#but hey! definitely getting faster at the fur pattern!

[chiropteracupola]

not sure how specific a prompt you want but!! i would love to see another hilarion drawing 👀 if you want something more specific, maybe something to do with those closing scenes from frontier wolf where alexios is recuperating, but i am very much not fussy :)

time to take a break!

[weregularlytalkaboutbruno]

Breathe, Mi Amor-Bruno x reader

Request: yes (anonymous)- “can we please have a protective Bruno after discovering someone giving the reader some very unwanted attention?”

Warning: contains themes of sexual harassment (brief) and angst

Pronouns: she/her

Warnings: creepy behavior (with intoxication), long writing, google translate

Another party? Sheesh, Bruno didn’t remember there being this many before he left. Granted, the children were little and most already had their gifts, but still. Now it was practically a bi-weekly tradition. And every party was just as excitedly talked about around town as the last. It never got old apparently. Well, it did for Bruno. After the small celebration of his return, followed by the housewarming party after Casita was finished, his social battery was pretty much empty.

He adjusted his rauna in the mirror. Mirabel had demanded to make him a new one, considering he had been wearing the same one for the past ten years or so. It wasn’t too far off from the last, just a deeper, more forest-ey green and a much darker pattern. Plus, Mira had made the old one into a pillow, which his little rodent friends enjoyed sleeping on. In an attempt to look nicer, he tied his hair up loosely. He was so used to his old rauna and hair in his face that it almost made him feel exposed in a way. His neck felt colder, that’s for sure. He fidgeted with his clothing more, looking over his appearance in almost a nervous manner. He glanced over at one of the rats, who of which was staring at him from their seat on his dresser. “What are you looking at me like that for?” He asked, tilting his head a bit as he scratched the back of the rat’s neck. The rat almost mimicked him, climbing onto his hand and up his arm. Settling on his shoulder, the rodent’s little hands pawed at a few loose curls. Bruno smiled softly, looking at him from the mirror. “Yeah, I don’t know how I feel about it either.” He shrugged, gently scooping the rat in his hand and returning him to his dresser. “Y’know, I would ask that you and your little buddies don’t raid the snack table again. Or at least please wait until everyone has left. You guys are lucky Antonio took the heat for you guys the last time and said that you could.” His expression was unamused as the rat almost seemed to smile, hopping off of the bed and into one of the little holes in the wall.

Bruno rolled his eyes as he huffed and straightened his posture, making his way towards the door. “Oscar, you’re in charge.” He gave a serious nod towards a smaller rat with silvery-brown fur, earning a sniff and a blink in response. “Good enough”, he said with a shrug as he closed the door behind him, taking a deep breath as he began his descent down the hundreds of stairs. As Casita was rebuilt, a much faster pulley system was introduced to his cave as a way to get up and down. The people were curious as to why Bruno still insisted on keeping the stairs, as he claimed it was simply for aesthetic purposes. In reality, he used the extra few minutes to gather any last-minute thoughts before he faced the world again. The soft sand crunched under his feet as he made the final stretch to the door, hesitating a bit as his hand rested on the doorknob. Though he wasn’t given much time to think, as the door flung open and the tiles under his feet tossed him forward. Thankfully, there were no longer stairs between his door and the main balcony of doors. “Hey! Knock it off, will ya?” He regained his footing and dusted himself off as his door slammed behind him.

“Hey tío! Lookin sharp!” Mirabel rushed past him in a blur, followed by Luisa with several crates stacked in their arms. One sister obviously struggled more than the other, but she definitely had the enthusiasm. “Oh! Uh, gracias.” He gave a nervous chuckle, stepping out of the way. A plush ball of orange material bounced off the top of his head, dropping down by his feet. “Sorry! Could you pass that back?” Camillo shouted up to his uncle, motioning to the ball of streamers that he had been tossing in between the rafters. Bruno chuckled as he tossed it back, making sure to wrap it around the banister a few times to make his nephew’s job just slightly easier.

Looking around the room, Bruno could see every family member buzzing around the house. Carrying platters, tossing rugs, lighting candles, you name it. It was honestly rather overwhelming, the the excessively loud volume that neither he and most likely Dolores didn’t appreciate. He debated just turning around and heading right back into his room. The thought was short lived as he heard his name called from the kitchen doorway. “Aye! Bruno!” Julieta stepped from the doorframe, dusting her hands on her somehow pristine apron. “Mind running to the grocer’s? I didn’t pick up enough tomatoes this morning.” Bruno gave a bit of a stuttered nod, heading towards the stairs. An incredibly strong floral scent flooded his senses as he reached the main floor, Isabela not far behind. “Plus, you’ll get the chance to visit your novia.” Isa gave a genuine smile, despite her teasing giggle. Bruno quirked a brow, Isa falling into step beside him as he headed towards the front doors. “Who are you referring to?” Isa rolled her eyes. “Oh don’t play that game. Literally everyone in town is aware of your little crush on seniorita (y/n). I wouldn’t be surprised if she realized it too.” Bruno only shrugged her off as they passed through the doors. He supposed she was coming with him then. “I have no clue what you’re talking about.” Isa huffed as the doors closed behind them, beginning their walk towards the market. “Oh come on! The stares? Your face is always red when she’s around? Last time she even looked at you, I watched you trip on your own feet and land in a bush!” Bruno immediately stiffened, shaking his head slightly. “Hey! It was one time, my allergies were peaking because of your pollen, and I couldn’t see. It’s not my fault!” He raised his hands in defense. Isa only snickered. “You’re a bad liar, you know that?” Nothing was said for a few moments. “We’re here to get tomatoes. Nothing more.” A firm statement that the conversation was officially over. The rest of the walk was silent, the passing conversation of townsfolk really the only sound.

The silence was finally broken as Bruno opened the door, followed by a small “after you,” as he followed his niece in. “Welcome in!” The two were immediately met with a madhouse. Supply was flying off the shelves faster than they could be stocked, children ran around the tables in loud and excited conversation, and a line for the register was stretched nearly the entire span of the store. And at the front of the line, behind the counter, was her. Hair once tied back, now falling from the blue ribbon that held it tightly in place. Her movements were frantic, but no less friendly. Simply a bit more professional than they normally were. Sunlight leaking though the windows from behind framed her neck and shoulders perfectly, appearing almost as if she were a portrait. A portrait that Bruno could sit and admire for hours. “Uh, tío? The tomatoes?” Isa urged, pulling Bruno from his daydream. “Right! Right…” Bruno quickly straightened himself up, speeding past his niece and the the table containing only about half a dozen tomatoes. “Hopefully these will be enough.” He scooped them into his arms, receiving a nod from Isabela. “We better get in line before it leads out the door. “ Bruno nodded, hesitantly shuffling towards the line. He would be unlike himself if he didn’t rehearse any possibly conversation in his head, growing more and more nervous as the line grew shorter and shorter.

“Good morning Señor Madrigal, Isabela. What can I do for you?” (Y/n) gave a smile that, despite how warm it appeared, failed to hide how tired she was. “Aye, you work yourself too hard, Señorita.” Isa smiled as Bruno set the produce on the counter. (Y/n) shrugged. “Just making a living.” She huffed a laugh, writing down the sold tomatoes for inventory. She pulled a small burlap sack from under the counter, gently setting the tomatoes inside and tying it shut. “Seems like everyone is preparing for tonight just as much as you are.” Isa hummed in agreement, hoisting the sack into her arms. Her uncle, on the other hand, just listening to the conversation. He felt awkward, of course, but it was outweighed by his curiosity and observations. The way she span the pen in her hand as she was caught in conversation. Her hair falling across her eye, followed by her tucking the loose strand behind her ear. Isa glanced over, and she subtly elbowed him to grab his attention. She supposed she would spare him the embarrassment of getting caught staring. Bruno jumped just slightly, giving a small, awkward laugh and wringing his hands. “How much do we owe you?” Bruno couldn’t tell if he was talking fast, or he was just over-analyzing. (Y/n) shook her head, waving them off. “Oh don’t worry about it, you have enough to worry about with the party planning. Besides, Julieta is one of my best customers.” She said, pinning her previously written note to the shelf behind her. “It’s really no trouble, you’ve had a busy day and you deserve the profit.” Bruno urged. “Really, it’s alright. I’m getting a new shipment tomorrow morning anyways.” Another warm smile that made Bruno’s thoughts fuzzy. “How about a trade instead?” Isa suggested, earning a raised eyebrow from both the store clerk and her uncle. Bruno’s gaze quickly flicked down as he felt a small vine climbing up his arm, settling against his palm. Suddenly, a bouquet of variously colored cattleya orchids erupted into his grasp, Bruno almost instantaneously holding his hand out in shock. “A gift for a gift”. Isa smiled sweetly, looking between (y/n) and her uncle. The pair stared at each other wide-eyed, and Bruno felt his posture shoot straight up. Of course he couldn’t just pull his hand back and hurry out the door, after nearly smacking the poor woman in the face. A sharp kick in the shin helped clear Bruno’s mind just enough to somewhat form a sentence. “Uh- yeah, uh, a gift for a gift.” He gave a shaky laugh, gaze shifting from her eyes to the floor. (Y/n), though, had no problem composing herself, gently taking the flowers from his hand. “Oh, gracias! I actually just emptied a vase a bit ago.” She beamed, giggling as she grabbed an empty vase from the windowsill. Conveniently, she had just disposed of the previously dead plant and refilled the vase with water for the next plant to arrive. “They are absolutely beautiful.” Her smile was contagious as he watched her slightly adjust the arrangement. Bruno was a bit conflicted, unable to decide if he was upset with Isabela or not. Was it his ideal course of events? Absolutely not, but he supposed it worked out. He simply nodded, becoming a bit more comfortable with the situation having a positive result. “See you tonight?” Isa asked, a faint hint of accomplishment present in her voice. “Of course, I was planning on closing up a bit early.”

“We’ll see you there.” Bruno slightly winced at the small shake in his voice, though (y/n) didn’t seem to mind. Her smile instead widened a bit. The trio was interrupted by the clearing of a throat. Isabela stiffened as a rather tall man stepped forward, resting his hand on her shoulder as he set his goods to purchase on the counter. “My apologies, but I’m in a bit of a rush.” (Y/n)’s expression dropped slightly as she turned back towards the register. “Er- yes, sorry. Just lost in a good conversation.” Isa politely stepped out of his grip, and closer to her uncle, who of which frowned slightly at the sudden interruption. “No worries, you’ve always been a fan of flowers.” The man, Hugo, leaned an elbow against the counter, nudging the pair of Madrigals out of the way. He was a regular around the marketplace area, seemingly always just roaming around. He was from a rather well off family, resulting in a bit of a spoiled brat. He was an attractive man, and he knew it, flirting with just about any woman he came across. “Cabrón”, Bruno had heard his sisters refer to him as on several occasions. (Y/n) gave a polite nod, writing up a receipt. “I suppose you’re right.” Bruno glanced between the two, and he couldn’t help but feel out of place. “Let’s get going.” He spoke quietly to his sobrina, giving (y/n) a nod in farewell as the two slipped through the remaining line and out the doors.

They were nearly halfway home before anything was said. “Hey, that went well.” Isa shrugged, glancing over at her uncle. Bruno only returned her shrug, his eyes trailing across the ground. “Appreciate the help, but it’s pointless.” He nearly mumbled, tripping slightly as the began up the hill to the house. “What do you mean? She seemed to love it. Plus, you have more of a reason to talk to her tonight since we had talked earlier.” Bruno sighed. “But you saw the way Hugo looked at her. One look at that guy and I don’t stand a chance.” Isa stopped in her tracks, looking over at him with a confused expression. “What in the world are you talking about? Hugo just acts like that because he likes the reactions of people. He also probably saw you give her those flowers, and wanted to stir up a bit of drama.” She rolled her eyes. Bruno shook his head, taking the bag from Isa’s hand as she held it out to him and opened the door. “Let’s just focus on the party, yeah?” Again, a bit of a cold conclusion.

☾---------------------------✵----------------------------☽

A few hours later, and the party was in full swing. Music filled Casita, the entire town flooding the halls of the house. Bruno had spent most of the night joining the conversations of his family members, yielding surprisingly encouraging outcomes. Despite the populace’s general weariness with his return, it seemed that the idea of him being around again was being warmed up to. He was still far from comfortable, but it was definitely the most enjoyment he had had at a party yet. He was currently pulled into a debate with Mirabel and Camilo, deciding how long it would be before Parce broke out of Antonio’s room. The cat had developed a bit of an attachment to Antonio, her loud wailing occasionally being heard over the loud conversation. “I think you two are overestimating how easily she could get out. Casita definitely wouldn’t let her get too far. Neither would Mamá, to be completely honest.” Camillo shrugged, resting his hands on his hips. “I think that Parce would liven the place up a bit.” Mira snickered, adjusting her glasses. “Yes, because an entire-town party isn’t enough- (y/n)!” Mira exclaimed with a gasp, immediately abandoning the conversation and hurrying over to the woman. (Y/n) laughed as Mira threw her arms around her shoulders, returning the hug. “Before you ask, we get our next sewing supply shipment on Wednesday.” Mira beamed, giving an excited nod as she stepped back and instead took her hand. “You know me so well. Now! You have to try Mamá’s empanadas, she tried a new recipe and she wants as many opinions as possible!” She pulled the woman along with an iron grip, the pair soon disappearing into the kitchen. “You may not get to hang around your esposa much with Mira around.” Camillo teased his uncle, Bruno’s face immediately flushing red. “Oh cállate!” Bruno huffed with a chuckle, playfully pushing his shoulder. Mirabel and (y/n) quickly exited the kitchen, a few plates piled with empanadas balanced on the woman’s arms. Mira charged towards her tío and primo. “Eat!” Mira took two of stuffed bread pockets and shoved them into their hands. “You’ve been here for maybe two minutes and Mira’s already put you to work, huh?” Camilo asked with a raised brow, Bruno snickering as he took a bite from his empanada. “Actually, (y/n) offered to help me and Mamá out. So if you’ll excuse us, we’ve got deliveries to make.” (Y/n) shrugged as she followed Mirabel towards the next group, smiling at Bruno’s friendly wave as she left. “I don’t get how you can be scared to talk to a woman that just got told what to do by a fifteen-year old.” Camillo snickered, popping the snack into his mouth. “Are you just going to bother me with this all night?”

☾---------------------------✵----------------------------☽

It wasn’t long before the plates were nearly empty. The empanadas, expectedly, were very much a success. “Geez, it’s kinda hot in there with so many people around.” Mira leaned against the banister from the second floor balcony, taking another empanada from the plates that had been set on the bench behind them. “No kidding, my arms were getting a little tired after a while.” (Y/n) giggled, stretching her arms a bit before matching Mira. “Mamá will be glad to hear how it went. She was a bit worried about them. I hardly understand why though, she’s probably never made a bad meal in her life.” The two laughed. “Buenas noches, señoritas, mind if I steal a few empanadas?” (Y/n) stiffened as Hugo stumbled into the room, wrapping an arm around her waist. His words were noticeably slurred as he smirked down at her. Alma greatly limited alcohol at parties with so many children around, so he must have arrived already intoxicated. “Uh, yeah. Behind you.” Mirabel looked between his hand and (y/n), obvious discomfort written across her features. She shifted uncomfortably out of his grip, grabbing a plate and using it to create a bit of distance. “Take as many as you’d like.” She stated firmly. Mira stepped up behind her, resting a hand on her shoulder.

“Mira! Come here for a second! Señora Guzman wanted to ask about making a skirt for her!” Isabella called up the stairs, Mira’s lips forming a tight line as she looked at the doorway. “Go ahead, I need to speak to (y/n) about ordering something for me.” Hugo smiled widely, swaying slightly as he stepped out of the way of the doorway. (Y/n) rested a hand on her’s, nodding. “It’s okay, go on.” She gave a reassuring smile, though it didn’t quite reach her eyes. She absolutely did not want to be alone with this man, but her number one priority was getting Mirabel away from him. Mira stayed firmly in place, glaring up at Hugo. “I can talk to her later about it.” Hugo sighed, motioning towards the door and taking a step forward. “C’mon, beat it kid. The adults need to have a conversation.” (Y/n)’s grip on her hand tightened. “Mira, go.” Her voice was much more stern this time. “Please.” Mirabel hesitantly let go, looking back at the two before quickly hurrying out the door. “Mirabel, Señora Guzman was needing a skirt for a birthday present for her sister. She’s very impressed with you-“ “We need to get Tío Bruno.” Isa’s smile faltered slightly. “What?” Isa rarely saw Mirabel so serious. She was immediately concerned, since Mira was always more than thrilled to make anything for anyone. Especially when it came to sewing. “We need to get Tío Bruno. Now.”

☾---------------------------✵----------------------------☽

“Now, what can I get for you? Fair warning, the next big shipment won’t be coming in for a few weeks.” Strictly business, she wanted to make that very clear.(Y/n) took a small step back, Hugo took a big step forward. Well, stumbled forward. “My order’s already here.” The man reeked of alcohol. She ducked out of the way of his hand as he reached for her, though she didn’t have much more room to move further back. “I-I’m flattered, really, but I’m not interested.” Hugo chuckled deeply, backing her up further. “Oh don’t be like that, I hear the way you talk to me.” (Y/n) raised a brow. “When you come into the store? When I simply ask if there’s anything else you need before your purchase? I apologize for any misunderstandings, but again, I’m not interested. Really.” she took a step around him, heading for the door. She felt a large hand wrap around her wrist, whipping her back around and towards him as he backed her against the wall. “Let go!” She gripped desperately at her own arm, attempting to pull herself out from under him. “You work far too hard, cariño. You need to relax. I can help with that.” His head lowered, his breath felt on her neck.

☾---------------------------✵----------------------------☽

“Tío!” Bruno’s head whipped in the direction of his sobrina’s frantic yell, turning towards her from the drink table. The loud music, along with the general conversation buzzing around the room made it hard to hear much of anything. His eyebrows furrowed as he watched Mirabel practically climb over guests, earning a few looks and glares. Even Isabela’s normal care-free disposition was completely abandoned. Mira swiped the drink from his hand, slamming it down on the table and taking his arm. “Woah woah woah! Slow down! What in the world is going on?” “We don’t have time! It’s (y/n).” And with that, Bruno had no problem being lead. In reality he was nearly pushing Mira in front of him. “Where?” “Upstairs.” Isa and Mira had to follow him after that, hurrying up the stairs behind him. “What happened?” “Hugo-“ a loud yell and the crash of a tray had Bruno sprinting up the stairs two at a time. “You two stay down here!” He called over his shoulder, panic very much present in his voice.

“Get off of me!” He heard (y/n) plead with the man as he skid around the corner, and in a few long strides he had a grip on the back of Hugo’s shirt. “That’s enough!” He was a bit impressed with himself, how easily he tore the man off of her. “You stay the hell away from her!” He stepped in between the two, shoving Hugo back further by his chest. Hugo only rolled his eyes. He looked down at the seer, quite a bit taller than the Madrigal. “Patético. You’re just mad that I got to her first.” Less than a second later, Bruno’s fist was colliding with his jaw. “Bruno!” (Y/n) yelped in surprise recoiling slightly at the sudden excitement. Hugo grunted as his knuckles made contact, his hand coming up to hold his already bruising jaw. Bruno found himself a bit taken back by his own actions. He’d been punched before, sure, but never had he initiated it. Hugo gave a bitter laugh, swaying a bit as he regained his balance. “Estas muerto.” Bruno quickly urged (y/n) back. He veered out of the way of each strike Hugo attempted, though it wasn’t too difficult, considering how intoxicated he was. He did his best to keep from backing up further, glancing back at (y/n) as she rubbed her bruised wrist. Her eyes were locked on Bruno in panic, unsure of what to do. She knew jumping in wouldn’t help, considering that this fight surrounded getting her out of this. “Aye! Someone, Ayuda!” She desperately called out, praying that anyone would hear her. She looked around the balcony, hurriedly taking a hold of one of Julieta’s trays. It seeming a bit weighty, heavier than she expected at least. Bruno swiveled away from another punch, and (y/n) took the opportunity to swing. A loud clatter echoed as Hugo fell against the banister, holding his head. The tray wasn’t nearly enough to cause major damage, but it definitely could stagger someone. That and the alcohol held him there for a moment, long enough for Felix and Augustin to get a hold and restrain him.

“That is enough!” Alma came storming out, Mira and Isa not far from the doorway. “You not only come into our home intoxicated past reason, but attack both one of my guests and my son. You will never find yourself welcome in our home again.” She spat after the two men had dragged him to his feet before motioning them to get him out of there. By now, the main room below, and the party, had gone nearly silent. Augustin and Felix hauled him down the stairs, small “excuse us,” and “pardon me,”s heard as they made their way though the parting crowd. By now, the rest of the family had arrived. Each face filled with concern as Julieta made her way past and towards her brother. “Are you two alright?” She asked, her brows furrowed as she looked over the two. (Y/n) gave a nod, with a small smile and a shaky breath. “Thanks to Bruno.” She shuffled a bit closer to the two, handing Julieta her tray. “I’m sorry about the tray. It shouldn’t be too bent.” Julieta quickly shook her head, gently taking the tray from her. “That is the least of my worries, querida. I’m just glad you are both okay. Now, Bruno, you two head to the kitchen and grab something to eat, just in case.” She cupped both Bruno’s and (y/n)’s cheek affectionately for a moment before nodding towards the door. “Camilo, Dolores, I need you two downstairs to reassure everyone that everything is okay. Mirabel and Isabela, could you clean up this mess? And Luisa, I need you on music.” Alma leaned over the banister, checking in to catch Felix and Augustin tossing Hugo out onto path before heading back into the Casita and closing the doors. With that, the Madrigals hurried off to their respective tasks, and it wasn’t long before cheery reassurances were heard from not only the the two grandchildren, but Felix and Augustin as well. Alma finally turned to Bruno and (y/n), her previously stern expression finally relaxing. “Thank god the two of you are alright. I should have had him thrown out the second he arrived.” She took a deep breath before clasping her hands together. “Now, you two go ahead and calm down, I believe we’ve had enough excitement for this evening.” She gave a small smile, glancing once more at her son before heading back to the party. By now, the music and the sound of voices had picked back up. Mira and Isa quickly hurried in after, stepping over the scattered empanadas. “(Y/n)! Did he- what happened after I left- I’m sorry” (y/n) quickly hushed her, taking her hands in her own. “Mira, why are you apologizing? Im okay thanks to you and Bruno, what could you possibly have to be sorry for?” Mira found herself unable to speak for a moment, trying to form any kind of sentence. “For leaving-“ “Hey, I told you to leave. I didn’t want you here either.” Mira sighed, finally launching herself towards (y/n) and wrapping her arms around her. “I’m glad you’re okay.” The woman smiled, holding her just as tightly “I’m glad you’re okay too. Now! Let’s get back to the party; huh?” Mira smiled up at her and nodded, unraveling her arms and slipping past her to grab the remaining tray. (Y/n) gave Isa a “thank you” as well, the girl matching her sister’s warm smile. “Of course, and I’m hoping to see you around here more.” She giggled, glancing over at her uncle before joining her sister with the cleanup.

“Ready-uh, to head down?” Bruno offered a hand, and (y/n) finally realized how much he was shaking. Then again, she realized how much she was shaking herself. She nodded, smiling warmly as she took his hand. “Ready when you are.” Bruno nodded, somewhat returning her smile as he lead her towards the kitchen. His hold on her hand was incredibly gentle, so much so that it felt like a whisper of a touch. Thankfully, most of the party attendees were distracted as the pair slipped along the edge of the room, having no troubles making it to the kitchen. The countertops were still lined with mounds and mounds of food. Julieta had really outdone herself. “What can I grab for you? Don’t worry about seconds, because we clearly have plenty-“ “thank you.” Bruno felt her grip on his hand tighten. He looked over at her, his focus no longer on the food. “You don’t need to thank me, I would do it again in a heartbeat.” Her smile really was contagious. “Well, I hope you don’t have to do anything like that for a long while.” She giggled. “Though you did look quite intimidating.” It was Bruno’s turn to laugh as he huffed out a chuckle. “I’ve heard that one before, but this is the first time I’ve heard it in a positive context.” (Y/n) rolled her eyes, heading over towards the counter and taking a couple arepas from one of the large piles. She handed one to Bruno, taking a bite of her own. “But people are starting to realize the kind of person you really are. Especially after tonight.” Bruno took a bite of his own. “The Encanto’s punch-happy recluse?” (Y/n) snickered, shaking her head. “A charming, caring man who truly cares about the people of this town.” Bruno couldn’t help the warmth that spread to his cheeks as he looked down at his arepa, pulling off another chunk and popping it into his mouth. “I really appreciate it, but you’re giving me too much credit.” “Por dios, Bruno. You fought a man to protect me without hesitation.”

