#but also a little exited because technically when we have more space I could totally try that?!?

[comfortabletextiles]

I dreamt that I had a little stall/booth(??) were I sold plant dyed yarn on a wool fair and I kind of want to make that a reality, the kitchen is small and the free time is also small, and the whole flat is small so the storage space is not there :'(

Color fading batts, sets of yarns to knit a gradient, multicolor rolags. Roving 😭😭😭

Dye sets with pre mordanted fiber or to mordant yourself!!

Sets with all the yarn you need to knitt a beautiful lace shawl in a nice gradient (pattern inkluded)

Maybe to get extra, a little place where costumers can choose their own fiber content and color to be turned into batts

[mythicamagic]

“Call it a truce”

(For the prompt if you’d like)

They'd crossed paths eight times now inside the godforsaken maze. Naraku had placed them under some sort of spell- Kagome wasn’t totally sure if her friends were also somewhere inside. It had all happened way too quickly. One second she’d been fighting alongside her comrades- the next, waking up inside a bizarre hellscape.

Sadly the only person she’d seen thus far was Sesshoumaru of all demons. When they’d first bumped into each other- blue and gold had narrowed- both quickly turning in the opposite directions.

Gradually, however, time wore on. A continuous mist obscured every corner of the black maze, its towering walls strangled by twisting, thorny vines. Red skies hung overhead, a barrier likely preventing Sesshoumaru from flying upwards, otherwise he would've escaped by now.

Kagome had just one arrow and one weathered bow. No food, and no water. Just the clothes on her back and strung out nerves, wits starting to fray at the edges. Her footsteps sounded too loud in the empty space. The mist kept rolling, making her paranoid- imagining salivating demons and evil spirits haunting her steps.

Am I going to die in here?

Gritting blunt teeth, Kagome let out a frustrated noise- wrapping her hands around the nearest thorny vines and letting reiki burst free from her fingertips. Maybe she could just blast her way through the wall. Pink light glowed like a signal flare, shimmering and giving her a brief taste of renewed hope.

“It will not work.”

She frowned, registering Sesshoumaru’s acerbic tone. Just as he’d said, when her holy light died, the thorns remained.

Kagome glanced over her shoulder, finding him closer than expected. She shifted warily to maintain some distance. They’d refrained from talking so far during their encounters in the maze. This was unexpected. And worrying. If Sesshoumaru was out of options, things were dire.

“Flying is a no go, I’m guessing?"

He stiffly nodded in response, head tilting back to gaze hatefully at the high walls. Kagome shivered, wrapping both arms around herself. “Damn it. I have no idea what to do. I can sense Naraku’s youki but it's everywhere so there's no chance of pinpointing him. It’s soaked into the air like gasoline."

"I am also unable to locate the wretch."

Kagome blinked, glad he was reciprocating conversation.

"We're locked in a spell or under a curse, I’ve got no doubt about that. I just don’t know if these are our real bodies or not…”

Were they trapped somewhere mentally? Caged like birds?

Sesshoumaru levelled a look down to her hands, gesturing with a claw. “The cuts do not hurt?”

Kagome blinked, flexing her fingers. She hadn’t even realised they’d been pricked by the thorns. “N-no.”

“Then it appears he has either somehow trapped us within a space that has absorbed our conscious minds or put us in an area that dulls the senses. Perhaps a keeper box of some kind," Sesshoumaru said easily, as though he did this all the time.

Kagome’s heart pumped at a dizzying speed. Keeper box. She'd been in one of those before. The face of sage Tokajin came to mind. “Crap,” she whispered.

"Unpleasant memories, miko?" a lofty, entertained tone brushed her hearing.

Kagome sneered half-heartedly, "it's nothing."

Sesshoumaru's eyes glowed, smiling. As if he could see right through her. "Hn."

“We gotta get out of here," she said dismissively. "Since this is Naraku we’re dealing with- I doubt just finding the centre of this maze will let us get outta here and break the curse, and knowing him there’s no exit.”

“Hn, and yet I can think of nothing else after trying everything."

Kagome gave him a sweeping glance over, swallowing. She hadn’t seen him since he’d nearly killed Kohaku- still thankful he’d released the mind controlled boy.

They were still technically enemies despite a shared goal of killing Naraku.

Steeling herself, Kagome took a breath. She then boldly stuck a hand out towards him. “Let’s work together. We haven’t got much choice. Call it a truce.”

Silence.

Kagome chanced a look at his face.

Sesshoumaru merely stared at the offered hand unblinkingly. Kagome giggled weakly. “A-ah, you shake it. It’s an ‘across the seas’ type of gesture to show we’re sealing a deal.”

Interest livened his animalistic gaze. He briefly seemed considering, perhaps wondering about her origins. Long fingers unfurled from his palm, clasping her hand strongly. The shock of skin to skin contact and sharp claws nearly jerked Kagome enough to rip her hand free. She forced herself to stay still, feeling a surge of something shoot down to her toes.

He was warmer than expected. It surprised her that callouses roughened his palm, likely from years of swordplay. She'd always figured he was too inhumanly perfect to have such a thing. Sesshoumaru blinked slowly, remaining locked in a stare. For a moment, Kagome dumbly admired his pretty white lashes.

She caught herself staring and briskly shook his hand, prying her fingers free before gesturing to several pathways, cheeks red. “S-so which way?”

Mokomoko’s soft fur caressed the bare flesh of her lower thigh in passing as Sesshoumaru stepped towards one. “I have yet to take this path. Stay close, troublesome miko," he threw over one shoulder. "I will not slow down for you.”

“Please don’t. You walk slow enough as it is,” Kagome griped, following.

---

Demons began littering the narrow, claustrophobic spaces within the maze. Kagome had to duck and weave around Sesshoumaru as he killed them with acid or fierce swipes of his claws. It forced them to get up close and personal, occasionally plastering miko and Daiyoukai together.

His scent wafted into her unwilling nose more than once- masculine and sharp, reminding her of thunderstorms. Since she couldn’t use her reiki with much finesse yet and the close quarters put her archery skills at a disadvantage, Kagome tried her best to be helpful.

“Behind you!” she’d yell, ducking under his arm before grasping his sleeve. “On your right!”

Sesshoumaru dispatched enemies without argument or complaint, calmly moving on once they lay dead.

As time dragged on, Kagome’s legs began to ache from the endless walking. Her stomach grumbled near constantly. Her limbs and body were becoming weak.

She didn’t breathe a word about it- though noticed Sesshoumaru’s lingering attention. Turning a corner, she stumbled, an arm catching her around the waist, steadying.

Kagome’s belly fluttered, and she quickly straightened. “Thanks.”

“Hn.”

They book occasional breaks, but respite was near impossible with the continued droves of enemies. After what she could only guess to be at least 17 hours- though it felt like days, they finally arrived at the centre of the maze. Exhausted, Kagome kept a hand buried within mokomoko to keep her upright, leaning against the stability he offered. They’d shed a lot of restraint about touch around hour 9 of their journey.

As first suspected however, there was nothing in the middle of the maze. Just a plain space with a single fountain. They hadn’t come across a single exit either.

Kagome’s knees quivered a little, “d-do you have a plan B?” she rasped, throat dry. What she wouldn’t give for some water.

Sesshoumaru stared grimly ahead, slowly lowering his calm attention to her. If she could hazard a guess, he was likely thinking he could survive. He’d weather the storm of hunger and dehydration much longer than she.

“I suspect the reason Naraku lingers is because he predicted I would kill you,” his velvety voice was completely at odds with his words.

Kagome stiffened, leaning slightly away from the warmth of luxurious furs. “...That would make sense,” the admission slipped out, “he’s a sadistic prick. He’s probably watching us right now, getting his kicks from seeing us struggle.”

Sesshoumaru turned to her, lifting a clawed hand. The sharp points gleamed. They could tear through her supple flesh and bones with ease. Kagome had witnessed it enough times to know.

Rendered completely exhausted though, she had little room left for fear. She stared at him blandly, falling quiet.

He arched a brow, resting those deadly claws against her flushed skin, gradually unfurling to hold her neck. “You will not resist?”

“I’ve never taken you to be the kinda guy who would take the easy way out,” Kagome muttered, raising her chin. “Am I wrong?”

Was it her imagination or did his pupils dilate a touch?

She shivered, feeling the pads of his fingers drag against the nape of her delicate neck, thumb resting at her throat.

“No,” he rumbled softly, gripping tighter and drawing her in closer. “But since we have an audience, miko,” his voice lowered, “let us give him a show.”

Blue eyes widened- seconds before lips crashed to hers. Kagome gasped- and a sinuous tongue took advantage, shoving inside to plunder her mouth. Sensation slammed into her gut. Suddenly she was immediately aware of everything. The warmth of his palm, the dry rub of his callouses along her neck. The goosebumps rising on her flesh. How his tongue skilfully played, twined and slid against her own- and she found herself responding.

His lips were hot and quick across her own, firm and yielding and then parting to meet her tongue with his anew. Kagome’s breath shuddered. Her entire body thrummed. She found herself touching the fine, soft locks of silver hair behind his ear, strands running through her fingers like water. Their mouths broke apart, and Kagome could only give a breathy gasp as he sucked along the bent arch of her throat.

“Behind me, to the left,” he whispered, kissing her flesh bruisingly hard.

“I know,” she panted.

It happened quickly. They moved in sync- Kagome reaching for her bow and nocking her single arrow while Sesshoumaru turned, angling her to fire at the faint ripple in the sky they’d both sensed the second they’d kissed.

While the blazing firework of pure holy energy streaked into the air, the Daiyoukai followed its progress, flying with Kagome in tow. She held on around his shoulders, praying with all her might it would break through.

Her arrow pierced the demonic barrier- shattering the weak spot immediately. Sesshoumaru broke through, leaving the world of red skies and unsolvable mazes behind.

---

Kagome sucked in a gasping, strangled breath, shooting upright.

“Kagome! She’s awake, guys!”

Putting a hand to her head, she looked to her side- only to be greeted with the sight of Sesshoumaru sitting up from the ground, both of them having been sprawled out. Around them, battle raged. Inuyasha was fighting diligently, swiping madly at continuous rounds of regenerating tentacles.

Miroku and Sango seemed to be on guard duty, having been defending their unconscious bodies. Shippo immediately buried his face in Kagome’s arm, holding onto her. “You’ve been asleep for a good hour after you were both hit by that attack! Naraku kept trying to kill you! Ah- I’m so glad you’re safe!”

Kagome comforted him with a few gentle pats upon his head, murmuring softly. The shifting of weight caught her attention, and she watched as Sesshoumaru stood. He sneered softly to himself, “I do not know why you saw fit to protect this one, but I did not need your aid, humans.”

“I told ya!” Inuyasha shouted from somewhere in the distance.

“We couldn’t let you be absorbed by Naraku or he’d be even more formidable,” Sango griped.

“What my friends mean to say is- you’re welcome, Lord Sesshoumaru,” Miroku amiably smoothed over the situation.

Sesshoumaru grunted, securing his swords in place. Then, slowly, his eyes lowered.

Kagome exhaled a shuddering breath. Her heart slammed against her ribcage, cheeks burning with all the voracity of a fever, chest light and heavy all at once. Sesshoumaru’s gaze fell to the subtle parting of her mouth, before looking her in the eye for just one more lingering moment. He then moved out from behind the protection Sango and Miroku offered, racing headfirst into battle.

He just did it to break the spell, that’s all.

He’d kissed her to help flush out a weak spot from their enemy, which had opened from Naraku's shock- having lost brief control of the spell. Thinking about it as anything more than that would be foolish.

Shaking herself, Kagome followed suit. She grabbed her bow and nocked an arrow, pushing down all confused thoughts and sensations that Sesshoumaru’s wicked mouth had elicited- entering the fray alongside her friends.

[weasleysjoke]

Taste Me

Spencer Reid x Fem!Reader

Summary:

The BAU team goes out to a bar one night after a long week working on a case. As they start drinking, the team‘s conversation takes them to talk about tattoos and piercings. They all discover a secret tattoo of Y/N. Not just that but also, they will discover a piercing of certain pretty boy which will give the last push for Y/N to act on her feelings for him.

Words: 2.372

Warnings: Smut, oral (fem receiving), penetration without condom.

A/N: This is my first time writting smut and I tried my best. Also, English is not my first nor second language so I’m sorry if there are grammar errors.

Thanks for reading.

“Are y’all in for some drinks?” Morgan asked as everybody was packing for the day.

We had a case on New York that took us an intense week to solve and we had to do some paperwork that took us till 7 p.m. to finish at headquarters. On our way back in the plane we all had realized that we needed to release some tensions and Garcia suggested to go for a drink, or a few.

“Sure, I’m driving if anybody wants to go in my car.” I said while closing my purse and going towards the lift.

“I’m coming with you, Y/N.” Spencer said while running towards the open lift with Derek, Penelope and Emily following right after him.

“We could take two cars and if we get too drunk, we can grab a cab or something to get back home.” Emily announce excitedly.

“You sound ready for those drinks.” Penelope laughed.

“I need some shots.” Emily said as we exited the lift and go towards our cars.

“I’m so in for those shots.” I admitted and everybody murmured ‘same’.

Emily and Spencer got into my car while Penelope went with Morgan. JJ and Hotch went to their homes and Rossi had a date with a mysterious woman, so that left the 5 of us.

The ride to the bar lasted 10 minutes and in no time, we were sitting on a table taking our second shot. Spencer sat by my side on one booth and on the other one was Emily, Morgan and Penelope.

‘I would never let anybody voluntarily stick a needle in me. Hard pass.’ Said Emily loudly. When she was drunk she tended to shout without even realizing but we were all used to it.

Pen laughed and turned to me. ‘So, Y/N, have you ever wanted a tattoo?’ she asked while sipping on her Cosmo.

‘Uhm… I’ve never been into big tattoos, but I already have a small one.’ I admitted blushing a little. Nobody knew about my small tattoo that was high on my thigh, only a couple of people have seen it because well… I had been naked with them.

Spencer made a surprised sound and turned completely towards me. ‘I didn’t know that, Y/N.’ He frowned, which was totally understandable.

Spence and I were really close and we told each other everything. We became best friends over two years ago when I started at the bureau. Everybody always thought we had something because we were always in each other’s company. In reality, I was totally head over hills for him, but I knew he didn’t feel the same way.

I was so friend zoned.

It all happened after a case involving kids being kidnapped and sexually abused. It was really hard for me and Spencer knew so he was there for me after everything. He helped me getting my life back together, cleaning my house and helping me with the groceries. That’s when I knew it was more than a friendship, at least for me.

‘What do you have tattooed?’ Spence asked curiously. All the attention of the table was on me and I couldn’t help but blush even more.

‘It’s… kinda private. I haven’t told to anyone.’ I shrugged and sipped on my drink. ‘What about you, Spence? Ever thought of getting a tattoo?’ I ask to take the attention away from me and although Reid’s look told me that he would ask me again about that he toke the attention.

‘Even if I like tattoos, I wouldn’t know what to tattoo on me.’

‘And what about a piercing? You would look hot with an ear pierced.’ Before I could stop me, I blurted my first thought out loud without even realizing.

Fuck.

Spencer blushed hard and everybody at the table laughed and then went on to have their own conversation, leaving us to talk with a little privacy.

‘I never thought about that, but I do have a piercing.’ This time, it was me who turned my whole body towards him confused.

‘Where?’ I asked and his whole body language changed. He tensed and his blush went even harder.

As he toke a deep breath, he turned and neared his head to mine till there were just a few centimeters of distance between us. With his eyes fixed on mine he said with the most confidence voice I have ever heard ‘Wouldn’t you like to know.’ And then he smirked.

HE. FUCKING. SMIRKED.

His eyes went to my open mouth for a second and proceed to lick his lips, then turned to the deep conversation that the other three were into.

My panties were ruined with just 6 words. Holy fuck. And his voice… I’ve never heard it go that deep.

As the night carried on, he seemed to let everything slide and continue as nothing had ever happened, but my mind couldn’t forget what had just happened. Did that smirk meant what I think it meant? Did he have a piercing like… down there?

‘Guys, I think I’m gonna leave.’ I wasn’t even drunk anymore after that conversation with Reid so I would take my car.

As I said goodbye to everybody, I see Spencer grabbing his stuff too.

‘Do you mind taking me home?’

How the fuck could I say no to my best friend? “I’m sorry, I need to be as far from you as possible because I’m going to jump your bones if I do.”

‘Sure.’ I smiled forcefully.

As I’m driving towards his house, I sense Spence’s body turning to face me.

‘So, what and where do you have that tattoo?’ He smirked. ‘I told you about my piercing, it’s only fair you tell me about that tattoo.’

I hated him so fucking much right now.

‘Technically, you did not tell me where you have it. You just smirked.’

‘I can show it to you if you show me your tattoo.’ He proposed as I parked in front of his building.

I licked my lips and turned my body towards him, his face surprisingly close to mine. His eyes were fixed on my lips and my head was starting to hurt of how many thoughts per second I was having.

‘Fuck it.’ I said throwing my lips into his. One of his hands went directly to the back of my neck closing the space between us even more. As I gasped to the feeling of his full lips on mine, his tongue slid into my mouth and his other hand grabbed my ass. I couldn’t help but moan out loud after he bitted strongly my lower lip.

‘Wanna come inside?’ He asked breathlessly.

‘Hell yes.’

·

I don’t know how me made it into his apartment without touching each other but as he closed the door, he pushed me against it. His lips went directly into my neck and he dragged his teeth and tongue. I run my hands through his hair and pulling it strongly, earning a groan from him.

He liked that.

Noted.

His lips kept sliding down till they were almost on the coup of my bra.

‘I’m gonna strip you and look for the tattoo that has been on my head all fucking night. I had to hide a boner under the table because of it.’ I moaned at his words.

He broke my shirt open and undid my bra with just one hand.

‘Mhmm… So fucking beautiful.’ Said while looking at my boobs. He pinched one of my nipples watching it react at his touch and he smirked.

‘Fuck, Spencer. Do something.’

As those words left my lips, his mouth attacked one of my nipples while his hand was working on the other one. ‘I’m gonna mark you so bad, you’ll know to who these two belong to.’ I bitted my lip trying to not moan that loud, remembering we still were against his apartment door and it wasn’t difficult for somebody to hear us.

As if he knew what I was thinking, he left my now marked by hickies tits and kissed me gently on my lips. ‘Let’s go to my room.’ I nodded not trusting my voice to come out.

When we reached his bed, I was going to sit down but he stopped me grabbing me from my waist.

‘I still haven’t finished stripping you, baby.’

‘Then what are you waiting for?’ I arched my eyebrow with some newfound confidence. He smirked and kneeled in front of me taking my pants and my black panties with him. His eyes went to my thigh, next to my core.

Taste me.

That’s what was written with ink on my skin.

‘Fuck, Y/N. It’s even better than I thought.” He groaned. “But, now I have to obey, right?” He smirked while looking me into my eyes and launching towards the lips of my pussy without waiting for an answer.

Shit.

His tongue went directly to my clitoris making forms around it while a finger entered me.

‘You are so wet. I think my cock would slip just right through you.’

He felt how I was struggling to keep enough strength on my legs to stand there. He grabbed the bag of one leg and putting it on his shoulder. This new position let him dig deeper into my core and introduced the second finger into me.

‘Spencer, I’m so close. Stop.’ I plead but he didn’t listen.

‘I want to fully taste you, baby. Give in.’ With those words, his tongue lapping my clitoris and his third finger entering me, I came undone. I tried to lower my last scream by biting my lip so hard it surprised me that it didn’t bleed, but it didn’t work.

‘Fuck Spence.’ He kept me riding through my orgasm and then, he stopped. Instead of cleaning the rest of my juices that remained on his lips, he stood up and went directly to my upper set of lips.

‘I want you to taste yourself. You taste like heaven, Y/N.’ His lips went crashed into mines and his tongue didn’t wait to introduce herself again to my mouth. The sweetness on his lips made me moan against his lips.

‘Now, it’s your turn, Pretty Boy.’ I said while pushing him into his bed. He still was fully dressed, which I couldn’t comprehend. ‘You have so many clothes on.’

‘Then… fix it.’ He wettened his lips.

I toke his shirt off and launched towards his neck while sitting on his lap with both my thighs surrounding his legs. His louds groans made me know that he liked the attention that I was giving to his neck and I bitted his earlobe.

‘Holy shit. You need to stop that, or I will come into my pants. You don’t know how long I’ve waited for this.’ I smirked and left his neck to look into his marvelous brown eyes.

‘What are we waiting for, then?’ I replied and he launched to my lips again. My hands travelled through his abdomen and unbuckled his belt and unbuttoned his pants. I separated from his lips earning a groan from his part and I laughed. ‘I have to take this out of the way, Pretty Boy.’

He tossed me into the bed, and I laid on my back while watching him taking his pants off and then his boxers.

‘Reid, what the fuck?’ I said without thinking. His erected member stood there, larger than the average. But I wasn’t shocked just because of his size but for the piece of metal that stood at the tip of his cock. ‘That must have hurt.’ I approached it and take it in my hand.

He moaned through his lips at the touch of my hand. ‘It hurt like a motherfucker, but it was worth it. Not for personal pleasure…’ His body laying on top of mine while his hands stopped at both sides of my head keeping his full weight to fall onto me. ‘but for the woman’s pleasure.’ His words made me moan and I was soaking wet again. His eyes softened for a second and his hand cupped my cheek. ‘You don’t know how fucking beautiful you look flushed because you’re hot and needy.’

‘Spencer, I need you. Now.’ Without arguing his cock entered me without hesitation and slipped right through into the deepness of my core. We both moaned at the same time.

‘You feel so fucking good, Y/N. You feel so tight around me.’ His voice coming out like a growl and we stopped for a few seconds to get me adjusted to his size. Instead of pulling out he went even deeper and his piercing met my G-spot.

‘Oh my fucking god.’ I screamed and Spence chuckled.

He pulled his cock completely out and messed with his piercing circling my clitoris.

‘Once I start, I’m gonna be rough, baby. And I won’t last long.’

‘Reid, fuck me already.’

He didn’t wait a second more and pushed himself onto me again and kept going deep and hard. His mouth went to bite and suck my tits and I was a moaning mess again. My hand went to my clitoris to help me get ready as his breathe became heavier.

‘I’m ready, Spence. Come inside me.’ I said between sharp breathes.

After those words, he lifted his head and closed his eyes as I felt his warm cum filling me up. Slowing down, his hand went where mine was and helped me come right after him. The second orgasm left me breathless and my whole body trembled.

He left his whole weight fall on me while his breathe was getting steady again. He lifted himself and laid by my side.

‘That was fucking amazing, Y/N.”

I turned to look into his eyes and smiled.

‘I also have been waiting for this to happen for a long time, Spence.’

His eyes softened and his hand started caressing my hair, that I’m sure looked like a mess.

‘Well, I’m sure that now that I had a taste of you, I can’t live without having it every day.’

‘That won’t be a problem, sir.’ I answered while going for his lips.

This is heaven right here.

[gureishi]

Happy birthday, beloved Bee! 

My dear friend @agent-bee​—I can’t tell you how happy and honored I am to know you. I’m constantly in awe of you: you’re talented and smart and funny and strong and thoughtful and sweet and also extremely hot, and I’m so lucky to be your friend. Here is a little gift for you, babe ❤️

By midday, you are exhausted.

Everyone has been demanding your attention all at once today; you’ve hardly gotten a second to yourself. You make your way across the small office and sigh as you sink into your chair. It’s not that you’re not capable of all of it—you are; it’s not that you’re not appreciated for your efforts—you are.

It’s just that it’s a whole lot all at once and you’d sort of hoped that today would feel special.

Idly, you check your phone, which has been steadily buzzing throughout the day as messages trickle in from your friends and family. Each one gives you a little burst of joy—but they don’t solve the problem, which is that you’re here and you’re tired and you just need to stretch your legs or maybe have a nap or a glass of wine.

Your phone lights up as soon as you look at it—and you smile the way you always do when you see his name. He’s been strangely quiet all day; you’ve wondered if he went back to sleep after seeing you off this morning. He does that sometimes.

You unlock your phone—and have to put a hand over your mouth to stop from laughing. What has he done?

It’s not the first time he’s gotten into your phone remotely and messed with things, but this is a new one: all of your apps, it seems, have been replaced by little cats. Cats in birthday hats.

There’s a fluffy white cat in a bright pink hat. There’s a big black cat covered in streamers. There are pictures of your cats, which you suppose he’s just taken today.

You know you’ve got a message from him, but you can’t figure out how to open it—when you tap the tabby cat that used to be your messages button, it wiggles and purrs. Suddenly—seemingly of its own accord—text appears across your screen.

“Come outside, meow,” it says. It’s pretty obvious who it’s from.

“Uh,” you say, standing abruptly. “I’ll be right back.”

If your phone were working normally, maybe you’d scold him. You’re at work, after all—and you really do need your phone for more than just cats—and—

And it’s so cute you could cry. You cross the office and your coworkers wave vaguely at you—everyone’s busy today. You can feel your heart hammering against your ribs as you push open the door to the street, wondering—hoping, praying—that he’ll be waiting for you.

