#but its also terrifying at the same time cause what if someone buys a game i like bc i draw for it and they hate it

[moeblob]

Random and completely out of the blue, but I just wanted to say thank you because you were the reason I got Soul Hackers 2 and I've been enjoying it so far!

Wait what for real holy moly??? Me? My silly lil (like four total) doodles ???? My son Arrow..... my little boy. He's just a little guy. I should probably return to playing that at some point. I was thinking about doing so recently because I started rambling about Ippon-datara for some reason and then mid ramble I remembered Tatara (from Soul Hackers 2) and then remembered Arrow.

I should get back to Soul Hackers 2. But until then, I am very happy to hear you are enjoying it! And that I'm helpful in people finding games they like! ;w; thank you, anon!

[dmsden]

Spare the Dying? - Handling character death in D&D

Hullo, Gentle Readers. This week’s Question from a Denizen comes to us from fatescribe. They ask, “Hello! DM of 13+ years here....for players new and old I always like to talk about player character death before the game starts, as I typically run my games with this occurrence being a real possibility. How do you approach talking about player character death, and what are some ways other DMs could talk about this to players who aren't as enthused by the concept?”

This is a great question, scribe. Character death is a legitimately difficult thing for some groups, and a simple rules matter for others. I’ve written about it several times before, and you can see those articles at these links: https://dmsden.tumblr.com/post/182270577778/beyond-the-veil-helping-players-deal-with

https://dmsden.tumblr.com/post/173545328268/hullo-gentle-readers-this-weeks-question-comes

https://dmsden.tumblr.com/post/625074664593620992/death-and-consequences-should-a-player-have-a

https://dmsden.tumblr.com/post/190422014268/if-by-my-life-or-death-i-can-save-you

But let’s look at this particular issue. I have mixed feelings about death in my games myself. I know death is important in the game, as it’s one of the game’s major consequences. but I also recognize that it can lead to a player losing interest in the game and/or cause a major halt to the storyline as the players look into either finding a way to bring their fallen comrade back or start dealing with a new member of the group...or both!

I do think that death is important to be a part of a campaign. If death means nothing, then it’s hard to make things meaningful in terms of a narrative. So with that in mind, how do you handle character death, and what if someone doesn’t want it in the game?

To start with, I would go into the campaign with an idea of how to handle character death. I think you can go one of several routes:

Death Is a Hassle 

This is more or less the default assumption of the game. There are spells to bring back the dead, such as Revivify, Raise Dead, Resurrection, True Resurrection, and Reincarnation. They have a cost (usually a certain amount of diamonds), but PCs will eventually gain access to them, and, if needed, NPCs can usually cast them on the PCs behalf.

Death Is the End

I have played a campaign like this, and it was pretty terrifying. In a situation like this, the DM removes the spells that bring back the dead from the game. Neither PCs nor NPCs have access to this magic. When a character dies, that’s it, and they won’t be coming back. It makes death very significant, and it makes a lot of players act in a very different way. Players are much more likely to retreat in a situation like this, knowing that, if their characters die, they won’t be able to keep playing the same characters

Death Is a Revolving Door

I haven’t played in such a game, but I’ve certainly heard of them. In a game like this, not only are the death reversing spells available, but the material component cost is usually waived. Even before the PCs have access to the spells, NPC clerics might cast them for very small favors or payments.

Death Is Difficult But Not Impossible

This is perhaps best exemplified by the Critical Role campaign. The spells to bring folks back from death exist and have their material component cost, but there is also a ritual involved to overcome death, with its own set of rules. There’s always a chance that someone won’t return from death. This is also the way many LARPs handle death.

So maybe you now have an idea how you want death to be in your campaign; how do you broach the subject with your players? To be honest, I would be very open and upfront with the players and get everyone’s thoughts during a Session Zero. Tell your players how you’d like to handle death, and see if everyone will buy into the idea. If not, it’s a good idea to have a conversation about their concerns.

Other things to discuss on the concept of death would include how to handle the absence of the character and the player’s involvement, how to replace a dead character if the PC decides to play something new, and how difficult you want to make the process. The toughest part is in levels 1-4 before the PCs have access to magic of their own. Are there powerful enough clerics in the world to raise the dead? Where are they? What will they ask the PCs for in return for casting the spell? These are things to keep in mind.

I think, in the end, you have to be ready to compromise what you want with players, especially new ones, who might want something more or less restrictive than you want. I think if it’s properly presented, most players will understand that death is there to be a necessary consequence of the dangerous lives adventurers have. If someone absolutely balks, then you should talk with that person and try to get to the bottom of their concern. It may be that, especially if they’re new, they won’t be used to the cooperative storytelling aspect of D&D and won’t understand that you won’t just kill their characters arbitrarily. You may need to discuss this and explain the DM’s job of challenging but not opposing the PCs. In the end, as usual, if they won’t budge, and you’re not willing to budge on your own position, then you have to weigh how much you want to play with them.

For what it’s worth, my own current campaign is pretty much in the default zone of death being a hindrance. Certain events that may be happening by the end of the campaign may mean that, the next time I set a story in this world, we’ll be at Difficult But not Impossible. It’ll be interesting to see what happens!

scribe, I hope this gave you some thoughts on how to handle and discuss death in your own campaign. Hopefully your PCs won’t have to deal with character death TOO often.

[homosexuality-at-its-finest]

You guessed, it's me again

How would the lords react to a very knowledgeable S/O who loves to learn whatever they can put their hands on no matter if it is a language or to wielding or dancing, THEY'RE READY. Oh and also they're really honest and have a booming laughter (Headcanons of course)

A/n: Welcome back my child, we're all back on our bullshit tbh. Thank you for the request, I fuggin love writing anything Resident evil

@rabid-d0g

Plot: Requested

Warnings: Chaotic Y/n, cussing, violence, that’s about it tbh

LADY DIMITRESCU

· She loves how knowledgeable you are, even if she can get envious that your knowledge surpasses her own

· She will buy you any book you could ever imagine, feeding into your curiosity and need to learn

· Alcina is often amazed by how quickly you learn languages, she watched you learn French in 3 days because there was a book you wanted to read

· When it comes to wielding weapons, Mother Miranda save her she’s terrified

· You’re so small and fragile and she doesn’t want you to end up hurting yourself

· That fear was ended in a rather ridiculous predicament of a Morticia attacking you, which caused you to scream while repeatedly whacking it with a sword

· You had tried to play it off smoothly, grinning up at your lover, but she’d seen everything and was cackling

· She’s the one that teaches you to dance, pleased by how quickly you picked up on it.

· You two now dance together almost nightly, the girls think it’s disgustingly sweet

· The first time she encountered your naive honesty was when you had anciently broken one of her favorite vases.

· She was used to the girls and maids alike lying to stay clear of her fury, but you looked up at her with red puffy eyes and a trembling bottom lip and admitted to breaking it

· She’s tried and failed in getting you to lie, you’re just so honest, and at times it can be infuriating when it’s a situation when the truth is best kept a secret

· Alcina adores your laugh

· She could be in the foulest mood, but as soon as she hears the booming, boisterous laughter the mood seemingly disappears.

· She will do anything to see you smile and hear your laughter, it makes her feel alive and full of love.

· Alcina overall loves you unconditionally, flaws and all.

SALVATORE MOREAU

· Salvatore loves how intelligent you are, the two of you constantly bouncing ideas off each other

· He may not be the same man he was before the Cadou, but he’s still a doctor and therefor is super smart

· He has a plethora of books for you to read, and if your eyes or head hurt from reading, he’ll read to you

· The fact that you can learn languages so fast baffles him, he’s asked you about it before, but only got a sly smirk and ‘a magician never reveals their secret’ in return

· He never doubted your ability to wield a weapon, the way you two had met was him finding you on his land violently bashing in a Lycan’s skull

· Though the idea of you having a gun did make him a bit wary, you wielded it like you were born with a gun in your hand, so he had no reason for concern

· So, the thing about dancing is Salvatore has two left feet, mans is awful at dancing

· You’ve seen him eat shit while he was walking on flat ground, let alone dancing

· When you taught yourself how to dance it was a solo thing, but he adores getting to watch

· He’s fascinated by your beauty, the way your body moves. Everything about you is entrancing to our favorite fish man

· When it comes to your honesty, it’s never bothered him

· He’s also naively honest, so if anyone wants to know info they immediately go to the reservoir

· Karl has asked jokingly what Salvatore’s nether regions looked like and you told him point blank much to his horror (he no longer asks joking questions)

· Salvatore at first was startled by your laughter

· It was so loud and sudden that it had taken him off guard

· Now it’s his favorite sound, your laugh is infectious and makes him laugh

· His favorite kind of laugh is when its booming laughter mixed with snorts, because those are reserved for his jokes alone, it makes his chest feel warm and full

· He’s a shyer lover to have, but once you’ve gotten through his shell you two are a match made in heaven

DONNA BENEVIENTO

· So, Donna knew you were smart from the start, so your intelligence has never caught her off guard.

· She’s the one that will never doubt your abilities and is almost never caught by surprise by the things you can do.

· You’ve recited an entire book from memory to her before and she didn’t even bat an eyelash, she knows her partner is smart

· When it comes to languages, she’s more curious than anything, asking how you can remember so many or how you can learn them so fast

· You explain to her that they just come easily to you and they just make sense, she takes it

· Her favorite language you’ve learned is ASL, you two use it when she doesn’t have energy to talk or use Angie to talk

· She will buy you as many books as you want, and will listen to you read them (Even if they make no sense to her) while she sews or works on her dolls

· She loves your voice and could listen to it for hours, it’s soothing for her to listen to you, especially if she’s having a bad day

· Donna supports you wanting to learn how to wield a bo staff

· She loves watching you train, even if it means getting up early to see you work out before you begin your training

· You protect the house itself now, no one has gotten into the house and survived after you taught yourself how to fight

· Donna loves dancing, but is shy when it comes to dancing when it’s in front of others, gently encourage her and she’ll teach you

· She’s a wonderful teacher, and you two could dance for hours, moving perfectly in sync. It’s hypnotizing to watch honestly.

· She likes that you’re honest, it’s nice to have someone in her life who doesn’t lie or who isn’t cryptic

· It’s like a breath of fresh air for her

· Your laughter? My god she blushes every time she hears it

· She loves your laughter, and can’t help but laugh along any time she hears it

· You’re the only person alive who’s heard her laugh, or can make her laugh

· Usually, she’s wary of loud sounds but you bring her out of her shell

· Donna is the most supportive lord, she’s never once doubted you

KARL HEISENBERG

· You two are a chaotic fucking duo who will bring the end

· Both of you are intelligent, bordering genius

· Karl lets you read all his books, which means you know just as much about metal, war and more

· He recruits you in his fight against Miranda

· You two speak in different languages all the time, mostly so other people can’t understand the confidential conversations you’re having, you can never be too safe.

· With your combined intelligence things at the factory go a lot smoother, and things aren’t as horrendous as they are in the games

· You guys still do some fucked up stuff, but all is fair in war, I guess?

· Karl is 1000% behind you in learning how defend yourself

· He even teaches you how to, and is offended and pouting when in your second session you knock him on his ass

· Even the Lycans are scared of you after seeing you beat one to death with your bare hands for destroying your blueprints.

· None of the other lords fuck with you, you and Karl give off a terrifying energy when you’re together

· You two don’t have much down time, but when you mentioned wanting to learn how to dance, Karl had taught you.

· He’d been quite the dancer in his day, and found that it was nice to have a dancing partner again

· It’s a rare thing, but when you two dance it’s very intimate, full of love and unspoken promises

· I think Karl would like your laughter the most

· Because you two live in a very scary and bland world where a war is building, so happiness is far and in between

· So when he hears your laughter it’s like a gift from the universe

· Any time he hears your laughter he tries his best to engrave it in his brain, eyes full of love and chest full of warmth

· I think overall you and Karl have the hardest relationship to maintain, but by pure love and respect for each other, it all works out

[safetycar-restart]

🏉 OK so your last ask got me thinking AGAIN,but George just being ,the absolutely neediest and clingy sub just like Charles,but while Charles does learn that's ok,George just never knows how to ask for any of that,you'll catch it of course because your amazing at spotting those things, but you'll be cuddling Charles on the couch while Lando and Alex will be off doing something together and George will just be sitting there? Stiff as a board and trying not to look at you two, because he wants the same thing Charles has or even more but he's been almost conditioned to be independent.

And then there's also the fact he's the most selfless thing,he'll use all his allowance to buy stuff for the others and he'll always feel guilty about taking your time because what if Charles,or Alex or Lando need you right now? He doesn't want to take time away from them (even though he needs it a lot worse than them at the moment) he just overthinks everything

The solution? Charles. We said earlier that Charles and George are two peas in a pod , and maybe that's because Charles is the one to bring George out of his shell? Charles will just drag George over to you practically because he looked sad ,and your always the solution to that! And eventually Charles starts seeing the behavior patterns for being similar to him before? So Charles always wants George to scene with you and him as well? Of course its only a temporary solution,you've got to have a conversation with George about that later (that leads to George being your 24/7 sub-but that's another ask for another day) but for now you've got the two of them safe and that's enough.

Aw I love this so much!! You are the official George anon and everything you say about George is immediately cannon in this blog that's how this works.

Before Charles, you spent a lot of time watching out for George and offering him affection and making sure he's okay. You could see that he really struggled to express his needs and to accept that you, Alex and Lando really do want to help him.

When Charles joins, you have to direct more attention to him at first because the poor thing is just completely broken. But as Charles recovers, he learns that he can ask you for what he needs and he begins to feel secure in the fact that you'll always be there for him.

And that's just a lesson that George never seems to learn. I think a lot of that comes from the fact that he had to be independent for so long? He's so scared that he'll disappoint you if he shows how he really isnt independent at all.

Meanwhile, Charles sees a lot of himself in George. He probably saw that the moment he joined the relationship, but for a while he was just too scared to bring it up. Because he was still learning that he could ask for help, so asking for help for someone else was entirely out of the question.

But then one day he's cuddling on the couch with you and he feels so warm and cosy. George is sitting on the floor with Alex and Lando, the three of them playing a card game but he recognises how tense George is and how he seems terrified to fail. He knows exactly what that feels like.

He doesnt even think about it, just calls George over because there's more than enough space on the couch for him to join.

George is so relieved that he can come sit on the couch instead, instantly curling up on your other side and then Charles sneaks his hand across your torso to hold George's hand? They're just to happy subby babies curled around you as you watch lando and Alex play a card game (lando loses spectacularly).

From then on, Charles is always dragging George along to see you because you make everything better!!

Charles is truly just the sweetest thing? He doesnt even consider the fact that George would be intruding on his alone time with you. He doesnt care about that AT ALL. Cause Georgie is sad and you make Georgie happy and therefore Georgie must come with!!!

George is also absolutely overjoyed at this development. Cause firstly, he gets more attention which he absolutely needs. But also, Charles is just the best person to sub with? Cause Charles is also such a good boy and helps George feel so safe and good. Oh and the aftercare!! Cuddles with Charles is just the BEST.

So yeah, two subby beans in a very snuggly pod.

[miekasa]

the babysitter’s club (1)

+ pairing: levi ackerman + (fem) reader, featuring bright-eyed but very easily intimidated interns and part-time babysitters eren and armin who are trying their best

+ genres and warnings: modern au, parents au, fluff, yes the dog’s name is captain and he’s tiny what about it

+ summary: eren and armin are good subordinates, who happen to be pretty good babysitter, too. usually. 

+ word count: 2.7k

+ notes: this was just something fun i edited and reworked again, also to provide some more insight about dad levi and my oc kids; this focuses only on holden, who is the oldest of the bunch, but you’ll more about the rest as they go

It’s not that Levi doesn’t trust Holden’s babysitters, he just would rather watch over her himself. Moreover, he would rather have the time to spend with his small daughter instead of having to leave her in the care of someone else who isn’t you, but sometimes life gets busy, and babysitters come in real handy.