“Because you’re my friend” the woman was clearly unsatisfied with his answer.

“And you would do it for anyone else in this town, wouldn’t you?”

“Well yes but-“

“Then I’m right, aren’t I? Why is it so hard for you to admit that you’re a good person?”

“Because I’m in love with you!”

Bruno felt his mouth go dry as the words fell from his lips. His eyes widened as his gaze snapped up to her’s. It was painfully silent for what felt like ages. “A-and you deserve more than someone like me.” His voice shook. “Doing one good thing doesn’t make you an upstanding citizen. In my life, I have caused more harm than good, and this doesn’t right all of my wrongs.” He was the one to break their tense eye contact, his stare moving to the floor. “Bruno, what could you possibly mean by that?” Bruno shakily sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “You’ve heard the stories, (y/n). You know my reputation. My gift has brought nothing but trouble.”

“And none of that is you’re fault! You didn’t decide what was shown in your visions. The rumors were just the result of people unhappy with their results. You have done nothing but help the people of this town, whether they liked it or not.”

He couldn’t bear to look at her, her presence nearly suffocating him. “I need a vision.” Bruno was caught a bit off guard as she set her pastry on a napkin, dusting off her hands. “If the man I love is such a bad person, what does my future hold then?”

“I-… what?”

He had never dared to view her future, absolutely terrified of the thought of seeing her with someone else. At first he convinced himself he would see Hugo, but in reality he was worried about seeing anyone but himself. Of which he was sure was impossible.

“If you’re so sure that you don’t deserve anyone, prove it.” Bruno found himself truly at a loss for words. He hadn’t realized how close she was getting until she was just a few inches from him. Bruno’s breathing hitched. He began noticing little details he had never noticed before. A few beauty marks that littered her skin. The slightly-darker circles under her eyes displaying the long hours she worked everyday. Her lips, still stained just slightly darker from the pigment she had applied before she had worked. He found himself unable to look away from them. He brought a hand to her cheek, stopping just before making contact. He hesitated, though was encouraged as (y/n) rested her hand on top of his in reassurance. “I am in love with you, Bruno Madrigal. You do not need a vision to know that.” And with that he closed the remaining gap between them, their lips softly joining as he brought his other hand up. He gently brushed his thumbs across her cheeks. A shiver ran down his spine as her hands made their way to his rauna, her fingers running along the embroidered material. A million thoughts ran though his head, and yet he couldn’t describe the feeling of her lips on his as anything other than fireworks. His chest felt warm, her body pressed against his in an embrace.

He rested his forehead against her’s as they parted. They took a moment, simply absorbing each other’s presences. “I love you. And I have for years.” She rested her hands on top of his, kissing him once more.

“Well, I think I’ll need to pick up a few things from the store tomorrow.” (Y/n) giggled. “I would like that.”

[chaosangel767]

Hi. Can I pls request for The army bois with a mc who uh- sleeps with a stuffed animal lol or a pillow hugger Pls and ty :) (also ur my fav hc writer, it took a while to get the courage to ask lol, if u do this then tytytytytytyyyyyy) if it's too much then pls ray, lance, jonah, fenrir and luka ^^

Of course you can! ❤ I absolutely adored making this HC list. I love stuffed animals and body pillow so this hit pretty close to home. Enjoy! 😘

HC’s: How they react to a Pillow hugging/Stuffy Loving MC Pt. 1

❤ Lancelot ❤

His Alice is a stuffy lover. At first he was really curious about it. He doesn’t understand why a stuffed animal is so comforting to you. He never had one in his childhood and can’t wrap his head around it.

When he realizes how much better you sleep holding a stuffed animal he stops wondering and just accepts it. He wants to make sure you are comfortable since he works a lot and can’t always hold you at night.

He buys you a stuffed Lion so that you have something to hold from him, he doesn’t like seeing you hold things that he didn’t buy. You take right to the lion and he is happy to see how receptive you are to the gift. Seeing you asleep holding the lion he got you always makes him want to work faster so he can hold you.

He’ll always hold you and make sure the Lion’s in your arms so that you don’t wake up worried.

He added a magic crystal to the center of the lion so that it can be warmed up. It will stay warm for an hour or so before cooling off.

Lancelot hears soft whimpers from the bed where you lay. He creeps closer to see you on your side holding your stomach, the lion in your arms.

“Alice, are you okay?” His voice is laced with worry and you whimper, clutching the lion closer to your stomach as another cramp rips through your abdomen causing a cry to fall from your lips. Understanding what is going on, the King of Hearts lays behind you and pulls you into his arms.

“Can I see the lion for a moment?” Lancelot asks, resting one warm hand on your abdomen, you nod and reluctantly give up your beloved stuffy. Lance pressed a hand to its stomach and a soft glow emits from the lion's stomach. He gives it back to you, pressing the lion to your stomach, warmth emitting from the animal.

“Lance,” you sigh as the pain in your abdomen starts to lessen and you are able to drift off in the arms of your lover, holding the warm stuffed animal. Lancelot ends up holding you for the rest of the afternoon, making sure the lion helped with any pain and keeping you warm, he loved having you in his arms and seeing you hold the lion and just be vulnerable moved him so much. He makes a silent promise to make sure you are always relaxed and smiling.

❤ Jonah ❤

Jonah doesn’t understand why you have to steal the extra pillows at night to cuddle, especially his favorite fluffy pillow.

He will fall asleep with you in his arms and wake up to find you away from him with a pillow in your arms.

He gets a little jealous at the fact you would rather cuddle the pillow and it takes a while for him to understand it isn’t something that you fully control when you sleep.

Jonah buys a large pillow for you to cuddle and relaxes a little when he sees how happy it makes you.

"Why sleep with that when you can have me?" Jonah huffs as you sheepishly tell him that you can’t sleep without holding a pillow. He crosses his arms and looks away, a slight blush creeping on his cheeks. Jonah doesn't understand how you can cuddle a pillow. That night you fall asleep cuddling him, but wake up with your back against him cuddling a pillow.

A few days go by with this pattern, Jonah is still a little huffy about having to share his night time cuddles with a pillow. He has you close your eyes though and when you open them he is holding a large pillow, it is even bigger than his and is super soft and smells like strawberries.

“If you are going to cuddle a pillow I want it to remind you of me. I don't like that you cuddle just any pillow” He explains looking away with a slight blush on his cheeks. He is secretly happy that you adore the pillow not that he would ever admit it.

Jonah’s new favorite sight is coming back to his room after a long day to see you cuddling the pillow he got you fast asleep. He gets used to cuddling you around the pillow and even enjoys it

♠️ Ray ♠️

Ray is super worried when he notices you haven't been sleeping great since staying with him.

Eventually you admit you usually fall asleep with a stuffed animal. You reveal the animal you had been using that Seth had bought you.

Ray doesn't understand why you are so nervous about it. He kisses you and pulls you into his arms, stuffed animal and all.

He eventually gets you a cat stuffed animal, he doesn’t like the fact you are cuddling something so close that another man got you.

He gets a cat that can also hold a magic crystal and heat up, it quickly becomes your favorite of your stuffed animals.

Ray will shower you with various stuffed animals and lets you keep them in a box under the bed for when you need comforting.

"Hey weirdo, why are you acting all shy?" Ray presses a kiss to your cheek as you look away.

"It's embarrassing" Your voice is muffled since you're hiding it in the stuffed animal Seth got you. Ray softly finds your chin-and lifts your gaze to his. He softly brushes your hair away from your face and takes in your nervous eyes.

“Why?” His voice is gentle as he tries to understand the big deal, clearly this is something important to you and he is trying to understand. You sigh defeated and tell him about the comments you have received in the past about how childish it is and that you were scared of what he was going to think. Ray wraps his arms around you and holds you against him, letting you bury your face as he softly rocks you.

"Hey, it's not a big deal. Everyone has ways they fall asleep, or wierd little quirks." He softly encourages you. The two of you get ready for bed in silence while Ray pulls you into his arms letting you comfortingly hold the stuffed animal, you relax against him and keep the animal tight in your arms, you sleep much better that night.

The next morning Ray leaves early and you feel a little nervous still about your little secret coming out into hiding. Your fears are soon quelled when Ray comes back that night with a cat stuffed animal that has a crystal in its stomach allowing it to heat up for pain or for comfort. You hug him tightly, starting to cry at how happy the little cat makes you.

"See Alice, all that matters is that you are sleeping well and happy. "Ray murmurs as he demonstrates the crystal feature and keeps you close to him, pressing another kiss to your forehead before you both drift off into a peaceful sleep. You thank your stars that you have such a caring, understanding boyfriend as you drift off.

♠️ Luka ♠️

He is confused when you don't want to sleep in the same bed as him. He thinks he did something wrong. He gets really confused and upset, trying to find out what is wrong.

You sheepishly tell him that it is because you have to sleep with a stuffed animal. Luka is slightly confused so you bring him to your room and show him your horde of stuffed animals in the closet. Seth has been giving you cute ones when he finds them after he stumbled on your hobby.

You explain to Luka that they comfort you and Luka tentatively picks one up, not sure how to feel.

He gets a little jealous that Seth knew about your hobby before he did and that Seth has been buying you stuffed animals.

He goes out and gets you a few new ones to keep in his room for when you stay the night. In secret he actually likes running his fingers along the fur of one of the stuffed animals, he can see the appeal of them.

Luka absolutely adores coming back from his late night training to see you curled up in his bed with one of the stuffed animals he bought you. He will fall asleep holding you and the stuffed animals. He’s been sleeping for most of the night since you look so adorable.

Definitely bought matching stuffed animals for you two for your anniversary.

“Fine, do you promise not to laugh?” you look skeptically at Luka who gives a serious nod. You lead him to your room and pull a box from under the bed that is filled with stuffed animals that Seth bought you once he found out you don’t sleep well without them.

“What are these?” Luka pulls a hamster stuffed animal from the box softly running his hands along the soft stuffed animal.

“They are stuffed animals, they make great cuddle companions” You answer and Luka looks confused.

“Why do you hide them?” He looks up meeting your eyes with his inquisitive amber gold ones.

“It is considered childish in my world to have them at my age, but they comfort me and I have trouble sleeping without them. Seth got me these when I first arrived, I’ve been using them ever since. ” I look away in shame as I explain and Luka catches my chin.

“It's okay, I understand.” Luka picks up the hamster one and pulls you out of the room, bringing the stuffed animal and you back to his room for the night.

The next day off he goes out and finds the softest, cutest stuffed animals for you and gives them to you for his room. He runs his fingers along them and smiles softly as he watches your face completely light up at them.

He comes in from training that night to see you cuddling two of them and his heart absolutely melts as he pulls you close, stroking the stuffed animals as well as stroking your hair.

♠️ Fenrir ♠️

Fenrir is extremely calm when he finds out you tend to steal and hug his pillows as you sleep. He finds out by waking up a few nights in a row with his pillow missing from under his head and being in your arms. Apparently you can take his pillow from under his head while he is sleeping and he thinks it is the funniest thing.

Even though you are mortified, he just smiles at you and wraps you up in a hug pulling you and the pillow close to him.

He teases you a little about it, but honestly this boy falls more in love with you, you are so cute curling up hugging a pillow.

He enjoys seeing you so peaceful and if that means getting you a pillow to hold then that is what the Ace of Spades will do for you. The man will find the perfect pillow for you, he has a custom case made for you as well.

He gets used to cuddling you from behind so you can still hold the pillow, he loves wrapping you up in his arms, the pillow rarely gets in the way now.

"Stop laughing" you pout and cross your arms as the Ace of Spades laughs at you.

"There's nothing to be nervous of," Fenrir reaches out to cup your cheek. You brush him off and run your hand through your hair.

"It's embarrassing "You growl, feeling the shame that always settles within you when you are confronted with your sleeping habits.

"Babe, you know there is nothing wrong with hugging a pillow when you sleep right?” You can hear the laughter in his voice and turn away and pout, feeling his arms hold me close, I could feel his chest shaking in laughter.

"Why are you laughing so much?" You growl and Fenrir rests his head against my check.

"I'm laughing because you keep stealing my pillow. From under my head. While I sleep. You creep. "He laughs and you huff, bonking him with a pillow.

"It's not my fault" You yell at him and he sighs, raising his hands.

“Okay Babe I understand, I'm done teasing you. You just look so cute all cuddled up with my pillow " Fenrir apologizes and you feel bad for yelling. A kiss and cuddles make everything better.

2 days later Fenrir comes home with a pillow for you to cuddle that is larger than his and has a custom case. You fall instantly in love, cuddling the pillow and you stop stealing Fenrir’s pillow. Fenrir immediately cuddles you and lets you hold your new pillow, finding your smile the cutest thing in the world as he holds you.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

An imagine for adeuce please! They hang out someplace in their hometown during vacation but awkwardly run into crewel. I think treys family bakery would be a nice location but the setting is your choice in case you want to limit the dialogue and number of characters

Ps. I personally feel like the game needs more interactions between the students and teachers. Hopefully we can get more in the new event

Teacher-student interactions are so much fun! We definitely got more from Vargas Camp (which I’m really thankful for), and I hope we keep getting more!

So far, my favorite teacher-student dynamic has been Vargas and Azul. I’d feel bad for octoboi if I wasn’t laughing so hard at his flying fails--

I really liked this prompt, so I wrote more than my usual ~1000 word imagine; please enjoy!

***Mild spoilers for chapter 4!***

Imagine this...

The Rose Kingdom was aptly named for the flowers that bloomed in nearly every corner of its land. In the summer time, they blossomed magnificently, perfuming the warm air with their heady aroma—but in the winter, those delicate rosebuds were banished by a spell of frost. Without fail, a great cold would wash over the region every year, casting their famous red flowers in a thick layer of white.

It was a pattern that the kingdom’s residents had long since grown accustomed to. This was, after all, their beloved home—amid the roses, frozen as they were.

“Oi, Deuce! Hurry it up, will you?!” Ace called, tossing an annoyed glance over his shoulder.

His friend—wearing so many layers that he resembled a moving blueberry more than a human—lagged several paces behind.

Deuce attempted to return the sass, but his words caught in the scarf bound tightly around his mouth, coming out muffled instead. The puffball on his winter hat furiously bobbed up and down, as though communicating his frustration for him.

“If we don’t pick up the pace, they’re gonna sell out of hot chocolate and fresh pastries!” Ace rushed back, grabbed Deuce by the arm, and tugged. “C’mon!! I thought you were in Track and Field Club or something���so let’s get moving!”

Deuce loosened his scarf with his free hand and, glaring at Ace, declared, “No way am I running with the roads this icy. That’s a recipe for disaster.”

“Hah? You serious? I already got wasted enough time waiting for you to dress in your 101 layers of coats,” Ace grumped, gesturing to Deuce’s ridiculous outfit. “It can’t hurt to be a little quicker about it.”

“Mom wanted me to stay warm,” Deuce countered stiffly. “I’m gonna respect that, no matter what.”

Ace rolled his eyes and waves dismissively. “Yeah, yeah, whatever—enough talk, we really gotta get going...!! I’ll be damned if I freeze out here.”

“The Clover Bakery isn’t that far from here, so we don’t need to rush.” Deuce indicated a warm building at the end of the block, which gave off delicious fumes—spun sugar, baked bread, and spices. “Slow and steady wins the race.”

Ace groaned loudly. At this rate, it would take all day for them to waddle on over. He was about to bury his head in his hands when an idea dawned on him.

A mean, but clever, idea.

“Betcha I could make it there faster than you,” Ace chirped, his voice casual.

“It’s not a competition,” Deuce reminded him sternly.

“No one said it was, dummy! I’m just saying I could definitely beat you at your own game.”

“Tough words for someone shaking like a leaf in the cold.”

“Oh yeah?” Ace’s grin was wicked. “Prove me wrong, then.”

“I don’’t have to prove anything. It’d be dangerous to run in this weather, anyway.”

“I bet it’s way more snowy in Pyroxene—and Jack’s probably totally fine with running through it!”

“That’s Jack, and this is me. I said I wasn’t going to rush things, and I meant it.”

“Yeah? Too bad~” The redhead gave an exaggerated sigh and a shrug. “Backing out, huh...? Oh well. Guess if you snooze, you lose...!!”

“Hey, I never said...” Deuce’s voice trailed off, for Ace had shoved by him, darting off in the direction of the bakery. “H-Hey...!! Ace...!! ACE!! GET BACK HERE!!”

He tore after his friend, shouting at him all the while—and Ace, with his (cheating) head start, only laughed in return. Deuce soon caught up (no thanks to his club conditioning), and they were neck-and-neck for first place.

Windchill, knives upon their faces. The biting cold seeped into their lungs, making it hurt to breathe as they hurtled toward their destination. Yet they sailed on, determined to outdo the other.

Both boys launched themselves at the bakery entrance, grasping the handle at the same time.

“EXCUSE US!!” Ace and Deuce yelled in unison, yanking open the door (struggling to cram through the doorway at the same time) and stumbling in.

They were greeted by a blast of warmth and the smells of sweet cakes and toasted breads. The employee manning the counter glanced up, startled at the duo’s sudden appearance. When he saw who it was that had barged in, he sighed and calmly readjusted his glasses.

He looked a little different than usual, wearing a white shirt with green plaid that showed off his broad shoulders. The sleeves were rolled up to reveal thick forearms forged from years of lifting flour sacks and kneading dough. A brown apron was slung over his attire, four-leafed clovers sewn on the pockets.

“If it isn’t Ace and Deuce. How are the two troublemakers of Heartslabyul doing?” Trey asked, his smile lopsided as his underclassmen approached.

“A-Are we really troublemakers in your eyes, Clover-senpai?!”

“I’m just kidding,” he reassured Deuce. “Well, you are troublemakers, but more for Riddle than for me.”

“Geez... thanks for the vote of confidence...” Ace grumbled, casting the third year a cheeky look. “Some senpai you are, huh?”

“Now, now... I’m allowed to have some fun, aren’t I? We’re all ‘off-duty’, so to speak.” Trey said light heartedly. “Anyway, what brings you guys to the Clover Bakery? I’m assuming you’re not dropping by just to say hello.”

“Hehe. Obviously we’re hungry, so we came by for some grub!” Ace held up his index finger. “One large hot chocolate, and a plate of assorted butter cookies for me!”

“I’m okay with a small spiced apple cider,” Deuce chimed in, “please and thank you.”

“Gotcha. I’ll get you your drinks in a bit,” Trey nodded, “but as for the butter cookies, I’m afraid I won’t be able to sell those to you.”

“Huh?” Ace’s face collapsed. “Why not?”

“We’ve only got a few dozen left, and they’re reserved for a client that preordered them. Sorry.” Trey pointed to a neatly wrapped box already set upon the counter, done up in a bright green bow.

Through the plastic window in the box, Ace could see that the cookies had been converted into little sandwiches. Each pair housed a generous dollop of cream, caramelized raisins threaded throughout it.

“What? Who needs that many butter cookies? And why are there gross raisins in them--“

The door to the bakery flung open, summoning a gale of cold once more. A bell suspended above jingled, ringing in a new customer.

“Ah, speak of deville the devil,” Trey said—while his underclassmen balked in terror.

There, in the doorway, was a tall man in black faux leather gloves and a voluminous fur coat—striped, black and white. Beneath that, he boasted a crimson turtle neck and a blazer, half solid white, the other half a black , checkerboard pattern. This, paired with his slicked back hair, steely eyes, and regal face, made him appear as though he had just strutted off the runway, were it not for the leashes he gripped.

Two Dalmatians—one in a blue coat, the other in a red one—stood alert by his feet. They caught Ace and Deuce’s eyes and barked in greeting, but the two boys were far too fixated on the Dalmatians’ owner to gush over dogs.

“Crewel...”

“... Sensei?”

Ace and Deuce glanced to one another, then back at their Alchemy teacher.

“C-CREWEL-SENSEI?!”

“Wh-What’re you doing here?!” Ace demanded, pointing an accusatory finger. “School’s out for winter break...!! You... You didn’t hunt us down to make us do our homework, did you?!”

Crewel snorted. “Spare me your theatrics, Trappola. Your instructors are granted a vacation for the duration of winter break as well. Were you not aware?”

“I-I knew that! I just didn’t know you lived in the Rose Kingdom, too!”

“I thought teachers lived at school...”

“... Seriously, Deuce?!”

“The more you know.” Crewel narrowed his eyes at Ace. “But speaking of homework, I trust you pups are keeping on top of your assignments? Being on break is no excuse to slack on your studies.”

“D-Duh! Of course I haven’t been slacking!” A lie, Ace grimaced, thinking to the piles of homework he had abandoned in his bedroom in favor of hanging out with friends. Whatever, he could just pester his brother for help later. “Right, Deuce? Back me up here!”

“I’ve been diligently studying and working on my homework bit by bit every day, Crewel-sensei!”

“... But have you done it accurately?” Crewel asked, raising an eyebrow. “Simply writing down an answer does not guarantee full marks, Spade.”

“... Errrrrr, okay, maybe I need to work on it a little more.”

“You’ve got your notes and a reliable Science Club member to count on for assistance,” Crewel quipped, gesturing to Trey with a gloved hand. “There is no excuse for why you should not do well. That goes for you as well, Trappola.”

“Y-Yessir!”

“Crewel-sensei, I think that’s enough interrogation,” Trey called, waving for him to come to the counter. Outwardly, he wore a smile, but inwardly, he sighed. For the love of the Great Seven, don’t offer my help for me. “Here, I have your order prepared--oh, but be sure to keep your dogs at the doorway. No pets allowed beyond a certain threshold for health and safety reasons.”

“I am aware, yes.” Crewel’s eyes passed over to the two scared stiff underclassmen. “... Trappola, Spade--come here. Do your professor a favor and tend to my Dalmatians for me.”

“What? You want us to watch your dogs?”

“I’ll do my best, Sensei!!”

“Don’t just blindly agree to it, Deuce!”

“It will only be for a moment,” Crewel insisted, shoving his leashes into Ace and Deuce’s hands. The boys fumbled, but held firm--the Dalmatians eagerly staring up at them.

“... Oi, don’t give me those looks,” Ace grumbled. “You’re... You’re too cute looking and innocent to be Crewel-sensei’s pets.”

The dog in the red coat gave a happy bark, as if pleased with the compliment. Its partner, in the blue coat, panted with delight as Deuce gave it a firm head pat.

Crewel received the box of raisin butter cookies--but allowed his eyes to quickly a scan the glass display case as he strode up. “Do you have dog treats in stock as well?”

“We do.”

“Then add two to my total, please--peanut butter flavor.”

“Alright, you’ve got it.” Trey ducked, retrieved a pair of tongs, and fished out two bone-shaped biscuits. He dropped them into a paper bag and handed them over to his teacher. “That’ll be--”

He was cut off by several bills being fanned out on the counter.

“I’ve ordered enough from your bakery to know the general prices,” Crewel smirked, tucking his wallet away into his massive fur coat. “If there is a discrepancy, you may keep the change.”

“Ah, thanks for that. Hope you and the dogs enjoy--” Trey paused, cut off this time by the sound of several small footsteps from the back room of the bakery. He groaned, already knowing what was coming. “Oh no...”

“Trey-nii!!” A chorus of high-pitched voices piped up, startling Ace and Deuce. “We heard bark-barks!! Did Mr. Fluffy Coat bring back his doggies?”

Three heads of green hair poked above the counter--just barely. One girl and two boys, probably elementary school age, all of them sharing Trey’s mustard yellow eyes.

“Guys, not now. Big bro’s busy with the customers,” Trey warned. He passed an apologetic look to his underclassmen and teacher. “Sorry, my siblings are excitable sometimes.”

“I wanna pet the doggies!”

“I wanna feed’m snackies!”

“I wanna dress them up!”

To the boys’ surprise, Crewel merely chuckled. “No worries. Fellow canine lovers are always welcome.”

“Mr. Fluffy Coat!! Can we feed your doggies?”

“Pretty please with candied violets on top!”

“Please, please, please!!”

