#but removing him from her life entirely tends to end up bad

[a-roguish-gambit]

I recently saw a person comment that Rogue was better off without Remy in her life.... My brother in Christ she literally went on a rampage. She tried to kill a man. She tried to kill several people in trying to kill that man. She fell into a coma in part as a result of this. She literally tried to join magneto against humanity. Her actions in helping magneto unintentionally lead to wolverines fucking bones getting stolen. And you think she's better off without him? I love rogue so much but she makes some objectively pretty bad decisions when she's had her emotional support Cajun forcibly removed from her.

And when Remy isn't in the picture all together look what happens look at the X-Men movies and how she's portrayed. You may not like Rogue and Gambit as a ship and that is totally fine but Gambit is basically the last line of defense from her being used as pure creepy fan service to the audience a good chunk of the time from what I've seen.

You only think she's a better character without Remy and more complex because he's literally a grounding force in her life her life gets incredibly toxic and complicated in bad ways without him. It's why he's considered her home and harbor. Even if the relationship was entirely platonic he is often just someone she can go to for anything and helps her cool her head and keeps her from falling back on bad coping mechanisms.

[sinizade]

A little family tree about Izveta and Astarion because I recently discovered that vampires in D&D can have children...

The appearance and what is written about Astarion's parents is just a headcanon created by me, I keep in mind that they never found their son and ended up dying over the years since the game does not mention anything connected abt Astarion's family.

I never wrote about Izveta's father, but basically he was a quiet man and obedient to his wife even though she was extremely aggressive towards him. She killed him a few years after adopting Izveta when he tried to get rid of the girl after overhearing her talking to Sceleritas.

The day that Sarevok had mentioned in his letter arrived and Izveta could no longer think rationally, she wanted children, she needed children and so it was done... Twins with Bhaal's blood, a boy and a girl who, since they were born, already had an aptitude for magic, Belgos and Amalicia or as the people in Baldur's Gate call them "Cursed Children.

Even though they were children of a Vampire Lord and a Bhaalspawn, Belgos and Amalicia did not grow up in a troubled home, quite the contrary, Astarion and Izveta had plans for their children and being bad parents was not one of those plans. The children were loved to the extreme and no one would dare try to hurt any of them, also because no one would be crazy enough to try.

I like to think that Astarion would be a drooling father, you can see in the game that even though he tries to pretend otherwise, he loves children. I think he would remove ALL of Cazador's paintings and decorations and fill the entire castle with paintings of Elbos, Amalicia and Izveta, every hallway and room would have at least two paintings of them so that everyone could see the GREAT family he and Izveta built together

Amalicia is defiant, she took this a lot from her mother, she always wants to go out when she shouldn't, she always wants to fight with people who shouldn't, Astarion and Izveta often had to solve many of the problems she caused, whether with Astarion's vampire spawns or with some hunters she provoked when she ran away from the Castle. Even with all the problems she causes, Amalicia is still a child and many times she just wants to play.

Elbos is a calm and affectionate boy unlike his sister and is almost always seen hiding behind Astarion and Izveta's legs. He likes rats and keeps some pets hidden in his room as Astarion makes a point of banning any rats inside his castle. .

Amalicia and Elbos' relationship tends to be the basic one for children their age, they fight and then go back to playing together, but sometimes they both seem to be far away from where they are, as if they were listening to something... Or someone...

Btw, if you are a hunter or a mercenary with a functional brain and love for life, you N E V E R try to hurt the children of a Bhaalspawn and a Vampire Lord... They will do really bad things to you

[jerktournament]

FINAL ROUND - GLaDOS (Portal) VS Herbert P Bear (Club Penguin)

!!! PROPAGANDA BELOW !!!

GLaDOS: "So mot only is she running your character through a series of puzzles with the intention of killing her at the end, but in the second game she spends the Entire. Time. Verbally and emotionally abusing you, including body shaming and bullying you for being an orphan. If it's any consolation, she does have to exist as a potato for the second and third acts of Portal 2."

"Known for being mean (hot). Mercilessly targets the player character's every possible insecurity. Petty and mean. I understand if you don't want to include her since she tends to dominate polls, lol."

HERBERT: "This mf spends his whole life trying to heat up a frozen island and terrorizing the innocent penguins that live on it all bc he was bad at sailing one time and is too much of a wimp to try again. Classic Misery loves Company type asshole."