You step out onto the curb and—oh.

One of his cars—a sleek silver Porsche—is parked right in front of your building. But it’s different.

And there’s a familiar face framed by messy red hair beaming at you through the window.

“Welcome to my spaceship, sunshine,” he says.

“Saeyoung.” You’re not sure whether to laugh or roll your eyes or kiss him. “Saeyoung, what did you do to your car?”

He winks, leans across the front seat, and opens the passenger side door for you.

You shake your head. The car looks crazy.

On the outside, he’s mounted bright red fins and a matching nose cone. The seats inside are covered in red leather and there’s a glowing control panel hung next to the steering wheel, which—knowing him—probably works. His face is lit up by hundreds of little glowing LEDs. The thing is definitely not meant to be driven on the road.

He pouts when you linger on the curb.

“Don’t you trust me?” he whines.

You do. Of course you do.

“Are we gonna blast off or something?” you ask, slipping into the front seat and inhaling deeply. You love the smell of his cars: leather and gasoline and him.

“In a sense,” he says, reaching over the console to squeeze your hand.

You watch as Saeyoung starts the engine. He always gets this intense look on his face when he drives, like he’s really about to catapult you both into space; he pulls out onto the road and you can’t resist leaning over and kissing the spot where his neck meets his jaw.

He giggles nervously, merging into traffic.

“Um,” he says. “You’re distracting your captain, honey.”

You laugh and lay a hand on his thigh, smiling when he squirms. He turns off the main street and you know he’s heading for the highway—and you should stop him, because you’re really not supposed to disappear from work for so long, but he’s got a glimmer in his eye and the sun is bright through the windshield and you feel lighter than you have all day.

“Baby,” you say, slipping your hand into his jeans pocket and watching his fingers tighten almost imperceptibly on the wheel. “I am technically at work right now.”

He turns to you and his smile is radiant.

“Just a quick trip to space,” he says. “I’ll have you back before they notice you’re gone.”

And it makes no sense, but you don’t doubt him. You lean back in the soft leather seat and feel the engine hum beautifully beneath you. He’s exiting the highway already—turning onto a back road you’ve never seen before. He drives one-handed, reaching for you—and you intertwine your fingers with his and watch curiously as he maneuvers his car across an empty parking lot and up the ramp of what appears to be a loading dock for a warehouse.

“Don’t think I’m doubting you for a second, baby,” you say slowly. “But how legal is this?”

He grins and puts the car in park, and then he presses a button on the car’s “control panel” and the big, industrial door to the dock starts to close behind you.

“Let’s call it medium legal,” he says.

The door shuts with a clang. Saeyoung smiles, winks at you—and then turns off all the lights in the car.

“Oh,” you say. “My god.”

In the total darkness, stars come to life—thousands of tiny ones on the roof and sides of the car. They’re glow-in-the-dark just like the ones on the ceiling of the bedroom you share—but they’re sparklier and somehow more startlingly three-dimensional than those.

They almost look real.

“Welcome to space,” he whispers, tangling a hand in your hair and pulling you close. “I made it for you, sunshine.”

You look into his fiery eyes and want to cry. It’s absurd and impractical and absolutely excessive, just like him—and he’s done it all for you.

“You’re a very good space captain,” you say, knowing your voice sounds strangled and strange. He gives you a glowing smile and then kisses you tenderly, so soft and slow it makes your head spin.

“You wanna know why I did it?” he whispers, his breath tickling your lips. You nod and he brushes your hair off your face, looking at you with a sort of heart-stopping intensity. “I know this is only a teeny tiny sliver of the universe,” he says. “But I wanted to give it to you.”

You kiss him again and he shivers.

“Why, baby?”

“Because,” he says. “Because every morning I wake up and you’re still curled up in my arms the way you were when we fell asleep, and I listen to your heart and feel the universe expand a little bit.”

You know what he means.

“And why else?” you purr. It’s too easy to tease him when you’re in the dark like this—and you run a hand up his thigh and watch his pretty eyes go wide.

“Because your birthday is my favorite day and you deserve to spend it in zero gravity,” he whispers. You can see by the light of the glow-in-the-dark stars that his cheeks are pink; you nibble his ear and he hisses.

“Is that all?”

“Because you’re my Bee,” he says, his voice shaky now, his hands tugging hopelessly at your hair. “And I love you.”

You already know.

“I love you too, baby,” you whisper. You kiss him more deeply this time and his whole body seems to come to life—his skin is hot to the touch and you can practically feel him buzzing.

“Don’t you, uh…” he stammers, trying to focus on you. “Didn’t you—you know—work?”

Your heart pounds so loud you can hear it echoing. His makeshift rocket ship feels solid and steady beneath you and his eyes are as bright as the stars.

“It can wait,” you say.

“Yeah,” he whispers, his breath hot on your neck, his hands falling to your waist. “Today’s special, after all.”

[perpetuallyfive]

Schnee Week, Day 3: Weiss Ships

So I don’t actually have a finished fic or even a chapter to share today because until my sudden burst of creativity on Monday evening, I have been primarily focused on the next three chapters of Dishonored. (Roughly 31k words written so far across two chapters. It’s coming!) But one little thing I’ve been planning for a long time is on the back-burner and I thought I’d share an excerpt.

Way back at the end of 2019, pretty shortly after we met, @catalyswitch showed me a sketch she was working on of a Schneekos modern day AU and asked me for my thoughts. 

This is the beginning of the fic I’ve been wanting to write since then.

                                                               *

Winter drives her (and her things) to campus, but Weiss moves in on her own. There’s some kind of important meeting — lots of covert messages on a blackberry, which is a thing these kinds of people still use — and Winter can’t delay any longer. It’s not like Weiss expected anything else.

Maintaining low expectations for others and high ones for yourself are sort of the Schnee motto. It saves a lot of disappointment in life, in general.

She decorates her room just fine on her own. Minimalism is another thing she’s grown accustomed to in the mansion mom gave up on renovating in between her fourth and fifth trip to rehab. Call the abandoned projects and clutter in the attic a metaphor for something, if you’re inclined to such dramatics.

Weiss has never had any need for those kinds of abstractions or distractions.

She hangs a single picture on her wall.

Unlike the family portrait that hangs in the dining room, this is casual. While that is carefully composed and well lit, this shows Weiss and Whitley amidst of a mess of wrapping paper, faces lit up with excitement and the soft glow of the lights from their Christmas tree. Winter is in the background, distributing the gifts. Mother sips some unknown liquid from a coffee mug.

Father is nowhere to be found, and the photo was surely taken by Klein. That’s clear enough in Weiss’s smile, which is confident and unrestrained.

Her posture is straight. Her eyes are bright.

It’s as if her past self was looking right out into the future, smiling at the person she is today.

First day of orientation, and she’s ready for anything.

                                                              *

Correction: the one thing Weiss Schnee was completely unprepared for is her roommate.

The girl is a whirlwind of chaotic confusion, and so is the rest of her family. At least, Weiss has to assume this mess of (noisy) people is somehow this girl’s family. None of them look alike. The two loudest (by only a small margin) are blond with smiles as big as their biceps.

None of them have really stopped talking since they burst into the room and began hanging all kinds of things from the walls on the other side of the room.

“What—” Weiss begins, but she has no idea where the question is going.

What’s there to ask?

“Yes, hello!” the person who is probably Weiss’s roommate — but looks much too young for it — shouts from just beneath the mattress she’s managed to get stuck underneath. One of the blondes lifts it off her, and she darts back out, flailing. “Hi! I am your roommate, Ruby. If that’s what your what was.” She stands at attention, hands on her hips, as if that justifies any part of this. “I’m the what’s what, if you were wondering.”

Weiss barely has time to catch her breath. She’s not sure this even counts as caught. “… what?”

“Exactly!”

The two blondes exchange looks and both laugh, but Weiss doesn’t think it’s very funny.

“You must be Weiss,” the man who technically looks old enough to be someone’s father says, holding out his hand to shake.

The other blonde keeps her arms folder over her chest. “Weiss Schnee, wasn’t it?”

She says it in the same way that everyone says it. As in, are you one of those Schnees, as in they know her father. As in they’ve turned on the news sometime in the past eight years. Everyone knows the Schnee family name; father hasn’t exactly been under the radar.

But all she says is, “That’s right,” while shaking the man’s hand. Firmly.

Always shake firmly. Father taught all of them that.

“Your father sure has his hands in a lot of pies.”

“He doesn’t, actually.”

“Doesn’t—”

“—know the first thing about cooking.” Another early lesson: know when to make your exit. Weiss stands abruptly, her stack of books completely forgotten on the bed. “Well I,” she begins, but she’s already made a fatal error.

Because the new roommate is noticing the books. “Oh, wow, are you majoring in political science?” She’s suddenly much too close to Weiss’s personal space, though for what reason is unclear. It’s just happening, and Weiss is along for the ride. “That’s so cool! I guess it makes sense, huh, because of your dad and everything.”

There’s the elephant in the room. The very large (very republican) elephant. “I chose my major for myself, actually.” It was not an easy or a quiet conversation, and certainly not one Weiss cares to repeat to these total strangers. “As I was just going to say, I have somewhere to be.” Somewhere far away from here, that is. Literally anywhere else. “It was lovely to meet all of you,” Weiss continues, not bothering to acknowledge the fact that she has learned absolutely none of their names.

                                                              *

The first place Weiss finds to hide that she doesn’t think her roommate will find her is the coffee shop. It’s clear from her demeanor that the child — very obviously too young to be at college, so perhaps some kind of prodigy which would explain the hyper active behavior and poor socialization — is in no need of further caffeination.

Coffee shops are also a useful place to disappear. It’s easy to blend in to a crowd of people all looking closer at their cups than they are each other.

Except of course for the table of jocks nearby. Weiss has absolutely nothing in common with any of them.

Even if some of them are aesthetically appealing.

                                                              *

On day three of avoiding her room and her roommate, Weiss discovers that said roommate — her name is Ruby, a fact Weiss intends to immediately forget again — does in fact require even further caffeination.

If she cared about this particular annoyance at all, she might be concerned about the state of her heart.

As it is, she’s more concerned with her own social standing being seen in public with an infant who only stops talking long enough to consume even more coffee.

“So anyway,” Ruby gasps, practically gargling her last gulp down. “What about you, are you excited for your first day of classes?”

Since Ruby is studying something else — what that is, Weiss can’t recall, although she’s probably repeated it more than once — and will come nowhere even close to a political science course, the answer is very obviously yes. Weiss tempers her excitement, somewhat, just for the sake of kindness. 

“I’m overjoyed,” she says, almost neutrally.

“Yeah, me too.”

The jocks are there again today. They’re always there. Maybe the field they train on is nearby? Maybe they come here to study?

No, that doesn’t seem likely.

They’re all laughing (loudly) at something a boy with blue hair just said. Hopefully it was about something other than fashion decisions.

“Weiss?” Ruby says, as though she’s just repeating herself after perhaps even several attempts to get Weiss’s attention.

But all Weiss will offer in return is vague non-commitment. “Hm?”

“I was asking if you know them.” She points at the table that Weiss was very covertly staking out and Weiss slaps her hand back down. But Ruby just repeats the gesture with her other hand. “I only ask because you stare at Pyrrha a lot, and I was wondering if you wanted me to introduce you.”

“What, I do not,” Weiss answers without having any idea who Ruby’s even referring to.

At least.

Unless she means the redhead, because then yes. Weiss has been watching her off and on for the past three days, but surely so has everyone else in the cafe. They all have eyes after all.

Even if Weiss’s are currently bugging right out of her skull as Ruby jumps out of her seat. She can see what’s coming, but it’s already too late. “Pyrrha!” Ruby calls, her voice a clanging shriek.

Weiss recoils so hard from the sound that her eyes temporarily close. It’s such sweet relief safe in this darkness that she is reluctant to open them.

When she does, the redhead is there, at her table.

Her smile is confident but carefully contained. Her posture is relaxed and casual. Her hair is pulled back in a loose ponytail, with curls carefully framing her face.

“Oh,” Weiss breathes, before she can think better of it, before she can think at all. “Oh, hi.”

Years later, Weiss will wish she could remember what Pyrrha said next. But she doesn’t. She only remembers the way that smile pushed firmly into her chest, opening up an empty cavern of want that she had never known existed before.

The space inside, the empty need, felt almost limitless. It should have been awful.

But the one thing Weiss can remember from that exact moment is how much she was smiling.

[sanstropfremir]

it’s the episode 8 review!!! how many episodes is this show supposed to even be?

the stages from the episode feel like such a grab bag.... i still don’t understand why they didn’t put all the skill stages together, and then did the normal two episodes of the third round. i guess it makes sense that they didn’t want to have six stages in one episode and then three in the other two, but eh. 

feeling kinda average on these as a whole, there’s a lot of good elements going on here but probably because of my own preferences (i don’t listen to ballads or blackpink) none of them really hit all the buttons. hopefully this will be a shorter review because i'm only going to do a quick rundown of the vocal stages; i dont really have that much to say about them because they are (intentionally) not very stage picture focused. i'll do the normal stage breakdowns for the other two though, even though i won’t rank them because we still need to see the other four!

vocal stages

sf9 + tbz + ikon

not much to say here other than wow, that’s RED. glad to see some more specific use of spotlighting and i always love when they light things on fire. i do wish they had fill lit with a brighter amber so we could actually get a bit more detail on their faces, especially because there’s six of them. i appreciated the simple blocking and only using one of the ‘stages,’ this stage didn’t need to be anything complicated and it wasn’t. i don’t love spinning camera shots because they make me a bit ill, and i'll forgive the constant cutting because it's a vocal stage and there isn’t any other real movement that we should be paying attention to. not my favourite of the two, i found it visually a bit too repetitive and complex at the same time. always love a crushed velvet suit though, so bonus points for that.

atz + skz + btob

i was braced for the worst and i dont know what kind of miracle happened but it was listenable! like i said, not a ballad fan but i could listen to eunkwang all day. i love a good plinth for a ballad stage, they’re one of my favourite devices in kpop design and i especially love it with a good groundlevel fog. glad they kept it black and white for the first half of the stage, it was in line with the blooming flower projections, and it made a very clear colour arc. they kept the visuals clean and simple with very little blocking at all, a very smart choice for this stage. not sure why they decided it would be the chanel time stage, which i disapprove of because i don’t like chanel, but i do love eunkwang’s shirt with the cameo buttons and the massive turnback cuffs, very 17th and also 19th century. i know they never do it because they dont read on stage normally but yes absolutely more thin chain pendant chokers on men, thank you! i also liked that there was emphasis on a more traditional lighting scheme, there weren't any crazy concert effects, just some good directional beam spotlights and the rear stacks in the climax. 

third round stages

ikon

costume

the first look for them is definitely my fabourite of theirs so far. there’s enough variation in the jackets that the base layer of tshirt and jeans don’t look too repetitive. and i do love a good statement jacket. my favourite is probably donghyuk’s because i'm a sucker for fringe always.

i don’t like the backup dancers costumes, but given the way i’ve reacted to every other all black outfit for this entire show i don’t think anyone was surprised about that. these ones particularly irk me because they’re very matte; there's pretty much no texture or pattern differentials to define the shape of the limb, which makes them disappear when theyre all grouped together (mostly on the women). i think they probably were intending to make a statement/emphasis on the hands because of the sleeve cutoff point, but there were so many arm movements that were just totally missed because the costumes were just black voids. most egregious parts are here, with the female dancers up center. i can barely tell what the movements are unless i’m paying specific attention to them because there's so many black shapes. maybe it was the point for it to be an indiscernable writhing mass, but it wasn’t my vibe.

don’t love this styling on lisa. i hate peeptoe shoes in general but peeptoe boots are the worst offenders. they make you look like you have duck feet, no matter who you are. especially with a flat cutout like that. a universally unflattering shoe, and i would know, i worked in a shoe store for two years. this whole look is just pg-13 rihanna cfda awards 2014 and really nobody should try to run up against rihanna.

also i have to mention this because it’s actually really bothering me, but lisa’s backup dancers are serving very allgemeine ss looks and i do not like it. generally when we see ‘military’ uniforms in kpop theyre usually modelled off older styles (pre wwii) of western uniforms that usually aren’t in circulation, and they’re usually non-matching and embellished in ways that are deliberately not military. i know logically that it's a budget constraint+they’re backup dancers+current trend thing but the clean lines with only button detailing and the all black and that specific harness shape? it hit my brain the wrong way. i mean, technically those uniforms are designer because hugo boss did them, but the uh..... girlboss move didn’t land for me.

this is my PERSONAL OPINION please for the love of all that is holy do not come yelling at me about this. it’s all under a cut, you chose to read the post.

set

very glad to see some busy kitschy sets! this is a massive build, since there’s essentially three full sets here: the temple, the jungle, and the first tiny room. and all of them are very heavily decorated. 

the starting room is just five walls on casters (wheels), that have been set into place with the cameraman and ikon inside at the start, and then once they exit the walls can be easily struck and rolled off set. simple, smart, and convenient!

i missed it the first couple times around but glitching out the projections in the temple for a split second was a neat little trick.

the silver and polygonal nature of the tiger/panther/cat(?) head is a bit disconnected from the gold and the aesthetic of the rest of the stage for me. the difference between the original room set and the jungle tracks, but the cat head isnt able to make the same leap for me. i'm also not a fan of mixing metals so maybe that’s why.

the tiger/panther/cat(?) head is a fun physical transitional device; i'm a big fan of tunnels and small transitory spaces like that and if they’re well dressed like this one they do so much for establishing place and mood.

i'm very sure i’ve seen this style of polygonal animal head with laser eyes before....i cannot for the life of me remember where or for what. i know wang yibo did a panther stage for sdc3 that had a human formation panther with green laser eyes, i wonder if i'm just crossing wires.

OH nevermind it’s because it looks like the witcher medallion. wires were definitely crossed.

lighting

using purple/teal lighting for the jungle was a smart choice because purple is the direct compliment to the gold and also is much more flattering on humans than green. green is one of the colours that humans can see the most variations in, so when something is green when it's not supposed to be (like human skin), we register that very quickly and associate it with unease and sickness. you know how old fluorescent lights have that greenish tinge that kinda makes you feel ill? it's your cone cells and your brain recognizing that you’re looking at things that are not supposed to be green.

very clean colour arc, i love to see it.

sound

it’s.....fine? i don’t listen to blackpink and have no opinions on their music other than it's not my type. i dont really know what the thematic connection to the visuals is, which is not strictly necessary in a lot of cases, but i don’t particularly care for the conflation of ‘savage’ and a (presumably) precolonial religion that’s assembled from stereotypes of real colonized cultures. you can come at me about how ‘it's not that deep’ all you want but i am here specifically doing an in depth analysis, and i gotta point it out. i'm not here to pass judgement on you if you didn’t realize or don’t care or whatever, i'm just saying that it's important to consume content with a critical eye. what you do with that information is your own personal choice, but you should be aware of it at least. 

staging

they took a big risk eating popcorn right before singing, and we definitely got some residual mouth noises of them trying to clean out their teeth. eating on stage is difficult in general because you have to make sure it's not going to dry out the performers mouths, because they dont have access to water and it takes WAY longer to chew and swallow something than you would expect. there’s a LOT of testing that goes into making stage food and guaranteed it’s not made out of what it looks like or what its supposed to be; i worked on a production of amadeus were we did literal weeks of testing amalgams of different desserts to make sure that salieri could actually eat the ones onstage without totally drying him out, because fun fact about that show, salieri doesnt leave stage like, at all, so there was no way to get him water. poor bloke.

i thought the blocking of this was really smart. the long take from the ‘normal’ room and transition into the jungle was super slick, even if that weird circle the camera did while pointed up at the ceiling was unnecessary and pointless.

bobby’s ‘acting’ was extremely funny and that’s the only way people are allowed to act surprised now. edvard munsch scream style only.

the pacing is a bit off and this time it wasn’t mnet’s editing that fucked it up. as fun as it is to have a feature, clearly she wasn’t allowed within proximity of the rest of them for covid or other yg related reasons, but it made for some extremely long transitions, especially the one out of her verse. it kills the momentum of the stage in that beat, even though they manage to pick it up after.

this is a very simple little narrative arc that’s easy to follow and doesn’t require any extra explaining. which is exactly the kind of arc that groups should be doing at this stage in the game. this is a good formic step up for ikon!

i thought the turning off of the monitor at the end was fun and a good callback to them watching the videos at the beginning of the stage. a nice clean way to make it circular.

skz

costume

FINALLY something different on the skz boys! these were mostly fun eboy looks for them, and i like it on the basis that it's not the same as the last set of costumes.

bang chan out there with his thigh OUT and a (fake) bridge piercing? LOVE to see it. great work.

(copy-paste every thing i’ve said about backup dancers wearing all black)

the backup dancers that were dressed as bystanders/extras were great! they should have kept that with all of them because it would have given a little more shape to the choreography and establishing what function the backup dancers were supposed to have.

set

that is meant to be a giant rice cooker on stage, right? i think so because it's a god’s menu mashup? if that's not a rice cooker i have NO idea what its supposed to be

there’s only two large setpieces here, which was a smart way to go. i LOVE the subway car doubling as the truck, even if the truck itself makes no narrative sense. what a fun way to double the use of a single big piece. you’ll be able to see the way it moves in the full cam but it splits down the centre and there entrance doors at the back with attached stairs that bang chan and the dancers use to climb up.

lighting

not a whole lot happening here. i like the cool white leds in the subway car and the contrast with the more warm tones of the outside, which is good atmospheric establishment, but i can't discern a visible arc. 

not a fan of these projections; they’re in line with what we’ve seen from skz so far, which is: extremely literal. i dont think they’re that distracting, but they’re not to my personal taste. they really should have kept the comic panel theme that they did for changbin’s first verse, because that was inventive and fun to watch! and a great atmospheric indicator! i would love to see a bit more experimental projection use but it's hard when they don’t have a lot of time to build these stages and the lighting team is definitely working remotely.

sound

i love that they made the choice to do some actual talking, it’s a good gimmick and it works for the deadpool/comic book/fourth wall break theme, but australian accents take me the fuck out i am so sorry i cannot listen to either felix or bang chan speak english without laughing uncontrollably. 

i don’t like this arrangement but i'm not surprised about that, given my predilections. i'm also tired of skz shouting STRAY KIDS in every performance they do. i know on music shows it's probably more relevant and yea producers tags are a thing but we’ve been watching this show for nearly two months at this point. we know who you are, you can stop yelling. be more creative with it!

staging

my biggest issue with this stage is that it doesn’t have a payoff. there is an arc here: they’re stealing the truck, but why are they stealing the truck? who are they stealing it from? who are they fighting against? it's kind of important in a stage where the theme is stealing and fighting someone that you tell us who that is. in both of ateez’s previous stages were they were both stealing (rhythm ta) and fighting (wonderland), they made sure to show us who the villain was. there needs to be tension for a big blowup climax to actually pay off. whether it be against a a balloon arm kraken or a fascist government. this stage could have reached that next step if they’d just done a little bit more exposition. 

there were a lot of fun choreo moments here, and this is probably my favourite choreo of theirs so far. i thought the whole first bit in the subway car was excellent and a very fun play on those viral videos that we used to see roll around every so often of dancers doing routines in subway cars.

did it need the guns? not in the slightest. more on this point later. i could talk more about weapons and weight here, but i’ve done that several times already.

like with the tbz game of thrones stages, theyre relying a little too much on the audience's preconceptions of the source material in order to carry the theme. the guns are there because deadpool likes guns, but they don’t actually use the guns for anything? the most we get of the stealing segment is felix and the safe, which admittedly is a great bit with him leaping over and under the ‘laser’ lines (theyre likely led strips). because comic books are by nature procedural and deeply tied to narrative, it's unsatisfying when there’s no tension and no payoff.

HOW did we manage to get two stages that are blackpink covers with remote/tv static gimmick and durags? i know the slot machine of kpop tropes is not very big but surely the probability of hitting triple sevens on this one was pretty low. i’m pretty meh on both of these stages overall. skz was unsatisfying but i loved the choreo in the subway bit so that bumped it up a little ahead of ikon’s in my personal preferences, but i'm reserving my actual rankings for next week. assuming we get the other four stages next week and they dont do something stupid and only show two. which they very well might. i’ve stopped trying to understand why mnet does things the way that they do. 

as always the ask box is open, drop your comments/questions/personal opinions, i love to hear ‘em! but don’t be rude just because some of this is touchier subject material.

[redbeanboi]

Page Duties

originally uploaded to ao3 on 19/01/10. 

Rating: Teen/Gen.

Pairing: Josuke Higashikata/F!Reader

Summary: Working at the library is pretty straightforward: reshelving materials and media, helping library patrons find books, reuniting lost children with their parents, and last but certainly not least—dealing with the local delinquents.

Beware: Tooth-rotting fluff galore (gross!!), also spoiler: Josuke’s a total dork

Wordcount: 5.2k

You’d been working at the Morioh Public Library for months and memorized the face of every regular patron. New library patrons would enter everyday, and, much to your frustration, you would constantly have to learn new names and new faces. One of them, however, seemed to stand out to you the most.