He still doesn’t understand why Erwin would schedule the both of you to attend such important work-related meetings on the same weekend; much less, to send you half-way around the world for yours, and then book Levi for damn near twelve hours on a Saturday. He would murder Erwin if he weren’t his direct boss, and a long-time friend. But shit happens, and while it’s a major inconvenience and pain in his ass to be working on a weekend, it’s good to know he could rely on the brats at the office to step up on such short notice.

“I’m sure I don’t need to remind you that if anything happens, I won’t hesitate to dismember you,” Levi says calmly, closing his briefcase after triple-checking its contents.

“Of course,” Armin stiffens visibly, awkward laughter seeping through his words, “Eren and I would never let anything happen to Holden.”

To his left, Holden has already tugged Eren to the coffee table for a game of children’s Scrabble, determined to show off her new skills. Levi smiles slightly as he remembers playing the game with her last week, and how awe-struck she was to have seen Levi create a word bigger than “unattainable”—which is currently the longest word in her four-year-old vocabulary. But he’s certain she would have no trouble beating Eren.

He gives Armin a slight nod. He knows Holden is in good hands; or good enough hands with Armin, anyway. It’s not the first time the duo has babysat, and for as air-headed and clumsy Eren could be at the office, he seemed to be pretty damn good with kids if Holden’s attachment to the brunette was anything to go by.

Levi recounts that you’ve questioned on multiple occasions why Eren was so dedicated to being your PA when he seemed to have a potential career in taking care of, and maybe even teaching children. Not that he’s not a good assistant to you, but he’s certainly not as organized or detailed-oriented as Armin. Levi shrugs away the thought. Eren’s career choices are none of his business; his only concern is that he keeps his daughter safe and sound.

“Right. My card is on the kitchen island, you can buy lunch and dinner or whatever, I don’t think there’s much in the fridge,” Levi informs Armin. He looks briefly to the clock on the wall; he really should get going. “Remember to walk Captain at some point, and no matter what Holden says, he absolutely does need a leash on him. If Erwin isn’t being a complete asshat, I’ll be home by nine. (Y/N) will probably still be on her flight, so call me if you need anything.”

Armin nods enthusiastically, promising Levi that they would take care of everything. They’d better.

“Alright, I’m heading out,” Levi announces, pulling his keys from the table near the door, “Be good, Holden. Tell Armin and Eren if you need anything.”

Holden’s head perks up at the sound of her name. Elegantly, or as elegantly as a four-year-old can be, she stands from her seated crisscross position, to run over to Levi by the door. He should remind her that she should use walking feet inside the house, but he can’t bring himself to, instead crouching down to meet her height.

“Bye, daddy,” she tells him sweetly. Levi reaches a hand out to ruffle the top of her head, much to the small girl’s chagrin. She sports a grimace almost identical to his as he reaches up to try and smooth out the aftermath of her father’s affections, “Daddy!”

Levi can’t help but chuckle, reaching two fingers out to poke at his daughter’s forehead. “Be good. I’ll be back soon.”

“Mommy too?”

Levi sighs, “No, mommy doesn’t come back until Tuesday.”

“That’s four days away,” Holden’s doesn’t hesitate to express her dissatisfaction. Levi nods, a little proud of how quickly she’d calculated that in her head, “Can Eren stay until Tuesday?”

“No, Eren cannot.”

“Oh, that’s too bad,” Holden crinkles her nose. Levi really has got to do something about her fascination with Eren.

Holden looks backwards to where Eren is still seated around the coffee table, he and Armin watching the father-daughter duo. After reconciling with the fact that Eren does, in fact, have his own home to go back to at the end of the day, Holden turns back around, and holds her hand up, palm facing Levi. He does the same, bringing his larger palm to hers, so that her hand is pushed against the middle of his.

Not one for hugs, kisses, or larger displays of affection, Holden simply turns her palm so that her hand grabs around Levi’s as best as possible, hooking her thumb around his pinky finger—what Levi’s heard the young girl call a hand hug.

“Bye, daddy,” she repeats, squeezing his hand, “Come back soon.”

Levi bends his fingers to wrap around her hand, “I will.”

“Keep an eye on her,” Levi reminds Armin and Eren, after standing back up and gripping his briefcase in his hand, “Don’t cause too much trouble.”

“Holden never causes trouble,” Eren says in response, but his words are spoken in coos to the young girl, who’s already back at his side. 

Levi scoffs, “I was talking to you.” 

“We’ll be fine, boss, don’t worry,” Eren chuckles with an awkward blush, “We love looking after Holden.”

“I’m not your boss,” Levi deadpans, double-checking his pockets for his keys, “You’d better hope everything is fine. Call me if anything happens, I’ll be back soon.” 

With one final round of good-byes, and a wave from his daughter, Levi’s out the door, and stepping into his car with a grimace. It was just one stupid day out of his life. Besides, Holden would be fine with Armin and Eren; she always is. Levi is just grumpy that he can’t be the one to spend the day with her. 

He sighs, reluctantly, putting his keys in the ignition. The sooner he got this over with, the sooner he could come back to Holden. Everything would be fine in the meantime; for now, he had to focus on how he was going to get himself to sit through Erwin’s long-ass meeting. 

“Levi! Hi! Um… okay, so don’t freak out, but Armin and I are at the hospital with Holden right now—don’t freak out—because there was a small incident at lunch—don’t freak out and fire me please—but! It’s all gonna be okay, they’re already treating her and she’s doing fine now, so don’t freak—”  

“Tell me not to freak out one more fucking time and I’ll castrate Armin and feed you his balls myself.”

“You sound a little freaked out,” Eren placates, wincing and holding his phone away from his ear when Levi growls in response.

“You have five seconds to tell me what you two idiots did to my daughter and explain why I shouldn’t decapitate you immediately.”

“It’s a funny story, actually—so, um, we think Holden might be allergic to nuts…?”

“What do you mean might be, Jaeger?”

Eren can feel his heart in his throat. He eyes Armin on the other side of Holden’s hospital bed. He looks no better—color almost completely drained from his face, but Eren doesn’t think he can say much else to his boss before his knees give out from underneath him.

“Uh, well, it was a lot of technical terms, and—I—um, actually I’m going to let Armin explain!” Eren hurries, all but chucking his phone at the unsuspecting blonde.

Armin’s blue eyes look almost grey with anxiety, but before he can protest, Eren is flailing his hands and pointing fingers and reminding him that Levi will kill them both if he doesn’t start talking.

Reluctant, and terrified, Armin finally lifts the phone to his ear, stuttering out a pathetic hello, but Levi cuts him off before he can say anything else.

“Save it. Send me your location, and pray I don’t kill you when I get there.” Armin chokes out a “yes, sir,” before slowly bringing the phone down to his side.

The good news is that Holden’s allergic reaction wasn’t too severe: her throat had been irritated, and hives had emerged as a result, but it hadn’t been closing up. And luckily, Eren had the endurance to run nearly a mile and half with a four year old tucked under his arm; because with the traffic Armin observed whilst he and Captain huffed and lagged behind, it would have taken thrice as long to get Holden to the ER had they waited and called for an ambulance.

Even better was that Holden was an unnervingly calm kid, even whilst having an allergic reaction. She looked almost back to normal now, save for a few red looking blotches on her neck and upper arm; and seemed more than content to be watching a video on Eren’s phone, despite the situation. She was a little bummed out to find out that she could never eat the new ice cream she liked so much ever again, but she seemed to quickly get over it once Eren reminded her that there were lots of other flavors out there for her to try. Flavors that wouldn’t make her choke to death.

Still, Eren and Armin could probably kiss their jobs goodbye, seeing as they had nearly just poisoned their bosses’ daughter. Holden seemed to like them enough, but, unfortunately, Holden wasn’t the Ackerman who signed their checks.

At the very least, Eren doesn’t think you’ll be too upset with him. He doesn’t think you’ll be ecstatic to hear that while you were away on your already inconvenient work-trip on the other side of the globe, that he also managed to land your daughter in a hospital bed… but you were the more forgiving one. Then again, maybe not so forgiving when it comes to the health and wellbeing of your daughter. 

Eren falls back against the wall in dread. You weren’t even in the same country as him and he was worried about what you might say or do to him. Levi was probably less than twenty minutes away and fully capable of beheading him.

“You… uh, you think the Interior Branch is still looking for interns?” Eren breaks the silence, looking towards Armin, who’s taken the seat next to Holden’s bed, petting Captain robotically as the dog sits in his lap.

“I don’t think it matters,” Armin responds, “They won’t hire corpses.”

Fifteen minutes, and several run red lights later, Levi is bursting through the doors to the pediatric wing of the emergency room. He doesn’t care about the old woman at the reception yelling at him for causing a ruckus, or the other parents, doctors, or visitors eyeing him for marching around like he owned the place. Holden was in there somewhere, and he was going to get to her.

“Holden—oh, god, Holden,” Levi coos, frantic, as he marches into Holden’s room, scurrying to the side of her hospital bed. A cold hand reaches up to stroke her face. Angry, red bumps litter the sides of neck, her cheeks are puffier than usual, and the perimeter of her mouth seems a bit irritated, but Levi is relieved. She’s okay, his baby girl is okay.

“’M fine, daddy,” Holden assures him. She’s almost overly-perceptive for her age, able to pick up on her father’s out of character antics, and does her best to console him. “Eren ran with me all the way here when I started coughing and itchin.’”

Levi nods, the dark grey splotches in Holden’s eyes bringing him comfort, ensuring him that she was okay. “They gave me a shot, and I don’t like needles, but I didn’t even cry at all. Ask, Armin and Eren, they saw! Captain, too.”

“Brave girl,” Levi smiles, reaching his hand up to push her hair out of her face then leans over to press a kiss to her forehead.

Levi had almost forgotten that Eren and Armin were in the room until he hears a blundering cough from behind him. The younger boys look petrified, Eren practically shaking in his shoes, while Armin doesn’t even have the confidence to look him in the eye.

“We’re really sorry, Levi,” Eren apologizes, voice scratchy and wobbly, like he’d been the one to just get a shot, “We didn’t know—and when she started coughing and saying she couldn’t breathe, I swear, I ran here as fast as I could—”

“It’s fine.”

“It’s… fine?”

Levi sighs. Maybe he’d been a little harsh with them on the phone, letting his emotions get the best of him. He’d already been pissed off enough to not have the time to spend with Holden this weekend; hearing that she’d been hurt was just the final push over the edge for him, but it wasn’t necessarily Armin or Eren’s fault.

“I didn’t know either,” Levi exhales, reaching at hand out to pet the top of Holden’s head again, the young girl now distracted once again by the phone in her hand, “She’s never had a reaction to anything before, and neither (Y/N) or I have any strong allergies.”

Armin shuffles where he’s standing. “The doctor said she might be allergic to tree nuts. We, uh, we gave her pistachio ice cream after lunch.”

If there’s anything concerning Levi, it’s that they gave Holden ice cream before dinner, but he supposes he can let it go for now.

“Eren told me to try it, and it tasted good, daddy,” Holden interjects, “Before I started coughing, it was good.”

“Ah, well, you can’t—you shouldn’t eat things that make you feel sick!” Eren stutters loudly.

“But it was good,” Holden pouts, “And you said to try new things, Eri. I won’t know if it makes me sick if I don’t try them.”

Levi holds back his laughter. He knows that Holden definitely wouldn’t want to try the same same flavor again knowing now that she was allergic to it; she was just pulling at Eren’s leg. Levi would have to keep an eye out for the stuff anyway, especially if her oh-so-precious Eren has expressed any former love for it. 

“Um, Levi, sir,” Armin calls, pulling Levi’s attention towards the blonde, “We didn’t know if (Y/N) would have landed already, but do you think you should call her, to, um, let her know?”

Levi’s face pales three shades when he realizes that none of them had already informed you that your daughter was currently hospitalized with a new found allergy.

“You can call her,” Levi says, a shudder in his spine at the thought of relaying this information to you, “That’s your death sentence, not mine.”

[astaroth1357]

Demigod MC Series: Hermes

Hey guys, still doing what I can to stay healthy (and entertained) in quarantine. Staying still, keeping calm, and trying not to exert myself too much because of the shortness of breath thing going on. My lungs just can't get enough air it seems… 😅 Anyway, I've gotten a lot of suggestions on this series and I'm excited to keep it going. Just going to be a tad slow until I'm feeling better. Thank you for the support, y'all!

Demigod MC Series: Intro, Aphrodite, Hermes

Lucifer

Oh no… it’s everyone’s worst nightmare… Another Mammon, but competent. Devil help us all…

Had he known who their father was, he'd have never assigned Mammon to watch over them. Hell, he would have made sure those two never even met. They became a new handful for him to manage from the day they first arrived…

When even more things started going missing around the House than normal, he knew he had made a grave mistake… They were clever, quick, and skilled. About the best WORST combination for a burglar to be…

Worse still, they were fast on their feet. He would pretty much have no way to nab them on foot and always had to resort to his wings or magic to have any hope of catching up to them… At least Mammon usually gets himself cornered!

But, paradoxically, he also came to notice that the mortal had an odd honesty streak to them... Like, they’d steal but they’d always admit to it, unlike Mammon who would try to deflect till he was blue in the face.

Were they proud of their work, maybe? Or just didn’t see the point in trying to get away with it...?

There would be several occasions where they’d take something, sell it with Mammon, and then steal the thing back later just to put it back where it belonged, seemingly never with Mammon’s permission to do so either… 

Is it better that they returned the stolen item or worse because their actions went from just robbery to a full-on scam? Either way, it gives him headaches trying to deal with it…

He pretty much gives up getting the mortal to stop after 6 months, they are legitimately that good, but makes them swear to always put back whatever they take at some point. It seems to work out and he lets more things slide, but please someone get them out of here soon… 

Mammon

Soulmatesoulmatesoulmatesoulmate, or maybe more accurately “Partner-in-Crime” but that means pretty much the same thing to him anyway. 🤷‍♀️

He’s never met a person better at thievery than they were. The day they met, they managed to pick his pockets without breaking a sweat (or a finger) and that was it. He was in love.

They could teleport! Actually teleport!! Suddenly, NOTHING was off limits to him any more! Lucifer’s rare records? Easy. Levi’s secret safe? Cakewalk. The Castle vault?? Child’s play!! It was like they could steal anything they put their mind to!!

He didn't even have to worry about them when they made getaways because they were fast too, the two actually have parkour races through the streets for the hell of it!

On top of all that, they were wicked creative. He’d come up with a money-making scheme then they’d offer him all sorts of little tricks to help get away with it...

HE’D have never realized that they could turn themselves into rats in order to frighten and sneak past Barbatos, but they thought of it the instant they heard of his fear of things. They're a mad genius!!

The only real downside was they seemed to like stealing for the sport of it instead of for the money… so they always steal back whatever they took.

That kind of defeats the purpose of all that work in the first place, right? Ah well, at least that's more money for him.

These two pretty much became a walking menace to Devildom society- Sorry, not sorry.

Leviathan

Not another Mammon!!! WHY?! What did he do to deserve this?!?

When he started noticing that EVEN MORE of his stuff was going missing than usual, he straight-up flipped! Like, had the mortal not been pretty tough in their own right they would have been Lotan-chow. End of discussion.

… And then they started using their powers for good? Kind of?

Like, first off they would always give back what they stole, which was a nice change from Mammon. Annoying, but at least he didn't have to go buy replacement games or anything…

And then they started stealing him limited edition merch or tickets and stuff because they… liked him?? He guessed???

Why else would they go to all the trouble of swiping one of the five ultra-rare Kitsune Ruri-chan figurines from its original collector? He would have had to pay Mammon half his tail for something like that but the MC just brought it to him one morning because they could!