"operation blackout would have been NOTHING without him (mostly because he caused it). he has a SOLAR LASER. this polar bear is an ass who literally harnessed the power of the sun and froze the top members of the elite penguin force (a group of penguin special agents) and his best friend is an equally villainous crab"

"Herbert may be a fandom darling in our fandom of like, 20 people. BUT DON'T LET THAT FOOL YOU! He is a conniving, EVIL bear, and a professional jerk and some highlights of his jerkishness include...

- Spending ten years of his life (by the time the game closed) trying to destroy the Penguin Secret Agency and Elite Penguin Force (both were agencies that protected the island from disasters and villains like Herbert) with varying success...

- SUCCESSFULLY destroyed the Penguin Secret Agency with a popcorn bomb, which destroyed their HQ. It should also be noted that while doing so, he locked in the player, Rookie, and Gary the Gadget Guy, presumably so the bombs explosion would have killed them all.

-Teamed up with the EPF to stop the Ultimate Protobot 10,000 and the Test Bots, a small group of four dangerous robots after he personally brought them back. When Protobot went "too far" for Herbert's standards by threatening the environment and trying to completely destroy the EPF (despite the aforementioned Popcorn Bomb incident literally destroying the PSA, and also a certain Operation: Blackout), causing him to temporarily switch sides. This might sound like a character growth moment...except for the fact that he immediately betrays them once Protobot is dealt with and attacks and damages the EPF's HQ using a robot hydra made for the Medieval Party that he stole.

- A canonical ex-dictator. Don't believe me? Look up Operation: Blackout on the Club Penguin Wiki! He froze several agents during his reign of terror, was open to freezing innocent civilians, and also wanted to do away with puffles- the pets of penguins. He also banned several hobbies and professions during his reign (being a Ninja, a DJ, a Pirate, etc) for no reason other than disliking them. He also destroyed the EPF'S HQ and exposed two agents' private information to the public. This means Herbert is the first and only character to canonically dox people he doesn't like on Club Penguin.

-Was planning to bomb the EPF literally two months later with a hot sauce bomb (makes sense in context of the game and yes, it is more destructive than it sounds).

-Brainwashed puffles into digging coins for him purely because his henchman, Klutzy the crab brought a coin slot to use for his DIY heater, instead of just removing the coin slot and retooling it to work without one like a normal person."

[hawkogurl]

in the genuine way possible, Why do you like Raimi verse MJ?

Would like a description of your thoughts.

So I just woke up (I know it’s 6PM I work night shifts) so this might not be as well verbalized as it could be. (Update: I put this in drafts and am now adding to it at midnight but I have had a day so prior warnings apply)

But for me, she’s a nuanced and flawed female character who isn’t given the credit for that she deserves and I think she kicks ass as a result. I don’t need characters I like to be good people, I need them to be interesting. She’s interesting.

But in terms of what people normally hate her for, I don’t really tend to agree for a variety of reasons. The main thing people get on her about is cheating, which is very much true, but that feels unfair when Peter also cheats! And he doesn’t see nearly the same amount of shit thrown at him that MJ does! (Wonder why that is?) Hell, he hits her while he has the symbiote but I barely see people bring it up. But on the note of her cheating, I don’t mind it because we’re given a reason as to why she’s got such bad commitment issues that I find interesting. She grew up in an extremely unstable home with a seemingly chronically ill mother and a verbally and likely physically abusive father. She’s a dysfunctional person for sure, but we as a community are more than willing to read into and analyze far worse behaviors in Peter, Harry, hell, people outright ignore Norman being an abusive father. It’s bs to me that she’s not given the same treatment. Shes someone who grew up in an unstable environment. Shes used to that. Her entire life in her formative years was that. As a result, the way I see it, she either gets into relationships with people who tend to continue not treating her well (Flash and to a degree Harry.) and when she’s in more stable relationships that hurt her less, (like John) I theorize that the reason she does so much to put them in jeopardy is that her, stability with men in her life is always something that has ended inevitably, but abruptly and probably violently. Being the one to destroy a relationship her trauma screams at her will inevitably end with her being hurt again gives her a sense of control.

