#but after that i guess i'll just let her loose on one end of the hall while i do the other side

[cetoddle-archive]

i have 2 train our new girl tmrw and i usually don’t like training anyways cause i just prefer to be left alone during my shift but i am especially NOT looking forward 2 tmrw because i’m fairly certain i astral project for at least 85% of my weekend shifts and i have to take lots of breaks so i don’t pass the fuck out and i rlly just don’t wanna have to deal with babysitting a whole person during all the usual shit i have going on -_-

[wishfulsketching]

Hey I couldn't help but notice the distinct lack of Isha in your AU. Please tell me she's OK

Ok, I'll share my unpopular opinion.

isha is unnecessary. They're there to make Jinx "nicer" and make her "stable". To give her "normalcy". Now, are these bad things? No. Not really. BUT.

Isha takes screentime from exploring how Jinx is dealing with Silco's death and that he is actually gone. Jinx now has to learn to survive on her own. Silco's lackeys did not like jinx. There is a whole storyline there to explore!!!

Isha takes screentime from Sevika. Sevika and Jinx bonded through act 1 but then was just forgotten (I mean Sevika was forgotten a lot in the end). I wanted them to finally join forces because they both mourn Silco.

Isha erases the whole s1 finale and Jinx deciding to be Jinx. I wanted Jinx to become the villain she could be. The loose canon. The chaos incarnate. But now she "finally has a friend" so she's just gonna sit around.

Why would Isha clutch onto Jinx? Because they're a weird kid like that? Weak character motivation. Because they want to fight for the revolution? Mmm okay. Did not lead to anything. They sacrifice themselves with a smile because they're perfect little child who has no faults, I guess. And to make Jinx even more sad because she couldn't be sad anough about Silco, apparently.

Talking about childen...Jinx is a child. Or well, acts like one. She was spoiled by Silco, able to stay immature because Silco would let her. And they give HER a child? And she suddenly CAN take care of them? Ok

The montage after Isha's death was insulting to me. It was unearned. I wanted to see Jinx deal with Vi. Bond with Sevika and Ekko. Deal with losing Silco and helping Vander. Becoming the chaos!!!

Now she is more paletable. More cute sad girl with a quirk, not a traumatized and overly violent ticking timebomb. She was supposed to become a villaaaainnnn or an antiheroooo

But they gave her a kid.

I don't hate Isha. I hate what including isha did to the story.

So, sorry. No Isha in the AU.

There will be a sacrifice in the AU, tho 💙

[myth1cs]

Danger Zone (Park Jihyo x M!Reader)

One last smut to end the month of October. (I'm sorry) Words: 2,266

"There is a serial killer loose in the area. Officials warn to not to travel out at night alone."

"Do you really believe this Y/N?"

"Well yeah this seems pretty serious. I mean people have been found dead with three scars on their backs and missing their heads. I don't think this is something we should take lightly."

"Oh Y/N you trust the news too much. Trust me they're probably just over exaggerating just so they can get more views."

I sighed as I went back to work. I didn't understand how Jihyo could be so calm about this.

There is a suspected serial killer roaming out in the area. They don't seem to have set victims in mind as they have all ranged from young to old, female and male.

I always lived by "If your paranoid your safer." So when local news stations started reporting that there could be a serial killer in the area I started carrying pepper spray and a pocket knife with me.

Mostly everyone I know hasn't been taking this siturstation seriously as I have. Sure some people are worried but it feels like I'm the only one trying to take precautions.

It was now late at night and I was finishing up my work. Until suddenly I heard someone walk in the room.

"Y/N, Jihyo work is over, care to join me for drinks?" I looked up and saw our manager Myoui Mina walk into the room.

"I don't mind, how about you Y/N?" Jihyo looked at me with a smile. I wanted to say no but the thought of making Jihyo upset by saying no made me agree to it.

"I have nothing better to do so I guess I can go."

The bar wasn't too far from our work place so we walked to it. The bar was mostly full at this hour but we managed to find seats at the corner of the bar.

After we ordered our drinks we started up a conversation.

"So have you guys heard of this alleged serial killer in the area?" Mina asked while scrolling on her phone.

"Yeah we've heard. Especially Y/N he's super paranoid about the situation." Jihyo said in a tone that felt like it was supposed to mock me.

"I am not THAT paranoid." I tried to defend myself but Jihyo wasn't having it.

"Oh yeah? You told me you got a second lock on your house and bedroom door in case someone tried to break in."

"Well I'm just trying to stay safe."

"We can tell Y/N. Are you sure you don't want to get metal bars for your windows just in case the serial killer tries to break your windows?"

"Jihyo thats-"

"It was just a simple question, stop arguing like little kids." Mina interrupted me before I could finish my sentence.

We dropped the argument and we stayed in silence throughout our stay in the bar.

After we finished our drinks we left the bar and Mina bid her farewells.

"Well I guess I'll see you tomorrow Jihyo." But before I could turn around Jihyo spoke up.

"Y/N can you walk me to my home today?"

"Why?"

"Well I've been thinking and I think you're right. Now I'm kind of scared that the serial killer will come and get me while I'm going home. So can you walk with me?"

I was surprised as Jihyo wasn't the type to admit she was wrong. She was quite a stubborn person so to see her change up was shocking.

"I can walk you home Jihyo, come on let's go."

"Can you hold my hand until we get their?"

My face felt hot when she said that. I was slightly attracted to Jihyo and she was giving me a chance to hold hands with her. I couldn't say no.

I grabbed Jihyo's hand and we walked to her house. On the way I looked behind us every now and then to make sure we weren't being followed.

Eventually we reached her house and I let go of Jihyo's hand.

"Well we're here."

"Actually Y/N can you stay with me for the night?"

I gasped at Jihyo's request. I couldn't believe the same girl I was interested in was asking me to stay at her house.

"Yes I can." I said with probably more excitement than needed.

As I walked into Jihyo's house I noticed how pretty everything looked. Her decorations and the whole color pallet looked well put together and I couldn't help but admire the work Jihyo put into her house.

Y/N since I don't have a second bedroom so we'll be sleeping in the same bed if that's okay with you.

When Jihyo said that I felt my cock go slightly hard. I couldn't believe Jihyo just invited me to sleep in the same bed as her.

"That's fine by me." Jihyo smiled when I said that and she led me to her bedroom.

"This is my bedroom Y/N, you can change into my spare clothes in my drawer. I'll be back after I finish brushing my teeth."

Jihyo left the room leaving me alone in her bedroom. I took off my clothes and opened her drawer.

I grabbed the clothes that I thought would fit me the best and put it on. But I noticed a strange smell coming from Jihyo's closet.

I opened it but I couldn't find where the source was coming from. It smelt like it was from below me so I started looking at the floor of the closet. I noticed there was a small piece of the flooring that looked loose so I gave it a hard push.

The piece fell down but what I saw shocked me. I saw many decapitated heads. All of them looked like the people who were killed.

Jihyo was the serial killer that was being reported on by the news. I quickly went to grab my phone to take a picture for evidence but when I turned around I saw Jihyo standing at the door frame.

"Well Y/N I looks like you saw something you shouldn't have." Jihyo said with her voice sounding predatory.

I was too scared to move and Jihyo started to slowly walk to me. My pepper spray and pocket knife were in my original clothes and I was too scared to try to make a run to grab it.

Was I really going to die?

"But I'll give you a chance to make it right."

I looked at Jihyo with nothing but fear in my eyes as I knew one wrong move could be the end of me.

"Get on the bed." Jihyo said. The way she said it felt more like an order.

I got on the bed and laid down. Jihyo reached under her bed and pulled out a large knife.

Jihyo started to take the clothes off me and I could do nothing but watch.

When she finally took off my clothes she licked her lips "Well you certainly are my most attractive victim."

I blushed at Jihyo's words which caused her to start laughing.

"You like it when I compliment you?" Jihyo asked and I responded to her with a nod.

"Here's the deal Y/N. I only kill people for gratification but now that I've seen how sexy you look. I feel like you can give me a better gratification than even murder can. So if you fuck me good enough then I won't kill you."

"So my life depends solely on whether I can fuck you well enough?"

"That's right Y/N."

Jihyo leaned down to my ear and whispered.

"So fuck me good Y/N cause your life depends on it. There won't be a second chance."

When she said that she started to take her clothes off.

While she was taking her clothes off I had and idea. It was probably dumb but I had to go for it.

I quickly took the few short moments that she was distracted taking her clothes off to try to get the knife from her.

Jihyo seemed caught off guard and we engaged in a fight. We were both getting cut by the knife in our fight but neither of us got cut deep enough that we would die from it.

In the skirmish I managed to align my cock to Jihyo's pussy and I quickly penetrated Jihyo which resulted in a yelp from her and made her loose focus for long enough for me to grab the knife from her.

Jihyo collapsed on the bed and looked surprised I managed to take her knife away and tried fighting back but I started to speed up my thrust.

Jihyo started moaning loudly and I started to finish taking off Jihyo's shirt.

When I took her shirt off I notices her big tits that were being restrained by her bra.

Jihyo knew what I wanted to do and started to unhook her bra herself.

When she did her big tits bounced free from their restraints and I put one of her nipples in my mouth while holding the knife up to her throat to make sure she doesn't try anything.

Jihyo's moans grew louder and I alternated between both her nipples to make sure that both got the attention they deserved.

Jihyo tried to grab the knife back but I thrusted as deep into Jihyo as I could and that made her stop. I went back to quickly thrusting in and out of Jihyo but I knew I was about to cum soon.

I put my free hand on Jihyo's boob and began squeezing it.

"Y/N fuck!" Jihyo screamed as her pussy began to tighten around my cock. She was also about to cum.

I sped up my pace and we both ended up cumming together.

I let out a big load into Jihyo and was exhausted. But Jihyo wasn't.

Jihyo took her chance and grabbed the knife away from me and pushed me onto the bed and sat on top of me.

"Why didn't you run away or kill me when you got the knife from me?"

"Jihyo I just really wanted to fuck you." I said exhaustedly. If Jihyo tried fighting me now I was screwed.

"Well luckily for you Y/N you gave the best sex I've ever had. So I won't kill you but I can't let you go just yet. You must learn your lesson for taking my knife away from me."

Jihyo threw her knife across the room and started to give me a boob job.

I was still sensitive and I started to moan like crazy. Jihyo wan't going slow either she was going fast.

"Jihyo slow down I can't keep up." I pleaded at Jihyo but she had other plans.

"You should of thought of that before you took my knife away from me now you must pay."

I felt my cock twitching and I knew I was going to cum for a second time.

"Jihyo I'm cumming!" I screamed as I came all over Jihyo's boobs.

I was tired, sweaty, and sore. I couldn't go any longer but Jihyo didn't seem to care.

"Y/N you haven't learned your lesson yet." She grabbed my cock and started pumping. My cock got hard again which made Jihyo happy.

Jihyo started to deep throat my cock. My cock hit the back of her throat and she tried her best to not gag. My cock was getting covered in Jihyo's spit.

I was still sensitive and it didn't take long for me to leave a big load in Jihyo's mouth.

"Mmh your cum tastes good Y/N. You'll have to give some everyday before we go to work."

I groaned, as much as I loved Jihyo I couldn't keep up with her sex drive and I just wanted to sleep.

"Jihyo can I sleep yet?"

"Not yet Y/N we're going for another round."

"Jihyo your my nightmare." I groaned but Jihyo didn't care about what I had to say.

Jihyo sat on my cock and started bouncing on it. As tired as I was I admired the view of seeing Jihyo's big boobs bounce while Jihyo was riding my cock.

I reached up and held onto Jihyo's boobs while she was riding me which resulted in a smile forming on her face.

After some intense riding from Jihyo I came inside of Jihyo's pussy for a second time.

Jihyo rested on top of me and I felt her big boobs weight on my chest which got me hard again.

"You can go to sleep now."

When Jihyo said that I immediately fell asleep.

Next morning I woke up by the sounds of slurping.

I saw Jihyo was sucking my cock. Her tits were still covered in cum from last night.

"Jihyo why haven't taken a shower yet?"

"I told you that you needed to feed me a your cum every morning."

"Jihyo what now? I mean I know your true identity now."

"Well you love me right Y/N?"

"Yeah I love you Jihyo."

"Then let's make a deal that benefits the both of us."

"I'm listening."

"In exchange for you not reporting me to the police I'll have sex with you whenever you want."

"Whenever I want?."

Jihyo nodded. I smiled already fantasizing of all the places I wanted to have sex with her.

"I agree."

Jihyo smiled and went back to sucking my cock.

Dating a serial killer was going to be weird.

----------------------------------------------------

The title "Danger Zone" is a reference to something.

If someone actually figures it out I'll give them a smut commission on whatever plot and idol they want. (As long as it isn't weird)

(I'm only doing this because nobody commented on the "Room 304" reference like I literally made it 304 for a reason. Why didn't anybody get the reference? Like what the fu-)

Anyways I promise I'll change it up to another Kpop girl group idol next time.

[delphi-shield]

push and pull // leon s. kennedy & jill valentine

Leon x Reader x Jill Smut wc: 2,860 mdni - 18+ read on ao3

the plumber at my house reading this over my shoulder: 😲 this has been in my drafts for like two months, i finally ripped the bandaid off and touched it up. i cant believe people want the jill/leon ship name to be jilleon when 'breakfast sandwich' is right there. ohh nooo i had to cut the scene where they high-five after you cum...... guess i'll have to write more jill and leon......what a tragedy.....

summary: Jill said she'd be home two hours ago. She's stood you up for dinner again. You're so upset, Leon's got to fuck you about it to make you feel better.

content: fem!reader, all porn no plot, piv (reader receiving), some praise from leon & some degradation from jill, spit, crying, hair-pulling, masturbation, blowjob, dom!jill, use of strap-on, established poly relationship, sorry yeah there's more religious imagery, stealing the jill & leon dynamic from this post, fucking your relationship problems away does not work and you should not attempt. very loosely proofread.

Jill's late.

She promised. You cooked, you cleaned, and she promised she would be here. Bought a special candle and everything, three wick, fresh linen scent. Not your kind of thing, but you know she likes those clean, bright smells.

The first half hour, you’d clung to the idea that her physical therapy appointment was just running late. Forty-five minutes in, three unanswered texts, your hope diminishes. An hour, and Leon’s helping you put the food up and clean the dishes.

Leon’s not exactly happy with Jill. This isn’t the first time she’s done this to you. He hates to see you pout. Even more than that, he hates to see the way you’re trying not to cry in front of him. He does everything he can think of to make you feel better. Watch one of your godawful shows with you, play with your hair for you, give you a nice bath if you wanted - none of his offers made much of a difference. He knows better than to take it personally. He’s not Jill. He can’t fix what she broke.

He can fuck you about it, though. That always seems to take your mind off things, at least for a little while. 

He let you use him however you like, dealer’s choice. You wanted him in the dining room chair, wanted to ride him slow, grind down on that fat cock till you unwound and your pretty tears weren’t because your girlfriend stood you up, and that’s what you’d get. Not his first choice, but he’s not the one who looks so pretty with those big, wet eyes.

The only downside is that you can't hear Jill's key turning in the door when Leon's got his cock stuffed so deep in your pussy you can feel him in your ribs, when you’re too busy rocking yourself to a gradual, slow-built end. You'd missed your ringtone too - and Leon's for that matter. You weren't intentionally being petty, but intentions never did soothe Jill's moods.

"Nice," she drawls, dropping her bag with a thud. "Real nice."

Your head falls back just enough to get a look at her, pouting in the doorway. Maybe it's supposed to be intimidating. Really, she just looks like a dejected cat, all puffed up for attention. The hand splayed on Leon’s chest flops back uselessly, reaching for her.

“Jill -”

Leon’s hips jut up, reminding you he's here, reminding you who's inside you. Whatever you were going to say melts away into a whine so pathetic even you want to roll your eyes.

"Got started without you," Leon says, callous on your behalf. His hand cups the back of your neck, pulling you back to him. It doesn’t take much prompting for you to curl back into his chest, walls fluttering around his cock, gripping him like your life depends on it. "Saved you some dinner. It’s in the fridge."

How can he be so casual? Feels like you’ve got lava running through your blood. His hands settle on your hips again, push-pulling you back and forth to get you to grind again. You oblige, faster than before, mouthing open kisses against his neck. They ought to canonize him for his patience, crown him Patron Saint of Not Plowing You Into The Carpet.

Jill doesn't say a word. She marches off to the bedroom, leaving her boots behind as she goes. Her cardigan gets flung over the couch - poor thing. It didn't do anything wrong.

She’ll come out when she’s ready, you tell yourself. Ignoring the ingrained need to manage Jill’s emotions for her is hard, but not quite as hard as Leon’s dick. Makes it a little easier to forget. You press your moans into Leon’s skin, let him have them for safekeeping.

Her footsteps pound back into the room. You don't know what she's done that's so funny, but Leon shakes with a laugh. You move to look, and his palm pressing against your cheek stops you. Something clatters onto the dining room table, a heavy thunk and buckles. He presses a light kiss to the crown of your head, strokes your hair.

"Go ahead and finish up, baby. Doin' so good. All yours."

It's all the permission you really need. It doesn’t take long - you’re good for him, after all. So good, you don't even need his help. You just need him to hold you up when that slow heat finally expands, spreads like fire through your limbs and leaves you making a mess of his lap, baptizing his cock with your release and moaning hymns for him.

You slump against him, eyes heavy and limbs loose. Your head nestles against his chest, his heart hammering like crazy. Poor guy. So patient. So sweet. You want to offer to take care of that for him - he's still inside you, sitting so still and so good, the stretch all you need. It feels like a bomb went off in your skull, though, scattered all your thoughts around the apartment. You need a moment before you can be considerate, before you can formulate any kind of offer. You reach up, pat his cheek gently to tell him how good he made you feel, lazily kiss at the hollow of his throat.

Jill's got plenty of words, though. She's not the one who just fell apart.

"You so needy you can't wait forty-five minutes?"

"Closer to an hour," Leon counters, and for the first time you hear the strain in his voice. "More like two, actually."

Jill’s irritation boils over. "Shut up. Why don't you go jerk off in the corner?"

After all, he's supposed to be on her side. He's the one who knows what this life is like, the one who knows what their work entails and the stress of it all.

He's also the one who texts when he's running late. He's the one still on active deployment, the one who hadn't been dodging home like the plague. He got over himself a year ago, figured ways to deal with his emotions that didn’t include running as fast as he could, drinking until they drowned, or working himself to the bone.

Jill’s still working on that part. Again - saint-like patience.

“Maybe I will,” he says, casual as he can. He jostles you in his arms. He’d say it’s to keep you awake, but it’s mostly to keep his dick hard. You pulse around him, groan into his t-shirt and drool a little dark patch onto his shirt.

You’re all soft and pliable when her hands slide up your sides, fingers curling in the spaces between your ribs. You lean back to her, longing for the softness of her tits under your head, and you glide back through the air unsupported, like you’ve faded through the ghost of her. Your head lolls back, pretty, pathetic pout on your swollen lips.

“Gonna be good?” She asks, staring down her nose at you, eyes half lidded. You nod your head. Her eyes narrow. “Words.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Shifting you off of Leon's lap is a group effort, one that Leon doesn't particularly care to be too enthusiastic about. His poor dick is lonely, and fucking his fist is a poor substitute for the sticky warmth of your cunt. Jill cradles you in here arms - the first hint of tenderness you've had from her all night - and settles you on the floor in front of the couch. She kicks your legs into position, sways back to appraise your form, and gives you a long-suffering sigh that's a far cry from approval.

"Whatever," she mutters under her breath. "It'll do. Don't move."

She shuffles off to the side. You hear the rustle of fabric. You turn your head to look, and -

"I said don't fuckin' move."

Your head snaps to the front again, hands fisted against the tops of your thighs. No arguing with that tone. Your back is ramrod straight. There's movement to your right, and Leon finally comes into view, settling against the far side of the couch. He's at least kind enough to give you a show, stroking his cock for you in long, slow strokes, massaging his palm over that shiny red tip and sliding his own fluid down to squeeze at the base. Makes your mouth water just looking at him.

Not that you have to wait long for a treat. Jill finishes her prep work, drags herself back over to the couch and drops down in front of you, strap-on making you go crosseyed.