Josuke Higashikata.

You both went to Budogaoka High School but he probably didn’t know you even existed. He was handsome. Girls swarmed him, boys picked fights with him, and despite every teacher’s disdain towards his getup, they all generally agreed that he was a decent student. You rarely ever saw him in school, and even if you did you’d usually be greeted with the back of his marvelous head of hair. In fact, you can’t remember ever seeing his face before. Had you not been familiar with his embellished uniform or signature hairdo, you probably wouldn’t have recognized him.

He’d only started coming into the library recently; in fact, you were the one who’d given him a library card. At first you were surprised to learn that he didn’t already own one (don’t they give these out to kids when they’re in elementary school?), but considering his reputation for being a delinquent, you couldn’t say you were surprised. Maybe he lost his? Who knows.

Either way, you only remembered the experience because he’d avoided making eye contact with you the entire time, and mumbled a barely audible “thanks” once you handed it to him. When your fingers accidentally brushed the back of his hand he flinched and ducked out of the library, his friend Koichi not far behind. At first his behavior irritated you—he didn’t have to act that disgusted for having to talk to you—but you couldn’t find yourself able to blame him for very long. I mean, how would you feel if some stranger accidentally touched you?

He started coming in regularly after that—two or three times a week—for the past two and a half weeks now. Josuke never went by himself; he was usually accompanied by Koichi, or his other friend Okuyasu. What puzzled you most is the fact that he never bothered to check out materials. What’s the point of getting a library card if you’re just going to sit at a table for a few hours and read manga? Anyone can come in without a library card and sit at the tables—you only need a card if you’re planning on taking materials outside.

***

Okuyasu sat at the far corner of the table, deeply immersed in the new Shounen Jump. They’d been at the library for hours now, and his patience was running thin. When his eyes wandered towards his friend, a vein pulsed at his temple. That does it.

“Josuke, why are we here? The new Shounen Jump is at the Owson in town. I usually buy it from them anyway.”

Josuke didn’t answer. His head rested in his palm and his eyes were starry. A sigh escaped his lips. Okuyasu could barely contain his restlessness. “Are you even listening—”

“Sh.” Josuke held his finger to his lips, his gaze still directed elsewhere. Okuyasu looked on at his friend in disbelief. Did Josuke just hush him? “Just a little longer, alright Okuyasu?”

“It’s friday afternoon,” Okuyasu hissed underneath his breath. He’d lowered his voice now, maybe that would satisfy Josuke. “We’ve been here three times this week already. And we stay here for hours just sitting here doing nothing. Maybe we should actually do our homework here from now on, so at least we have nothing else to do when we get home.”

Realization washed over Josuke’s face. Of course. “Yeah, let’s do that.”

On their way out, they accidentally walked into you—well, Josuke did. Okuyasu, relieved to have finally gotten Josuke to leave, apologized rather brusquely on behalf of his friend. “Sorry about my friend! He’s a little starry eyed right now.”

You waved it off wordlessly, watching with interest as they made their exit. “So...Josuke Higashikata’s got a crush on someone who goes here.”

***

You immediately drop this theory once the next week rolls around, because he’s suddenly decided to actually study at his usual spot. Okuyasu has joined him in his study sessions too. Eventually Koichi comes, his girlfriend Yukako in tow and helps them review. You’re surprised. Mostly because you didn’t think delinquents would really care about their school work but perhaps you were just being judgemental. Maybe he just developed a newfound love for books.

This could explain why he looked longingly at the shelves every so often. One time, you caught him staring in your direction, his mind clearly wandering off. You wondered what he could possibly be thinking about. Eventually he’d take breaks from studying and would circle around the library to stretch his legs. He’d even pass by you two or three times, and would sheepishly return your polite nods. Studying can get uncomfortable, so it only makes sense to want to walk it off, though he seemed to take breaks pretty often. Sometimes every fifteen minutes. How peculiar!

They all began to sit near the children’s section, meaning they could technically talk a little louder than usual, since the children were fairly loud themselves. It also meant that you’d be seeing them pretty often.

Secretly, you dreaded shelving away items in the juvenile section—mostly because there were so many of them. Kids went through books rather quickly, and much to your annoyance, every one of your coworkers left you to shelve all these materials. After all, the kids seemed to listen to you. You were calm, and very difficult to irritate. You also were successful in getting them to calm down. Kids running around? Your calm and quiet voice often got them to settle back into their seats. A quick “be careful there, you’ll get hurt” and the little ones would quickly quiet down and go back to reading. You’d caught Josuke and his gang watching with interest as you dealt with the kids a few times, and the attention made you uncomfortable. You hoped they would quit staring soon.

After another week, Josuke found it hard to hide his crush from his friends. While they noticed Josuke’s strange behavior, it never occurred to them that it was because of his crush on one of the library pages. But it became all too obvious when they’d caught him spacing out, shamelessly peering at you over the edge of his chemistry textbook.

Their cackles were loud enough for you to notice, and you too ended up catching him in the act. Maybe they were making fun of you? You did trip on some building blocks a few seconds ago. You immediately scurried off to the nearby cart and hid behind the shelves, desperate to avoid any more attention or embarrassment.

“Oh, I see Josuke,” Okuyasu cooed, nudging the pompadoured teen.

Josuke playfully nudged Okuyasu back. “What? She’s cute. Think she goes to our school?”

“I think,” Koichi murmured, glancing back and forth from Josuke to you. “I think she might be in my class.”

After some digging and snooping around, they’d found out that you were, in fact, one of Koichi’s classmates. You were extremely polite, had some of the best grades in your class, and even had a close and affectionate relationship with your parents. Okuyasu and Koichi find it amusing that Josuke’s developed such an intense crush on a goody-two-shoes but welcome this unexpected discovery nonetheless. Perhaps you would be a good influence on him.

They all went back to their work, and eventually Koichi and Yukako left. When you finished your shift, you noticed Okuyasu and Josuke were still hunched over their notes, stuck on the same chemistry problem that they were tackling earlier. Although they were strangers, you felt some sense of familiarity with them. After all, they had been coming to the library for five weeks now, and they were often bumping into you. At some point, Josuke had even asked you where some of the Geometry books were.

Maybe you were well acquainted enough to approach them? Although you were definitely lacking in social graces when it came to people over the age of ten, you figured now would be a good time to push yourself. So what if they’re delinquents? You inhaled sharply, and before you knew it you were already making your way towards your classmates. They hadn’t even noticed you peering over their shoulders. A quick “ahem” brought their attention however.  

Josuke jumped when he realized that you snuck up on them. He stared after you in confusion. Okuyasu, on the other hand could barely hide the grin on his face.

“I noticed you’re having trouble with this one problem,” you tapped on the molarity question. “I could help you two if you like. Chemistry is one of my best subjects.”

“Oh? I guess she should help you then, huh Josuke?” Josuke shot a threatening glare towards Okuyasu, but upon remembering that you were still waiting for an answer, he veered his neck the other way to face you.

He flashed a dazzling smile and immediately accepted your help. “We’d appreciate it actually.”

You’d gone through several problems and it seemed they finally understood what you meant. You even worked through an entire chapter with them. Okuyasu immediately caught notice of the time and excused himself, leaving you with Josuke. You awkwardly shuffled your feet.

Ah. So... what exactly happens now? Should you ask about schoolwork again?

“So.” You jumped at the sudden interruption. “Do you have a name?”

You snorted at the question. What a strange way to ask for someone’s name! He’s certainly sillier than he looks. “I-I mean, of course you have a name, I just.. I’d like to actually know it. That way I can thank you properly.”

“It’s y/n.”

“Y/n huh? Thanks for helping out with Chemistry. And, for the library card.”

You nodded and murmured a quick acknowledgement of his thanks. And then silence ensued.

Josuke broke the silence with an awkward cough. “Do you go to Budogaoka High School? I think I would’ve remembered a face like yours.” The quirk in your brow sent him into a panic as he realized what he’d implied. “I-I mean you’re very cute, so—um.” You gave him a few seconds to recover, trying hard not to smile as he shrugged. “Yeah...”

The small smile you gave him in reply was enough to calm him down. “To answer your question, I go to Budogaoka... Class 1-A.”

“Oh that explains it. I’m in 1-B, so it makes sense that I haven’t really seen you around. We’ve never bumped into each other before have we?”

“Actually… we were in the same classes all throughout junior high,” you admittedsheepishly.

“Really?!” Josuke slouched forward and buried his face into his hands.

“It’s really not a big deal! I kind of stick to the walls,” you laughed, patting an awkwardly reassuring hand on his shoulder.

Josuke looked down at you and greeted you with that same infectious smile. “Sorry I kept you here after work…” His voice trailed off, but he continues when his eyes meet yours. “But you really helped us out with reviewing. Do you think you can study with us too? I mean, when you’re not working, obviously.”

His chuckle sent your heart into overdrive. A flash of heat was beginning to burn through your cheeks. Josuke took notice and his lips broke into a goofy smile. “I’ll take that as a yes?”

You nodded your head furiously and turned away, hoping you wouldn’t embarrass yourself any further.

Josuke walked you home afterwards. As it turned out, he was actually a very friendly and kind person. And while he certainly looked the part, Josuke Higashikata was no delinquent. Your conversation was cut short when a tall and handsome man pulled his car over, rolling the window down to tell Josuke that they needed to talk. Josuke asked his new companion to wait for just a few minutes, before walking you to your doorstep.

“Sorry,” he explained. “My nephew’s in town right now so he’ll want to catch up with me.”

“Nephew? He looks older than you.” you peered over his shoulder at the offstandish stranger.

“It’s a long story…” he laughed and waited until you were inside before going back to Jotaro, whose signature stoic expression faded away, revealing the all-knowing smirk on his lips.

“What’re you looking at Jotaro?”

“Gimme a break Josuke.” He tipped his hat to cover his eyes, sighing loud enough for all of Morioh to hear. “And go flirt with girls some other time, I don’t like to be kept waiting.”

A violent red blush spread over his neck and spilled onto his cheeks. “L-let’s... Let’s go home then.”

***

Josuke started coming to the library every day during the week, and you’d even held conversations with him a few times. At first conversation was hard to sustain, given how you didn’t have anything in common, but as it turns out you were wrong about that—you both liked playing video games. In fact, you both exchanged cheats every now and then.

“No way!” you exclaimed. “I had no idea that you could do that on the final boss...”

The smug expression on Josuke’s face coaxed a few giggles from you. He’s so unbelievably silly. The Josuke fanclub at school would never believe that Josuke Higashikata was not the suave delinquent they believed him to be. “Yeah, I couldn’t believe it when I found out either!”

Eventually you had grown comfortable enough to tease him and act silly. Work was dreadful, but seeing Josuke everyday made it exciting. He was a wonderful friend and even better company, especially during your shifts. You were thankful that this awful job made it possible for you to befriend Josuke. He was so kind and thoughtful. Every shift felt excruciatingly long, and you were often running around the library doing tedious work.

Sometimes, other libraries would request certain books and you’d be tasked with finding them. Before you befriended Josuke, this task would take you around an hour to complete; there were just so many books in the library and people often reshelved them incorrectly. Recently, however, all of these books would—oddly enough—suddenly appear in the cart. You could’ve sworn you’d seen them all magically hover around the library mid-air, but that would just be silly.

After a particularly exhausting day at school, you dragged your feet at work and simply felt too taxed to do anything, much less trudge through a 4 hour shift. Josuke certainly noticed the change in your demeanor, and when you were too busy to even greet them and chat for a few minutes, he’d gotten up from his seat, telling his friends he would be taking a break from studying.

It took him several minutes to find you but once he did, he understood why you hadn’t stopped by.

You were standing on the tips of your toes straining to reach the top shelf, large Geography reference book in hand. To be honest, Josuke thinks it’s adorable; you’ve puffed your cheeks in frustration, hair is haphazardly falling into your eyes, and best of all you hadn’t even thought of using the footstool that lay on the ground three feet away from you. He thinks that bringing it over to you would probably be the nicer thing to do, but nice wasn’t exactly what he was going for at the moment.

Hard at work, you’d been trying your hardest to get this heavy book onto the shelf when a calloused hand comes into your view, and when it hovered overhead, you yelped and fell backwards. 

Into Josuke, of course.

“J-Josuke?!”

“Sorry about that,” he hummed softly. “It just looked like you were having trouble… May I…?”

He gestures towards the book in your hands, and your lips part, mouth forming an “o” shape. Josuke came over to help you. You sheepishly relinquish the book, hands accidentally brushing against Josuke’s fingers. It’s just like the time you’d accidentally touched his hand when you’d given him his library card, only this time, he doesn’t flinch or back away. You look up and immediately find yourself lost in those blue eyes. You’ve always thought he was handsome, but now that you’ve gotten a closer look at him you can’t help but smile.

You snap out of these thoughts as soon as he’s finished putting the book away, and mutter a quick word of thanks before walking over to your cart. But you realize he’d placed the book in the wrong spot, and shyly ask him to move it a couple of spots down. Apparently he’d never heard of the Dewey Decimal System, so you give him a quick run through, just to give him an idea of how everything was organized. You realize he may not need your help finding textbooks anymore, but you’re happy to teach him either way.

“And you have to learn all of that?” He asked in astonishment.

“Most people do— I’ve been going here since I was five years old, so I’d like to think I know it pretty well.” You say, eyes gleaming bright.

Josuke can’t help but notice that your movements are a little sluggish today, and when he sees the cart completely covered top to bottom in books, CD’s and cassette tapes, he immediately decides to assist you.

“Josuke,” you started. “I really don’t want to keep you from studying. I know it’s a heavy cart, but I can handle it.”

Josuke shakes his head, pushing the cart at a steady pace. “I needed to take a break from studying anyway.”

He’d never quite understand why you were working here, but he can’t say he can complain; the only reason he was able to befriend you was because of your job.

Of course, you’d never hung out with Josuke and his friends outside of the library. Sometimes you worried whether they truly wanted to hang out with you. Perhaps they just needed help with homework and were nice enough to provide you some company while you worked. But these thoughts immediately flew to the back of your mind whenever you saw them at the library. They were all so kind and friendly. Work really didn’t seem as bad as it used to be.

And that was when when they got you fired.

It was an accident really. And Josuke apologized profusely afterwards.

In reality, it was just like any other day; you were helping the four of them with practice questions in the middle of your shift, and went back to reshelving books as per usual. One of your classmates recently noticed your expanding social circle, and immediately took it upon himself to keep you from associating with hooligans like Josuke Higashikata. He scoured the entire library in search of you and was relieved to find you alone, working.

“Didn’t know you started doing charity work, Y/n.”

You jump at your classmate’s intrusion. “Oh, it’s just you Tooru. Though, I ought to correct you; I’m not volunteering.. I mean I work here, but I get paid next to nothing and my boss is pretty scary, so I suppose you could call it charity work...” Your voice trails off once you realize how awful your job is.

“That’s not what I’m talking about,” He huffed, pointing an accusatory finger towards your friends. “Why would you hang out with people like them ?”

“Them..?” You realize he’s pointing at your new friends, and suddenly get defensive. “You know, Josuke, Okuyasu, Koichi and Yukako are actually really really friendly and kind!” you whispered frantically, hoping your friends couldn’t hear what your classmate was saying.

With that, you turn the other way and push your book cart elsewhere, hoping he would get the message and either apologize or leave you and your friends alone. He does neither of these things, and continues to follow you as you walk away.

“You’ve gotta be kidding me!” he rasped, trying his best to keep up with you. “Did you forget what happened last year? A man was run over by an ambulance last year and they all just “happened to be there.” Don’t you think that’s suspicious?”

You stare at him incredulously, hissing under your breath. “That man was a murderer and their presence that day was probably just a coincidence. They couldn’t have murdered that psycho.”

Tooru brushed it off and insisted you cease any further interaction with them. “Regardless, they attract way too much trouble. You could get into a messy situation if you keep— “

A familiar presence crept behind you. “Is everything alright Y/n?”

“Josuke,” you chirped. When Josuke interrupted, you loosened up almost immediately, realizing then that he’d stopped studying to come to your aid. “Y-You… You need to study for your exam! Let’s go back to the others.”

Tooru doesn’t let Josuke go very easily, however, sidestepping his way into your intended escape route. “Actually, there is a problem. Leave Y/n alone. You’re going to get her into trouble.”

Josuke’s surprised to hear this. In all honesty, he’d been watching you ever since you left their table to go back to work. Your classmate’s sudden appearance caught his attention, and he certainly didn’t like what he was seeing. From his perspective, Tooru was tailing you around the library and getting you flustered. If he hadn’t known any better, he would have guessed that someone was asking you on a date, and harassing you for an answer at that.

Koichi begged him to ignore it, knowing it could cause trouble, but Okuyasu egged him on, warning him that he ought to take his chance right there before someone else asks you out. So here he was.

The boys were at a standoff for quite a few minutes. On the outside both seemed rather calm. Tooru was trying his best to tell Josuke to leave you alone, that he should think of your wellbeing. The lack of cooperation on Josuke’s part pisses him off more than anything though, so he starts to insult you and question your decision making. You never would’ve guessed your classmate would say such things but you’re more worried that Josuke might believe the unbelievable bullshit that’s coming right out of his—

“I think Y/n can make these decisions for herself, so you should scram.” He waves the air in between them, eyes blank and uninterested.

You wonder how he’s remained so calm towards the other boy, because if you were to assess your feelings, “pissed” would be a pretty good word to use. Tooru on the other hand seems pretty pissed at Josuke’s dismissiveness.

Of course, as a last ditch effort, Tooru implores you to simply listen to him. Delinquents are delinquents, he reasoned. Apparently you were above hanging out with “losers like that.” Regardless of whether they were dangerous, you could hang out with much better people than Josuke. You had good grades and people liked you. Why would you need to hang out with losers who sat on the ground outside Owson? It seemed as though he could go on forever, and you wanted him to stop.

Slapping him in the face wouldn’t nearly be enough to tell him off or stand up for your friends but being around Josuke encourages you to exercise self control. Josuke’s probably the most hot headed person you know, and if he can stay calm right now, then how hard could it be for you?

“Tooru sure is an idiot isn’t he, Josuke? All talk and he doesn’t know what he’s talking about—let’s go somewhere else!” you chittered nervously, taking hold of his hand and trying your best to guide him elsewhere. Josuke’s face is beet red at the sudden contact, but you’re too absorbed in your task to even notice.

“Josuke’s got the dumbest haircut the town’s ever seen, and I’m the idiot? What the hell, Y/n!”

You stiffen at the jabs. Josuke could turn into a beast when it came to his hair— you’d never seen it in person, but the stories were almost legendary. All it took to piss him off were a couple of offhand comments. But of all places for this to happen, it just had to be at your job. You quickly let go of his hand and accepted your fate. You were definitely as good as fired now.

One punch. That was all it took to shut him up. He staggered backwards into a nearby shelf and covered his broken, bloody nose with his hands before ducking out of the library. Much to your surprise, Josuke didn’t take it any further. Although the insults certainly rubbed him the wrong way, he held back. Having a big fight at your workplace could get you into trouble, so one punch would have to do. It’s not like anyone saw anyway.

Or so he thought. To your absolute horror, your boss had seen everything. He immediately called you into his office, berating you for flirting with boys on the job and starting a fight in the middle of the library.

You realize that making excuses would only make you look bad, that remaining silent and taking the abuse is better than wasting your breath on your grumpy boss. Besides— if you were going to look at it objectively, you indirectly caused the fight (if you could even call it that) to begin with. While it wasn’t your fault, you still felt guilty. Not towards the library of course; you should have stood up for your friends more. Josuke and his friends didn’t deserve to be spoken of in such a way.

Josuke, Okuyasu, Yukako and Koichi watched as you received the harsh scolding. The walls barely muffled your boss’ yelling, and it wouldn’t surprise you if everyone in the library could hear what was being said. Under any other circumstance you might have felt guilty or ashamed, but you were so fed up with work lately that you were just waiting to be permanently dismissed.

It took nearly every ounce of strength in Josuke’s body to remain where he stood, to leave you be. He nearly barged into the office when the yelling escalated, but Yukako intervened— something about girls not liking boys who stick their noses into other people’s business, and that you weren’t a baby that needed to be shielded from her boss. Josuke agreed but still felt guilty for not being able to apologize on your behalf.

The door swung open and they immediately ceased further discussion. The four of them watched as you subsequently pulled your coat on and exited the building. It takes an additional few seconds for them to realize that one of the librarians has been speaking to them, informing them that just like you, they would be banned from coming to the library again. Koichi is rather distressed about this, and Josuke makes sure to soothe him before running after you.

Unfortunately for him, by the time he’s parted with his friends and exited the library, you are long gone.

***

He searched every square inch of Morioh to look for you. You weren’t at the library (for obvious reasons), he could never quite catch you before you left your house for school, and his swarm of admirers made it nearly impossible to find you at school.

You felt guilty about it, but if he hadn’t spoken to you before you worked at the library, who’s to say that he’d want to keep talking to you after you were fired? And while you hadn’t gone out of your way to avoid him, you still weren’t actively seeking him out.

But Josuke isn’t the kind to give up, so after several long days of looking for you, he is finally met with success.

He’d gone to the rooftop to eat lunch that day. The past few days were discouraging to say the least. You had been fired, thanks in no small part to him. It’s only right that you would be angry with Josuke. The only way he could make it up to you at this point was to apologize.

Although his friends insisted that they eat lunch together, Josuke felt too downtrodden to spend time with anyone at the moment, so he snuck off to the rooftops to eat in solitude. Not the best punishment for the terrible crime he committed against you, but it would have to do for now.

You’re the last person he expects to see there. Part of him wants to sneak up on you the way he used to in the library, but it just doesn’t seem right. So he simply announces his arrival.

“Hey, Y/n... It’s me, Josuke—the idiot who got you fired?”

“Oh, Josuke.” You shuffle your feet a little. “How are you?”

You felt so incredibly guilty for not sticking up for any of your friends. And while it was true that no one hated you at school, people weren’t nearly as kind or welcoming as Koichi, Yukako, Okuyasu or Josuke were. You felt completely happy spending time with them.

But the truth of it was that you’d never hung out with them outside of the library, and they’d never mentioned wanting to hang out with you anywhere else, so now that you were fired, they’d probably lose interest in you.

You’re surprised then, when Josuke apologizes to you.

“I’m really sorry…” He’s sitting next to you now, hunched over his lunchbox. He looked much smaller in this position. “I should have let it go, really... and I shouldn’t care about what people think of my hair, but I do, and now I got you fired and I know you’re mad at me—”

“Are you kidding me?”

He flinched.

You playfully nudge him in the shoulder. “Josuke,” you start with a giggle. “I’ve been dying to leave that awful job.”

He sat there dumbly, staring at you in disbelief. “Really?”

“Yeah!” You paused for a few seconds. Now it was your turn to apologize. “I’m sorry about my classmate… These past few weeks made my job so much easier, so it felt like I just spat on your friendship. I should’ve done a better job of telling him off or something.”

Josuke took your hand and gently gave it a squeeze. “I don’t think any amount of talking will change that guy’s mind. We were more worried about you. But if we're going to be honest, he’s kind of got a point.”

“No," You argue. "He couldn’t be any more wrong about you. You’re all nice people.”

“But, Y/n—" he began in a mockingly authoritative tone. “‘Delinquents are delinquents,’ remember?”

You held your sides and shook violently. It was nice to be able to joke and laugh around Josuke again. “Does this make me a delinquent now, too?” 

“Oh yeah,” Josuke nods, matter-of-factly. “You’re one of us now.”

The smirk on his face brings a goofy grin to your face. As a delinquent, you are naturally not afraid of anything, so with this newly found confidence and self assurance, you ask him:

“So… are you doing anything after school?”

[salexectrian-heir]

Loki: Chapter 12*

Pairing: Solavellan Rating: E*, this chapter is NSFW

Summary: Lavellan rescued a mischievious sphynx kitten outside her work who loves her dearly. But his destructive habits start to get out of hand when he steals her attractive neighbor’s underwear… repeatedly.

Chapter 12* (4.8k, NSFW)

Anise wove in between bodies at a record pace, clutching her lunch bag to her chest, dodging interns left and right. She needed a moment of silence to clear her throbbing head, and if one more first year came up and asked her how to properly intubate someone, she might just scream. Normally, she would be all for teaching freshly graduated doctors-to-be techniques, but after what she just witnessed in the resident lounge? Absolutely not. 

Anise took a sharp right and dove into the stairwell that would lead her towards the basement, her feet moving on autopilot to the once familiar place she would run off to escape to early on in her career at Haven. At the second to last door from the bottom, she slumped into it, letting her weight push it open. Her brows arched as she saw someone else who apparently had the same idea she did, sitting on a gurney in the hallway of the abandoned wing of the hospital. 

“Old habits die hard,” Dorian said with a smirk, and gestured for her to sit in empty space beside him. 