And on top of that, I find her emotional responses to Peter’s behavior while he dates her extremely human! Sure, she definitely makes mistakes in how she handles it, but I personally absolutely hate the degree to which people ignore Peter’s own mistreatment of her. I’m not gonna claim she did nothing wrong, but people in this fandom have a tendency to remove responsibility or the ability to have done something wrong from Peter. At that point in the movies, Peter has everything going for him. His life is finally going well and as a result of his own inflated ego and the fact the world has revolved around him he sort of seems to forget that she has her own life and her own problems that she wants to be heard and understood and supported through. His ability to do that is one of the things that drew her to him in the first movie and she’s watching him as it becomes apparent he doesn’t really have that anymore. Everything in his life revolves around him and has for years, so when her life problems get brought up and he makes them about himself and remains somewhat unempathetic and so absorbed in his own joy he doesn’t notice how poorly she’s doing, I find it personally hard to deny that’s exactly how I would feel in that situation. I hate that people refuse to empathize with her, or when they do on a surface level they still refuse to acknowledge any blame Peter has there. Hell, I find it hard to deny that I’m irritated that it’s basically overlooked that Peter kissed another woman in front of her face but people will rip her to shreds for kissing another man one time. I’m not gonna say she didn’t fuck up, but I find the way she’s treated unfair and I frankly think the opinion wouldn’t skew the same if she was a man for both of these topics.

I also just like that she’s a person? She has emotions that feel real, she has a life and a career outside her relationship with Peter, she has compelling trauma that informs her decisions. I frankly find her to be a more nuanced and interesting character than MCU MJ or TASM Gwen simply because she feels more well rounded and flawed. They’re better and more likeable love interests, but I frankly think she’s a better character. Everything that people praise in them as something that makes them Better Than Raimi MJ either feels like rather shallow traits or things that feel somewhat misogynistic towards Raimi MJ, a character who they claim they don’t like due to misogynistic writing. No hate to those to ladies, I see the appeal to them and I think people should like them, but Raimi Mj has more depth to me.

In conclusion: To like a character I don’t need them to be a good person I need them to be interesting. Shes interesting. Also everyone in this trilogy, including Peter, is at least somewhat a bad person. So I don’t know why she specifically is being treated with so much less grace other than the obvious reason.

[akirakirxaa]

Final Thoughts on Dawntrail

Final thoughts on MSQ. There are some positives that I will open with, but as I do have many criticisms and overall did not have as good of a time as I've had in other expacs, I will put it under a break. This will also be quite long.

I will start off by listing some of the things I enjoyed. I liked the overall themes of found and adoptive family, as well as family in general. Most of the plot threads and cutscenes around these themes tended to be quite good. I will admit, I bawled like a baby when they introduced baby Gulool Ja to Koana. I also very much enjoyed the plot revolving around the milalla and honestly wish there were more; I love Erenville's mom a lot as a character, but I feel like she took up comparatively a lot of narrative space when Krile's parents were much more plot relevant. I also liked Bakool's character arc as I'm just a sucker for the bully becoming a big well meaning lug. This is another plot I wish we'd gotten more about since, once we left the woods, we never see him outside of combat again; I'd have liked to see him struggling to connect with the people in non-life threatening situations and learning to not react to everything with violence.

Unfortunately, that is the end of what I actually enjoyed without a "but" that isn't "I'd have liked more". I am so sorry, but by the time I got to the end I did not like Wuk Lamat anymore. The sheer amount of time we spend with her and the sheer amount of that time spent on the same exact speech again and again grated by the end. There were some moments where she really shone though, and that's why I'm putting this to poor writing and misuse of her character than her character actually being bad. I loved her in the whole bit with Zarool Ja, and during the Rite it was fine because her learning to grow up was the point. Which leads to the second thing I really did not like; that we existed to be a camera for her story. 99% of the story could have happened even were we not there, and the last 1% is honestly iffy. I understand letting her have her time, and despite finding it excruciatingly dull to my tastes, the rite was fine and she should take point during it since it's to test her abilities. But...there was not one moment where we got to be the hero. Not one. Hell, in several cutscenes I could barely even see my character because it's her show the whole time. Even at the end, where it finally matters that we're here, because we have the magic crystal that lets us call backup and stay and fight...it still didn't, because she just broke into the fight anyways. Once again, we might as well not even be there.

"Well what's the problem with that!" I hear you cry, and the problem with that is this is a Final Fantasy. I'm here to play the protagonist. I'm not here to control the camera while the writer's NPC does everything. She can be the main character of the expac, but I should not be able to remove my character entirely and have everything go the exact same way. Literally any scion could've done the same things we did while we drank on the beach and nothing would change. A great example of this was when Gulool Ja Ja was killed. Not only did we just stand there and not even attempt to interfere (this could have been a good moment to push the difference of another culture by having an ally stop the WoL), we barely had any reaction at all to it and were covered up most of the time by NPCs. At that point, just have us not be there, have us out protecting civilians and we arrive too late. We've had cutscenes from other PoVs before where we show up right at the end (for good or ill) so no excuse.