“Go on,” she sighs, waving her hand lazily. Like she’s doing you a favor.

And she is. It’s a privilege to suck her strap.

You rock onto your knees and take too much of her at once, gag yourself right off the bat in your eagerness. They both groan, Jill in exasperation, Leon because holy fuck, if he hears you make that noise again he's going to blow his load immediately. His hand shucks his t-shirt up. He's not trying to stain this shirt with cum. Not his cum, anyway.

"Your mouth is so perfect for this," Jill says, leaning forward and fisting a hand in your hair, "and you're still so bad at it. Do I have to show you how to do everything?"

You nod uselessly, tears pricking the corners of your eyes. Jill rolls her eyes, smothers the hint of a smile that threatens to twist her lips up. She guides your head back to the head of her silicone cock and sets an easy pace for you. Lets you take it nice and slow, get accustomed to the weight of her cock on your tongue as if you haven't done this a hundred times - as if she knows you went too hard right off the bat just to get her to guide you like this.

"There you go," she drones, the praise feeling like anything but. You bob your head freely, her hand in your hair just a suggestion now. "Finally figured it out. Not as dumb you look."

You push further, tucking your thumb tight in your fist and gagging only a little when the head of her cock prods at the back of your throat. Leon's hips buck into his fist, quick and rhythmless, swearing under his breath. His leg kicks out, nudges Jill's calf and you swear she's going to snap at him.

Your eyes cut from Jill to Leon, a tear rolling down your cheek, and that’s the final push that has him cumming all over his stomach, head tipped back into the arm of the couch, pretty moans so loud, so perfect that it makes you feel your heartbeat in your pussy.

You don’t have time to savor the way that he looks, paint him in your mind and hang it up on the walls around your skull like a pin-up. Jill lifts you off her cock, stuffing her hands under your armpits like you’re a stray kitten. You would be, for her, if she asked. Let her slip a pretty collar around your neck, hope you’re lucky enough that it’s got a bell.

She doesn’t wait for Leon to recover, just manhandles the pair of you so your back is pressed to his chest, his cum smearing against your skin. Leon’s got that loose limbed laziness that comes with a release that built-up.

“Hold her,” Jill growls. “Stop fucking around.”

Leon's hands curled around the back of your thighs, spreading you wide for Jill. A warm chuckle rumbles through his chest and pours into you. His head ducks down, mouth by your ear.

“She's mad ‘cause I had you first.”

You turn your head, stifle your giggles in his shoulder. The silicone head of Jill's cock slides through your sopping folds, nudging at your clit. Her hips rock agonizingly slow. It’s tough to tell whether she’s teasing you or herself at this point, but your sensitive body twitches and jerks with every pass of her spit-slick cock.

“Gonna make a mess?” Her hand grips your jaw tight, pulling your face from Leon's shoulder. It’s less a question and more a demand. You nod as best you can in her grip, remember too late to try and bumble out words. She taps your cheek twice, hard enough to sting, hard enough to make those pretty eyes water again.

Jill doesn’t wait for you to say it. She enters you in a quick, jerky thrust, no hint of warning, your breath stuttering and back tensing. She rabbits her dick into you, your moans falling as staccato as her pace. Her head bows to spit a fat glob of spit onto your clit. Her fingers rub you frantically, a pace so at odds with the slow push and grind of her hips that it makes you burn. You try to squirm back, the way your blood starts to singe a little too quick for your liking, but there's nowhere to go when you're pressed so tight against Leon's broad chest.

His hand slithers up and over the point of your hip, pressing down firmly just below your navel. Betrayal. You thought he was on your side. Your whining sharpens into a moan that has to have rattled the windows. Jill huffs a laugh, low and cruel. She pulls back just far enough to leave you wanting - and when you claw at her shoulders to drag her back home she's already moving, hard and slow, the light dancing in front of your eyes, her hips driving the breath out of your lungs, your chest caving in. It feels like you've imploded, blood on fire, singeing your bones and leaving the ash to remember it by.

She’s not done. You promised her a mess. Your voice is splintered, her hips still driving into you. You don’t feel yourself gushing around her until it’s already happening. You sniffle, your moans choppy and your tears falling quick, humiliation warming the embers in your stomach. Her pace slows and finally stills, finally lets you find yourself in the pile of ashes.

"Already?" Jill mocks, hands rubbing your quivering thighs soft and sweet despite the way she sneers.

You want to scoff, but you haven’t got the breath. Already, she says, like she hadn’t just ripped that orgasm out of you fast enough that you’ve got cartoon tweety-birds spinning around your head.

“My turn,” Leon pipes up.

“Fuck off. You’re not even hard. I'm just getting started.”

“Shoulda thought about that before you made her cum.”

God, they’re like lions fighting over a piece of meat. You push yourself up on shaky arms, give Jill your best gazelle-trying-not-to-get-eaten pout.

“M’tired,” you slur, your brains thoroughly fucked out. You form a T with your hands, calling for a time-out. “Need a break.”

Jill looks like she wants to bite anyway. But you were good, used your good girl hand signal and everything. She sighs, her shoulders slumping, and loosens the straps around her hips.

“C’mere, pumpkin.” Leon gathers you into his arms easily. “Gonna get you all cleaned up. Tuck your ass in.”

You ache when he moves you, in places you weren’t quite sure could ache. It’ll be worse later. Always is. They always have to fuck you at some weird angle. Can’t ever let your muscles get used to it, like you’re some kind of glorified exercise equipment. At least they wipe you down after they use you. Very polite of them.

Leon hands you your water bottle and settles in behind you, slotting up against your back. He’s got the both of you cleaned off even though he seems just as tired as you, bless him. Say a prayer to the patron saint of the bedroom.

Jill found dinner, apparently. You hear the microwave beeping distantly and share an amused look with Leon. Sure enough, she’s got a bowl of food in her hand when she settles at the end of the bed, legs crossed.

The silence lays somewhere in-between battlefields, landmines hidden all around your bedroom. Everything you want to ask is too loaded, too heavy. You’re not even sure you have the energy to stay up for a serious conversation, much less an argument. Jill looks so soft right now, the bags under her eyes seeming lighter in the warm lamplight of your bedroom. You don’t want to see her eyes sharpen. You don’t want to hear her teeth click together when she bites back her words. You search for some other topic, something that will make the tension evident in her shoulders melt away.

"We should do one of those clone-a-willy kits," you murmur, eyes shut, head tipped into the pillow. You open your eyes just enough to gauge her reaction. Warmth blooms in your chest when you see her eyes crinkle and her smile lines deepen.

"Why?" Jill laughs.

"You don't wanna fuck me with Leon’s dick?"

It’s the first time you’ve heard Jill laugh like that in a while. Pride spreads in your tired little grin. Leon's cock gives a tired twitch against your thigh. He groans, pressing his forehead to your shoulder blade.

“You two are gonna fuckin’ kill me.”

[athenasdaydreams]

pairing: jess mariano x fem!reader

summary: jess does not want to, and would never dance. except this one time

chapter warnings: none to my knowledge!!

A/N: Guess what dumbass pressed ctrl z and deleted all her work so she had to type it out again. OKAY IT'S BEEN A WHOLE YEAR SINCE I POSTED OR SOMETHING BUT I GOT TIRED OF STUDYING AND DECIDED TO FINISH THIS UP TO TIE UP SOME LOOSE ENDS

You had your legs on a table of Luke's diner, and you could not fathom how anyone could ever be more bored than this. You had to sit through Liz Danes' bachelorette party. You could imagine anything that would have been better than this. Being out with Rory and Paris, talking to Lorelai, or even letting Michel show you pictures of his chow chows. Letting out a sigh, you went back to reading Anna Karenina while the middle-aged women were talking about women not being monogamous creatures. "Is this how turkey legs are supposed to look?" Luke asked with a pained expression on his face. Carrie, one of the louder ones, said something about him taking his pants off so they could see for themselves. As much as you hated it, their conversations were kind of interesting. "Get your legs off my table I've got customers eating on 'em," Luke scolded as he looked at the turkey leg in his hand, as if he hoped that it would tell him whether it was cooked or not. You put your legs down and continued reading.

"I need to get some batteries, I'll be back," Jess said as he walked down the stairs. He noticed you were at the diner and stopped in his tracks. "Didn't know that you liked spending your afternoons with middle aged women." That comment made Carrie and the other women gasp. "The old ladies I wanted to knit with were busy, so I had to find company."

"Good book though," He said while you hummed in response. "Jess, Jess! Come over here and meet my oldest friends!" Liz said as she beckoned him over. Jess looked like he wanted to be anywhere but there. "Girls, this is Jess," Liz said proudly. A chorus of 'hellos' sounded. "Hello, handsome," Carrie said as she winked. You had to stifle a laugh for the sake of Jess. "He's going to walk me down the aisle! Is that cool or what?" Liz said to her group.

"It's no big deal," Jess said, trying to draw away attention from him. You found this funny. "It's a very big deal," you said with a dramatic look on your face. Jess gave an unimpressed look. At that time, a deliveryman walked through the door.

"Can I help you?" Luke asked with the confusion written across his face. "Got a package here." "From who? I'm not expecting anything?"

"It's a very important package," the deliveryman said with a serious look on his face. Luke stepped closer. "But there's no address on it?"

Jess smirked as he looked over to you. "I was going to go to the bookstore after getting batteries. Care to join?" he said, extending his hand to you. Looking for any way to escape this situation, you obliged. "Bye Luke, see you later."

"Have fun," Jess said with a laugh as you left the diner and heard a muffled "Have fun with what?!" as music started blaring from the inside.

-

"I was already having a bad day and then some guy had to spill his coffee all over my new blouse and my copy of crime and punishment," you lamented to Jess while you walked towards the bookstore which you frequented. "I didn't have enough money to get myself a new copy and a new blouse, so I decided to get the blouse because of my internship." Jess smiled at that. You were hardworking and diligent, while he was... less of that. You just got the coveted internship at one of the most competitive law firms in Connecticut, and you needed to make a good impression; a shiny copy of crime and punishment accompanied by a coffee stained lavender blouse wouldn't exactly do that.

The jingle of the door chime woke you from your thoughts about your precious copy of crime and punishment. Jess bent his head and didn't say anything to Kirk, the acting cashier, while you smiled and greeted him. You knew he wasn't one for politeness, so you tried to compensate.

"There's something I think you'll like." Jess meandered towards a shelf hidden at the back. You cluelessly trailed, wondering what book it could be. Knowing Jess, it could be a 2000 page book about a whale or a 20 page romance novel; the man read anything and everything with words on it. When he pulled a book off a shelf, your jaw dropped.

The blood-red lettering reading "crime and punishment" contrasted starkly to the obsidian binding that you ran your fingertips across.

"wow, this must cost a fortune, maybe i'll get it once my paycheck can get me more than one cup of instant ramen."

"let's go, i need to see what the guy at the diner did to luke,"

-

"does this dress look like too much?" you ask while twirling around in front of Lorelai. "no, this one is perfect. It makes you look like you'd be sitting in a tower waiting for your prince to save you from a dragon." You looked at her while she lounged on the couch in the house you had graciously invited yourself into. Well, she wasn't wrong. The dress was a light blue, silky fabric billowing around your ankles. The sleeves added to the whimsicalness of the dress. "only if the prince was Jesse Bradford,"

"you know what would make Prince Bradford fall in love with you even more? this flower crown," Lorelai said as she got up and pulled out a pretty-looking headband from a shelf. She put it on you and turned you towards a mirror.

"rory never let me dress her up like a princess; i should adopt you."

-

"hear ye, hear ye! announcing the arrival of her Royal Highness, the Princess, finally gracing us with her presence!"

"shut up, i was five minutes late; being a princess is hard work, you should know," you joked to Jess. You two met up near the gazebo, his reasoning being that he needed to make fun of you all dressed up as long as he could before he had to walk his mom down the aisle. "do you want to go get a seat? you're gonna be here for a long time. or maybe not, i've only been to three of my mom's weddings. "aren't you gonna sit down too?" you asked. "my mom wants me there to give her "emotional support" whatever that means," he joked as he led you to a seat next to lorelai and luke. Carrie from the diner yesterday was talking to them. lorelai looked concerned and luke just looked uncomfortable.

"hey, is everything alright?"

"no, there's gonna be a delay since liz ripped her dress and it's gonna take some time to fix it," carrie explained. "she told me to spread the message,"

"well, spread it car." luke got a suggestive look from carrie. "the message, the message." When carrie walked away, luke looked like he hadn't gotten oxygen in a good five minutes. "that woman makes me uncomfortable."

"poor liz, does she know how to fix something like that?" you asked jess and luke. "she was never one for household skills-" "i used to stitch up her renaissance fair costumes. trust me, she can't" jess interrupted luke. "i'll go see if she needs some help. where did you say she was?"

"she's at miss patty's,

-

You could hear Liz's laments from outside miss patty's. "my dress is ruined! how am i going to get married in a torn dress?" you pushed open the doors to Miss Patty's and gave Liz a concerned look. "I heard you needed some help? can i do anything for you Liz?" you asked, moving over to take a look at her dress. "I'm such a klutz, i tripped standing up and now its torn," she held up the side of her dress where there was an obvious tear. You grimaced and picked up the Doose's brand sewing kit from the table next to her, attempting to fix her dress.

"There you go! as good as new," you finished up the last stitch on her dress. "Oh, you're such a darling," Liz fixed up her hair. "you'd make a great daughter in law to a lucky lady someday. Could you tell jess to get ready for my grand entrance?"

The implied message didn't go past you. With cheeks redder than what your dollar store blush could get you, you thanked her and went down to the gazebo.

-

The ceremony passed by quickly, with you and Jess trying to think of sad and miserable things to make you stop laughing at the proceedings. "Oh man, i swear to you my wedding's gonna be better than whatever that was," you said, wiping the tears of laughter from your eyes as everyone went to the buffet line to get some food. "We'll see that," jess said as he inspected a turkey leg before putting it on his plate. You gave him an offended look. "Do you not think my wedding would be so much better than this 1500s medieval thing going on out here? I'd totally pick out a better theme," you said as you piled some mysterious looking food onto your plate. "I highly doubt that, and I hope you know that what you're putting on your plate is minced liver."

Your hand froze right right before you almost dumped another spoonful food onto your plate. You promptly pushed off the whole serving of minced liver back into the serving bowl. "That was so uncouth of you, private school girl. Did they not teach you manners at your finishing school?" You elbowed jess in the side as you chose a much more appetising looking burger prepared specially, from luke's. "one, i'm in college now; two let's sit down. I don't think they taught you table manners either city boy,"

-

After finishing up your dinner, you two decided to walk around to socialise. If socialise meant to make fun of every person in renaissance attire.

"the guy in the pantaloons probably thinks energy drinks count as water," jess pressed his lips to your ear, narrowly missing your cheek because of how much you were laughing. Everyone must have thought you two were drunk or high, from how hard you two were laughing. That was when you heard medieval sounding music playing where everyone had gathered.

"jess. you have to dance to this. i physically need to see it," you clung onto his arm, bringing him to the area near the gazebo, where Liz and TJ were dancing. They were doing some complicated looking dance straight out of the middle ages. "no way am i doing that. i'd rather slam my tongue in a car door." "please...?" "no." "...pretty please?" "fine, but you're coming out there with me." and before you could say no, he'd already dragged you to the dancefloor.

you'd be lying if you said you didn't have fun embarrassing yourselves. you'd only been dragged out of the dancefloor because TJ wanted to seranade Liz with a special dance just for her, and boy, were you glad you didn't have to see that.

-

Jess was walking you over to the gilmore house, where you'd been crashing with lorelai since your exams had been over. You, being a rich international student who's parents knew Richard and Emily Gilmore, had been asked to stay with them when you went to Chilton, and to Yale subsequently. Of course you could always tell them that your exams hadn't ended yet, and you were still staying at Yale, but where's the fun in that? You, lorelai, and rory, were planning on having a weekend of binging old movies and junking on the most unhealthy food you could find, so being a few days early wasn't a problem.

"after this is back to new york?" you asked him while approaching the door of lorelai's house. "maybe not, this time. might stay here for a bit; it's not that bad," he responded, leaning on the door. "any plans for summer?" you looked up at him. "you know, i've always wanted a summer romance. you know the type you read in the books, the notebook and stuff like that," you played with the straps of your purse. "maybe that'll be one of my plans," he said as he grabbed your waist and held you right up to him. "want it to be longer than just summer though." he pressed his lips to yours as he ran his fingers through your hair. you took a second to react, but you were kissing him back too. when you pulled apart for air, breathing heavy, you smiled.

"can't wait"

wc: 2.1k

[yonakuu]

۶ৎ- What a Way to Start a Year⋆✴︎˚｡⋆

Kaiju no. 8: Hoshina Soshiro

Word Count: 1.3k+

Pairings: Hoshina Soshiro x Reader, a side of some Hibino Kafka x Mina Ashiro.

More Author's notes at the end, enjoy your reading!

۶ৎ Laughter bursts from the person beside you- awfully eased up and giddy with the help of alcoholic drinks.

Background check: The third division officers on duty tonight are hosting a quaint gathering for the new years, I mean even in work you can still celebrate with singing, dancing, and a lil booze right?

Thankfully kaijus have been lenient these winter holidays. A chance for all of you to enjoy your time with your loved ones.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚

"Does he call that dancing???" Clutching his stomach, the Vice Captain of the third division, Hoshina Soshiro, laughs breathlessly at the sight on the dance floor.

You follow his teary eyed gaze there, trying your best to not add fuel to the flame by laughing and encouraging more judgement.

The cup shakes in your hand, drink almost splattering as you elbow him. "Please, as if you can do any better!"

"Hey I could if I wanted to, just saying." Plenty of talk but no action.... Still you can use that to your advantage.

Though your pushing- which barely nudges his ground, only intensifies the flush on his face from the drinks. "Nah, it's their time to shine, wouldn't want to take all the lights."

Cue you trying to coax him into the middle of the room to show off his said skills.

"Yeah? Go on then show us.", There your dam breaks in flooding laughter- drink forgotten in a random table with all your focus on eachother.

You both grin stupidly in the sidelines causing a mini ruckus. But thankfully nobody pays you any mind- cause it's quite the sight to see.

Both of their superiors messing around-

"No, I'll go if you go!" Again you spin around to move the precarious situation to his side.

"What about ya go first hm? So I feel less guilty!" Soshiro continues, changing your position so your back is now nearing the bright lights of the floor.

-Though even if they notice, they'll just flash a smile and look away. This party is a time to unwind after all.

Even their Captain is getting pulled to the dance floor to let loose.

"Wait Huh???" Caught off guard, you tense. Also capturing the attention of your play enemy- following your daze.

.....

"Kafka- is he serious?" With Soshiro's jaw also slacked in surprise, ready to save, but you hold him back to see what happens.

"Captain Mina's able to body him if it makes her uncomfortable you know?"

"But you know captain gets a bit confused with all the clamor in these things- don't you think?" -She plays along with it actually, only awkwardly. Only on close doors does Mina actually ease up. Being the captain of such a faction, some level of sterness is needed to lead with no hitch.

With this outlook, other people try to stop Kafka's shenanigans with terrified faces. Afraid for the party to end without it even reaching the time for new years.

But Mina shrugs them off with a smile, hand in hand with said man. Letting herself get led in the dancefloor to celebrate just like any other. Forming their own bubble, the crowd parts for them like some fairy tale story.

"I'm glad they're all enjoying themselves nonetheless" Sighing, he slumps as well. With the sight of smiles around them, infectious as they are. He cracks one himself.

"Ah see, they're actually super cute I guess they did share some bond outside this work of ours." Smiling you lean into the other's arm, satisfied.

Seeing this eases you up as the girl is also your friend, you can see all the weight she carries. And you are glad that someone eases that burden by even a bit. This feeling is shared by all the onlookers as they continue on with their own fun.

"Yeah if only the one beside me did so as well."

"Nah not enough. I meant you should finally dance Hoshina!"

"Oh? i'm enjoying myself plenty, Whaddya mean?" He prods, poking you with a toothy smile.

....Sigh, you won't let him get out of this room without embaracing himself won't you?