Crewel barked with laughter. “Perhaps I can allow it, little ones--permitted that your brother grants his permission.”

All three Clover siblings looked expectantly at their eldest sibling.

Trey heaved a sigh. “... I guess I’ve got no choice. Go ahead.”

Excited squeals filled the interior of the bakery. The Clover siblings nearly tripped over themselves racing over to Crewel’s dogs (they nearly trampled Ace and Deuce’s feet, too).

“Hey, watch it! We’re the ones babysitting these dogs, not you!” Ace cried as the kids descended on the Dalmatians. I’ve only had these dogs for five minutes but if anything happened to them, I’d kill everyone here and then--

“We can share, Ace!”

“Spade is correct. There is plenty of the pups to go around,” Crewel interjected. He produced two dog treats and broke them into smaller pieces, offering them to Ace, Deuce, and the Clover siblings. “Go on, then. One for each of you to feed them.”

The Clovers cheered and eagerly claimed their pieces, holding them out and allowing each Dalmatian to sniff and lick the treats straight out of their palms. As soon as the food was slurped up, the Clovers proceeded to vigorously pet the pups. But the first years hesitated.

“You’re... being awfully nice,” Ace noted, eying him suspiciously. “Are you gonna spring a pop quiz on us as soon as I take the treat?”

“Keep biting the hand that feeds you, and I just might consider it,” Crewel warned with a dark smirk.

“W-We’ll take the treats!” Deuce snatched up two pieces, shoving one into Ace’s hands. “Come on, let’s not worry too much. We’re on winter break, after all. Let’s just relax while we still can.”

“You’re right, you’re right! Let’s not sweat it!”

They exchanged a brief laugh before kneeling and offering up their own dog treat pieces to the Dalmatians. Just as the dogs’ sloppy, wet tongues connected with the boys’ hands, their cell phones went off.

“... Huh? Did you just get a text, Deuce?”

“I think I did. I heard your phone ping too, though. Did you get a text too?”

“I can check. One sec...” With his free hand, Ace fished his phone out of his coat pocket and consulted it. He immediately paled. “Oh, shit.”

(“Hey, language!” Trey shouted--but his protest seemingly went ignored.)

“What’s wrong?” Deuce asked, frowning.

“Check your phone. Check it right now.”

“Is it something seri...” Deuce’s face dropped as soon as he looked at his messages. “Fuck.”

(“I said, language!” Trey tried again, only to be snubbed a second time.)

The distressing text they had received?

SOS SEND HE LP STRAND ED D IN SCAR ABIA CANT GET OUT - Yuu, Grim

Ace and Deuce abruptly stood and bolted toward the exit, much to everyone’s surprise. They paid no mind to the concerned shouts of Trey, nor Crewel, or to the excited barks of Dalmatians no longer held by leashes.

All that remained of where the duo once stood were soggy, half-finished peanut butter dog treats.

[thegreatbigfourmain]

Royalty!AU

The young chief had a somber expression on his face as he readjusted the fur cloak resting upon his shoulders. Although Drago and the former Alpha retreated to the ocean, the battle had taken many casualties within the village of Berk. Both dragons and Vikings suffered in the crossfire, leaving them with half their population still standing. It left him with the drastic decision of needing a treaty with a neighboring village to keep his people and dragons armed for another attack.

However, that proved to be a problem. No one wanted to encounter what Berk did in their village. Many of his allies rejected his request no matter how much he emphasized the superb protection done by his dragons. Thankfully to the gods, one did accept. The kingdom of Corona could never turn away a desperate plea for help. And Thor Almighty he was in dire need of assistance.

The arrangement showed to be more than what the Vikings bargained for.

As a way to kill two birds with one stone, the King of Corona agreed to the Viking chief’s wishes if he complies in escorting his daughter, the princess. All other suitors were sent away by her highness, though she is compelled to choose one. He tried to weave his way out of it, but the king would not budge. In his words, “It is not an arranged marriage, but rather being a potential candidate for the role.” To his displeasure, he had no choice but to accept it for the good of his people. It forced him to have a very long conversation with his girlfriend, who was livid when she heard of the final decision. It was the cause for the look on his face.

Hiccup Haddock the Third put on a brave face before entering the throne room where her grace awaited his arrival. He did notice how Corona was the complete opposite of Berk. Everything from the buildings to the atmosphere was different and foreign to him. Banners of the kingdom’s emblem hung everywhere. It seemed like these people are obsessed with the sun. He shouldn’t think much of it considering he’s just as obsessed with dragons, something Astrid also poked fun of whenever they trained.

Astrid…

The brunet made his way down the aisle as he stepped on the softest lavender carpet his feet have ever felt. Then again, he hasn’t much use for fancy rugs and such in his home. The closer he moved toward the royal family, the more his heart sank in his chest. A future without Astrid was unheard of, but the world without dragons was one he simply could not live without. Like the king said, it is not an arranged marriage, just a courtship. If the princess prefers not to marry him, she might be willing to tell her father to keep the treaty. It was the only shred of hope he had for his relationship.

Finally, Hiccup stood in front of the three of them sitting in their lavish thrones. He had seen the queen and king before, but never the princess. He bowed respectfully to them before his forest green eyes couldn’t help but glance at the rumored beauty. When he did, it took every ounce of power within him not to gawk in wonder.

In layman’s terms, she was gorgeous. No, that did not fully define the vision before him. Hiccup could not find the words to describe being in her presence. He was utterly speechless. It horrified him.

The chief knelt down before the princess in an attempt to not gaze any longer. He kept his eyes on the carpet beneath him.

“Your highness,” he said as soon as he realized no words escaped his shocked lips.

“I am here to escort you back to my village of Berk. I hope you will enjoy it there for the time being.” Hiccup said while his fingers rubbed against each other, something he does when thinking of his next sentence. If he raised his head, it would only entice more emotions and thoughts within him.

"You may rise, Dragon Rider," spoke a soft, yet confident voice. Despite what his brain was telling him, Hiccup did what the voice told him to. In the back of his subconscious, he knew he would do anything that voice would tell him to do from now on.

Once he looked up, he was hooked.

Just what was it with him and blondes?

The blonde beauty dressed in a lavish lavender gown with intricate patterns stood before him. It felt as if they were the only two people in the room, no doubt due in part to the way his forest green eyes met her emerald irises that reminded him of spring. Her adorably speckled freckles spread across her button nose seemed to disperse once they reached her rosy pink cheeks. Her unusually long golden hair was braided behind her frame and decorated with freshly picked flowers will most definitely be out of place in Berk, though he wouldn't mind if she asked for him to pick those flowers for her every day.

What was he thinking?!

Probably depicting his nervousness, the princess flashed him a heart-piercing smile. If she meant it in a friendly way, it was anything but. It took every ounce of his being not to continue gawking at the princess before Hiccup cleared his throat to form some sort of response.

"Are, are you ready to leave Your Highness?" He stuttered his words like he was back to being a teenager, though his 20 years of age.

She gave a quick nod as she descended from her throne to meet him, the Viking holding his breath for the close encounter. When she was a mere few feet away, Hiccup gulped down the knot in his throat.

"What is your mode of transportation to Berk, Chief Hiccup?" she inquired curiously, with a slight tilt of the head. Could she stop being adorable for a moment while he tries to wrap his mind around everything right now?

"Umm, dr-dragons. Dragons Your Highness."

"Rapunzel. You can call me Rapunzel," she responded with a soft grin.

"Rapunzel," he repeated, testing out how the name rolled off his tongue.

"Is it safe?" A loud, anxious voice asked in the room. The pair glanced behind to the king standing up at the mention of his only daughter riding on the back of a dragon. Hiccup has mentioned their way of living in between the letters they exchanged, but maybe the realization finally caught up to his majesty.

"Very much so, Your Majesty. I built all the mechanics myself and tested them out numerous times. I have the scars to prove it," he chuckled, though it did not seem to ease the tension in the room.

Tough crowd.

The blonde giggled behind him, grabbing the brunet's attention. He didn't think he's heard such a melodious laugh before in his life.

"I'm sure it's fine, father. If Chief Hiccup believes so," Rapunzel confirmed as she stood beside him. Her presence alone was enough to nearly hinder the Viking under her spell.

The king still seemed to be hesitant, though gave the pair a nod in conformation to allow this stranger to take his child on a possibly dangerous journey back to his homeland.

"Very well. I wish you both well on your route to Berk," he replied in a baritone voice, though there was a hint of sadness in his bright blue eyes. Rapunzel must have seen it as well, considering she picked up her dress skirt to rush over and give her father a hug. The whole image might have been heartwarming if Hiccup didn't first notice the fact that this certain blonde seemed to be barefoot.

Just who is this girl?

The princess then gave her equally gorgeous mother a hug, the small family exchanging a few words before the blonde returned to Hiccup's side. Her smile was something his heart was beginning to enjoy.

"Ready when you are Chief Hiccup."

"Hiccup, just Hiccup is fine Your- Rapunzel," he chuckled, running his fingers through his hair out of embarrassment.

"Okay, Just Hiccup," she joked before taking the lead to show him outside.

The pair walked through the same elegant doors Hiccup did when he arrived to find his best friend waiting for him. He was accompanied by a guard who nervously kept his distance away from the nigthfury.

"Hey bud," Hiccup greeted, feeling much better seeing one thing familiar in this land. The nightfury jumped over to him like a dog, licking his face.

"No Toothless! You know that doesn't wash out! The princess is here~" the Viking groaned when Toothless backed away when he was satisfied.

"I'm so sorry Rapunzel," he muttered, clearly embarrassed by how informal the interaction was. The blonde didn't seem to mind, evident by the huge grin on her face. Toothless already lost focus on his human, examining the blonde and advancing towards her. His snout sniffed her face, getting close enough to ruffle her bangs. Hiccup noticed the way more guards readied themselves in the chance this might turn ugly. He chuckled, how naive.

"Hello, Toothless. Are you going to be taking us to Berk?" She asked softly. A slow yet confident hand reached for his snout, which surprisingly Toothless went in with no hesitation.

"What a sweetheart," she beamed as her other hand went to cup the dragon's muzzle. Hiccup couldn't help but smile himself. It seemed she could easily adapt to their ways faster than he assumed a princess would be.

While she kept herself occupied gaining more of Toothless' love, Hiccup glanced at the royal couple who gave him a knowing nod. His high from facing the princess quickly faded away with the realization that there was an agreement between the two lands. This was a courtship for potential marriage, not simply showing her around his land. The thought of Astrid returned to his mind and the guilt of anything he felt towards Rapunzel weighed heavy on his chest. She never once passed through his thoughts once he met Rapunzel's eyes.

The Viking mounted himself on the nightfury to ready himself for the long trip back to Berk.

"Are you ready, Rapunzel?" Hiccup asked in a monotone voice as emotions swirled within him. Thankfully, the blonde was oblivious to his change of attitude from playing with Toothless when she heard him.

"Yes Hiccup," she replied, walking over to him and trying to figure out how to mount the dragon. "Umm, Hiccup, how do I...?" she trailed off.

He had been so caught up in himself, he didn't realize her unfamiliarity with riding dragons. It reminded him of when he taught Astrid all about them a few years ago...

"Oh, I'm sorry. Here," he stuttered over his words as he reached his arm out. The blonde gently took it and steadied herself for Hiccup to heave her body weight, which was lighter than the axes he swings around, to settle behind him.

Thor Almighty give him the strength for the remainder of the trip to not have his heart pound like a Thunderdrum's roar when her arms wrapped around his lean form. He could feel her warmth all down his back, his arms frozen in place sensing Rapunzel adjust herself comfortably in her seat.

"Okay Hiccup, I'm ready," she said in a nervous, yet excited state.

Sensing her anxious tone, Hiccup absentmindedly reached down to gently hold her arm to ease her nerves.

"Don't worry. I got you," he muttered softly, sighing in defeat that this girl was doing something to his soul. It must have to deal with the fact her people are still new to dragons, and the more positive promotion they can have, the better it is for future generations. At least that's what he kept repeating to himself in hopeless denial.

"Take it easy with the flight bud, we need her to like us" Hiccup whispered to Toothless. The last thing he needed on his plate was Rapunzel not having an easy time on the way to Berk.

The nightfury seemed to get the message as extended his wings out for the wind to gingerly lift him off the ground. Despite the easy takeoff, Rapunzel still tightened her arms around him while letting out a cute squeak of surprise at the new sensation of being in the air.

This is going to be a long ride.

[darlinvandijk]

Good Girl

Concept: y’all already know so I don’t even need to explain. Just letting you know since half got deleted and I had to rewrite, it might be a little uh messy and have some holes in the plot, just ignore them lmao. Also it literally fucking sucks and I’m so sorry about that, like wow it’s such shit. Hope you little whores have fun while reading this nice and cute little car blurb. Think you can stay quiet while reading it? Hope you enjoy ;)

I smile at everyone as I make my into the kitchen, dressed in my new summer dress for the family get together they were having at the park today. Ruel grabs on to my wrist as I walk past him, lightly tugging me back so that I’m getting hugged from behind, his chin now resting on my shoulder, both arms wrapped loosely around my waist. I let out laugh as he snuggles his face into the crook of my neck, the feeling of his hair against my neck being super ticklish.

“Hey gorgeous, I see you’re wearing the dress I got you” he mumbles, pressing a kiss to my shoulder with a grin. I hum back in agreement, hands resting over the top of his, as I lean back into his warm body. We both look over to Kate as she tells us the plans for the day, all of us nodding along, and listening to her basically tell us to not torment the rest of the family that’s also going to be there. Kate decides that her and Ralph will be going in one car, Ruel and I in another, and then Sylvie will be with coco who will also have Wilbur in the backseat. Ruel of course was ecstatic about us having a car to ourselves, having complained all night about how we can never get away from his family, hopefully now he’ll stop whining so much.

We make our way out of the house, carrying the things we were all assigned to take, only to hear Ruel let out a shout and groan, causing all of us to flip around to see what happened. There laying in a heap on the floor, blankets and little pillows littering around him, is none other than my boyfriend. Before we even get the chance to accuse him of not watching where he’s going like usual, we see a ball of fur fly past the front of our eyes, four little paws slamming straight into Ruels stomach, leaving him a groaning mess yet again.

“Oh there he is! Hey Wilbur get in the car” Coco says, placing hers and sylvies stuff in the trunk, leading Wilbur into the backseat, and acting like she never saw Wilbur drop kick her brother. Kate and Ralph both shrug before getting in their own car, both cars leaving the driveway, leaving me to stand there and watch my boyfriend roll around on the grass. I walk forward and stare down at him, lightly kicking him in the side to see is he’s alive since he went still, getting a muttered “fuck you” thrown at me.

“You’re so dramatic. You know what, maybe you deserved to get your ass beat by Wilbur” I snort, leaning down to take the keys from his pocket, and getting inside of the car. I sit there for a few seconds before the blankets and pillows are thrown into the back and a tall body flops into the drivers seat. “Are you done throwing your fit so we can leave?” I sass, giving him an eye roll as he looks over at me. He stares at me silently with a small glare on his face, waiting to see who was going to break first. You can bet your ass it wasn’t me.

“Fuck fine, you win” he laughs out, a smirk lighting up his face as I throw my head back laughing, knowing he could never beat me in a stare down. I grab his hand off the console, bringing it up to press a kiss to the back of it, before holding it against my thigh. The only thoughts filling my head of how nice it was to just sit in silence with my boyfriend, no interruptions, and definitely no warning glances if a hand slips up a little too high on my leg. “I really like that dress on you, it accentuates your... eyes” he mutters, eyes darting to look at my legs every chance he gets.

“Eyes on the road lover boy, don’t need you crashing because you decided to be extra needy right now” I tell him, pushing his face to stare straight ahead, laughing at the whine he lets out. We finally pull into the parking lot for the park, both of us realizing you have to take a trail to wherever his family is set up at. I unbuckle and reach for the door handle, only to be stopped as Ruel turns my face and presses his lips against mine, giving me a rushed and needy kiss. His hand starts to slide up the front of my dress, before I grab it and move it back, leaning away from him with a stern look. “We have a picnic to go to. Stop being a whore and grab the blankets” I scold him, watching as he drags his hands down his face in frustration, both of us turning and getting out of the car to grab our stuff.

“I literally haven’t been able to be alone with you in two weeks! Two fucking weeks! Can you blame me for wanting to get at least a little action” he grumbles, walking beside me on the path as we try to find his family, glaring at me as I roll my eyes. He picks up his speed and stops in front of me, giving me no choice but to listen to him. “You seriously can’t tell me you’re not bothered by the lack of privacy we’ve had lately” he barely gets out, an accusatory look in his eyes.

“Maybe I’m just not as needy as you Ruel. I don’t need sex to live” I choke out, laughing at the pure shock and annoyance that’s spread across his face. I walk around him, continuing my way down the path, hearing his footsteps a few seconds later as he jogs to get next to me, a thoughtful look covering his face. I wearily watch him out of the corner of my eye, knowing his thinking face always means bad news. I was right.

“You know what, fine. Next time you want a kiss or even literally anything physical, I’m going to say no, even if you beg. Since you’re so fucking self sufficient” he haughtily gets out, watching the look of disbelief I give him, not understanding how one boy can be so over dramatic. Like yeah it sucks that we haven’t had any time alone for awhile, but is it really thaaat big of a deal?

“Trust me the last thing I’m going to do is beg” I snark out, lightly bumping my shoulder against him as I pass him and walk over to where Kate is standing, talking to one of Ruels aunts. They both greet me with smiles, taking the pillows out of my hands so that they can set them up, along with the blankets Ruel finally gives them. They thank both of us before making their way around to set it up since everyone had been standing and waiting for us to show up, but Ruel was too busy arguing with me to hurry up and bring them the stuff.

About 2 hours pass of us all just sitting around and talking, Ruel sitting with some of his cousins across the park, as I lay across Coco’s lap, laughing at Sylvie bringing up Wilbur’s wild attack on Ruel this morning. We’re all laughing and making jokes about how dramatic he can be sometimes before a shadow is caster over us, causing the three of us to turn with scowls on our faces. Guess who’s blocking the sun?

“Let’s go, I have to take a phone call, but I’m not going to go alone” he mutters, eyes trailing along my legs. I let out a huff and push myself further back on to Coco, lifting my hand up to flip Ruel off, hoping he gets the hint that I’m not going anywhere. “Stop being a brat. The faster you get up, the faster we can get back.” He snaps out, showing me just how thin his patience is wearing, making a lazy smile slip on to my lips as I enjoy just how much I can get under his skin. Especially since he wanted to act like an ass earlier just because he’s mad at something that literally isn’t my fault. Like yes, I completely set up a plan to make sure someone was always with us or barging into his room, just so I could fuck with him.

I roll my eyes and get up, telling Sylvie and Coco that I’ll come back as fast as possible, before turning to look at Ruel. He stands there and watches me, before turning and heading straight to the trail, probably wanting to take the call in the car. I trail behind him, watching the way his shoulders flex with his strides, and being entranced by the way his arms flex as he clenches and unclenches his fists. I instantly shake my head, clearing my head of all thoughts of his arms, because like I said earlier, I can live without all of that.

We reach the car, Ruel walking with me to my side as he holds the door open for me, before he walks around to sit in the drivers seat. I blankly stare straight ahead, watching the birds that fly through the trees, and the bees that fly around the flowers in silence. Ruels voice then breaks the silence as he answers a call, his voice instantly cheering up as he talks to Nate. He rests his hand on the middle console, my eyes darting over to see if he’ll make the move to hold my hand, only to be met with no movement at all as he laughs at whatever Nate told him.

I let out a small sigh, leaning my chair back a bit to get more comfortable, knowing just how long these calls can sometimes take. I can see Ruel make a small glance at me, eyeing the way I hold my hands on my lap, since I’m not willing to make the first move and grab his hand, knowing all he’ll do is throw my words back at me as soon as he gets off the phone. He turns back to look straight again, causing me to let out another sigh, hoping he’ll feel bad. I hear him let out an annoyed breath, before his hand reaches over and rests on my thigh, rubbing small circles as he pays attention to his phone call. I smile at his way of showing he gives in, placing my hand on top of his, giving it a light squeeze.

I lay my head against the window and shut my eyes, deciding that taking a nap for a few minutes wouldn’t hurt anybody, and since I was going to fall asleep no matter what to the feeling of him rubbing the same pattern on my leg. I start to drift off to the sound of his voice and his soothing touch, before my eyes instantly dart open and I grip his wrist. Just barely stopping the hand that was trying to slither up my dress, knowing this little fucker was trying to seduce me again. I give him a warning look before putting his hand back to its oringinal spot, choosing to instead lay on my side and watch him talk on the phone, my eyes trained on the way the sun reflects off of his smooth skin. As I watch him, I can feel my heart start to race, feeling nothing but infatuation as I just look at how truly beautiful he is, having never seen someone as absolutely breathtaking as him. Ruel glances over at me, raising an eyebrow at me in question, probably wondering why I was burning a hole into the side of his head.

“Yeah, sounds good to me. Yeah, of course. Cool, talk to you later Nate” Ruel finally says, concluding his 30 minute phone call. I open my mouth to speak, ready to tell him how I can’t believe he made me sit in the car for this long so he could talk to nate, only to be interrupted by the boy himself. “Want to tell me why you stared at me for literally like 20 minutes straight? Like you didn’t even blink” he laughs out, a small smirk forming on his face as he watches the way my eyes stay trained on his lips. My brain finally being able to take in all of him as we sit in the car together. Alone.

“I had nothing else to look at. So I just chose to look at you” I reason, a blush coating my face as he gives me an unconvinced look. He sends me a boyish smile after a few moments, lifting his hand to cup my face, his brain turning mischievous instantly as he watches me press my face closer to his hand for more contact. Realizing that my body was finally giving in to the lustful mindset that he was also in. So I lean over the console, pressing my lips against his in a light kiss, wanting nothing more than to show my boyfriend a little affection, finally taking in that maybe the lack of physical touch lately is genuinely getting to him. Since I can definitely feel the toll it’s taking on me start to fly in at a rapid pace. As I go to pull away, his hand instantly grips my hair again, pushing me back against him, my hands flying up to his chest from the sudden movement. He pulls away, hand still in my hair, with a hazy look in his eyes. A look that I know all too well.

“I’m not done with you yet” he mutters, reaching over and grabbing my hips, pulling me to rest on his lap, my chest pressed against his as he leans his chair back. He lifts his head up and connect our lips again, choosing to let them move at a languid pace, his tongue swiping at my bottom lip, waiting for me to open my mouth. I keep my mouth shut to taunt him, causing him to let out a laugh as he leans forward, completely pressing me against the steering wheel. He adds more pressure to the kiss, making me press my body hard enough into the steering wheel that the horn beeps.

“Ruel! We need to be careful, if we get caugh-“ I try to scold him, his mouth slamming against mine with a laugh, before I can even finish my sentence, his hips pressing up and rolling against mine at a slow pace, not wanting to completely jump ahead too fast. The action causes me to gasp, Ruel instantly taking that opportunity to press our tongues together, easily letting them tangle in the dance they’ve done together many times before.

My dress starts to get caught on the wheel from the way he still has me pressed against it, making it slowly start moving up my thighs, which catches Ruels eyes in an instant. “Wow look at that, already trying to flash me and I’ve barely touched you” he chuckles, a playful look flashing across his eyes for a few seconds before turning back to their lustful gaze, his eyes catching sight of white lace.

“Fuck you” I mumble, knowing he was going to tease me relentlessly for everything I said earlier, just to end up doing exactly what he wanted anyways. I’m not even able to care about the teasing I know he’s going to do later, the only thing filling my mind being that of the anticipation for his next move. Upon hearing my words, his hands tighten on my hips, and he jerks my body forwards, a gasp leaving my lips as the movement makes me roughly grind against him.

“That’s what I’m trying to do” he says, sitting up to pull me flush against his body, hands gripping my dress to pull me closer. I let out a gasp as his lips attach to my neck, slowly moving down to my collarbone, taunting me. My hands shakily reach up, tangling in his already messy hair, before I give a tug as he licks over a particularly sensitive part, a moan leaving his lips at my harsh hair pull. His hands slide up my dress, resting on the curve of my back, arching me into him even more than I already was, trying to press every part of my body as close to his as possible. My body ends up being so tightly pressed against his, that I swear our hearts started to beat as one.