I very much did not like any of the plot around Alexandria and Living Memory. It strikes me as that meme of "can I copy your homework?" "Sure, just change it a little so it doesn't look the same". Tell me if you've heard this one before. Immortal being, unable to bear loss, creates a city full of the memories of their lost loved ones in a recreation of their former home. They want to sacrifice the people of the Source to restore these loved ones. When we try to reason with them, they tell us that they cannot give up on their fallen loved ones and refuse to move on. They show us their memories of their loved ones in their former home. At the end, they turn into a big damn monster that we fight. We're close to losing when an ally falls from the sky to our aid. When we win, they ask us to remember.

It's knock off brand Shadowbringers.

Not to mention it seriously feels like the writer forgot while doing Living Memory that, not only does no one remember these people we're erasing, but their souls were eaten so that people can not worry about, idk, falling pianos and such. These people literally just do not exist anymore and we are now the only people who remember them. What's worse, there are probably millions more people we didn't get to meet that we still erased, so they're just gone forever. That's...literally the opposite of the plot of Ultima Thule from EW. We, in this case, are playing the role of Meteion, and not a single Endless seems to have an opinion on it outside of Erenville's mother and Krile's parents.

Never mentioning Dynamis really bugged me too. I was kinda hoping that Wuk Lamat's "specialty", the thing that set her apart, was maybe she was just very good at subconsciously wielding dynamis, letting her easily befriend others and draw greater strength when she needs it. But, like many many pieces of lore, it's never even suggested. In fact, if a piece of lore was in EW, you can almost guarantee it isn't mentioned. Like the boy with a lightning aether imbalance. We literally have the cure for that, but say nothing at all, not even to our allies when we meet back up. I'm hoping this will be addressed in a later patch since it was specifically pointed out (chekov's gun and all) but still. It felt over and over that things we learned in ShB and EW were glossed over at best or outright ignored at worst. The pacing of everything after the dome appeared was strange; some parts went too fast, then some went on forever.

Unfortunately, this comes in as my least favorite expac. Even below SB, which I famously dislike. I'm hoping moving forward we'll see some more interesting stories that once again require us to be present to be told, and I am curious about why the key bears Azem's symbol, but I will not be rushing to play through this expac again any time soon. And will most likely be tweaking the scenes in anything I write to make more sense, flow better, or actually require Akira's attention.

[kaibasupremacy]

1. Canon I outright reject

2. A canon or headcanon hill I will die on

For Kaiba obviously~

Jksjsj 🥺🥺 thank you so much for the ask

1. Canon I outright reject

Despite all of the contradictions between the separate canons (anime, manga, sub, dub ect) I find it hard to pick an aspect of it that I refuse to find merit in, even aspects that are painful to me (Seto removing the locket in DSOD T-T)

My personal canon when it comes to Seto tends to be a mixture of anime sub (filler arcs included), and manga canon and DSOD, and I do not consider the Toei anime series to be canon because of the discrepancies with the manga.

I think an aspect of canon I outright reject is the idea that the Mind Crush made him a better person and “purged the evil” in him.

I have a very strong attachment to early manga Seto and I cannot see him as a uniquely evil character. The mind crush itself I find to be a disappointing climax to the Death T arc, but many lovely people in the fandom have made lots of touching art on the subject matter so I wouldn’t say I entirely detest it, but the idea that if he had not received the penalty games he would have been doomed (even if it’s strongly implied by the canon) I just cannot accept (and I think it flattens him). But that’s just a personal thing.

2. A canon or headcanon hill I will die on

Ohh I have several so probably I will end up leaving out some T-T I warn you beforehand they’re mostly super sad 😭

Two aspects that are ultimately up to interpretation but that I consider ultimately canon is that 1. Seto suffers from hallucinations and 2. Seto struggles with suicidal ideation. Another hill I will die on is that Seto’s childhood and adolescent experiences *before* and *after* his six years with Gozaburo were equally as scarring for him.

As for headcanons, a strong one I have is Seto being autistic. Another one is that he really admired Gozaburo, and never really disliked him despite the way he was treated until they had their ideological clash in respect to war as Seto began to grow into a teen with his own ideas and even then, I headcanon that Seto still saw it as a rivalry (kind of like the one he had with Atem later) and did not see himself as his victim.