“Gods, this takes me back to first year when we all would eat down here,” she said, hoisting herself up on the forgotten piece of equipment. She proceeded to open her own packed lunch, a tuna wrap with carrot sticks.

“Let me guess, your reason for avoiding our common area is the same as mine?”

They locked eyes, and said in synchrony, “Anders.” 

Dorian cackled. 

He fished a carrot stick out of her bag for himself before saying, “Honestly, I don’t know what we all saw in him. It ends the same way for everyone. You can’t fix him, no matter how hard you try,” he bit into the carrot stick with a loud crunch, “but at least it’s Hawke this time, and not a new intern. Maybe she will finally knock some sense into him.”

Anders was a brilliant doctor, one of the best neurosurgeons in the nation if not the best. He turned down multiple offers from hospitals all around the country before settling at the Ferelden teaching hospital. But his personal life was a total mess wrought with commitment issues, and he was constantly getting in over his head with the medical board with his fiery attitude and unorthodox approach to medicine (which was not necessarily always a bad thing, and definitely something that had drawn Anise to him in the first place, but his sometimes he just skirted the lines of what was ethical). Anise had made the mistake of getting involved with him shortly after starting her internship (as did Dorian) but quickly realized Anders was… a lot to say the least, and she politely ended things. To her surprise (and relief) he was understanding. They got along much better as colleagues than they did as lovers, anyway. Anise vowed never to date another doctor at her hospital moving forward. She was much more content to over hear gossip, than be the reason for the gossip.

And then, there was Hawke--their fellow resident, good friend, and ruthless rival. She was a handful, too. Equally as fiery, passionate, always managed to make everything a competition, and went tit for tat with Anders. He may have finally met his match. It didn’t surprise Anise they were sleeping together, or that they were airing out their dirty laundry in the resident lounge at this very moment. Something she had walked in on in her effort to get her lunch.

They had both stopped yelling and stared at her, mortified at the fact they had gotten caught. She had given them a painfully awkward wave before zipping over to the fridge, snagging her lunch, and darting out of the lounge in under ten seconds.

Their fighting resumed before the door had even shut on her way out.

“Let’s hope only metaphorically, Anders has a surgery this evening, and I’m getting to scrub in and perform the craniotomy.” She stuck her tongue out at Dorian’s envious expression.

“Brat. Does Hawke know about this?”

Anise rolled her eyes, “If I were to hedge a guess, it’s what started their fight.”

As she bit into her wrap, her phone vibrated in her pocket. When she checked it, she promptly choked.

[Vhenan]

Will you let me take you out to dinner this Friday? 

Schedule permitting, of course

[1:13pm]

Friday. 

As in The Fourteenth of February. 

As in, Valentine's Day.

“Best steer clear of Hawke for the rest of the day then. Otherwise she might just knock you instead.”

“Hah..ha,” Anise replied weakly, eyes still glued to her phone. Her brain, temporarily out of order.

Solas wanted to take her out.

On the national holiday for couples. 

Granted, he had taken her out before, but that had been more casual, and hadn’t felt as exclusive. From the outside, they could have just been good friends dancing together, grabbing a bite afterwards. People did that all the time. 

(Well, he did kiss her, but no one had been around to witness it, so therefore it didn’t technically count, or so she tried to rationalize.)  

 That date also had been before they started sleeping together…before he called her vhenan... 

A wave of heat rolled up her neck, burning the tips of her ears. She had been too cowardly to bring up what he had said to her in his sleep filled haze the day after the last time they had slept together. Their snow day together had been too picture perfect, and she didn’t want to chance ruining it. She spent the entirety of the day on top of him on her couch (they had switched apartments for Loki’s sake). And when they weren’t alternating between their favorite movies… they engaged in other forms of entertainment.

[Anise]

I believe my shift ends at 5 next Friday--if you don’t mind having a little bit of a later dinner, I would love to join you

[1:20pm]

[Vhenan]

I do not, I’ll make the arrangements.

[1:20pm]

[Anise]

Nothing too fancy!! You’ve seen my laundry, I only own scrubs and that one dress

[1:21pm]

[Vhenan]

It is done.

[1:22pm]

“Who’s Vhenan?”

Anise nearly jumped out of her skin and almost dropped her phone on the floor.

“Dorian,” she chided, shoving him hard, and scrambling to send off one more text.

[Anise]

No presents! And we go halfsies 

[1:22pm]

“It’s your fault you made no effort to hide your screen.  I’ve been talking to you this whole time and you’ve so carelessly ignored me. I had to know who was more important than your very best friend.”

“Absolutely no one.” Anise tucked her phone safely back into the privacy of her pocket.

“Darling Anise, we both know that’s bullshit.”

It was at that moment the door to the hall bust wide open, the sound of it slamming against the wall echoed like a gunshot, startling both Anise and Dorian.

“Oh fuck,” Hawke’s horrified face was quickly covered by her hands, sending tufts of her pixie cut jet black hair to stick out at even odder angles than they normally did, “and here I thought I could escape today for one fucking second.” 

Dorian and Anise exchanged a quick glance and said together, “Old habits die hard,” 

Dorian shifted further down the gurney, as did Anise, leaving space for one more body. Anise gestured to Hawke to take the spot, and offered her a carrot stick. Hawke made a disgusted noise but took the seat, and carrot stick, anyway. It looked like she might snap it in half. She fell into an awkward, tenuous silence beside Anise, who suddenly became very interested in the tuna of her wrap, taking small nibbles and examining the bite marks she left behind.  

Finally, at long last Hawke said, “I can’t scrub in with Anders anymore.”

“Because you’re sleeping with him?”

Hawke shot Dorian a dark look. “I’m dating him, asshole.”

Anise paused mid bite, “Wait… like…?”

“Like, it’s official, All-Spice,” she quipped at Anise using that stupid nickname that speech pathlogist gave her that Hawke hung around with. Apparently, he gave everyone nicknames. “We went to the Chief, came clean, and everything. Anders had to speak privately with Viv for like an hour.” Hawke rubbed her face. “And then he comes back and tells me that I no longer am allowed to scrub in with him anymore.”

“I mean, that makes sense,” Dorian said, which was clearly the wrong thing to say to Hawke, earning him another, darker, glare as she chomped down on her carrot stick.

“Fuck you,” Hawke said with her mouth full, pausing to swallow before continuing, “I know that. I still get to be upset about it.”

“Valid,” Anise said, taking another small bite of her wrap.

“Sure, but you don’t have to scream about it,” Dorian retorted.

“Also, valid point,” Anise commented, covering her mouth with a hand as she chewed.

“Fine, you’re right. Sorry,” Hawke sighed, shoulders rising and falling dramatically. “And I’m also sorry for what you walked in on, Anise. I want it to be clear, I didn’t mean to sound like I was angry at you. I’m not. I just let--”

The door to the hall opened again, with considerably less banging this time, but all three residents snapped to attention as they saw who stepped through.

“The Witch,” Dorian hissed.

The Chief Resident’s expression soured.

“I heard that, Dorian,” she drawled, “why is it that when I need a competent resident, the three of you are nowhere to be found. Incoming abdominal gunshot wound, no exit, OR three.”

All of them immediately jumped up, pushing each other out the way to stand before Morrigan, Dorian and Anise shoving their lunches haphazardly back into their packs as Hawke edged them out.

Morrigan rolled her eyes. “Lavellan, you have a surgery tonight, you’re out.”

Anise didn’t fight it, given the circumstances, and quietly stepped back.

“Hawke with me. You look like you need it.”

“What,” Dorian protested, gesturing flippantly at Hawke, “how is that the basis of your decision?”

“Dorian, you suck up to every attending, you’ll find a surgery to scrub into before I make it back to the OR floor.”

Hawke’s amber eyes sparkled as she flipped off Dorian when Morrigan had her back turned. Dorian returned the gesture with equal flair. 

“Remind me why we’re friends with her again,” Dorian asked, after they were gone.

“Because she’s a pariah like us, and you do actually like her as a person, flaws and all.”

Dorian grumbled something in Tevine under his breath, slumping back down onto the gurney. “And remind me why I’m friends with you, when you won’t even tell me all the interesting bits of your life?”

Anise sighed.

If she started telling Dorian about Solas, it would mean someone else would know, which would make it all the more real.

It really didn’t take her that long to decide.

“Okay, but you have to promise me not to laugh and call me crazy,” Anise warned, and Dorian’s face lit up, “but it started with my kitten and my neighbor’s boxer briefs…”

***

The restaurant was one of those scratch kitchen types, where everything was locally sourced and organic. It had a rustic feel to it that reminded her of home the moment they sat down at their booth, surrounded by plants and large glass windows. Surprisingly, it was comfortably warm. She had shrugged off her winter coat, but kept on the black blazer she had dug out of her closet that she hadn’t worn since she graduated medical school, and was happy to know it still fit perfectly. She had gone with a floral turtleneck underneath with a pair of tight jeans and ankle boots. Not too fancy, but still dressed up. He had worn something similar in fashion, a pair of nice jeans, a green sweater, and sport coat over top.

It was surreal. To be out, with him, clearly as a couple. Her heart hadn’t stopped fluttering since he took her hand when they left their apartment complex.

She hadn’t meant to talk about work, or make Solas talk about work, knowing how bringing it up seemed to ruin his mood. But when he asked about how the surgery with Anders she was able to scrub in on went, the incident with Hawke naturally came up, and suddenly she was discussing work. 

“I’m sorry, I’m monopolizing the conversation. I would ask you about your week, but I get the impression it wasn’t any better than the last.”

“You would be correct in that assumption,” he said, rubbing his temples. “I managed to avoid the C.E.O for most of it. One awkward elevator ride was all I had to endure. Luckily, in silence.” 

Even with that simple statement, she could see the tension set in his shoulders. “Let’s not talk about work anymore.”

He peered over his steepled hands at her. “What would you like us to talk about, Anise?”

Anise ran her tongue over her teeth and thought for a second. “I want to learn more about you. So let’s play a game.”

Solas’ brows arched. “What kind of game do you have in mind?”

“You try to make an assumption about me. If you’re right, I drink. If you’re wrong, you drink. And vice versa.”

He chuckled. “Where did you learn this game?”

“Med school. We had to find some way to cope,” she said with a laugh of her own.

“You might want to order a second glass of wine before we start.”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “Do you think I’ll only make wrong assumptions, and you’ll only ever make right ones?”

“Indeed, I do.”

Anise rolled her neck. “Game on. I’ll go first. Your favorite color is green.”

“You went for something easy.” Solas took a generous sip of his wine. “What gave it away?”

Anise grinned. “Your sweater. Your ties are mostly green. Your socks have intricate green patterns on them. Your briefcase is a very dark green, almost black if you’re not looking close enough. But your sweater tonight really sealed the deal for me.”

“Astute observations. Then let me counter with this, your favorite color is blue.”

“Guilty.” Anise blushed behind her glass of wine, and took a sip. “I’ll bite. How’d you know?”

It was Solas’ turn to smile. “Your bedsheets are blue. As is the accent wall in your bedroom. The gift wrap you covered my wintersend gift in. Most of your scrubs are light blue, though this could be required at your hospital, but I took the risk.”

There were also two very obvious reasons, she wasn’t about to admit to as she gazed into them. 

“Only attendings have a specific uniform color, and its navy ironically.”

Their dinner arrived after that, but they continued their little game even after their drinks were finished, using water instead until they ordered a second glass each. Solas guessed Anise had broken bones as a kid--she drank, she had broken two in her arm when she was four years old, and was religious--he drank, which prompted a long philosophical conversation about the elven gods and their teachings in which he was surprised to find she wasn’t religious, or spiritual, at all. That she viewed them more as lessons in morals more than anything. Anise soon learned, after a few more wrong guesses, Solas hated plums, but not as much as tea, loved to read research articles, if only to critique their methodology and sample size, and to her greatest surprise, had been arrested twice before the age of eighteen.

Anise finished off the last of her ravioli, and asked, “For what?”

“Disorderly conduct, and Trespassing,” Solas said, pusing around some of the vegetables on his plate, “I was very misguided in my youth.”

“I remember you saying that. My my, what a troublemaker you turned out to be,” she teased.

His lips twisted into that half smile she loved so much. As he studied her from across the table, setting aside his cutlery and dish, her stomach did flips. “You are the youngest child.”

Anise took a sip of her wine. “Youngest of three.”

“All girls?”

Anise shook her head triumphantly, “Only girl.” Solas took a sip of his. 

“I have two older brothers. One is in law enforcement, the other is in a metal band.”

“Metal band? Diverse interests in your family.”

“Hah, you don’t even know what my father does for a living.”

Solas did that deep stare again. There was silence for a beat, then he said, “Politician.”

“Damnit,” Anise whispered, taking another sip.

Solas eyes lit up with a realization. “Is he--?”

“The Dalish politician, yes, yes, the one and only,” Anise rolled her eyes rather dramatically, feeling the wine settling in, “kind of obvious. Know how I mentioned in the past my family was busy with legal matters in Wycome? Well, I’m sure you saw recently on the news, the Dalish settlement in the Free Marches was officially recognized as a historical site and can no longer be bought or demolished, because of his advocacy and support from Wycome residents who rallied.”

“I did, it’s incredible what he has done for the history of his people.”

‘I agree.  They are in the process of creating a museum to preserve the artifacts and culture from the ancient Dalish in the city. The land will remain untouched and essentially become a nature preserve with trails and historical markers. He keeps saying I have to visit once everything settles down and it’s opened to the public.”

The waitress came around to collect their plates and ask if they wanted dessert. The answer was obviously yes, as if Solas could ever say no to anything sweet. It was entertaining to watch his face light up over a simple frilly cake. 

“I do believe it's your turn,” he said, licking icing off his fork. 

That was… distracting.

Anise recovered, tips of her ears burning, “You’re an only child.”

Solas stared off at the space behind her quizzically. “What happens when someone does not know how to respond to a statement, do we both drink?”

“I’ve never encountered that kind of situation before playing this game,” Anise admitted.

“To answer your question, I do not know if I have biological siblings. I don’t remember my biological parents. I was placed into foster care in Arlathan when I was very young. I met kindred spirits there, people I would have considered siblings, at the time.”

“I would say they absolutely count.”

He nodded, and drank. While doing so he dug out his phone, scrolled through it for a moment, before smiling, a true smile, and catching her eyes again. “You must not laugh.” He held out his phone.

Anise raised a brow. “No promises without context,” she said, accepting his phone and turning her attention to the picture he had left up. 

“Oh, my gods,” her hand quickly shot to her mouth before she could let a giggle escape. “This is you. You have hair. How old are you here? This is… your friend that took you dancing?”

“Seventeen. And yes, that’s her. Her name was Sage. I met her while in the boarding school the state sent me to. Scroll if you want to see more.”

The picture was of two teenagers in school uniforms, standing in the middle of a city street. Solas clearly the younger of the two, with messy brown hair that just barely glinted red in the sunlight. The girl beside him had a shock of green hair that fell just below her chin. One of her arms slung around his neck, laughing at him, as he flipped off whoever was holding the camera.

The next one was Solas eating a cupcake in a dorm room, or to more accurately describe it, having a cupcake shoved into his face by Sage, who had icing on her nose already. The third was an action shot of them dancing. They got a little older every couple photos or so. At the bottom she realized the photos belonged to a memorial album he had on Facebook. While she was busy admiring photos of Solas’ over the years she had not known him, and tearing up as she realized what he had given her, a piece of his past, he had paid for their date. 

Sneaky.

“Hey wait, that’s not fair,” she said, returning his phone and standing up, “you baited me.”

“I did.” He pressed a quick kiss to her temple and helped her into her coat. 

***

The moment they made it into the lobby of their apartment complex, they were inseparable. In their favor it was empty, and the elevator was theirs alone. How they got that lucky, she didn’t know. What she did know was how badly he wanted her, evident with each pass of his tongue as it pushed past her lips. How his hands slipped under her shirt and roamed her stomach sending heat sliding down her spine to pool in her core. How the elevator brought them to their floor all too soon. 

They stood in front of his apartment, her back pressed against his door with clothes entirely wrinkled and lungs breathless, torn between not wanting to stop but also wanting to move inside. She chased his lips as he pulled away to take out his key, but landed on his neck. She continued to kiss him as the lock clicked open. He groaned as her teeth grazed his pressure point, the fingers of his free hand digging into her hip. As the door swung inward, she grabbed a fist full of his shirt and pulled him across the threshold.

“I thought you might want to come back after,” he said between kisses, stripping themselves of their outer layers once the door had closed securely behind them. “Bathroom,” he instructed, nudging her with his nose to her cheek to get her to turn in that direction. 

Her bra was shed somewhere between the entryway and his bedroom, leaving her only in jeans. She didn’t want to break their connection, but when she stepped into the bathroom what she saw demanded her full attention. Candles and flowers in petite mason jars lined the tub and sink counter. And a bath bomb on the lid of the toilet seat, still in its packaging. Her heart throbbed.

Oh. He remembered I liked those.

The strike of a match brought her focus back to him. He went to grab one of the candles, but Anise got between him and his target, blowing out the lit match. She took the box from him and tossed it somewhere on top of the toilet without breaking his gaze. Her mouth was on the skin of his neck a second later, backing him up against the wall. Nipping and sucking with a couple little  harder bites in between, her tongue caressing spots she had marked him. But when his fingers slid into her hair and clenched, it sent a sharp twinge of pain across her scalp making her moan. 

“Mm, interesting,” he said, licking along her bottom lip.

It would have taken way more self-control than she had to to resist the impulse to roll her hips into him, and as she did she was rewarded with feeling the hard press of his erection against her hip through his jeans. It sent a current through her, making her throb between her legs.

His fingers curled into the waistline of her unzippered jeans, yanking them, and her lacy underwear down her thighs. It took a little effort as they clung tightly to her thighs, but eventually he wrestled her out of them. He managed to get his pants off with one fluid movement, and had her against the counter in a heartbeat, the cold stone biting into her lower back, his mouth slating against hers.

He lifted her with no effort, setting her atop the counter space, spreading her legs wide open. His fingers raced along the inside of her thigh, finding her clit and starting a steady and slow rhythm that had her writhing in what seemed like no time at all. He pulled away and lazily dragging his fingers aroud the lips of her sex, taking a sharp breath at wet she had become. 

“Anise,” he groaned, sliding a finger inside her. 

She gripped his shoulders, nails biting into his skin as he moved within her. One finger soon became two, and she bit her lip to stop from mewling as they curled in just the right cadence that set her nerves on fire. How he had memorized her body, and the way she liked to be touched so quickly was beyond her. When she couldn’t hold it back anymore, she let a whine escape in the form of his name. He removed his fingers just before she could tip over the edge he had brought her to. Some part of her brain realized she was so wet she was dripping onto his counter, but she quite couldn’t bring herself to care. He pulled her hips forward, bringing her to the edge so he could angle himself to take her. 

And take her he did.

Her back arched as he smoothly thrust up and in, her head pressing into the mirror behind her. Her legs curled around his waist at the pleasurable stretch she felt as he filled her, pinning him there against her. The other hand wound its way back into the tresses of her hair, spilling out between his fingers as they scraped along her scalp. He twisted her hair sharply, forcing a blissful cry from her mouth into his, which he devoured greedily, and only encouraged him to fuck her harder. With each snap of his hips his grip in her hair tightened, the tension in her pulling taut until she broke, clenching around his cock in such powerful waves she couldn’t help herself from riding against him. He barely pulled out in time to finish on her stomach. They remained as they were, her legs wrapped around his waist, ass on the counter, foreheads pressed together as they caught their breath. 

“We did this out of order,” he said, his breathless laughter dancing on her cheek, “Bath first, then sex, was the intention.”

She hummed blithely,  “I have no regrets.”

He released his hold on her hair, tucking several loose strands behind her ear, and laid a soft kiss on her temple before pulling out of her embrace. He cleaned his mess off her, and then himself while she wiped down the counter. Through some unspoken agreement, he went to draw the bath and she attended to the candles.

Finally, they sunk into the blessedly warm water, Solas first then Anise. Unable to contain her excitement, she unwrapped the blue bath bomb, and dropped it into the water with a very quiet, noise of delight. An explosion of blue and purple spread like smoke beneath the water as the scent of jasmine rose to greet her. 

“Thank you,” she said, settling in against his chest, enjoying the way the heat of water made his body a cool relief at her back in comparison. An inky twilight surrounded their limbs, making anything underneath invisible to the depths of its color.

He laced his fingers through her own resting on his knee above the water, and squeezed.

For some reason, that simple gesture, that subtle contact, overwhelmed her. Her vision swam as the too familiar sting of tears rushed to the corners of her eyes. She took a deep breath and let it in. It wasn’t sadness, no that was a raw, hollow aching feeling that suffocated you until you could feel no more.

This… this was different. This was overwhelming, and in the best way imaginable. Like taking a breath for the first time after not being able to breathe, like lungs so full of fresh air  it sent racing through her veins straight to her heart in a sweet release. 

Am I really that lonely?

Or…is this…?

She knew the answer. Had known the answer for a while now, but refused to let it surface. At least, until... 

“Solas,” she whispered.

He drew his free hand out of the water to caress her arm. “Yes, Anise.”

“Did you mean it?” She swallowed, her throat suddenly thick. “Did you mean it when you called me vhenan?”

He let go of her hand, and tugged on her to turn around. She hesitated for a moment, realizing he was going to see her crying but obliged, twisting her torso to face him.  His furrowed brows that softened when he saw her expression. He cupped her face with both hands, the water from the bath mixing with the tears on her cheeks as he stroked her face with his thumbs. 

His ever steady eyes bore into her own as he leaned in and whispered, “I meant it,” before closing and capturing her in a kiss. “Vhenan,” he said against her lips, kissing her in such a way she felt dizzy when he finally broke from her mouth to pass over her eyes, whispering “vhenan,” over each one, before coming to rest on her forehead. 

“Ar lath ma.”

[razorblade180]

Rosebud prep 11

They say time heals all wounds. Ruby wasn’t sure how much truth was in that saying but right now she could be swayed to believe that achievement should go to love. It’s only been several hours and yet being Jaune’s arms as they sat in her old house enjoying the company of her family has done so much for her than anything else she’s done all year. That being said, listening to other’s talk and smile was more to her liking than actually talking. Everyone understood though. The fact that Ruby wasn’t passed out from emotional exhaustion was pretty impressive to say the least.

Periodically the reapers arms would tighten around Jaune’s waist like if she was worried he’d fade away. Her head laid comfortably on his chest to listen to his heartbeat. It was calm and soothing. ‘I had forgotten how nice this was. His arms.....his scent....’ A tiny of red came across her face as she eased into him a little more. The display of affection didn’t go unnoticed.

Yang:Uh oh, someone is falling in love all over again. I haven’t seen that look in Ruby’s eyes since you both started getting serious.

Jaune:*blushing* Yang! You’re dad is the room!

Tai:I’ve walked in on both of my girls in awkward situations unfortunately. Words don’t shock me anymore.

Yang:You should’ve learned to knock.

Tai:It’s my house! Excuse me for not expecting my respectful daughters to sneak people into it while I’m not looking.

Yang:If it makes you feel better you got me back a few months ago.

Ruby:What happened a few months ago?

Yang:I went to visit dad and casually walked through the front door to see him and mom were....catching up.

Tai:Once again, it’s my house. You should’ve been the walk knocking or text first.

Ruby:The two of you are back together.

Tai:*Rubs head* Well....we’re talking again.

Yang:*mumbling* I didn’t see much talking.

Tai:Yang!

Weiss:Still doing better than me. Neptune might have gotten is act together but work tends to take most of my time.

Blake:If I can take time away for my organization to get married and have a honeymoon, then you can have one day off.

Ruby:She’s right. Spend time with him when you can. You could’ve invited him here with you.

Weiss:Ha! Ruby, time hasn’t given him the ability to read the room yet. He’s a sweetheart but wasn’t risking him saying something that’s still a touchy subject like-

Ruby:*raising eyebrow* I was wondering if you were gonna catch yourself or slip up.

Weiss:I’ve spent too much time around him.

Yang:Ooooo, anything worth noting?

Nora:You’re the only person here not married Weiss. How’d that happen!?

Ren:Time is ticking.

Weiss:Ticking!? I’m only twenty five!!!! I don’t feel the need to nose dive into love like everyone else.

Blake:Hey when you know, you know. Haven’t even been married a month yet and I know it’s the best decision I’ve made with Yang.

Yang:Awwwww

Everyone:Eeeeeeeewwwwwww

Yang:WOW!!! I can understand Weiss be really, my married friends and father?

Jaune:Being married has nothing to do with it. You two have been doing the mushy thing for years and we’ve always cringed.

Ruby:*giggling*

Yang:Y’all are haters.

RNJR:We’re married.

Tai:And you I’m definitely not hating.

Yang folds her arms and turns her head away from the teasing to pout. It was her plan to stay like that for a good minute until her attention was drawn to the window. What used to be the orange glow of a sunset turned into a sky with stars.

Yang:Holy crap it’s night already!?

Blake:What!? we still need to unpack and there’s people expecting me tomorrow!