"Fine." Defeat in your banter looks good on him,

"So long as you dance with me. Grace me with your presence?" Before you could complain he does some added dramatics. Bowing, with his palm open to you.

As if waiting for your sweet yes.

"Fine I would be glad to join you-" Interlocking your hands with him.

"I think...." You continue with a tease. Getting dragged abruptly for it with following laughter.

Though you guess it'll still be fun so long as your not the only one embarrassing yourself. You're not that evil to leave him hanging.

Now only on the sidelines of the floor you first move stiffly, laughing at every movement. You both can't seem to believe you're doing this.

But as time goes by, trace of embarassment vanish from his face only amusement. Spinning you around till your dizzy hanging off his arms in breathless splendor.

As the lights change color matching the mood of the upbeat music.

Like in the field you adapt ever so smoothly, moves sharp to smooth.

It's like having a dance battle of sorts- one involving stepping on people's shoes. A blur of movement and laughter as you apologize. you haven't had this much fun in ages.

"Ah it's only a few minutes left till new year!" An officer informed, checking his phone while dancing.

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚

Breaking the most of you from your stupor, blood pumping in excitedness.

"Aint there gonna be fireworks when the clock hits 12?" A head pops up in the crowd up to ask and make sure. Some nod, before scattering to find a good viewing point.

Climbing towards the rooftops, near the windows- even to different floors.

Paid no mind by others. Only dancing to the music left behind by someone's spotify playlist.

But you don't move a muscle, rather content in your position. Hence getting left behind, abandonned in the dance floor, in eachothers embrace.

"So.... d'you have any new year resolutions to start off the year?" You break the silence with a rough mutter- throat scratchy in constant disuse but laughter.

"So I can protect the people I love." A firm squeeze done by the hand on your hip to accentuate. "To stay by their side until the next year to do this again."

"Let's see...." Hoshina's voice drifts off in thought.

"....Hmm maybe to get even stronger."

"Just until next year?"

"Until the end of time, you know that." Soshiro huffs, pinching you at the jest.

"How about you?" Through all that clamor you stay entertwined speaking ever so softly.

"1 more minute guys!" Someone howls in anticipation, eyes glued to the screen of their phones to observe the changing pixels. Starting a low count down,

Everything on your mind you say, as there is no soul in ear shot but you both.

"10! 9! 8!..." The counting gets louder, as the numbers get lower.

"So that's it, Let's strive harder together. As always."

He continues, "I'll be by your side throughout." Leaning close to you to aid in comfort.

"You promise?"

Hoshina hums in response as cheers explode all around.

"1- Happy new year!!!!" Your lips touch, slotting perfectly like a puzzle. In the same time as the fireworks rising up to the tippy top of the sky, before exploding into beautiful colors.

"3, 2..." Instinctively you both tilt your heads in a magnetizing trance.

Illuminating the space with reflected lights painting a mystical sight. People jump around cheering, Crying, laughing all at once.

Calling all their loved ones to greet them with a smile.

The scenery is lively, as it should be when meeting a new year. As we don't know what'll happen. But as long as we have eachother there's hope for the future. We all will pave a way, that's our job.

Kafka greets his captain- childhood friend with a smile whilst still hand in hand. Spouting resolutions to do better this year. So he can be able to fight alongside her, much to her amusement-

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚

Speaking of the person always beside the captain he turns to find him.

Greeting people along the way. Then his gaze falls on the blurred image of some mop of purple hair.

"Vice Captain Hoshina! Happy new- waw!" His gaze falls on the hand on the back of his head, moving towards the other he's entertwined to so passionately.

"Ah! That's one way to celebrate, like okay!-" Forming supportive thumbs up at the sight- Before getting cut off again midway his flush by a hand,

"Happy new years everyone." Mina adds before all the attention is bought onto the ones left behind in the floor. Focused on something other than the fireworks- An awesome save by the Captain.

"Let's observe the fireworks more, the team really worked hard in setting them up."

'Indeed, a shame for it to be wasted.'

Getting met with nods of approval, people push up to the glass in awe.

They sight see for last the fireworks for last. Glancing at the now parted people, forehead touching in bated breaths.

They nod at eachother with matching smiles. Leaving you both for now.

So Hello! Yona here.

Yeesh i'm already messing up at my first post.

My bad, this was supposed to be posted at new years eve- a shame I get easily distracted by karaoke.

Had to burn through my vocal cords and didn't notice the time until some loud honking noises stopped me.

I was done with the fic but it wasn't proofread yet, didn't wanna risk posting a half baked fic. All the best for you guys :b

A narumi fic is next to this, i'm super late on sched... So look out for it later.

Now done with that, I wish ya'll a Happy New Year muah muah!

[justlemmeadoreyou]

the date (part 2 to meet-cute)

read meet-cute here

Summary: after the smooth exchange of numbers with harry, he offers to take you on a date.

Words: 3.8k

Warnings: flirting, teasing, kissing, fluff

*

"I still can't believe you left your number for me," Harry chuckled into the phone, grinning uncontrollably. "That was smooth as silk, darling."

You giggled bashfully on the other end of the line. "Well, I had to take my chance when I saw it! Couldn't very well let you slip through my fingers now, could I Mr. Styles?"

"Just Harry, please love. And I'm certainly glad you didn't - I've been kicking myself for not asking properly."

"Mmm, well luckily for you I'm a modern woman who knows how to shoot her shot."

Harry threw back his head with a deep, rumbling laugh that had butterflies erupting in your stomach despite the phone between you.

"That's my girl! Speaking of shots though...how would you feel about letting me take you out to dinner this weekend? Make it an official date and all?"

You beamed so hard that your cheeks started to ache. "Harry Styles asking me on a date? However will I contain my excitement?" 

"Is that a yes then?" You could practically hear the smirk in his raspy tone.

"Yes, oh impatient one! It's a definite yes. I'd love to go out with you."

"Brilliant! Say, Friday around 7? I'll make us a reservation somewhere nice but lowkey so we can just... talk and get to know each other better." His voice dropped an octave on those last few words, the graveled timbre making you shiver.

"Sounds perfect," you murmured, fiddling with the ends of your hair. "I'll be counting down the minutes!"

"Me too, love. Me too."

When Friday night finally rolled around, you were a desperate tangle of nerves and excitement. You'd spent far too long fretting over what to wear, determined to look your best for Harry but not like you were trying too hard. Eventually you settled on a flowy printed sundress with strappy sandals and loose curls framing your face.

"You've got this, Y/N!" you pep talked your reflexion in the mirror, smoothing down non-existent wrinkles in the soft fabric. "It's just Harry. The super famous, ridiculously talented, impossibly gorgeous Harry Styles who you've had a crush on for years and years and - oh god, what was I thinking?!"

You were seconds away from ripping the dress back off when a car honk sounded from outside. Stomach swooping with panic and anticipation, you did one last makeup check before slinging your purse over your shoulder and hurrying out.

The sleek black Mercedes idling at the curb made your heart kick into high gear. When the driver's side door popped open and Harry unfolded himself out, your mouth very nearly fell open.

Dressed in a slightly rumpled blue button-down and charcoal slacks, the man looked like he'd stepped straight out of a magazine spread. As his shoulder duster jacket fell open, you caught the peek of Gucci loafer adorning each foot. His hair looked artfully mussed with just a touch of his natural curl visible. It took everything in you not to openly gape like an idiot.

"Hi there!" Harry greeted you cheerfully as you approached, those sinful dimples peeking out on either side of his radiant smile. "You look absolutely gorgeous - take my breath away a bit there!"

Your cheeks instantly flushed to match the rosy print of your dress. "Thank you, you don't look half bad yourself," you managed to reply, willing your knees not to dissolve beneath you.

"Ahh, just 'not half bad', is it? Well I'll have to try harder than that to impress you, won't I darling?" he teased, voice dropping to that low register that never failed to make your toes curl. 

With a wink, Harry opened the passenger door for you in a gentlemanly flourish. You couldn't resist shooting back a playful, "I guess you will at that, popstar."

You were rewarded with another one of his deep, husky laughs that vibrated straight through you in the most delicious way. Harry just shook his head in amusement as you settled into the plush leather interior.

"You're trouble already, sweetheart. I dunno if I'm prepared for this..."

When Harry slid in beside you with those mile-long legs you suddenly found it very hard to breathe. There was just something inescapably sexy about seeing a man like him in such a confined space. Like his raw masculine presence took up every available inch of oxygen.

"H-Hopefully not too much trouble," you quipped lightly, trying to recover some of your banter despite your wildly hammering pulse. "I do know how to behave and use my indoor voice."

Harry fixed you with a heart-stutteringly heated look through those unfairly lush lashes of his. "Oh, I certainly hope not, pretty girl."

The two of you held one another's gazes for a beat too long, the air sparking and thickening around you. Until finally Harry cleared his throat and faced forward, fingers visibly flexing on the steering wheel.

"So! Dinner at Luigi's sound alright?"

Mutely nodding, you tried to concentrate on taking some calming breaths as Harry guided the vehicle into traffic. You hoped he couldn't sense the myriad of butterflies currently swarming frantically in your belly. Already your highly anticipated date was shaping up to be just as dizzying and delicious as you'd always dreamed.

By the time Harry pulled up to valet, you'd managed to regain at least some of your composure. Not enough to avoid staring a bit too intensely when he rounded the car and gallantly offered you his arm to escort you inside. But honestly, you were beginning to question how anyone kept their chill around Harry Styles in person.

The interior of the restaurant was dimly lit with an intimate, cozy ambiance. Soft Italian music played from hidden speakers and the scents of garlic, wine and baking bread hung thick in the air. 

As the maître d' guided you towards your private table in the back corner, Harry's hand rested securely at the small of your back. You fought not to shiver at the barely-there brush of his fingertips against your bare skin.

"This okay, love?" he murmured in your ear once you'd been seated at the small, candle-lit table. "Not too public or anything?"

You nodded quickly, struggling to find your voice for a moment. "It's perfect, thank you."

When the waiter came round with your drink orders, shockingly flagrant heart eyes and a request for Harry's autograph, you couldn't help the small giggle that escaped. Harry merely flashed the young man a tight smile and politely declined while squeezing your hand where it rested on the white tablecloth. 

"Sorry 'bout him, darling," he murmured with a slight grimace as the waiter retreated with reddened cheeks. "Not exactly the most romantic welcome, eh?"

"Oh hush, you," you swatted his arm playfully. "Although I will admit it wasn't the most subtle 'hot for Harry' look I've ever witnessed."

Harry choked out a surprised laugh, green eyes dancing merrily in the soft candlelight. "A bit familiar with those kinds of looks then, are you sweetheart? Should I be worried?"

"Well let's see...how jealous do you get when Perfect Polly Instagram won't stop flooding my feed with thirsty tongue emojis every time you so much as breathe?" You quirked one cheeky brow at him over the rim of your water glass.

Harry's grin only broadened, clearly delighted by your unexpected brashnrss. "Well now, darling, sounds like I may need to have a few stern words with Polly myself. Letting the world know in no uncertain terms just whose girl you are."

A fresh blush crept across your cheekbones at his words and the undercurrent of possession laced through them. No matter how much you wanted to play it coy and unaffected, you couldn't deny the arousing trill of satisfaction at Harry considering you his.

Before you could formulate any sort of snarky reply, the waiter arrived to take your orders. Harry gallantly allowed you to go first, regarding you intently in the meanwhile. As soon as the poor man left again, he fixed you with such an endearingly besotted look the breath caught in your throat.

"Have I mentioned lately how stunning you are, Y/N? Because you truly take my breath away."

You rolled your eyes instinctively, though a soft giggle escaped along with it. "Pretty smooth there, rockstar. Though I suspect you've used that line on a few girls in your day

Harry let out an amused chuckle, not even attempting to deny your playful accusation. Instead, he leaned back in his chair, all loose-limbed grace as he regarded you with a tender warmth.

"Can't say it's my best material, I'll admit. But then, something tells me you'd be able to see straight through any less-than-genuine flattery, darling."

You arched one eyebrow teasingly. "Oh? And what gave you that impression, Mr. Styles?"

"Call it a hunch," he murmured, gaze dropping briefly to your lips before flickering back up to hold your stare steadily. "You seem like the type who'd appreciate a man being honest and upfront."

A delighted shiver coursed through you at his words - both the graveled timbre and the implication behind them. Before you could formulate a suitably flirtatious response, the waiter returned bearing your steaming entrees.

"Ah, perfect timing!" Harry exhaled with a crooked grin, deftly switching gears. "I don't know about you, gorgeous, but I'm famished."

As the mouthwatering aroma of seafood linguine wafted up from your plate, you realized just how ravenous you were as well. You'd been so wrapped up in Harry's charming presence that you'd nearly forgotten about sustenance altogether. Shaking your head slightly, you picked up your fork with an answering grin.

"Well then, we'd better tuck in before it gets cold! I want you to have the full authentic experience."

Over the next little while, you and Harry fell into an easy flow of idle conversation and shameless flirtatious banter. He peppered you with random questions about your interests and background, seeming to hang on your every response with rapt fascination.

"How does a gorgeous, talented thing like you end up gracing this city anyway?" he asked at one point, toying idly with the stem of his wineglass. "Surely some bloke back in Cheshire should've snatched you up ages ago."

You couldn't bite back your snort of laughter. "What, you don't think I'm capable of being a self-assured, independent woman?" 

Waving a dismissive hand, you continued before he could protest. "I came down to Venice for uni, fell in love with the energy and creative pulse of the city. Never looked back really!"

Harry's dimples peeked out as his lips curved into an admiring grin. "That's my girl - chasing her dreams on her own terms instead of waiting around for someone else's validation." He topped off your wineglass with a wink. "Though I suspect you have a fair few blokes - and birds, let's be real - kicking themselves for not locking it down sooner, eh?"

You made a show of batting your lashes coyly even as warmth bloomed across your cheeks. "Well I certainly can't complain about the options in London..."

"Hey now!" Harry cut in with a laugh, pointing his fork accusingly. "Don't go getting too big for your britches just yet, missy. I'll have you know I'm quite the hot commodity meself these days."

"Oh I'm sure," you tittered, delighting in the back-and-forth. "Though sadly the panda fever seems to have passed me by. Do go on though, I'm all ears for these sordid tales of Harry Styles: Omega Idol."

Harry made a playfully outraged sound, clutching at his chest. "Omega?! Why I never...if anything, I reckon I'm more of a prime alpha specimen."

"Is that so?" You leaned forward slightly, resting your chin on one palm as you gave him an overtly assessing look up and down. "I don't know, popstar...I'm just not sure you've got the stride for it."

With a wicked glint in his eye, Harry pushed back from the table and stood in one lithe movement. He began slowly unbuttoning the top few buttons of his shirt as you watched with rising heat, finally shrugging the jacket off his shoulders entirely and letting it pool on his vacant chair.

"How's this, darling?" he purred, voice like liquid velvet as he stalked around the table towards you with leonine grace. "Giving you more...alpha...vibes now?"

Your mouth went abruptly dry, eyes riveted to the expanse of golden skin and corded muscle on display now above his slacks. Harry came to a stop directly beside your chair, towering over you with one large hand braced on the table and the other settling on the back of your seat.  

When you managed to tear your gaze up and meet his heated stare, your insides clenched with a molten thrill. Those emerald depths glittered with sin and challenge and something so magnetic it stole the air from your lungs.

"Well?" Harry's smooth baritone rumbled through you, lips curved in the most sinfully sensual of smirks. "Any other concerns about my...prowess, love?"

As if in a daze, you slowly shook your head. Your fingers itched with the fierce urge to reach out and map the hard planes of his chest and abdomen for yourself. To revel in the warmth and solidity of the man caging you in his orbit.

Just as you felt yourself leaning inexorably closer, chasing that gravitational pull, a discreet throat clearing had you jumping nearly out of your skin. You whipped your head around to find your waiter standing by with wide eyes and twin spots of color in his cheeks.

"Ahh, s-Signore Styles!" he stammered slightly, adjusting his tie with unsteady fingers. "Is there, ehm, anything else I can get for you and...and the signora?"

Harry didn't so much as spare the younger man a glance, languid eyes still burning into your flushed face with heated promise. His hand came up to toy with one of the curled tendrils framing your neck, featherlight touch raising goosebumps along your skin.

"No, mate," he rumbled, voice gone low and thick as smoke. "We're quite alright for now. Thanks though."

As the flustered water beat a hasty retreat, still blushing furiously, you let out a breathless giggle. "Poor bloke looked seconds away from a heart attack!"

Harry's teeth flashed in a wolfish grin as his fingers continued tracing idle patterns against your sensitive skin. "Can't say I blame him, love. I'd be scandalized too if I had to look at something as sinfully gorgeous as you for too long."

Oh good lord, how did he always manage to rob you of oxygen with the smallest comments? Knowing you had to regain at least a modicum of composure before this evening descended into a lust-crazed fiasco, you squeezed Harry's bicep gently.

"Right, well I'll kindly ignore your skewed vision for now, mister. But maybe take a step back before you give the other diners something to gawk at besides rugged good looks?"

Chuckling again, Harry obediently slid away, reclaiming his seat in one smooth motion. But not before dipping to brush the faintest whisper of lips across your blushing cheek.  

When he straightened, that cheeky glimmer was back twinkling in his eyes like he knew damn well the effect he had on you. Still, you welcomed the brief chance to take a few calming breaths without his intoxicating presence overwhelming you entirely.

Over the next while, you and Harry continued your flirtatious back-and-forth in between sampling bites of dessert. It was both exhilarating and terrifying, keeping him on his toes while simultaneously swooning over every sinfully appealing aspect of him. 

Mercifully, the arrival of your shared tiramisu dessert provided a temporary reprieve from the thick, smoldering tension crackling between you. Though you had to swallow down a fresh wave of want at the sight of Harry wrapping those obscenely lush lips around his first bite.

With a soft moan of appreciation, he closed his eyes briefly as the flavors melted across his tongue. "Oh darling, you have to try this...it's heavenly."

Hazily, you gave a jerky nod and accepted the offered forkful. The rich, creamy taste burst over your senses in a blend of cocoa, espresso, and perhaps just a hint of Harry's unique musk.

A slow smile curved your lips as you let out a moan of your own accord. "God yes, Harry...it's amazing."

Dinner finally devoured, you settled back with a contented sigh and studied him through your lashes. He was nursing the last sip of his wine, cheeks faintly flushed and hair deliciously rumpled. You'd never seen a more beautiful sight in your life.

"What?" he rumbled out, almost seeming to read your thoughts.

You shook your head minutely but allowed your smile to deepen. "Nothing, I'm just...really enjoying this. All of this. Thank you for tonight, Harry."

His features melted into an expression of such tender warmth your heart physically ached. Wordlessly, Harry reached across the table to thread his fingers with yours. The pad of his thumb traced slow, maddening circles over the pulse point of your wrist. 

"No, my sweet girl. Thank you." 

His voice was scarcely above an intimate murmur, vowels rasping with palpable sincerity that left you breathless. Those searing emerald eyes burned into your very soul as if entreating you to understand everything unspoken behind his simple words.   

"Shall we take a little stroll before calling it an evening?" Harry suggested softly, though his gaze never lost its ardent intensity. "Work off a bit of dinner before dessert, so to speak?"

Those last few words vibrated between you like the richest melted chocolate - sultry promises in every syllable. You gave a small, dazed nod, utterly helpless to resist this man's charms.

"I'd love that."

Outside, the evening summer breeze was balmy and scented with the rich greenery of Hyde Park across the street. Harry looped your arm through his as you began ambling the quiet paths winding through the gardens. 

For a few blissful moments, you simply soaked in the peaceful ambiance of being so intimately entwined with one another. Harry's familiar crisp cologne surrounded you, his strong bicep flexing beneath your fingers. Occasionally, he'd dip close to murmur some silly pun or observation that would have you giggling softly against his shoulder.

Coming around a bend, the two of you emerged beside a small, glassy pond with a quaint wooden bridge arching over. Tiny white lights had been strung across the handrails, casting a warm romantic glow across the entire scene.  

"Oh Harry...it's gorgeous!" You breathed out in wonder, tugging him forward eagerly. "We have to get a better look!"