Is… is this love? Has he grown to love that which he hates?! What is even happening anymore!?! Who is he?!? 😫

Eventually he has to reconcile his conflicted feelings by dubbing them the real life Peony Phantom Thief, Jane and even making them a cosplay. Yes, they have to wear it when they bring him things. No, it's not weird, shut up.

Satan

He wants to be irritated, no - furious, that they keep taking his stuff… But he’ll be damned if they aren’t making Lucifer’s life a living hell right now. 😏

He's honestly not even sure how they managed to swipe half of the priceless portraits in the Castle (a considerable feat since there's one for Every. Room.) but they pulled it off in under a week. Barbs didn't even notice the replicas…

If that's not mildly terrifying, he doesn't know what is. Who knows what things he could be missing at any given moment...?

At least the mortal had the good sense to return his things, unlike Mammon, which gets them off his shit list for the most part. 🤷‍♀️

It helps that they’re also impressively well-traveled. They claim to have been across every human continent and sailed every ocean. Though he was skeptical at first, just hearing their stories eventually convinced him.

What sort of person has sailed the Amazon River, hiked through Arctic tundra, seen every major capital city, and still had time to explore the sights of the French Riviera?

One that has magical teleportation powers apparently.

Frankly, he could listen to their stories of the human world all day and still ask for another. He's told them that they may as well just write a book of their own for him at some point, it'd be beneficial to their poor vocal chords.

Asmodeus

Ugh! Really? Another thief in the House?? Wasn’t one hard enough to deal with?!

Honestly, stolen beauty products aren't exactly something you can just sell or give back, so unfortunately a lot of Asmo's clothes/accessories get targeted and he is NOT happy about it...

Around the time his favorite scarf was stolen for the third time, he was about to gut the mortal himself, but they struck a deal with him. They could nab his clothes SO LONG as they returned them with an extra little "gift."

Jewelry, perfume, creams, nail polish, etc. Asmo kept a running list and pretty much treated his thieving friend like a less moral version of Akuzon. Whatever he asked for, no matter how rare or expensive, they always got their hands on so who was he to complain?

He once decided to test them by asking for the Hope Diamond - which they got for him - but he made them return it after a week after the curse on it made him ruin a particularly intricate manicure so…

Like Satan, he's also pretty impressed with all the places they've seen. He's pretty traveled in the human world himself so they exchange travel stories all the time!

He may bother them to him out traveling from time to time. There are so many gorgeous and romantic places to visit in the human world after all, it's not like anybody could stop them from just… popping in to have a look. Right? 😏

Beelzebub

They learned very quickly that his food is absolutely off limits and after that, they were good.

Seriously. Beel caught them once trying to swipe a piece of pizza from his dinner and he nearly ripped their arm off for it…

But on the flipside, he also knows that he can go to them if he REALLY needs a snack and is short on cash. 

It's pretty comical watching the fleet-foot mortal running from angry demon vendors with a basket of stolen apples for their buddy… But he appreciates their enthusiasm! 🙂

Beel actually likes to hear about their travels too, but mostly what they've eaten. They can keep him enraptured for hours by describing all the food they've come across in the human world…

Watch out for the drool, though.

Since they can teleport, they'll sometimes pop up with a human world treat for him and the man internally swears his undying love for them every time...

Outwardly, though, he just smiles. 'Cause he's a sweetie.

Belphegor

They… they opened the attic door on, like, the first day they met… They didn’t even make it look that hard, they had some kind of knack for breaking and entering…

Seriously, imagine the look on his face when they just walk into the attic to say hello… He had this whole, “Lure and Trick the Human” plan all thought out then they pulled out a magic lockpick or something and BOOM! Freedom!

He laughed, perhaps a little closer to the edge of sanity than he was intending, and he tried to attack them but they were so damn fast he couldn't land a single hit!

Damn was it embarrassing when the others came in…

MC: "LUCIFER! LUCIFER!! There's a monster in your attic!!!"

Lucifer: "That's not a monster that's my brother!!"

MC: *stops midway through kneeing Belphie in the stomach* …. Ooooooooh!

MC: Whoops. 

It was a… rocky start.

After they settled their differences quelled Belphie's bloodlust he found that they kind of grew on him rather quickly… Something about that mischievous energy and how much they gave his brothers (minus Beel) grief with it.

He absolutely helps them with their plans if it will annoy Lucifer in any way. Occasionally, they'll even take Belphie out on raids instead of Mammon.

Turns out he's surprisingly good at distractions because all he has to do is pretend to fall then take a nap. People around him will legitimately believe that he needs medical attention so the MC can sneak through crowds undetected...

Of course, Mammon gets PISSED when they do this, though. How dare his baby brother try to steal away his perfect partner!! Get your own damn mortal, Belphie!!! 🤬

[vs-redemption]

I thought of another one sorry lmao. Okok so Dabi got the Cat girl but what if Bakugou got the bunny girl lol. So Bakugou x reader who’s quirk is a bunny! (Ears,tail,cute twitchy nose ahhhh)

-🐱❤️

From Cindy:  🐱 Anon! At it again with these really great ideas! I did a weird amount of research on rabbit behavior for this, but I like how it turned out. I hope you agree!

Cottontail (Bakugo x Bunny Girl!Reader)

Dating a girl with a bunny quirk was not all cute fuzzy ears and sexy little tails like a lot of people probably expected. Actually, there were a lot of curveballs that could really throw someone off guard if they weren’t careful. Nobody knew that better than Katsuki Bakugo, who had experienced plenty of surprises from the moment he met you until even after he’d asked you to marry him.

“Man, she is so cute!” Denki sighs the first time he sees you working the front desk at the explosion hero’s agency, earning himself a slap to the back of the head.

“Hey, keep your eyes to yourself idiot!” Bakugo warns his visiting friend before checking in with you about any missed calls or schedule changes. You pass on a few memos before watching him drag Denki off to meet the rest of his friends for lunch as he usually did about twice a month.

Bakugo’s professional attitude and respect towards you was something that had drawn you to him right away, but those same traits also made it very hard to express the fact that you had developed a crush on him. For a while, you held back from openly flirting with him or doing anything that might be deemed inappropriate. Unfortunately, denying yourself for too long caused your bunny instincts to kick in and force you into action. You both were just as surprised the day he came over to ask you about some paper work that had been left on his desk only for you to jump up from your chair and punch him twice in the chest.

“What?” He blinked in surprise, trying to understand why you’d attacked him as your face got hot in embarrassment. Thankfully, the hits hadn’t been strong, but it was still a bit humiliating.

“I am SO sorry,” you bow your head over and over again, ears flopping over your face each time. You were too flustered and worried about losing your job to stop your mouth from spilling the truth. “I really couldn’t stop myself, I just think you’re really attractive!”

“What?!” Bakugo repeats, even more confused than before. It was definitely an uncomfortable conversation, but you explained that ‘boxing’ was a courting behavior for rabbits and begged him not to fire you as his cheeks slowly turned pink at the explanation. Thankfully, he was merciful enough to let you remain in your position, but your spunky little display had apparently been enough to peak his interest. The hero kept a closer eye on you for the next few weeks following the incident, giving him time to pick up on a few of your other habits related to your quirk.

“Oi, cottontail,” he leans over your desk with an eyebrow raised. “Why are you chewing up all the pens? If you’re hungry, let me take you out to lunch.”

“Actually, I just chew on things when I’m content or happy,” you couldn’t believe he’d noticed let alone pointed it out. “Don’t worry, that’s why I buy my own pens.”

“I’m not worried,” He shrugs, “I just want to take you on a date. I don’t have to punch you back to get you to say yes, right?” You weren’t sure if you should laugh or feel embarrassed, so instead you opted to be happy that he seemed to be reciprocating your feelings.

Even after dating for a while, Bakugo was still super respectful of you and your rabbit traits. He even asked permission before touching and petting your ears, and you found it extremely endearing the way he blushed and fumbled over his words each time. The first time he invited you over his house to make dinner for you and watch a movie, you found that he’d stocked his refrigerator with your favorite snacks to give you something to munch on and satisfy your urges to chew until the meal was ready. Of course, as soon as Bakugo thought he had you pretty much figured out, there was another shocking turn of events.

“I’m so tired, Katsuki,” You yawn and flop down on his sofa after getting back from a date that had consisted of a rather intense game of paintball. “I don’t think I have the energy to go back home.”

“Then just stay here,” he offers without hesitation. The thought of having you warm and safe by his side as he slept sounded really nice, but his peaceful image went up in smoke when you climbed into his bed and started pulling up his blankets and pushing his sheets around with both hands.

“What did my bed ever do to you?” He asks, half amused and half bewildered.

“Oh jeez,” you groan when you realize what you’d been doing. “That was so rude! I’m so sorry. I just can’t get comfortable or sleep unless things are a certain way.” Bakugo walks up with his hands on his hips as he observes the mess you’d made of his previously perfectly organized bed. Your ears go back and you lower your head in submission, feeling ashamed. Your boyfriend recovers quickly though, and takes the odd behavior in stride.

“Do what you have to do, I guess.” He shakes his head and smirks. “As long as I’m still allowed in here with you.”

“Of course!” You reassure him while pulling his face in and give him a soft kiss. “Having you with me is the most important part.” This is all he really needs to hear to be put back at ease. He was quite particular about how he kept his things as well, but he didn’t mind adjusting if it meant you were feeling comfortable around him. Plus, you were nice enough to remake his bed just the way he liked the next morning.

Bakugo was in for another surprise the first time he’d done something to get on your nerves. He honestly couldn’t even remember what it was that had annoyed you anymore, but he’d never forget the way you’d thumped your large foot at him and twitched your tail, looking ready to charge at him. It was a bit terrifying and he quickly learned how to read your body language to avoid being on the receiving end of any more of your punches.

After moving in together, you still managed to throw Bakugo for a loop every once in a while. There were things that blew his mind, like when you cut your hair and left little locks of it around the house as some sort of spring time nesting behavior.

“It’s only for a week or so Katsuki, I’m sorry!” You always apologized even though he never really got upset over things you couldn’t control. “If I don’t do it like this, I start to pull the hair out myself and leave it around which is much more painful and a lot messier too.”

“Don’t worry about it, cottontail,” He pulls you into a side hug and presses a kiss to the side of your face. Behaviors like this did get tiresome sometimes for Bakugo, but it never bothered him for long. There was no way he could stay upset over things like that, especially when he got to wake up in the mornings to you nuzzling his face as a way to mark him with your scent. He also lived for the moments where he did something that made you happy enough to hop into the air and do an excited little spin, like the day he’d gotten down on his knee and asked you to be with him for the rest of his life.

Being with a girl with a bunny quirk definitely came with its fair share of surprises that ranged from super cute to kind of scary. Thankfully, Bakugo was the type of person who could handle just about anything you threw at him.

[letters-from-eros]

S/O That Rages while playing Video Games.

A/N: Another self serving gaming headcanon haha.

Type: Headcanon.

Parings: Kenma x GN!Reader, Oikawa x GN!Reader, Tsukishima x GN!Reader.

Warnings: Swearing, suggestive language 😏

Requested?: No.

Kenma Kozume

He never rages whenever he plays his video games even though he's super passionate about his hobby.

Just doesn't have the energy to go about doing so and barely understands how anyone could to be honest.

So when he finds his kind, loving and soft significant other raging at a video game he is very shocked.

He's all for you being passionate about gaming like yayy we share the same interest but when he finds you yelling curses and gripping the controller with the strength of god?

He's almost scared.

Oh yeah, just to say he'll do almost anything for you, but he will not buy another controller after you break yours with sheer anger.

He never wants to play any video games that you could possibly rage or get competitive with cause sometimes you can become too much for him.

But once he gets used to your rage to some degree he can take some joy out of watching it unfold.

"Fuck this game and its broken ass mechanics!!"

Kenma quickly looked up from his phone to you to the game you were playing. Seeing that it was indeed a quite broken, unfair game that he sworn off playing a long time ago.

"You've been playing that game for at least an hour.. Maybe you should just play something else," He lazily suggests looking back down at his phone.

"Raging is part of the appeal, Ken."

He didn't even bother responding to that. He in no way felt it was smart or helpful to encourage or facilitate your anger and he was unsure if it was a good idea to press you to switch games, possibly making you more upset. At him.

But he really didn't want a headache from your yelling...

"God damn it! This-"

"Baby, why don't we just play animal crossing together?" He found the best course of action for you to stop yelling was to offer to play a relaxed game with him.

And the way your head snapped back from the screen to him with a softened yet excited expression proved it.

Oikawa Tooru

The way he sees it, you're saying everything he thinks at certain points of volleyball matches.

Which calls for a lot of respect for you to be saying some of that out loud.

But that doesn't make him any less terrified.

Oikawa definitely record some of your episodes where you release long strings of curses and insults that rival Iwaizumi's and Tsukishima's combined.

Also all of those clips he 100% sends to Iwa, btw.

Very, very rarely comments on it, again, he's scared of your reaction.

Like he has convinced himself that the way you can hurl a controller across the room you can do the same with his body.

With that being the way he sees things, doesn't hesitate to buy you a new controller after you ask him for a new one (if he can afford it).

The thing is, he adores the concept of you getting toxic to other people over the game.

He finds it so badass plus its definitely some stuff he wish he could say while playing volleyball.

So he's a little less against commenting on that.

"Ha! Suck my dick you losers!"

"Actually, Y/n-chan, I was thinking you could do that to me, instead? 🥺" You heard Oikawa say during a brief moment of borderline silence in your headphones.

You gazed in slight shock at the jokingly innocent look on Oikawa's face, forgetting he was even in the room at the moment; what he actually said to you being an after thought.

The sound of your character dying rang through the headset you were wearing, quickly looking back to the screen.

"Fuck!!"

"Me. That's what I was saying. Can you hear me through those clunky headphone's, Y/n-Chan?" He teased taking a few steps closer to you but quickly flinched away as you gave him a glare that was similar to the one you had when you got angry over a video game...

Tsukishima Kei

Out of all the boys here, he hates it the most by far.

He also barely understands how someone can get someone can get so angry over anything, especially something like a video game.

Doesn't like the fact that you can remind him of Tanaka during these moments.

Most of the time he's just "Can i just get my chill S/O back now?"

Tsukki does not care if you're playing a game where its impossible to rage at, he will never be in the same room as you while you're gaming

But when he hears your shouts of anguish towards a game while he's in another room, he can't help to be just a little amused.

Probably has a few audio files of you raging saved on his phone as blackmail.

He has the understanding of "Its either they take out that anger on a video game or me.. Video game sounds better."

He has definitely 1000% picked up some insults and witty comebacks from your toxic moments but will profusely deny if you ask him if that's something you've said at some point.

He'll never buy you more controllers if you ask for one right after you broke yet another controller.

But every so often you'll find 3 new controllers next to your gaming console as a backlog for when you break another with no warning.

"This game fucking sucks ass!!"

All Tsukishima needed was a pencil to continue his studying in the other room. He should've been in the room for only a few seconds. Thats what he thought but apparantly, the universe decided that he deserves to hear your yelling and not a pencil.

"Then don't play it then, Y/n..." He said in an agitated tone of voice as he loudly slammed shut another drawer that didn't have a pencil.

"But this is my favorite game, Tsukki!" Your words made him freeze for a moment, the concept of you hating your favorite game perplexed him but he quickly shook his head, continuing his search.