Nora:Pfft, how did you let time get away from you like that. Very irresponsible of you two.

Ren:Nora, we have to be back at the orphanage by daybreak tomorrow....

Nora:...........Weiss can you give all of us a ride please?

Weiss:Don’t know. I’m twenty five and apparently getting up there in years.

Nora:Weiss I am older than you! Take a joke please!? Children’s lives are on the line!

No one had payed attention to those words too hard. Except for Jaune of course. He looked down to see Ruby staring up at him . They both caught a little sting from Nora’s words but knew it unintentional. It was not worth bringing it to everyone’s attention that they stepped on the land mine that they desperately tried to avoid.

Weiss:I suppose since I have to go soon anyways that I can give you freeloaders a ride. The more I think about it, maybe I am getting old. My back is really starting to hurt helping you guys.

Yang:Oh here we go.

Weiss:I’m just saying. *opens door* You all never fall when I’m by your side. I could make a list from our time at Beacon and it would still be impressive. Top of that list, saved you from a train crash. You’re lucky I’m talking about Beacon days because I could put that on list twice.

Jaune:I saved your life before.

Weiss:I know, I’m grateful everyday. Would you and Ruby also like a ride home? I’d be more than happy too.*smiles*

Yang:Someone is playing favorites.

Blake:Jaune and Ruby are all of our favorites.

Yang:.....Yeah, yeah you’re right. Weiss is still petty though.

Weiss:All who asked for a ride had ten seconds to get in the airships before I change my mind.

Nora grabs Ren’s hand while Yang too Blake’s. They weren’t about to test that bluff and were in the ship with eight seconds to spare.

Ruby and Jaune still sat on the couch however. Going home finally sounded nice in concept, but there was a slight problem. From the way Ruby felt Jaune grip her hand firmly with worry, it was obvious they were thinking about the same thing. She reached for his face and gave him a gentle smile.

Ruby:We can stay here a little longer if you need to. Yang told me the reason you left. All the reasons.

Weiss:All...the reasons?

Jaune:Yeah. Dustin’s room.

Weiss:*bites lip* Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t-

Jaune:It’s okay. Sigh... I’ve been here for some time now. I like to believe I’ve made a bit of progress here but I’ve been informed that recently I’ve been spinning my wheels.

Ruby:What!? Dad!

Tai:N..now hear me out. I told him a change of scenery was nice but he still wasn’t really doing anything. You both are more than welcome to stay longer. Just don’t get stuck wallowing. Try and do things.

Jaune:Yeah I could’ve paraphrased better.

Ruby:So what do you wanna do. You’re the one who needed space. I won’t go back if you aren’t ready to.

.......

Jaune:*interlocks fingers* Through a lot of points in my life I found myself coming to a stand stil when life threw its worst at me; Then like clockwork, you walk by me and I can’t help but feel inspired and chase after you. I always was surprised that I managed to keep up. Then I realized, you were never gonna leave me in dust; any of us. You walked just enough ahead to show us it was possible to keep going but looked back in case you had to slow down.

Ruby:*smiles* Nah, I never looked back. More often than not everyone was beside me. You all were only one step away when you weren’t. I knew you guys could keep up.

Jaune:Then why start changing things now. I’ll take the steps towards home with you.

How could he be so talented at moving her. This is the second time today she’s tried to support him and then he pulls a roll reversal and inspires her. Maybe that was the key to their victories? It was obvious when she thought about it. They always called each other a team unlike any other but Ruby was surprised how deep that actually ran. It was hard not to feel a little invisible around him.

Ruby leaned in to kiss his cheek before standing up and guiding him towards the door. Weiss was proud of the two and even gave a slight bow as they exited the house. She waved to Tai and almost closed the before he walked outside as well and gave Ruby a surprise hug that made her laugh. He carefully looked at Jaune and shifted his eyes towards the ship. It took a minute before Jaune got the message that Tai wanted a quick chat. A wink and a nod then the blonde boy continued to walk with Weiss.

Tai:I’m so proud of you.

Ruby:Me too. About you and Raven I mean. That’s nuts.

Tai:Should I be offended by that?

Ruby:You know what I mean. It’s just unexpected but I’ve been gone awhile. Things are bound to happen.

Tai:It was us working to help you that made it all possible.

Ruby:Then I guess....it wasn’t a total loss. I’m glad.

Tai:Believe me, I got a feeling from all this you’ll gain something beyond belief. The world works in mysterious ways. If you look closely then you can see them.

Ruby:Why do I have a feeling this isn’t only a comfort talk?

Tai:I didn’t want to say anything since Yang did not bring it up but she’s also been having trouble and really wants the chance to talk to you about it. Her and Blake have been talking for a long time, way before the incident about-

Ruby:Kids. They’ve thought about kids. And between what happened with Dustin and with how I am now....

Tai:She’s scared. Not only about a potential attack but hurting you too. We both know that’s the last thing Yang ever wants to do.

Ruby:.....Heavy stuff. Didn’t realize how much this affected her.

Tai:Don’t bring it up if you’re not ready to have that conversation but I thought you should know.

Ruby:Thanks dad.

Tai:Safe journey home. *kisses forehead*

xxxx

The flight home had been a bit longer than expected. Geographically they were closer to Vacou and should’ve been the first stop home but that’s where changes were made. Nora had been real anxious of the orphans despite them being watched over, so a trip to Anima was the first drop off. Nora and Ren had felt a little bad but was assured by everyone they understand.

Next stop was Menagerie. It had been well into nighttime by the time the island was in view. The island was mostly lit up with lanterns though which proved very helpful. Technically there was no formal landing spot and finding a clear space was more annoying at night than it has a right to be. So that only left one real option....

Weiss:Okay you two, think you can jump from here? *opens door*

Yang:Yep!

Blake:You know I never thought Ozpin’s training on landing strategies would come up so frequently. Go figure... *jumps*

Yang:Well it’s been f-

Ruby:Hold on one second. *standing up*

Yang:Hmm?

Ruby:Yang I just want you to know that I love you. You’re the best sister I could’ve asked for. Actually, if I’m being honest with myself, you’ve also been like I mom to me more times than I can count. Don’t....don’t let me stand in th way of you becoming a real one.

Yang:*eyes widened* Dad told you, didn’t he?

Ruby:*nods* I know you’ll always consider my feelings in whatever you do in life. We’re both grownups now though and married. Take those leaps in life when Blake when you two are ready. It’ll be a little rough but I’ll back you up. I’m your sister and your leader; that’s sort my job. *smiles*

Yang was at a loss for words. The wind roaring from outside wasn’t doing her any favors either in terms of thinking. So she did what she always does when words fail her. Yang got physical. Her arms opened up and Ruby already knew what that meant. Ruby walked right into hug and enjoyed the warmth of her sister’s embrace before breaking apart and giving her nod. The older sister kissed her forehead and gave a nod back before hopping out the airship.

That conversation had taken more energy out of her than expected. It was short and to the point yet somehow managed to stir something in her. Maybe Tai was right when he said it was okay to wait to have that talk. Yang had been waiting a long time though and Ruby couldn’t bare the thought of hindering her sister’s life any more than she already had. Maybe what she needed was rest. Ruby found herself cuddling up under Jaune once again. His hand lulling her to a blissful sleep as it rubbed her head.

Ruby:Jaune....I....I......

Jaune:Ssssshhhh rest for now. I’ll wake you when we get there.

Ruby:*blushing* Okay.....

xxxx

Jaune:Ruby? *shakes her*

Ruby:Zzzzz

Jaune:*chuckles* Worn out to the bone.

Weiss:I can park a little closer to your house if you have to carry her.

Jaune:Nah it’s alright. I don’t mind a tiny walk.

Weiss:If you say so. You two take care now. You deserve it. Call me for anything.

Jaune:Awwww

Weiss:Yeah yeah, I’m a softie who cares. Honestly why is that still surprising?

Jaune:It’s just really satisfying.

He scooped Ruby up into his arm and walked towards the door. Weiss opened it for him and gave him a warm smile. “Have a nice night.” Jaune smiled and gave the heiress an unexpected peck on the cheek that made her do a double take while he walked off. “Fly home safe.”

She didn’t respond. Instead she let out a small chuckle and closed the door. Weiss was never one to turn down a little affection from her friends. Especially Ruby, Ren, Blake, or Jaune. Something about it was always nice and innocent.

Alone, Jaune walked to his home. Well, technically he wasn’t alone; just the only one conscious. He did not mind though. It was actually pretty nostalgic. Carrying Ruby had become one of the little requirements of knowing the girl for as long as he did; even before they started dating there were many times the girl had found her way into his arms. It’s been some time since last he had to do it however. She seemed lighter than usual. All those missions most likely had something to do with it. If he hadn’t stopped training then no doubt she’d feel like a feather to him. ‘I should get back to my routine soon. I’m lucky Nora didn’t say anything about my health or else she might’ve put me on her work out routine.” He shuttered at that thought.

The trek home had finally ended at his door step. Only a few weeks has passed but the house had already seemed a bit foreign. No lights were left on, no mail at the door, no anything. Just a simple house looking over a town from their rocky and sandy landscape. It was supposed to be their little world with room to do anything. Train, picnics, or whatever. He had hope his future child could feel free to stretch wings. Now this place seemed lonely and a reminder of what could’ve been. He continued to stare blankly at the front door before the click of the door knob snapped him out of the daze. Ruby had woken up and was unlocking the door from his arms.

Jaune:Y..You’re awake.

Ruby:Yep. About five minutes now. I’m surprised me wrestling with the keys didn’t startle you.

Jaune:Five minutes? *frowns* I’ve stood here that long?

Ruby:*pushing open door* Yeah. I’m actually happy you did. It gave me time to think.

Jaune:About?

Ruby did not answer. Instead she hopped out of his arms and grabbed his arms to slowly lead him in. Jaune flicked on the porch light and the living room to get a nice look at everything. A bit dusty to be expected. The kitchen and dining room looked undisturbed except for a chair slightly out of place. Jaune had been told Ozpin had been waiting for Ruby a couple days and. He expected that’s where the man sat. How he got into the house is an entirely different question he’d have to make sure to ask later.

All in all the first floor was fine. No doubt the second floor was as well, but it was that floor that made his blood freeze up. There’s a room up there that should have a his son in a crib but remains empty. Empty because he was too slow to find him. Cinder had taken two very important things from his life now. No amount of healing will change that fact.

Jaune:Ruby I-

Ruby:I’ve kept a secret from you.

Jaune:...What?

Ruby:I’ve kept a secret from you. For a little over a year now. I told you how I was scared how my life might change the day I told you I was pregnant. I never told you that the entire month before I told you I was debating. Debating on getting rid of it.

Jaune:......

Ruby:I still would’ve told you before I went through with it but that day never happened because my dad made me realize what I could possibly be throwing away. All that joy and experiences. It out weighed my previous fears and the thought of never knowing what I was giving up. *tightens grip*

Jaune:Why are you telling me this now.

Ruby:Because for a year I’ve had a nagging question in my head. Would losing my child by my own decision hurt less than someone else taking them away? Did I have the right answer the first time around? I’ve achieved my first dream of being a legendary huntress. That was always what I wanted then parenthood seemed to be tagged on in the last minute. I should feel a certain level of happiness from completing the one I wanted to do for so long but I don’t. Instead it feels like I’m only halfway to getting what I want. Reconnecting with you, standing in this house, I think I finally have my answer.

Ruby turns around to face him. Tears well up a little as she extends her left fist until it rests on his heart. Her eyes remain dim but filled with a since of purpose that Jaune watches slowly build until it forms into words.

Ruby:I may have only held Dustin once in my arms but there is no doubt in my mind that the feeling it gave me will always be a moment I don’t regret gaining; no matter the sorrow that followed after. So as long as you are with me and feel the same way I do, then one day when we are ready, we’ll get another chance to have that feeling. You and I will try again and put a baby in that crib I watched you struggle to build. *crying*

Jaune:*crying*.....hehe

Jaune:I did not struggle just so you know.

Ruby:Yeah sure you dummy. *sniffling*

Jaune:Have I told you I much I missed you.

Ruby:Show me instead.

Jaune:All I needed to hear.

To hell with the pain, the fear, and sorrow. All of it numbing as long as they stood by each other. Jaune pulled Ruby into a kiss she might as well jumped into; their tears being wiped by the other. There was no fever behind the kiss but an intense passion. A promise to keep going. Ruby pulled him down to her level and walked towards the couch where she stumbled backwards and Jaune fell on top of her. All while never breaking the kiss. Yeah they had a bed but it was also upstairs and right now that was still the last place they wanted to go. Finally they separated for air and they got a good look at each other. Puffy eyes and flushed faces. Not to mention a deep desire to not stop.

Jaune:Are you sure?

Ruby:Yang was right earlier about that look in my eye earlier. Except I wasn’t falling in love all over again; I never stopped loving you in the first place. Somewhere along the line, I guess I just forgot how good it felt to be with you. In your arms, kissing you, under you....I miss all those feelings. Please give them all back to me. I won’t squander them again.

Jaune:You never lost them in the first place.

He gave her a chaste kiss before working his way down to her neck. The subtle scent that came off her body. The tiny gasps of air that escaped between her lips when he bit down and the whimpers from his hands outlining her frame through Ruby’s clothing. Jaune had missed many things as well from being separated from his wife. Ruby wasn’t completely docile during this rekindling of affection. She had already placed her legs on each side of him and managed to fumble around with his belt long enough to finally unbuckle it.

Before she could get any farther, Jaune had guided her hands back up to the bottom of his shirt and then over his head. Workout or not, Ruby missed seeing the sight of her man shirtless. Even though it brought a pout to her face that he had stopped her from what she really wanted to see. “I was kinda in the middle of something you know?” He chuckled at his beautiful and flustered rose. “Someone is a bit eager.”

“Believe me when I say I’m more than ready for you know.” Ruby didn’t think her own words could make her any more flushed than she already was but she could feel her face get redder as her breath became more ragged. Jaune brought his left hand to her face and watched her lovingly lean into it. Everything she did managed to make his heart jump but Jaune was on a personal mission and no amount of beauty was going to prevent him from achieving it. He bent down towards her ear until she could feel his breath brush against it.“I’ve barely seen you all year. I’d like to change that and take my time with it. What’s a few more minutes of waiting?”

There was a base in his voice that made the girl gulp.That voice let him get away with a lot of things on a regular day; he might just get everything he asked for tonight. Ruby could tell that Jaune was teetering on the edge of restraint and it excited her. It was nice to know he was still interested in her on a physical and emotional level after everything. That made this all the more intense. The bottom of her dress was already bunched up way past her waist while he slid the top down along with her bra.”Well...?” Ruby said a bit anxiously as he burned the image of her into his mind. She knew he loved her but it was impossible to not got flustered when he looked at her so expose. “You’re beautiful.” Those words made it worth it. “Then stop teasing me already. The night is gonna be long enough already.” She had a point. He had is fill of foreplay and took one last look into Ruby’s eyes before he continued. “Let me know if you need a break.”

“Hehe, same to you my knight.” Indeed, it was gonna be a long night.

Part 10

[batboysandgirls]

Jason Todd x Reader - What a Night

Title: What a Night Pairing: Jason Todd x Reader Summary: Your commute home turns into a kidnapping, but at least you’re not alone tied up in this warehouse…  The Red Hood got kidnapped too. Words: 4k

When you come to, you stopped yourself from panicking.  You were tied to a chair in what appeared to be a pretty empty warehouse, and you were 80% sure that the Red Hood was sitting next to you.

The last thing you remembered was walking into the metro station at about seven in the evening, and a huge explosion.  One would think this was a totally new and shocking experience, but you lived in Gotham.  This was the third metro stop explosion you’d wandered into in your twenty-one years in Gotham.  (Public transit was just too appealing, apparently.  The bad guys either like dramatic encounters on trains or just revel in messing up the commutes of a few thousand citizens.).  Now, both the previous times, you’d woken up in an ER, and watched on the TV above hospital bed your as some of the bat vigilantes stopped whoever was behind the attack.

So, the whole being tied to a chair was a new, unpleasant development.  Also, the Red Hood.  Your chair was angled in a way so that you could only see the guy through your peripheral vision, but the mask was pretty recognizable to anybody.  His head was slumped down, though.  He must have gotten knocked out, too.  Good to know the only guy who’s probably been in this situation before was KO’d.

Well, time to get to work then.  You wriggled your fingers… Rope.  Okay.  Workable.  Maybe you could shimmy out of them.  But your wrists were tied together separately from your body behind the chair.  Not great.  You made your muscles tense then relaxed them a few times, opening and closing your hands.  You felt one of the loops around your left wrist shift a little, and you tried to slide your hand out a bit.  Your left hand was just about free when you heard a grunt next to you.

“Ouch.  This is a doozy.”

Did the Red Hood just describe this situation as a doozy?

“Um,” you said, “I’ve got one hand free.  I should be untied in a couple minutes.”

“It’s always nice when hostages taken initiative,” Red Hood replied.  “Sometimes you guys just flounder.  I respect the hustle.”  He was trying to break free of his own ropes, it seemed.  Flexing and wiggling around to find some slack.

Your left hand was free, so you started on the ropes around your chest.  You were merely done when you heard a snapping sound and turned to see Red Hood had literally broke his hands free from strength alone.  That was kind of impressive, alarming, and attractive all at once.

“Wow,” you said, slightly in awe, not realizing you were even speaking aloud.

“Don’t be too impressed yet.  This was the easy part,” Red Hood said as he came over to your chair, but he stopped to stare at you.  “Wait, I know you.”

You grimaced.  “I’m kind of a famous gymnast.  I was in the last-last summer Olympics, not the one last month, but the one over four years ago now, uh.  I was in some advertisemen—”

“Oh, so you’re ____ _____, then?” Red Hood said, helping untie you.  “Cool.”

(There was something odd in his voice. Your name came too easily to him.  Like he had recognized you as soon as he saw you, but wanted to pretend he didn’t.  Something like that.  File that under “weird” and “vigilante fan of my gymnastics trying to play it cool?”.)

“So,” Red Hood said as the ropes fell away, shaking out your sore wrists, “Like I was saying, that was the easy part.  The hard part is getting out of here, and figuring out why we’re here.”

You frowned.  “Did you see the explosion?  Or did whoever did this get you some other way?”

“An explosion?”

“At the Gotham U East Metro.  It was pretty empty as I walked up, and then halfway down the stairs everything exploded and I woke up here.”

“I was attacked by a group of mobsters a few blocks from there.  Seems like Two-Face’s guys.  One injected me with some kind of strong sedative, and I passed out.”

You furrowed your brow.  “Two-Face?”

Red Hood sighed.  “Yup.  Just need to figure out his stupid plan for this time.”

Stupid plan… You made a little ‘oh’ as a thought occurred to you.  “Do you think the attacked the Gotham U East Metro, but not the West one?  Or maybe the East Metros across the city?  As part of his half thing?”

Red Hood was staring at you again.

“What?” you asked, immediately feeling foolish.  “Is that dumb?  I haven’t—”

“No, no,” Red Hood… chuckled?  He seemed to find it amusing.  “It’s pretty smart, actually.  You just remind me of my—my associate Red Robin.”

“Associate?” you repeated, feeling yourself smiling.  What an odd way to phrase that.  “Or is he a more of colleague?  A comrade?  Is Nightwing an associate? He seems more like a wingman, you know.”

“I—“ Red Hood begins, before clearing this throat. He turned away and seemed to be surveying the space.  “First off, that pun was very bad, and I’m not begrudgingly smiling under my helmet about it.  Secondly, it’s—associate is just cause—look, honestly you don’t need to know this, but I’ve got a kind of complicated relationship with the other Robins, current, former, whatever.”

He paused and glanced at you as if to gauge your reaction.  You were still standing and listening to him.  He took a breath and continued, “We’re almost like brothers.  The rest of them are, but I don’t fit so nicely in their little family.”

It seemed he was finished, so you spoke, slightly hesitantly.  “Have you talked to them about it?  Either the Robins or Nightwing?  I—I mean, we don’t have to talk about it if you want.  We probably should be focused on getting out of here.  But, if you—”

Shkk.  You were cut off by Red Hood suddenly pulling out a grapple gun from his belt and coming up next to you.  Okay. Strictly business then.  No more oversharing.

“Mind if I…?”  Red Hood’s arm was hovering next to you.  Oh, this was cute.  Very cute.

You shook your head, and Red Hood wrapped an arm around your waist, firing off the grapple gun into the rafters with his other hand.  Your heart sped up as you landed in the support beams of the building.  That was scary in an exciting way.

Red Hood put away the grapple gun, and started to fiddle with something on the side of his mask, opening up a panel and pulling at wires.

“Mask’s communication got fried somehow.  Hoping I can fix that.  Better signal up here.”  You nodded, and there was a pause before he spoke again.  “I haven’t talked to them about it.  I’m not as buddy-buddy with the other bats like Nightwing is.  My M.O. is too different…”  (You resisted the urge to look at the now empty gun holsters at his sides, which when full of pistols distinguished him from any other Gotham hero.)  “…so we’ve had our ups and downs.  But I like the Robins.  They’re good kids.  And I do like Nightwing, even if he’s an ass a lot of the time.  So I’m trying to be a better…”

He trailed off, fiddling with the helmet absentmindedly.

“A better associate?” you offered.  You couldn’t tell if the Red Hood was smiling behind his mask, but you hoped he was.

“Exactly.”  Then he added quietly, as if to himself, “And maybe at some point I’ll be a better brother, too.”

It was kind of odd he felt comfortable talking about this with you, but maybe because he knew you as an athlete, or maybe because he just really needed to say it aloud.  Either way, you felt like maybe you helped him, which made this whole affair feel better. The eyes of his helmet lit up, and Red Hood let out a satisfying “Aha!” as he shut the little panel.

“Oracle?  Nightwing?  Anyone hear me?”

Sitting right next to him, you can hear the faint sounds of someone talking to Red Hood through an earpiece in his helmet, but only his side of the conversation is clear.  You weren’t sure who Oracle was either, but it was probably a woman based on the pitch of the voice you heard.

“It’s Two-Face.  His guys got me.  He attacked Gotham U East Metro.  The hostage I was with thought maybe he was going after the East metro stops across town.”  He turned to you, and you gave a nervous shrug.  Twenty second pass before you saw him freeze up.  “Okay.  That’s bad, but okay.  Can you track our location?”

He paused, listening to something from the other end, before he turned to you.

“So, you’re right.  They hadn’t realized the pattern before but Gotham U East blew up, then the Wayne Tower station too, except—”

“Except the Wayne Tower station is technically Old Gotham East, right?  No one ever calls it ‘Old Gotham East’ unless you work for GCTA.”

“Right.  But after checking other East stations, there’s definitely bombs set up at Fashion District East and Robinson East.  Probably more they haven’t found yet.”

You frowned.  “So, that’s bad, but where are we?  And why did they just leave us here?”

“Radio came through but location tracker is still down.  Still working on theories for the why question,” Red Hood said, standing up and scanning the roof above for an exit.  He darted up some of the beams and started slamming different places with his fist to see if one was loose.  After thirty seconds, he found a loose section and Red Hood was able to bend a panel to the side, exposing a little panel of night sky.

He returned to you and helped you climb out onto what seemed to be a fairly innocuous warehouse roof.  To your left you could see what looked like the Vincefinkel Bridge.  Behind you was the water, so you must be not far from Chinatown.  Huh.

“Why did Two-Face take us half-way across town?” Red Hood asked, echoing your own thoughts.  Your eyes widened in realization.

“Red Hood, Chinatown East Station is just a fe—”

He was already moving, holding you to his side as you fly from the warehouse roof into the city itself.  Grappling up to the rafters of a warehouse was one thing.  Hurtling through the air several stories high was another.  It was exhilarating, but you also felt yourself cling a little tighter to Red Hood when you glanced down.

“Don’t worry, I’ve got you,” he said quietly, as he felt your body tense.  Your heart fluttered at how gentle his voice was.  Agh.  Why did superheroes have to be so attractive and noble?

Soon he dropped you down about a block from the station.  A barricade had been put by the entrance, but unhappy (and slightly bored looking) commuters stood dangerously close to the entrance, waiting for it to reopen.  You didn’t blame them.  This was Gotham City.  Metro attacks were a favorite of supervillains.  Whenever one station was attacked, the whole system got shut down, which was an annoyance.  Most of the time, if something happened to one metro stop across down, you’d probably be fine waiting next to another station.  Key phrase being “most of the time.”

“I need to find the bomb,” Red Hood said, “But tell everyone to get away from the station.”

You didn’t have a chance to say “okay” before he was gone, swinging around the block and vanishing behind the station.

The next five minutes were a blur.  You ran up to the station and, calmly, explained that the East metro stations were being targeted in a series of attacks and everyone commuting need to give the entrance a wide berth.  Most people raised an eyebrow and quickly hurried away.  A few people asked how you knew this or waved off your warning, but you (quickly) explained that you’d discovered this with the Red Hood when you were both kidnapped by Two-Face.  You didn’t know whether the name drop of Red Hood or Two-Face was more persuasive, but everyone backed off.