“Look at you baby, all needy and out of breath for me” he muses, pulling back to rest flat against the seat, looking up at me with a devilish smirk, his hands sliding from my back to rest on my hips. I let out a shaky breath as his hands slide to the front of my thighs, my heart feeling like it might just fall out of my chest. “This might be my favorite view. Seeing you above me looking all pretty for me. You’re so good for me huh” he breathily whispers as he pulls me down, our lips barely brushing each other’s as he talks. My body tensing up at the meaning behind his words, becoming even more flustered than I was before, my legs unconsciously squeezing against him.

“Gonna be good for me?” He questions, hands sliding up my dress as he pulls my hips tight against him, a daunting smirk tugging at his lips, loving the control he has over me. I nod my head, unable to form words at that moment, too entranced by the feeling of his body against mine, and the need to be closer to him. He laughs, feeling the way I grasp at him to be closer, hearing the airy gasps that leave my lips as I stare at him in a daze. His lips press against mine, as his hands start to roam around my hips, causing me to let out a soft groan against his lips. He pulls away and trails one of his hands up my neck, grabbing my chin to make me look him in the eyes. “Think you can stay quiet for me?” He mutters, eyes darkening by the second. My mouth drops open at his request, my heart stuttering as it takes in the words that so effortlessly fell from his lips.

“I need you to use your words baby” he mutters, his thumb pulling my bottom lip and letting it snap back into place. I stare at him wordlessly for a few seconds, only shaken out of my trance as he pushes my hips down and grinds up against me, causing me to let out a whine and grab on to his arm. “Words. Use them.” He lets out, watching the way my eyes roll back at his touch, feeling completely euphoric in his embrace.

“Yes, I can be quiet. I promise” I mutter, looking at him with wide eyes, wanting nothing more than to be touched and loved on by him. He looks me up and down, eyes watching the way my chest rises and falls, taking in the slight tremble my body has in anticipation, and feeling my heart pound as I hold myself against him. I then lean forward and press my lips against his neck, sucking hard enough to leave marks, completely disregarding the fact that everyone will know what we were up to once they see them. He tilts his head back to give me more access, moving both his hands to rest on my ass, fingertips digging into the flesh as he holds me against him.

“You like being on top? Think you can handle it?” He whispers as he pulls me away from his neck, choosing to lean forward and connect his lips with my collarbones and upper chest, my hands tangling in his hair instantly. I nod my head as he glances up at me, willing to do anything to make him happy right now. He smiles at my willingness, opening his mouth to speak, but getting distracted as my hands start to slide up his shirt along his abdomen. Goosebumps rising on his skin as I drag my nails along it.

“I can handle whatever you want me to handle” I slowly get out, feeling the mood in the car literally triple. He watches me through dark eyes, before sitting up and pinning me against the window, leaving me a panting mess.

“Whatever I want you to handle?” He hums out, eyes watching my every movement, a grin lighting up his face as I shiver from his touch. I nod my head shakily at his question, watching as his hand starts to trail up my arm. “Good girl” he mutters against my lips, his hand sliding up to my throat and wrapping his fingers around it, lightly squeezing down.

“Oh my gOD this is DISGUSTING” is all we hear get screeched out, both of us pushing each other away, coming face to face with Coco, who looks like she could throw up at any second now. “Lets go, mom got suspicious and turns out she was right. I can’t believe this. I- you’re never going to live this down when I tell everyone” Coco states, watching the terror that spreads across our faces at her words. Both of us knowing we were in deep shit once Kate finds out what were doing in his car.

Let’s just say the talk we got when we made it home was so bad that we swore off car makeout sessions for life. I’ll never forget the look on Wilburs face when Coco said Ruel was choking me... in a way that wasn’t him trying to kill me. Poor Wilbur. I hope one day he can find it in his heart to forgive me for traumatizing him.

[pitviperofdoom]

I have no self control so I made an Ace Attorney AU with dӕmons in it. Have a ficlet!

---

They’ve barely made it back out into the defendant’s lobby when Larry’s dӕmon screams and tries to tackle Phoenix’s.

Luckily, Dawn’s used to this kind of thing, and goats aren’t really built for the kind of tackling that Artemisia was attempting. She manages to get in an awkward, floppy headbutt before Dawn sort of sighs and starts circling around her. It’ll take a second, but if the usual patterns hold true, Dawn will end up sitting on her to get her to calm down. That’s usually what’s worked in the past.

“That was a close one!” Mia says cheerfully, drawing Phoenix’s attention away from the dӕmons’ antics. “I was almost ready to kiss that Not Guilty verdict goodbye.”

Phoenix winces in embarrassment. “Oh, come on…”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence, boss,” Dawn says dryly, while Artemisia performs a complicated parkour maneuver off her shoulder. The piteous bleating and clip-clop of goat hooves are almost deafening with the lobby’s acoustics.

From Mia’s shoulder, Archimedes laughs. “She’s joking,” he says, ignoring Mia’s look of betrayal.  “She’s joking, don’t worry. We knew you had it handled.”

Phoenix relaxes. “Oh, well, I guess—”

“I mean you had to have Payne handled,” Arc goes on. “If you can’t trounce the Rookie Killer, there’s no hope for you.”

“Thank… you?” Phoenix tries.

“Why is it so hard to tell a compliment from a criticism with them?” Dawn wonders, just loud enough to be heard. Mia covers her mouth elegantly against her laughter, but the pigeon dӕmon on her shoulder has no such reservations. Before Phoenix can think of a follow-up to that, Larry falls upon him in hysterics.

“Nick! Nick, what am I gonna do? My Cindy-windy’s gone, how is life worth living?”

“Larry, she was a—oh, never mind,” Dawn mutters.

It takes a minute, and some digging through the court record, but eventually Dawn sits on Artie until she stops wiggling, and Phoenix assuages Larry’s agony over whether or not his late ex-girlfriend loved him. Dawn lets Artie up off the floor and takes the last-minute headbutt to the chin like a champ, and Larry and his dӕmon finally leave. They’re definitely not getting paid for any of this.

Dawn shakes the rest of the confetti out of her fur and returns to Phoenix’s side, tail wagging like a banner. “Well, that could’ve gone a lot worse.”

“Oh, we’ve had more frustrating clients before, believe me,” Mia says, and something about her pointed smile tells Phoenix exactly which client she’s talking about. Dawn’s tail stops wagging for a moment.

“Hey, don’t knock Larry,” Phoenix retorts. “He’s part of the reason why I became a lawyer in the first place.”

Mia’s eyes widen in surprise. “My, you’ll have to tell us that story sometime,” she says. “Harry Butz, the inspiration for your legal career.”

Phoenix exchanges a glance with his dӕmon. “Well…”

“A small part,” Dawn amends. “About thirty percent of the reason, tops.”

It’s the part that’s the easiest to explain, anyway. Mia has never been shy about her opinion of cutthroat prosecutors, so how is he supposed to tell her—

how wrong it was, seeing pictures of the so-called Demon Prosecutor in news and magazines, tired and angry and weighed down with misery that nobody else seems to notice, with a dӕmon that’s said to show her claws to anyone who moves too close—

“Phoenix?” Mia’s voice brings him back to the present. “Still with us?”

“Yeah, yeah, just… thinking about things,” he says. “You’re right, I’ll have to… tell you about that.”

“Later this evening, maybe,” she says. “Why don’t we get together for dinner? You did just win your first trial, after all. I think that’s a good reason to celebrate.”

Dawn’s drooping tail springs up again and wags, like she can be any more obvious.

“Yeah, sure, sounds good,” Phoenix agrees, praying that his dӕmon won’t start prancing like she’s actually begging for a treat. Mia notices, obviously, and grins in spite of his best efforts to salvage his dignity. Sometimes there are disadvantages to having your soul walk around in the form of a fluffy white dog the size of a miniature horse.

“Phoenix?” she says.

“Yeah, Chief?”

Her amused grin softens to a more genuine smile. “Archimedes meant what he said before.”

“We really did know you could do it,” says Arc.

“To be honest, we’ve known you’d do well since you first told us you were changing your major,” Mia tells him.

Dawn’s tail wags faster. “Okay, now I know you’re fibbing,” Phoenix says. “Twenty-year-old me was an airhead.”

“Was, he says,” Mia’s dӕmon remarks.

“Archimedes,” Mia chides him. “We’re not kidding, Phoenix. It’s all in your dӕmon.”

Phoenix blinks, then exchanges another look with Dawn. “Me?” Dawn asks. “But… I was the same, back then. It’s not like…” Her voice catches. “It’s not like I noticed anything wrong with Dollie and Cassius and—”

“You believed in them,” Arc says gently. “That’s one of the most important parts of being a good defense attorney: trusting your instincts and believing in your client’s innocence.” He cocks his head to one side. “But that’s not what we’re talking about. It’s the very shape you’re in, Dawn.”

“A… dog?” Phoenix frowns. “Man, that’s not what the kids in middle school said.”

“Meh-meh-meh, Phoenix has a dog dӕmon, he’s gonna be a bellboy when he grows up,” Dawn mutters mockingly.

“Seriously, Rudy Bruzer used to throw his backpack at me and tell me to carry it for him. That thing was heavy.” Phoenix stops before he gets too deep in the teen angst of years past. “Anyway, everybody says dog dӕmons are the submissive, authority-following type, so I don’t really see your point.”

“Well, you didn’t look very submissive at the defense bench just now,” Mia points out. “And besides, I’m not talking about her being a dog. I’m talking about the kind of dog she is.” She raises an eyebrow at him. “Don’t tell me you never looked it up.”

“We never really thought about it,” Dawn admits. “I guess I kind of look like a Pyrenees?”

“Precisely.” Arc flutters down from Mia’s shoulder and lands on Dawn’s back. “A Great Pyrenees. That’s a breed from the Pyrenees Mountains between France and Spain. A guardian breed, to be exact.”

Dawn twists her head around to look at him. “So now I’m a guard dog? What does that have to do with being a lawyer?”

“Not a guard dog,” Mia says, keeping her eyes on Phoenix. “A guardian. They were bred to watch over herds and flocks in the mountains.” She tilts her head with a smile. “You have the soul of a protector, Phoenix.”

“Gentle with the lambs and fierce against the wolves,” Archimedes adds. “I can’t think of a better dӕmon for someone who defends the innocent.”

“Oh,” Phoenix says faintly. Mia’s nice enough to pretend not to notice how choked up he is. After all the dumb-dog-go-fetch comments he’s heard in every school he’s ever attended, this is the nicest thing anyone’s ever said about Dawn’s shape.

***

Hours later, he kneels on the floor of Mia’s office, choking back tears as he searches her corpse for clues. Archimedes is gone, dissolved into Dust the moment Mia’s heart stopped beating. Dawn noses her cold hand; it’s safe for his dӕmon to touch her now that she’s dead.

You were wrong, Chief, he thinks, staring blankly at the bloody name scrawled on the back of a department store receipt. I couldn’t even protect you.

[realfuurikuuri]

Chapters: 12/? Fandom: Mao Mao: Heroes of Pure Heart (Cartoon) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Mao Mao/Tanya Keys, Mao mao/badgerclops

MissingArm!AU: When escaping the cave, it wasn't his tail that got crushed. In exchange for his innocence, he gained a sordid past. The Pure Heart Valley seemed like a good place to escape. To start a new life with a new family to forge a new identity. However, when the past rears its ugly head Mao Mao's forced to step up or be put down.

AN:  We're back after a brief interlude, but here is the next chapter. The biggest deliberation writing this one was the ending. I was wondering if I should make it a new chapter, instead, I decided to include it in this one. Enjoy. The song of the day is RUn the Jewels #4. RTJ is a rap duo that released the new album for free on their website. Give it a download. Not that it has anything to do with the chapter I just love it. As always credits to @Spookylovesboba and enjoy the chapter.

Direct Link to chapter 13: XXXXX

Mao Mao sat on the couch. He had a book in his hands, but his eyes glazed over the words. Occasionally, he stole glances at the door, realized his mistake, and went back to the book he wasn’t reading. He considered looking up from the book, maybe time would go faster if he watched cartoons with Adorabat. He quickly realized that watching What’s New Lucky Ducky would only make him more impatient. Maybe he should try seeing what Badgerclops was up to? Granted, if it was anything technical, which it always was, he wouldn’t be able to help.

Ding-Dong!

Mao Mao looked to the monster alarm before remembering that Badgerclops installed a doorbell. He leaped to his feet and swung open the door, swiftly swiping the package from Mail-Mole’s hands. He set it down on the table and unsheathed a single claw.

“Hey, Mao Mao.”

He swung around to find Adorbat standing behind him.

“What’s in the package,” she asked, flying up to his shoulder.

“Oh. Its-,” Mao Mao hesitated, he was about to say nothing off of pure reflex, but he looked down at the package. He wasn’t at home anymore, he wasn’t bound by family either. There was no reason to hide it.

“It’s a… how to say this… a Rubber Ducky toy.”

“A toy! I wanna see! I wanna see!”

Mao Mao quickly snatched the contents from the box, holding it high in the air out of Adorabat’s reach.

“This isn’t just a toy. It was expensive. Be careful with it, okay?”  

“Fine,” she groaned.

Inside the package was another package. A box that was one of those hard, plastic clamshell things with a small egg-shaped thing sealed inside. He brought it down to Adorabat’s eye level as she began to read it over.

“Virtual Pet? Hey, I have one of these.”

“No, no, no. You may have one of the gatchis, maybe a rerelease, but this is different. Check this out,” Mao Mao pointed to a small worn sticker on the back. “See 1988. A sealed, first-generation, blue egg Ducky-Gatchi.”

“Wow. 1988… that’s almost as old as you,” she said.

“Yeah- wait, how old do you think I am?”

His question never got answered as their attention was pulled away by Badgerclops. “Hey, Mao, someone used one of your pointy things as a screwdriver and broke it,” he called out as he came up the stairs.

“You did what!”

Mao Mao inhaled sharply. He’d learned his lesson after yesterday’s stroke, besides he didn’t have health insurance.

“Watcha’ got there?”  Badgerclops leaned in for a closer look.”You buy Adorabat a new toy?”

“No, I didn’t buy it for Adorabat,” Mao Mao said in a small voice,” I bought it for myself.”

“Aren’t you a little too old to be playing with toys?”

“What? Are you crazy? I’m not playing with this! I spent $1000 on this!”

Oops.

Badgerclops slowly turned to Mao Mao. “Does this have anything to do with your Lucky Ducky obsession?”

“What? I don’t have a- haha, is it getting hot in here? I’m going to step out to get some air.”

Mao Mao was almost out the door when Badgerclops’ robotic arm grabbed him by the cape and pulled him back to the table.  “Why did you spend $1000 on a Ducky-Gatchi?”

“It’s not just a Ducky-Gatchi. It's from the first run of the product. The Ducky-Gatchis were released in eight colors with eight shapes. There’s supposed to be roughly a 6435 chance of any specific combination, but a manufacturer’s error made blue eggs even rarer than that. This blue egg gatchi is still sealed in the plastic, and it's been taken care of really well. The clamshell packaging hasn’t even started to yellow.”

Badgerclops frowned and crossed his arms. He held it for a few seconds before relenting with a heavy sigh. “Fine,” he groaned,” just don’t spend so much money on this stuff.”

“Hot dog! I knew you’d come around,” Mao Mao slapped Badgerclops on the back before going back to the Ducky-Gatchi,” still have to find a place to display this, though.”

“Hey Adorabat. Don't you--,” Mao Mao looked around to find Adorabat nowhere in sight.

“Where’d she go?”

“I don’t know She was here a moment ago,” Badgerclops.

“Hey, Mao Mao,” her voice called from the other room,” I told you I had one.”

* * *

Badgerclops watched Mao Mao head off into the bedroom. He picked up the Ducky-Gatchi he left on the table. This thing was definitely not worth $1000. He would have been madder if Mao Mao hadn’t looked so happy. The smile was different from the normal ones; it didn’t have any boastful pride, reckless ambition, or ego-saving denial. Badgerclops had traveled with Mao Mao for years yet this is the first time he’s seen a smile of indulgent joy. It was a good look on him and Badgerclops knew he ought to do what he can to make it more common. Although, Mao Mao could stand to learn some moderation.

He held the Duck-Gatchi up and did his best to see why he’d spend $1000 on it. Value is a subjective thing, so what value did this have to Mao Mao? It likely had something to do with his childhood (every odd thing about him did) so how did this relate back? Badgerclops first thought was Mao Mao’s father. He wasn’t like how Mao Mao described him. Badgerclops mind began to wander back to the night when Mao Mao had a stroke. And the night he met the root of Mao Mao’s problems.

* * *

Again, Badgerclops was spending the night in Camille’s tower. Again, he sat off to the side to watch Honey and Camille work. Again, he found himself powerless. The only thing different this time was that he did his best to ignore the infuriating metallic tap! tap! tap! from Mao Mao’s dad who crossed his arms and wouldn't stop tapping his finger. Badgerclops stole a glance  at him.

He could sort of see the resemblance between Mao Mao and his father. Shin had a more angled face and grayer fur, not to mention those golden eyes. First time he’s heard of a cat having eyes like that. There was little resemblance between him and his grandson. Granted, there wasn’t that much resemblance between Jǐngtì and his own father. The black and brown patterned fur, tufted arms, white stomach, and blue eyes were certainly from Jǐngtì’s mother. He only shared the round face and pointy ears with his father’s side. Shin was impressively tall. Neither Jǐngtì nor Mao Mao had that. Shin’s made Mao Mao look downright pathetic compared to him. Then again he would look pathetic compared to anyone when he was lying on a table.

Tap! Tap! Tap!

It’s a good thing that Adorabat wasn’t here, although he wasn’t sure if they’d make the play. Should he take her home after the play, or stop by with her in tow. Should he leave Mao Mao to attend the play alone and leave Mao Mao here, or should he wait here? It’d hurt to not have either of them show up for the play, but she would understand, right? Maybe he could

Tap! Tap! Tap!

Maybe he could talk to the teacher and pull Adorabat out of the play. This is an emergency.

Tap! Tap! Tap!

Could he not be so fucking annoying?  Badgerclops sighed, trying to resume the line of thought, but found it fleeting. He was racking his brain until he was just trying to block Shin out, yet he kept tap! tap! tapping! away.

Eventually, it was too much. Badgerclops turned to Shin,” could you possibly be quiet for one second,” he snapped.

Shin seemed almost confused for a second, then he seemed indignant. “Excuse me for being worried about my son,” he shot back.

“For the first time,” Badgerclops mumbled.

“What was that, boy? I can’t hear you from down there.”

“I said that its a funny time to suddenly start caring about him!”

Shin stumbled back like he’d been hit in the chest. “That’s… that’s preposterous. Where would you even get that idea?” His words were shaky, lacking that artificial confident inflection that his son copied.

“I don’t know, maybe I’ve actually paid attention to anything he says for more than five minutes?”

"You're talking like you my son better than I do."

Before they could get any louder, they were interrupted by a loud “ahem” that turned their heads. Honey was pointing at the door with that placid look on her face; The mute’s message was heard loud in clear. Shin held the door open for Badgerclops as they took it into the hall outside. They didn’t start arguing again. The rising tension gave way to a sickening sense of shame. They both retreated to their own corners, to their own minds.

“What do you know about us,” Shin mumbled under his breath.

“Enough,” Badgerclops answered back.

Shin looked up, confused before he realized he was thinking out loud. He didn’t say anything back, instead, he dismissed Badgerclops with a grumble.

“Why did you do that?”

“Do what?”

“You saw him back there? Why’d you attack your son?”

“What are you talking about? I never attacked him. He attacked me!”

“How do you explain the broken bones, the bleeding, the bruising, the three-inch hole in his side?”

Shin didn’t snap back. His face went pale and it looked like he was about to vomit. “I.. have done no such thing.”

“Then who did? You were the only person at the house after that.”

“I don’t know. That’s not what happened?”

“Then what did happen?”

Shin reared up like he was going to say something back before his shoulders slumped as his gaze went to the floor. “I.. my wife said that I should visit, so I did. When I did show up Mao Mao was bleeding all over the place. I didn’t know what happened. He.. had some glass in his side. I got it out and then… I don’t know.”

“What happened?”

“We… got into an argument. A bad one. He chased me around the house, told me I was a grandfather, and then told me he didn’t want to see me again.”

“Is that it?”

“Yes! That’s what happened! I learned that my own son hates me more than anything in the world. There! Are you happy?”

Badgerclops examine Shin. His flicked back ears, averted gaze, thee closed hands, and receding posture.  It didn’t seem like he was lying. Which begs the question, what happened next? The timeline he had down states that he met Jǐngtì , which is where the glass came from. After that, he met Shin, who removed the glass, so how did he get the 3-inch hole in his side? Who else could have possibly visited?

“I think I should be going.”

“I don't think I’m the first thing my son wants to see when he wakes up,” Shin justified. It was aimed at Badgerclops but he could tell Shin was talking to himself.

Badgerclops was felt the urge to stop him. Not because he thought Shin was wrong, but because Shin was the only lead he had. He looked to Shin’s hands. They found the missing finger, so Shin was certainly there, but those claw marks didn’t fit those. They didn’t fit Mao Mao or Jǐngtì’s, so those claw marks belonged to someone else?

He had to rule out Shin, so Badgerclops let him go, watching him trudge down the hall.

Ironic, he thought becoming working in the Pure Heart valley would be tedious work, but here he is doing it of his own violation. Maybe Mao Mao would remember something when he woke up. He had to find out who. Who did this?

Badgerclops set the question aside, returning to the present. He’s dwelled on that question for hours already, and he’d dwell on it some more but right now he set the box back on the table. He titled his head to the other room to get a better look. Mao Mao and Adorabat have been in there a while. Long enough for him to dwell at least.

* * *

“Mao Mao,” he heard Badgerclops call out.

“Yeah,” he answered back, not taking his eyes off the screen.

He had a well-worn ducky-gatchi in his hands. The plastic had begun to chip, there was a scratch on the screen, and the sound chip or speakers must’ve broken cause it made no sound. Adorabat quietly watched Mao Mao over his shoulder. Mao Mao could hear Badgerclops’ heavy footsteps as he approached.

“What’re you doing,” he asked.

Mao Mao shook the ducky-gatchi in his hands. “She actually had one. Though it's out of package and heavily used so it’d be $300 at most.”

“I’d hate to interrupt you having fun, but we gotta make lunch.”

Mao Mao was going to disagree. It should be noon maybe a little after, but the pit in his stomach said otherwise. He might've played this longer than he thought. He passed it to Adorabat to follow Badgerclops to the Kitchen.

“What are we making,” he asked.

“Actually, I wanted to ask you something.”

Mao Mao paused. “What’s up,” he asked.

“Relax,” Badgerclops said,” you’re not in trouble or anything. I just want to make sure everything’s okay.”

“Why would anything not be okay,” he deflected.

"I just want to know why you bought the ducky-gatchi."

"Oh, that was just... something I've always wanted, but never actually got."

"Does it have to with your dad?"

"Yeah," he sighed," papa -er, Shin- never really approved of my... Lucky Ducky thing, so now I'm not involved with him anymore I thought-"

Badgerclops placed a hand on his shoulder," don't worry I'm not mad at you. Just try to be more careful with money."

Ring! Ring! Ring! The monster alarm blared on the wall.

“Yeah, thanks” Mao Mao,” Adorabat c’mon we got work to do.”

* * *

Mao Mao rode into the Valley Plaza only to be stricken with a bit of disappointment when he saw what it was. “You know you shoulda installed a second alarm during renovations.”

“Do we really need one though?”

“Well, one of us could be halfway done making lunch instead of dealing with this mess.”

Mao Mao pointed his thumb at the huddled, shouting mass of limbs that were the Sky Pirates' regular arguments. It got to the point they were actually kicking up a cloud of dust like this was a cartoon. Although… someone was missing.

He patted Badgerclops’ shoulder. “Hey, have you seen-”

“2nd store window. Three houses left.”

Mao Mao followed the instructions to find his son, lounging on windowsill, looking down on everything dispassionately. Almost everything. When he caught his eye he turned away. To think today started so well.

“That’s enough!”

Mao Mao turned to Orangusnake right in time to keep himself from being cleaved in two. He caught the strike with Geraldine locking blades for a second as the fight began, but something was different this time. Orangusnake’s blows were quicker, heavier. Each hit shook his sword like a bell. What was wrong? What was different?