I also headcanon that Seto was forced to be a child athlete by him, exploiting his already existent love for sports and competition.

I also headcanon that Gozaburo’s wife was European and a Christian Catholic and Gozaburo adopted her religious practices and tried to impose them on Seto as well, who grew to dislike religion for this reason.

I realize they’re all quite sad but I also have this hc that Seto struggles with poor body image and disordered eating and that his biological father turned to alcoholism after the death of their biological mother, and Seto had to stay home to care for both him and Mokuba, so the only time he went to school was when he was taken in by his relatives.

I also headcanon that he used books as an escapism throughout his life and as we can see has adopted a manner of speaking that’s very literary. He loves to write and writes a lot anytime he has the time to do so, but most of the time discards what he has written or is too embarrassed to ever show it to anyone, even Mokuba. In general I have a strong headcanon that he is very sensitive about art.

An happier hc I have is that he really loves amusement parks. Not just what they represent and the fact it’s his and Mokuba’s dream, but like, just attending and getting to do the most thrilling rides. And that his complex about winning is not limited to the things he considers “serious”, but just about anything. He could be playing the most silly game and will still treat it as a matter of life and death.

Thank you again for the ask and have a wonderful day ❤️ sorry for my bad English btw 🙏🏻

[pleasestaywithmedarling]

Sin of Purity, Purity of Sin: Part V

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Over the next few days, Kiri began to learn the patterns of her new life in the captivity of the High Temple. Before dawn each morning, a meager breakfast was brought to her and Anden’s cells. They had just enough time to eat before the arrival of the healer priestess, who checked on the progress of the healing brand mark on Kiri’s chest. Meanwhile a pair of guards wrestled Anden into his restraints, which at first had merely been the manacles at his wrists. But after the second morning when one guard had kicked at him and Anden had kicked back, they’d added added a set of shackles at his ankles, the connecting chain barely long enough to allow him to walk. The healer priestess would then tend to Anden’s numerous injuries while Kiri was bathed and dressed by two female attendants. Her hair and makeup were finished, his muzzle was strapped in place, and they were declared ready to begin the day.

Apparently there would be another procession each Holy Day, including Fifth Day each week, and Kiri felt ill whenever she thought about it. Not that the unhallowed days spent inside the High Chamber were all that much of an improvement.

From sunup to sundown, she and Anden each stood before the one of the two pillars that flanked the Divine Throne of Vato, collars around their necks keeping them chained there on leashes of a scant few inches. Those who entered the High Chamber to submit a specific request to Vato had to first stop at her column and recite a prayer offering up their gratitude to Him. They would then dip their fingertip into a bowl of water on a nearby pedestal and trace a small line of water droplets somewhere across her skin, just like the previous Vessel of Purity had done to her just before the Midsummer’s sacrifice. Based on the doctrine she’d learned back in her village temple, she determined that a person submerging themselves, or in this case their fingertip, in water was symbolic of being immersed in Vato’s blessing. Transfering that water on to Kiri showed that they were offering up a portion of Vato’s blessing back to Him in thanks. Kiri thought it might almost have been a lovely sentiment.

Almost, were it not for the fact that this ritual required an unwilling person to be used as an object. Or for the fact that the ritual was technically incomplete until Midsummer next year, when she would be killed as a sacrifice to Vato.

She was trying not to think too much about that just yet, though. It was already bad enough having to stand there for the entire day, still and silent, collared like a housepet, letting so very many people touch her.

Evidently, anywhere her skin was bared was permissible for the ritual’s transference of water, because none of the nearby priests objected when someone stroked her cheek or caressed her throat or even fully clasped her hand within theirs. That she had to hold still and just allow such invasive contact made it all the more awful. But she was terrified of what the consequences might be for both herself and Anden if she didn't, so she maintained her position, her shallow breaths and shaking hands the only giveaways to her true feelings.

It was impossible not to see that Anden already had it bad enough, after all, and certainly didn't need her bringing any further torments on him. Once they were done at her pillar, worshipers then crossed over to Anden’s. They’d recite a prayer asking Vato to remove any evil in their hearts, prick themselves with a small knife, and smear their blood off onto him. It was a truly vile practice; she felt sick if she watched for too long. And if the poor man ever shifted too much in his numerous restraints or tried to curse at anyone through his muzzle—which he did quite often—a nearby guard with a baton would strike him, hard. By the end of each day, the man was covered in blood and fresh bruises. She didn’t know how he hadn’t already broken down under such abuse; just seeing it occur made her heart pound heavy in her ears.