Harry chuckled indulgently behind you but hurried to keep pace as you practically dragged him along. The sound of your breathless laughter and happy footfalls filled the intimate little enclosure, echoing back from the dark trees surrounding you.   

When you reached the apex of the bridge, you turned to face Harry with eyes shining brilliantly and smile beaming. A few loose tendrils of hair had escaped their soft updo to feather around your flushed cheeks. You looked utterly radiant in the ethereal lighting.

"Thank you for tonight," you sighed out, slipping your fingers through the soft hair at his nape. "It's been...everything I could have dreamed honestly."

Harry gazed at you with undisguised reverence, hands settling at the dip of your waist as he slowly pulled you flush against him.

"The pleasure has been all mine, I can assure you. Every second with you has been magical...you're magical, Y/N."

Then his mouth was slanting hotly over yours in a searing, drugging kiss. You melted into his strong embrace with a soft moan, fingers tightening against his silken locks. Harry's tongue swiped across the seam of your lips in a blatant request for deeper exploration that you instantly granted.  

One broad palm pressed insistently into the curve of your lower back, arching your body even further into his solid heat. The rasp of his stubble abraded your skin deliciously as his mouth moved with skilled insistence against yours. You could taste the lingering notes of the rich Cabernet from dinner alongside his own uniquely masculine essence.

Only when your lungs were screaming for air did Harry finally tear away, foreheads pressed together as you both panted harshly. His eyes were dark as sin, heavy-lidded and smoldering in the low light.

"God, I've been wanting to do that from the first moment I saw you with paint on your nose," he confessed in a low rasp. "Nearly drove me mad, you were so bloody gorgeous."

Shivering at the rough timbre trickling down your spine, you nipped at his jawline playfully. "Is that so, Mr. Styles? I'll have to make sure to wear more paint around you in the future then."

Harry growled out a dark chuckle, flexing his fingers against your waist in a possessive squeeze. "You ought to be careful, sweetheart. This alpha has been on his best behavior...but only for so long."

Your mouth went dry at the heated promise in his words, desire throbbing through you like a physical force. Before you could even think to respond, Harry ducked in to capture you in another mind-melting embrace, this one deeper and more demanding than the last.  

For long, hysterical moments, all conscious thought faded into a swirl of roaming hands and twining tongues. You could hardly tell where he began and you ended, your very essence tangling and melding most divinely.  

"Y/N," Harry gritted out in a low, strained tone, pulling fractionally back. The stark hunger ravaging his expression would have stolen your breath away if his searing kisses hadn't already accomplished that.  

"Yes?" You exhaled his name back like a respectful sigh.

Those mossy green irises you loved so dearly blazed into yours with naked yearning.  

"Let me take you home."

***

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[a-dauntless-daffodil]

Charlie: "So! How DID talking with Carmilla go?"

Vaggie: "Uhh..."

Charlie: (laughs) HA! Yeah- the giant weapons delivery kinda gives me an idea it went preeeetty good, but was it nice? Did you have fun? Did you find out how angels die? Did you two have TEA??"

Vaggie: "It was nice I had fun I know how angels die and no there wasn't any tea."

Charlie: "None? Phooey."

Vaggie: "Did you have any uh, tea in... Cannibal Town?"

Charlie: "None! No finger foods either! They were only a snack for the eyes- you can kiss me and double check, if you want to~"

Vaggie: "Tempting." (chuckles) "And distracting. Let's cover the angel killing stuff first, okay babe?"

Charlie: (sigh) "If we HAVE to..."

Vaggie: "I'll make it quick. You know Carmine's fancy dance slippers?"

Charlie: "Shiny!"

Vaggie: "Made from heavenly steel, turns out."

Charlie: "Oooooh!"

Vaggie: "She used them to kick the head off an Exorcist, last extermination day."

Charlie: "Oh wow. NOT the scenario I was expecting."

Vaggie: "Yeah, she told me about it while kicking me in the face with them-"

Charlie: "SHE WHAT"

Vaggie: "-and even when she explained the whole 'trying to protect her daughters' thing, internally I was still like, dancing someone to death is one of least practical ways of killing-"

Charlie: "She kicked you in the head with her angel killing slippers?!?"

Vaggie: "-long fight scene cut short, she makes it work. But I'm still sticking with my spear for the battle."

Charlie: "VAGGIE!!!"

Vaggie: "I don't care what Carmine or anyone else says. Spears are-"

Charlie: "SHE COULD'VE KILLED YOU!"

Vaggie: "...I know? That's why you asked me to talk with her?"

Charlie: "......."

Charlie: "I think. I'm gonna be sick."

Vaggie: "Aw babe." (brushed back charlie's bangs) "Cannibal Town finger foods finally catching up with you?"

Charlie: "No. Yes. They're not helping but it's more of a 'if my girlfriend had gotten killed, where would the finger of blame be pointed at' kinda thing."

Vaggie: "Sweetie no..."

Charlie: "Sweetie YES. I sent you there."

Vaggie: "And if Carmine had gotten my head, it would've been my fault for being so out of practice and shit at fighting."

Charlie: "UGH."

Vaggie: "Thanks for that, by the way."

Charlie: "What? For WHAT? Saying 'oh hey Vaggie guess what you can die!' and sending you to the Overlord who can kill you????"

Vaggie: "For keeping me out of practice at fighting."

Vaggie: (smooches gf)

Vaggie: "I like kissing you way better, honestly."

Charlie: "... well... well maybe you could still use some practice."

Vaggie: "With the kissing?"

Charlie: "Both. Kissing and fighting. I want you alive at the end of the battle so we can do more smooching afterwards. Okay?"

Vaggie: "Okay."

Charlie: "You'll get better at the fighting again- no more getting hit in the head with heavenly steel?"

Vaggie: "I'll do some more sparring with Carmine. No more heavenly steel headshots."

Charlie: "You promise?"

Vaggie: (smiling) "I promise."

-after the battle-

Charlie: "Mm. Hmm?" (pausing mid kiss) "I think one of your teeth are loose?" (glowering) "Vaggie. Did you get hit."

Vaggie: (groaning) "Table. Head slam. Lute."

Charlie: "Fuck that bitch."

Vaggie: "If you mean fuck her up, then yeah, I tried."

Charlie: "Heheh. I saw her afterwards. I'd say you did pretty good." (kiss again) "Dang it, yep- It's your upper right incisor." (pouts) "Boo. I liked that one a lot."

Vaggie: "If it falls out you can have it."

Charlie: "Really!?"

Vaggie: "If it falls out while we're kissing, please don't swallow it."

Charlie: "I guess we COULD just stop kissing for a sec to actually check on the whole loose tooth situation."

Chaggie: "....."

Vaggie: "Or, you could kiss-"

Charlie: "OR I COULD KISS IT BETTER!!!"

Chaggie: (smooching resumes)

[redroses07]

Promise//Sam Winchester

Sam Winchester x Fem!Reader

Summary: Sam is having doubts about reader going on hunts with him and Dean, but they finally decide to come to an agreement that will make them both happy.

Warnings: Swearing, kissing, oral (fem! receiving), fingering, subby Sam, angsty Sam, death, violence (the basics lol), mention of Jess.

WC: 1.5k

A/N: Hey guys!!!! Sam is my baby so I wanted to write something for him! Anyways I really like this fic and plot so I hope y’all enjoy it too! love y’all ♡

Sam was always hesitant to take you on hunts, after all you only knew about the business because of him.

Sure there were parts of his job that were rewarding, which made it worthwhile; but there were also parts that he resented. Such as the constant danger, the danger that he tried his best to keep you away from. His worst fear was you ending up like Jess…and that it would all be his fault.

At first you were content with staying behind while Sam and Dean did their thing. But as you learned more about what they did, you grew tired of the lonely hotel rooms. You became restless every time they left, unable to sit back while your boyfriend subjected himself to such horrors.

This is what prompted the argument the two of you were currently having.

“Sam, please let me come just this once!” you retorted.

“I want to be there, I understood at first, but I know what I’m getting myself into now!”

“I’m prepared, you and Dean have taught me everything you know.”

Sam pressed his fingers to his furrowed brow, frustrated.

You could see you were upsetting him, but did he really think you would never have to have this conversation?

“Jesus, Sammy! Let her go, we need an extra pair of hands anyways.” Dean argued, rolling his eyes at his brother.

“I said No!” Sam snapped.

Sam turned around and sat on the edge of the bed, letting his head fall into his hands.

You gave Dean a look, as if to say ‘get out, we need some privacy’.

Surprisingly, he understood.

“I’ll be in the Impala, y’all let me know when you’re ready so we can get to work.”

Dean gave you a nod as he walked out the door, swiftly shutting it behind him.

You took a deep breath, gathering your thoughts.

This was a sensitive subject for Sam, you had to remember, and one that came from a place of love.

“Sammy, love, I know you’re worried, but think of everything you and Dean have survived. Why would I be any different?” You spoke softly, almost as if you were afraid someone might hear.

Sam looked up, his eyes tinged with red, and tears forming around the rim. It was a look of loneliness, of longing, and you knew he needed you the most in this moment.

You walked over to him. You remained standing while he continued to sit.

Sam leaned his head against your stomach.

You could feel his short breaths through your thin shirt, and you knew he was fighting tears. Vulnerability was hard for Sam, and you wanted to do everything possible to make him comfortable.

You wrapped your arms around his head, pulling him even closer. You traced your fingers through his messy, yet soft, brown locks.

Sam sniffled, and you knew by the wet spots you felt on your shirt that he has finally let the tears fall.

You finally decided to sit down, bringing Sam's head up to your shoulder as you did.

"I love you, you know that's why this is so hard for me right?" Sam said finally.

He lifted his head off of you in order to look you in the eye. His bangs hung loosely in front of his face, almost as if they were trying to hide his sad eyes.

"Baby, I know, but you can't let fear control our lives." You moved his hair out of his eyes, and cupped his face with your hands.

Sam nodded as he sank into your touch.

"I know...but I guess, I guess I don't know how."

"How about I promise you this."

Sam looked at you in curiosity.

"You let me come along, but when something becomes too dangerous, you say the word and I'll step to the side."

Sam thought about it for a moment, running a hand through his hair as he did.

"Okay, but you can't let your stubbornness get in the way."

You gasped playfully.

"Sam Winchester I can't believe you're calling me stubborn!"

The two of you shared a moment of laughter before the heavy reality settled in.

"I promise." You pressed your forehead to Sam's as a way to seal the promise, your personal spin on a pinky swear.

Only then did you notice the tension between the two of you, and the urge to feel his lips on yours.

Sam pressed a finger to your lips, his warmth seeping into the soft flesh. You took it in your mouth, running tongue and teeth over it, tasting him.

Sam was the one to break the invisible barrier between the two of you, smashing his lips against yours.

It was a hungry, fiery, passionate kiss. You couldn’t remember the last time you two had shared one like it.

Sam pushed you back, your head hitting the crappy motel mattress. You didn’t care. You needed him, to feel him everywhere all at once.

You gasped as Sam finally removed his lips from yours, but only to move down to your neck and collarbone.

Sam’s hands snaked down your body, reaching your hips and eventually the rim of your jeans.

“Wanna make you feel good, baby.” Sam said breathlessly as he began to fool with the button.

“Aww you don’t have to, you’ve already made me feel so good.” You replied softly.

“Well then I wanna make you feel better than good.” Sam mumbled as he pulled your jeans off your hips. Now there was no way to hide how soaked you were.

Sam gave you a knowing look before removing your panties.

He wasted no time getting to work, shoving two of his fingers deep inside you. He always knew exactly where to put them, hitting that spot that made you roll your hips into him.

“Jesus.” You gasped, the sudden wave of pleasure was almost unbearable.

Sam pumped his fingers in and out of you, and you were surprised by how fast you were reaching your high.

Sure, it had been a while, especially since Sam had been so busy recently; but you didn’t realize how much you had missed this until now.

Sam pulled his fingers out, licking the remnants off.

That must have made him want more because he immediately shoved his face into your pussy.

Sam licked up your wetness before moving to circle his tongue around your clit.

You moaned loudly and reached your hands out to tangle them in his. You pulled softly, giving you something else to focus on other than the fact that you wanted to scream out in pleasure.

“You’re doing so good baby.” You mumbled, making sure he received some much earned praise.

You were so close to your climax when you heard the door swing open.

You knew it was Dean before you even saw him, and you rolled over quickly shoving Sam off of you.

“Jesus Christ. Put your Goddamn clothes on and get your asses in the car.” Dean shouted before slamming the door.

You stopped scrambling to get dressed and let your heads fall into your hands with embarrassment.

“Don’t be embarrassed, I’ve walked in on him in much worse positions.” Sam laughed.

“One time when-“

You cut him off.

“I’m gonna stop you right there because I would prefer not to learn about your brothers extra curricular activities.”

You shared a moment of laughter before you stood up and finished putting your clothes on.

“I’m glad we had this talk.” Sam pulled you into his chest and kissed you on the forehead.

“Are you sure it was the talking part you liked?” You looked up at him.

He eyed you suspiciously as if to say “you know what I meant.”

You responded by giving him a quick peck on the lips, deciding not to think about the fact that you could still taste yourself on him.

“Let’s go before Dean kills us.”

You grabbed Sam’s hand and dragged him behind you, still ever intent upon keeping your promise.

[mistydeyes]

little moments and little voices

┊ ⋆ ┊ . ┊ ┊┊ ⋆ ┊ . ┊ ┊┊ ⋆ ┊ . ┊ ┊┊ ⋆ ┊ . ┊ ┊┊ ⋆ ┊ . ┊ ┊┊

summary: Despite the long hours and constant threat of death, the 141 always has something to return to. Even when they're away, they love the moments you share with them and your children.

pairing: 141 x fem!Reader (established relationship)

warnings: none :)

a/n: i redid my little headers for each section so hope you enjoy!

┊ ⋆ ┊ . ┊ ┊┊ ⋆ ┊ . ┊ ┊┊ ⋆ ┊ . ┊ ┊┊ ⋆ ┊ . ┊ ┊┊ ⋆ ┊ . ┊ ┊┊

price

“C’mon babies let’s call daddy,” you said as you gathered your three little children. “Mum we’re not babies anymore,” the eldest spoke up as your youngest climbed in your lap. “Alright my mature adults, let’s call your father,” you said in a fake stern voice. Your children laughed as they got settled. “You sound like daddy,” your son giggled as he sat down. "Okay is everyone ready?" you asked and they all nodded in agreement. You grabbed the laptop and pulled up Skype and they all giggled as it rang.

After two rings, John's face lit up the screen. "Well hello there," he said as he sat back and your children rushed to wave hi. "We all miss you, sweetie!" you exclaimed and blew him a kiss. "I miss you all too," he replied as he held a hand up to the screen. "Daddy guess what?" your middle said as she climbed onto your lap to see her dad better. "What, pumpkin?" he replied happily. "I lost a tooth," she exclaimed and showed her dad the empty gap in her front smile. "She's been showing everyone, sweetheart," you laughed as you placed your face back in the frame. You continued to have your other two children provide their updates, your eldest had gotten the best marks at school and your youngest recently learned how to tie their shoes. You could see your husband smile at them proudly as he praised all of their achievements. Eventually, you saw the time and knew it was time for bed. "Kiddies I think it's time we head up to bed, yeah?" you asked and you were immediately met with groans. "Don't act like that for your mother," Price scolded and the whining stopped. "Maybe if you ask nicely, Daddy can read us all a bedtime story," you smiled and they begged your laughing husband.

Eventually, he relented and your kids happily climbed down and raced upstairs. This was their favorite part of the night when John was away and were all dutifully ready to be tucked in. You followed with the laptop in hand and set it up so that all your children could see. "Alright, let's see what we have here," John chuckled, "I have a new one for you it's called '‎Goldilocks And The Three Bears'" your kids oooed in response as you sat next to your youngest bed. "I have a special guest," he continued and shifted the camera to the left, "Uncle Kyle is here and he'll be doing some of the voices." You waved as you saw the Sergeant appear on the screen. The kids screamed with happiness at the sight of their favorite uncle appearing. "Hi kids, I'm Goldilocks," he said in a high-pitched voice and you let out a small laugh. As soon as everyone settled, John prepared his best narrator voice and opened the book. "Once upon a time, there was a young girl named Goldilocks," he began. Before you knew it, he was reading the last few lines. By now, your children were fast asleep. The excitement from seeing their father and the laughter from Kyle's impressions had tuckered them out. You kissed them all gingerly before picking up your laptop and heading downstairs.

"Hi sweetheart," John said as you settled on the couch. "How are you doing?" you asked and his smile faltered a bit. "Tired, missing home," he replied and your heart ached slightly. "We miss you too, John," you whispered as you brought the device closer. "I'll be home soon, just have to tie up some loose ends," he noted. God you missed him. You knew what you had signed up for on your wedding day but these last few months had been hard. You sighed as he looked at your thoughtfully. "Want me to tell you a bedtime story?" he joked and that's how you fell asleep to your husband just talking.

soap

“Daddie daddie daddie!” is all the warning Johnny got before his two twins came running to him. “Slow down there, wee little ones,” he laughed as he went to pick them up in his arms. After four years, Johnny would never get tired of this. “Mammy did face paint with us,” his son said as Johnny examined his face. You had in fact painted their faces and they were excited to show their father. “Let’s get a proper look at both of you,” he said as he sat them both down on the kitchen counter. His kids smiled widely at him and he could see a collection of butterflies and bees on his son’s small face and hearts and flowers on his daughters.

“Where’s your mam now?” he asked as he lowered them off the counter. His daughter excitedly grabbed her dad’s hand and led him to the master bathroom. You stood there washing off your hands and brushes to see your tiny terrors dragging Johnny in. You smiled when you saw them tugging at your husband's arm. You put the brushes down as your twins jumped up and down in excitement. “Hi sweetheart, everything good at the brief?” you asked as you walked over and kissed his cheek. Your kids squealed in disgust and hid their eyes as he held your face gently. "All good, love," he replied, "now what's all this face paint business about?" You looked down to see your kids running around as if they were in a sugar rush. "Ah I had them lying around and they were getting antsy waiting for you," you said and gestured for the twins to settle down. As you continued to clean and chat with Johnny, your daughter had a brilliant idea.

"Mam, can you do some face paint on Daddie?" she asked sweetly and you looked over at Johnny who looked equally as excited. You sighed as you had just finished cleaning your brushes but you always folded for your children and your husband. "I guess I could," you said and the whole group cheered. You set up your station again and Johnny sat on the bathroom counter, leaning down so you could see his face. He squirmed a little under your grip and you ran your fingers over his stubble. "I could make something work," you said before pulling out the paints in your other hand and beginning your masterpiece. You made sure as you were painting to tell your kids not to ruin the surprise. Johnny held onto your waist as you painted. Your children moved around every so often to get a better angle of your work.

"And done," you said with a smile and he turned to look at himself in the mirror. "You've outdone yourself," he said as he examined the delicate brush strokes. "I wanna see!" your son called and Johnny hopped off the counter so they could get a better look. The twins gripped his cheeks and giggled at the splashes of yellow and blue and white. "It's a duck!" your daughter exclaimed. "It's a family of rubber ducks," you said as you bent down, "There's a daddie, a mammy, and two little ones following." They moved Johnny's face around to see the two parent ducks on one cheek and the two smaller ones on the other side. "That's us!" your daughter said as she touched the wet paint. She quickly rubbed it off on her dress and you sighed as you had just gotten them changed that morning. They ran to the playroom and before you could follow, Johnny held you back and kissed you. At first, you thought it was romantic but you soon realized he had brushed off the paint onto your face. "You're a bastard," you joked as you examined your face. "Ye but I'm yours," he said and you laughed as you went to follow your wild children.

gaz

"Shhh don't ruin the surprise," Kyle could hear you say as the door slowly cracked open. All morning, you and your daughter had worked on something special for him. According to your five-year-old, it was "Top Secret" and Kyle was happy to catch up on some shows while you and her worked in the living room. Your daughter jumped onto the bed as Kyle reached to pause his show and you joined soon after. "Okay it's time to close your eyes," she said and Kyle put his hands over his eyes. You smiled as you handed your daughter the masterpiece she had been working on. "You can open them now," she giggled and shoved the paper into his hands. "This is amazing Ivy," he said as you lay down next to them. "She made it all himself," you smiled as you turned to see the drawing.