When the police arrived a few minutes later to barricade off the whole block, you were the only person even remotely close to the station from where you stood across the street.  One of the bats must have tipped them off.  You waited at the barricade as seconds passed by agonizingly slowly.

You didn’t want the station to explode, but you really didn’t want the Red Hood to explode either.  At the very edge of the explosion, you’d been knocked unconscious.  At the center of it, after failing to defuse it…. You inhaled and exhaled.  You’d lived in Gotham your whole life.  You didn’t want to see another vigilante die thanks to this crazy city.

Maybe ten minutes passed when a police officer near you leaned their ear to their radio and let out a sigh of relief.

“Bomb defused!” she shouted into the ground behind the barricade.  There were a few sighs, some cheers, and a couple of grumbles about “this goddamn city.”  The metro was going to be closed for the rest of the evening, so pretty much everyone cleared out except you and the people who lived on the block.  The police said the barricade would be up for another half hour or so as they secured the area.

You stayed, and you didn’t know why.  Well, you did; it was more like you didn’t know why you bothered.  For some reason, you thought maybe the Red Hood would be back.  You wanted to thank him, or just see yourself that in fact he did not get blown up.

When the barricade lifted and he still didn’t appear, you gave up.  You were actually closer to your apartment from Chinatown than Gotham U. It was still about a half hour’s walk at night in Gotham City, but cabs weren’t an option—you didn’t have money.  Your bag must have been taken by Two-Face’s guys or lost in the explosion.  You hoped maybe the cops would find it in the next couple days.  Thankfully you’d stuck a key underneath the potted plant in your apartment’s hall, so at least you wouldn’t be locked out.

You had been walking for about ten minutes, staying pretty on edge from the night’s events, when a familiar voice came from behind you.

“Headed home?  The night’s still young for some of us.  It’s not even three yet.”

You turned around to see Red Hood leaning against a street lamp.

“It’s been a long day,” you replied, “And it’s a long walk home.”

“Would you mind some company, then?”

You smiled as Red Hood moved beside you.

“Not at all.”

You were walking for a while in silence, but it was the peaceful kind.  You weren’t as afraid now since you 1) weren’t alone and 2) had a crime-fighting walking companion.  Red Hood was whistling as you walked, which was kind of wild.  Tough gun-wielding vigilante whistling for fun?  Sure.  Honestly not the weirdest thing that’s happened in the last few hours.

“The cops said you did a good job getting people away from the station before they blocked it off,” Red Hood said.  “Thanks for that.”

“Oh, no problem,” you said, “I’m just glad everyone was safe.  Especially you.”

“Especially me?” Red Hood repeated, “You’ll make me blush.”

“You saved my life basically, and saved all those people,” you explained, “Not to mention how many people you probably on a nightly basis.”

“I think you might want to consider that you saved all those people,” Red Hood said.  “Batman, Oracle, or Red Robin probably would have figured out the East metro thing sooner or later.  Their brains work like that.  But you made that connection before all of them did, and getting it that quickly saved a lot of people.”  You shook your head, feeling your cheeks color a bit at the compliment, but Red Hood didn’t let you off the hook.  “I’m serious, _____.  You impressed the ‘world’s greatest detective,’ if you believe that.”

“I’m just glad to have been a help,” you said, positive your face was flushed at this point.

When you arrived at your apartment building, the Red Hood nodded his head at you.

“Enjoy the rest of your night.  Oh—” He seemed like he was about to leave but paused as he reached to grab something near the back of his belt.  He held out a small blue bag…  Wait, that was your bag!

“Oh my gosh,” you said, taking it.  You looked in.  Your wallet, phone, keys, metro card (important), and headphones were all safe and sound.  “Thank you!  Where did you find it?”

Red Hood shrugged.  “After we took care of all the bombs, I went back and found all of Two-Face’s guys.  In police custody now.  They had meant to kill us, but there were troubles with some of the bombs so they just left us alone for later.  I figured they might have taken your stuff, so I checked and they had your bag in one of their desk drawers.”

He had actually looked for things?  Just to be nice?  Wow, the Red Hood really did get a too bad a rep.  He had been a pleasure all evening.

“I can’t thank you enough, Red Hood,” you said.  “For this and for everything.”

“Don’t mention it,” he said, pulling out his grapple once more.  “Later.”  You stood outside your apartment until his figure moved into the darkness of the rooftops above.

What a night.

✹ ✹

“OH!  Damian, you’ll never guess what happened to me yesterday,” you said near the end of your most promising student’s private gymnastics lessons.  “I got kidnapped by Two-Face’s goons, but I worked with the Red Hood and kind of helped stop those metro bombs.”

Damian launched off from the uneven bars into a slightly messy landing onto the mat in front of you.  Oof.  That looked awkward.

“Hey, make sure when you let go that your body is s—”

“_____, pardon my bad form.  I’m trying to understand why you spent the entire warm up monologuing about how you want to bake more but you hate getting your kitchen messy, and you didn’t lead with your kidnapping?”

You shrugged, gesturing at Damian to follow you as you did a handstand.

“Honestly, I still think I’m processing it all, but it was surprisingly lowkey for a kidnapping.  I was barely harmed, and I didn’t really interact with my kidnappers.  Red Hood helped me get out.  I don’t know.  I was debating making pancakes this morning as a treat for yesterday evening, so I guess that was more actively on my mind earlier.”  Damian grunted in response, and you let your legs fall forward and resumed standing.  Damian followed suit.

“I’d appreciate hearing about any attempts on your life immediately,” Damian said.

“Run your routines twice through, and I promise I will tell you upfront about any dangerous encounters I’ve experienced between lessons.  Then we can call it a day.”

Damian nodded and started his routine: without complaint.  That was slightly miraculous!  About three months into your lessons, Damian began to have some semblance of respect for you.  Before then it has been an uphill battle with the young teen to get him to listen to your instructions.  It just took constant effort and patience, and him discovering your former Olympic glory, to form a productive relationship.

Though Damian seemed to be mocking about you burying the lede, you knew his tumble from the bars meant he was genuinely concerned.  He could see it in his eyes, too.  Damian was a good kid, even if he was a bit full of himself.

As Damian went through his routine, you alternated between watching and doing his moves yourself to pass the time.  He had the routines down pat other than a couple of his more complicated dismounts.

You were finishing a series of two flips, landing right on the edge of the mat in front of you, when you find yourself face to face with Jason Todd.  Like, faces just a few inches apart.  You were reminded how, of all Damian’s ridiculously attractive brothers who’d come to pick him up from gymnastics lessons, Jason always managed to disarm your the most.  Something in those stunning green eyes peered into your soul.  And you always wondered if his hair was as soft as it looked…

You immediately took a step back as Jason clapped. “Ten out of ten from this judge, although I don’t think they score it like that anymore.”

You couldn’t help but smile.  “Not quite, but I appreciate it nonetheless.  You’re sneaky, I didn’t even hear you come in.  Your turn to pick up the little Wayne?”

“Unfortunately.  I was going to tell him to just take the metro to my apartment, but that got screwed up,” Jason said, a twinkle in his eyes.

“Oh, I know.  I actually was there when the station exploded last night.  I had just finished coaching the women’s team’s night practice when it exploded just as I walked in.  It was a long night,” you replied.

From across the room, mid-flip, Damian shouted, “She got kidnapped by Two-Face’s guys, then saved by the Red Hood!  Can you believe it, Todd?”

Jason had a slightly funny look on his face but looked at you intently.

“Really?  Are you okay?”

“Oh, I’m fine.  It was nothing.  Red Hood was nice, and the goons didn’t even hurt me.  Just tied me up.  I even helped Red Hood figure out that Two-Face was targeting East metro stops.”

“He must have been pretty impressed, it sounds like,” Jason said with a still slightly funny smirk.  What was that about?

“Uh, well, it’s kind of hard to see his face behind the mask, so I don’t really know.  But he seemed happy enough with me.  He actually recognized me right away, I think.  He was weird about it.  Maybe he was a fan back in the day.  Was really nice to me, though.  Polite, and honestly kind.”

Damian finished his routines and did an extra flip to land right next to you.

“I’m sure he was more than impressed.  Enamored by your Olympic and intellectual prowess, I’d wager.  Probably why he was so weird.”

Uh.  What?  Where did that come from?  You looked at Damian quizzically.

“Damian, what—”

“_____, how are you getting home tonight since the metro is down here?” Jason asked, glaring at Damian.  He looked almost…embarrassed?  It was a weird enough remark to create some second hand embarrassment.  You decided to let the topic slide for now.  Maybe you’d pry Damian more about it next lesson.

“Um, I don’t have a car or anything, so I was just going to walk.”

Damian frowned.  “But you don’t live near here.”

“It’s about 40 minutes.  But I don’t min—”

“Woah, woah.  It’s almost eight o’clock, and it’s already dark.  You really shouldn’t be walking alone at night.  That’s good practice everywhere, but we live in Gotham City.  It’s basically a necessity.”

You opened your mouth to protest, but Jason held up his hands.

“You did manage to get yourself out of a kidnapping situation with some help, but, at least for tonight, let me drop you off at your apartment on the way home with Damian.  It’ll be easy.”

“I’m out of your way, Jason, you really don’t hav—”

“I want to.  Alright?”  He was smiling.  Damn.  How could you resist that?

“…Alright.”

As you got into the car a few minutes later, Damian asked you loudly if you thought you’d see the Red Hood again.  Jason was glaring at him again, this time via rear view mirror.  You were in the passenger seat next to Jason and turned to face Damian in the back.

“Well, I’d hope I’m never in another situation where I’d need his help again.  But maybe I’ve ‘enamored’ him like you said, and he just won’t be able to stay away,” you said, narrowing your eyes at the young teen.

Damian scoffed.  “Look, all I meant was that Red Hood has a reputation for not being very friendly.  So if he was so nice to you, it probably means he found you attractive.”  You scoffed back, mimicking the sound, enjoying Damian’s slightly offended face at the mockery.

“Okay, well, a couple of counter-theories.  First, maybe he’s just not as mean as people say.  Second, even if he is meaner, maybe he was just in an overly friendly mood yesterday.  Third, maybe he was a fan of mine, so he was extra nice.  None of those scenarios involve him finding me attractive.”

Damian opened his mouth to protest, but Jason spoke before he could.

“Let’s let _____ not relive what was probably an unpleasant evening, okay, demon brat?”

What affectionate names the Wayne brothers called one another.

You turned and smiled at Jason, who smiled back.  A warm feeling in your chest blossomed as you did, and it didn’t vanish long after you were safely laying in bed at your apartment.  You were trying to picture something other than the soft smile of Jason Todd or the brilliant green of his eyes…

Man.  What a night.

[fanfiction4thesoul]

What I See Prologue

Pairing: Roger Taylor x Reader

Word Count: ~1.9

Warnings: None! (For this chapter at least)

Summary: You’re headed back home to London after a few years in America. You’ve got a new job at EMI, thanks to your best friend Freddie and you’re ready to start the next chapter of your life. But navigating life is far more interesting when you see far more than anyone else.

A/N: Heeeellllllooooo everybody! I am sick again, but I wanted to still get the prologue up. I’m kind of excited for this series. I’ve got a plan (kind of) for where I’m going with this story and I _know _you guys will like it, but I had to do some set up. So I promise you’ll get some Roger/Reader interaction in the first chapter. Thank you to everyone that likes/comments/reblogs!

You looked over your flat one last time, giving it a once over to make sure you didn’t forget anything. It had been your home for the last three years, and you were almost going to miss it. Maybe not the water stained ceiling or the loud pipes, but still. America had been fun; it gave you such a huge opportunity, but you were ready to head home.

There was a job waiting for you, working as an audio tech with EMI. And it was all thanks to your best friend, the one and only Freddie Mercury. Working in Hollywood on TV sets, mixing sounds and improving your skills was a dream come true. But you really wanted to work in the music industry. Freddie put in a good word for you at EMI. So when you sent in your application, on top of being more than qualified, you had an inside recommendation. 

You were quickly hired and, surprisingly, told you would be working with Queen. Roy Baker, who was moving studios, apparently requested that you replace him as the head sound engineer. Despite the horrible things Fred told you about Norman Sheffield, he actually agreed. And he gave you enough time to sort yourself out to head back to England. So, all in all, things were going great. But you were still closing a chapter in your life.

“Oh, (Y/N). You’re still here. I was hoping to see you.”

You turned around to see Richie strolling out of your kitchen, long brown hair falling into his face and a mischievous grin on his face. “You only just caught me. I’m just about to leave. Gotta catch my flight,” you said, smiling wide.

“Yes, I heard you were heading back to jolly, old England.” He put on a posh, British accent making you chuckle at his ridiculousness.

“I told you this, like, two weeks ago when you last decided to show up. Don’t you listen when I talk to you?” You gave him a mocking frown. 

“‘Course I do. I’m just saying, it’s worked its way through the grapevine. You’re leaving a lot of sad folks around here.”

You huffed a laugh, grabbing you bag. “Well, you can tell them all, just like I told them, that they can come visit me whenever they want.” You paused. “Within reason.”

Just as Richie was about to respond, the door opened up behind you and in walked your roommate. Well, ex-roommate.

“(Y/N)! Good, you’re still here!” She said, looking slightly out of breath. “I left work a little early hoping I could catch you. Then I couldn’t find a spot to park, and I ran up the stairs ‘cause the elevator was taking too long. And, well, here.”

She reached into her bag pulling out a little picture frame. Inside the frame was a picture of you and her, sunglasses on, arms wrapped around each other. It was from one of your many trips to the beach. “It’s not much. I know you said no presents and you’re flying light but… well, I just don’t want you to forget.”

“Oh, Beth,” you pulled her into a tight hug, squeezing your eyes shut to stop them from tearing up. Beth was your first friend in a new country and she was such a great support whenever you got homesick. Gosh, you were really gonna miss her.

“I know we said our mushy goodbyes last night, but I just wanted to see you one more time, yeah? Can I drive you to the airport?”

You nodded, wiping the wetness around your eyes away. “Yeah… yeah, let’s go.” Grabbing your suitcase, Beth led you out into the hall. You turned around to get the door, but it was already closing and you managed to see Richie giving you a wink before the door shut with a click.

~O~

The flight was long, even though it was a straight shot to London. You technically flew through the night, so you tried to get some sleep. The loud sound of the plane wasn’t very soothing though, and you didn’t get much rest.

It felt like you had been traveling for days when you finally touched down in Heathrow. Your joints cracked and you had to take a moment to stretch out while you waited for your luggage. Once you got it, you were out rushing, heading towards the exit.

When you rounded the corner, you broke out into a wide grin.

Freddie was there, waiting for you like he promised. He was dressed to the nines looking totally out of place and earning curious stares from those around him. On top of that, he was holding up a colorful sign, glittering in the light that said ‘Welcome home (Y/N).’

He shouted your name as soon as he saw you, giving you a big smile and a wave. You ran to him as fast as you could with your luggage weighing you down. But Freddie spared you, meeting you halfway and bringing you into a big hug.

“(Y/N), darling. Welcome home! Look at you!” Freddie grabbed your shoulder, holding you at arms length, eyes roaming all over you. “You’ve grown into a beautiful woman since I’ve last seen you!”

“Thank you, Freddie.” You felt your cheeks heating up a little. “And thank you for picking me. And for giving me a place to stay.”

“Nonsense! Where else would you stay?” He grabbed your luggage from you. Turning around, he started walking towards the exit. Your step faltered as you thought you saw someone you recognized in the crowd, but shrugged it off as you followed Freddie.

“My parents, maybe? They do live in London.”

“(Y/N), you’re a grown ass woman. I’m not letting you move back in with your parents, even for just a little bit. Besides, after three years of only phone calls, I want you to myself for a little bit.”

You laughed, “Fred, I’m going to be working with you. You’ll see me all the time.”

When you got to the van he was borrowing from one of his bandmates, he loaded your things into the back before hopping into the driver’s seat. “Oh, I know that. But then I’m going to have to share you. Can’t I just keep you to myself for a little bit?” 

“‘Course you can, Fred.” You shared a smile. 

He filled you in on everything you missed since your last phone call. EMI apparently has a trip planned for the band. Something about going to a farm that’s somehow also a recording studio.

“Roger’s throwing a fit about it. Says that it’s in the middle of nowhere and we’re gonna be bored out of our minds. Brian keeps telling him that’s the point, but he won’t listen.”

You never got to meet any of Freddie’s friends. You were off to technical school before he really even met them himself, and then you were in America right after. Sure, Freddie gave you numerous stories to fill in the gaps. In a way, you felt like you knew them, or at least knew enough about them to start a friendship.

Freddie told you all about how Brian was obsessed with space, that he’s the rational, calm one of the group; he told you that Roger was unfairly beautiful, but an intelligent spitfire to boot; he told you that John was quiet but so incredibly kind (except when you get on his nerves). So you felt like you already knew these boys.

You just hoped they like you well enough. It seems like you’ll be spending a lot of time together, after all.

When you arrived at Freddie’s flat he helped you unload, carrying your suitcase up the stairs. “Wow, Fred. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you do so much work.”

“Oh, shut up, darling. It’s just this once.” Freddie prepared the guest room for you, depositing your luggage next to the few boxes of things you sent in the mail ahead of you. “I imagine you’re extremely tired, but you need to stay awake if you want to fight the jet lag. So you get settled and then I’m taking you out.”

“But-”

“No arguments,” he said with a wink, closing the door behind you.

You sighed, but smiled a little to yourself. It was only early morning in London but your body thought it was still time for sleep. Maybe going out with Freddie would do some good and keep your mind off of sleeping.

You unpacked some of your things. The first thing you pulled out was the picture Beth gave you, setting it on your nightstand. Even though you were staying with Freddie, you were still planning on finding a place of your own. Though it seemed like you might need to wait a little longer if you’ll be heading to this farm-studio-thing. Taking a shower loosened your still stiff muscles and made you feel so much better. So when Freddie came to get you, you felt ready to see London again.

Los Angeles became a home away from home, but it was no London. Now, London wasn’t beautiful, at least not all of it, but it was still familiar. Freddie took you to your favorite fish and chips place (you were slightly embarrassed when you accidentally called them french fries and Freddie just laughed at you). You walked around Kensington market and Freddie showed you where he had run a stall with Roger. He described all the types of things they sold, delving into stories about particularly memorable customers.

Throughout the day, you kept thinking that you saw someone familiar, but whenever you looked, no one was there. Almost like you were being followed. You shrugged it off as being tired as well as getting used to London again. By the time you both got back to the flat, you were beat. 

Freddie insisted on stopping for take out though so you ate dinner together on the sofa. You felt your eyes drooping more and more as you started to pick at your food. You must have dozed for a moment because the next second you jolted awake, Freddie’s hand on your shoulder.

“Go to bed, darling. Really. I think you earned a good night’s rest after indulging me all day.” Freddie said quietly, giving you a small nod towards the hallway. “Go, I’ll clean up.”

“Alright,” you said through a yawn. “Thanks Freddie. Night.”

“Night, darling.”

You shuffled down the hallway to your room. Slowly, you pulled your pajamas on before pulling your toothbrush and toothpaste out of your pack. You brushed your teeth quickly, wanting to fall into bed. But as you opened the bathroom door, you let out a loud shriek, coming face to face with Richie.

“Richie! What the fuck!” you panted, trying to catch your breath.

“(Y/N)!” Freddie yelled, coming down the hall. “What’s wrong? What happened?”

You sighed, eyeing up the guilty look on Richie’s face. “Nothing, Fred. It’s just Richie. Coming out of nowhere.”

“Hey,” he said, hands up in mock defense, “you said I could visit anytime.”

“Yeah, well I didn’t mean right away. Or to scare the living daylights out of me.” Richie just shrugged, tossing his hair over his shoulder.

“Wait,” Freddie said, slowly. “Richie? As in, the ghost you met at the dive bar in L.A.? The one you caught criticizing some guy’s pick up line? That Richie?”

You glanced at Freddie, pursing your lips. “Yes, that Richie.”

~

Part 1

Taglist: @jennyggggrrr​

[amyscascadingtabs]

it’s you and me, there’s nothing like this

hey @cheddar-the-dog!!! i am your writer for the b99 2019 fall fic exchange! i apologise for waiting until the last minute to write this, eheh, but it's here now! i chose your prompt "the season of spooky stuff and one of them hating everything horror related and one being the protector" and took the freedom of incorporating it into this little thing. hope you enjoy! ❤︎

thank you to @b99fandomevents for organizing this :)

happy halloween to you all! i do not and have never really celebrated it, but last year i did go to a halloween theme park and it was AWESOME, and i definitely thought it'd be the kind of thing jake and amy would do together.

read on ao3

2015

The first time Jake had tried to bring Amy to the Halloween theme park, she had started out skeptical about the idea.

“Just because we’re dating now doesn’t mean I like Halloween,” she remarked over breakfast as he suggested his plan for their shared Saturday off. “I still think it's a ridiculous holiday.”

“So… the best kind of holiday.”

She rolled her eyes over the edge of the coffee cup. “Can't you go to this park with Charles?”

“I don’t want to go with Charles! I want to go with my adorable girlfriend, who, by the way, is looking stunning in that outfit.” He pointed to what was definitely his flannel currently being donned by Amy, who had paired it with pajama pants and a fuzzy blanket from his couch wrapped around her shoulders. “Also, does this mean you’re stealing my clothes now?”

“It means your apartment is cold all the time,” she said, but her smirk made him suspect he wasn’t totally wrong, either. “Why is this so important to you, anyway?”

“You’re going to think I’m ridiculous.”

“Try me.”

“Fine,” he hummed, rubbing the nape on his neck and looking down at the table to avoid eye contact. “Because it’s technically a holiday tradition that doesn’t bring up shitty memories, and I don’t have a ton of those. I was thinking it’d be kind of nice to share one with you?” He could feel his cheeks heating as he admitted the truth. In their five months of dating, he’d already had to face more emotional vulnerability than ever before in his life, but it had yet to get easier. “Sorry. It’s, uh, stupid.”

“It’s not stupid.” Her fingers wrapped around his wrist, stroking it until he looked up at her, finding her watching him with a tenderhearted gaze that was still new to him, but never failed to make him feel safe with every fiber of his being. “It’s sweet. And okay. I’ll go with you.”

If he’d been a little bit braver, he could have told her he loved her at this moment, and thinking back at it months later, he would regret that he didn’t.

Instead, he’d simply returned her smile. “Noice. Smort.”

She rolled her eyes at him another time. He sort of found it absolutely endearing.

2019

This year, he’s not even the one to suggest their yearly visit. Amy brings it up all on her own as they’re going to bed on a Friday evening, her yawning wide before scooting closer to him, intertwining their legs and pressing kisses to the back of his neck to gain his attention.

“Do we have any plans for tomorrow, babe?”

“I don’t think so,” he mumbles, closing his eyes and just enjoying the way her lips feel against his neck, the way her hands gently rub patterns on his shoulder blades. “Anything you’re thinking about?”

“I was thinking maybe we should go to that Halloween park,” she says, and it warms his heart to hear her sounding genuinely excited at the thought. “If you want to.”

“Well, I could never say no to the Halloween park.”

“Or to me, I hope, since it’s our yearly tradition.”

“Nah, it’s harder to say no to the park,” he teases her, and she punches him hard in the elbow. “Ow! I was kidding!”

“Don’t you dare,” she laughs, pressing a kiss to the same spot. “It’s a date, then. And my goal for this year is to not get terrified by the haunted houses.”

2016

Jake had missed many things while in witness protection in Florida. His girlfriend first and foremost, but also the Nine-Nine, New York pizza, weather that wasn’t either scorching sun or heavy storms, and the Halloween park. It had been one of the dreams he’d thought about during his worst evenings of homesickness; he and Amy, walking around the overly decorated area while holding hands and looking at all the kids and adults in costumes, pointing out ones they recognized.

(“Look, Jake, that’s a tiny Harry Potter!)

(“Ames! That woman’s dressed like Holly Gennaro from Die Hard!”)

It felt like a dream to actually be back, walking hand in hand much like he’d pictured and standing in line to one of the haunted houses. It felt like home. 

“I still don’t get the point of why you would pay someone to scare you,” Amy mutters, rubbing her arms and jumping up and down on the place to keep herself warm. “The real-life world is plenty terrifying. Climate change. Racism. US Politics. I could go on and on.”

“Because it’s fun, and while the things you mentioned are hella scary, they make for awful costumes,” Jake pointed out, already shrugging off his leather jacket to drape it across her shoulders. “I mean, how would you even dress up as climate change?”

“Don’t show up to the party and claim you’re dressed as the extinction of humans due to our planet becoming inhabitable.” 

“Oooh, that’s actually pretty genius.”

“I know,” she winked. “Let’s go in and pretend to get scared by stuff that isn’t really scary, shall we?”

She’d taken back what she’d said about one minute in. The makeup and costumes of the actors were far more convincing than even Jake had expected, way better than it had been last year, and he hadn’t been able to blame Amy for the way she clutched herself to his arm as they made their way through the building. Her nails had pressed so hard through his shirt they’d almost made marks, but he hadn’t minded it. Getting to be her protector, even if only for a seven-minute walk through an amusement park’s over-budgeted version of a haunted house, felt like a privilege.