When the sun finally set in the evenings, the worshipers were ushered out, and she and Anden were released from the pillars. She quickly learned that the day’s trials were never over yet, though, as there was something unsettling about the guard who always escorted her back through the winding halls—one by the name of Edric, as she’d overheard.

While the other guards had quickly accepted that, unlike Anden, she’d simply follow where they told her to go, Edric always made a point of taking her by the arm and pulling her along close beside him. She knew there were strict rules as to how anyone could interact with her—the priests were very concerned with maintaining her “purity”—and she supposed Edric never actually broke any of those rules. Still, there was something in the way he held her arm, or in certain sidelong glances he sent her, that made her uneasy. It was becoming a strange relief each night, to be back in her cell. Yes, the bars kept her locked in, but they also gave her the illusion that others could be kept out.

Unfortunately, those bars couldn’t offer even the illusion of any privacy. She had been relieved to discover that Anden was respectful of her modesty, at least, always pointedly diverting his gaze when she made use of her chamber pot just as she did for him. By their fourth night, they’d fallen into something of a nightly routine together. They kept their backs turned to one another while he cleaned himself as best he could with a pail of water and greasy-looking bar of soap, and she stripped off her jewelry and her draped silk gown before wrapping her blanket over her thin sleeveless shift. Attendants would come to collect her finery and deliver their tasteless dinners, and once they left the day was finally over.

Kiri hated the way she’d come to look forward to the scraping sound of outer chamber door being barred shut. It should be a dreadful reminder that they were imprisoned here against their wills, but after only a few days she was already associating it with safety—it meant that she would be left alone till morning.

Well, alone with Anden, anyway.

The night of their first Third Day there, she sat toying with a strand of her dark hair and singing softly while he slept in the other cell. Or, she thought he was sleeping. She learned otherwise when he grumbled, “Don’t you know any songs that aren’t fucking hymns?”

“Sorry, I didn’t—I didn’t think you could hear me.” She looked down at her hands wringing the blanket in her lap. “I, um, I don’t know many other kinds of music.”

Anden winced in pain as he rolled over to look at her. “How do you only know temple music?”

“I know a few unhallowed songs,” she defended weakly. “I just—I’ve spent a lot of time in temple, I guess.”

He snorted. “What, did you actually believe in all this crap?”

A “yes” and a “no” were jumbled together at the tip of her tongue; she supposed she’d never had a simple answer to that question, and now she was more confused than ever. Rather than try to sort it out, she simply told him, “My father was head priest in our village.”

“Oh.” Anden was quiet for a moment. “I assume he knows you’re the new Vessel?”

Numbly, Kiri replied, “He’s the one who volunteered me.”

“What?”

At that moment came the unmistakable creaks of the outer chamber’s iron door being opened. Kiri’s eyes flew to inner chamber’s open doorway. “No. No, no, no, no,” she breathed. This wasn’t supposed to happen; they were supposed to left alone till morning! That’s how this worked, wasn’t it? A shared glance with Anden showed her own worry reflected in his green eyes.

Guards swarmed the inner chamber and pulled them from their cells. Anden’s stream of angry curses were cut short when they discovered who was waiting for them in the outer chamber: Emitis, the High Priest. Kiri’s breath hitched. She’d not seen him since the Midsummer Morrow’s procession; his presence now could not mean anything good for her or Anden.

Emitis smiled at their stunned silence. “Prepare the Vessels for tonight’s ritual.”

Struggling against the guards’ grip on his arms, Anden demanded, “What ritual?”

Narrowing his eyes, Emitis declared, “Not the full muzzle for this one tonight—I’d rather like to hear his screams.”

Kiri paled. What exactly did this ritual entail? Trembling violently, she watched Anden’s angry stream of curses be rendered unintelligible as a thick, coarse rope was pulled between his teeth.

Emitis’ took her chin in his cold fingers and forced her to look up at him. He studied her for a long moment. “Bind this one too,” he told a guard. “She’s compliant enough but too fearful—I’ll not have her ruining this if she loses her self-control.” He released her from his grip, and a guard procured a coil of rope from one of the cabinets lining the wall. It was wound over and under her arms and shoulders and cinched tight at her wrists, crossing her hands over her breast and holding them firmly in that position. When a thick length of cloth was pulled between her lips and tied behind her head, she couldn’t contain a small whine—never had she felt so completely helpless.