[bimswritings]

Games and Prizes

Warning:none

Ships: Reylo/Finnpoe

A server event that I recently took part in, with the prompt I received being carnival for @perry-the-rebelpus! I've never written for in show ships but I loved doing this. It leans more towards fairs since that's what I have more experience with, but never the less, I hope you enjoy! I also took a more modern AU approach as I felt it was the best way to tackle this!-Bim

_______________________________________________

“Really Rey, we don’t have to do this.” Kylo tried to convince her for what felt like the thousandth time, and most likely was. Ever since she had discovered he had never been to a fair, she insisted on going, even calling and finding someone to cover her shift at the mechanics. The stubborn girl wouldn't have it though, ignoring his protest as she hopped off the motorcycle, grabbing the helmet from his hands and tossing it along with her own under the seat.

“Nonsense. Carnivals are an important part of growing up.” Her hand interlocked with his own, guiding him in the same direction as the crowd that was steadily streaming in. Ranging from families with excited and energetic children, to young couples such as themselves. “There was one that came through town every year when I was a kid. My parents always took me for a special treat at the end of the harvest.”

Rey’s eyes took on a softer, more distant look. One that Kylo knew all too well. It was the same one he got when talking about his own family, feelings of both sorrow and yearning for better times. Times that, despite how much they both may want to, they can’t go back to.

He lifted their intertwined hand, bringing Rey’s attention back to the present as he placed a light kiss to her knuckles. A small smile curved her lips, and they continued on to the increasingly bright lights of the carnival, the setting sun only highlighting their peaks further.

Once inside, they were quick to buy their wristbands for the rides, Rey practically bouncing with excitement the entire time in line. As soon as the offending neon green bands were in place she was pulling him towards the rides, her eyes bouncing between each one.

“Oh, let’s go on that one!” She pointed towards what could only be described as a giant wheel. It was as if a ferris wheel had been taken and laid down on its side, with the seats all inverted and its spinning capabilities dialed up a thousand.

“I’m not sure. Those seat belts don’t look like they would do a very good job of keeping me from flying off.” He eyed the offending items warily, to which Rey simply rolled her eyes as she pulled him into line.

“Children go on it and live. I think you’ll be fine Mr. ‘Tall and Brooding’.”

It didn’t take long for their turn to arrive, and it seemed like only in the blink of an eye were they strapping into the seats, the ride operator barely giving the belts a tug before moving to his operating booth in the center. With the press of a button the ride was whirring to life, slowly picking up speed until they were all but plastered to the side of the ride. The seats they were strapped to began moving up slightly, and it was only now that he noticed they were on rails that allowed them to move up and down with the increased G-force.

The pressure pushed his face back, though nothing he wasn’t used to. It was hard to focus on the ride with Rey beside him however. Her laughter spilled above the loud whirring of the ride and excited and terrified yells of the other riders. It was something he would never get used to, with how carefree and joyful it always sounded. Something he would always strive to hear as often as he could. Nothing could compare to the gut churning reaction he had when he heard it, though the sight of her stumbling, off balance and clearly still slightly disoriented, as they got off the ride came in a close second. It did nothing to deter her, still smiling as she pulled him to the next ride.

On and on they went, ride after ride all evening. It was only after she had proceeded to destroy him in bumper cars time after time that he suggested they go and get food.

“We can ride a bit longer!” Rey had tried to protest, not content to take a break until they had ridden all the rides at least twice. It was the first time she had been able to go to such an event ever since her parents had passed, and she was determined to make the most of it, even if she went a little hungry. Her stomach seemed to have other plans however, cutting her off in the middle of her protest with a loud growl of its own. Her cheeks flushed as Kylo chuckled, wrapping an arm around her shoulder and steering her towards the vendors. All night the smell of the overpriced and greasy food had been tempting him, though he dared not to eat any of the potential nauseating treats while Rey was still determined to ride so many things that spun.

After paying for a slice of pizza each, as well as an almost comically large elephant ear to split afterwards, they settled down on one of the far tables away from all the action.

“Thank you.” Rey spoke, finally breaking the comfortable silence that had developed as they watched others pass by. He cocked his head slightly to the side, confused and prompting her to clarify further.

“For agreeing to come, I mean. I know places like this aren’t really your style.” She grew suddenly shy, finding her fingers more interesting than anything else at the moment. Her nails nervously picked at one another, though there was nothing much to pick at. Years of working at the mechanics had left them short and cracked in places, much tougher than you would think for the rest of her looking so soft. Yet her hands were one of his favorite things. Hands that held his own softly, as if they weren’t the hands of a man who had killed dozens; that would softly card through his locks while absentmindedly laying on the couch. Hands that would hold his face close, brushing over each scar tenderly as she whispered soothing words for minutes, hours. As long as it took.

He thought her hands were the most beautiful things in the world, both then and now, as he took them in his own.

“For you, I would go anywhere.” He leaned in closer, locking games as he lightly pressed his forehead to hers. She was warm, her skin almost burning in contrast to the cool night air. Though it was anybody's guess how much it was due to her body temperature, and how much was caused by the quickly rising blush that consumed her face. “Especially if I could see you as happy as I have today.”

“You two really need to get a room.”

The third voice took them both by surprise, so wrapped up with one another that they hadn’t even noticed their audience, and in his surprise Kylo jolted forward, bashing his skull against Rey’s before falling backwards off the bench and landing painfully on his tailbone.

“Finn!” He heard her joyous shout. Propping himself up on his elbows, he spotted the named man, who was currently receiving a hug from his girlfriend, as well as Finn’s own boyfriend.

“Dameron.” He nodded, climbing to his feet as the man returned the gesture silently.

It wasn’t that they didn’t like one another, quite the opposite actually. They held nothing but respect for each other, both having spent time in the air force. The only rift came from the fact that Kylo had run more covert missions, often flying solo or with just a single partner, while Poe was in charge of and flew an entire squadron. He thought of him as more of a mercenary, while Kylo would consider his potential wasted on such general missions. Still, the greatest offense in his eyes was still the fact that he had chosen to date someone from the marines. The marines. Of all the branches, he had to choose someone from the one known for shooting first and asking questions never. The two might have never seen each other after serving, yet fate had other plans; of which being in the form of their respective partners having been best friends through high school and college. They had only met again by chance after moving to the same small town in hopes of living a quiet, simple life.

“I should have known you guys would be here. You’re never one to miss a fair.” Rey continued, moving back around the table to sit next to Kylo once again, who was still rubbing at the sore spot on his head, briefly wondering what her bones could possibly be made of to have not even flinched at such a hit.

“Maybe if we told you, we wouldn’t have to be subjugated to your nauseating sweetness.” Poe teased, leaning across the table while Finn rolled his eyes. “I have to say, I’m disappointed in you Ren. There’s children around here you know.’’

Kylo said nothing, only gathering their trash and standing, the rest following in suit as he spoke.

“Well, it was nice seeing you again, but we were about to continue our date night and-”

“You guys should join us!” Rey cut in, taking him by surprise. Even if it was her best friend, she was never really one for group outings, preferring just one or two other people.

“It would be just like old times!” Finn agreed.

Kylo was about to protest, and from the way Poe had opened his mouth he was too, but before either male could get a word out the two had already linked arms and were strolling away, deeping in conversation and leaving their dates forgotten. So, begrudgingly, the two men followed.

By this point night had fully set in and the activities of the fair were in full swing. Brightly colored tents lined the venue, creating makeshift paths that helped to funnel the large number of people into a form of organization. It seemed that Rey had had her fill of rides, as she and Finn continued on deeper into the games and shows section that ran along the outside. Here, vendors yelled and mocked, teased and prodded; anything they could do to get the attention of the passersby. Games of skill, strength, and pure luck, though anyone with half a brain knew that the majority were all rigid. Above and lining all the booths were more stuffed animals than Kylo had ever seen in his life, and though some of them he found creepy and downright ugly, he could see the appeal of some.

“Hey Rey! Look!” Finn pointed to one of the stalls, highlighting a create he had never seen before. It looked like a penguin, except the eyes were far too large, and it lacked a beak as well as the stark black and white of the animal in favor of more neutral tones.

The two were at the booth in a flash, the vendor already talking to them as Kylo and Poe caught up. Just from the looks of the man, Kylo immediately didn’t like him. He had spent enough time around others to be able to get an accurate read on them, and this guy had the same shifty, fox eyed look to him that all new recruits who were too big for their breeches had.

“Well hello there.” He leaned in, far too close for Kylo’s liking, and he felt himself tense, his pace quickening to reach them as the man continued his speel.

“Feel like testing your luck against the mysterious and dangerous kraken to free one of its victims.” He gestured to the creatures above.

Rey was immediately digging in her bag, looking for her wallet with Finn doing the same beside her. Before she could get too far however, he was there. Stepping between her and the booth, he pulled his wallet and slapped the five dollars on the counter. Poe did the same next to him.

The vendor collected the money with one fell swoop, tossing two balls onto the counter for them to load at the suction cup guns laying there. He did so with ease, the object feeling almost childishly small and fragile in his hands as he raised it to the target; a kraken shaped cutout a number of feet away. A spiralled target rests dead center in the middle of its forehead.

He fell into proper shooting position naturally, bringing the poor excuse of a sight to eye level as his arms locked.

‘Pop’ ‘Pop’

A jolt traveled through his body. Not because the dinky little object had any form of recoil, but because of how far he had missed the mark. The ball had barely even glanced the side of the creature, and from the look Poe had he had missed just as badly.

He shook it off, ignoring the amusement he felt coming from the two beside him and blaming it on the simple differences of the object from what he was used to. Of course it wouldn’t fire like a normal gun. Expecting the accuracy to be anything more than lacking would be stupid of him. Now that he knew just how off it was, he could adjust accordingly. Both paying for another round, the shooters were loaded and aimed in seconds. Going of where it hit last time, he raised the end a bit and brought it slightly to the right.

‘Pop’ ‘Pop’

They fired again, and again they missed.

“Oh, too bad my friends. I guess you’re not as skilled as your little dates thought you were.” The vendor taunted, sending a wink Rey’s way.

Feeling anger quickly starting to rise within him, there was no way Kylo was about to give up now. He paid another five, giving him another ball.

Then another.

And another.

And another.

Several minutes and thirty dollars later he was nowhere closer to winning, his shots, instead of coming closer, were going more and more astray from the target. With each miss his anger rose, and Poe was doing no better beside him.

“For the love of-”

“Ah ah~ Watch your language.” The vendor smirked, only making his temper worse. “There’s children around here after all. What example would you be giving them if you showed how much of a sore loser you were.”

Kylo genuinely thought he was going to hop over the booth and wipe the smug smirk from his face. A gentle hand brought his attention as Rey gently pried the shooter from his grip, a concerned smile on her face.

“Hey, let me have a shot at it.” He hesitated, not wanting her to feel the same discouragement and embarrassment he currently was. The look in her eye stopped him short. It was the same look she had whenever she was working at the shop or on his car at home. A look of utter confidence in what she was doing.

The three men stared at the two friends in astonishment as they high five, already moving on to picking out which of the stuffed creatures they wanted.ly the same position he had been in early, evidently having taken Poe’s place as well. The vendor leaned in closer, Rey clearly doing her best to ignore him as she focused on the target.

“Now sweetheart, what you’re going to want to do is-”

The familiar simultaneous pop of the ball leaving the suctioned end sounded, just as it had with his previously. Unlike their attempts however, instead of silence the pops were answered with the sound of a loud buzzer and the muted cry of the kraken as its eyes lit up red.

The three men stared at the two friends in astonishment as they high fived, already moving on to picking out which of the stuffed creatures they wanted.

“The one in the very back! He looks the softest!” Rey exclaimed, pointing. There was nothing left for the vendor to do but grumble as he grabbed the creature, along with Finn’s choice. All but tossing the animals he was quick to shoo them away, his persona turning from sour to cheerful on a dime as he lured the next group in to the nearly impossible game.

“I just don’t understand.” Poe shook his head in disbelief. Finn gave him a comforting squeeze.

“Rey and I grew up with these games every year. We’re practically professionals.”

“Yeah.” She nodded from under Kylo’s arm, which was thrown around her shoulder. “The vendors hated us. We nearly got banned the one year when we were going around seeing how many we could win before they closed.” They both laughed at the memory, leaving their boyfriends to simply shake their heads.

By now it had grown late, the group foregoing to visit any of the barns due to Poe’s hay allergy. They could always come back tomorrow. After walking the other couple to their car, they made their way back to their Rey’s ride. After pulling the helmets from under the seat, Kylo was surprised when Rey tossed the stuffed animal to him.

“Here.”

His brows furrowed questioningly as he glanced back between her and the creature.

“Are you...are you giving this to me?”

She nodded, slipping on her jacket to protect her from the wind.

“But you were so excited for it.”

“You said that you’ve never been to a fair before, so I assume that you’ve never gotten one of the ridiculously large stuffed animals from one.” She spoke, turning to him. “It’ll be a nice way to mark the occasion. Besides,” she smirked, moving to pull her helmet on. “,it's not like we don’t share a bed anyways. He’ll be there no matter what.”

With that she pulled on her helmet, tilting her head cheekily before tossing her leg over the bike. He climbed on after, his chest feeling lighter than it had all week as he wrapped his arms around her waist. The stuffed animal was sandwiched safely in between them, ready for the journey home.

There was no one more perfect for him, and he reminisced on the fact as the bike roared to life underneath him. He could already picture the stuffed animal and how ridiculous it would look in their otherwise modern styled and well kept room. Normally all the small trinkets and knick knacks Rey would bring home were restricted to her hobby room, him not being able to handle the clutter they created. This however? This would fit perfectly in their room.

She still had to be the one to name it though.

[cadykeus-clay]

Would you mind sharing your thoughts about vex and Beau being cross campaign foils?

so!!!! first things first: apologies for taking weeks to answer this, finals + having adhd sometimes makes my brain turn to mush and forget every ask ive ever recieved. second of all, i’m assuming you sent me this bc of what i said in my vm vs. m9 how they view the world meta. and i’ll be real with you. i have exactly 0 memory of what was going through my head when i wrote that line, so i am simply going to type out a bunch of thoughts that i have on the similarities and differences between beau and vex and i hope that lives up to what you were expecting jsdflksjdksld

I'll detail some specifics in a moment, but overall, I think beau and vex share a very similar kind of trauma of exclusion in their formative years, that's caused them to have a lot of similar traits that manifest in different ways - for vex, she maintains control through her material posessions and beau finds an emotional control in her asshole-ness. I've broken this down into 5 points on which I think comparing the two really emphasizes that claim:

1. daddy issues: both beau and vex have awful no good terrible very bad dads. both syldor and thoreau can suck my ass. they both raised their kids with little love and impossible-to-meet expectations, alientating them and leaving them with lifelong feelings of inferiority and unbelonging. If beau and vex were to meet, i think they would have a very friendly toast to shitty dads, and then have a good drunk vent about it an hour later.

but, at the same time, the actual minutae of their trauma and the ways it manifests are nearly polar opposites. syldor wanted nothing to do with vex, or else wanted her to somehow become a full elf. her issue was that she would never be able to belong, despite her desire to, and as she grew up it lead to her being overly protective and even possessive of the people she found who DID accept her as she was. 

With beau, rather than exclusion, her father created an environment of toxic inclusion. He created a role for beau to belong in, disregarding her distate for actually fulfilling it. And, as such, she ended up making herself into someone who could have no expectations and pushed away anyone who tried to set them up for her. In the end, they both came to love themselves by abandoning the woman their father wanted them to be but for vex it was the laying down of an impossible dream and for beau it was the picking up of a mantle she had feared to wear.

2. brothers: now, on the topic of family, I also think its really interesting how their interactions with their brothers play out. We've got vex and vax, tied at the hip til the very end and then some; and then we've got beau and TJ - decades apart and with beau barely acknolwedging TJ's existence. But, even that distance between beau and TJ didn't stop her caring for him when they actually met. She gave him lucky Jade, and she entertained the idea of kidnapping him to get him away from her stinko dad. 