Today was Kyle's last week before a long deployment and your daughter had wanted to give him something to have. All morning, she drew and colored a drawing of your family including your German Shepherd. The childish drawing had you and Kyle in front of your house and your daughter running around with your dog in a yard of green grass. Kyle kissed your head as your daughter described the scene and pointed out all the drawings. "...then we have mummy, she's wearing the green dress you got her," she said as she continued to point. "And who's that handsome guy?" Kyle said as he pointed to himself. Your son smiled up at you before replying. "That's you, Daddy," she said, "I wanted to draw your uniform but it was too hard so you're wearing a shirt and shorts." Kyle laughed as the drawing was surprisingly accurate, the clothes were things you wore daily and the house looked like the one you were sitting in.

"Well I'm sure my little artist is hungry," he said as he got up and placed your daughter on the ground. "Let's go out to eat today," he announced and your daughter jumped up and down. "I wanna pick out my outfit today," she triumphantly said before running off to her room. Kyle took this opportunity to grab you and hold you in his arms. "Thinking about another little one?" he joked and you laughed as you rolled over to face him. "Not when you're away," you exclaimed, "don't even get me started on the weird cravings Ives gave me." He kissed you gently and you knew you would revisit this as soon as he got back. "She doesn't want you to leave," you whispered after you sat in silence for a few moments. "I'm going to miss you too," he replied and held you closer into his chest. Parting was always such a bittersweet time for the family.

Before you knew it, Ivy came storming back into your bedroom. "Look at me!" she said as she twirled around. You and Kyle propped up to see her in a similar green dress. "Oh Ives, I told you that you were going to wear that when we picked up Daddy from the airport," you scolded but Kyle placed a gentle hand on your waist. "It's a special occasion though!" she exclaimed and you just smiled at her early surprise. "I love it, sweetheart," Kyle replied as he helped you up. "I only think it's fair if Mum wears her green dress," he smiled and kissed you on the forehead. Despite having the surprise ruined, you enjoyed walking around the streets of your town with your daughter in matching dresses and your husband lovingly smiling at you.

ghost

Simon woke up to hear the soft taps on the piano and your soothing voice guiding your son. “Alright sweetheart let’s try that again,” he heard your voice instruct as he played the beginning notes to Heart and Soul. Simon lay in bed for a while as he listened to the peaceful melody. He had been gone for too long and your son had gotten even better since he was last home. You were now able to play duets with him and didn't have to direct him through the sheet music. He smiled softly as he got out of bed and made his way down the stairs. He made sure to walk gently as to not disturb his two musicians. As he descended, you joined in with the duet and began to play the other notes. “Heart and soul, I fell in love with you,” you began and Simon heard your son's little voice join in. Your voice was light and it filled the home with life. When you were first pregnant and he found out it was a boy, Simon feared he would turn out like him but after seven years all of his worries were quelled.

"...and stole a kiss from the night," you both finished as Simon entered the living room. After a few years, you knew when Simon was watching so it didn't surprise you to see him in the doorway. "When did you learn that?" he asked as your son ran up to hug him. He held him to his leg as he watched you turn from the piano slowly. By now, you were about 7 months along and were clearly showing. In just a few more weeks, you would be welcoming a little girl. "I taught him a few weeks ago, he's a fast learner," you proudly announced as you closed the piano lid. "I can play two songs now," your son boasted as Simon lifted him up and tussled his dark hair. "Better than I could ever do," he replied and he lowered your son and made his way over to you. "We might just have to get you lessons, Elliott," you said as your son joined you back on the piano bench. He beamed at you as you looked at Simon's mini-me. "And soon we'll have our own little orchestra," you continued and patted your growing belly, "she loves when Elliott plays, I imagine she's dancing in there." In the morning sunlight, you looked radiant and Simon kissed your forehead gently.

As you shared a brief moment together, your son insisted on playing a new piece you had just started to teach him. "I don't know El, you heard how bad I was singing last week," you joked as he looked at you with puppy eyes. Eventually, you relented and you motioned for Simon to watch. You cleared your throat as your son stretched his fingers and found the starting notes. Simon's ears were soon filled with the melody of Edith Piaf's La Vie en Rose. He smiled softly as you soon began to sing. "Des yeux qui font baisser les miens," you began in an attempt at emulating Piaf's elegant French accent, "Un rire qui se perd sur sa bouche." He watched as Elliott's hands moved around the keys as you sang the romantic song. Despite not being as musically inclined, Simon recognized you were in the key of C, something you had taught him. He closed his eyes as you both continued to perform in sync, savoring the melody and your soft vocals. As soon as he finished with a few ending notes, Simon clapped softly. You and your son laughed as you bowed to your audience.

"It's still a work in progress," you laughed as scooted off the piano and joined next to Simon's side. As you enjoyed the soft moment with your head on his chest, Elliott posed a question. "What if we name the baby Rose," Elliott spoke up and you both thought for a moment. "But out of all the songs why Rose?" Simon asked as you looked at your son. "Mum's always so happy when she sings it, I think the baby would like it," he continued and Simon listened intently. You had been flipping through baby books for weeks and no one of them truly resonated. As you thought about the idea, you suddenly felt the baby kick and smiled. "I think little Rosie agrees," you said happily before sitting down. Simon joined on the other side of the piano and you three squished on the small bench. "Rose it is then," Simon said and enveloped you all in a hug. Before you could get up, your son had a brilliant idea. "Dad let me show you how to play 'Chopsticks'" he exclaimed and Simon knew he was trapped with his musicians.

[gothic-aesthetic-gal]

Old Scars (Part 8)

Ledger!joker x reader

Fem!reader is kidnapped by the joker and his henchmen while just trying to get a moment's reprieve from her boring, soul-destroying job ✨️

Tw: I mean, we all saw TDK, right? I'd say this is on the same level/rating. Kidnapping, violence, mentions of minor characters (not J) being misogynist/threatening SA, reference to past traumatic injury. Some slightly blurred lines in this one re:touching without consent and threat of violence. Beyond this i'm not sure, i'll update these when I write more.

Part 8 -

I began to open the drums and inspect their contents. One of the dryers had recently finished its cycle and quickly looking around, seeing no cameras, I dragged the clothes out. Rifling through them I pulled out a gray gym sweater. Looking down at the dishevelled wreck of the man before me, I felt a strange mixture of emotion. I didn't know exactly why I was doing anything to help him. It made no logical sense. Soon I stopped trying to unpick the threads.

"You should put this on... if we don't clean you up, even in this neighbourhood, you'll stop traffic," I muttered, handing him the warm sweater.

I slipped out of his coat and inspected my own t-shirt. It was covered in his blood and dirt from the alleyway, and soaking wet from the rain. I found something clean to replace it with and hurriedly peeled it off.

I caught his gaze fixed on my body for a moment out of the corner of my eye but ignored it, stuffing the baggy black sabbath t-shirt over my head. Once that was done, I turned back to him.

"What's the hold up?" I asked getting rapidly to the end of my rope.

"My shoulder..."

I frowned in confusion.

"It's dislocated, you need to put it back," he clarified.

"I can't do that! Do I look like a nurse?" I scoffed.

"You have to," he said flatly grabbing onto me with his usable arm.

I wondered what would have happened if I had grabbed the injured one back in the alley...

"I'll try," I conceded.

He placed one of my hands on the top of his shoulder, and the other at his wrist.

"Push down here, and pull... gently," he grimaced.

I felt sick as I slowly increased the downward pressure via my grip on his wrist. Just as I was about to give up, I felt his whole arm shift. His face twisted and then relaxed as it popped back into the socket and he let out a strange kind of groan. After a moment's pause he tentatively started to move it around, testing it out. Then he began trying to undo his shirt but was evidently still struggling with his injured arm and we didn't have time to waste, so I moved his hands out of the way and frantically undid all the buttons myself. The familiar smirk returned to his face as I did it and began to tug the shirt away from his body.

"If you're that desperate to get my clothes off, you could have just asked me, doll," he grinned.

I rolled my eyes disdainfully and helped him slip his suspenders off both shoulders to hang loose. Trying not to hurt him more than necessary, I helped him get a t-shirt and the sweater on, before pulling the suspenders back up over the top of it all.

One of his eyes was rapidly swelling shut, and his face was a total mess. The rain, blood, and facepaint had turned his features into even more garish nightmare fuel than usual. I sighed, trying to think what the next move should be as I put his coat back on myself.

"We can't stay here, the store owner will be back soon..." I said, matter-of-factly, as I approached the empty desk.

I found a roll of blue paper towel and brought it back to our temporary hiding spot, using it to dab at his face.

I guessed from his silent complicity that he was in a lot of pain, even if he was determined not to show it. The rain water in our hair helped as I continued to frantically wipe away our makeup and his blood. I couldn't get all of the black greasepaint off around his bad eye, and his nose was still bleeding, though much more slowly now.

"That will have to do, people will probably just assume we're junkies and cross the street anyhow," I said tossing all the paper in the trash can and the clothes back into the dryer.

I stuffed my hands into the pockets of the heavy coat as we slipped back out into the shadowy street. The rain had thankfully eased off to a fine drizzle as we continued down the street to the corner store. It felt incredibly surreal to be not only wearing J's coat but be carrying a stolen police officer's handgun as I entered the store. I had asked my strange companion to stay hidden around the corner, and was a little suspicious when he seemed to agree to this without any argument.

Wasting no time, I dug out the wad of cash i'd found in the right inner pocket, wound up with a rubber band. I didn't know how much was there, but I could be fairly sure it was mob money. There was something funny about spending what little of their cash reserves remained since J had started to steal from them and destroy the dirty cash. I grabbed a bottle of whisky, a bag of frozen peas, a roll of electrical tape, a pair of cheap plastic sunglasses, and pack of cigarettes.

The guy behind the cash register looked me up and down suspiciously until I slapped a hundred dollar bill on the counter.

"Don't ask questions, Raj," I said firmly.

His eyes widened a little as he hurriedly rang me up.

I grabbed a couple of packets of chewing gum and a candy bar from the boxes next to us for good measure.

"Keep the change," I said finally, gathering up my spoils, tossing them into a stray carboard box nearby and calmly exiting the store.

Finding J leaning against the brick wall at the side of the building, I unscrewed the whisky bottle, taking a swig myself and then handing it over so that he could do the same before I put it back into the box. The burning heat of the alcohol was oddly pleasant in the cold night air and I knew for now it would help a little with the pain.

Next, I slapped the bag of frozen peas into his hand.

"Hold that on your eye".

Slowly, he did what I told him to, looking at me with an unreadable expression.

"You know, I've always hated peas," he muttered.

I laughed a little.

"Well i'm not telling you to eat them, am I?"

The faintest hint of a smile flashed across his face.

I pulled out the cigarettes and placed one in his mouth for him, since his good arm was occupied. Withdrawing the lighter I lit it up and he took a long drag. After a while I took it back.

"You don't smoke?" He asked, watching as I held the lit cigarette for him but didn't put it to my own lips.

"No," I shook my head.

"An expensive habit," he said flatly.

I nodded, but my mind was elsewhere.

"As much as I hate their guts, I hope the cops made it out of there... I'm sorry about your apartment though," I sighed, the events of the day finally starting to catch up to me.

"Don't be sorry about that, that'd be a wasted emotion. I have other bolt-holes scattered around," he said, blowing smoke into the cold air.

"I know but I did just literally set fire to your apartment," I said, slightly disbelieving of the words as they left my own mouth.

He chuckled.

"I always did like fireworks."

I said nothing, feeling again like I was in some kind of strange dream that I kept expecting to wake up from at any moment.

"You're turning out to be a little pyromaniac - and a sharpshooter. In fact... you make an excellent criminal,"

He grinned, before bending down to take the cigarette into his mouth again.

"Don't get too excited, I'm not about to go and blow up city hall. It was just to get us out of there." I said, refusing to rise to his obvious bait.

"And here, I thought you hated me, but it's not eveyday you find a girl who will set fire to a bunch of cops for you," he said with a grin.

"Alright, well, now I wish i'd just set fire to the whole lot of you," I snapped, deliberately slapping his sore arm.

He flinched and laughed at me as I took the cigarette back and stubbed it out.

I sighed, not knowing myself why i'd done what I had. Sometimes it was better not to try and perform a post-mortem on all my feelings, it was an exhausting thing to do instinctually all the time.

We continued on down the next few streets, me with the box under one arm, him stumbling along with the peas still clutched to one side of his face. Suddenly we came across a dingy looking doorway, with two guys leaving. They were carrying a large cage between them with a piece of carpet thrown over the top, disguising the animal that was inside. Behind them was a third man, with a particularly vicious looking pitbull on a metal chain. The dog was muzzled and had all kinds of old injuries.

I realised that it must have been put through the underground dog fights and gestured for J to stop walking for a moment until they passed by. Retracing our last few steps I caught the closing door before it latched and peered into the hallway they'd come out of. There was a faded sign by the intercom panel outside that read:

V. Green

Vetrinary Surgeon

I beckoned J over and slipped in through the unlatched door. As we made our way down the dark hallway, stepping over piles of old mail which had never been redirected, we reached a small green painted room. It had three chairs in it and one of the panels of the drop ceiling was missing. There was some kind of air conditioning unit rattling away and the vinyl floor was peeling up in the corner. There was also a little podium, or sort of desk area, which I guessed was in place of a reception set-up. I dinged the little brass bell a couple of times and waited for a response.

I heard the door unlatch and a short, balding, middle aged man with large round glasses poked his head out into the waiting room.

"Can I help you?" He asked in a tone which really communicated more that he expected us to get lost as soon as possible.

"Uh, yes. I have, er, a dog that needs urgent medical attention," I said hurriedly.

"No, no. No walk-ins. Appointments only," he said, emerging to try and walk us out.

J looked at me as if to say 'really?' But I ignored his obvious disdain for my plan, darting between Mr Green and the exit to the hall.

"Ah yes, well, I know it's inconvenient us dropping in here without ringing ahead but you see, it's really an emergency," I lifted my sweater to flash the handgun I had stashed in my waistband.

His eyes widened as he understood my meaning.

"I'll pay you well, but I really could use your help right away," I added, withdrawing the gun and motioning for him to lead us into his surgery.

He backed in slowly, looking very apprehensive and once we were all inside, J closed the door behind us.

"Now, I know you deal with dogs that have been in some terrible fights," I began pointedly, letting him know I'd worked out that he was used to shady, off-record interactions.

"You're part of... the families, I deal with?" He asked hopefully.

I shook my head.

"No. No relation."

"Okay," he said, looking very uncomfortable, "then what kind of dog is it?"

"Oh," I said, turning to look J up and down, "a dangerous one".

"Does it bite?" Asked the Vet, pointing towards a muzzle hanging on the wall.

I failed not to laugh a little.

"Oh, I wouldn't put it past him but I don't think you'll need that."

Mr Green looked confused.

I used the gun to motion for J to take a seat on the metal exam table. He looked extremely unamused but did it anyway. Mr Green's eyes got even wider.

"Is there a problem?" I asked, losing patience.

"Well, I'm not... I haven't dealt with this breed before," he stammered.

"I'm sure you'll have some transferable skills," I pushed back.

J was staring directly at me as though he was imagining flaying me alive in vivid detail. I tried not to let it get to me.

"His shoulder got dislocated, I think it's back in place but can you check?"

Mr Green shakily gestured for him to remove his sweater and t-shirt and tested the range of motion of his arms, squeezing the joints. I found myself strangely fixated on J's shirtless form, spotting more than one scar from much older wounds. I wondered for a moment if he'd got them at the same time as the ones on his face, but resigned myself to never asking. He was fairly lean but with a surprisingly athletic frame. I watched closely as his arm and shoulder muscles moved and flexed with the vet's guided movements of them.

"It's back in but I think it needs a sling, it will be sore for a while yet" he said, bringing out the necessary bandages to make one.

Before he could focus on that though, he noticed something else on his exposed back.

"This will need dealing with first; it's is pretty bad."

"What is?"

I moved round to see.

There was a fairly deep cut over one of his shoulder blades and a series of smaller cuts and grazes all over his back.

"Jesus, did you go through a window?" Muttered the vet.

"Glass coffee table," I answered flatly, knowing J was not going to.

He set to cleansing the wounds and even had to pull some remaining shards of glass from the biggest one. In addition to all the cuts his body was rapidly turning black and blue all over. I felt vindicated for bringing him here even if he hated me for it - it wasn't exactly like he could walk in to a hospital.

Once they were cleaned up, the vet injected a local anasthetic and began to stitch him back together. As he tied it off and cut the thread, he nervously addressed us.

"It's hardly my neatest work, and I'm not trained how to make it neater than is functionally necessary for animals..."

"What do you mean?" I asked frowning.

"I mean, it's definitely going to leave a noticeable scar, I'm sorry," he looked terrified as he broke the news.

J looked back over his shoulder to the vet, as did I. Then our eyes met each others' and we couldn't help but laugh at the stupidity of what he'd said.

Mr Green looked deepy unnerved by both of us erupting into fits of giggles, so I felt the need to explain, since he was clearly missing the obvious.

"I think we're already screwed in that department doc, so I wouldn't worry yourself," I said, gesturing to my face.

He suddenly looked mortified as it dawned on him but I quickly shrugged it off and we helped put the t-shirt and sweater back on J's torso.

Mr Green hurriedly strung his arm up in the sling as J casually hummed some unintelligible tune to himself as though he wasn't in major pain.

"Is that everything you needed me to look over?"

I glanced down at J's fingers, recalling how hard the tall cop had stomped on them.

"Has he got any broken fingers on the bad side?"

One X-ray later and it became clear that there was a clean break in his pinky finger, and another hairline fracture in the ring finger. He taped them with a splint in so that they could heal properly. Anxious to be done with the whole interaction, Mr Green suggested he didn't require payment if we just left without any trouble, but I still laid down 300 dollars on the table as we made our way back out into the hall.

As soon as we were back out in the street I heard the door close and the click of several locks from inside.

There we stood, just the two of us in an empty street. It felt as though this neighbourhood was the last stop at the end of the world - with so few signs of life. There were only the handful of flickering neon signs, surrounded by so much decay. I took the sunglasses out of my box and put them on.

"What now?" I asked, finally cutting through the heavy silence.

He looked down at me with a hum of indecision.

"We can go to one of the other places I use to lay low, but soon I will have some social calls to make."

His face was possibly the darkest I'd ever seen it look, even without his makeup, and suddenly I realised what he really meant by that. At least one of his men had tried to sell him down the river. There was something so - final - about his expression, unwavering conviction and rage bubbling up, just boiling away like the brewing of an oncoming storm. He looked gravely serious. The one, or ones, who had betrayed him were dead men walking; there was no doubt about it. I shuddered a little, and wondered if I had made the wrong choice by running with him. None of this could end well...

It was as though I was beginning to break out of the strange fever dream I had been locked in. I began to think that I should run. Now was my best chance, why go to a new location with him? He was already sucking me down into his bloodstained world of criminality. I could get off at this stop and save myself. The thinness of this little reprieve struck me to my core; it was now or never. Time to jump ship.

"You're suddenly awfully quiet," he said, slowly and deliberately accentuating the final 't' sound.

My eyes darted around as though there might be someone to intervene. How could I have been so stupid as to help him?

He grasped my upper arm with his uninjured one and backed me into the rusty shutter of an abandoned storefront which was covered in a riot of faded graffiti. I began to panic.

"You weren't thinking of running away somewhere, were you?"

I shook my head pleadingly, struggling to find any convincing words. He pulled the sunglasses away from my face, folding them up and stuffing them into the box, which he also pulled out of my grasp, setting it on the windowsill beside us. I was still trapped against the shutter.

"Espescially not in my coat," he continued, grasping my arm painfully tightly again, the dark fire finding its way back into his eyes.

Even without the makeup, the look he gave me still ran a chill through my body.

"No, I mean, I thought about it - but I won't!" I said desperately, hoping that a shred of honesty was better than an obvious lie.

He was silent for a moment, leaning in agonisingly close. So close, I could feel his damp hair and his cheek brush against mine as he whispered in my ear.

"Good, because after everything you've done for me, I'd hate to have to kill you."