Anden looked even more vulnerable. His hands had been lashed together and were held high over his head by a hook that hung from the ceiling. A guard had just finished tying his legs at the ankles when Emitis ordered, “Higher.” The hook was raised until Anden was so stretched out that his toes barely touched the floor. His incomprehensible shouts were defiant as ever, but Kiri could see how hard and fast he was breathing—he was scared, too.

Emitis ordered an attendant who stood by the door, “Show him in.” Moments later, a gray-haired man richly attired entered the Chamber of Vessels and bowed his head to the High Priest.

“Vato has agreed to grant your request for a private audience with Him in the Chamber of the Divine Throne,” said Emitis, “once the appropriately amplified rituals of water and blood are complete. These Vessels are prepared to act as your substitutions, in thanks for your generous monetary offerings to the High Temple.”

Amplified rituals… substitutions… Kiri was beginning to worry that she knew where this was going. To her dismay her suspicions were confirmed when Emitis began to step down into the chamber’s large sunken bathing pool and motioned to the guard who stood at her side. As she was ushered into the water, she whimpered into her gag and glanced over at Anden. His eyes widened as she was forced down on her knees—evidently he’d worked out the nature of tonight’s ritual too. With the water lapping at her chest, she began to panic. She did not remember that she must not be caught disobeying again; she only knew that she needed to get away, now. But the ropes rendered her helpless against Emitis’ tight grasp holding her down.

“You may begin the prayer,” Emitis told the worshiper.

“Vato, wisest in the heavens and ruler over Ilyrna, kingdom of the Great River—”

As the man recited the opening words of the prayer that she’d heard dozens of times each day while leashed to her pillar, Emitis tilted her back until she was fully submerged in the pool. She knew that she should be focusing her energy on conserving air, but her senses were soon so fully overwhelmed by the water and the ropes and the long fingers digging into her shoulders that her mind could only scream at her that she had get out. She thrashed hard against the High Priest’s grip and was at last brought back up to the surface, only to be shoved back down as the worshiper began the second stanza of the prayer. So unprepared, she’d scarcely had time to draw in a small breath, and her lungs were burning by the time she was brought up once more.

Over and over, she was forced beneath the water’s surface. She lost track of the number of stanzas that had been recited, as her whole world became nothing but water and all-too-quick bursts of cold air. Her struggles against her bonds became merely involuntary tremors as she lost any control over her body. As she was brought up for air once more, she sucked in a breath but took in water from her soaked gag with it. Just as she finished coughing it up, she was forced back underwater.

No air.

She had no air.

She was going to die.

Time lost all meaning. For eons, the panic ran rampant through her mind and body as she fought desperately to break through to the surface. Swirls of color flooded her vision until everything else disappeared.

She was going to die.

And then she was lying the side of the pool, taking in deep, ragged breaths. She vomited up the water she’d swallowed, nearly choking on it until someone finally removed the fabric still tied between her teeth.

A hand tenderly stroked her hair and she recoiled, kicking out as she scrambled to get away from the unwanted contact. The hand released her tresses only to grab her by the throat, pinning her to the floor. Emitis leaned over her and hissed, “How dare you strike out at the voice of Vato?” He backhanded her so sharply that his jeweled rings sliced open her cheek.

Garbled shouts thundered through the chamber, and she looked over to see Anden glaring furiously at the High Priest as he pulled at his bonds. When his gaze shifted to her, his green eyes were filled with so much concern and fear that her own began to brim with tears.

It hit her all over again: she’d really thought she was about to die.

Her tears overflowed and turned into racking sobs, and no matter how quickly she gasped in air she simply could not get enough into her lungs. When Emitis declared her hysterical and ordered her taken away, the guards had to carry her because her legs were shaking so much. They finally cut away the ropes binding her upper body and shoved her into her cell, swiftly locking the door shut as she collapsed onto the hard stone floor.

Her hands flapped in distress as she lay there weeping. She could hear through the open doorway when the worshiper began reciting the prayer of the Vessel of Sin. At regular intervals, his words were interrupted by the sound of a sharp crack, followed by a muffled grunt. Later the grunts became piercing cries.

Damn the priests; for that matter, damn Vato. Anden didn’t deserve this, and neither did she.

Gods, she’d really thought she was about to die.