And I'd espeically like to talk about what she said outside the hag's hut - "I think Luc and TJ could be best friends", in comparison to the way Vex reacted when Vax told her was going to Zephrah with Keyleth for the year break. There's an aspect to the way they interact with their brothers that lets them slip back into those bad habits they formed growing up (NOT that i'm claiming vex and vax were like toxic for each other. but even good relationships can have unhealthy moments). 

With Beau, when she offers to give her happiness so TJ can grow up safe, she's trying to take on the role she's ""supposed"" to fill - the big sister, the protector - because she failed to fill the one her father set out. And with Vex, when she grows jealous of Vax, it's because she's afraid that his leaving with keyleth is a sign that she no longer belongs in his inner circle, and she falls back on that childish, desperate desire to do anything to be accepted unconditionally. 

3. romance: spoilers for 5 or so most recent m9 eps (115-120)  if you haven't watched them ahead!!!! at this point, both vex and beau have an endgame romance - percy and yasha respectively. Obviously as the m9's campaign is still playing out, that could change, but like. yasha wrote her a love letter and they're officially going on a date so i'm counting that as at least endgame-track rather than just random flirting. What's interesting to me is that they both seem to flip between the SAME roles between their (in-game) general perception and their actual pursual of romance. 

Vex gets characterized as a pretty big flirt, right? She's got the winks, the casual "darling". She's flashed grog her boobs on multiple instances with little prompting. Beau, similarly, has easily the most game out of anyone in the m9. She's slept with two guest characters and at least one more npc in the events of the game. Caleb made her a fuck mirror in her room in the mansion. And yet, in both of their actual romantic endeavors, they became the shy, uncertain type. 

Vex only confessed her feelings when Percy was laying dead before her, and not an hour of game play before percy kissed her in the woods, she had a talk with vax about how she was pretty sure he didn't like her that way and she didn't want to pursue it. Beau, similarly, spent a very long time convinced that yasha wasn't looking for love after zuala, especially not in anyone like her, asked everyone in the party if they thought yasha ACTUALLY liked her, just to be safe, and then still terrified to ask her out after recieving a literal love letter. I'd argue this shift comes from that same sense of unbelonging - they're very good at pretending they fit a role but doubt their actual right to take it when the opportunity is presented. This time, the role is the lover rather than the daughter.

4. authority: Both vex and beau grew up shunned by the upper crust of society, and grew to mistrust those kinds of people. And yet, both of their arcs result in them assuming such a position. Vex, thrown out of high society gets her place as a baronness, and Beau, running from leadership of her father's business ends up a top member of the Cobalt Soul. There's not a lot here, but I find it interesting how both of their stories involve them shedding their baggage regarding authority and power and assuming it in a way that they feel comfortable in - invitation by someone she trusts for vex, and a promise of freedom of will and control for beau.

5. their deadliest sins: this is the point at which their similarities culminate and transform to a fundamental difference. despite everything they share - shitty childhoods, the small piece of family that's still good, flirtiness masking shy love, and a mistrust of those in power - vex and beau are such different characters because of their biggest vices. Vex, both in game and out, is "the greedy one". She's stingy with money, she haggles for everything, she mourns the loss of physical objects. Beau is "the mean one". She cares little for people's feelings if they're not in her immediate circle, she focuses on her tough guy image, she laughs at things she knows she shouldn't. 

And, over the course of the campaign, as they find unconditional acceptance, they grow away from these traits (I won't say they grow out of them) because they heal from the things causing these vices to begin with. I've always been vocal about vex's greed being a manifestation of her class insecurity, and beau's asshole-ness stemming from her fear of being forced back into another position of complacency. And I stand by that now - all the similarities in their backstories are what tally up to these different women.

Despite her careful tally of party funds and her reflexive bargaining, vex is not cruel. she is not angry on her own behalf. She saves two boys from the market in the city of brass at great personal cost, she relinquishes an entire dragon's hoard to the devastated city of Westruun, she took the time to save a baby bear from a cage when she could have just cut and run after escaping her own. She's the first one most people go to when they need a shoulder to cry on, and she's devastated when they don't (thinkin about when Scanlan left). She carved "forgiveness" into the bow she stole from a man after killing him by proclaiming how much she loved someone, because she knew anger had no place in her heart.

And Beau, Beau is a bitch and she's harsh, but she doesn't hoard or protect like vex did. she spends her money without much of a second thought. She pitches in to help her friends buy a ton of glowsticks, and she loves to indulge in material desires like drink and good food and the nicer inn room. She's a member of an organization that's about making knowledge public rather than guarding it. And, though this may be controversial, I think her position with bowlgate of "its not our problem what cali wants to do with it", her long-standing mistrust of their alliance with the bright queen and  and more recently with the tomb takers of "i want to go in and talk, rather than assuming they're antagonistic, even if it puts us at a disadvantage" are both examples of this non-possessiveness too - she has no need or desire to get involved in controlling what other people are doing.

so, i guess the general conclusion here is: vex struggles to let go of things, of money, of people. beau struggles to let herself be known in case she gets wrongly interpreted again. they both fight feelings of inadequacy, they both fight the feelings of not belonging, of 'doing it wrong', they fight the perception of them as shitty people because of the shells they hide in despite their absolute hearts of gold.  but at the end of the day, vex's story is one of having to lay down what could never be hers so she can carry what is, and beau's story is one of allowing herself to be known so a place can be made for her.

[that-fandom-pan]

Obey Me OC Profile!

Finally decided to post something myself here! Here’s the profile of my Obey Me OC, Rulgrodath.

Name: Rulgrodath

AKA: Ru

Birthday: Jan 13th

Zodiac: Capricorn

Favourite colour/colour scheme: Black, green, blue and silver

Scent: Ocean – seaweed, sea salt.

Height: 5’3’’

Voice: Strong but pretty quiet most of the time, very sarcastic when she’s angry, ranges between alto and soprano tones because of her music career, if she’s talking and she wants someone to hear, they know about it. Her voice is loudest when she’s angry, but she tends to go very quiet beforehand, and speaks through gritted teeth before she blows up.

Eyes: Yellow with a slit, catlike pupil

Hair: Dark brown, reaches about ¾ down her back, has a slightly lopsided fringe parting 

Body: 

Demon form: One pair of large black feathered wings with an iridescent sheen of green and blue, two sets of horns, one curling down either side of her head and two sets of horns, one curling down the sides of her head, one sticking up, green and blue scales on her temples, jaw and neck, long black green and blue feathered tail, black feathers around her shoulders and neck, usually wears a set of black gloves with two sets of finger armour on the index and middle finger of her right hand, black leggings and tank top (occasionally a black dress).

Human(ish) form: very skinny, no horns or wings, still has the scales, wears the same finger armour as in her demon form but without the gloves, hoodies or fluffy jumpers and leggings or sweatpants depending on how she feels, and a necklace Levi bought for her at a Comic Con as a sign of friendship.

Obsessions/habits: Can have severe body issues at times as it reminds her of how she died, this is what most of her breakdowns are based on, very protective of people she cares about, can overthink a lot, if nervous she’ll either bite her lip or mess with her hands (e.g. tapping, wringing her hands, cracking her knuckles), if she’s wearing a necklace or jewellery she’ll mess with that or her hair, will absorb herself in music or games when she’s upset, can verbally and emotionally blow up if she’s pushed too far, is also pretty self conscious about her height as compared to most demons she is very small due to her originally being a human.

Sweet spot/Sensitive place: Top of her head and behind her ears - she will start purring like a cat, very ticklish, will punch or try to freeze whoever is tickling her unless they are very close (e.g. Mammon, Astro*, Hiris**). 

Talents: Musician, very talented vocalist, good at comforting people when they're having bad days and cheering them up, not afraid to stand up for herself and other, can be quite terrifying at times, notices small details pretty often, can read body language and pick up on details of a person's attitude, personality and actions

Faults/sins: Envy and Pride, as those are what killed her, severe body issues, has a tendency of putting others above her own wellbeing, inner conflict of wanting to be perfect and knowing that is self destructive, a bit of a people pleaser,

Special skills/powers: Water magic, calming voice.

Music taste: Very wide, varies from jazz/swing to modern pop, film and game soundtracks to classical music, rock to musicals. The only kind of music she doesn't particularly like is reggae.

Personality: Kind, a little overprotective, a 'mum' friend to anyone she cares about, not afraid to speak her mind, will stand up for others, tough outside, soft inside.

Nicknames: RuRu (Mammon), Treasure (Mammon), Player 3 (Levi), Water Witch, Ice Queen/Ice Witch/Snow Witch, White Witch 

Backstory key points: Grew up in a family of musicians, was heavily praised throughout her life, grew envious of other musicians she thought were better than her, which led to her practicing almost constantly with no breaks. Died of starvation, dehydration and exhaustion. Was reborn in the Devildom as a demon of Envy and Pride. Met Levi at a Comic Con - they literally ran into each other, Levi in Lord of Shadows cosplay, Ru in Female Henry cosplay on her way to perform on stage, they bonded after the performance. Stayed in contact online for a while before meeting up in cosplay a few times, then to hang out as friends. Levi eventually brought her back to HOL to play games, where she was introduced to his brothers.

Animal theme: Feathered dragon/bald eagle

Relations to other characters:

Lucifer: Heavy dislike because of how harsh he can be to his brothers, especially Mammon. Will tolerate him though. Will quote musicals and sometimes Shakespeare to casually insult him. Will only lash out if he says something that might hurt someone, as a reminder that maybe he shouldn’t be so tough on those around him. 

Mammon: Love interest (ignore this if you don’t like OCs shipped with canon characters). Bonded after she first came home with Levi, she saw how, despite being talked down to by his brothers, he kept supporting them no matter what insults they threw at him. Very supportive of him and comforts him whenever she can.

Levi: Best friend (one of), was the first of the brothers she met, thinks he's funny and likes it when he starts rambling about things he likes, joins in at times, wants to help him with his insecurities.

Satan: Mutual respect for how much they both annoy Lucifer. Happy to talk about books and musicals with him. Tries to reassure him that he is not Lucifer 2.0

Asmo: Best friend (one of). Gossip, music and shopping buddies. Likes spending spa days together. Very supportive of her whenever she has a body image breakdown. Tries to calm her down when she's angry at Lucifer, but won't physically get in the way. 

Beel: Friends, he makes sure she has food if she's going through one of her body image episodes (was told by Mammon and Asmo), tries to comfort him when he's worried about what's happening between his brothers. Will frequently bake things for him and his brothers.

Belphie: Like Satan, mutual respect for how much they annoy Lucifer. Happy to lie about and just chill with him.

MC: Mother figure. Very protective of them and will defend them from anyone who wishes them harm, including the brothers. Makes sure they're alright as much as she can. Has a pact with them so they can call her whenever they need her.

Diavolo: Respects him. Understands he has a lot going on so will give help when asked, but most of the time will leave him be. Very grateful towards him due to him helping her get settled in the Devildom when she arrived after her death.

Barbatos: A little afraid of him because of his time related abilities. Tries to keep on his good side as much as she can.

Simeon: A bit of a fan, since he's the author of TSL, one of her favourite series. Holds him in very high regards, very happy to talk with him. Has offered to collaborate with him if he needs music for future films/episodes.

Luke: Considers herself a bit of a mother figure to him. Looks after him when he's upset, happy to bake with him as much as he wants.

Solomon: A little skeptical of him, considering the 72 pacts he has with demons and his magical ability. One of the few people she struggles to read.

Astro*: Best friend (one of). Will team up with her to stand up to Lucifer. Protective of one another, will gladly cause chaos together.

Hiris**: Best friend (one of). A little jealous at times because she still has some family, but overall similar relationship as between Ru and Astro. Will gladly try to satisfy her curiosity and listens to her stories a lot.

Role: Student, vocalist and musician at multiple clubs

Family: None, doesn’t know what happened to her human parents or siblings after she died, barely remembers them at all.

Extra facts:

Will use her water magic both to help herself and others to calm down after a bad day and also to trap anyone she wants to 'talk' to - will freeze their legs and shoes to the ground so they can't move (usually Lucifer or people who decide to verbally or physically attack one of her friends)

Will buy Mammon or Levi something from Akuzon without them knowing whenever they've had a bad day to cheer them up

Will cause water based inconveniences targeted at Lucifer if she wants a more subtle way of annoying him after he's given someone (usually Mammon) a too severe punishment - e.g. burst pipe in his bathroom, frozen drink when he's starting to overstep his boundaries (even when she's not in the room, has a codeword with Mammon for him to send to her if he ever feels like Lucifer is talking down to him too much), bucket of water is accidentally knocked over and it spills on him, water goes cold when he's having a shower and will not reheat (Lucifer knows its her but has no way to prove it as she's never actually seen doing it unless she wants to be seen, only MC, Hiris and Astro know that Ru has the HOL pipe system memorized so she knows which pipe goes to which room)

Most presents she gives that haven't been bought on Akuzon are either made with her water magic or tickets to concerts she has managed to get through a few connections (the latter is usually for Levi)

Can and will come up with the most creative insults she can

Is an ace at rhythm games

Has sung duets with Asmo/accompanied Asmo on several instruments 

Hates horror movies 

Always carries two flasks: one of water so she always has access to something to use for her powers, and one of pineapple juice to help soothe her throat. 

Has let Asmo style her several times for concerts - including the time with the suit and corset.

Loves swimming

Is bisexual

Ship facts (please disregard this if you don’t like OCs shipped with canon characters):

Often persuades Mammon to do shows/concerts with her as a way to make him feel better and to get back at his brothers

Mammon has persuaded her to do multiple modelling sessions with him.

Also uses the concerts she knows Mammon will be watching as a way to flirt with him - has worn a suit and corset with heeled boots to do this before.

Has kissed Mammon on stage multiple times.

Has Mammon saved as MonMon on her DDD 

*Astro belongs to one of my friends (will update if I find them on Tumblr)

**Hiris belongs to @storypanda88

[nanasarea]

🇨‌🇦‌🇧‌🇮‌🇳

❆Prompt: your friends asked you to stay with them in a cabin for a bit of a vacation and you obviously cant say no to them

❆Genre: fluff

❆Pairing: reader x best friend!nct (dream focus)

❆Word count: 2.6k (ok longest fic I see you)

❆a/n: this was so fun to write and now I'm crying I want this also I might make a summer edition once it gets hotter bc I have IDEAS now

ALSO NOT PROOFREAD

❆Tag list: @bumblebeenct​ @socketpunch​

❆TW: toy gun (?), German, swearing (?) idk not much haha

“Get in, loser, we’re going out of our minds!” Donghyuck yelled from the bus. 

You had agreed to spend the weekend with your friends at a cabin in the woods. 

They all got some time off and wanted to spend some time throwing snow balls at each other and building snowmen, but they couldn't do that without you. 

It was Friday, the day of departure. You had just gotten a text to come outside from Jeno a few minutes ago and there you were, staring at the big bus with 23 grown men, which would otherwise be terrifying, but since it was them, it seemed fun, and only a tiny bit terrifying. 

“Haven't you already?” You yelled back as you walked towards the bus and saw Johnny step out of the bus to help you with your bags and before you could say that you got it, they were already put away on the bus. 

“Thanks.” You smiled at him, your neck slightly hurting from the angle you had to put it in, in order to look at him.

“Don't mention it. Or do, if you must.” He said dramatically and gestured for you to get on the bus before him. You stepped into the bus and Johnny soon followed. 

Immediately, you were greeted by Doyoung, who was sitting at the front with Taeyong, who asked you about how you were and if you slept well.

You quickly greeted back and told them you were great and that you couldn't sleep that well, because you were excited. Before you could ask them the same, YangYang yelled for you to come over to the back as Hyuck pulled you after him. 

You tried to greet as many people as you could before getting to the back, where Yangyang sat with Renjun, Haechan and Hendery. Hyuck quickly sat down on the far left, right next to Renjun. 

