, but also can’t cope with yet another loss in his life.

Wu blinking rapidly as he ducks his head!! Dude is holding back tears big time.

.Dareth sobbing! He loves those funky ninjas too!

“Ninja never quit, and ninja will never be forgotten! Wherever you are Zane, you’ll always be one of us.” As it STARTS TO SNOW! AGH! This is so good!

All of Zane’s flashbacks before it’s revealed that he lived on in the Digiverse! At least before Ronin stole him, lol. Well either way, Pixal moving from grief to hope as she realizes he’s alive! Holy shit! I’d like to draw attention to her speech from crystallized. “Long ago, in a different battle, you gave up half your power source to save my life. Ever since that moment, I felt things I’ve never felt before. I felt love. For you.” Pairing these two moments together just... It hits so hard.

Then the fucking MUSIC. The FUCKING MUSIC! It is triumphant and glorious and a CELEBRATION.

“Are we compatible now?” Holy hell, what an ending.

No wonder this did irreparable damage to my brain chemistry. No wonder I was never normal again. This absolutely DESTROYED me as a kid, and I think it still holds up as one of the most emotionally impactful series of scenes in the show. The beginning is really awesome, the fights are fun, the characterization is stellar, and the death scene is damn near flawless. Is the episode nonsensical and a bit meandering at times? Well, yes, it is. The entire season is all over the place. But this episode still works SO well. I’d say it’s probably top five, easy.

It was something I never considered possible, as a kid. This is coming off season 2, which was pretty Lloyd-centric. I never thought we’d get such an amazing tribute to my, at the time, favorite character. I never thought he’d get such a moment in the spotlight to be as amazing as he was. Granted, he’s since had PLENTY of deaths to call his own, but this one remains the most impactful to me. This was the first death to REALLY be a death and to REALLY hit home. The only deaths that I’d say even come close are Nya’s death in Skybound (since she didn’t really die in Seabound) and Morro’s death for how brutal it is. Nya becoming the sea was also really good, though, with a beautiful funeral. But this one just...

The Titanium Ninja was a revolution for me as a kid. I had adored this show since the pilot. I had kept up religiously since the pilot. But this was the moment that the show went to a whole different level. And honestly, I think it holds up. Ninjago has a list of issues a mile long. But I just want to celebrate for a moment this episode, and everything it does so, so well.

Anyway, that’s my rant about an episode that I really love. I may do this again with episodes like Son of Lily. Because I love this stupid little show so much, guys. I grew up with it, and its always been a big part of my life. Episode 7, Tick Tock, was like, the biggest plot twist of the universe to me as a kid. It was what made Zane my favorite character, and got me so invested in him in the first place. To see Ninjago use that to make a genuinely fantastic character arc, then to use that as the foundation for the fourth season, was absolutely brilliant, and my life is genuinely better for having gotten to enjoy such a show as a kid and now as an adult. This show isn’t some life-changing revolution, but it makes me so happy, and I hope this rant helps illuminate a little bit of why.