As terrified as I was, some tiny part of me felt... excited to have him so very close to me. Some deeper, darker part of me wanted him closer still, crushingly close.

It was as though he sensed this, despite my shame and inner struggle to bury the feeling, refusing to admit it even to myself if I could help it. He drew back and his eyes roamed over my face, falling to my neckline. He tugged the neck of the t-shirt down to expose the bruises his hand had left. I looked up at the dark sky above us, unable to look him in the eye.

He pressed his body up against mine and my breath caught in my throat as I felt his lips brush against my ear again. His breath was burning hot against my ice cold skin.

"I left quite a mark on you," he said with an air of sadistic satisfaction.

"And I nearly broke your nose for it, do you really want to start down that road again?" I shot back, suddenly finding my lost voice.

"There's that fire, I like that," he purred, sliding his hand from my neck, down my sternum, all the way down to the waistband of my pants. I felt dizzy at his touch but my brain was screaming at me to stop this car crash.

Before I could move to push him off me, he withdrew suddenly.

"I'll keep hold of this," he announced, holding up the handgun that he'd just taken from me.

I glared at him in anger as he grinned back at me. It seemed we were going to be locked in this insane tango for a while longer. It felt like I was dancing with the devil himself.

Link below for the other chapters:

Dividers by @strangergraphics

[skellyflowers]

Longing :The morning after.

Masterlist

The next time I open my eyes I know it's morning. The curtains are mostly closed but I can hear birds. The sliver of sunshine is the only light in the bedroom. And just as expected I am at the bottom of the cuddle pile! 

Vessel is still tucked into my neck and I can see one of the others pressed back to back with him. I can't tell who it I'd yet but I know I'll  figure it out soon enough.  I feel someone else curled around me with a hand on the leg that is still wrapped around Vessel. I can feel that the hand is too small to be III but is just as calloused so it must be IV. So II is back to back with Vessel and III is probably spooning IV behind me.

I know that I wanted to do something nice for the boys this morning but now that morning is here I don't want to get up. I want to stay wrapped up in the warmth of my lovers. I am a little surprised that they still seem to be asleep. They don't really need to sleep anymore. They don't really need to eat either.  I know that they only do those things because I still do. 

I remember the boys telling me that after I am claimed by Sleep I wouldn't need to eat or sleep too much. Far less than any other person. Her power will help sustain me, I will only need to eat or sleep for my own sake or to connect to Sleep. When I asked why they eat and sleep when I do, III said “We want to spend time with you.”

I take a moment to consider how to untangle myself from my boyfriends without waking them. I mite have been able to if Vessel wasn’t trying to fuse with me. If he wasn’t I would just need to be patient and could probably get loose. I am actually surprised that the boys haven’t started moving now that I am fully awake. They always tell me that until The Claiming they are on my daily schedule. 

Time ticks on and then maybe thirty minutes of lying awake with my thoughts I decide I’m getting up. As I start to sit up, Vessel makes a sound of disapproval. Then IV squeezes my thigh as I unwrap it from Vessel. I move to the headboard and stretch. Vessel tries to wrap his arms around me again and I crawl to the end of the bed before he can. I hear him groan at me for  leaving him. I ignore him and go to the bathroom, I take a moment to look at myself in the mirror. 

Vessel told me that after The Claiming I should expect to see changes to my body. Vessel has all black skin, II has fangs, III has bright red hands and IV has claws. I wonder what will happen but I don’t dwell on the thought, I want breakfast. As I exit the bathroom II has started spooning Vessel and III and IV have gotten out of bed.

“Good morning Beautiful” III says while giving me a hug.

“Morning III”

“Did you sleep well Dove?” asked IV while kissing my hand.

“Yes. Let's get something to eat.”

The boys nod and follow me out of the bedroom to the kitchen. I don’t want to cook anything so I check to see if we have any cereal. Once my bowl is ready to eat IV lifts me onto the kitchen counter. I boop his nose and start to eat my cereal and he puts his head in my lap. III grabs an apple and stands next to me so I put my head on his shoulder.

“Are you nervous about The Claiming?” IV asks in my head “It’s coming up soon.”

“I was, before I met all of you. Her voice was scary.” I say honestly. “But not anymore. Now I can’t wait.”

“I knew Vessel was overreacting.” III said.

III takes my now empty bowl and washes it as II comes into the kitchen dragging a grumpy Vessel behind him. I guess he still wanted us to stay in bed. II lets go of Vessel’s hand and walks over to give me a kiss on the cheek. III walks over to Vessel to give him a hug and kiss. Vessel seems a little happier after the affection, he really is a teddy bear.

“How are you this morning darling?” asks II. He rubs both my back and IV’s.

“I’m having a very good morning.” I say giving him a smile.

I cup his face and he leans into me more. I look over to Vessel and III still hugging and both looking over at my little group. I smile at them and hope they will come over and join us. IV however speaks up before I can.

“Lets go to the couch, my back is starting to ache.”

With that IV tightens his arms around my waist and lifts me off the counter. I let out an embarrassing squeak as I'm forced into his arms. The boys make room for IV to take me out of the kitchen and he brings me to the living room.  He drops me on the extra large L shaped couch.  II lifts me up a little so my back is against his chest and starts scratching my scalp. IV lies on my chest and lets out a hum.

Vessel joins us on the lounge section of the couch and leans on II’s shoulder. III is sitting on the far end of the couch next to IV’s feet. III turns on the tv and puts a nature documentary on, it’s about frogs, III’s favorite animal. I try to focus on what the narrator is saying but the nice background music, IV’s comforting weight and II giving me a scalp massage I can feel myself drifting back to sleep.

IV POV

It has been another night without our beloved V having a dream. I miss her dreams, they were fun, peaceful and vivid. I’m sure to V all her recent dreams have been unmemorable black voids, she hasn’t talked about them. We know better, V is traveling closer to Her and closer to Eden. V will travel closer to Sleep until she reaches Eden, then Sleep will claim her.

But now it’s morning and our dove is waking up. I was able to get into the bedroom before III and got to be her big spoon. The best position in the bed. She doesn't move so neither do I. I get to keep my hand on her leg. She doesn't move until her stomach growls about 30 minutes after she woke up.

As V sits up I give her leg a squeeze so she knows that I'm awake too. Vessel groans after she gets up.  II rolls over and hugs Vessel and that keeps him quiet. III gives me a squeeze before getting out of bed. I get out of bed and stretch. I take a moment to look at them until the bathroom door opens. III walks up to V and gives her a hug.

“Good morning Beautiful” III says.

“Morning III”

“Did you sleep well Dove?” I asked while kissing her hand.

“Yes. Let's get something to eat.”

V walks out of the bedroom, me and III trailing behind her.

“No! Come back!” Vessel whines. If V hears him she doesn’t react to his complaining.

We get to the kitchen and watch as V makes a bowl of cereal and when she is done I put her on the counter. We hold eye contact for a few seconds then she taps my nose. I give her a little smile and put my head in her lap. III stands next to us and I hear he is eating something. III is always mirroring her. We stay like this for a little while but I have a question.

“Are you nervous about The Claiming?” I ask “It’s coming up soon.”

“I was, before I met all of you. Her voice was scary.” She says honestly. “But not anymore. Now I can’t wait.”

I know what she means. The first time I met Sleep I was absolutely terrified. I was only truly able to relax after I was found by the boys. It is also the reason why Vessel gets so clingy, he was all alone.

“I knew Vessel was overreacting.” III said.

I do agree with III that Vessel can be overprotective of all of us, but he is really overprotective of V. Poor thing, she barely gets a moment of peace without his touching her. I don’t think she minds all that much. Our Dove lets us do whatever we want to her.

I hear III walk away from us and wash the bowl V was eating out of and II drags Vessel into the kitchen to join us. I'm a little surprised it took them so long. II must have been talking Vessel down and making sure he knows V doesn’t hate him just because she got up. Vessel can be oh so very dramatic. II walks over to the two of us so I assume that he swapped with III. 

“How are you this morning darling?” asks II. He rubs my back. His hands are warm and feel nice.

“I’m having a very good morning.” V said, I imagine that gave him a smile.

As nice as this little moment is, I don't want to stay bent over the counter. The new couch V ordered would be a much better location. The couch is big enough for all of us and very comfortable. It is our second bed on the bottom floor.

“Lets go to the couch, my back is starting to ache.” I announce to the group.

The sound that V makes as I pick her up is really cute and I try not to laugh. She knows I would never drop her. As I bring her to couch II is right on my heels. I drop V  on the couch and II moves her so he can get comfortable with her in his arms. I push her legs open so I can lay my head on her chest. Her heartbeat is very comforting and I hum with happiness and close my eyes.

III sits on the couch and turns on the t.v. another addition made by V. He turns on a nature documentary. I open one of my eyes and see a frog. III is obsessed with them so I am not surprised that he found this over one hour documentary.

After a few minutes I hear V’s heartbeat slow down. She is asleep again. I tap III with my foot. He didn’t look at me but grabbed it, clearly misunderstanding the tap.

“Turn it down, Dove is asleep.” I say.

“Again?” III asked as he turned down the t.v.

“Her time is soon.” Vessel said cryptically “Sleep approaches.”. 

[noblest-roman-of-them-all]

Poly Jolly AU

Enjoy Part One of the AU very loosely inspired by the Poly Jolly short featuring Loroceit or whatever the ship name should be for Logan/Roman/Janus.

A series of bizarre coincidences end with Logan, Roman, and Janus, complete strangers until they're unexpectedly dumped on the same day, road tripping home together.

Logan smiled as his Uber finally pulled into the bed and breakfast he was staying at to visit Jen and her family for Christmas. Her sister and brother in law owned the place and she'd been working there seasonally as their desert chef, so it had been a few weeks since they had actually seen one another.

He checked his watch, noting he had just enough time to drop off his bags before he was supposed to meet up with Jen for lunch. He thanked the driver, slipping him a tip in a holiday card, and finally headed inside.

"Hey, good to see you made it!" Trevor greeted him. "How was the flight out?"

"There was only one crying baby, so not as bad as it could have been," Logan replied.

"Hey, that's almost a Christmas miracle by itself! Let me get the room key for you and I'll take you up."

"Thanks. Jen and I are supposed to meet up for lunch after this. Is she in the kitchen?"

Trevor nodded. "Just a heads up though she's been pretty upset the last couple days, there's some new hotel that's looking at some land to build on. Her and Emily are convinced it's going to take out the bed and breakfast and obliterated the town or something," he explained, rolling his eyes, and led Logan upstairs. "Honestly though, there's a few of us around and I think we're all already pretty packed out. I know we've already had to turn people away, at least. Especially with the concert that's happening this year."

"Concert?"

"Yeah, I guess some folks decided to try and expand the usual Christmas Parade by having some new singer come preform. Supposedly the dude's in town already, but I haven't actually heard anything about him." He unlocked one of the doors and ushered Logan inside. "Hope you don't mind that it's a double. We were trying a new booking system, the whole thing was a mess. This ended up being the last available room."

"Oh, no, I don't mind at all," Logan assured.

"Well, I'll let you get a little rest before meeting up with Jen. Do you want me to let her know you're here?"

"That's alright. We're supposed to meet up in the lobby in a few minutes."

"Hopefully you can cheer her up."

"I'll definitely try," he replied, thinking of the ring in his bag.

—

Logan stood with a smile when Jen finally made her way into the lobby. "Hey-"

"We need to talk," she cut in sternly. "Come with me." She marched passed Logan, leaving him to trail behind.

He followed her to an office where she closed the door behind them and immediately took out her phone. "Is everything alright?" he asked with a frown.

"What is this?" she demanded, shoving her phone in his face.

He had to take a step to be able to focus on the image. His eyes went wide. "Where did you get this?" he asked and tried to take the phone.

"That doesn't matter!" she snapped, ruping it away from him. "How could you do this to me? To my family?"

"How could I what? Jen, these are-"

"I know that they are," Jen cut him off. "They're blueprints to the new hotel. Your blueprints."

"Yes, my prints that were stolen last month. Where did you get this picture?" He asked again.

"Stolen," she rolled her eyes. "Right. Sure."

Logan blinked, taken aback. "Jen, I told you about that. That's why I was late on Thanksgiving, because I was notified my office was broken into and several of my prints went missing. I had to make a police report."

"Yeah, and they just happened to be the ones being used to take over my hometown," she rolled her eyes.

Logan stared at her, wounded. "Do you really not believe me?" He asked softly.

"Why should I?" She demanded. "These plans have your watermark on them!"

"That can prove they were stolen!" Logan exclaimed. "Can please tell me where you got this?"

"Is that all you care about?" She glared.

"If it'll prove to you that I didn't do this, then yes, I care about that. Jen, I wouldn't do anything to hurt you, muchless something that could hurt your whole family! I didn't even know there was hotel being built here till Trevor told me you were upset about it when I got in."

"Right," she scoffed and rolled her eyes.

"Why don't you believe me?" He asked softly, unable to hide the hurt in his voice.

"Don't pretend like this isn't a big deal for you," she sneered.

"It would be if it was actually me doing this, but it's not!"

"Sure."

"Jen-"

"Look. I don't care if you stay here through Christmas. I'm not mean enough to throw you out, but if this is who you really are, I don't think this is going to work out between us."

"But it's not," Logan insisted. "Do you even hear me? Jen, I am not involved in this!"

"Well, the pictures say differently. Like I said you can stay here, but leave me alone."

"Jen-" he reached for her hand and she whirled on him, slapping him hard across the cheek. He stumbled back a few steps, nearly losing his glasses in the process. He stood frozen in shock as Jen stormed off, slamming the door behind her.

He was still frozen when Trevor came in a few moments later.

"Everything okay?" He asked tentatively.

"My blueprints that were stolen last month are being used for the hotel. Jen thinks I'm involved. She didn't believe me when I tried to tell her what happened."

Trevor's shoulders dropped. "Do you want me to try to talk to her and Emily about it?"

Logan shook his head. "No. I, um. She made up her mind about the whole thing. I-" he let out a shakey sigh. "I think I'm jut going to try to see if I can get my blueprints back. I don't think it'll help things with Jen, but…" he shrugged. "Um. Is- is there a, uh, a code for the wifi?"

Trevor grimaced. "We're having someone come look at the internet in about an hour. The café down the road has wifi though."

Logan nodded. "Thanks."

"You gonna be alright?"

"Yeah," he sighed. "Yeah, I- I'll be fine."

—

"Hey there, beautiful!" Janus greeted his fiancee with a bright smile.

"Who the hell do you think you are!" Stacey demanded, stopping Janus in his tracks in front of the café where they were to meet for lunch.

"I-" he blinked and shook his head. "What?"

"I told you, I told you about the new hotel and that everyone was upset about and what did you do about it? Nothing!"

"I didn't know there was anything to be done for it. You told me there were rumors about a new hotel, but I didn't know it was that serious."

"Yes, you did!" She snapped, her tone cold and accusing. "It's your firm representing them!"

"That- Darling, that doesn't mean anything. It's not my case-"

"How could you not know?" She demanded. "It's your firm!"

"It's not like I own it. I don't know about every case that gets handled there. If you explain what's going on, I'll see what I can do to help-"

"No, you've already made it plenty clear whose side you're on in all of this!"

"I don't even know fully what's going on!" Janus objected. "Stacey, if you'll explain it-"

"Don't pretend like you don't know!"

"I don't," he insisted. "Honey, I want to help-"

"It's too late for that," she cut in coldly.

Janus froze. "What do you mean?" he asked quietly.

Stacey pulled the ring from her left hand and pelted Janus in the chest with it. He barely caught it as it bounced off of him. "I hope you find someone who can tolerate you."

Janus stood there dumbfounded for several long moments after Stacey had stalked off before shuffling into the café, unsure of what else to do, and dropped into a chair there, his mind reeling, with what had just happened.

"But it has my watermark on it!" A man's frustrated voice snapped him to the moment. "That has to be worth something. No. No, I don't have the photo with me. My gir-" His breath caught in his chest "-my ex girlfriend showed me the photo. No, she refused to say where she got it- I made a report about my offi-" he sighed. "Alright. Yes, I understand." He hung up and dropped his head in hands with a groan.

"Excuse me," Janus called quietly. "I-I'm sorry. I wasn't meaning to eavesdrop, my name's Janus, I'm actually a lawyer and it kind of sounds like maybe you had something stolen? Maybe I can help."

Logan nodded and sniffed a little. "My office was broken into last month, I'm an architect and some of my designs had gone missing. Apparently, my…ex found them, somehow, being used to plan out a new hotel here. She thought I was in on it and wouldn't listen when I tried explaining what happen."

"Well, it is a small world after all," Janus chuckled bitterly. "My fiancee just broke up with me because someone else works at the same lawfirm as me is involved in the hotel. She didn't believe me that I wasn't involved. My laptop is back at the bed and breakfast I'm staying at, if you want we can head that way and I can see if there's any way I can help get those prints back."

Logan's shoulders dropped. "I would appreciate that so much. And. I'm sorry about your fiancee."

Janus smiled, pained and sympathetic. "I'm sorry about your girlfriend."

—

"What are you doing here?"

Roman startled the the voice and swung around to find his girlfriend glaring at him. "Kate, I-"

"You told me you had a show," her voice was cold and flat as she folded her arms over her chest.

"I-I do. I'm playing here," Roman explained. "I wanted to surprise you."

"Oh, I'm surprised alright," she growled. "Surprised and disappointed, quite honestly."

Roman blinked. "Disappointed? I- why? I thought you'd be happy to see me."

"I would be if you weren't such a liar!" She snapped.

"I didn't mean to lie, babe, I was just trying to surprise you. I'm going to be playing for the Parade."

She stared at him in shock. "It's you!" She snapped coldly. "Oh my god, it's you!"

"I- What's me?" He asked, confusion coloring his voice.

"You're the reason there wasn't any slots left to perform at the parade. How could you do that to me?"

Roman shook his head. "Kate, I had this planned months ago. I- Why didn't you tell me you wanted to perform?" He asked earnestly.

"Like you'd care anyway," she sneered.

"Babe, of course I care. If I'd known-"

"No. You know what, I actually think this is worse than you being here for that stupid hotel!"

Roman blinked. "What hotel?"

"Don't play stupid. Jamey saw you with the marketing team in the café. Do you even want to be with me anymore."

Roman stood, mouth hanging open, stunned into silence.

"Well?"

"I- Yes! Kate, of course I do. Babe-"

"Don't call me that!"

Roman sighed. "Of course, I do, Kate," he said softly. "If I'd known you were wanting to perform, I would have written you into my set, I would have given up my spot for you. You never mentioned about it, so I didn't know. The only real reason I've been planning on it this way is because I-I was planning on proposing." He tentatively held out a purple velvet box, hoping it might prove to her that her he was serious, that he was being honest, that he loved her. "You've always talked about wanting a big proposal and I knew there would be plenty of people to get pictures for you. I was going to sing for you then have you come up on stage with me and propose."

She stared, face unreadable, at the box in Roman's hand, making him feel like he might drop then and there from the tension. "Are you kidding me?" She demanded after a shocked moment.

Roman's face fell. "I don't understand."

"You were going to propose during your performance? I really didn't want to believe you were just as selfish as every other singer out there, but I guess you proved me wrong."

"Kate-"

"Have fun at the concert," she cut in and stormed off before Roman could answer, leaving him alone and confused.

—

"No, I'm sorry, we're completely booked."

Logan glanced up at Trevor's voice and found a young man, looking just as dejected as he felt standing slumped at the front desk.

He nodded, trying to be brave. "Thanks anyway."

"Hey, Trevor," Logan called out and set down his laptop before moving to the desk. "I've got that extra bed, he can stay in my room." He offered his hand. "I'm Logan."

"Roman," the young man answered. "I appreciate it, but I-I don't wanna impose."

"You're not," Logan assured. "I have the space and, no offense, but you look like you could use the help."

Roman nodded. "I was planning on staying with my girlfriend, but…" he trailed off with a shakey breath and shook his head.

"Mine just broke up with me too," he replied synthetically. "Oddly enough, so did Janus's." He gestured to his new friend. "Don't suppose yours had anything to do with the new hotel that's being planned."

Roman stared in surprise. "How did you know?"

"You're kidding!" Janus stood. "Mine got mad because she assumed I was involved in the legal team."