Next to Renjun was a free seat, and next to that one Yangyang, with Hendery at the far right. Renjun and Yangyang both patted at the seat and smiled at you, waiting for you to sit between them.

“I’m guessing my plan of a quiet ride was doomed from the start.” You dramatically sighed as you sat down between the two. 

“That was never an option and you know it.” Hyuck laughed, causing all 5 of you to chuckle.

You spent a good 40 minutes talking to Yangyang and Hendery as Renjun and Hyuck debated about something next to you, before you made the first stop. 

“About 10 minutes and then if you're not back on the bus, we shall leave without you, except for you, Jisung, we love you and would never leave you.” Johnny said before the group chuckled as Jisung got embarrassed.

You swear you could hear Chenle’s “of course we would, we have terrible memory.” and Jisung sighing before Renjun dragged you off the bus. 

You got off the bus and were met with Jaemin, who looked like he was about to kill someone, and Jeno, who looked he was trying his best for Jaemin not to give in. 

“Good morning.” You said “Whats so good about it?” Jaemin sighed, leaning against the bus and throwing his head back. 

You looked over at Jeno and tried to contain your laugh, to which he only mouthed “No coffee yet”. You nodded, chuckling a bit before following Shotaro, Hendery and Kun, who went to go get coffee for everyone. 

You barely got your own cup into your hands before you were pulled away from the three and into the store.

“Yn, come with me, I need it.” Hyuck said. “Need what?” You asked, following close behind. 

He didn't comment, he just dragged you to the toy section and showed you the toy gun. 

“You need a toy gun?” You asked “Yes.” He sassed “Its so pretty.” He explained “And it has fake bullets!” He added, excitedly. 

“Very nice, Hyuck. Here’s a deal, I’ll buy you the extra bullets if you promise not to use the gun on me.” You said, knowing very well that you need to make a deal beforehand.

“Deal.” He smiled, shaking your hand. 

Once you finished at the check out, you saw Jaemin pinching Jisung’s cheeks while Chenle and Jeno had their heads in their hands, they weren't surprised, but still a tad disappointed. 

“How many coffees did I miss?” You asked, causing Jeno to chuckle before returning to his disappointment. 

You stood outside of the bus for a while, talking to Chenle about his dog, well, him talking and showing you photos of Daegal while you listened and admired.

“Can I be her godparent?” You asked, placing a hand on his shoulder as Xiaojun’s head turned to you. “Godly parent?” He asked.

“God parent, but while we’re on the topic-” “DONT GET HIM STARTED, IM SITTING NEXT TO HIM AND I WANT TO SLEEP.” Kun cut you off.

“Haha, old man.” Lucas laughed before Kun looked at him and sighed. “I didn't sign up for this, I just wanted to sing.” He sighed. “You love us and you know it!” Yangyang teased. 

After a minute, you returned back to your seat and watched as Hyuck put the bullets into the gun already. 

You pulled out your phone and put in your headphones, before Renjun came up to you and took them away from you and put them in his pocket. 

“Hey!” you protested. “Wait a bit.” He said, laughing and sitting next to you.

“Now, is everyone awake?” Johnny asked, standing up once again. “Yes!” The whole bus yelled.

“What?” he asked, placing his hand behind his ear. “Ay, Ay, captain!” 

“I can't hear you!” 

“Ay, ay, captain!”

“Ohhhh, who wants the aux first?” 

A couple hands got raised, but Johnny sighed and said “If no one wants it, I guess ill be first.” and put on the first song, which was SHINee’s Lucifer, which made the whole bus jam out.

The songs kept going and your ears were in heaven, there were 23 professional singers singing some of your favourite songs, of course they were, but after a while, the atmosphere calmed down and you continued talking to Renjun.

You remember seeing most of WayV, Shotaro and Jungwoo playing a game, Taeyong play on his Nintendo while Doyoung watched and critiqued, Johnny and Taeil making Mark and Ten laugh every 3 seconds as Jaehyun and Yuta discussed something.

After some time, Jeno, Jaemin, Chenle and Jisung changed seats so they were right in front of you, which resulted in you playing some games.

An hour later, you got to your destination. You watched as Jaehyun, Jeno, Lucas, Jaemin and Johnny bring the bags and the suitcases from the bus as  Kun, Taeyong and Doyoung went to go get the keys while you and the others stood before your cabins. 

Once the suitcases were out and distributed, you waited for the keys. Most of Wayv and Shotaro was standing on the porch and discussing something, half of 127 was cuddled up while the other half took photos, alongside Sungchan.

You and the dreamies and Yangyang however, were playing with the snow. Hyuck pulled out his fake gun and jokingly started pointing it at the others. He jokingly shot us, one by one and we all played along, expect for Chenle, because he couldn't bother to move.

First, it was Jaemin, then Yangyang, Jeno, you, Jisung and at the end, Renjun, who just so happen to be near a hill so you all watched in shock as he rolled down it, getting covered in snow as Jeno and Jaemin went to go get him. 

Taeyong walked over to you guys to give you the keys before he saw Renjun, who resembled a snowman and Jeno and Jaemin helping said snowman. 

“Renjun, you okay?” He asked as Chenle, Hyuck and Yangyang laughed their asses off. Renjun just showed a thumbs up as they made their way up the hill again.

You thanked Taeyong for the keys as he and Hyuck made their way to the 127′s cabin and Yangyang to WayV’s. 

You walked to the cabin and went in, leaving your bags at the door. Jeno started the fire in the fireplace as Jisung and Chenle browsed the cabin while you and Jaemin asked Renjun if he wants cuddles to warm him up.

“Normally, I would say no, but I'm really cold, so I shall allow it.” he said before you and Jaemin looked at each other and cuddled the melted snowman. 

After cuddling for a bit, Jeno suggested deciding roommates, so once Chenle and Jisung got back, they reported on the rooms and you used a random pair up generator, since none of you had any preference.

Jeno and Chenle got the ground floor room, which was closest to the kitchen. Jaemin and Jisung got the room one level up, which had the best bathroom and you and Renjun got the top floor room, which had the best view. 

“You guys hungry?” Chenle asked, to which everyone nodded. “I’ll call Doyoung and ask if they know what they're going to eat.” Jeno said, picking up his phone. 

“I’ll take the bags to our room.” Jaemin said, taking his and Jisung’s stuff and walking up the stairs. 

“I’ll do the same.” Renjun said as Chenle and Jeno looked at each other before Chenle sighed. “I guess I shall too.”

Now, you and Jisung were watching Jeno as he called Doyoung. Apparently, there was a take out place not so far away, which did deliveries so they decided on that. 

Once the others got back, you told them and you made your way to the biggest cabin, which was 127′s. The others also came to the cabin and half an hour of everyone on their phone, the food had arrived. 

Taeyong suggested they used his new projector to watch something, so you did. You all gathered on the big couch and floor as the movie started playing on the wall while you ate.

Two movies later, Kun suggested going outside to make snowmen, while Yangyang suggested a snow ball fight, so you did both.

You started building the snowmen with Taeil and Winwin, but once you felt a snow ball hit your back, you said fuck it and joined the fight. 

You got a few throws in before you all got really cold and went back inside for some hot chocolate. 

Xiaojun, Kun, Taeyong, Doyoung, Jaemin and Jeno went to the nearby store to buy what you needed for breakfast while the others stayed in the big cabin and played a few games before Renjun got mad at Jisung’s team beating him.

“Jisung, meet me on the rooftop.” Renjun commented, making everyone laugh. 

You ended up talking to Chenle about something, but you forgot the Korean word for it, and the English word for it, you could only remember the word in German, only because you remember Yangyang teaching it to you a while back.

“Yangyang!” You yelled, grabbing Chenle’s hand and walked over to Yangyang. “Yes?” He asked.

“How do you say schwert in Korean?” You asked. “You mean sword?” Yangyang asked, which made you mentally slap yourself for not remembering. 

“What about in Korean?” Chenle asked, causing silence from the both of you until you both yelled “Mark!” and so, you, Chenle and Yangyang walked over to him.

“Yes?” He asked. “How do you say sword in Korean?” Yangyang asked, to which Mark just stared at all of you.

“Johnny!” Mark yelled as so, you, Chenle, Yangyang and Mark now walked towards Johnny asked him the same question.

“Yeah?” He asked, turning around to face you all. “How do you say sword in Korean?” Mark asked.

Johnny just looked at you all before pulling out his phone and googling google translate. “검 (Geom).” he said, showing you the translation. 

“We’re idiots, aren't we?” You asked. “Yup.” “Totally.” “The dumbest.”

“Wait, how do you say it in Chinese...” Chenle wondered before yelling “Renjun!”

It was getting late, so you said your goodbyes to the others and went back to your cabins, where Jaemin insisted on making you all dinner, so while he made dinner, you sat down on the couch and turned the tv on and searched fort the new buzzed unsolved episode on the YouTube section. 

“You started it without me?” Renjun asked, sitting right next to you. “I was searching.” You defended as Chenle sat down on the floor and waited for you to hit play.

As Jeno helped Jaemin, the rest of you watched the episode, you and Renjun on the couch, his legs lightly tossed over your lap as he leaned against the arm of the couch while Chenle sat right below you on the floor and Jisung next to him. 

“Dumbass.” Renjun commented. “You would do the same.” You said, laughing. “I would not!” he yelled. “You would.” Chenle and Jisung said in unison, making Renjun huff and continue watching in silence as you pet his head, jokingly. 

By the end of the episode, Renjun had turned so that his head was in your lap and his legs were on the arm of the chair as you played his hair and Chenle and Jisung were lazily spread out on the floor.

“Kids, dinner’s ready!” Jeno yelled, causing the two on the floor to groan and slowly get up. “You heard your dad, go.” you teased the two as Renjun got up and held his hand up to help you up.

You got to the kitchen and sat down, eating the food that Jaemin and Jeno prepared in silence.

On the ground floor, Jeno and Chenle tossed and turned, not being able to find a good position until Jeno said fuck it and got up. 

“Jaemin is probably cuddling with Jisung so they have a spare bed, so....se ya!” he said, holding up a peace sign before walking out the door. 

Once he got there, he opened the door to see Jaemin with all of his limbs wrapped around Jisung and thanked god before walking to the other bed and fell asleep.

Back on the ground floor, Chenle tried to sleep again but couldn't, so he said to himself “If Yn and Renjun are sleeping right now, I swear to god.” before getting up and walking to your room. 

He opened the door, and there you were, lying on the floor as a Taylor Swift song played. “What ya doing?” he asked.

“We’re talking about alien li-” “Nerds.” Chenle cut Renjun off before entering the room and lying next to you. 

“So, what exactly were you saying?” Chenle asked, turning his head to face you.

“How aliens could be monitoring us right now.” You said, turning your head to face him.

“But why? You two are so boring, what's there to see?” He said, making Renjun get up and tell you to hold him back, which you did. 

“You're just mad at the truth!” Chenle yelled, propping himself up as he laughed. 

Renjun started laughing too, and so did you, which ended up with all of you back on the floor, laughing, before one of you changed the subject back onto alien life and next thing you know, Jeno was at your door to tell you that its time for breakfast.

Once you finished breakfast, you ended up taking your sketchbook out, and so did Renjun. You spent the whole morning and a bit of the afternoon drawing and doodling with Renjun as Chenle and Jeno played games while Jaemin and Jisung were on their phones.

You looked up from your paper and saw them all having fun and relaxed in your chair.

“There truly is no place like home.” 

[henshengs]

Welp, here’s my take on the Hunger Games AU. I went in a bit of a different direction from @la-belle-et-la-bete, but this definitely owes a lot to their amazing fic and all the brilliant ideas I stole from it.

I made Zonghui a girl since mdzs oppresses me specifically by not having any female Qinghe cultivators.

---

Under other circumstances, Meng Yao would have enjoyed the view outside the train window. There was a certain harsh and rugged beauty in the mountains of Qinghe, or so certain poets claimed. Meng Yao couldn’t see it. He’d spent four years in Qinghe, and begun to despair of seeing green fields and wide rivers and placid lakes ever again. Under other circumstances, he might have glued his face to the window and gazed enraptured at the landscapes rushing by.

Things being as they currently were, however, he simply didn’t have the time.

The train carriage was thankfully large enough that he and Zonghui could sit almost ten feet apart from each other. She was staring at her untouched food in grim silence. He was watching the televised broadcast of the Reapings.

He was unsure where Nie Mingjue was, and normally, that would be cause for anxiety. Right now, it was something of a relief. It allowed him to concentrate on the screen.

The Yunmeng reaping had been first, and he’d missed that one, standing in the heat in the Unclean Realm’s main courtyard next to other dressed-up seventeen year olds, most of them peasant children but a few in the gray or black of outer sect cultivators. Then had come the Qinghe reaping; he’d have to wait for the replay to see how he’d looked, walking steadily up to the podium. How much damage Nie Huaisang had done with his cries of protest and the way his small fists had pulled at Meng Yao’s robes. He knew what his own face had looked like, and he knew what expression had been on Nie Mingjue’s, because he’d been looking at it, across the podium, for the whole ceremony.

After Qinghe came Gusu, and he’d missed that one too, because he’d been sitting very straight, hands folded across his lap, in a cool air conditioned room inside the Qinghe Regional Administration Office, and Nie Huaisang had been sobbing uncontrollably into his chest.

Now, sitting on the train, the screen in front of him showed banners of gold and white, crowds of people gathered before a familiar vast set of stairs. Something inside him tightens. Of course, Lanling is after Yunmeng.

He watches a name be chosen from a giant golden emblazoned bowl. A girl steps forward, in the robes of an outer sect disciple, an empty sword belt at her waist. A cultivator; that explains why she doesn’t look terrified, only furious. She looks like she’s fourteen or fifteen.

His competition, he thinks, and a wave of nausea hits him. He breathes through it.

They draw the boy’s name.

“Jin Zixuan,” the announcer reads, with a bit of a smirk on her face. The commentators make noises of surprise. The Jin heir, how thrilling, what a coincidence! Meng Yao’s hand tightens on the arm of his seat.

So it isn’t just Qinghe that’s being sent a message.

The cameras zoom in on the ranks of teens in the deep yellow of the inner Jin disciples. They focus on a handsome boy in very expensive clothes, with no expression on his face. He doesn’t seem to move. The cameras circle his parents, catching their reactions. Meng Yao does not blink.

After a long moment, an older teenager in the deep yellow of an inner Jin disciple saunters forward to volunteer, and even before the cameras zoom in on his face and his life details pop up in bullet points on the screen, Meng Yao has him identified as Jin Zixun. A cousin. Not a surprise. Jin trains its well born children as competitors- though not its heirs- and four times out of five they win. They have the money to buy any number of advantages in the arena. Meng Yao guesses this one chafes in the shadow of his cousin, is itching for a chance to prove himself and bloody his sword on the bodies of peasant children at the same time.  Meng Yao does not think it will be difficult to kill him.

As the tributes reach the top of the stairs, the Sect Leader comes forward to congratulate them. Meng Yao wants to look away. He doesn’t. It’s important, to glean any information he can from this. His fingers twitch, longing for his notepad, but his memory will suffice. Physical notes are a luxury he can no longer afford.

After Lanling come the minor sects. Often, in Qinghe and in Yunmeng, people would turn aside and go back to their daily work, after the tributes from the major sects had been chosen. Meng Yao knows better, even though he wants to see the Yunmeng and Gusu reapings, needs to see what message their leaders have been sent. He watches. For about a third of the reapings, a clan heir is chosen. The commentators pretend at surprise, but not too much of it, apparently choosing to preserve the laughable pretense that the drawings are random. Most of the heirs who are chosen are saved by volunteers. The volunteers are usually younger children, looking underfed and threadbare. No sword belts at their waists. No minor sect cultivators are going to volunteer their children to fight the well trained and equipped Jin and Lan tributes.