Mao Mao blocked a strike that sent him crashing through police barriers. When did he set these up? He didn’t have time to think about it. Orangusnake was silhouetted in the sun with a war-ax brandished. Mao Mao stepped back to get out the way but stumbled. His foot was caught in something. A hole? What was a- oh no.

Clang!

Mao Mao had blocked the strike perfectly yet it sent tremors down his body and forced a web of cracks to snake across the ground. The police barriers were there for a reason. A reason he needed to address before someone got caught in it. The ground shook and shuddered as it began to give way, plunging Mao Mao and Orangusnake into the dark depths of the sinkhole.

[xxfanficnationxx]

Lacuna// Teen Wolf Rewrite

Wolf Moon Part 3

Last Part

Masterlist

Pairing: Stiles x Reader (Eventually)

Warnings: awkward moments, language, underage drinking, full moon

A/N: This part is a little longer than the others, I just wanted to fit it all, instead of having two very short ones. Plussssssss, Y/E/C stands for your eye color. 

The car ride was a little bit awkward. You sat in the passenger seat. Scott was in the back. You decided to break the ice a bit. “so... I met your dad last night” they both look at you confused, you stutter, “I-I was jogging in the woods when I ran into him. Told me to go back home. Why was he out there?” The memory of getting attacked flashes back to you.

“Oh, you didn’t hear. They found a body in the woods” You turn to look at him.

“Oh woah, that’s crazy. I didn’t think things happened like that around here.” You say

Stiles just replies with a drawn out “Yeahhhh” and it went back to silence. Stiles kept looking into the rear view mirror, looking back to Scott. Scott was making faces to stiles almost to like he was nudging Stiles on. After Stiles looked away and shook his head, the three of you finally pull up to your house and when you go to open the door thought popped into your head.

“I don’t know if I’m being to forward but, maybe could I have your guys’ number to hang out sometime? Maybe see if a spark is still there” You chuckle. The two boys looked at you, smiling. 

You exchange phone numbers and exit the car, walking to the porch and getting your keys out to open the door.

“Yeah yeah, I know. But you never know. Maybe she’s cool. We did used to be best friends.” You head Scott say. You pull the hair over your ear, and look back at them. Focusing your hearing as they start to drive away.

“Well I don’t remember her looking like that. She’s kinda hot now.” Stiles says glancing at you. You smile, then wave, he awkwardly waves back. 

“Yeah it’s called growing up” Scott replies. You see him look at you out of the window with a quizzical look, almost as if he knew you were listening.

You got into the house and started researching your symptoms. Is it contagious? Some kind of rabies? You fell asleep on your desk, tabs upon tabs open about diseases and even some about lycanthropy. What is happening to you.

You awoke the next day to your phones alarm. Papers were stuck to your face, you looked very flattering. You turned off the alarm on your phone, and saw the battery! “Ughhh, Shit!” You forgot to plug in your phone last night. You quickly plugged it in and ran out your door, on a mission to shower quickly. You almost run into your aunt on your way there “Oops! Sorry!” She just chuckles and walks back to the kitchen. You reach for the handle of the shower and rip it off! “What the…” You say quietly, fumbling trying to put it back together. Since you were running late, all you could do was gently put it on the pipe, definitely not fixed. 

You aunt comes running down the hall, “I’m sorry! I’m sorry!” She fumbles, bending down catching her breath, “They held me late today at work. You almost ready?”

You smile, still in your pajamas, then you run into your room. Forgetting about the shower entirely. 

You get ready for the day. Speed dressing, because you were already behind schedule.

You got school and made it through the day, fairly easy. There was a scrimmage after school for the lacrosse team, Allison convinced you to go, and offered you a ride home after. On our way there she told you about how she ran over a dog last night and wanted to text you but she didn’t have your number. You quickly gave it to her and told her to tell you if anything like that happens again, to call you.

Allison said something about her locker and walked away, though you were too focused on the anger flowing from the halls. As you turned around a corner, you found Jackson and Scott. You dodged around the corner, hoping they didn’t see you. 

“Now, you listen Mcall…” Jackson says in a low threatening voice. You turn the corner and see them, you duck around the hall hoping they didn’t see you. “You’re going to tell me exactly what it is and who you’re buying it from, because there’s no way in hell you are out there kicking ass on the field like that without some sort of chemical boost.” You were confused, did Jackson think Scott was doing drugs.

“Oh! You mean steroids!” Scott says. “Are you on steroids?” Next think you heard was a slam on the lockers. You were about to turn and help Jackson started talking again.

“What the hell is going on with you Mcall!” Jackson yells. Making your ears ring.

“What’s going on with me!” Scott says “you really want to know! Well, so would I! Because I can see hear and smell things that I shouldn’t be able to see, hear and smell. I do things that should be impossible, I’m sleepwalking three miles in the middle of the woods, and I’m pretty much convinced that I’m totally out of my freaking mind!”

‘What…’ you stumble back, the same things are happening to him, except the whole sleepwalking thing. You had to speak to him about it. Maybe you both have the same disease.

You took a walk to clear your mind, then finally made your way to the field. All the boys were on the field huddled and jumping. You found Allison and sat with her. You really didn’t like lacrosse, it was something else. You sat zoning out and thinking about songs in your head. That is until you saw Scott start to do flips on the field, ‘what the hell’ you thought to yourself. Coach told Scott that he was first line and everybody cheered. You even cheered, happy for your childhood best friend. 

You got home and began to get ready for the party. You really wanted to make this your whole debut. Your mindset of finding friends has really changed from the first day. Everyone seemed so nice and you didn’t want to go through high school as the lonely girl.

You did your makeup very glam, and did your hair nicely. Next was the outfit, oh dear the outfit. You didn’t know what to wear, you changed about 50 times. But the end product was good, maybe even a little bit too overdressed. ‘Please let this not be a jeans kinda party’. You felt a little tired, worn down, but you chucked it up to the bad night sleep.

Your aunt let you borrow the moped, it was bright yellow, super worn but cute nonetheless. It had a matching yellow helmet. It sat in the garage most of the time so this was nice, maybe she’d let you keep it.

You arrived to the party and walked through the house. You immediately felt worse, the music caused you a bit of a headache. You never feel like this, Why now? You walk through the kitchen and see a lot of people dancing outside.

“Allison!” You call. She smiled super wide and walks over.

“Oh my gosh, Y/N you look so pretty. Now I feel under dressed” she laughs and points to her clothes.

“Oh please, you fit in. I definitely don’t” talking a bit loud because of the music. “Scott hey! I didn’t see you.”

“Hey Y/n, were gonna go dance!” He yells walking away, Allison’s hand in his. She turns to look back at you.

“Call me” you mouth with your hand up to your ear like a phone. She nods and laughs turning away to follow Scott through the crowd. You’ll have to find another time to talk to Scott. You don’t wanna ruin their date.

Just as you were going back inside for some drinks you ‘literally’ run into a familiar face. “Stiles?” You laugh apologizing.

“Y/n hey! I didn’t know you were coming here.” He looks at you, quickly taking a glance at your outfit.

“Yeah, yeah. I know. I’m overdressed…” You sigh looking down at your outfit. “The party’s I went to in Seattle were a bit different” you chuckle.

“Yeah I bet!” He smiles, that smile, made your stomach go all bubbly. Maybe you should talk to him. I bet Scott tells him everything.

“Can we talk over in the hall? Where it’s quieter, I need to ask you some questions.” You say with a serious tone. He looks at you concerned but nods anyway.

After finding a quiet place you begin to freeze. Should you tell him… you have to. What if it’s dangerous. “So… I heard Scott talking to Jackson earlier today. He said something about how he was seeing, hearing and doing things he couldn’t have before.” Stiles looked at you with wide eyes. You could hear his heartbeat rapidly increasing. “I think… I think it’s happening to me too” You say. He squints at you, then puts it together. He hits himself on the head and spins around.  

“Shit! Of course! You were in the woods the same night that Scott was, did you get attacked too?” He said the last part quieter.

You gulped. “Yes, something like a bear bit me and broke my wrist. It was all healed in the morning though. I don’t understand what’s happening… I mean… I..” You began to get dizzy everything spinning. You hadn’t had that much to drink. Stiles begins to grab you.

“Y/n are you okay?” Suddenly Scott zooms past us “Scott?” Stiles puts your arm over his shoulders and makes the way towards the door to follow Scott. Scott hops in his car drives off, Allison gets in the car with someone else it was all very fuzzy.

Stiles brings you to the Jeep and begins to drive. “Y/n I’m gonna follow Scott okay! Are you okay?”

You turn to him eyes glowing white, he yelps and starts to drive faster towards Scott’s house. Your head was in your hands you were breathing heavy. “Stiles” You say low, almost a growl “pull over”. You felt like, if you didn’t get out of the car, you were gonna pounce on him. 

“Pull over? We have to get to Scott’s.” He says panicking.

“Pull over…” you glance up at him. “Now!” You growl. Orange and black stripes forming on your face, eyes glowing bright white, fangs loud and clear.

“Ahh, oh god” Stiles pulls over. You immediately get out walking towards the woods. Your ears begin to curve and your claws grow out of your hands. You feel the fur grow on your jaw in the familiar striped pattern. Red, all you see is red. You run as fast as you can to the forest losing your heeled boots on the way. “Y/n!” Stiles calls out, you flinch at the sound of your name, you look back to stiles before entering the line of woods, your eyes flash back to (Y/E/C) ones. You heard a noise in the woods, and just like that you were back in kill mode.

You ran through the woods, all you wanted to do was run. Your mind coming back in waves as you begin to realize what you were doing. You hear leaves cracking around you as you look around, petrified. “Where is she” you hear some people say

“She’s safe, from you” you moved towards the people, then someone grabbed you.

“Ahh!” You screamed you managed to get down and growl at the attacker.Trying to look as threatening as possible. Teeth bared, eyes wide. You see Scott, at least it smells like Scott.

The Attacker jumps and tackles Scott. You immediately run after them. “What did you do with her!”

You stumble down the hill behind them. The strange man points to you. “Shh quiet!” There’s a pause “too late. They’re already here” he looks back at you “You, run!”

You run in an opposite direction as them, fighting all urges to get down on all fours. An arrow almost takes your head off. You look back to see men following you. Another arrow, this time you get hit in the stomach. You fly down falling on your back. You immediately get up and run as fast as you can, hands holding the arrow in your stomach. You run around a tree, leaning against it and rip out the arrow, trying to control your breathing.

You begin to focus on your hearing, trying to locate the men. “What the hell was she?” One man said. You located them about 30 feet behind you.

“We need to go, Argent will know how to deal with this” another man says. They turn and walk away from you.

‘Argent…’

Suddenly, the mysterious man from before appears in front of you. You gasp, he places his finger on your lips and mouths “be quiet”. His face inches from yours.

‘Wow, this mysterious man was a hottie.’ You thought to yourself, eyes wide. He grabs your hand and leads you somewhere, taking you to an old abandoned house.

“We will be safe here” he says and leads you into the empty cold house. He shuts the door and you slide down the wall.

“Who are you, who were they?!” You asked, still confused from earlier. Your eyes beginning to shut.

“Derek, Derek Hale” He says, “and those people, that’s a story for another time.” Laying you down on the floor. You felt like you could sleep for the rest of your life.

You awoke to the noise of revving, before even opening your eyes you felt something warm, and heavy on your shoulders. You open your eyes to see Derek. Still loopy, you chuckle. He turned to look at you. ”Good morning” he smiles a bit. “I’m bringing you back home.”

That’s all you remember, next thing you know, you’re in your bed, phone plugged in next to you alarm going off. You’re so out of it, you can barely sit up.

“Honey are you awake?” Your aunt walks in. Her look turns from happy to concerned. “Are you okay?” You nod your head

“Yeah, yeah. I’m okay.” You say glancing at the time.

“Okay well, I worked a double yesterday. I think I’m going to go to bed, just take the Scooter, if you need to go anywhere.” She smiles. Softening your hair and placing a hand on your cheek before walking away.

‘What the hell happened last night’

End of episode 1!!! hopefully you’ve been liking it!

Taglist: @bolaurel​ @iclosetgeek​ @cutiepiemimi13​ @stilessarcasmqueen​

[nelvana]

In which the god of the sky is fought

First: In which the human is transformed Next: In which they visit the spirit realm Previous: In which the tower of the sky is explored

    Keahi hummed softly to herself, sitting back against one of the walls in the safe room and watching the clouds move slowly across the room. She glanced down at Nelvana, who was laying on her back on the soft flooring and staring up at the clouded ceiling. Even with the skull blocking most of her facial features, Keahi could tell that the cubone had a lot on her mind by the way her hands moved anxiously, picking at her short fur, and by the way her brows were furrowed. Keahi let out a sigh; there was a lot on her mind too, and it was hard not to think of everything that awaited them.

    “Hey,” Keahi murmured, smiling softly down at her partner.

    Nelvana blinked, the torchic’s voice pulling her focus back, “oh, hey,” she replied softly, “what’s up?”

    “Nothing much…” Keahi sighed, glancing around at the others, lounging around and chatting together as well, before looking back at Nelvana. “Just… thinking. We all are though, aren’t we? It’s quiet here after all.”

    Nelvana sat up, looking around as well before nodding in agreement, “yeah. It’s still nice to enjoy quiet moments like these though, even if they do make you think too much.”

    Alex sat by the statue, across from Nelvana and Keahi, his posture relaxed and his gaze calm. His attention was drawn to Ceebee and Edgar, who seemed to be getting along well. Tsuki was with that pair as well, and while she didn’t appear to be speaking much, as usual, she was cheerfully hanging around them; following them as they flew around the room.

    “You’re right, this is really nice. To just be together and relax for a moment,” Keahi agreed, “even if we are in the middle of the most important and dangerous mission yet!” she laughed.

    “Mm, yeah,” Nelvana giggled, pulling her knees up to her chest and resting her head on them. “…” Her smile fell, and her eyes darkened slightly. “We should keep going though. We’ve been here for awhile.”

    Keahi hesitated, “you sure…?”

    “Yeah… yeah, we should get going again,” Nelvana responded, stiffly standing up.

    “Okay.” Keahi stood up as well. “And, Nel? If you’re feeling stressed about this, you know you can talk to me about it. It’s okay to feel stressed, I am too.”

    Nelvana blinked, “…okay. Thanks, Keahi,” she said, “I guess I am pretty stressed, about all of this. It’s all just a big complicated mess and I don’t want to fail this and I don’t… I don’t want to leave. I don’t want to leave you,” she mumbled, wrapping her arms around herself.

    Keahi leaned over, bumping her head gently against her partner’s side, “…I don’t want you to leave either… but there isn’t that much we can do right now, is there? We just have to keep going.”

    “I know,” Nelvana murmured, “and I know you know… it’s hard.”

    Keahi hummed in agreement, letting her head rest against Nelvana comfortingly. It was another minute of silence together before they actually gathered up the others to keep going up the tower.

    “Alright, so I’ve never been up to these floors before, so we’re on our own now. Well, I’ll admit that I haven’t actually been on many of the earlier floors, but I at least had an idea of what they were like,” Edgar announced as they continued onto the next floor. “On the bright side, none of the others down there have been up here either, so they should be less aggressive up here since, y’know… they haven’t heard about us coming yet…”

    “That’s good to know. Thank you for telling us that, Edgar,” Ceebee replied, flying up smoothly beside him. “I suppose we’ll have to go back to the mental map idea now.”

    “The pokemon up here will be stronger though, correct?” Tsuki questioned.

    “Eh… yeah, they will be,” Edgar admitted, looking towards the floor with disappointment. “But I’m going to keep going with you all, if that’s alright. This is definitely out of my range now, but I want to help. And not just because the others down there don’t really like me anymore,” he continued, looking back up with more confidence. “And you guys are strong! I have faith that you’ll be able to get through this!”

    Keahi beamed up at him, “thanks Edgar! We will! And we’re glad that you’re still sticking around.”

    “Even if you aren’t being our guide anymore,” Alex added with a friendly chuckle; he seemed to have warmed up more to the duskull’s presence in their time in the tower.

    “The more assistance in the mission is probably for the better,” Tsuki hummed.

    Nelvana simply smiled, watching this interaction silently with a full heart as the sextet walked through the corridors of clouds together.

    It took no time at all for them to be attacked, ending their cheerful banter before it really began. Despite the pokemon not being angered by Edgar joining up with Team Galaxy, the habitants were still guarding this tower for Rayquaza. Edgar’s warning about them being stronger was correct though; pokemon such as flygon, salamence, and metagross reigned up here on these floors, and they knew that anyone to have made it up here would have to be both strong and smart, prompting them to attack the group swiftly and without hesitation. These pokemon weren’t much for talking either, none of them even bothered asking what a duskull was doing so far out of their territory; they just fought like the mindless dungeon pokemon they were pretending to be. At the very least, none of these foes seemed to get the idea to start a monster house, which the sextet would be forever thankful for.

    With more flying and dragon-types around, Tsuki was forced to use up some of her ice beam energy she had reserved for in the battle against Rayquaza; which didn’t please her that much, knowing she’d have to ingest an elixir later to make up for it. Nelvana assured her that using elixirs would be better than needing to use other healing supplies, as it would imply that they’d be injured.

    “Avoiding getting hurt will be one of the biggest priorities in this fight. Rayquaza will be much faster and stronger than anything we have faced so, so we’ll have to be faster and stronger than them. Getting hurt will not only slow us down, but there’s a chance no one will be close enough to check up on you, which puts you in even more risk. Use as many elixirs as you’ll need to keep our opponents from harming us.”

    Without any sort of lead to where to go or really where they had been again, progress slowed slightly as it had in the early floors of this place. But like before, they made due by leading with pokemon with good memories and sense of direction, and using Ceebee’s psychic abilities and Tsuki’s tracking abilities to keep an eye on where they had already been.

    The odd weather patterns persisted up here, continuing from their annoying habits from the earlier floors of the dungeon. Sun shone brightly on the second floor after the special floor, warming everyone back up from the chilly wind that snuck through the clouded walls every once and awhile. Hail pelted down on the fourth floor, forcing everyone to rush around in a blind hurry for the stairs to avoid being harmed by the oversized chunks of ice. Then, it rained on the sixth floor, something they hadn’t seen since the seventh floor, where they had met Edgar.

    However, this rain wasn’t pouring down on them like the last time. It was calmer and more peaceful, only raining for the bare minimum needed to give the typing effects for water and fire. Gently dripping out from the clouds and down onto the group. Keahi shivered regardless, fluffing out her feathers to shake away the water that was lingering on her. Alex paused, noticing the rain quickly and looking up to watch it for a moment and letting it drip into his face. It gave off a relaxed feel, and Nelvana did the same thing, though for less time than the grovyle. Despite enjoying the calmer weather on this floor, they did not linger long, especially since not everyone was enjoying the other effects of the rain.

    “We should be almost there now, just a couple more floors to go!” Edgar assured them as they arrived to the next, drier, floor.

    “That is good news,” Tsuki sighed, “these du- pokemon are pretty strong. It will be nice to get to the bigger battle without being weakened more,” she added, shaking herself back and forth to be rid of the water in her fur.

    “Do you think there’ll be a spot where we can catch our breaths before fighting Rayquaza?” Keahi asked, pausing in place for a moment, falling behind slightly during this pause as the rest of the group was continuing forward.

    “Hm… I’m not sure, sorry,” Edgar responded, floating back to Keahi to speak to her more easily. “I’ve never been all the way up there before, or even gotten a good look from down below. Is that sort of thing normal so dungeons?”

    “Eh… not always,” Nelvana replied, glancing back at the others as she took the lead, shaking her hand back and forth in a so-so motion. “There was a spot in Magma Cavern, and technically a bit of a spot in Mt. Blaze. But not at Mt. Freeze.”

    “Are those other dungeons with legendaries living in them? I know Magma Cavern has Groudon, but I’ve never heard of Mt. Blaze or Mt. Freeze before,” Edgar questioned.

    “Mhmm, Blaze ‘n Freeze had Moltres and Articuno,” Alex answered courtly.

    “Ah, then I guess it all depends on what Rayquaza thinks is typical for a dungeon, so they may mimic it as well as possible!” Edgar exclaimed, “if Groudon did it, they might as well, since they’re part of that trio! Then again, this is a tower, and has less space for that in general…”

    “I’m sure we’ll figure something out when we get there,” Ceebee hummed, fluttering ahead of the rest of the group. “Oh, salamence up ahead, get ready everyone!” she warned.

    Completing these next two floors came faster than they would have expected, and soon they found the stairs that would lead to the end. There was a pause, hesitation hanging in the air for a minute, and then Nelvana stepped forward, and soon they were heading up the last set of stairs to this tower. These stairs held much more steps than any others they had had to climb up, or down, in dungeons. They curled up in a wide spiral, adding to the distance of this trek.

    But after a few minutes of tension filled climbing, they had finally arrived to the top of the tower, and quickly had their questions of what it was like up here answered. As the top of Sky Tower, nothing hung above them as a ceiling anymore; there was only more open sky. Clouds still swirled around them though; some appearing to be more solid than others, but none of them looked to be strong enough to be actual walls, and just some clouds swept up here for the moment.

    It was silent up here.

    “Where’s Rayquaza?” Keahi whispered, glancing at each of her teammates.

    “They might be hiding, or sleeping,” Edgar suggested, the unease evident in his voice at the empty floor.

    “They might have heard we were coming, and is looking to surprise attack us,” Alex hissed, “we should be careful. Let’s quickly prepare while we still can, and then get looking… Ceebee, if you want to try sensing them, that would be great.”

    Ceebee nodded, “got it! They’re pretty big, so shouldn’t be hard to miss… I’ll just keep an eye on them then, and warn you all if they come near,” she replied.

    Everyone agreed to this plan, and hurriedly began using up what they needed, out of what was left in their bag. They had packed well… for four pokemon. The two new arrivals had put a dent in what they had, limiting what was available to them.

    “Okay, I found them,” Ceebee announced, “they don’t seem to have noticed we made it up here yet, but they’re definitely ready to fight.”

    “Why?” Keahi questioned, “do they really just want to fight us? Why can’t they understand that we really just want to talk?”

    “Legendaries tend to jump to conclusions quickly,” Tsuki answered, “plus, we have reason to assume Rayquaza has only recently woken up, and isn’t thinking clearly. They must just see us as trespassers that need to be eliminated right now.”

    “Yes, that seems to be it,” Ceebee agreed, “oh wait… they’ve definitely realized now. We should pack up and spread out before they get here!” she exclaimed before flying up into the sky, ready for battle.

    Alex hastily swept the supplies they had set down back into the bag, and hurried out a bit more into the open. He stayed relatively close to the edges, evidently planning to use the shadows coming off of the limited walls to his use. Nelvana gave a nod to her teammates before hurrying after him. She didn’t go as far as he did though, and stayed more in the open. They had discussed as a team how it might be challenging for her to land strong hits against such a foe, as she lacked any ranged attacks aside from bonemerang, so she had decided that at the very least she could help Edgar with distracting Rayquaza. Edgar himself didn’t go too far out in the open, hiding within some of the scattered clouds. Tsuki didn’t trot out too far either, ready to adapt to the fight and chase down her opponent. Keahi scampered out into the open as well, just about across from where Nelvana was standing.

    Only mere seconds after Keahi stopped running, clouds burst aside to make way for the large legendary bursting through the flooring and twisting up into the sky. Rayquaza peered down at the group, their yellow eyes matched the ringed markings trailing down their long, green, serpentine body. They flexed their clawed hands, scoping out who their first target would be out of the group, lips curling up into a toothy snarl. Opening their mouth, they let out a piercing shriek, the hyper noise affecting Nelvana and Tsuki, who Rayquaza was facing, the most.

    Edgar peeked out of his hiding place, ghostly fireballs dancing harmlessly along his grey robes. He shot them, six in total, at Rayquaza while they were distracted in starting the fight. Four of these six blues orbs of flame landed along the long serpentine, searing deep into their scales. Rayquaza let out a shrill shriek, twisting around to face the direction of the attack; but the duskull had already wisely hidden away in the shadows again.

    ~*Close your eyes everyone!*~ Ceebee commanded to her group through telepathy.