2019

She promises him at least another five times before they even get in line that this is the year she won’t get scared. She’s so confident, staring him down every time she repeats it, that eventually, he tells her he believes her. His gut feeling says otherwise, but the smug grin on his wife’s face as he tells her the white lie is cute enough to make the dishonesty worth it.

“Climate change is scarier than ever,” she declares as they step foot into the house, and he chuckles at her. “This has got nothing on it.”

She ends up taking back her self-assured statement a few minutes in for the fifth year in a row. Jake is getting truly curious about what kind of budget the park’s makeup department is working with, and he has to admit there are a few things executed well enough to make him jump. Amy squeezes his arm tightly, letting him lead their way through, and he basks in the glorious sensation of feeling like there are times when he can be her protector, too - god knows she’s good at being his when he needs it. She’s squeezing a little hard, and her nails feel a little sharper than usual, but it’s fine. 

It’s dark inside the building, but he feels her warm breath near his neck and turns around to see what she’s doing only to find someone other than Amy there; an actor with a black, hairy mask over their face that seems to have no concept of personal space whatsoever. Even though it’s what he tends to keep teasing his wife for, he yelps and bolts for the emergency exit, almost tackling a stranger on the way out.

He’s still breathing hard when Amy comes out too, laughing as she throws her arms around him.

“That was awful,” he mumbles as she tries to calm down from the giggling fit. “That was so scary. Where the hell did you go?”

“Where the hell did you go?”

“I thought I was right there with you!”

“I thought I was right there with you!”

“Let’s maybe not go back in there,” he suggests, and she shakes her head.

“Let’s maybe not.”

2017

The year they got engaged, he learned another fact about Amy Santiago - while she may have hated the haunted houses, she was a major fan of the rides. Unfortunately, this included the rides even Jake was hesitant to go on, like the attractions that went way too high up in the air and dropped way too low, way too fast. 

“Come on,” she had encouraged him, shooting him that smile that never failed to make his knees weak and pulling his arm towards the line. “It’s perfectly safe. I’ll let you hold my hand.”

“I can hold your hand on the ground,” he pouted. “I much prefer that option.”

“Come on, babe! Just one time!”

“I hate you,” he’d told her as they stood in line, repeating it as they were being strapped to their seats, making her roll her eyes both times. “I love you, but right now, I hate you.”

He’d been able to see more of Coney Island from the top of the ride than he’d ever wanted to see in his life, and then, just as he was about to freak out about the height, the ride dropped. 

The scream that ripped from his throat shocked even himself, because it was a sound of pure and utter panic, but amid that panic, he’d found beauty.

He was alive. He was a free man. He could be outside to do these kinds of things with his soon-to-be fiancée, instead of being locked in for fifteen years arrested for a bank robbery he didn’t commit, and it felt beautiful.

“Did you enjoy it?” Amy asked as they walked away from the attraction, his legs a lot shakier than her, but her hair looking way crazier than his did.

He’d grinned before cupping her face, bringing their lips together. “Weirdly, I kind of did.”

2019

Every year, he hopes she won't insist on going on the rides, that she's changed her mind just this time. Every year, he's dead wrong as she takes his hand to steer him decisively toward the ride he's learned to detest with his entire being.

“You don't think I could skip it for just one year?” He asks, gulping as he looks up at the massive construction, but Amy shakes her head.

“Tradition is tradition, babe. We’re doing this.”

“Do you have to get revenge on me every damn year just because I drag you through the haunted house?”

“You got it.”

“You are a terrible person,” he sighs, but it's impossible to keep his tone serious.

She kisses his cheek. “All is fair in Halloween theme parks, love, and war.”

“Is that the saying, really?”

Every year, he thinks he's gotten used to the horrifying attraction. Every year, he finds out he's wrong. There's no getting used to the relentless shakiness as they're taken closer and closer to the top, the tension when they are there knowing they're about to fall any second, the spine-chilling drop in his stomach when they fall.

He survives it, and he supposes every experience helps him understand why this is something people like his wife will do for fun. He feels alive, almost frightfully so, his heart pounding and breath shaking but his instincts so on edge. He feels real, and although it's hard to stand on his legs when the ride finally finishes, it's worth it when he gets to turn to Amy and find her looking genuinely impressed by him. She looks a little pale after this year’s ride, asking him if they can sit down for a few minutes afterward, but when he asks if she enjoyed it, there's no hiding her beaming grin.

2018

The year they had gotten married, they'd competed in the pentathlon games. They’d tried a few of them before, but this was the year they dialed their competitiveness up to the max, offering each other no leniency as they ran between the different game stations. Rifle shooting had been the most even, electronic darts the least - Amy claimed he’d tried to sabotage her by tickling her shortly before, making it difficult to keep her arm still - and their opinions on whether or not Jake’s moving basketball net was rigged to his disadvantage differed drastically, but through it all, they’d been enjoying themselves. It might not have seen that way to everyone else judged from their bickering and borderline unserious threats, but to Jake and Amy, this was love.

This was going back to their old rival days for a short while, to the memories of constantly trying to beat and outdo one another, before returning to reality and realizing they’d already won the greatest prize of all; each other.

(The giant stuffed frog that Jake had won at one of the stations, handed to him by a mysteriously silent employee with the name tag ‘Craig’, was a close second. It croaked if you pressed a button.)

Counting all the results together, the final conclusion was that Amy had won, and Jake laughed heartily at her as she did as expressive of a dork dance as he’d ever seen her do in public. After all, it was hard for him to feel much like a loser in anything as long as she was around. 

“Loser buys hot cider and cinnamon donuts?” She’d suggested with a kiss to the tip of his nose.

“We share bank accounts, babe.”

“It’s the gesture that counts,” she’d insisted then, and there’d been no way for him to decline.

2019

His wife is unstoppable this year as well. Jake ends up doing far worse in several stations than he knows he’s capable of, the competitiveness dialing down as he realizes there’s no way for him to win now. Instead, Jake simply watches Amy in her element. 

She’s so focused, so precise, so thought-through when she’s confident in her abilities. She’ll tuck her hair behind her ears like even a single strand could be the thing to sabotage her chances, bite her lip, stare down the task or target and tackle it right on, instinctive and calculated at the same time. 

It is moments like these when he struggles to believe there was ever a time when he wasn’t with her, a time when he wasn’t blessed with the opportunity to get to watch her like this, without any sense of guilt or inadequacy. 

She’s stellar, a piece of art much like the paintings she studied for several years at university, and he gets to live his life with her.

He gets to go to Halloween theme parks year after year with her as company. He gets to have her clutching on tight to his arm through haunted houses. He gets to sit next to her as they go on rides he thinks no sane human should be willingly exposing themselves to. He gets to be with her and hers all at once, and every year, every month, and every day, it keeps getting better.

“Did you even try to win this year?” She asks, curiously, as they’re walking towards the donut stand.

“Nah,” he shrugs. “I already won.”

“... Wow. Marriage really did a number on you when it comes to cheesiness, huh?” Her voice is teasing, but the little laugh, the tenderness in her eyes, is not.

“I have my days,” he says, placing an arm around her shoulders. “Winner buys the donuts this year?”

“A for effort, but they’re still on you.”

“Two hot ciders, two cinnamon donuts, and one box of donut holes, please.”

“Actually,” Amy pipes up as the teenaged cashier punches in their order. “I think I’ll have a hot chocolate instead.”

“Changing a winning concept,” Jake comments. “That’s bold of you.”

“Creating a new one,” she corrects him. “Gotta keep it interesting.”

~

As much as he loves all the crazy things they get up to on their visits, laughing their way through the day, Jake has to admit he loves the final part most. They’re sitting close together on a bench overlooking the water, drinking their cider and hot chocolate and enjoying the sugary baked goods while they chat about the day. It’s stress-free and allover wonderful, and it’s hard, if not unfeasible, to picture how anything could ever be better than this. 

“This is the best tradition,” Amy says, leaning her head on his shoulder as they watch parents chase their toddlers along the water’s edge, couples walking together and friend groups trying to take pictures in the half-darkness. “I hope we keep this up.”

“We’re definitely keeping it up,” he assures her. “This year was amazing. I already can’t wait for next time.”

She smiles, stroking his hair before beginning to ruffle through her right pocket for something. “Actually, next time might be a bit different.”

“What do you mean? We’re not changing this tradition, are we?”

“No,” she laughs. “We’re not. We’re just… renewing it to keep it interesting. Close your eyes.”

He does, and she instructs him to hold out his hand, so he does that, too.

She places a thin, maybe fifteen or so centimeters long, little plastic stick in his outstretched hand, and his fingers wrap around it.

“Okay, you can open them now.” 

“What’s this?”

“You might wanna read the display,” she tells him, and he unfurls his fingers to reveal a digital square and a single, life-changing word.

It takes a moment to sink in.

“No way,” he says when he can tear his eyes away from it, looking up at his wife to find her with what he hopes are happy tears in her eyes. “Are you - is this real, Ames?”

“I have like seven more of them at home,” she blushes. “So yeah, I think so.”

“Oh my god.”

“I know.”

“How long have you kept this a secret?”

“I took the first one three days ago,” she admits. “I wanted to tell you the second I found out, but then I remembered this, and I thought… maybe it could be another nice memory for the tradition.”

“It is.” He wraps her in a tight hug, pressing soft kisses to every inch of her face he can reach. “This is… wow. Just, wow.”

“That’s a pretty good summary of it.”

“This is the best visit so far,” he whispers in her ear as she takes the positive pregnancy test from him to put back. “This is the best visit ever.”

Life with Amy, and their yearly visits to the Halloween theme park, truly did have one thing in common; they both just kept getting better.

[theladylovingcrow]

Black Panties and An Angel's Face Pt 1 (Sanny Christmas Fic)

** A Continuation of Silk and Satin, Leather and Lace, but there's no actual sex in this part (sorry horny friends, sorry) **

Author (As known on Various sites): Lady Lover- Rockfic, Luluthechoosingcrow - AO3, theladylovingcrow - Deviantart and Wattpad, @sammy_bluebells - Instagram, @imacrowcawcaw - main Tumblr, @theladylovingcrow - writing/art Tumblr, @insannywestan Sanny shipping Tumblr

Fandom: Greta Van Fleet

Pairing: Sam Kiszka/Danny

Length: about 3k

Warnings/tags: lingerie, cross dressing, no smut yet, established relationship, gift giving, Christmas

Summary: Sam had said that he would wear whatever Danny bought him.... would he, really? Fuck, if not them this was about to he a sucky Christmas for the both of them.

Author's notes: I've been busting my ass all morning and last night trying it finish this, because honestly a Christmas fic after Christmas is just kinda... meh. But, alas, I only got the first half, the sort of build up, done. Well, something is better than nothing, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

From @therealswanqueen 's request for me (:

"Oh if you're going to write a continuation of the lingerie fic it would be nice if Danny buys it for Sam ♡♡♡ like if he's out shopping and sees something pretty and thinks 'Sammy would look gorgeous in this' ♡"

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

Danny mentally went over the list in his head, arms too full of stuff to actually pull it out of his pocket at the moment. He had gotten the regular shopping out of the way, and was now working his way though the upper level of the mall, searching for Christmas gifts the one day he could get away from those sneaky brothers.

He had already gotten a variety of gag gifts and weird oddities the twins were sure to enjoy at Spencer's, and a new Christmas sweater for Sam; after some deliberation, a matching one for himself, as well. Their mothers were sure to enjoy it.

It was hard to know what exactly to give when they already had most things they could want, but Danny still tried to be thoughtful and give nice things to the people that meant the most to him.

New boots, a watch, and an engraved harmonica for Jake? Check.

A vintage fur coat for Josh? Yep, and surprisingly cheap.

Books for all three Kiszka's? Yes, as well as some parchment, ink, and quills for Joshie - it was one of those random finds that hadn't been on his radar of gift ideas, but as soon as he saw them he knew Josh would love them.

All that was left was Sammy. His best friend (now lover, too) always seemed to be both the easiest and worst to shop for. He was picky, so picky that, even after all these years, Danny could rarely be 100% sure that he'd like his gift.

He went in and out of every store, desperately searching for *something* that Sam didn't already have, and that he would appreciate receiving.

Nothing.

Not a single item that would be a good fit to give his new-ish boyfriend, not even a cool pair of sunglasses to just fill put some space in his gift bag.

Danny sighed, deciding to fuck the mall and go Amazon it in the comfort of their bed. But, just as he was heading towards the exit, something caught his eye.

A blue something - pale, like a robin's egg, but speckled with small, shimmering beads instead of brown splattered spots. It was a lacy bra, hanging several racks in inside of a Victoria's Secret.

Danny stopped and stared at it, considering. Sam had said.... Sam had said that he would wear whatever Danny bought him. It had been nearly two months, and, while they had definitely had sex many, many times since then, none of the lingerie items had made another appearance. Sam hadn't even mentioned it again after that day, instead only shooting Danny the occasional meaningful look that he interpreted as "Well? I'm waiting, it's on you to continue this."

He took two steps forward, but stopped just before entering onto the lighter tiles of the store's entrance. Would Sam actually like this as his Christmas present, instead of other stuff - namely, things he could actually tell their family he got?

Danny turned and was about to walk away, but then spun around for just one last look at the bra. It was so, so pretty, and would look so, so good against Sam's tanned skin; he could envision his lover perfectly in that little blue piece, coyly teasing Danny as he ran his hands over his lacy chest.

He took in a sharp breath and marched into the store, bags of presents banging against his thighs as he rushed over to the rack to closer inspect the bra. Danny set his purchases down on the ground so he could touch it, tentatively reaching out a finger to run over the scalloped trim along one of the cups.

Danny realized that the one he was looking at would never fit Sam, but, luckily, there was a whole row of blue items in different sizes behind it. He flicked through the hangers, eyebrows knitting together at all of the different numbers, letters, prices, and, he realized, slightly different styles and designs.

Which one should he choose - what would look best on Sam, and what would fit him? Danny was at a loss. The first bra he had seen and fallen in love with appeared to be the only one of its kind, which was highly disappointing but he knew that often happened when shopping - if you fall in love with something, chances are it's not going to work out. Such was life.

The other bras, though: all were the same pale blue, but some had no beading, some possessed a ridiculous amount of straps, and one was also covered in purple, trailing vines embroidered over the lace, curling over the soft fabric.

"Sir, do you need any help?"

Danny startled, looking over his shoulder at a friendly, understanding looking employee. He nodded sheepishly, nudging aside some of his bags with his foot so he wasn't barricaded in a circle of paper bags.

"Yeah, I'm... I don't know what size to get- yeah," he cut himself off, nearly saying "to get my boyfriend" but realizing that maybe he shouldn't.

It wasn't like Danny was ashamed of being bisexual, but he figured that revealing he was dating a guy and buying him lingerie was not a good idea - not only because she could react weird, but because who knew who could recognize him. He decided it was safest to just pretend to be buying a present for his girlfriend, it was close enough and completely plausible, if only requiring more thought before he spoke.

"Of course! Do you know what size she is?"

He shook his head, looking back at all of the tags. Like every guy, he knew, roughly, that A was small and D was big - stereotypically perfect, though Danny disagreed - but there were also double letters and numbers that were confusing him. He had no frame of reference to know what size the numbers indicated, nor the scope of the sizes. 28 was the smallest he saw, but it still seemed like an awfully big number for Sam's tiny ribcage, and many of the other girls he'd met, too.

"That's all right, this is probably a surprise, huh?" The employee, he saw her name was Stephi, gave him a knowing look and a grin, and Danny nodded again, smiling back.

"Yeah, she... she's been kind of hinting, but this is totally going to be a surprise and I didn't really think to check sizes before I came. She's really small though, very skinny and uh, an A cup, I think. What are the numbers?"

"Oh, the numbers are for band size, it's like the circumference of the of the ribcage. She'd probably be a 28A, that's the smallest we have," Stephi said, sorting through the rack methodically and picking out several of the blue bras as well as a few others from a lower rung. "Do these look like they would fit?"

Danny squinted at them, trying to imagine if they would hang slack on Sam's body or sit snug like they were supposed to.

"I guess, yeah, those look like they'd fit. Though, I've never really seen her wear the shaped ones, she likes softer things. They're called, uh, it has 'bra' in it..."

Really, Danny didn't want to get the shaped ones because he thought they would pop off of Sam's body weird with nothing to fill them, and that looked both unsexy and uncomfortable. He'd heard one of his past girlfriends talk about some bra thing before; it had sounded like a lighter fabric or something, but he just couldn't remember what it was called.

"A brallette? Yes, we have those, here's a few."

She took the shaped bras and set them aside, holding out a few that looked like lacy, cut off tank tops or teddys, soft and thin fabric that would most likely lay flat if nothing was underneath.

Ah, a brallette! Danny swore he was going to pay more attention to what his partner was talking about when it came to stuff like this, be it Sam or another girlfriend - though, he hoped it would only ever be Sam from now on.

Danny looked at the bras she was holding, trying to decide. There was the soft blue one with purple vines crawling up from the band at the bottom, little flowers budding up high over the mesh and lace top and then continuing over the straps. He really liked that one, so he gently took it from her and kind of tucked it under his arm, then continued surveying.

Another was completely pale pink lace, "Millenial Pink" he was pretty sure. His eyes passed over it, going instead for one of similar design but of a rich, deep green color. He grabbed that one too, and decided not to get any of the others Stephi was holding.

He thanked her for her help, figuring he had a good grasp of what bras to get, now.

"No problem! I'm sure she'll love these, let me know if you need anything else, I'll be at the counter."

Stephi turned and started walking away, then came back to him. "Hey, you have a lot of bags, do you want to put them next to the counter while you shop, if you think it'll be awhile? It might make it easier."

Danny grinned at her. "Oh, yes, please, and thank you."

He appreciated how nice she was being to him, even though that was technically her job and she'd probably seen many hapless boyfriends in the store before. Still, it was the busy week before Christmas, and she had taken the time to patiently help him while people were rushing and yelling and making a mess of things all around them. Danny carried his bags over to where she directed and took the metal basket she gave him, turning back to survey the store for anything else that caught his eye.

Over in the left corner, he spotted a table full of colorful pieces of cloth - panties, he realized, looking at the mannequins modeling a few pairs. Danny wandered over to them, stopping briefly to run his hands over another bra but moving on when he realized it wasn't something Sam was likely to wear.

There were so many options! Danny knew that there were many, many styles of women's underwear; he was proud to say that he had seen quite a few of them first hand. Still, the colorful piles were almost making his head hurt, though his heart was beating faster with something that felt like excitement.

He picked up pair after pair, settling on the 10 for $100 deal he saw advertised. It seemed ridiculously expensive for tiny, flimsy pieces of fabric, but it would be so, so worth it when he got to see Sam's sinful hips in these cheeky little triangles.

Danny grabbed one more pair of panties and another bra - a matching, strappy set - and brought everything over to the front of the store, waiting in line with all the other ladies and boyfriends to purchase his secret gifts. He grinned at Stephi as she rung him up, thanking her profusely for the help and adding the pink striped bag to his cache of others.

He made his way past the giggling groups of teenage girls out of the store, pausing to give a few of them a smile when they blushed and pointed at him. He would stop and take pictures if they asked, but otherwise, he was a man on a mission.

Danny couldn't get the image of Sam all dressed up for him those two months ago out of his head; his stockings and garter, the corset, his sweet smile. He wasn't likely to find a corset like that at a commercial mall, but the other stuff - he wanted, he needed, to get the complete outfit.

His next stop, after dropping all the other gifts at the car like he had originally intended, was a high-end 'bohemian' boutique right next to Macy's. Danny pushed open the door, quirking his lips at some indie cover of Jingle Bells playing over the store's speaker.

Danny smiled widely, looking over the store. Florals, paisley, glitter, lace and satin and taffeta, all hung like shimmering, rainbow banners on the walls. He knew what Sam's style was, the only thing he had to do was build the bridge between the lingerie he had gotten and what Sam would wear, normally, and it was - hopefully - going to be an unforgettable gift. He decided to start at the hair clips and work his way around to the mini skirts on the other side.

~~~~

Two hours and nearly two thousand dollars later, he had three full-to-bursting bags of clothing and accessories for Sam. Danny knew he had gone over board, and over budget, but every time he thought he had found the last item he turned around and another was screaming at him, sometimes from an entirely different store, how good it would look on Sam's lithe body. This new idea had shone a new light on the mall where he had previously found nothing of interest to get his lover; now, it was like he couldn't stop the floor of gifts.

He sighed, hands straining to grasp all of the bag handles as he made his way to the parking lot, trying not to knock anyone over with his haul. Now all that was left was wrapping everything up and placing it under the tree, where Sam could receive it in a few days time.

Danny worried his lip in between his teeth as he loaded up the trunk of the car. He was happy with his purchases, but that didn't mean Sammy would like them. He tried to quell any doubt in his head, though; Sam had asked for Danny to buy him more stuff, so he had. Simple.

The only thing he had to worry about was the wrong person opening the presents - which, shit, maybe they shouldn't go under the tree.

~~~~

Jake was smirking, looking back and forth between Danny's red face and his little brother's more self satisfied, but also blushing one.

"So, Sammy, what did you get? Let us see."

Sam shook his head at first, looking like he was being asked to feed his arm to a lion, but then slowly raised his gift out of the mess of tissue paper. It was a top, silver and covered in shimmering fringe all the way down its torso and in lines along the sleeves. Some of the things Danny had gifted Sam toed the line - lacy shirts, crop tops, one skirt, booty shorts (though he already wore those) with the hope that Sam would actually like them, as in making them a part if his every day wardrobe. Dressing up for sex was fun, but Sam's androgyny, even when not sexual, was still incredibly attractive and Danny wanted to encourage it.

Jake whistled. "Dang, Sammy, I might have to "borrow" that from you. But that's not what made you blush, now let us see it. "

"Nuh-uh, no can do Jack-o. Do I demand to see everything your girlfriend gives you?"

"Ooh, so it's that kind of gift!" Josh laughed. He was sitting on the floor, surrounded by shining bits of metallic paper and rainbow wrapping, swaddled in a plush red robe and grinning like the little Christmas elf he was; he had demanded they each open one gift before they did Christmas with the entire Kiszka-Wagner clan like usual.

Danny squirmed in his seat, his face getting even darker. He had gotten Sam some regular things so as not to arouse suspicion, and then saved most of the special items for later that night, privately hoping Sam would try them on and give him a little show. But, he had slipped in one pair of frilly white and black panties to let Sam know what was to come.

Sam adamantly refused to show his brothers anything else in the bag, setting it aside behind his chair and shooting Danny a look that could only be described as sultry. Danny swallowed, dry, and opened his own gift from Sam.

It was a gorgeous silk robe, starting at a light lavender and melting into a deep, inky black at the bottom. There was embroidery along the edges, little flowers and curls trimming the sweeping bell sleeves. Black lace formed a belt along the gathered waist, little silver buttons shining against the darkness.

Danny gasped, softly running his fingers over the fabric, feeling the cool softness and already imagining it against his skin.

Sam leaned over and whispered in his ear, one hand curled around Danny's bicep. "I'll wear anything you get me, but I want you to do the same, at least try it. What do you think?"

Danny turned to Sam, almost at a loss for words. "It's... it's beautiful, Sammy, of course I'll wear it. We'll be matching."

It was incredible how fast Sam was able to take the reins of a situation and flip it - here, Danny had thought that he was indulging his lover's interest, but, apparently, Sam had realized that Danny was just as into it and brought the control back to himself. Danny was putty in his hands, buying what he wanted and following every order, and he always would be, with joy.

"Woah, that's cool. But why'd you get Danny a lacy robe?"

Danny looked up, startled, to see both of the twins leaning over and staring into the box on his lap. He quickly put the top back on and shrugged, not sure how he had forgotten they were there. It was the excitement, he supposed, and the sentimentality of the gift, too, that had distracted him.

Jake shook his head, mumbling "Weirdos," under his breath and going to start gathering up the wrapping paper strewn all over the floor. There was a weird air in the room, one Danny couldn't quite shake. Sam was still sitting way too close to him and giving him looks, not at all helping him get his head back on straight.