"My blueprints were stolen for the build and my ex wouldn't believe me about it," Logan explained.

"I was going to surprise her by performing at the concert later this week, but her ex convinced her I was part of the promotional team for the hotel," Roman replied. "That and she said I wasn't being supportive enough of her interest in music she never told me about."

"You guys sound like you're in a hallmark movie from hell," Trevor commented. "I'm gonna get you guys some shots or something. On the house. Whatever you want."

Roman mustered up a smile. "Thanks, but I-I don't drink."

"I do," Janus answered and raised his hand. "Do you happen to have any reds?"

Trevor nodded. "Yeah. Let me get that for you. You want one Logan?"

"Yeah, why not," he shrugged. "I don't think it can hurt at this point."

"You like red too, right?"

"Yeah. Thanks, Trevor."

Trevor turned back to Roman. "You want me to bring you, like, a latte or something, bowl of ice cream?"

Roman chuckled. "Uh, just a regular coffee is fine. Thank you."

"Coming right up!" He promised and moved toward the kitchen.

"I really appreciate you letting me stay with you," Roman said. "I was hoping to just leave, but, uh, flights aren't refundable. Just my luck." He sighed, dropping into an armchair, and pushed his hair back with both hands.

Janus leant back on the sofa and folded his arms over his chest. "You wouldn't happened to be from Florida, would you?"

"I- Y-yeah. How'd you guess that?" Roman wanted to know.

"Mhm." Janus nodded at the confirmation. "Let me guess. Gainsville?"

Roman sat back in surprise. "Yeah. Yeah, actually. How did you-?"

"So are the two of us," Janus explained, tipping his head toward Logan. "I figured with the other coincidences happening the odds where there. Thank you!" He heaved a sigh when Trevor offered him a glass of wine. It took all his self restraint not to simply throw it back.

Roman scoffed. "If there are anymore coincidences, I'm going to throw myself out a window. Thanks," he mumbled and accepted the steaming mug offered to him.

"I mean, we could just leave," Janus mused over his wine glass. "I already have a rental, I can just get that extended and we can just drive back. We're all headed to the same place anyway. Hell, we're probably all on the same flight."

Logan snorted. "Could you imagine if all three of us were in a row together on the same plane."

The three exchanged looks then all dug out their phones to check their flight information and huddled around to see what others had.

"Well, I'll be damned," Janus raised a brow. "We're literally all in the same row."

Roman tossed his phone on the table next to the mug of coffee. "Alright, that's it, where's the highest window?"

Logan caught his arm as he stood. "No. We'll take you home."

Roman sighed and dropped back into the armchair. "I'd need make a stop first. I, um, kinda left all my stuff at my, uh, at my ex's. Just sort of ran after she left."

Janus snorted. "Can't say I blame you for that. We can do that right before we leave, if you want, that way you can just grab it and go and hopefully don't have to deal with anything else."

"I appreciate that," Roman smiled.

—

"It'll just take a few minutes," Roman promised as he climbed out of the passenger seat. "Didn't exactly have time to unpack."

"Don't worry about it," Logan answered from the back seat. "It's not like we have anywhere to be."

Roman snorted. "How cheerful of you. I'll be right back."

Janus watched Roman trot into the farmhouse and shook his head. "I don't know about you, but this is most bizarre day I've ever had. And I've had someone ask me if they could sue a duck!"

"What?"

Janus rolled his eyes. "They wanted to sue for property damage because it kept pooping on their porch and eating the food left out for the feral cats."

"Oh. Yeah, that sounds like it would be a weird day."

"Y'know, it'd be one thing if we were only on the same flight, or only ended up single, but the fact that it's both." Janus shook his head.

"Not to mention the fact that it all stemmed from assumptions and misunderstandings about the hotel."

"And that!" Janus agreed. "Your buddy was right, it does sound like something out of a hallmark movie. Except we're apparently the arrogant, corporate boyfriends and don't get to clear up the misunderstandings." He sighed and stated out the window. "I'm gonna go check on Roman, he's been gone a while and I've got a bad feeling about this."

Logan nodded as Janus opened the car door. "I was thinking the same thing."

"Don't talk to strangers while I'm gone," Janus teased with a wink before he walked away.

He opened the door at the same moment Roman went sprawling across the floor. He swore and rushed to Roman's side, taking his arm to help him up. "Are you okay?" He questioned.

"I'm fine," Roman groaned.

"You're bleeding!" Janus objected.

"Who the hell are you?" The man standing over Roman, and presumably the one who'd punched him demanded.

"His lawyer!" Janus snapped, lying through his teeth and taking a petty joy out watching his face fall. "And you just committed class c assualt."

"It's fine," Roman mumbled. "Let's just leave."

Janus nodded and picked up the dropped duffle once Roman was on his feet again. "Let's get you home," he said softly and ushered Roman outside with his hand on his back.

"What happened?" Logan demanded and shot out of the car when he saw Roman's split lip.

"I'm fine," Roman grumbled, but let Logan take his face in his hands and check him over. "Kate's ex was there and went off on me about breaking her heart over something she never told me about. He decked me when I said as much. Probably not her ex anymore," he added glummly.

Logan let him go when he stepped back. "I'm sorry," he offered.

Roman shrugged. "Looks like you got the same treatment." He gestured to Logan’s cheek.

"No, it was my girl- my ex who did that to me. Nearly took my glasses off."

Roman gaped. "How hard did she hit you?"

"Well, she slapped me as she was turning to face me, so I'm pretty sure almost her whole body was behind it. I'm just glad she hit my face and didn't catch my ear. Probably would've ruptured my ear drum."

"You're stuff is in the trunk," Janus announced, clapping Roman on the shoulder. "We can go whenever you're ready."

"Yeah, let's go."

( @amazon-me-bitches )

[scrubbinn]

Mimic memoirs: The Spa

HRT month 22

Searching for date spots with Abi

Checking out a supposed local therian hotspot

Mayday pulled the car into the near empty strip mall. The entire building was mostly empty, save for about three rooms. Midwestern death is the term she would use to describe a place like this. It seemed to have, unfortunately, creeped into Hyper city at some point. The door in front of her was plastered in flyers and menus. All of them are fairly worn over years of use. Directly above the door and screwed into the concrete building were big, red, metal letters that read “massage.” Only the last three had maintained their neon glow, showing the age of the place.

“You said they have spa stuff, right? Abi said, stepping out of the car.

“Yep.” Mayday called back. “The website also included something called Therian massage. So I absolutely have to see what that's like.”

She had heard about this place from a few of the clients that passed through Erian's office. Far from being called popular, but any rumors of a location good to therians ended up spreading like wildfire eventually. She had to see for herself if they were true.

The pair pushed open the door with the bell hanging above, letting out a soft ring-a-ding. The inside was bathed in a soothing orange light. Flowering plants of all kinds were placed perfectly around the room and somehow made it feel bigger than it actually was. The sounds of soothing music and the ambiance of running water babbling through a creek with song birds singing their melodies. The calm vibes could only be described as immaculate. A small, old, human woman stood at the front desk. She had the smile of a sweet grandma that had just baked her grandchildren a fresh batch of oatmeal raisin cookies on a spring evening and radiated an aura that could put a blood raged werewolf at peace.

“Oh, hello! How are you lovely folk today? Do the two of you have an appointment here with us?”

Abi spoke for Mayday, “Yes, I'm here for the full spa treatment, and she's here for a massage.”

“Any preference on your caretaker's gender?” She asked.

Abi looked at Mayday, who simply shrugged.

“Guess not.” She said.

Mayday didn't have anything to say. To be honest, she was stunned. Most humans, especially the older ones, tend to look at her with some form of fear, disgust, and apprehension. But right now, she was being looked at with kindness. She was snapped out from her stupor as the old woman spoke again.

“You listed your species as a mimic on our website, correct? You'll have to wait for Lee then, he's our therian specialist. I'll leave you some water and a snack in case you get hungry.”

The woman walks to Mayday, placing a decorated glass cup of water and a small bowl of rice crackers.

She then turns to Abi. “Alrighty! Follow me, I'll take you to the spa room.”

The two of them walk to the back of the room and soon out of sight as they turn a corner. Mayday can only sit down in a nearby chair. She stared off into space, trying to figure out how she got here without saying a single word. Getting completely swept up in the conversation and having it suddenly end was something she wasn't used to, but it wasn't unpleasant. A fanged tendril peels off her arm and begins to eat the rice crackers. They were tasty.

After ten minutes had passed, a large younger man walked into the room. He stood nearly seven feet, and his hobby was probably working out every single day. His hands, though, looked incredibly soft. He wore a loose-fitting t-shirt and sweats. Perfect to immediately go for a 5k as soon as his shift ends.

“Mayday, right? Mimic? Follow me, I'll have to ask a few questions about your species. You don't have to answer if it's uncomfortable.” He said in such a sweet voice.

He walked to the back, motioning for Mayday to follow. As the two motioned through the hallway to the massaging bed, Mayday couldn’t help but notice the oddities in some rooms. All the chairs and beds were built with holes for a tail, what looks to be a grooming station you'd find in a farm, and what looked to be a modified taffy puller. It dawned on her that the reason half of the strip mall had empty buildings was because this place had purchased all of them and knocked out the walls.

The man named Lee saw the mimic's curiosity and smiled. “Dad made the puller, it took us a while to figure out how you massage a slime, and you especially have to be careful if they have a core, that's why we made a cup in the center there to keep it safe and attached while the rest of the body is pulled, and if the machine gets broken, then I've found that tossing them around like a pizza is a pretty good substitute!”

He laughed as he spun an imaginary pizza above his head. There's an earnest joy in his face as he talks about his craft.

“Your dad made it? Is this a family run business?” Mayday asked inquisitively

His smile grew even bigger. A millimeter more, and it would have threatened to pop off his face. “Yeah! Mom runs the financials and the front desk. Dad's an engineer and builds a lot of tools we need to use. And I'm in charge of studying new massage techniques for clients.”

He pulls out a notepad and pen from his pocket and flips to a blank page. He begins to focus deeply on his writing before peering over to Mayday. “Do you have muscles? Bone structure? Organs?”

Mayday stammers out, “oh, uh… No but I could. No, but I could… Yes, but I could remove it, maybe. I haven't tried.”

She watches him eye the taffy massager, and she quickly speaks again. “If it's ok, I'd prefer a massage by hand.”

“Sure thing! Here's a standard room you can use. I'll be back later with some supplies. Is there anything you need right now before we start?”

Lee left the room at a lightning pace. Meanwhile, Mayday took the time to undress and get comfortable underneath the towel on the bed. A business run by a bunch of fast talking, fun having, family members. She almost felt a little dizzy with how fast things were moving. That, and she wasn't expecting them to be so nice. They seemed curious, yet kind. Despite ostensibly being completely human, they-

“Miss, are you ready for me to enter?” Lee called out from behind a curtain.

“Oh, yes, you can come in,” Mayday called back.

He entered the room with a bucket containing some heated rocks and warm oils. He pulled back the towel just a bit to examine what exactly he was working with. Fibrous strings that seem to shift and fold through itself. The consistency of soap. He writes down a few things in his notepad as he labels the top: Mimic, faux slime.

He sighs and talks in a reassuring voice. “I'm going to try a few things. Just let me know if anything feels too painful.”

Almost immediately, a sharp pain burts from Mayday’s back. She screams out, “STOP!”

Lee pulled his hands away as her back caved in and quickly closed like the mouth of some alien creature.

“Sorry! Sorry!” She spit out.

Mayday quickly turns her head around to make sure she didn't bite off a finger. She hoped no one else heard her. “I'm so sorry. It just really hurt.”

“No, don't worry. Believe it or not, this isn't the most dangerous thing I've done. Sorry for hurting you.” He spoke in a soft tone.

Mayday buried her face into the pillow in front of her and groaned, “Talk to me, please. I know that's not how you do things for massages, but I just need to keep my mind occupied. So that doesn't happen again.”

He looked surprised as the noise of his scribbling notes stopped. “Sure. I don't mind, really.”

He tried another massage method, and this time, it didn't cause Mayday to react badly. She can't help but let out a soft, positive groan that she quickly tries to cover up with a dialog. “So! What made you decide to come to Hyper city?”

He beams a stupid grin. “Family history, huh? Sure, I've been practicing my speech when we inevitably get written about in the papers. Our place used to be a lot smaller in America. The family line has always run the place since they first moved there from China. Me and my siblings were going to take over eventually. Though I originally wanted to become a veterinarian. We couldn't afford to run the place and pay for college. Then my sister told us about Hyper city. She heard about it from some online friends. She said we could live here and it'd make more money for the family. I probably should have guessed the other reason she wanted to move here when she chose her new name, Fang. Well, I have to give her credit. We'd probably lose the business if we didn't move here. That's basically it… You're sure this method is comfortable for you?”

Mayday takes a moment to compose herself and make sure she doesn't embarrass herself further. Soon enough, she spoke, “Yes it's fine. It honestly feels similar to when I used to be human getting a massage… Actually, that does make me think of another question. This place seems incredibly caring to therian needs. Is it because of Fang?”

He took a moment to structure his thoughts as he placed several heated stones on her. “Well, It's not like we haven't experienced our own discrimination living in America, and Fang is family. We listened when she explained what she was going through, and we loved her all the same when she started her own transition. It showed us all the accommodations therian aren't given yet… That's it.”

“That's it?” Mayday asked.

“Yep, that's your full body massage done!” He beamed.

“Oh. Right, sorry. Not used to it being over so quickly. But thank you. That was nice.”

“Of course! Customer satisfaction guaranteed! It's kind of like a puzzle if that's not rude to say. Finding the best ways to help each individual customer. I'm pretty good at it. We end up with a lot of therians as regulars. On one hand, it's good to keep this place afloat, but I can't help but be sad that they're probably only coming back because they have nowhere else to go for this sort of thing.”

For once, Lee's smile flips into a drooping frown, but only for a moment. Mayday couldn't help but see him as a buff golden retriever who didn't get his treat. But she wasn't here for sad stories and gave him a face asking if she could get some privacy.

He spoke after a bit. “Ack! You probably want to change. Sorry! I'll leave the room.”

Soon enough, Mayday was alone to dress back up. It really was short, but then again, it really was about as exhausting and pleasant as other massages she's had. Putting on her clothes, she met with the older woman and paid for her and Abi’s time here.

“Thank you for your time.” Mayday said.

“Anytime dear, here's your water.” The woman responded. “It will be a bit before your friend is done. Why don't you visit the tea store next door? It's run by my son.”

Mayday looked at Lee.

“My other son.”

Mayday shrugged. “Tea does sound nice. Thank you. This place seems nice. I'll have to come back here again.”

Mayday waved goodbye, mostly to Lee. He seemed like a really nice guy. Her wave continued as she walked out the parlor and turned to look for the tea shop. It wasn't difficult. The shop was so over decorated that one could be forgiven for not noticing the rest of the building attached to it. Was it just that the tea shop was doing so much better? Or perhaps the family was putting too much money into a passion project. The front was covered in vines with a patio right outside. The tables and door are surrounded by delightfully smelling plants. The large window revealed a massive series of shelves, all containing different spices and fruits for making custom blends. Mayday opened the door to get a better look inside.

The doorbell rang almost exactly the same way as the spa. The only person inside the store was definitely related to Lee. They might actually be twins, but where Lee was buff, tall, and had messy black hair. This person was a short bean pole with hair completely straight. He also wore a scowl so set in that imagining a smile on him was impossible. He turned to look at Mayday. He looked more closely at her than anyone else in the family.

On the table were only two objects besides the register. A framed picture and a morter and pestle. Inside it, Mayday found a color and smell that certainly didn't exist where she came from. It was incredibly calming, though.

“You here to order something?” He spoke in a grumpy tone.

Mayday sighed before putting on her customer face to deal with this sort of energy. “Just some earl grey and chamomile. I'd also take recommendations if you know any other good bedtime teas.”

She checked on the picture on the counter while the owner began sorting through bottles. It was a photo of Lee, what looks like a wolf therian and the tea shop owner. Carved into the wood frame were the names Lei, Fang, and Sheng. Mayday’s attention was placed on the wolf. The crude, almost fake looking fur and segmented lines moving down the body reminded her of something. No one but her would have been able to notice the distinct inaccuracies. The more she looked at it, the less it looked like a wolf. She turned her attention to Sheng.

“Is Fang a mimic?” She said with a sudden realization.

Sheng didn't say anything as he filled the tea packets. But his frown softened a bit. His mouth opened, but it took him a while to say anything.

“Y-yeah. She's gone now.”

“Oh. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to… it's just that we're both…”

“It's fine. It's been a while, and it's not anything bad. Just one day, she stopped being human and became herself. The crossroads, right? She passed it and after a while she disappeared from home. I'm not sure where she is, but she's scrappy. She'll survive. And she's happy out there. That thought keeps me going.”

Mayday started to reach out to comfort him, but she thought better of it and instead paid for her tea.

Eventually, she spoke, “thank you. I'm sure she's happy too. I expect I'll come back here again. Have a good day.”

He waved her out as she left. The bare hint of a smile moved across his face. Mayday made her way to her car and sat back in the driver seat as her untensed body finally caught up to her, and she nearly started to melt. Today, despite everything, was worth it, if only for this trip. Soon enough, her partner joined her.

Abi seemed to notice her partner's relaxation and grew a bit inquisitive as she spoke, “How do you get massaged?”

“I got pulled apart like a licorice.”

“...Huh?”

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[spop-romanticizes-abuse]

Each of the Princess seem to have one key pinpointed flaw/negative attribute. For Glimmer, is that while she’s very determined and committed to defending her loved ones from the horde, that devotion sometimes leads to her not fully thinking about the repercussions. For Perfuma, it’s that she’s always preaching about positivity and love, but she herself displays these types of beliefs very conditionally. For Scorpia, it’s that she’s too forgiving, always making excuses for someone who wouldn’t treat her right under the well meaning but misguided belief that they will change if she doesn’t leave them. For Frosta and Mermista it’s that have put up these walls due to all the stress that comes with becoming orphans and rulers at such young ages, and this prevents them from truly being their best selves, and in Frosta’s case, being able to enjoy life and be a kid.

There was a lot of potential for character development here. While Glimmer and Scorpia got it (Temporarily), it seems that the writers were not really interested in an arc for Perfuma, Mermista, and Frosta. Perfuma’s toxic positivity is never called out nor does she grow beyond it. Mermista starts the show an emo bitch, and ends the show still an emo bitch. Frosta suddenly becomes reckless and wild, any composure she had in her debut thrown out the window with zero in between. Having half of the Princess be one-dimensional stereotypes with little personality beyond them is a pretty big flaw when the show is literally named “She Ra AND the PRINCESSES OF POWER”

you're right. it seems like the writers tried to make the princesses flawed characters but they forgot to give them any depth or characterization beyond that flaw.

it would have been interesting to see perfuma learn that toxic positivity is just counterproductive and learn how to treat people *cough*ENTRAPTA*cough* with respect.

or to see mermista abandon her don't-care attitude after her kingdom got conquered and actually do something to help her people instead of being like "there's no more ice cream so i guess i'll join in a meaningless fight or whatever". like?? girl your people, or whatever's left of them, are probably displaced, homeless and injured. why don't you help them find shelter and treatment instead of singing a fucking sea shanty?

frosta had a lot of potential because i personally really liked her initial characterization. she was the only princess who seemed to take her role seriously, despite being the youngest. there could have been an interesting arc here, with the other princesses learning from her and frosta slowly learning to let loose and act her age. but no, instead we get a knockoff toph with none of toph's depth or complexity.

i remember seeing somewhere that nate called it "she-ra and the princesses of power" because he wants to prioritize each princess equally and promote girl power. i really don't understand how the show ended up like this, if that was the intention.

[hero-next-door]

Defending Nathan Prescott

(From Every Accusation)

All fact proven & common sense theory

No bullshit.

I suck at grammar. Deal with it.

I've replayed the game far too many times to gather this. I read into everything and even read into and WATCHED people who have suffered the same mental illness and situations Nathan has been in.

What I'll be covering:

Illness, rib breaking, dead animals, bdsm, Chloes pic, Rachel, gun on campus, Kate, Pompidou, Jefferson, wealth and his father.