    Team Galaxy obliged swiftly, and upon seeing this Ceebee generated fairy magic around her hands, glowing in anticipation. She clapped her hands together, creating a blinding flash of light. Rayquaza could be heard letting out a roar of pain at this dazzling gleam; but then they recovered, diving up towards the celebi, dark energy growing around their jaws. The legendary’s speed was astounding; they shot out at her, their body still twisting out through the cloud flooring they had come out of. Ceebee yelped, trying to fly out of the way, but she was much too slow compared to Rayquaza. Just before they closed their mouth around her, she disappeared, Rayquaza’s crunch closing on thin air. Ceebee reappeared, tumbling onto the clouds below, panting and gasping for breath.

    Tsuki snarled, leaping forward and opening her maw. She barely charged her attack before launching it, an ice beam aimed directly at Rayquaza’s head. Their yellow eyes snapped to attention just in time, and they twisted out of the way of their greatest weakness.

    Rayquaza glared down at the absol, but changed their mind about attacking right away, and instead flew up into the sky, a red mist circling around them as they danced into the air.

    “Dragon dance! Their physical attacks will be stronger now!” Ceebee warned, shakily fluttering back off her feet again.

    As if in response to this, Rayquaza dove back into battle again, the red mist dissipating into the wind and being replaced by a light green one as their speed dramatically picked up. Their body crashed into the tower, spinning their tail around to knock Tsuki over with. The absol nearly fell off the edge, but caught herself by digging her large claws into the edge and hastily dragging herself back up before she would have a chance to lose her grip or get hit again.

    Now that Rayquaza on even levelling with everyone else and not flying about, Keahi, Nelvana, and Alex rushed in to attack as well. Keahi zoomed in with a quick attack, throwing her small body against the legendary’s scaly hide, and then blasted a flamethrower in up close, using the knockback from her move to push her a safer distance away. Electricity crackled from Alex’s left fist, which he punched into Rayquaza’s side twice before leaping back out of the way as well. Nelvana sprinted up to the legendary, headbutting them with all the force she could muster.

    However, when Rayquaza began flying back up into the air again, Nelvana made the split-second decision to leap onto their back, clinging there as the flying pokemon shot back into the sky. They didn’t seem to have noticed the cubone hanging off of them, but it was only a matter of time.

    ~*What are you doing?*~ Ceebee worriedly asked Nelvana, limited the telepathic connection to just the two of them for the moment.

    *I’m getting a better striking point! They’re too fast for me to hit otherwise,* Nelvana thought in response.

    ~*…be careful.*~

    While Nelvana was getting a solid grip on the back of the serpentine, Ceebee flew in to attack again, in hopes of distracting Rayquaza for the duration of this reckless plan. She created a see-through image of herself, twisting it into a silver orb like Team Galaxy had seen Groudon do in their battle from the day before.

    Rayquaza looked at the sphere, and let out a throaty laugh; almost taunting her move. They then created their own copy, Nelvana shuddering as it passed by her fingertips, one much larger than the other image had been, and even bigger than themself. Its horns were longer and curled back into blades, and long streams floating behind it. There wasn’t much time to study this though, as it too spun into a silver orb and was launched at the similar attack.

    Ceebee’s eyes widened in horror, but she sent her attack forward as well, in hopes that they would cancel each other out. The two spheric attacks grinded off of each other like two stones might when spun against one another, and then the smaller one was swallowed up by the larger attack, continuing the rest of its path at the celebi. The impact forced a yelp out of the mythical, sending her flying back into some clouds a few meters back. She quickly collected herself, wincing as she slowly flew back into the air. A light green energy field appeared around her, only disappearing as her wounds were healed up again.

    “Clearly, you’re stronger than anything I can throw at you…” she muttered, “but try this one on for size; I condemn you to the force of the future!” she snapped.

    Ceebee’s eyes shone brightly, her antennae standing straight up as she pointed a finger directly at Rayquaza. But nothing happened. Eyes returning to normal, the small pokemon disappeared from sight again, satisfied with her work.

    Tsuki growled, charging ice in her maw before blasting it at the perplexed legendary. Ice coated up the long, scaled body. Rayquaza stiffened, letting out a sharp hiss of pain and trying to shake the ice away by twisting their body around. Eventually, the freeze snapped, shards falling down into the clouded floor below.

    Electricity crackled at Alex’s fist again, but he wasn’t in the right position to attack with this move again, and was forced to bide his time. Keahi waited as well, but more out of fear of accidentally hitting Nelvana.

    Nelvana, deciding that she had a good enough balance at this point, slowly lifted up her right hand, which was also carrying her club. She knew that even in this position, a ground-type move like her bone club wouldn’t do much damage. For a moment, she considered using the jagged end instead to stab into Rayquaza’s scales. After all, not only would it do more damage, but it would give her another spot to grab on to… Her mind reeled at the thought, and images of the sableye she had stabbed flashed from her memory. She swallowed weakly, she didn’t want to do that. Instead, she placed the club in her mouth so she could have her hands free, lowering her right hand back down to help with her grip. Leaning her head back, she suddenly headbutted forward, putting as much force into the hit as she could manage, before doing it again.

    Rayquaza roared, their eyes turning red and their body suddenly glowing with a similarly colored energy. They shot into the sky, only to dive through the ground moments later. Their body thrashed about as they repeated this process, diving in and out of the clouds, blindly trying to hit someone. Team Galaxy scrambled to get out of the way; their only warnings of where the legendary would appear next being the sudden telepathic warnings from Ceebee as she kept tabs on things. Nelvana was forced to press closer from the force of the mere speeds that Rayquaza was going at, despite not wanting to, as the outraged energy pulsed painfully through her. She wanted to headbutt them again, to deal some damage back, but it was a struggle to even just lift her head past the wind.

    “Keahi, Tsuki, hit them when they’re diving into the ground!” Alex yelled, “you have an opening when they’re half under us! Just make sure not to hit Nel!”

    Tsuki obliged immediately, letting out another ice beam, which coated all the way down Rayquaza’s side as they dove through the clouded floor. Keahi hesitated, but joined in on the other side of Rayquaza, shooting a flamethrower at them as they passed by.

    Rayquaza twisted out from the flooring again, but the energy had faded, leaving them rocking back in forth, their eyes unable to focus. Edgar took this opportunity, reappearing from the shadows to swiftly sneak in and strike before hiding away again. Nelvana saw this chance as well, only taking a moment to catch her breath before beginning to headbutt Rayquaza again. This finally got them to notice the cubone clinging on though, and they curled their head back to make eye contact with her with a toothy grin. Nelvana froze, staring down the legendary, who’s head slowly tilted back and forth uneasily. She sat up, putting the club back in her hands before grinning back at them.

    “Hey there,” she greeted slyly, before swinging the blunt end of her club at Rayquaza’s left eye.

    The attack missed the target, Rayquaza snapping his head away in just barely enough time to have the bone hit just the side of their face instead. Nelvana wasn’t sticking around to try again, and risk getting hit herself, so she immediately leapt away from the raging serpentine, landing safely back onto the clouds.

    Energy pulsed off of Rayquaza as they roared again. They began charging light energy at their mouth, releasing it in a beam which they aimed all across the terrain by twisting their head back and forth. Not expecting such a wild attack, it blazed through Keahi, who let out a shriek of pain before hurrying out of the way with the aide of her quick attack.

    Tsuki leapt ahead again, taking the dragon pulse damage herself in favor of a good attacking position. She shot another ice beam at Rayquaza again, this time freezing the winged rudders at the legendary’s sides as well.

    Alex zoomed around the various attacks, making use of the thunder punch he had been charging up, and jumping up to strike it against Rayquaza’s hide. The legendary writhed in the air, cutting off the attack they had been using themself, as the charged-up electricity coursed through their long body for at least a full five seconds before finally ceasing. Satisfied with these results, Alex swiftly scurried out of the way of whatever Rayquaza would choose for their next attack.

    Yellow eyes snapped to attention with new clarity, no long confused from their earlier outrage. Edgar appeared again, shooting his own beamed attack from his eye, which only ruined this new clarity and sending Rayquaza into a state of blurred confusion again. They roared in anger to be stuck in this state again, whirling around in hopes of spotting the ever evasive duskull, with no luck.

    Regardless, Rayquaza wasn’t going to pause in their attacks just because their status was impairing them. Clawing the ice away from their rudders, they flew up into the air again, sharping twisting their body to create blades of air, which were shot down at the group below. Nelvana dove to get out of the way, but one of these blades slashed at her side, spurting warm blood to begin trickling out. She winced, but kept moving, edging her way towards Alex for an oran berry at the least. Luckily, the grovyle did manage to dodge this move, and quickly passed the cubone the blue fruit before speeding away again.

    Seeing that the last patch of ice she had coated Rayquaza with was now gone, Tsuki positioned herself to attack again. She shot up another ice beam, but the serpentine twisted out of the way before diving down at the absol with extreme speed and their mouth open wide to crush her in their jaws. Tsuki’s eyes widened, and she closed them, turning away and bracing herself for the pain.

    But it never came. Opening her eyes again, Tsuki saw Rayquaza suspended only a few feet above her, frozen in place with psychic energy.

    “I can’t hold them for long! Get out of the way!” Ceebee commanded, her arms outstretched in front of her as she struggled to hold the much larger pokemon still with her abilities.

    Tsuki didn’t need to be asked twice. After recovering from the shock of this close call, she hurried out of the way, hiding herself in the clouds to catch her breath before returning into the fray. Rayquaza was released only moments afterwards, continuing their dive through the clouds; Keahi blasted a flamethrower at them as they passed by.

    Rayquaza snarled as they returned, clarity returning once more to their eyes and displeasure on their face. Edgar came out of his hiding place again for another confuse ray, but Rayquaza had predicted this, already charging up another dragon pulse to hit the duskull with. Edgar let out a squeak of terror at the size of the attack aimed at him, freezing in place out of fear, but this attack never hit either. Rayquaza was suddenly struck with a powerful energy, sending them crumpled to the floor, convulsing as the psychic power pained them. Their eyes stared straight ahead in a horrifying mixture of horror and pain.

    “W-What’s happening to them?” Keahi questioned worriedly, looking around at her teammates.

    Ceebee let out a sigh, slowly floating down to join where the others were beginning to gather around the pained legendary, “future sight. Remember when I condemned them earlier in this fight…?” she answered reluctantly.

    “Future sight…? Yeah, I remember you using that. It’s affecting them now though?” Keahi responded.

    “Yes, it has a delay.” Ceebee nodded. “I don’t like using that move, but it’s the most powerful psychic move I know. It forces the target to be pained by everyone in the near future.”

    “That would be nearly everyone, with the meteor supposed to fall!” Tsuki gasped.

    “Yes…” Ceebee looked away, almost ashamed. “That’s why I didn’t start this battle by setting up that move. But then I realized… we would need something like that to help guarantee victory.”

    “Well, as… scary of a move as that is, I’m glad you used it. It works well,” Edgar murmured.

    “It helps that we weakened them beforehand, but yes, it does server its job well,” Alex added, “how’s everyone holding up?”

    “I think nearly everyone has been hit at least once… but I think we’re all fine,” Nelvana replied.

    Conversation was cut short as Rayquaza blinked, the attack’s power fading and releasing the legendary from its hold. They began to rise back up, glaring down at the group.

    “W-Wait! Rayquaza! We need to talk to you!” Keahi blurted out, “please stop fighting!”

    Rayquaza snarled, “you come into my territory, and interrupt my-“

    “Oh, shut it!” Alex snapped from irritation, “this is really important! There is a meteor coming that will impact this planet, and we need you to break it, or else it will destroy everything!”

    “A meteor? In my skies?” Rayquaza gasped, “how dare you suggest such a thing! Nothing passes from my sight! I am the guardian of the skies, I’ll have you know,” they hissed.

    “You were in a post-awakened rage before though,” Tsuki pointed out, the fur along her spine bristling. “Look up now and tell us there is no danger!”

    Rayquaza turned to look at Tsuki, their gaze softened at the sight of the absol. After a moment, they looked up into the clear blue sky, managing to either spot or sense the meteor high up in the distance now. They looked back down at the group, the tension leaving their features as everything came together.

    “You… I believe I was mistaken, I apologize for that,” Rayquaza finally uttered, “you six have come a long way to see me for my help, and I just attacked blindly. That was a poor choice on my part,” they continued, “I can destroy the meteor, but first, I need these burns gone. They hinder my power.”

    “Alright,” Ceebee agreed, “I can handle that, just one moment…”

    Ceebee lifted up her hands and closed her eyes. Waves of blue-green energy pulsed from her body, making a ringing noise like that of a gentle bell. When these waves made contact with the angry burns dotted along Rayquaza’s scales, the marks faded and healed. She opened her eyes again, offering the legendary a friendly smile.

    “How about that?” Ceebee asked.

    Rayquaza let out a sigh of relief, “yes, that helps, thank you. Now I can do this,” they replied, “but…”

    “But what?” Nelvana prompted.

    “But, you six could be harmed. You should leave this tower first,” Rayquaza finished.

    “There isn’t time for that! The longer we stand around waiting, the closer it gets and the more damage it will cause, whether it hits or you break it!” Alex insisted.

    “Perhaps you are right,” Rayquaza muttered, “you all are willing to risk that, to make that sacrifice then?”

    “Of course,” Keahi told them firmly.

    “Very well,” Rayquaza sighed, “may those down below remember your story.”

    Rayquaza opened their mouth again wide, beginning to charge an orange orb in their maw. The sphere pulsated with energy, only growing in size and power as they continued to charge it, pushing their jaws open wider than one would have thought was possible. Soon, this orb was larger than Rayquaza’s head, at maximum power. Rayquaza suddenly flew into the skies again, releasing the energy in a red-orange beam, which shot straight up into the heavens.

    Everyone watched at it continued to be fired way up, up into the sky. Finally, there was the satisfying sound of an explosion, and the sight of the meteor being destroyed in the distance. Rayquaza’s hyper beam stopped its charge, and they slowly closed their mouth again. The world seemed to shake around them, not unlike the earthquakes that had been troubled with until Groudon had been defeated. They could see pieces of the meteor burning away in the sky.

    And then, there was nothing.

First: In which the human is transformed Next: In which they visit the spirit realm Previous: In which the tower of the sky is explored

[my-emotional-self]

The Accident Chapter 8

Pairings: Chris Evans x OFC

Warnings: Fluff, Angst, Swearing

Summary: After yet another fight with your boyfriend Chris, you go for a drive and get into a terrible accident.  Upon waking up in the hospital, you find both Sebastian and Chris sitting there.  The only problem?  You have no recent memories and you think you are still dating Sebastian.

A/N: As always, thank you @missecharlotte for all of your help!

Hot.  That was the only way you could describe the way you felt at this exact moment.  Your body was on fire, from head to toe.  Opening your eyes you found yourself laying on your right side as your left arm was draped around Dodger.  Well that explains why my front half is so damn hot your mind thought as you yawned into a pile of fur.  

Your legs felt stiff as you began to stir in bed; your eyes widening as you sudden realized there was an arm draped over your hip.  You held your breath, trying to get out of your foggy morning haze.  The arm that was around you pulled you closer, a soft sigh humming in your ear from behind.  

Peering around the room, your eyes landed back on Dodger and you grasped where you were.  Chris’ house, or, your house as well.  It was Chris who was behind you, snuggling into your back; last night’s events coming back to you.  You were having a nightmare, and Chris came in to check on you. Before he left you asked him to stay. But the two of you definitely weren’t cuddling when you went to sleep.  

You had to admit, even though you were warm, you didn’t mind his arm draped around you, even though you could feel his morning wood poking you in the back.  Hey, he’s a guy, it happens; your memories aren’t that far gone.

You paused your movements as Chris began to stir from behind, his lips placing a kiss to your exposed shoulder.  Even though you felt extremely hot, his kiss made you break out into goosebumps, a tingling sensation shooting down your spine and you had to stifle a moan that wanted to rip from the back of your throat.  It felt nice and you wouldn’t have minded waking up like this every morning.

“Mmmmm,” Chris hummed into your ear making you shiver.  Your ministrations must have woken him up as you felt him stiffen.  “Shit,” he cursed while pulling away from you.  “Shit I’m so sorry Erica.  I-I must have rolled over and started cuddling you at some point during the night.”

Your hand clasped over your mouth, containing your giggle because you didn’t want him to feel bad about it.  “Chris it’s alright, really,” you reassured with soft eyes.  

He pulled his arm away from you as you felt the bed rustle behind you.  Turning, you saw Chris scramble towards the door, leaving faster than Speedy Gonzalez.  Frowning, you turned to Dodger, scratching behind his ear as he began to thump his back leg on the bed.  “What’s wrong with your Daddy huh boy?”

~~~

You made your way to the kitchen after taking a shower to cool down from being so warm; the smell of bacon hitting your nostrils the minute you opened the bedroom door. Dodger went barreling down the hallway as he heard his food being scooped from the bag.  The hardwood floor of the hallway felt nice and cool against your warm bare feet.  

As you reached the kitchen, you saw Dodger inhaling his food as Chris was turning over the bacon in the frying pan; waffles sticking out of the toaster.  “Morning,” you said as you sat down on the stool, watching him cook.

“Morning,” he replied without turning to face you.  You frowned at his non-gesture, wondering what had him in this sort of mood.  He placed a plate of food in front of you, his hands threading through his hair.  On the plate sat two waffles, four strips of bacon, and two pieces of toast.  You reached for the syrup and poured them over your waffles before digging in.  

“So, would you mind if I took a couple of phone calls this morning?”  Chris asked hesitantly.  “It’s just my manager is on my case about reading some of these new scripts.”

Your eyes grew wide as he asked you the question.  “Chris. It’s fine.  Really.  I don’t want you to stop doing your job and I don’t want to be a nuisance,” you reassured him.   He gave you a quick smile before heading out of the room and towards his office.  You looked down to see Dodger sitting at your feet, tail wagging.  “Well, I guess it’s you and me boy.”  Dodger barked at your words as his tongue rolled out.

~~~

The next two days seemed rather similar; sans Chris sleeping with you since you luckily didn’t have another bad nightmare.  You woke up early and took a shower, washing away the heat of your body from the previous night’s sleep.  Next, you went into the kitchen where Chris always seemed to be close to finished with making breakfast.  It was as if he had a sixth sense, knowing exactly when you would wake so he could get started.  And you never minded, because Chris was an excellent breakfast maker.  After breakfast, you would take Dodger on a walk since Chris was always cooped up in his office with the door shut.  Once home, you would binge watch some television shows before having lunch.  And after lunch?  Yep, more television watching.    

By the third morning, you were starting to get a little anxious about how he was acting.  He was a famous actor and you knew he had a lot of movie priorities, along with meetings, interviews, press and photoshoots, but he seemed to be distancing himself from you, and you wanted to get to the bottom of it.  After all, he was supposed to be helping you try to regain your memories, not abandoning you altogether.  

“Chris,” you asked as he stood at the stove making pancakes.  

He didn’t bother turning around the look at you, instead just mumbling out a quick ‘hmmm’?

You sighed, shaking your head as you gathered your courage.  “Why are you ignoring me?”  You watched his reaction, his body stiffening at your words.  He set down the spatula before turning around to face you.  He looked doleful and sad as he walked up to the counter, his hands splaying down.  

“I’m,” he began to say before pausing.  “I’m not ignoring you.”

“It sure seems like it.”

“I’m sorry Erica.  I just, after the other morning, after sleeping together in the same bed.  I feel…..I feel like I took advantage of you in that state and I’m feeling kinda guilty over here.”

You were completely and utterly shocked at his confession and you soon found yourself scrambling off of your stool and hugging him.  He was warm, and comforting, and even though you didn’t have your memories back, you knew this was where you belonged; it just felt right.  

“Can I ask you a serious question?”

“Of course Erica. Anything.”  The two of you were still hugging as you didn’t want to let go.

“Were you really doing work in your office the last two days?”

His whole body began to shake with laughter, making you giggle in response.  “No.  No I wasn’t. My manager knows what is going on and since I didn’t have any projects lined up, he told me to take as much time off as I needed.”

“So what were you doing in your office all that time?” you questioned.  

Chris sighed, wrapping you closer to himself.  “To be honest, either sleeping or playing games on my phone, and now I feel even more terrible saying that.”

You pulled away as you gazed deep into his eyes; his eyes that were so blue you could get lost swimming in them.  Cupping his cheeks, you pulled him down as you placed a soft kiss on his forehead; his breath fanning your neck.  

“Don’t feel terrible Chris. And please, don’t feel like you were taking advantage of me.  You were only doing what you felt natural.  And plus…” you paused, glancing down, biting your lip nervously before gazing into his eyes again, “I liked waking up to you cuddling me.”  A soft blush spread across your face at your admittance.  

Chris cocked his head to the side, his brows raising.  “Oh really?” he asked as he snaked his arms around your waist.  You nodded your head, your lip still sucked between your teeth. “C’mere.”  He pulled you closer as the two of you embraced once again.  As you thought many a times, you felt safe here, and you knew it was where you belonged.

“What did you want to do today, since you won’t be hiding in your office?” you asked as Chris let out a delighted chuckle.  

“I think it’s going to rate later this evening, so how about the three of us, you, me and Dodger head outside for a swim?”  You smiled at him, giving a nod.  

Once the two of you were finished eating breakfast, you helped clean up the kitchen before heading towards the bedroom to find a bathing suit to wear.  Walking into the large closet, you made your way to the some built in shelves, pulling open the second to the last drawer where all your bathing suits were held.  

The first time you went swimming with him and Seb, you were feeling self-conscious about being in a bikini. So you opted for a retro 1950’s inspired one-piece.  You were still unsure about wearing a bikini in front of Chris and you found another one-piece to wear.  This one was a halter top tied suit that had a cutout pattern on the side.  The suit was a deep green color and it went well with your slightly tanned skin.  

You opened the glass door of the bedroom and saw Chris already goofing off in the pool with Dodger. A smile came about your lips as you saw Dodger dive deep into the pool to retrieve his diving sticks.  Wrapping your arms around your mid-section, you made your way closer to them.  It was a beautifully sunny day, but there were darker storm clouds in the far distance.

“You look beautiful sweetheart,” Chris said and his pet name for you didn’t go unnoticed.  Usually he had been pretty good about using any pet names, but it was obvious he didn’t want to keep pretending by not using them. You didn’t mind at all.  In fact, you felt your face heat up from the name and you gave him a bright smile.  “Come and join us!  The water feels amazing!!”

Making your way towards the deep end you walked onto the diving board as Chris looked at you with a cocked head.  Wanting it to be a fun day, you took a giant jump, tucking your legs beneath you and splashed into the water doing a cannonball.

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[painpro]

dead meat, 970 words

remember how maedis was held in that orc camp for 3 months?

also  uh, this got WAY darker than i originally thought it would so warning for fairly graphic violence and suicide ideation

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

The two bodies hit the ground, impaled with thick spears in their chest. Maedis’s eyes widened but he just watched, trying to gain control over his horse again as the horizon was suddenly blotted with dozens of black spots- orcs, coming right for him.

“Shit.”

It would be stupid not to surrender. He wasn’t going to put his hands up though, that was too much. He glared down the orcs until they got close enough to pull him off his horse- not killing him. At least not right away. Now that was interesting.

His arms were twisted behind his back as the orcs lead him on a forced march back to their camp. It was hot, overwhelmingly so, from all the bonfires blazing and the shear amount of orcs filling the small space. He passed by tent after tent, nearly stumbling several times, and then he saw it- two crude, wooden altars, set up in front of a stack of wood that was yet to be lit. Panic struck Maedis then, as much as he would hated to admit it.

Sometime he did things against his better judgement.

Maedis squirmed, twisting himself to try and escape the grasp of the orc holding his arms, and was promptly knocked to the ground, facedown in the dirt. He wheezed, the breath thoroughly knocked out of his chest.

A heavy boot was placed on his shoulder blades, his left arm twisted back. Maedis grit his teeth. The snap came swiftly, and no matter how he thought he could take it, a raw scream escaped him.

He felt nauseous, and was wrenched to his feet, shaking, left arm dangling limply. Not even having a chance to recover, he was kicked backwards against a wood railing, then grabbed by the throat. The orc looked him in the eyes, then leaned in, tusked mouth forming words in common.

“Do not try again.”

Maedis wheezed in response.

--

Maedis was kept in a tent alone. It had been… a couple days. He’d been paying close attention to the orcs’ patterns, straining to see what he could the few times  the tent flap opened for food. (Horse meat- Maedis recognized the dappled brown coat of his own. Food was food, he decided.)