The big surprise is Yueyang, where both tributes selected turn out to be blind. Not utterly insurmountable, Meng Yao thinks, with a high cultivation level and a strong spiritual tool- but spiritual tools are banned in the Cultivation Competition, and these two are children, the girl looking much younger than twelve, the boy also small and delicate. He ought to be pleased. Two less threats to worry about. He isn’t, really.

The commentators laugh about Yueyang’s bad luck. Meng Yao wishes he could see their faces. It would make it easier to imagine killing them.

After Yueyang, the channel shows a condensed replay of each ceremony, with additional commentary now that the news crews have had a chance to frantically research each competitor. Meng Yao watches an aerial shot of Yunmeng appear on the screen, and then a wide angle of Yunmeng’s largest square. The nausea returns, because he can remember standing in that square, holding his mother’s hand, before she gently pushed him to go stand with the other twelve-year-olds. By that point she’d been very frail, and he hadn’t wanted to leave her to stand by herself in the heat.

“Keep your hat on straight, A-Yao,” she’d said softly, and held his hands in hers.

At this point, it’s not a surprise to him when the first name drawn is Jiang Yanli. It’s a shock to the Sect Leader’s family, though, as the cameras zoom in on a well dressed man who’s gone pale and nearly fallen from his position on the podium, on a beautifully decorated woman who’s gone white with rage. On the rows of purple-clad teenage boys, and the two in the front who appear to be scuffling. When the cameras show a close-up of Jiang Yanli herself as she walks to the stage, she’s also gone white under her makeup, but she’s composed and dignified enough. Meng Yao doesn’t know anything about her, and that’s both embarrassing and worrying. The commentators don’t know much either, though since this is a recap they’ve had time to remember that she’s engaged to Jin Zixuan. “An exciting problem for him,” one of them says, “he’ll have to decide whether to root for his cousin or his betrothed!” He sounds thrilled to have found such a juicy angle.

The faces in the crowd don’t appear pleased, so the Jiangs have at least some degree of loyalty from their people. Or perhaps just Jiang Yanli does. But no one volunteers to take her place. The sect leader looks like he’s about to have a heart attack. Meng Yao is unable to summon up much sympathy for him, though he understands why it would be harder, to send your own child to die, rather than someone else’s.

“Jiang Cheng,” the announcer reads, drawing the boy’s name, and the crowd goes very still. Well, Meng Yao thinks. That certainly is a message.

The boy in black and maroon at the front of the rows of teenagers wins his fight with the boy in lavender and violet, and somersaults onto the stage, landing with a showman’s bow. A cultivator, and a recognizable one. Wei Wuxian, the chief Jiang disciple. “I volunteer,” he says, and grins. Jiang Yanli bursts into tears. Madame Yu’s mouth twists. Wei Wuxian winks at the cameras. The commentators go wild. Jiang’s chief disciple is already a crowd pleaser. The cameras don’t show what happens to Jiang Yanli’s brother.

When the view switches to the gates of the Unclean Realm, Meng Yao glances over at Zonghui. She’s shifted from staring at her food to staring out of the window. There’s no sound inside the high speed train but the mechanical noises of the air system and the low volume voices of the commentators coming from the television. Nie Mingjue and the Wen escort must be in another cabin.

Ten feet away from him, Zonghui stares out the window. On his screen, she stands, back straight, and moves to the podium. Meng Yao tries to remember what he’d been thinking, watching her. He’s afraid it might have primarily been consideration of who would make the best replacement aide to keep Nie Huaisang out of trouble. He and Zonghui had never been friends, and it would have been something of a relief to have her gone.

Then, on the screen and in his memory, the announcer calls out the name of the male tribute. Nie Huaisang.

He remembers, with crystal clarity, the frozen moment when understanding of the situation had passed through him like a sword through his chest. The Cultivation Competition had never quite served its true purpose, when it came to keeping Qinghe in line. The Nies had developed a tradition, in response to the first Competition; each Nie heir, in the year they turned eighteen, volunteered as tribute. Most of the time they won both the competition and the loyalty of their people, who did not resent the sacrifice of their children as much as they might have, knowing that each of their rulers fully understood the cost.

(Though did they? There was a difference, between an eighteen year old trained nearly since birth in the saber, and a twelve year old peasant child chosen on one of the years there was no Nie heir to take her place.)

And so the Wens had decided to disrupt the balance by selecting the name of the sect leader’s useless baby brother, who would die five minutes into the Competition.

In that moment of clarity, Meng Yao saw the future. In all likelihood, one of the younger disciples would volunteer. The army was not particularly fond of Nie Huaisang, who was a brat and an embarrassment, but they loved their young leader with an intense ferocity, and so one of them would volunteer to save his brother. And that volunteer would die. The Qinghe disciples were trained for war, but they were not trained for the Competition, not like their leaders were, not like the Jin were. The volunteer would die, and the survivors would resent Nie Huaisang for needing to be saved, for being such a disappointment. That resentment would spread and corrupt their love for Nie Mingjue. And next year, Huaisang would be selected again.

If the Wen didn’t simply tire of Qinghe’s defiant attitude and send Wen Zhuliu to crush Nie Mingjue’s core. 

“They want humiliation,” he had explained to Nie Mingjue in that air conditioned room, speaking almost too softly to be heard over the roar of the fans. “They want your brother to make a fool of himself in the arena. But they will be satisfied with your lover making a mockery of you on every screen from here to Qishan.”

Nie Mingjue flinched from the word lover, and Meng Yao resented that, too, when he’d been careful not to say whore. Others would say it. Nie Mingjue did not have the luxury of delicate sensibilities, now.

Nie Mingjue’s hands squeezed so hard, when he lifted Meng Yao up into the air, that there would certainly be bruises, later. “We do not submit,” he growled. “We do not accept their humiliation, we do not play their game.”

Meng Yao had a horrible urge to laugh in his face. What did you think you were doing, last year, when you killed four other teenagers? he wanted to ask. But Nie Mingjue’s red eyes were filling with tears, and Meng Yao remembered that he was, in the end, only nineteen. Only a boy who wanted to protect his brother. Who wanted to make his father proud.

On the train, Meng Yao blinks away the memory, pressing his head back against the velvet seat, but it is only replaced by a worse one: Nie Huaisang, his hair undone and falling around his face, looking very, very young. He’d insisted on redoing Meng Yao’s braids himself, holding them in place with that silver hair ornament. “Your token,” he’d said, leaking tears and snot, and Meng Yao had thanked him, very sincerely.

On the screen, in the train, Meng Yao watches himself walking to the center of the courtyard, head bowed, eyes modestly downcast, a small drab figure distinguished only by his Nie braids and subtly expensive robes. This time, watching on the screen, Meng Yao can see the faces of the Nie disciples. The anger, the resentment, the humiliation that he, the servant son of a whore, had stolen their chance to die horrifically.  

You would die, Meng Yao thought now, remembered thinking then. They would die. And it would be a waste. Tributes were brought inside Nightless City. Victors had access to the highest levels of cultivator society, and travelled throughout the sects.

If that victor was someone who was able to make use of the opportunity-

It was not how he had imagined winning his father’s attention.

The screen changes to a commentator’s face, caked in makeup and perfectly coiffed. “We regret to report that seasonal weather is continuing to disrupt broadcasts from Gusu,” she says. “The competitors have been selected and we look forward to you meeting them tonight at the Nightless City parade.”

Meng Yao stops digging his nails into his arms.

What is happening in Gusu?

[yibo-wang]

thank you for the tag 💛💛💛 @gremlinmetawin @metawin (sorry im late!)

1. What is the color of your hairbrush? i usually use a widetooth comb cause a hairbrush is my hairs worst enemy. one’s wooden and another is baby blue 

2. Name a food you never eat. i once ate extremely bad lasagna so now i can never eat (it’s how it was with sushi for the two of you haha)

3. Are you typically too warm or too cold? too warm :( 

4. What were you doing 45 minutes ago? making gifs 

5. What’s your favorite candy bar? TWIX!! also mars (i’m so glad no one in my family likes mars so i can always eat it without worrying about someone stealing my chocolates lmao)

6. Have you ever been to a professional sports game? nope

7. What is the last thing you said out loud? “You said you’ll never watch vagabond” to my sister

8. What is your favourite ice cream? might sound basic but vanilla always!

9. What was the last thing you had to drink? same, water.

10. Do you like your wallet? yepp! i got it last year and it has tiny faces of Finn from adventure time :D i dont usually use it (i stuff money in my pockets like a proud heathen XD), it’s just in my uni bag but i really like it,

11. What is the last thing you ate? cake 

12. Did you buy any new clothes last weekend? i got a dress shirt yesterday (note: always buy shirts from men’s section,, they have better fitting lmao)

13. What’s the last sporting event you watched? table tennis cause i miss it :(

14. What is your favorite flavor of popcorn? cheese or butter 

15. Who is the last person you sent a text message to? my cousin

16. Ever been camping? nope, but i really wanna

17. Do you take vitamins? Same! i should but i forget

18. Do you regularly attend a place of worship? i pray at home

19. Do you have a tan? nope the sun’s not out much these days and neither am i lol

20. Do you prefer chinese or pizza? both

21. Do you drink your soda through a straw? if it’s available 

22. What color socks do you usually wear? yellow when i need luck??otherwise i usually wear mismatched colored socks (it’s intentional lol)

23. Do you ever drive above the speed limit? surprisingly i’ve only ever driven when my mom’s with me in the car and she wont let me

24. What terrifies you? let’s not talk about this rn 

25. Look to your left, what do you see? a waterbottle

26. What chore do you hate most? washing dishes it’s eek 🙄

27. What do you think of when you hear an Australian accent? 5sos?? are they still a band?? vegemite?? 

28. What’s your favorite soda? coke

29. Do you go in a fast food place or just hit the drive thru? if i’m the one driving i prefer going inside bc I hate how narrow drive thrus are and i’m always super far away from the window so its embarrassing when I’m like leaning outside my window to grab the food lmaoo but if someone else is driving, drive thru (^^ same)

30. What’s your favorite number? 5 ig

31. Who’s the last person you talked to? My sister

32. Favorite meat? depends on the food but usually chicken but definitely beef if it’s a burger

33. Last song you listened to? easy by troy sivan (and it’s really catchy)

34. Last book you read? i’ve been rereading tgcf these days

35. Favorite day of the week? everyday has been the same this year lol but saturdays these days cause new tgcf ep!!

36. Can you say the alphabet backwards? yes :3 (a bit rusty now but yep)

37. How do you like your coffee? milk and like very very little sugar (that is imp)

38. Favorite pair of shoes? i got a pair of baby pink rose goldish whatever that color is lol adidas and they’re literally the comfiest pair of shoes (i’d literally wear them every day)

39. Time you normally get up? since i don’t have class these days so it ranges from 8 to 12 lol otherwise it’s 7:30

40. What do you prefer, sunrise or sunsets? sunrise (also they’re usually rare in the sense that I’m not usually awake at that time yk)

41. How many blankets on your bed? two cause it’s really cold these days

42. Describe your kitchen plates. white lol

43. Describe your kitchen at the moment. clean

44. Do you have a favorite alcoholic drink? i dont drink

45. Do you play cards? not to brag but i taught half of my batchmates how to play cards in uni dshskd 

46. What color is your car? black

47. Can you change a tire? no but i really wanna learn

48. Your favorite state or province? people have those??

49. Favorite job you’ve had? I’ve only had one job and that was giving this kid tuitions lol 

tagging: @manhasetardis @aheartfullofjolllly @leonzhng @wei-gege @veronaprincess @vishcount @candicewright @morksuns if you want to ofcourse (ik its too big haha)

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #401

“my love is just waiting to turn your tears to roses”