"So, anyways, did I mention that I got us matching sweaters? Mom will love them!"

~~~~

To Be Continued

~~~~

@satans-helper

@okietrish

@lazingonsunday

@bigthighsandstupidguys

@karrotkate

@oblvions

@lantern-inthenight

@mountainofthesunn

@ryetheruler

[karliahs]

fic notes: walk a mile

time for this boy

this one is forever entangled in my head with The Time I Accidentally Went to Sleaford, because i wrote all of it on the day when i did trains very wrong, and ended up in sleaford. so the writing of this one was like: on platform waiting for train, on train blissfully unaware that i was heading in entirely the wrong direction, on train once i was informed of the mishap and was finished panicking & complaining to various people about the fact that i was going to sleaford, in the costa nearest the station while consuming a self-pity brownie because it was february & freezing cold & the next train wasn’t for an hour & there were 0 indoor areas open at the station, then eventually on a train going in the correct direction. i got home with 2/3 of it done and was like well i will just relax now and finish it tomorrow, which i managed for about 20 minutes before i just had to keep writing. most i have ever written in one day, academic writing included. apparently the secret to productivity is just making travel mistakes that take five hours to resolve

i have said this before but in my heart this one is called “uninvited guest” from a tmg lyric. thought of it a day too late

do you ever just think about the existential horror of being enfleshed in another human being’s body, because i feel like we understandably gloss over that in a lot of body swap stuff. like, every day up until now you have woken up as you, and then one day you just don’t. akin to the sun not rising in terms of catastrophising anxiety scenarios, plus the weirdness of just the fact that different people feel differently. different lungs, different aches, different eyesight. had to have shinsou just utterly lose it here to explore some of the inherently fucked up nature of this trope

along similar lines, the inherent invasion of privacy there is so interesting and a little horrible to me! body swap stuff i’ve read usually touches on this a little, usually in terms of awkwardness around changing outfits and showering, but like...nakedness is not the extent of the issue for sure. suddenly having all this access to someone’s private space, to the person they are when there’s no one else around, feeling the physical sensations they might have chosen to keep hidden, seeing their scars, learning what it’s like to be them...it’s magical and a little terrible, i think. it prompts a lot of empathy for shinsou here that is ultimately good for both of them, but the situation itself involves a lot of vulnerability and exposure not of their choosing, and i tried to keep both of those elements in mind when writing. 

oh, random body swap quirk villain, how i treasure thee. i feel like when other people write random villains they’re like: here’s something interesting and scary and cool, and i’m like: here’s a disaster who’s never once achieved any of their goals? in my mind the dude tries to swap people who are fighting him for the purposes of disorienting them so he can get away, but his concentration and general control is poor enough that a much weaker connection occurs between the kids in his firing line instead, a psychic link that only manages to take effect once they’re sleeping

i had a lot of fun here trying to capture a voice in shinsou-perspective narration that was kind of quippier and sharper and more wry than what i usually go for with izuku’s or even aizawa’s

i profoundly relate to the problem-solving methods shinsou employs here, namely: 1. go back to sleep and pretend nothing is happening, 2. snoop, 3. Go Back To Sleep and pretend nothing is happening; panicked redux

i’m not like shinsou in terms of keeping his room very spartan but i do also just Get It. both ways that these boys try to gain a sense of agency feel very real to me even though i don’t exactly do either of them. that’s something i really enjoy about writing, i think - as much as i like to joke that i’m always projecting onto characters, it’s fun to kind of explore a way of thinking, feel it out until it seems authentic and real, but also have it be totally separate to how you feel about things. it’s also why i think Write What You Know shouldn’t be taken too literally, because what i know are just like...broad yet specific feelings that can be applied to a lot of things?

it’s a good thing that i’m p sure this quirk was weak enough to just wear off on its own, because i think aizawa’s soul just fully exits his body when he discovers this situation occurred. he was on a bus with these children for So Long. then his class got attacked by villains again, albeit useless ones, and he had/got to just chuck them about until they were subdued. but no, a problem is never over that soon, not with this hell class. i’m pretty sure he only agreed to this vague field trip in the first place because he wanted to help shinsou connect with the rest of the class, which technically kind of worked, but also god at what cost. the man already has 20 kids to deal with. now their consciousnesses can just go hopping around? Great, Excellent, he’s resigning

i have a lot of feelings about shinsou saving a kid and getting only fear back and wondering if he would have tried again if things played out like that again...similar to sth i wrote in something else to pretend about izuku sometimes wishing he could just ignore the kids kacchan is picking on. not sure how to articulate it exactly...something about how being good doesn’t mean you never think these kinds of things, or at least i don’t think it does. it doesn’t mean you’re never hurt & tired & scared & just want to look after yourself. for all bnha’s love of heroes, i think it gets this too; the moments when the kids are just terrified and desperate to run anywhere else. bravery isn’t synonymous with a lack of fear

shinsou is Growing here and i’m proud of him. i find it interesting how like...shinsou being very much In The Right about how ppl treated him bc of his quirk doesn’t mean he hasn’t picked up some maladaptive behaviours from that time. parallels with izuku again. 

[nomadicdiva]

Let’s talk about Titans Ep 10, *Kinda* Koriand’r

Le sigh. So, I took my time about writing my thoughts on this episode because I wanted time to look at it objectively. Cuz straight up - I was pissed after watching it the first time, mostly because despite the episode’s namesake, we didn’t get nearly enough Kori. But I’ll refrain from ranting because while the Roth Family Drama didn’t pull me in, the stuff we did get with Kori and Dick was beyond swoon-worthy.

**Honorary mention going out to Ryan Potter/Gar this episode. Potter is KILLING IT with depicting the trauma Gar is still experiencing and his regret over what he did. I just wanted to cuddle him all episode **

Let’s first talk about Dick’s response to finding Kori at the house of horrors. He is speeding towards this house with the words that Donna has translated ringing in his head - that Kori is there to kill Rachel. He walks in, Rachel’s crying, Gar is in an almighty one-handed choke hold and Kori’s eyes are screaming green death. Even after all that, and having Gar literally thrown on him, Dick’s first response when Kori regains consciousness is “You tried to kill Rachel.” But it wasn’t in an accusatory or even angry way. You can actually hear the disbelief in his voice. And then when Satan’s sidepiece Rachel’s mom demands that Kori leave, Dick actually looks at her pleadingly to give Kori a chance to redeem herself - THIS IS HUGE. In that moment Dick was essentially picking a side, and the fact that he chose Kori after witnessing her assault Gar and Rachel’s scared response to her - that speaks volumes to Dick’s trust in Kori. 

Then we move on to Kori’s dramatic exit. Dick technically should’ve stayed with Rachel and Gar to comfort them after nearly roasting at the hands of our warrior princess. But Kori barely made it two steps out the door before Dick ran after her. He needed to understand because he refused to believe she’d hurt anyone in their team willfully. 

I love the way he begs her to talk to him. This scene is quick but again, it speaks so much to how deep their connection already is. This is the type of reaction you’d expect to see from a couple that has been together for months at least. Yet here Dick is, desperate for Kori to open up to him so he can help her - the same man who just the day or two prior told her that he needed space to fix his life. The guy who just a couple weeks ago couldn’t let his walls down enough to talk to her about why being Robin bothered him so much right after having sex with her. The strides that have been taken already with these two...

And then there was the glorious stalking of Kori via the car ride with Dick & Donna. Donna again tries to get Dick to get on the defensive about Kori, but my sweet, lovesick Dick ain’t having ANY of it. Let me clear my throat and say it again: Dick ThotLife BDE Grayson sat there defending his girl he’s known for about two weeks to someone he’s known since childhood. If this ain’t love y’all...

What was also super cute though was Donna figuring out nearly immediately that Dick was completely whipped and that Kori (a dangerous woman) is totally Dick’s type.

Ahem. Now onto the dickkory chat in front of the warehouse. Kori’s very sharp with Dick when she sees him, but Dick isn’t even a little put off. He immediately asks if she’s getting her memories back, and she honestly tells him and shows such sweet vulnerability.

What I love about this is the way they just have this honest conversation, in front of Donna (who Kori doesn’t know from a hole in the wall) like they’re the only two people in the world. The look of concern on Dick’s face every time Kori has a flashback is panty-melting so endearing. He then begs her to let him help her work through this, and even when she rebuffs him, he still follows her into the warehouse - basically letting her know that as her man, he goes where she does 😂

And finally there’s the moment where Dick Grayson finds out that the woman he’s fallen for been sleeping with is an alien assassin. 

HOMIE. DID. NOT. EVEN. BLINK. 

No disbelief. No cringing. No questions. Instead - this thirsty freak actually looked like he was more into her than ever. He practically giggled at seeing her ship. Dick was ready to pack a bag and get an intergalactic passport to head over to Tamaran with her, y’all.

So in the end, while this episode could have had FAR more of it’s namesake in it, what we did learn is that Dick is definitely in it for the long haul with Kori. His feelings showed all the way out in the way he dealt with her and her backstory, and he was unwilling to let her walk out of his life. I’m not fazed by the previews for the next episode; Dick has known Dawn for years and has had plenty of time to mend the romantic bridge if he had been so inclined. But he didn’t so she clearly wasn’t the one. Kori is the first romantic connection he’s had since he’s been honest with himself about who he is and what he wants,  and that has to count for something. 

[ralfstrashcan]

3x21 Reaction / Commentary

I was seriously wondering if this was Alec because Magnus loss = melt down = shaky fingers but Alec would never voluntarily drink something so pretentious. But uuhhh I had thought Jonathan angry-flapped through the rift to Edom? Why he now here still?

More seelie queen crown, yeah!!

Not buying that whole “your demon blood is burning away your humanity” because, again, he lived years without being bonded to Clary so what's taken that “transformation” so long? Also, will he become like, a raven? A harpy? Oh no, I saw the promo. He'll be blond. Makes sense.

He just showed that he's not interested, stop harassing him you sick cougar.

Uhhhhh, objection your honor. That fake blade only contained like three atoms of the original Glorious. But whatever, details amiright.

Also if they wanna tell me it's the blade that triggered the transformation then a) wtf why would a blade designed to break something evil make the evil actually MORE evil wtf for a shit equipment is that b) can we expect some ridic changes for Clary too, that make her even more Mary Sue? c) if Lucifer was so badass, where is he? Something killed him, maybe? Since Jonathan is declared most uniquest thing to ever unique?

“A splendid pet bird. And he died a few decades back so I'd like to recruit you as replacement,. Whatcha say? I'll even drop bird themed pick up lines around you all day.” God I'm making myself sick.

BS when you think about it, because every individual is unique. Good luck salvaging the climate change and what not, seelie queen, on your heroic quest to preserve all that is unique.

#rejected, take that you prowling predator. Can you believe she annoyed him so much he just abandoned his pretentious cream drink thingy? So rude. Also nice touch that they remembered that thing with the flowers and Jonathan making them poor flowers wilt. Btw would that have worked if they were plastic flowers?? Haha ok sorry.

Wtf I'm very much not on board with the seelie queen having a weird Jonathan fetish. Also, if the sole reason she has it is that Jonathan is “one of a kind” then I wonder why she wasn't ruthlessly hitting on Simon the same way? Or technically, before Simon became a daylighter, on Cain, getting him to leave the sewers and chill in the seelie realm instead?

1) Wow can you believe they managed to spare Malec's drama 3 seconds of consideration before getting absorbed in themselves again? Amazing. 2) Dude, you weren't in control of your actions while Clary was brainwashed and very much in control of her actions. That's not really comparable? But whatever.

Some great “love” you've got going on there, Maryse, writing Magnus off after, what? Half a day? Two days? Smh.

???????????????????? So they want to tell me Magnus plastered his magic like a bandaid over the rift but didn't really close it? Well, I am prepared with outrage to point out all the ways in which this is bullshit.

1) There clearly was no such thing to be seen from the other side.

Since Edom and Earth are two different dimensions and on Earth's side there was no rift in the dimension's fabric anymore that obviously means if the wraiths slipped through that Edom crack they'd either be lost in limbo or flapping around in some inter-dimesional space. But they couldn't reach Earth. So I fail to see how this is a problem.

2) How the hell do the NY Shadowhunters know about this? Since from their side the rift was well and truly closed? They don't know that Magnus has to keep his magical band-aid in place? The only thing they have to wonder about is why the hell Magnus hasn't returned yet since Magnus proved in 3x20 that apparently interdimensional travel works with normal warlock portals and those fancy pentagram things aren't necessary.

3) Uhhhh if Magnus has to stay there to keep up the magical band-aid (since exit options clearly aren't the issue here) wtf won't he tire at some point? Am I supposed to believe exhausting isn't a thing in Edom? What happens if he has to sleep? (Sidenote, what the hell do they eat in Edom anyway? Will he have to roast some shax demons? Disturbing.) Anyway back to the topic at hand, if I'm supposed to believe that Magnus is THAT strong he can keep up this magic (a magic that was so enormous he couldn't even achieve it from Earth) for eternity without taking a break, then I doubly don't get why he can't just SEAL the goddamn rift?! And don't tell me it's because band-aid magic is something he can do, and different from  rift sealing magic which is something he can't do. Because again, 2x20 is a thing where Magnus proves that he is capable of sealing a rift; so the only explanation of why he didn't do it in 3x20 is because the rift was too powerful. Now correct me if I'm wrong but to me Magnus + Enhanced Edom Powers equals He Closes The Rift, not Weird Band-Aid Magic. Wtf.

HAHAHAH I CAN'T!!!!! THANKS MAGNUS FOR POINTING THIS OUT!!! AND IN THE SASSIEST WAY POSSIBLE!!!!! IT'S BEEN BUGGING ME SINCE 3x10 XD XD XD

Love that shot.

1) Thanks, Lilith, for confirming that Magnus is in fact constantly supplying the band-aid with magic and thus exposing this whole plot line as completely frakkin illogical. 2) Wtf Lilith, why the heck did you go back to Edom in 3x16 if you wanted to murder Jonathan????? IT MAKES NO SENSE AT ALL WTF 3) Where tf is Cain?

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA I CAN'T

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA I CAN'T

Wow that escalated quickly. I hate that even though Magnus knows it's just a trick to get into his head it still hurts him, because this is how he is: alwasy second-guessing his worth. He deserves better from all of them, deserves more from them, so he wouldn't feel this so keenly.

Ok, good save, I was just gearing up for a rage about why the hell Magnus is more powerful than the literal mother of demons who could defeat everyone, even with his Ddom-Edition-Powers because come on. However, Magnus must know that this is just a temporal solution because recovering means at some point she'll be recovered and, well.

Also, this shot haha.

Hahahaha I see he inherited the hell puns from Asmodeus along with the real estate XD

I mean, yeah, and then he acted like a total fool in his last few days. Great way to go, man. #stillbitter

“People mattered to Jordan. People, their troubles, their pain...”

That was sweet.

HAHAHAHA THAT WAS HILARIOUS

Probably off to do something to enrage me, so same as always.

Oh look, he's robbing a bakery because being jobless and needing food doesn't mix well.

OMG I SUDDENLY REMEMBER THIS FROM THE 3B TRAILER. You know, Luke being all creepy in the back of a car? Wtf, honestly I think I'll have even less patience for Human!Luke than I have Inapt!Werewolf!Luke. They're really testing me.

“....like Sizzy” Hahahah okay I'll try to behave myself. And I had time to prepare, it was obvious they'd use that inspirational thing Maia said for Sizzy purposes.

Yeah...... #irony #obviously me behaving myself isn't working out, who's surprised? I'm not.

Don't they have fire extinguishers in the Institute somewhere? I mean, there's regulations for that, right? Lemme guess, that's remnants of the Glorious fake sword that pierced her? And now she can't be with Simon without killing him, hahaha, all Sizzy problems solved XD

When I saw this (in the Sneak Peek, but still counts) my first thought was “Aha NOW he tries to find a solution but when Magnus first lost his magic he couldn't be bothered RUDE ALEC WTF” lol ahahahah

Question time: 1) Didn't he have plants in there last episode?

OH RIGHT HE HAD!!! What happened to them? *Sherlock Voice* Did he eat them??

2) Why didn't Alec wonder where the hell Lorenzo was? Sure, he's a little preoccupied atm with losing Magnus, but he should have realized Lorenzo was weirdly absent about five hours into his happy little loft occupation???

3) I fully expected the scratching to be Chameleon!Lorenzo vying for attention, but seeing it, omg my heart broke a little. Can you imagine the desperation?? Poor evil lizard baby.

You know, I find it inherently troubling that Alec assumes Magnus always had this lizard and has only now decided to relocate its terrarium into the loft's main room, instead of thinking Magnus got the lizard as, idk, a pick-me-up after the breakup. I mean, what kind of lousy pet holder does he take Magnus for? Not even mentioning he has one, never taking care of it? That's not Magnus. Alec should know better.

Als Bohemian so incisively pointed out, why would he have created a pet cobra that he calls “baby” if he hated reptiles? And while, granted, Alec might not know about this, I believe Cat should. So wtf.

.....................................they honestly felt the need to tell her this? In grave detail and that this was their first kiss? Why would they do that?? Or did she look at the tapes??? So many questions.

Lol okay I didn't even intend to be so spot on with the Sizzy prediction. More importantly though, she won't be able to shadowhunt anymore.

Why is anyone (except Magnus (and occasionally Alec)) left in charge of anything, ever. *sigh*

But I mean, at least there's this

Small mercies (aka comedic pockets in a vast sea of illogic shit) I guess XD

HAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHA I AM DEAD I CAN'T HAHAHAH HIS FACE!!!!!!!!!!

Jace is me, I am Jace

So.... many....... questions...............

Okay, so I'm severely confused. If this demon has info on what's happening in Edom right now, then either he left Edom after Lilith started gathering her army so there's a rift there somewhere, OR there's a way for news to travel between Edom and Earth, probably through, you guessed it, a tiny rift. So wtf, show, please explain because I don't understand.

..............................................................

The audacity. The fucking audacity. MAGNUS WILL BE DEAD, IS WHAT YOU SHOULD TAKE AWAY FROM THAT. NOT THAT THE RIFT REOPENS ARE YOU KIDDING ME WTF JACE I CAN'T BELIEVE IT I EVEN CURSED EXPLICITLY I NEVER DO THAT WTFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF

Wow. Alec, can you please punch him?

Don't get me wrong. They're shadowhunters, of course it is their duty to prevent this to protect the mundanes. But, delivery?! Show some worry at the prospect of the love of your parabatai's life dying??? before continuing with business as usual?????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

SAME CLARY, BECAUSE WTF?! I REPEAT, WTF!!!! Didn't she listen to Helen at all? It's not going to protect her, it's going to blast her to frakking pieces. Wtf how dumb is she??? Hääääääääääää?????

lol Simon, you'd just stab yourself in the eye with it XD But I appreciate the sentiment XD

I AM THIS CLOSE TO JUST, RECORD MY LAUGHTER BECAUSE I'M DYYYYYING OVER HERE OKAY HAHAHAHAHAHHAAHHAHAHA Also he should call Maia, because life as a werewolf suxx way less than life as a vampire. Then again, IMMORTAL HUSBANDS SIGN ME THE F UP, IMMORTAL ALEC WAS ENDGAME ALL ALONG AHAHAHAHAHA YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

Okay, on a more coherent note. I LOVE this line. I was so painfully deprived of Alec throwing himself into risk and action just to protect and help Magnus during 3B that it's not even funny. So this was really awesome. But, consider this: if he really wanted to go through with it he'd have to wait like a whole day before the transformation is completed, so uhhh impracitcal.

YES. YES. PLEASE MORE OF ENRAGED ALEC SCOLDING THEM LIKE THE KIDS THEY ARE. (But, uh, ragefully running away from his sire in spe wasn't the cleverest move if he wants to go through with it immediately ahaha XD)

I mean, nice of them to contriubute. All it took was Alec (!!!!!) flipping his shit. It seems they didn't have the idea to look into something themselves. Lol I'm inclined to be with Lilith on that one, are they even worth it??? Smh.

Full disclosure, for the longest time I was sure those were burning dog shit piles XD

Can we talk about how Jonathan is at a point where he doesn't really seem to care if he lives or dies because everything is pointless to him? (Btw if I manage to actually write the epic 3x21+22 rewrite I have in mind then it'd start here.)

I mean this was smooth and all, but......? Wasn't Meliorn like, totally over Izzy? I'm meaning this in a premonition-y way, not just this line. His rekindled feelings come pretty much out of nowhere.

I get that this is the alliance rune from the books. But why the hell would she do that in this situation instead of a rune that allows Shadowhunters to survive in Edom? In which universe is alliance rune your first thought instead of resiliance rune?? Or just a plain Accio Magnus rune, ffs!!!Makes no sense.

This is epic and all, but excuse me while I roll my eyes real hard.

Also ignoring the seelie queen and her weird fetish 2.0 because who cares.

HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA I CCCCCCCCCAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT LORENZO IS A FANBOY HAHAHAHA I BET YOU HE WILL CORNER SIMON AT SOME POINT AND BEG HIM FOR AN AUTOGRAPH HAHAHAHAHA

“As my first act on the Downworld Council...”

So you mean to tell me that from 3x02 til 3x21 actually only a week passed? Because the Downworld Council meetings are weekly scheduled??? Tf hahaha.

Hahahhahhaa I mean I totally get why he reacts that way. Also, may I ask the dreaded question: WHERE THE F IS CATARINA???????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! No honestly, I give up. I just. I give up.

Hahahahaha

“The angels wouldn't have given me this power if they didn't want me to use it.”

Premonition!Ralf: Ha. Hahahhahaha. Ha.

THE COMEDY WE DESERVE HAHAHAHA

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA PERFECT!!!! Not least because it's immediately followed by

which makes it seem as if Lorenzo is complimenting Meliorn's prowess as a lover LOL

SIGH. So in 3x10 it was the portal that allowed Magnus to EASILY travel back to Earth, not Asmodeus kindly giving him a lift. So then let me ask why the hell he didn't make a portal like this in 3x20?! Did he already know he wouldn't be able to seal the rift but would have to keep it closed 24/7? Ridiculous. Also, why does Alec even ask this, since he saw Magnus use that exact same portal in 3x10.

I think you should have held frikkin hands.

HAHAHA ALEC, HONEY, WHAT WOULD YOU WRITE ANYWAY???? “We're right here, next to those withered trees. There's sand on the ground and wraiths in the sky. Everything looks red. And from here I can see that one ruin!!”

Weird Lorenzo & Alec bonding is intriguing. That's all I'm saying on the matter for now. I'm reserving judgement.

(Edit: After watching both 3x21 and 3x22 this clearly marks the point where Lorenzo's Instant Redemption Arc sets in and simultaneously comes to a close. Thanks, I hate it. Let antagonists be antagonists, dammit. At the end of the day not everyone is a goody two-shoes. That's life. UGH. Also, let me introduce my theory that while traveling between Earth and Edom Lorenzo's character was ripped from him in a severe Plot Convenience Turbulence. What a shame.)

But hell yeah to Alec's emotions running rampant and him being unable to control the magic. Another headcanon confirmed (that I didn't really knew I had, lol).

Hahahahha dude could you be any more pretentious XD XD XD

Hahahahahahaha this is the best day of my life.

Hahahaha Meliorn just got promoted to one of my favorites. Better late than never amiright.

I get this, this taking stock conversation, from a meta standpoint. But BITCH CAN YOU FOCUS ON MAGNUS FOR ONCE IN YOUR SELF-ABSORBED LIFE IS THAT TOO MUCH TO ASK WTF DAMMIT

Yeah, me too. Who knew demonic transformations came with a villain hairdo make over?? Nature truly is beautiful.

Me, watching: I might be totally oblivous, but did this crown always have a stripe thing on the top, too? Ralf, editing this reaction post: Yes. Yes it did. You're not as observant as you like to think. Me, reading that: .......harsh

..........do I have to understand why he isn't running away screaming? I get the instinct to wreak havoc because everything hurts and is pointless but wtf, the seelie queen is doing the exact same things Lilith did to him. Using him, only seeing him as a power source that has to be cultivated but has no feelings, no worth, and weirdly kissing him. He should, for all intents and purposes, be running for the hills. (But also, uh, neat nail polish and rings, seelie queen. You've got style.)

HAHAHAHA I mean, I already prepared two Jeliorn Dumb Comics, but this is reaching ridiculous levels XD XD XD I'm soooo here for it.

Hahahahaha XD XD XD

“Runes bubbling back, incredible” Yeah, no shit. I'm not buying. I could even largely argue my point, making references to the seelies that got “treated” in 3x17 that weren't rendered half-human-half-angel but mundane, meaning they lost their angelic part, too, meaning the serum removes angelic blood as well as demon blood. But since I couldn't care less about Luke (right now or in general? That's your guess to make) I'm not even getting worked up over it XD

Dude, you're aware this is like the perfect opening for getting a verbal diss, right?

Wow, three seconds a shadowhunter and here we are with the racist jokes again. That was quick.

Also, let me say how exceedingly ridiculous it is that Luke just walks out of there with a “No thank you” and Evil Praetor Guy does nothing against it literally because Luke said “But blackmailing me would mean you're evil ;__;”

bitch please

Look, can we appreciate this a little more? Like, a lot more??? Can I pause the episode here and stare at this for half an hour or something????? Alec saying he's willing to just, leave behind life as he knew it, very possibly never seeing anyone of his family again, just so he gets to stay with Magnus? I mean, that's some Major Immortal Alec Energy right there. Serve me more please.

..................wow instead I get Clary depriving me of a Malec Reunion Smooch wtf?! Uuuhhhh no thank you!!!!

AHAHAHA THAT SUFFERING FACE HAHAHAHAHA OMG AMAZING Kicked Pouting Suffering Puppy Jace <3<3<3

Btw what Jace said about Simon really gave me something to think about. I'm confused but intrigued. I like.