Maedis knew he wasn’t “smart”. At least not like other people he knew. Cik was an inventor who made himself a new hand, Bell read all kinds of history books, Orna seemed to know everything about magic- but he had enough sense to understand two things.

One: the orcs were keeping him alive for a reason he probably didn’t want to know. Altars, his mind whispered.

Two: No one was going to come for him. He had to get himself out.

--

Maedis had heard the animals in the pit. Those huge wolf things. They seemed like a good bet. He always had a way with animals.

He crept out at night when there were fewer guards. If he could get onto one of the wolf things, that was his ticket out. He’d seen how fast they could move.

Maedis approached the pit softly, spying ruffled gray fur of a wolf-thing with its head in its paws. Its eyes were open, which was good. If he had to wake a sleeping one, the plan would be shot.

He lowered himself to a crouch, outstretching a shaking hand. He clenched it into a fist in an attempt to stop the shaking, but it didn’t help.

“Hey,” he croaked out hoarsely to the wolf-thing lying down. Its head shot up, ears pointed into the air. It almost looked like Garm. Maedis bit the inside of his lip.

It began to stand, and Maedis’s  heart soared. It was working. He was going to get out.

“Good boy,” he ventured, getting a tad closer so his hand was nearly touching its snout-

It began to growl, ear flattening against his head.

It was then Maedis noticed the foam crusted around the wolf-things mouth, how bloodshot its eyes were. Looks like he’d picked the wrong one.

It leaped, and perhaps if Maedis had eaten recently he might have rolled out of the way. But something in him gave up then, as the wolf-thing pinned him to the ground, roaring in a way that was definitely not like Garm. It lowered its head and Maedis yelled as he felt hot blood  gushing against the right side of his head, the roaring, burning pain following suit. He weakly tried to push back, against the wolf-things chest, and started to feel his vision blurring, the blood pounding in his ears-

And it stopped as a hide-armor clad orc kicked the wolf-thing swiftly in its side, sending it scattering. Maedis’s eyes were unfocused, his vision darkening, but he could hear the orc yell something that sounded like a curse as he was pulled up harshly by his broken arm- and that's when his mind gave up, and the world around him went black.

--

He didn’t care how long it had been, anymore. Maedis had never been good at counting anyway. It was over. It was all over.

He wasn’t quite gone enough for hallucinations- yet- but he almost wished he was. It would make the time pass faster when he was spending his days face down in the dirt, moving to eat whatever they tossed him whenever they felt like it. What were they fucking waiting for? Death would be better than this. They weren’t even doing anything, hadn’t touched him aside from his failed escape attempts.

He was trapped. There was no choice but to lay here. Nothing was to be done. Maedis became convinced they forgot why they took him in the first place, and were feeding him until they remembered.

On the day Maedis decided to stop eating, he finally gave in and cried.

[taeminuet]

Recuperation

Title: Recuperation Fandom: SHINee Pairing: Jongtae; Onjongtae; OT5 + Jongin Length: ~2k Rating: PG Summary: In which Taemin is not used to Jonghyun getting this much sleep.

A part of Coven AU.

It’s technically not closing time yet, but Taemin is heavily considering just shutting the shop down early. The sun is dipping low enough to ruin all the good sunny places to sleep, and Taemin has resorted to leaning heavily against the counter in human form, and staring blankly at a door that hasn’t opened in over half an hour. 

“Do you think we’re going to get any more customers?” Jongin asks as if he read Taemin’s mind. Maybe it’s a familiar thing or maybe it’s just the way Taemin most likely looks like he’d do anything to not be here.

“How many people want to buy flowers at…” Taemin rolls his head slightly towards the clock on the back wall and squints at it. “7:30 at night?”

 Jongin cocks his head slightly to one side. “I mean…” he starts, and then shrugs.

Taemin rolls his eyes and heaves himself off the counter, going to say goodbye to all the plants while Jongin closes out the register and sweeps lazily. Their shop is pretty great about staying clean thanks to Taemin -- no dead leaves on the floor, no dried out petals. The few that look like they might fall soon, Taemin cups in his palms and channels his magic into until they’re rustling cheerily in the slight breeze caused by the motion of his body and the air conditioning.

“You in a hurry?” Jongin asks, when Taemin is done and fidgeting almost pointedly near Jongin.

Taemin frowns at him. Jongin knows why he’s in a hurry. He wants to get home and he wants to see Jonghyun.

Normally Taemin is a little more casual about this. He wants to see his babes, but he gets it when Jinki isn’t around all the time or Kibum gets busy or Jonghyun spends whole nights writing songs and whole days resetting his sleep schedule.

But Jonghyun’s been on a song-writing kick lately, selling dreams and buying hours where he himself can stay up. But magic or no, a lack of sleep has a backlash eventually, and Minho foresaw Jonghyun getting sick only hours before it happened. Jinki’s been staying with him now, pouring Kibum’s tea into his mouth when he needs fluids and otherwise just staying with him and channeling good feelings to keep him from being miserable.

But Jonghyun needs sleep more than anything else, and he was asleep early yesterday, before Taemin ever got home. And when Taemin hasn’t seen Jonghyun in over 36 hours, well… he misses him, to say the least.

“Alright, alright,” Jongin says, not bothering to hide his laughter. To his credit, it doesn’t take him too much longer to finish, and they’re flipping the sign and locking the doors a good five minutes before they’re meant to even be closed, much less gone, but fuck it. It’s Taemin’s shop. And if anyone is dying to buy a bouquet in the next five minutes, they can deal with the shitty flowers from the supermarket on the other side of town.

They shift to walk home, Jongin’s eager puppy form bounding ahead and then returning to Taemin’s side because Taemin is both smaller and not as full of boundless energy as Jongin, but he’d be lying if he tried to pretend like he wasn’t going a little faster than normal, hurrying back home.

Minho is there when they get home, opening the door so that neither one of them has to shift, and Taemin rubs his face against Minho’s ankle gratefully in the approximately three seconds before Jongin bowls half into his arms, looking for pets. Minho laughs at both of them, ruffling Jongin’s fur and crouching down to both pet him and run his fingers over Taemin’s ears softly.

Taemin leans into it for a moment and then shakes his head out and cocks it towards Jonghyun’s room. Minho shrugs. “If he’s awake, I didn’t see anything about it, but I haven’t really been trying to.”

If Taemin were human right now he would frown. As it is, he lashes his tail irritably and pads towards Jonghyun’s room, pushing against the cracked door until it opens. Jonghyun is still in bed, and Jinki is sitting next to him with two thermoses of tea on the bedside table, and a book propped open on his knee. He’s reading it aloud, honey-sweet voice a soft murmur. His free hand runs absently through Jonghyun’s hair, a repeated motion that Taemin imagines would be soothing even without Jinki’s powers.

Jinki looks a bit tired himself, but nothing like Jonghyun, still passed out among tangled sheets, and Taemin gives a plaintive meow as he hops onto the bed. He’s debating changing so he can curl up around Jonghyun, but he knows he’s probably more useful like this as he climbs onto Jonghyun’s chest and begins purring, a low thrumming frequency that will hopefully help soothe him even more.

“His fever broke a few hours ago,” Jinki says, and it takes Taemin a moment to realize he’s not just reading anymore. The whole room feels warm and safe, and despite how Taemin feels about Jonghyun being sick, it’s hard to resist Jinki putting out waves of comfort. “He’s sleeping off the last of it, but he should wake up soon. Honestly, it’s probably better to let him sleep this much. You know when he wakes up, he’ll be right back on schedule.”

Taemin flicks an unhappy ear at that, but at least Jonghyun’s fever is broken. It’s a step up from before. And it’s not like Minho wouldn’t have seen if something awful was going to happen to Jonghyun, but still.

“Are you going to sleep too?” Jinki teases, stopping his stroking of Jonghyun for only a moment to pull teasingly at Taemin’s tail. Taemin has to actually go through he process of climbing off Jonghyun and the bed and changing back to give Jinki a properly affronted look, though now that he’s changed, it’s a lot easier to squirm into bed on the other side of Jonghyun and wrap an arm around him.

Sometimes, though not often, Taemin forgets just how small Jonghyun is. With Taemin switching sizes so often, perspective gets skewed, but with Jonghyun sleeping, his breathing raspy but even, his body soft and seemingly fragile under Taemin’s touches, Jonghyun seems so tiny.

Jinki’s voice slips back into the the pages, reading the story, and he’s in the middle of a page in the middle of a chapter that Taemin knows nothing about, so much that his brain doesn’t even try to grasp it. For all Jinki’s teasing, Taemin does really slip in and out of consciousness, aware of Jonghyun’s breathing patterns and the soft rustle of pages, the occasional pause for Jinki to drink from his thermos to wet his mouth.

He’s aware when Kibum comes home from work, bringing a new thermos of tea and feeling Jonghyun’s forehead with the back of their hand before nodding. Their fingers touch briefly at Jinki’s hand, squeezing it before returning it so Jinki can turn a page, and they shake their head. ““Don’t you dare get sick on us too, okay?”

“I’m fine, Kibummie,” Jinki murmurs. “But if I need a break before he wakes up in a few hours, Taeminnie’s right here.”

Kibum hums agreement, and runs a soft touch through Taemin own hair, brushing it out of his face and seeming startled when Taemin opens his eyes and smiles up at them sleepily. “I’m here,” he echoes Jinki, and feels pleased when Jinki smiles at him for supporting him. “Don’t worry too much. Jinki knows what he’s doing.”

Kibum looks slightly doubtful and mostly concerned, but they only say, “There’s a new bath bomb I’m trying to make that’s specifically to make your fur soft. Do you want to try it, or should I ask Jongin?”

Taemin hums thoughtfully before shrugging as minutely as he can while still getting the message across. “Jongin can have it. He’s been deprived of two of his major cuddlers for the last two days.”

Kibum smothers some kind of noise that by the shaking of their shoulders was probably a laugh, but they nod and leave the room.

 After a moment, Jinki smiles. “You should tell Jongin you care about him more often,” he murmurs. 

“Gay?” Taemin says, muffling a snort of laughter into Jonghyun’s shoulder before he thinks about it, and then freezes when Jonghyun shifts in his sleep, squirming awkwardly in a way that is apparently attempting to get his lower body closer to where Taemin’s arm is while simultaneously trying to arch his shoulders and head into Jinki’s touch.

There’s a momentary pause and then Jinki and Taemin both shuffle closer, cuddling Jonghyun up between them.

Jinki shakes his head. “You two are cute,” he says, and Taemin feels himself flush even if he has no idea whether Jinki means him and Jongin or him and Jonghyun. Either way, Jinki should tell that to them too, because both Jonghyun and Jongin would be pleased by the compliment.

“You’re cute,” Taemin hears mumbled sleepily between them, and looks down to see Jonghyun grinning dopily up at them. Taemin has no idea what was in the tea Jonghyun’s been getting, but he looks simultaneously giddy and exhausted, and Taemin feels his heart jump. 

“So are you,” he says, and cuddles Jonghyun closer. 

Jonghyun grins. “Hey, pretty kitty. You miss me?”

Taemin disguises his nod as just snuggling into Jonghyun’s shoulder.

“How do you feel?” Jinki murmurs, brushing a thumb over Jonghyun’s cheekbone fondly. 

“Uhm,” Jonghyun says, clearly weighing the options on his answer. After a moment, he has to give it up to sniffle. “Not great, but a bit better. Thanks, Jinx.”

“I’m glad.” Jinki smiles at the nickname and swoops down to press a kiss to Jonghyun’s forehead. When Jonghyun tips his head up for more though, Jinki shakes his head. “We’re trying not to spread this more than necessary.”

Taemin’s glad. He’s definitely in a cuddle Jonghyun’s to death mood. Not so much in a kissing mood. It’s kind of a great compromise that Jonghyun’s not actually allowed to do the second at the moment.

He nuzzles at Jonghyun while Jinki plies him with more tea, and before he’s even done, Minho is nudging open the door, apparently having Seen that Jonghyun’s awake. In his wake, Jongin follows, human now but with his eyes lit up and a question in them.

Taemin shakes his head. “We don’t dogpile sick people, Jongin,” he says ignoring exactly how wrapped around Jonghyun he is during that bit of hypocrisy. “What the fuck?”

Jongin scowls but he shifts and is exceedingly gentle when he climbs onto the bed, laying his muzzle on Jonghyun’s ankle. Minho sits down next to him. “Key’s getting more tea,” he says, and his eyes gleam with a smile when Jonghyun grimaces. “It will make you feel better.”

“It’ll make you feel better,” Jonghyun whines grumpily, but he’s smiling at Minho, and when Jinki relinquishes his spot to stand up and stretch, Minho takes it and Jonghyun immediately snuggles against him too. Taemin huffs and is immediately a cat again, climbing into Jonghyun’s lap and rubbing against his stomach for attention. Minho’s seen Jonghyun lately -- he hasn’t.

Jonghyun’s fingers are soft down the fur of his back, gentle and soothing, and Taemin starts purring again without intending to this time, comfortable in this spot.

I missed you, he thinks, and it comes out as a meow as he butts his head against Jonghyun’s arm. 

And maybe he’s getting a little predictable, because Jonghyun’s fingers curl down to scratch softly as he mumbles a slightly stuffy, “Missed you too.”

[glopratchet]

simo-beeing

Yeh, those were the days You miss it? Perks up at hearing your thoughts a slight bit I'd hate to die being remembered as some joke rather than a badass while I was alive I did at one point in time but always thought that would be a cowardly way out "Hey Kit, You OK?" Observer asks as you jump slightly since you weren't paying attention Sides YOU'RE a joke now too! Shut it! You think briefly at the voice before continuing out loud "Ah, sorry, I was lost in thought there for a moment Just thinking through all this you know?" He nods and understands completely while the other two continue to give you dirty looks They are definitely aware of what happened to their predecessors from your assassins and don't like you at all by now It's going to be sweet when they're dead too is not in the best of moods having to wait around for his father to make up his mind on what he wants to eat Just as you're about to ask him if he wants anything, the screen door opens up behind you and a small pack of teenagers enter Instinctively you turn slightly towards them while keeping half an eye on the pot and prepare to cut down the first person who enters your zone on credit, however he only gives it out to his friends If people don't pay him back he'll hurt them Either way is a lose-lose situation for you This isn't good he's recognized you as being one of the new couriers and is now getting the others to stop looking at the menu's and watching you He begins accusing you of taking a long time to choose what you want to eat and not ordering anything at all As a test directly tansformed into an alligator and had his species changed to reflect this, It zoologically possible for people to do this Too bad it tastes like absolute excrement But considering the other options are slugs and slimy things pulled out of the river you'll take your chances with the gators alligator meat, intestine lining, and skin cream Grease monsters! You've heard rumors about this type of creature before and some of the disgusting things people have said about them are true as the smell would imply "Hey so uh, I'll just have the special and um do you have anything to eat? Like fruit or " He starts to order for you while talking slowly in that patronizing fashion some adults tend to have look like a collection of poorly crafted yellow pearls that are primarily made out of tooth majorly from predators living in the swamps Legend states it is partially made from the fossilized jaw of a long extinct reptilian sea monster Meant to give children nightmares for generations You make a note to request a low dosage since most people don't like how slow and painful these kinds of chems are made from the ribs of an enormous extinct swamp creature called a skute It was a large lizard that could survive on land or in water and hunted in swarms, apparently they were very hard to kill back in the old days Blueish-gray is the primarily color along with some greenish parts Neck top from a bog beast, it is a creature unlike anything you've ever seen in your life though according to sales this is cooler factor that attracts buyers fairs Katar scale pattern silk headsheht from an exterminated breed of arachnid called a katar It is repelled by UV light so it tries to burrow under the folds of your clothes when exposed to the sun for prolonged periods of time Its hard shell classification is as an exoskeleton unlike normal insects shells which are endoskeletons though in theory it should still provide the same protection to it with the scales Not exactly attractive but people go for things that are good quality, not pretty You come out from inside the warehouse and hear a familiar voice call out your name You look around and see Allison's car pulling up alongside the warehouse Usually It does have some plusses he enjoys You've heard him mention due to the layering effect of the scales and unique membrane structure it is capable of repelling knives and shards of broken glass and the sleve's reach to his mid bicep "Looks good, Red " She smiles before telling the driver to go Thicker than a expected but breathable material clads his legs all the way to his hiking boots A small amount of pants are visible due to the tucked in look and they appear to be made of the same tough material as his jacket "Hello!" "Let's go Oh hold on " Robi says looking back and forth between you and your group a seriouesly miniaturized computer screen directly in front of his eyes "We're heading to a fabric district followed by a stop at the metal district, ocne we arrive you can pick out your desired outfit and then we can get to community business " The ride into town is done with in silence as you all are lost in your own thoughts Even Camid stays silent for once , symplified routing info for the limo's industronics, adjust climate control to 73 degrees Robi watches with mild interest as you fidget around trying to get comfortable in your naked state "What temperature the culture decided on?" He asks looking at one of the many screens that occupy the dashboard "73 degrees " "Ah yes, 22 C was too dry and 0 C to 2 C range was too frosty , smiling eyes, and ears His hands are placed gently on the kneeling shoulders of a full sized humanoid robot Robi modifies his to have long full hair like a classic rocker "Everything looks solid for now I'll have the chem butlers come in here tomorrow before our arrival to spritz you all down with an un-odorous scent We'll diffuse through your skin so in the unlikely scenario where you do ripe, you will smell fine as their treament plant for their disease is more important to them "Where are we going first?" Camid asks "The fabric district " He replies You spend about three hours weaving in and out of jumbled warehouses sized stores Large bolts of cloth line the walls, neon lights advertising sales and various material aisles You have fun ripping out tags and randomly grabbing textiles With Allison in the party you opt for a heavy blue, thick fabric with lighter blue dominant on the weft, with leafy designs woven into it dye, resembling that of Irish tatting patterns "The metal district, if you would " Robi says to his driver Behind it stands two equally sized intimidating Ork men Crowded stalls selling mechanical equipment and valuables covering the floor with no regard for personal property Laser turrets set on 5ft tall golden tripod platforms with endless ammunition ring the entire room Robi's limo comes to a halt by a large counter in the center of the building "Hello!! Brandolf's right?" You spend what feels like an entire planet circumference worth of time bargaining and arguing You finally agree on 8 bars of pure gold, a bag of some sort of strange parasites used for medication, and a belt made of neon green and yellow snake hides You exchange pleasantries with the orks as they bid you goodbye The limo door closes and the ride home goes by quickly "Thank you all so much, you've all been so helpful! When we get out of here I'll have my parent's company take you all out for an entire week " You say in joy Your one week comes up faster than you thought and your attendants have some trouble deciding what to wear "I look hideous " Camid says throwing a monstrosity of a coat made up of different animal furs over his formal suit He holds out his arm as if he was some sort of nobleman from medieval times Wouldn't be caught being out of character "Elaborate dotor coats always made you look like toxic waste had fallen on you, if anyone could pull it off it's you Camid " Allison snarkily remarks Still, she used to work as personal assistant to a very svelte Hollywood celebrity Cami has to try really hard to suppress a smirk She knows what form fitting clothes do He loves her, but man she is cold sometimes You stand by the entrance to 2nd street Allison walks down the stairs first with a green and black dress It would look ackward on anyone else, but somehow it fits her personality Daniyel exits right after, wearing knight armor made out of some sort of strong but light metal Camid walks briskly behind her with some sort of roman or greek orthodox robe that looks a bit too dark for his liking You all walk and talk on your way to the party Mostly you, Allison and Camid talk about some of the artist your parents supported that peaked but never truly made it big Daniyel contributes very little despite being 2 years older than you, he just goes on about the things he accomplished in the forge when he was working there 'We're here! You were so busy conversing with your friends that you didn't even notice you had reached your destination Your family mansion which is really more of a castle since your father is very flash appears before you This late at night the gates are closed and there are guards patrolling about in bright uniforms wearing obnoxious feather hats You walk up to the nearest one "We're here for the party, we're all invited " The guards read your names off a list and immediately open the gate "The Duke will see you soon" one says You take a good look at the mansion as the five of you walk down the long pathway from the gate to front door sculptures appear every few yards all of them only limited by the artist's imagination When you reach the steps leading up to the mansion's entryway, a very thick and tailed orange and black coatd wraps you up in his arms You didn't even notice Harvey behind you "Has anyone ever told you that you're an ugly crier?" Harvey asks while messing with your hair as if you were still six Behind him Brandolf approaches at a much more calmer pace "You son, this is the rest of you retinue They stare at the four of you You didn't know you had a retinue, these people were all supposed to be contracted to your family and work inside the mansion "This is Allison, she works in the stables " Harvey immediately starts Allison motions as if to shake their hands but instead throws her arms around them They look a bit confused but return the hugs "She takes care of all the horses except Nightfire The rest of the contractuals are introduced much in the same way, as their jobs dictate 'You're here just in time, a surprise birthday party just started Your parents come out from the large entrance with your other siblings following close behind You all embrace and head inside The interior of the mansion was luxurious and comfortable, if a bit large for a family of six to live in, let alone when guests come over You head through the main halls up to your old bedroom where the rest of the family is waiting The first thing you notice is that Naleen's eyes are open, they dart quickly from one place to another

[cephalonram]

Ludicrous Space Odyssey-Chapter I: Unusual routine

As the energy rushed through the machine, its parts would slowly start working at the regular paste, starting to heat the area slowly up. Soon, moment by moment, a little area within the machine would heat to the extreme degree as the rock inside, a piece of seemingly shiny ore would start to crumble. Soon, it would be nothing more but a liquid, dripping along a mechanism into a little waiting area where it would soon be ready for shaping and any sort of manipulation.

"Okay, this one is almost done!" A loud voice rushed through the working area of the local blacksmith station that was nicely resting near Empire's most important building, the Royal Square where all the important government individuals rested. Said voice was low yet not without a feminine touch to it, definitely having an elegance of sort to it even. Not a regular elegance though but more of a...Rough one. Like a mountain, it clearly rang with dominance and strength and just like a finest of swords it pierced through the area with ease; if one would listen for long enough, they even could be lucky enough to spot pattern of arrogance in it as well. "It will be ready tomorrow, you punk." She called to the two young soldiers standing at the counter from the back of the working area, sparkling a fair bit of black dust over the molten ore. A light steam would come off from it before the dust would spread through it as the whole thing then would be quickly placed into another machine. That one was more round and smaller, as well as quieter and cooler. A synthesizer, obviously, which was turned on by the blacksmith.

She would proceed to pull off her apron, which was loosely tied anyways, before turning off the lights and allowing the machine to work over the night. Sighing, she walked out from the back door, locking the shop with her eye scan before looking at the synthetic sky. "Well, it's just getting dark so might as well allow myself something to drink." A young Oni mumbled to herself, pulling out a pair of round, black glasses before quickly snapping them on as she started walking off. She smiled, enjoying the feeling of how air rushed through her messy hair, giving them some volume as she walked while her boots lightly hit against the floor. So what if she was looking out of place with her shirt whose sleeves were cut off in pretty messy manner or with her tight jeans that were made of elastic, synthetic material instead of real, expensive and organic materials? First, Ryu thought that her black shirt with its white-grey design looked pretty minimalistic; and who cared that it was an anime girl in the embrace of tentacles? And second, people should try to be Oni and wear organic tight jeans and then talk to her. Hell yeah, she was presentable as hell!

But her thoughts were soon caught off by another voice calling out to her and, judging by the fact that it was loud as all hell in such fancy area, it could've been only one person; "Ryu-sama~! Finally, I found you!" Ryu sighed, turning her head to greet a source of that light voice which clearly didn't match the person's look. It was none other but her, well, friend, Matsukura Ume. Come to think about it, it was probably her only real-life friend, which was weird since the guy was a fancy sheriff while she was a blacksmith. True, she was a very high ranked blacksmith, but blacksmith none the less; she always thought that he simply loved the way she forged his guns so much that he simply made it his mission to make her his friend. "Finished earlier today, eh?" He asked, finally stopping near Ryu with his dreads being done in their regular high ponytail with his furred coat resting on top of his baggy shirt. Even though he was quite annoying, sometimes, with him around Ryu felt a little less...Out of place? He was dressed casually in his same pop style and those jeans and boots. Hell, he didn't even have one of those fancy vests that they assign to any high-ranked individuals of the police force; well, he did have augmentations that would turn on his hard light armour when he was in real danger but beyond that? He looked more like sheriff wannabe if you would ask Ryu.