Do you typically do your makeup the same each time? Or do you like to change it up often? IF I wear makeup, it's essentially always the same. Who is the last person you were in a room with just the two of you? What were you doing? Yesterday with Mom. We were trying to find the best deal on Eco Earth, a substrate we're getting for Venus. What was the last really good book you read, and what was it about? If we're talking REALLY good book, then The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood. In short summary, it's a dystopian future novel where women are now basically just objects used only for repopulation, even having their names stripped from them. They follow very strict rules as society has returned to horrible misogyny. As a woman, the "oh my god, this is possible" aspect of it is terrifying, and it causes such a sense of disgust and urge to ensure women rights always continue to be fought for. Do you feel safe in your country? For the most part, I'd say. I guess. There are places I'd feel safer, though. How many meals do you eat a day? Three. Have you ever performed a solo dance in front of a crowd? No, but I was supposed to my senior year in high school; the seniors at my dance studio were always welcome to do a solo in celebration. Mine was a modern dance to "Coma White" by Marilyn Manson, wanting to tell a story about depression and how being medicated could feel, but I eventually decided like halfway through learning the choreography that I was just too nervous to do a solo. Have you ever sung a solo? No. When you go to McDonalds, what drink do you usually get? Coke. Have you ever had to call and complain about a product you bought? No. Do you own a designer purse? Definitely not. I'm not wasting that much money on something like that. What’s the weirdest rumor you’ve ever heard about yourself? Apparently, Jason and I had a baby in high school even though I was obviously never pregnant. To my knowledge, it was started by his ex. Who is now a good friend of mine lmaooo. Life is funny. What was your favorite Saturday morning cartoon growing up? Pokemon, of course. Would you ever have an affair? Nope. Would you ever have a one night stand? Nope. Where you present at any major historical events (e.g. 9/11)? No. What are your opinions on marijuana legalization? Legalize it, but treat it similarly to alcohol in that driving under the influence is illegal and punishable, and I believe you should be of a certain age. How about abortion? I am pro-choice. I was pro-life most of my own life, but now I am very firm about a mother being able to choose if she wants to endure a pregnancy or not. Like, that is a MASSIVE life event that almost inevitably changes - and sometimes traumatizes - people. I do believe a fetus is its own body and not part of the mother's, but rather in the mother's, but the belief that a woman decides what she wants in her body is her choice, too. I'm not very fond of people treating abortion as a simple, regular form of birth control, like it's nothing but an "lol whoops," but I still believe it is ultimately her decision, and she should always be free of judgment for doing what is best for her. Do you wear skirts or dresses more often? Neither. I wouldn't dare wear a skirt more so, though. What do you think about tipping at restaurants? There should always be an expected minimum, imo, unless the person was truly, sincerely, genuinely fucking awful. Waiters do not have an easy job, fight me about it, and they're just trying to survive while putting on a happy, jovial face, all the while dealing with hungry people who can be such assholes. I believe the actual tip should relate to actual service, but again, give them something. Would you ever get back together with any of your exes? One, absolutely. The other would take a shitload of consideration and proper communication on his part. Do you have a preferred coffee brand? No, because I don't like coffee. Do you usually befriend your coworkers, or do you prefer to keep work separate from your personal life? IF I had a job, I'd like to build a friendship with those I have to engage with almost every day. What is something you frequently forget? Dates, ages, names, what I was about to do five seconds before I forgot... Pretty much everything. My memory is frightfully poor. Is there any drama currently going on with your family? No. When you take a nap, do you nap in bed or on the couch? In my bed. Were you raised by both of your parents? If not, then who raised you? Both; my parents split when I was somewhere around 17, though, but I'd say there wasn't much more "raising" to do at that age. Have you ever stolen anything? If so, why? No. Have you ever plagiarized someone else's work? Hell no. What's your most-used mode of transportation? My mom's car. Have you ever taught someone else a useful skill? Not to my recollection. Does seeing everyone else's 'perfect lives' posted on social media ever bring you down or affect how you feel about yourself? It actually does, honestly. Not ALWAYS, but if I'm being honest, it does most of the time. I've contemplated deleting Facebook for that reason, but with is also comes things that make me happy, and I think I'd feel even more isolated without it. What is your favorite Hostess/Little Debbie snack? This is SO impossible for me to answer. I loooove Hostess and Little Debbie treats. I want to say honeybuns, but I also love those chocolate cupcakes with the white swirls on top, as well as Twinkies. Very few exist that I don't like. Do you/your family buy loafs from the bakery or bagged on the shelf? We just buy bagged bread. What’s the best news you’ve gotten lately? My APAP mask is definitively WORKING!!!!! :') Mom got an app that connects to the machine via Bluetooth that monitors the effectiveness of the mask, evaluating many factors of your sleep, and it's detecting a definite decrease in disruptive behaviors or something like that. It is so, SO encouraging to know that. ^And, the worst? Hm. Oh, probably some news on something serious a good friend is going through, but I don't feel it's my right to disclose what. It's just a very worrying and potentially dangerous issue that I wish I could help her with. Would you rather receive (or give) flowers, chocolates or jewelry? I'd appreciate any, but my fat ass is drawn to the chocolate, ha ha. What *I* would give would vary depending on what the person liked. How do you feel about coconut? Smells lovely, but is otherwise gross. ^ Ever cracked one open? No, but omg I've always wanted to, haha. What’s the best thing about being your gender? I guess the fact it's more "normal" and "accepted" to show our emotions. Fuck that generalization, though. I don't give a shit what your gender is, you experiencing emotions is NORMAL and welcomed to be expressed. ^ And the worst thing? The ability to be raped and impregnated by it. Do you do your part to save the earth? I don't do nearly enough. :/ We recycle, but that's about it. Well, none of us DARE to litter either, but I still don't feel like it's as much as the earth deserves from its denizens. Who do you think should have their portrait on a bill? I don't know or care. Why did you last feel exhausted? Yesterday was my niece's birthday, and I spent essentially ALL day playing with her and her brother. I have a very limited battery when it comes to kids, and I was running on empty for hours. My anxiety was SO high and I really needed a break from them, but they're too young to really understand that Aunt Britt can only socially run for so long before I'm completely burnt out, and TRUST ME, I was there for sure. I didn't want them to think they did something wrong, you know? I just had to keep going. I slept like a baby last night though for sure, haha. Have you ever used emotional blackmail to get your own way? Wow, no. Has anybody ever used emotional blackmail on you? No. Who did you last worry about and why? Sara for health reasons. Are you currently looking for a new place to live? Not actively, but Mom and I definitely want to move. We feel very out-of-place here in the suburbs. Which would you prefer as a view; mountains or the sea? Mountains. Do you have a mouse for your laptop? (Assuming you have a laptop) Yes. I canNOT play games with a trackpad. Do you apologize a lot? Extremely excessively. When you get married what do you think you’ll put most of your focus and money into? Do you mean like, for the wedding? In that case, probably the venue. Being a photography buff, I want a place I think is really pretty to have pictures taken. What’s something you complain about frequently? My legs hurting, my weight, and being hot. Do you have anything planned for the summer? Nope, and that's fine with me. I'd rather stay inside away from the heat. Who usually makes dinner in your household? My ma. Do you have a blog? Just on Tumblr. Does anyone in your family snore loudly? My mother does because of gerd, and at least when my father still lived with us, he snored super loud, too. Do you want to fix anything with anyone? Yeah, a few people. What shows do you watch? Right now, only Meerkat Manor: Rise of the Dynasty. Whenever The Edge of Sleep comes out, I will 110% be watching that, too, because Mark is a key actor in it. :') Plus the concept seems super cool. Have you ever broken someone’s heart? I don't know. Who was the last person you had a conversation with on the phone? Me mum. Does the song you’re currently listening to remind you of anyone specific? No, given it has like... one lyric, haha. Do you own any TV show soundtracks? No. Last thing you did that made you feel like an adult? I mean I guess sign myself in at the doctor's. What’s your favorite picture of your mom? Dad? Oh my god, there's a candid one I got of Mom laughing when she was posing as my subject for a photography assignment, and I cherish it with ALL my heart. I want to share it with essentially the whole world, but yeah, I'm not gonna put my mom's picture here. As for my dad, I like this one I took of us at Red Lobster for his birthday a year or two back. Last TV show series you finished? Fullmetal Alchemist with Sara. Favorite flavor of cream cheese? Regular. What US state would you like to visit? Alaska. Last meal you made yourself? I put a chicken pesto thing in the microwave earlier for dinner.

[sherala007]

Creative non-fiction done for school

The Crucible of Youth

I felt the pile of carpet beneath my tummy, poking like pinpricks through my shirt as I lay across the living room floor, reading my book.  Mom sat nearby in her chair next to the window, the dull grey of the winter/spring changeover still in the sky.  She was working on her crocheting while watching the news on TV. I usually ignored the news.  It was always bad.  Tonight’s news was no different.  Tonight I couldn’t ignore it.  The words gang rape grabbed my attention quick making me forget my book. Mom even set down her work.

           It was March of 1983 and the reporter spoke about a woman who was raped by four men in Big Dan’s Tavern in New Bedford, MA, all for going in to buy a pack of cigarettes (Chapie). I watched the story, at first not fully understanding what was going on.  Then it started to click what rape meant.  I was heartbroken.  How could someone do that to another person? I didn't understand to the fullest extent what rape was yet but from the look on mom's face, I knew it was serious. I remember mom saying "She had to have done something to deserve it.  Nothing like that happens without a cause."

I looked up at mom as she dismissed the woman's pain and went back to her crocheting. The lack of concern or care on mom's face frightened me.  She'd always been so compassionate to those in need, kind and caring, but not demonstrative in showing physical affection.  This lack of concern wasn't like her at all.  It looked as if she was dismissing the rape as the woman's fault, absolving herself of the need to think on it anymore.  Her words chilled me and would come echoing back in my mind soon.

           July 4th! What a time to be a kid.  It was summer.  It was hot out.  It was time for swimming in the pool and running carefree.  We were at my sister Patty’s for a picnic.  There weren't a lot of kids, just me; my niece Sandy, who was the youngest; Kurt who was eleven, and his fifteen-year-old brother Dale. I'd just turned twelve a few months before and was already developing into a young woman.  Kurt had noticed.  All-day long he was my shadow.  He was big for his age, already almost a foot taller than me and I was only about four foot six.  His father owned his own construction company and Kurt and Dale worked with him on the weekends so both boys were very strong.

We'd been swimming most of the day, only getting out to eat.  We waited the required 30 minutes, then back into the pool. We'd exhausted all the games we could think of to play in the water.  We tested our breath holding limits; scrounged for items on the bottom as they were thrown in; and did as many laps as we could.  It was a round pool so laps were short and annoying.  I was pruney and bored.  I remembered I had a great book with me that I’d gotten into only yesterday and sitting out for a while sounded nice and relaxing.  I ducked underwater to swim to the ladder and felt something poke me in the bum.  Popping up quickly I saw Kurt pop up right next to me.

           “You two, knock that crap off!”  I heard my sister Patty yell from the top deck of the house.  She turned and carried another tray of food down to the picnic table at the bottom.  

           I got out of the pool, wrapped up in my towel, and headed to the table.  “I didn’t do anything, Patty.  I was only swimming.”

"You let a boy touch your butt.  Good girls don't do that."  She looked me in the eye, anger, and disgust on her face then turned and stormed off to join the other adults.  

           I’d felt like I was punched in the stomach.  I sat down on the bench, picked up a hotdog and started to nibble.  I was about to take another bite when Kurt walked up to me, grabbed it and scarfed it down.

           “Don’t worry about her. Let’s go for a walk.”  He threw his towel down on the bench and slid his flip flops on waiting for me.  Dale and Sandy liked the idea of a walk and wanted to join us.  Dale went over, asked permission, and was given instructions to take care of us girls and off we went.  We were only permitted to go up the road to the trail we used to ride our horses on.  We were still in our swimsuits, Sandy and me with towels wrapped around us, the boys in their shorts.

The trail wasn't a trail per se but a dirt road, rocky, twisty, and bumpy, but it was a change for us.  Being on the plump side, I wasn't as fast as the others.  I fell behind as we went up a hill and around a bend in the road, thick trees lining either side, houses scattered farther and farther apart. Kurt stayed with me and spotted an abandoned barn off the side of the road in someone’s back yard.  We stopped and looked to see if anyone was around. Sandy and Dale were out of sight as Kurt grabbed my hand, pulling me up the sloping gravel driveway, the small white rocks making for rough going, and around the corner of the barn to the door on the other side.

It was cooler inside.  I could smell the dampness of the mold and mildew all around me, mixed with the smell of roses and wildflowers from outside.  Some of the shabby barn boards looked worm-eaten, barely hanging on by the few remaining nails holding them in place.  There was dirt and dust everywhere, blown in through the cracks and crevices, or washed in through the large opening in the corner of the roof where part of it had fallen in.  In the far right corner, I could see a large spider web, its maker fat and creepy, perched on one of the outer edges.  I could see rusted out tools tossed about like unwanted toys, no longer needed or desired, littering the floor along one wall.

           I heard Kurt walking near the middle of the floor, bouncing slightly on the balls of his feet, as I entered watching for any critter that may try and come near me. Looking around at everything I'd lost track of where Kurt was for a moment.  He'd gotten quiet.  One second I was standing a few paces inside the doorway looking at how creepy everything was, the next I was on my back in the dirt on the floor, Kurt's left hand around my neck.

"Don't move," he said.  His hand was so large it wrapped halfway around my neck.  The look in his eyes was cold, freezing me in place as he held me down with that one hand, not tight enough to bruise, but enough so I couldn't risk moving.  I couldn't think, couldn't figure a way out of his grip.  Why was he doing this?  What did he want from me?  He used his right hand to free himself from his shorts and then to slide the panty half of my suit aside, digging himself inside me hard like a blunt shovel.  All I felt was pain, burning, and tearing.  I was trembling.  I wanted to scream but couldn't with his hand still on my throat.  His pig-like grunting and the slap of skin on skin echoed in my head.  I thought it was loud enough others would hear and come to help me.  No one came.

I was numb. I don't remember him finishing.  I don't remember how I got home.  I remember going right into the shower, cleaning up, and throwing my towel and bathing suit into the washer.  I don't even remember how I got the bleeding to stop. I just know it did.  Hours later I still couldn't remember any of the details of how I got home.  Any time I tried I would get sick to my stomach.  I do remember the thoughts that echoed in my head for the next twenty-five years.  Dirty.  Bad girl. I deserved it.  I’m worthless.  Those thoughts stay with me today, though they're not as loud as they used to be. They were the only thoughts I could hear for a long time, and they always echo in my mom’s voice.  This was just the first time I was raped.  It happened again four years later when I was sixteen and at another 4th of July gathering with my then-boyfriend. That time I was raped on top of a pile of refuse and debris in an old, dilapidated camper.

           What did I do to cause this to happen to me?  Why me?  Why did I deserve this?  It took a long time in therapy to discover a few things.  I didn’t do a DAMN THING to deserve this or cause it to happen to me. Why me?  I’m small.  I’m female. I’m seen as prey.  Men that rape are in search of a power rush.  They’re not in it for the sexual gratification.  They’re in it to hurt, humiliate, and degrade.  It's not about sex only power.  I just reach five foot two now.  Back then I was shorter and thinner than I am now.  Because of all this trauma, I gained a great deal of weight.

Imagine what this trauma does to a teen?  Adults usually think teens are dramatic.  I remember all the times my mom would tell me to stop being so dramatic when I was jumpy or had to have my back to a wall.  Most adults don't listen to teens or notice the signs of PTSD.  Teens are still developing their identities and personalities. Rape puts a deep and heavy scar on their psyche that they have to grow into and carry for the rest of their life. Teens may be young and still growing emotionally but they have the same feelings adults do and respond in similar ways. All the same side effects we suffer from rape, teens do, also.

Sixty-six percent of all victims of rape under the age of eighteen are between the ages of twelve and seventeen (Rainn).  Well, that statistic fits me both times.  I never used to be a jumpy person.  After the rape, I would jump at the drop of a hat.  I also dealt with bouts of depression.  There are days even now where I struggle to get out of bed to live a normal life doing normal things.  Those days are fewer and farther between.  The biggest issue I deal with now is when I’m working on a task and someone strolls up to me to ask a question and startles me.  They’re not even trying to be stealthy but I’m instantly in a fight or flight panic.  My heart races like I’ve run a marathon.  I hold my breath for a few seconds then I pant like I’m being choked again.  Now and again I’ll even start to tremble.  I can hide that sometimes but my close friends know when it’s happening.  I discovered that this is all part of PTSD (Rainn).

I discovered something terrifying while dealing with treatment as well as doing research; per the Center for Family Justice (CFJ) one in four women and one in six men are sexually abused (CFJ).  In eight out of ten cases the victim knows the attacker (CFJ).  There are three main after-effects of rape; depression, flashbacks, and PTSD (Rainn).  I've had to live most of my life with two out of the three' until now.  In rewriting this paper the third has started, but only a few times.  The smell of roses and mold triggered flashbacks as I was rewriting the barn scene. That lasted for about three weeks and has now stopped.  The saddest thing for me is it's been thirty-three years and these effects still happen.

           Did I ever tell my mother?  No.  The woman who raised me was actually my grandmother.  She adopted me from her oldest daughter when I was ten but had raised me since I was four months old.  She was born in 1933.  Things were so much different for her growing up so she still had the antiquated mindset for her generation.  By the time I was able to talk about it nothing could be done anyway so why stir things up?  I know it would have made her feel horrible and wouldn’t have solved anything.  

I will tell you, surviving rape has made me a very strong woman.  I didn't realize this until about five years ago:  I've lived through the worst that man can do to woman, short of murder.  I've not only survived but in the last few years, I've thrived.  I'm able to live on my own.  I make new friends all the time.  I can hold down a good job.  Do I still have some issues now and then?  Yes, but they’re infrequent now.  I’m too strong to let it keep me down anymore.  I’ve realized that, yes I have suffered horrible violence, but unlike others, I don’t have to let it define who I am.  I refuse to let it do so.  I choose to act and be seen as a woman who can stand on her own and who doesn’t need to hide behind anyone else.  I do understand when I’m out on my own I have to pay attention to my surroundings and be vigilant but I don’t have to be afraid of every shadow.  Yes, I used to hide behind the victim label I let others put on me, but not anymore.  I am alive and I will continue to embrace every day because I am worth it, not because someone else says so but simply because I’m here; alive, walking, talking, and breathing.

While I was working on one of the drafts of this article, a friend at work offered to read it and help me edit it.  I gave it to her on a Friday.  Monday morning she came up to me crying.  She couldn't read it.  She told me about how she was raped twenty years ago and still can't talk about it with anyone; not even her husband.  She can't have a deep, healthy relationship with him because of it.  She asked me how I can be so relaxed and open after all that. What was my secret?  Truth is, I don't have a secret.  I freely admit what happened to me when anyone asks why I get startled as I do.  I know now that I didn't do anything to ask for what happened to me.  It was not my fault.  It took a while for that to sink in but now that it has it's one of my mantras when those horrid thoughts get loud on me again; because they do sometimes. I remind myself that I am alive. I have hope.  I get up for work every morning.  I answer calls from customers needing help every day.  Some of them are not so nice about asking for it either. I work for a security company and every so often I get that call from that woman who went through that same experience.  I stop and listen.  I do what only a fellow survivor can do.  I give her hope too.

 Works Cited:

No Author, Sexual Assault Stats, Center for Family Justice.org, web, 6-27-16

Capie, Lindsay.  Big Dan’s Tavern Gang-Rape, New Bedford 1983, LindsayChapie.wordpress.com, web, 7-9-16

No Author, No Article, Statistics, Rainn.org, web, 6-27-16