And dont even THINK about skipping ahead!

Everything here is tied into one another. Read from start to finish. You're on this post to understand, right? Or to argue? Im not here to argue so, bye.

Lets start from the top...

Nathans downfall was caused by society and all who failed him. He's driven by hatred of others who don't understand him, and the game purposly wrote him off that way. They want players to hate him from what sides of the stories we've experienced. They gave this character controversial hobbies and a cynical bully attitude to really keep you suspecting him and not guessing Jefferson. The game isn't about Nathan. It's about Max. We learn so much about Max and everyone close to her. The tears they shed, the pains they've endorsed. Same with Chloe and Rachel's story. My heart goes out to all of them. We don't get to see that with other characters. Therefore, we don't care for them...or that's the games' intentions. We don't know the ins and outs of Nathan. Only what the game shows us, which are all negative. So, of course, disliking Nathan is only reasonable.

Mental Illness

We start with mental illness. He has Psychosis. Lots of proof, but i'm assuming you've seen it all already. Like, do people know what Psychosis is? Do they REALLY know what it is? Because this ALONE changes everything. And not Psychopathy ..Psychosis. Two different things, pookie. Psychopathy is the one where part of the brain is missing or disturbed. THEY'RE the ones that don't have empathy. Psychosis is different. Anybody can get it. This illness can take your empathy and awareness away, then bring it all back after the harm is done, leaving you to process that. Schizo and Bipolar are also all quite a handful to deal with too. Loud Noises/downgrading voices in your head SO LOUD that people will do anything to calm them. (Dont be shy, youtube: "28- Psychotic Episode" by Collège d'Alma) The feeling of loosing your mind is something I notice a lot of haters dont empathize on especially if they killed or hurt sombody. The brain slips into a state so disconnected that interviews with recovering patients I've seen describe it as confusing and scary and dont recall saying the stories they told and actions they did others. Imagine not being able to remember the hurtful things you've said and done. Imagine being told you killed somebody... with your own hands? And you can hardly remember what happened. Like... how would you react? Think about it. Anybody can get psychosis with enough trauma or a kick in the noggin. Some people who were interviewed that had psychosis said that they found relief when getting high or drunk. Little did they know the symptoms could bounce back up to 5x during withdrawal. But they were so desperate to get rid of the voices that they abused the drugs. Like....wow the game really did their research to create such a complicated character. Anyway, moving on.

Edit: After further research, he certainly had bipolar disorder first. Then it went left untreated, therefore sunk him to worse mental state of many other illnesses. Drugs only made things much, much worse. Bipolar disorder can cause schizo and schizo to lead to psychosis. 🙄Jesus Nathan quit hogging all the illnesses.

Now, let's break down everything else...

Shooting Chloe

Just rewatch it. Aims gun, Chloe pushes him, it tightens grip, ACCIDENTLY shoots her, immediately drops gun and gets really scared of he's done, checking to see if she's alive! If you specifically rewatch the ending of Lis1 when Chloe gets shot, they extend his reaction. He goes back and forth, checking her body. If he wanted to kill her, you check pulse and then run. Not sticking around crying about it. There's your empathy you're all saying he doesn't have. Other times where he could have shown more empathy ties with his Psychosis. Some people with the illness said that the voices loudly in their head will convince them that everyone around you is your enemy. Everyone is after you. It can twist your brain to feel anger and fear towards others. Nathan is always hung up on how everyone is using him and trying to control him. Which people ..DO use him. So now he's convinced that everyone is. He's not choosing to feel this way. He just needs psychiatric help.

Breaking Ribs

In Before The Storm, his entire demeanor is completely different than the Lis 1. He's more cowardly and not loud and aggressive. We'll be mentioning his creepy "pervy" binder later. Nathan isn't violent until the end IF you let Nathan get bullied and push his life in a negative direction. Sure, it's not Chloe's responsibility, but this is the game's way of showing you his downfall. We need to remember the game hides scenes and expect you to make up what happened behind the scenes. He broke Samantha's ribs over ..what? She's always so desperate to defend Nathan and even gets upset with Chloe when she doesn't help. So, if you tell her the wrong option to pressure kindness into Nathan, it results in him breaking ribs. How, though? Haters immediately hop online to say cause he's a mean and abusive non-empathic nut head. Are you sure he didn't just push her away, and her clumsiness just fell over? This took place after the play...so he possibly...pushed her off... 😰 She did say she was clumsy. You don't think she would have tried to hug or touch him in any way. Ok ok...calm down... Let's take a step back.. You get this "breaking ribs," ending from letting Nathan get bullied and embarrass himself during the play that his father pressured him about! Adding a little "..fuck you.." to the audience. Showing his start to his villain career and the start of him hating everyone, and you tell Samantha to go hug him!? This is the start of his mental spiral if you let things play out this way. But hurting her with intention? No. Lets tie this in with the other endings to their relationship. You get the clumsy ending. She hurts herself differently, and Nathan is with her in the hospital. Saying how he feels bad that she got hurt. (empathy bell) And they continue yo talk about her photo or whatever. Tie this with the rib one, tie this with the Chloe getting shot incident, and tie this with his mental illness. Come on, do i gotta spell it out for you.. Hurting someone is not what he attends to do. Like he quotes in his voice mail. (Speaking of that voice mail, empathy bell.) He does get angry at Samantha and hurts her, and we as players dont know the full story. But what was playing in his head seconds before and the entirety of the game that led up to this IS the reason why he accidentally hurts her. His anger from the entire game was built up and, unfortunately, released on her. Whatever happened, breaking her ribs was not on his to-do list! And then we have.. The good ending. He sits beside her, smiling.

Oh, wait! He's a little psycho with no human emotion? Psychosis has all parts of the brain attached, pookie. For most cases, It can be cured and helped. I can get it. YOU can get it. He has human emotions when he is at his very rare peaceful moments like with this good ending, when with Victoria ig and other scenes we tend to forget. Because painting him as the villain was the games goal. Jefferson was the plot twist.

Daddy Issues, Smug Talk, and a Gun on campus

Simple guys. Simple. You represent this school. You represent our name. This is a legacy. You will not embarrass me. This isn't about you or your problems!

Sure, YOU wouldn't crumble under that pressure, but Nathan sure did. Sure, child abuse isn't an excuse to "kill" people. But is it the child's fault? Sean-beanbag prescott should be arrested for not taking his boy to the asylum. Instead, he argues with a doctor!? Goofy, bro. But so many people are fueled with anger towards Nathan instead. It's whatever. Prescott, literally being his name, was already a red flag to other characters and chose to hate and bully him over it. Drew hated for what his FATHER did. Nathan did ..what again? Notice how that "rich Malfoy talk" wasn't really present in Before The Storm. Sure he tried to burn Drew with a family financial situation insult but the "Im rich, my father owns everything, I got a lawyer, money this and that" wasn't in his character in the Before the Storm. I believe being a prescott wasn't really in his future goals, and he wasn't ever really passionate about it. It's all in the annoyance in his tone with his father before the play. Lis1 he uses it so often to show that he's the boss and in control. He is influenced by representation for his family/school, wealth, intimidation, and of course hatred and believing everyone hates him. In his mind, everyone is against him, after him, and wants to use him. Again, he doesn't choose to think this way. Let me explain my last sentence clearly, though. Imagine being surrounded by a ton of people. All their attention is on you. They hate who you are. They talk about you. You have a defensless stomach sinking feeling and scared because all these people surrounding you are looking at you and all your insecurities and laughing at you. Well, obviouslysome of that is not going on in reality. But to Nathan, that IS his reality, and he has no control over it. Anyways I shouldn't have to keep explaining mental illness and how it stresses the brain. The bottom line is that his status and waving a gun around is what he thinks keep others out of his head. He can barely throw a punch. He had to use his head on warren, and did you catch when Max hit him in that scene? The dude was literally holding onto his face like he'd been battered. Like she did NOT hit that hard lmao. He's weak. He's always been the same tiny Nathan from before the storm. Just now, he uses masks for intimidation to stop his bullies, and anyone he thinks is "after him." He never meant to use a gun on anybody, just a threat. During the second scene where warren reunited a head butt with Nathan.. If you pull off warren, he barely even aims the gun when he runs away towards his room. Cowardly. He feels that he has to, to protect himself. He also uses his father as a threat, but clearly, that never worked. Also, I noticed him crying when you let Warren get crazy on him? Dudes apologizing and sobing? Guess that's not his first rodeo, rip.

Dead Animals

There is no proof he hurt animals. That's not really like him. He does have a list of illnesses, but Psychopathy isn't one of them. Y'all can keep yappin, but it's not. Clearly NOT one of them. He could have hurt an animal during an unaware episode, but there will not be any awareness behind it. Anyways, there are plenty of artists that do the same thing. Nathan is very passionate about photography and protraying solitary but not in the same way Jefferson does. Jefferson certainly uses that manipulation, but we'll get to that later. There are artists that like to shine on death in a positive light and in sorrow. There's also beauty in anatomy. It's not my cup of tea, but someone close to me can name me all kinds of gross organs and would be down to disect any animal. Yuck. But to them.. its fascinating, and they are the greatest people in my life. In love and in empathy. (NOT comparing my pookie to Nathan, PAUSE.) In anatomy theres Education and surprise. Death is also a theme and style too. Skulls and gore, super "rad" fukin "knarly."

BDSM Skip to (●) next part if needed

Ok.. so he's a little frisky. Y'all need to remember this is a fictional game first, okay? Lol Anyway, I can't defend him much here, but I got something. Firstly, the game WANTS you to suspect Nathan. Can't keep his room pretty and pink. They have to make it freaky and spooky. They paint Nathan as the villian for you to only focus on him as a suspect. So that everyones jaws are dropped with Jefferson twirls in.

Anyway...defending BDSM? This can bring trauma to those who have experienced it negatively or view it negatively. So skip to the Frank defense or read more if you want.

Bdsm relationships are very controversial. Some people see it as unhealthy, abusive, and sick. But if you have talked to or listened to other people within these relationships, they state that its completely consensual, safe, harmless, a breach of deep trust with their partners, and simply a fetish or kink The goal is to have fun at your limit..not pass the limit. There are twisted people who have broken that barrier and made it not fun and abusive. That's where I can't argue. If you feel that way towards the topic, I completely empathize with you.

Nathan has shown in his other photos a black and white theme of solitary. And you can tell that he might have taken those bdsm photos himself. As the quality is almost like the Pompidou photo. Everyone blends him taking bdsm photos with his angry behavior and "non empathic" demeanor. But this is where I loop back to Before The Storm hugging-my-binder Nathan. It's shown that in one of his endings, he took photos of Samantha. Obviously, NOT bdsm photos. His binder was a school project. But Samantha obviously consented, and Nathan was passionate enough to show her. He sees them as art. Naked girls have been models for sculptures and paintings. Its beauty. That's IF she was naked in some way in those photos. Which I still doubt. School project. Im sure the photos were gentle and strange and misunderstood, and Drew was just in his bully era. His reaction would have been a lot more eye-opening if he had a face full of tits or straps. Nathan begged for his binder back and even nervously reacted, showing he had love for his work and 'took time with it' (as he quotes when Drew throws it). I bring this up here to show that the women in his photos were indeed given consent, and if hes passionate about depicting his art, hurting them wouldn't be on his agenda. As we all learned today that hurting people was never his intentions until drugs and illness met with pressure and intimidation clouds his brain.

I read up on other artists that painted things similar. In their paintings, they expressed dread, vulnerability, feeling traped, and ..feeling used. If Nathan did find the images he took arousing, then why would he hang them up like everything else in his room like art? I believe that they're depicted in an artful way and in its black and white shading brings a sad darkness. If it's anything like the painters I mentioned, maybe Nathan has a deep level of empathy we don't understand.

●Frank and Pompidou

I didn't even know he took a picture of Franks hurt dog in the road because you little freaks threw his treat in the street!? This will also tie in to chloes pic, but we'll get to that. Frank first, as it's pretty simple. Nathan runs some system with Frank. And it's pretty obvious it's the same thing Drew was doing in Before the Storm. Nathan clearly doesn't like it as he finds it controlling, but getting his hands on drugs is a great way to forget his flaws and calm his illness symptoms. Which only created a loop of his symptoms worsening, as talked about before. His illness is very active towards the end of Before the Storm. You can tell by his huge character difference that drugs only made it worse.

Pompidou is a good dog, but just remember he's not the one who hurt him. This ties in with what we explained in the dead animal phase. The Imagine is black and white. It's a strange art most people don't understand. Man, I don't even understand it. But these people aren't heartless, and they're simply expressing pain. Or.. he took it for the same reason he took Chloes pic. To feel that he's in control, thinking this will help his mental reality of thinking everyone can use him, as explained earlier. But i doubt it. One is in color, and Pompidou is not. One is misguided, and one is "art."

Jefferson, Rachel, Kate, Chloes pic

If i see one more person throw him in the same trash bin as Jefferson, im going to puke. Anyway, I've twisted my head around this story so many times, begging to see the bigger picture. No pun attended. Jefferson was pulling the strings all along ..you know that, right? If Nathan was never there, Jefferson would have still done his disgusting projects. He certainly brought Victoria over without Nathan's usage. He didn't need Nathan, Nathan just made it easier cause he can easily be manipulated. Making Nathan do it all so the consequences will fall on him. Jefferson is smart and knows the right words to say. Nathan is missing the kindness of a father figure. All he has to do is play with his feelings. Nathan falls too easily to kindness. He felt the kindness of Samantha during the good ending, and He felt the kindness from Victoria.. but Victoria toxic bully nature wasn't helping. The bottom line is Jefferson easily manipulates him and understands his mental reality and uses that against him. Adding thoughts into Nathans head. Jefferson learned to use Nathan's illness to his advantage. Nathan trusted Jefferson as did everyone in that school. Why on earth would Jefferson wrong him? He looked up to him, so when Jefferson slowly brought him into his plans of drugging girls, Nathan thought that it was all ..moral. In reality, you and I know obviously that's not okay, but to Nathan (and his severe illness), he trusted Jefferson was doing no wrong. We don't understand the mental strain he was under. Manipulation goes a long way. Heres how he did it. He probably said things like 'We are the same Nathan, this is art just like yours.' It starts small, Nathan gets him the drugs. Then he pulls him in, and Nathan starts drugging the girls for me. Start driving them here. Start helping me inside the dark room. Start helping me inject my victims. Jefferson had so much power over him. He was connected with his father. He can threaten his grade, his representation, and his future in art. He knew all the right things to say and do. He knew how his head worked. Clog him up with drugs, and keep him quiet. Heal his missing father needs and demand him for your needs. Does this not make Nathan a victim, too?

Then ...the Rachel incident happened. Nathan was NOT mentally aware of what he's done. The excited "Rachel!" When he saw Max at the diner clearly shows that he truly expected her to pull up. This mixes with the symptoms we've discussed. He only remembers bits and pieces as obviously it was beyond traumatizing. Sending him in an insane spiral and the infamous psychosis drawing. (Don't be afraid, google psychosis drawings. Damn. Just imagine you recovered from psychosis and laying eyes on that and not remembering you drew that..ugh...I'd cry.) Someone with Psychopathy wouldnt feel traumatized from such events, debunking the fact everyone thinks Nathan has Psychopathy. He doesn't have Psychopathy, he has psychosis. Moving on. Jefferson was certainly angry with him and drugged Nathan himself after the incident, which really helped Nathan to forget what he's done. But Jefferson's anger and not talking to him tore him apart. His emotional attachment clearly wasn't having it. The note he wrote Jefferson in desperate attempt to bring him back after ruining Jefferson plans goes to show just how much he wants that sense of being cared for. If only it was someone else that wasnt Jefferson ..or his dad can do is fucking job too.

Alcohol was certainly a great method of forgetting what he did. So then comes Chloes' interaction with him. We know the story. He did not SA her, I can say that right here and now. Nothing like that was behind this. You can tell by the way Chloe presented the story to Max. There wasn't an uncomfortable tone to her story. She didn't seem traumatized but more shocked, and "it was pretty crazy." She also wasn't drugged for that long. She woke up very soon, fully clothed. What obviously happened is that Nathan used this to feel in control like the mentioned way above. Drugs and Psychosis is no jokes. Who knows what hell is playing in his mind, but I unfortunately believe that this was to try to win back Jefferson. He had been angry at him and ignoring him, and even tho he hates drugging, his confusion and drunk state led him to this. He's cowardly, and his mind is slipping and tries to do what he thinks is right for him. He's misguided and leads down the wrong path.

Nathan did not SA Kate! Kate story breaks my heart into a million pieces, but if she was SA-ed, it wasn't Nathan. After everything I said above, you can tell that that isn't in his character. But here I want to bring up the voicemail. Nathan claims multiple times that he never wanted to hurt anybody, implying that he felt forced to do harm. Something he DID NOT want to do. Why on earth would anybody have felt forced to SA somebody!? I'm not saying Kate WASN'T SA-ed as I can only assume maybe the boys she was shown with in the video did something or Jefferson. Victoria was Kates bully!!! Nathan wanted to be liked by Victoria and was influenced by her nature. He's desperate for attention and kindness. Victoria did far more to hurt Kate and her reason as to why was shit. You go THAT FAR to one up your photography game. Girl, bye. She spread that video, and she still has empathy, too? Her regretting everything? Did she reallyy regret it? Or did she want to make herself look good for her representation? She showed regret via text message in Before The Storm, too? She doesn't have a mental illness, but the game gave her an act of forgiveness and used her as a victim so the audience would sympathize with her. Goes to show you the game controls what they want you to feel. If they were to do that with Nathan..would opinons be different? Taking us into his mind and how he sees the world around him. They could have..but didnt. Well.. We have the voicemail, but obviously, that didn't stop the haters. It's unfortunate. But the game gave me just enough little clues for me to shine light on in this post. They put so much into his character but never showed the audience the truth.

Conclusion

What we've learned today is that Nathan isn't the villain you think. He's been manipulated, used, and needs mental help, but im sure my old Nathan-defending friends have said this time and time again. Im here to add something....

It's been PROVEN that he's capable of all human emotions. You just refuse to believe it because you're mistaking his illness and claiming all of this was intentional. Psychosis can be temporary. It's like a hand that steals your common sense, feelings, empathy, and sympathy, and you're only left with acting on pure chaos and negative or fearful emotions. After long treatment, your sense of reality returns, your feelings, your empathy, your sympathy.. And all you have now is guilt and regret and self blame that you hurt somebody. If you let Nathan kill Chloe, he is arrested. He had doctors aware of his illness and would have been charged with illness in mind. Forcing the treatment he needed ages ago. By the time Lis 2 came out... I wonder how he's taking it all in? What he did to everyone, what he did to Rachel.

He was written off to die, be locked up, and blamed. Unfortunately, he was caught in the crossfires of the harm of our favorite characters. If he was born in a different family and away from Jeff, he would have never hurt anybody. Matter a fact, he would never have suffered with his listed mental illnesses.

This goes out to all real accidental murder cases. There will always be a great divide in opinions. I hate comparing fictional games with real life, but I find it crazy that we call others nonempathtic when they aren't empathic themselves. It's like the word "accidental" is worthless.

Its always a debate..

Do we feel bad for the lives lost and their families

or

Do we feel bad for the mental crumble of the one who never meant to kill and how their familes have to deal with that.

Are they worthy to walk this earth? Are they worthy to see the daylight again? Are they still human, too? Should they die, too? Is redemption possible?

Who knows. Peoples opinions won't change unless they themselves fall onto the opposing team. If they were to suffer the chaos of accidentally murdering someone or the grief of losing someone from an accidental murder.

Red Nathan, the first Nathan we all experienced from Lis1. Damaged and doomed. Used and mentally obstructed. It's unfortunate things ended this way.

Blue Nathan, Appears in Before the slStorm and Max's alternate timeline. He is clean and hasn't touched drugs. He had not been involved in crimes or violence yet. In this alternate timeline, he has been somehow saved and kept away from mental destruction and Jefferson. We will never really know what drove Nathan towards this peaceful path, but I assumed that it was the kindness of Max that led him in the right direction. (Max somehow changed Victoria, too. With her demeanor being so gentle. I really am curious about the whole back story of that timeline... I think about it alot)