"No, I ended my shift at the regular time."

"Oh...! Well, um." Ume stumbled on his own words, simply looking at Ryu as leaned back and forth on heels of his feet. "Um...Wanna go grab a dri-"

"Yes." Ryu finally replied back, dropping the serious face that she was putting on before flashing a grin that showed off a row of her sharp teeth. Turning around, she gave Ume a pat on the back that nearly knocked all wind out of him before starting to walk once again while realizing that she should go a bit easier on the guy as he still seemed to get pretty nervous pretty fast in social situations. Then again, it was fun.

A peaceful silence of the park was broken by a sudden pop rushing through the air as soon the place was filled with a fresh and cool smell of sweet melon soda...Accompanied by a muttered curse told in obviously Oni dialect. "Love the drink but those bottles obviously hate me." She mumbled, shaking her hand to shake any soda that got onto her hand from the newly bought ramune bottle.

"The trick is to not do it stupidly, you know?"

"Oh really? And how do you do it smartly? Share your wisdom with me, please~" Ryu said with an over the top sassy tone, turning to Ume as she stared him down a bit while he took his sip of green soda. Smiling softly, he simply stared off into the sky before receiving a light poke to the side of his head. "Exactly, can't bullshit your way with me." She said before the two would break into a soft laugh.

"You know, it is always nice to relax like this."

"Yeah...Still coming over tonight? They just released a new episode. It is said that the two will finally kiss."

"I wish I could but...There is an issue." He would say as his tone shifted to a bit more serious one while Ryu could notice a skin around his eyes tensing up as his stare got bit heavier. Sitting up a bit, the gunslinger would take another sip before sighing deeply as he looked at his fellow Oni. "This is something I actually wanted to talk to you about."

"Hey now, you know me, I won't get involved in your shit. You are the cops so you take care of your psychos and thieves." Ryu quickly declined, chuckling to herself as she leaned back against a tree a little. "Plus you know me, the galactic game is just two years away and tournaments are about to start in just five months. I want to be sure that I won't get kicked out for some stupid reason like last time." She said, remembering how she was literally bumped out of it for simply failing to fill the damn paper up properly.

"Ryu, it is serious. We are talking matter of Empress life and death." Ume suddenly spoke in pretty calm and straightforward tone, earning a raised eyebrow from Ryu. Even though two were friends, sharing such information with someone who wasn't from the force and was a lot ranks lower than he was, well, unheard of. Yet he did it with such an ease and Ryu felt that he at least deserved a little less disregarding answering. "Plus, if you will help me with this, you will definitely get into the games. Hell, maybe you will manage to jump straight to Empire Forces."

In the very next moment, Ryu would practically pounce at her poor friend, wrapping her arm around his neck as she pulled him closer with a wide grin on her face that made her look like a shark that just found its prey. "Why haven't you said so earlier~?!" She said in almost menacing manner, a fire burning in her eyes as Ume coughed on air once he felt her cutting off any possible way for him to breath.

"I-I am really glad that you care about Empress' safety so...M-uch...!" He said back with a forced grin before being finally released from such a grip. Coughing up, he rubbed the back of his neck with a light groan while checking his ear plugs to make sure that they were still there. "Woof...Well, that wasn't hard." He joked lightly before standing up.

"So, like, is it an open case? Have you warned Empress and all that?"

Ume sighed and looked around before lightly leaning down closer to Ryu while allowing his pants to hug his hips and show off his bottom to the whole world. "Well, we are afraid that if word gets around that we know the terrorists might start moving faster. So this far, no, information is very unofficial."

"But you said we. Who else knows?"

"Well, Sir Qimaer does. He is the one who told me about information he found."

"Qimaer...Q-I-M-A-E-R...Oh!" Ryu exclaimed, slapping her hands together in a loud clap that could probably crash a rock. "Ojiisan Toji! Yeah, I remember him. He is pretty cool."

Ume sighed, running a hand through his thick beard while shooting Ryu quite tired look. "Yeah, though I did ask you not to call him that."

"Why? He is old enough to be a grandfather, he has grandchildren and he has damn huge ears even for an Elf. Plus, I am not part of your Police Force, so I don't really need to be all fancy and respecting."

Ume blinked few times before finally standing up, ending show that was his butt for a few onlookers before giving Ryu an approving nod. "Got it...I will be the one speaking."

It finally started getting late once the two finally made their way to the Colone Qimaer's station. Being, mostly, in depart of protection the ground instead of space, he was residing not too far from where Ryu worked, therefore allowing the two to get there quite fast. After signing few official papers to confirm who they were, Ume and Ryu would finally enter his office. The moment they walked in and could barely close the door, an unusual looking Elf quickly burst into a loud and hefty laugh, spreading his arms around before practically pouncing at Ume, giving him quite a hug. Elves weren't usually beardy and big therefore a lot of people would often mistake Colonel for some sort of Viking looking Human with his wide shoulders, strictly blue uniform and thick, white beard that matched his shortly cut white hair which nicely exposed his pointy ears, the only thing that showed an Elf in him. "Oh boy, am I glad to see you~! I hope the trip here was good!"

Ume, barely being able to take a breath in to stay conscious, only could smile back out of politeness while Ryu stood in the corner, watching the scene in front of her while barely keeping down the laugh. "I-I am glad to see you too, Sir Qimaer."

"Sir? Nonsense!" He said, quickly placing poor sheriff down before pointing at the closed door. "We are practically alone here, no need for formalities son!"

"See? I did tell him that he could relax but you know him, Ojiisan Toji~" Ume could swear that he saw Ryu shoot him one of those asshole-sassy looks when she addressed the Colonel in a way that he asked her not to. Yet he couldn't really respond due to fact that Colonel himself was quick to engage in conversation and also due to loss of oxygen in his lungs.

"Ah! Lady Fujima! I am really glad that you decided to come here as well!" He said, offering her his giant bear hand. It was greeted by her hand before the sound of hands slapping rushed through the office as the two shook their hands while exchanging quite the eye contact.

"Well, you can say that our breathless friend here knows how to convince a women."

"Ah, of course! Let us get to business then!" Eriladar said, walking over to his table and taking a seat in his large seat while looking over at both Ryu and Ume, who took their seat on the opposite side of the table. "I believe that he already informed you of the situation?" Receiving a waving hand as an answer, he nodded before looking around, making sure that there truly was no one before his warm smile dropped and his face took a more serious look in an instance, showing off all the wrinkles that appeared on his face with age. "While information has no official data to back itself up, I assume that there is a terrorist group that wishes to attack our dear Empress Dratha."

"She has, like, whole Empire to protect herself. How can they actually do it?" Ryu said back with a chuckle while crossing her legs, causing her muscles to huge her shirt tighter. "Better question should be, how can they be preparing for such huge attack without being noticed?"

This earned a heavy sigh from Eriladar as he looked off into the window, looking at the layout of the city before speaking quietly. "Leech Gambit Canon." The words rushed through the room as Ume's eyebrows narrowed, already knowing the information, while Ryu simply groaned while dropping the smug smile on her face. "I and Ume believe that they plan to make a quick attack on innocent village somewhere off from the main area, gathering all of their energy before using it for the massive blast shot."

"And the worst thing is that we don't know who is behind the group this time nor where they might attack or resign. Therefore, we can't go public about it." Ume quickly backed Eriladar up, looking over at Ryu. "Colonel can't investigate, he is too big to be unnoticed...In terms of his rank." Hearing a soft chuckle from the Elf, Matsukura decided to continue; "This is why you and I go there. We won't cause suspicion."

Ryu took a deep breath in, looking down at the table as she remained quiet for some long, irritating moments before casually shrugging her shoulders. "Sure, I am in."

There was a moment of quietness before Colonel would smash his hands against the table, causing practically all things to jump up a tiny bit before breaking into another laughter. "That's right! That's the spirit! Then I believe that you two already know where you are heading?"

Before Ryu could say anything, Ume nodded and got up, adjusting his coat. "We do, Sir. Now let's go, I will explain the details on the way there."

"Perfect. Then feel free to use a special craft. I can't grand you anything too fancy but you can use sheriff's craft for it...And oh! Before I forgot!" The Elf would quickly get up, walking over to a massive chest-like box that was standing in his office before opening it with some digital password in some Elf dialect. Reaching inside, he would speak to Ryu with his back to her, having quite excited tone. "Ryu, dear, do you remember the katana you crafted for previous Galactic Games?"

"Ye. I also remember how I wasn't allowed to keep it since I am not part of 'trained forces'." She said, applying quite a ridiculous tone to two last words to emphasize on how displeased she was with the fact that she wasn't allowed to keep a sword that she crafted for herself. She even got that fancy ore that only could be found on her home planet, which made things that much worse. "Why though?"

"Well, things might get...Heated in there. And Ume already has his assigned weapon to deal with it. So I felt like it was natural that you should be granted a...Means of defence as well." He would pull away from the box before turning around, holding quite hefty looking katan in his arms that was currently resting in its dark crimson scabbard; or, to be more precise, its saya. "I pulled on few strings, saying that you were interested in training to be part of army forces and therefore wished for your katana. So-"

He wasn't able to finish his sentence though as Ryu would quickly pounce forward, grabbing her sword from his hands before giving him a quick and strong handshake. "My gods, you are one of the good ones, aren't you?!" Receiving a soft blush and another loud laugh as the reply, Ryu would grin like a bloodthirsty {blood zombie}, staring down at her katana before lightly pulling it a little bit out of its saya with a satisfying click. She would stare at the dark surface of the metal as Ume sighed softly, imagining that things probably will get violent more than once. "Now this is good~."

[chinchystextdoodles]

Part 1

(A/N: This thing doesn’t have a name. It’s just something I once did for practice.)

The apprentices were put in charge of watching the kits, at least for the time being. Bearstar didn’t have time to patrol the borders and as such only really hunted to feed his small clan of stolen kits and apprentices, three of which he trained within the hollow of the camp to keep watch. He and his friends who had set up the other three clans had made an agreement that each would only take 4 apprentice and 4 kits to serve as a stable enough beginning. And each of them took the medicine cat apprentice they found in the far away clans they raided. That’s right, the four traveled with 16 kits and 16 apprentices for a long way in search of a territory where they would not be found. In Bearclan, Branchpaw was the medicine cat, though he still bore his apprentice name due to having been kitnapped from his clan before he could earn his full name. Yet still, he had all the skills necessary. The only problem was receiving a full name now. The leader couldn’t give it to him, that’s for sure. And he has yet to find out where cats were meant to communicate with their ancestors anyway. The medicine den was big, however, something he couldn’t complain about. As the rest of the cats spent most of their time either in the clearing or the nursery, he often joined them, whether it be play, discussing events or plotting ways to sneak out and head home. All the young cats were homesick, particularly the kits who missed their mothers, denmates or siblings. Currently, Branchpaw laid in one of the nests in the nursery, next to Cedarpaw who hissed in a hushed voice, trying to plot the escapes of the cats of a false clan. Foxpaw and Plumpaw shared a different nest with all four kits squirming in the third. “Okay, here’s what we’re gonna do. Bearstar may be able to keep us in check here, but the full moon is approaching. If these goons keep to tradition, there will be a gathering then, meaning that we’ll be traveling elsewhere, likely all together. But he couldn’t watch us that way, right? If we fled he wouldn’t be able to get us, not all of us. So we’ll bail and if he manages to get someone we’ll save them after. Deal?” Foxpaw seemed doubtful. He was fast, sure. But would Cedarpaw and the rest really go back to challenge the powerful cat and free whomever remains? And what if the vengeful leader returned to steal more cats from other clans. “I don’t think it’s a very good idea. Plumpaw, what do you think?” The two were the younger pair, though Plumpaw was a moon younger than Foxpaw who had 7 to his name. Plumpaw was definitely not quite as fast, not to mention smaller than the two of the older apprentices despite being a bit big for her age. “Well…I want to go home, but…” “But what? Are you on board or not?” Snapped Cedarpaw, spooking Plumpaw. “No…” “Ugh! Branchpaw, what about you? Wanna ditch there losers next gathering?” “As a medicine cat, I do NOT intend to leave any cat stranded here.” Stubbornly, the cat refused, growling at his friend who growled back, fluffing. Of course a medicine cat apprentice would be no match against a warrior apprentice. The four kits squeaked, stopping their games and looking at the apprentices throwing glares at one another. Sootkit, nearly ready to become an apprentice himself, lunged at Cedarpaw with a battle cry, Aspenkit following far less playfully than Acornit, Doekit shrinking back and hiding between Foxpaw and Plumpaw who rolled their eyes at the aggressive apprentice. They had to admit he was clever at times, however. “Can you guys please stop fighting?” Cedarpaw kept his claws sheathed as he battles the three kittens, growling and pushing them away one last time before refusing to continue. It was annoying. He wanted a real battle. Branchpaw’s ears twitched as he heard a loud call from Bearstar. “Come on and eat, ya mousebrained kits!” He must have just returned from hunting. The medicine cat flicked his tail, urging the rest to follow as he left. “Bearstar? I have something I must ask of you.” He tried sounding polite, facing the large tom. “What do ya want?” “Where can I go to speak with Starclan?” Bearstar remained silent for a bit, possibly unsure how to answer. Did he even have a location like that. “Well?” Branchpaw pressed as the rest of the cats ventured outside to eat. “I’ll show you tomorrow…at Moonhigh.” Branchpaw nodded, not trusting the leader to really have anywhere in mind. Plumpaw greeted him, dropping a mouse by his paws. “Here. I saved it for you. There’s hardly enough for all of us and the medicine cat needs his energy.” Branchpaw purred, mewing a thank you before chomping on the mouse, Plumpaw settling next to him and eating her own piece of fresh-kill.

Later that day, when the kits were asleep and the moon was setting Branchpaw was left to stay in the nursery as the other apprentices were taken just outside of camp for training, each getting a chance for a quick attempt at hunting and practice of how to hunt different prey, followed by a longer burst of battle practice. Cedarpaw fought Bearstar whilst Foxpaw and Plumpaw rolled around and fought with one another. They returned in the dead of night and took their time to sleep for the night. Bearstar had other plans however. All four leaders met up, discussing a topic not brought up before. How would cats contact Starclan. It was necessary for the medicine cats after all. With hours of searching and debating, they came across a spot that seemed suitable. It didn’t shine with the stars or moon, but it was a suitable enough place in their opinion. The four tried to dream by it, but even as they fell asleep, nothing came to them but a dream less night.

The next day was uneventful. Aside from the leader, the cats mostly stayed within camp, play and fighting, practicing and chatting with one another. Branchpaw was lucky to be allowed out of camp just to gather herbs so this was clearly not a good situation. Another problem was that in the short time here, this was the first time he was out. Greenleaf would soon come to a close and he would be left incapable of helping his clanmates at this rate. He prayed to StarClan, asking for help and guidance and hoping he would get to speak with them tonight. Bearstar had better be keeping his promise. And this he did. Branchpaw was curled up in his nest, snoozing calmly in the middle of the night until he awoke to a paw jabbing his ribs. Drowsily, he raised his head, looking up at the large tom, amber eyes meeting in the dark. “Get up. You asked me to show you where to speak to Starclan, remember?” Branchpaw pushed himself up to his paws, giving his messy coat a few quick licks. He rushed after the leader who moved with wide steps, his large frame showing off the powerful muscles under the short fur. The pair left the camp, Branchpaw leaping after Bearstar as he quickened his pace. “Hey! Wait up!” He called, his breathing quickening with the faster paced movement. Bearstar didn’t seem to react, carrying on at his own pace. The longhaired tom was forced to follow to the edge of the territory and through what seemed to be a different clan’s territory. He didn’t quite recognize which, but Bearstar cleared it up. “It’s in Smokeclan’s territory. I’ve arranged that all of us will meet here. If you are not back by sunhigh, don’t expect any fresh-kill until next half-moon.” Btanchpaw gulped, sitting beside the leader who stood tall and proud, tail twitching with impatience. Some time passed before four cats appeared, seemingly the other leaders with their medicine cats. There were two light gray cats, a tom and a molly from the smell of it. There was also a cinnamon molly and a sandy-brown molly. The latter he knew well. Bearstar greeted the small group. “Care to introduce me?” “Of course. This is Mistypaw, the medicine cat I chose. And yours is?” The gray tom replied. “I’m Branchpaw.” The apprentice chose to speak for himself, yet received a cuff on the ear from a large brown paw. The sandy-brown molly seemed to be about to follow his lead, silenced by the cinnamon molly next to her. “And I’m Harestar. This is Sandpaw. Nice to meet you, Branchpaw.” She seemed the nicest, a faint feeling of envy flashing through Branchpaw’s mind. It must have been nice to be part of her bunch. Yet it would be even nicer still to instead be back at home. Back in Moleclan. “You two can leave yours here. I can handle them until Smokestar comes along.” The pattern was obvious, leaving Branchpaw to settle on the idea that the gray tom must have been Troutstar. And so the three apprentices were left under Bearstar’s watch yet a group of cats appeared rather soon. Led by a dark gray, spotted tom, the bunch had four sleepy kits carried by apprentices, most of which seemed almost as sleepy. Bearstar bowed his head to the tom, who returned the silent greeting, eyeing the three apprentices. Branchpaw couldn’t help but fluff up his fur as the intense stare made him feel uneasy. Sandpaw his behind him, though Mistypaw sat still, frozen with her fur fluffed out as well. Bearstar left, leaving the three to follow the short command of Smokestar. “Follow me.” Branchpaw cautiously padded forward, silently urging his frightened new acquaintances to come along as well. Smokestar had already turned away, not doubting his command would be followed, and moving along, a light brown molly speckled with white and with brown spots along her sides moving just behind the dark tom along with a black molly with a white tail, the pair carrying two long-furred kits, one gray and the other black in their jaws. A ginger tom, carrying a brown spotted kit let his gaze linger longer as if interested in starting a conversation before practically bouncing after. A familiar brown and white tortoiseshell moved beside the trio, eyeing them curiously, her green eyes sparkling in the moonlight before it seemed to fade away in the thick pine forest. A blue kit hung from her jaw, appearing to be asleep despite being carried. Branchpaw assumed this molly was the fourth medicine cat. Sandpaw was pressed against Mistypaw’s side, Branchpaw’s ear twitching and turning to their direction to pick up on their hushed conversation. With a sigh, the lone tom turned to the tortoiseshell to try to start a conversation. “Are you Brindlepaw?” Although her voice was muffled by the fur of the kit in her jaws, she responded. “Indeed. Nice to see you again, furball.” The two were from clans that lived near one another, leading them to know each other from clan and medicine cat gatherings. “The feeling’s mutual.” He smiled, both happy and upset that his friend was in this mess together with him. They stopped as the rest of the group ahead came to a halt, Smokestar’s copper eyes staring them down. “You can chat later. Off you go. He gestured with his tail to what looked like a foxhole. The apprentices looked to one another, Brindlepaw placing the kit she was carrying down onto the ground. “What do you want us to go into a foxhole for?” Mistypaw asked, sounding uneasy. With a single glare from the dark cat, she quieted, nudging Sandpaw to go first. None of them seemed confident, although after being shoved, Sandpaw realized there wasn’t any fox scent, even hidden by the scent of cats. “Don’t worry! It’s safe!” She claimed, circling Smokestar and diving down into the hole. The rest looked to one another, Brindlepaw following Sandpaw’s example with Branchpaw and Mistypaw close behind. The  ticked tabby looking around the faintly illuminated place. It seemed like a rather large space, possibly too large to be an ordinary fox hole. A strange stone glittered, Sandpaw and Mistypaw’s reflections showing on it as they approached it curiously. “Think this’ll work?” Branchpaw faced Brindlepaw as he asked, her tail flicking him on the ear. “Only one way to find out. Come on.” She laid down by the stone, Branchpaw playing to Starclan that they would come as he took a place beside her. He pressed his nose to the chilly surface, felling fur brush against his as one of the other two settled down beside him, his eyes closed. Then as soon as he opened them, he found himself facing a large pool of water, the mighty sounds of a waterfall nearby filling his ears. He looked around himself, seeing the cats who he knew all too well. Had it all just been a dream? He saw a small black cat beside him, waking up and looking at him in surprise. “Branchpaw? Where are you? What happened?” He knew it was too good to be true. So this was a dream instead. “I’m in some forest. A rogue leader calling himself Bearstar stole me and a bunch of kits and apprentices. It’s near some kind of twolegplace, but…not near Leafclan. Another one. He…he and his friends, Troutstar, Smokestar and Harestar want to start their own clans and they kidnapped apprentices to be medicine cats.” He explained, frantically. Littlecloud gave him a shocked look, her mouth gaping open for a short few moments. “Well…i-if you’re going to be a full medicine cat…you deserve a full name, right?…I…this isn’t the place to do it but…” She straightened up, sighing. “My mentor had to do something similar as well… I, Littlepool, medicine cat of Moleclan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. He has trained hard to understand the ways of a medicine cat and with your help he will serve his clan for many moons…” Branchpaw watched as his mentor seemed to get a bit choked up, the apprentice getting the urge to try to comfort her, yet he didn’t want to disrupt the ceremony. “Branchpaw, do you promise to uphold the ways of a medicine cat, to stand apart from rivalry between Clan and Clan and to protect all cats equally, even at the cost of your life?” He fought a lump in his throat to choke out his answer. “I do.” Yet how much did he wish to be in his home instead. “Then by the powers of StarClan I give you your true name as a medicine cat. Branchpaw, from this moment you will be known as Branchberry. StarClan honors your kind heart and determination, and we welcome you as a full medicine cat of…” She stopped, clearly unsure of what to say, prompting Branchpaw to finish it for her. “Bearclan. It is known as Bearclan.” “Right. Bearclan. I wish you luck my apprentice. Moleclan is doing well.” She gently reached up to place her head gently over Branchberry’s as he licked her shoulder respectfully. There was no one to cheer for him, yet he imagine it and it was enough. “Thank you. And thank Starclan for letting us meet.” Branchberry expressed his gratitude, his and his mentor’s eyes shinning in the light of the moon and stars. Before he knew it, his vision faded and he found himself back in the tunnel, facing the reflective surface. It seemed only Sandpaw was still asleep, Mistypaw bouncing around and yowling about meeting her mentor, Brindlepaw watching with amusement. He sat up, puffing out his chest with pride. “What did I miss?” He questioned, amused by the excitement coming in waves off Mistypaw. “Not much.” Brindlepaw replied quickly before Mistypaw practically jumped on him. “Branchpaw! Branchpaw! I got my full name! I’m Mistypool now!” “You too?” Sandpaw seemed to have woken up, sitting up and looking at the three in surprise. “Did all of us?” Branchberry asked, surprised that all four had had a similar experience. “We should introduce ourselves all over again.” Sandpaw suggested, all four sitting in a circle. The sandy-brown molly flicked her tail at him, urging him to start. “Um…I suppose I am now a true member of Bearclan with the new name of Branchberry. I wish I was back home, but I do not plan to neglect my new clanmates. Brindle…um…” “Brindleseed. I was given this name for my talent with herbs. I, like my clanmates, dislike Smokestar, but I do not plan to escape. He’d have my pelt for bedding if I did. Mistypool, perhaps you’d like a turn?” “But what about me” Sandpaw cried, eager to speak. “You already missed your chance.” Mistypool seemed uncomfortable, but spoke with some quiet encouragement from Brindleseed. "Well...I think Troutstar is a good leader and...Blackpaw, Frogpaw and the kits are all really nice. I wish I could go home, but...I still like it here as well." Without prompt, Sandpaw jumped up to speak, suddenly growing modest, sitting back down and speaking quietly. "My new name is Sandnose. It's because I'm good with scents. I miss Featherclan, but Harestar is kind and wants us all to be comfortable living in her new clan...and I could never leave my sister Seedpaw!" "Are you just about done?!" Called a rough, deep voice from outside, sounding annoyed. Smokestar had apparently been waiting and was growing impatient. They looked to one another, practically jumping on one another's tails as they hurried outside. It seemed the rest were all asleep in a huddle until now, the impatient yowling of their leader waking them. They all seemed disoriented, the apprentices each picking up a kit and leaving one for Brindleseed to take. "I'll see you at the gathering, if there is one" She mumbled through fur, Smokestar leading his clan away with Sandnose, Mistypool and Branchberry following to the border. They shared quick goodbyes before each running off to their clans to share the news.