Though she felt pathetic and weak laying there shaking on her cell floor, somewhere within she felt a resolve form and grow strong: whatever manner in which Emitis planned to sacrifice them next Midsummer didn’t matter. She was not going to die that day; she would make certain of it.

next

I love Kiri so much and I just want her to be happy, but I wrote this for her instead. Guess my hand slipped :) Thank you for reading!

tag list: @starlit-hopes-and-dreams

[tacticaldivine]

I just found out about Daccapri, she seems really neat :) I do have questions:

• So her parents are Argosax and Arius? How did that go down? To what extent did she know her parents?

• Since Lucia trained her, what's their relationship like? On a scale of "I taught her what I know then we went our separate ways" to "she's basically my daughter"?

• How did she get involved with Nero and the crew?

• Where did she learn her gunsmithing skills? What kind of guns does she make, and does she use them?

• Tell us more about this demon witch that possesses her sometimes, assuming that's still canon.

Thanks I'm glad you think she is neat uvu I’m gonna tell you rn; we do not live and die by canon in this house I be making this shit up so you just need to trust me. A lot of her stuff borders into Bayonetta lore too

 So her parents are Argosax and Arius? How did that go down? 

Her parents are actually Arius and the demon witch Fortuna

It all started 500 years ago. Her mother was a human born witch who went to Hell to escape the persecution of her coven, making a pact with the demon known as Fortuna to ensure her safety.

Fortuna had aided Sparda in his crusade against Mundus; she absolutely takes it personal when she finds out the island named after her worships him. Fortuna is an extremely petty being, a professional hater if you would, holding a grudge against the guy who sealed her off with the rest of the demons is expected.

Emerging after several hundred years after being summoned by Arius. Her mind consumed by her pact demon, Fortuna wants nothing more than to get revenge on humanity, starting with the Legendary Dark Knight who chose to save them. 

Fortuna takes to Arius cause they’re both cartoony ass villains, they wanna reclaim Earth for demonkind. They make a baby, the two of them do a silly little magic ritual to make the baby a vessel for Argosax. 

Fortuna wanted to inhabit the vessel and Arius who’s spent his entire life building to this point ends up using her own weapon to slay her, sealing her inside of it. A weapon Daccapri gains once Arius is killed.

To what extent did she know her parents?

Daccapri was raised by Arius so she knows him very well. Their relationship is very complicated. He treats her like a pet more than a person. And she doesn’t know any better so Daccapri spends most of her life assuming that this is normal. No matter what awful tests she’s subjected to she is fiercely loyal to Arius, her only family. While Arius is incredibly strict and blunt with her, I like to think under all that he does care for her.

She takes after him. Dressing in expensive clothes, behaving with great composure; she maintains a coquettish and level-headed illusion. The façade tends to come undone during combat or moments of intense emotions, revealing her aggressive and crude self.

Daccapri doesn’t really know Fortuna or Argosax. She hears Fortuna’s voice in her head, goading her on, her blood singing to eviscerate Sparda’s kin whenever she’s around one of them. 

Daccapri only knows of Argosax through texts. A distinct flavor of dread that haunts her, an unknown legacy to live up to that instinctively she knows is bad but it's what she was made for, her sole purpose for existing.

Since Lucia trained her, what's their relationship like? On a scale of "I taught her what I know then we went our separate ways" to "she's basically my daughter"?

I would describe it more as a sibling type bond but mentor/pupil is definitely more fitting I do agree. Either way they do not get along at all, more of a “I’m disappointed that you let yourself become the monster they made you to be” kind of way. Lucia spent countless hours training her during her time as a Secretary and then once again later when she became a Protector. Both of them raised to be weapons by the same man, they argue about how they should and should not be using said powers. Lucia believes it best to remove her from the equation entirely, Daccapri's mind already slipping; who knows when she'll finally lose control.

Lucia’s relationship with Matier is her saving grace, but Lucia does not show this same patience to Daccapri. Meanwhile Daccapri, who’s only idea of love, familial or otherwise, is absolute control over another person, hates being told what to do; especially from a Secretary. Daccapri recognizes Lucia’s skill but her inflated ego has her believing she’s above anyone around her. Unfortunately for both of them; she is able to back up said ego with combat prowess thanks to her demonic blood. 

How did she get involved with Nero and the crew?

Following her departure from Dumary Island, Daccapri ends up becoming an Information Broker. Her time with the Uroboros Corp at least comes in handy for something. Lucia, who has little trust that she’ll keep herself out of trouble, asks Dante to watch her.

She is turned away from DMC at first, so she uses her own connections to establish herself as a decent fixer. Impressed by her strong will and resourcefulness earning the respect of the accomplished hunter, she works for Lady post DMC2. 

During this time she slowly meets them all as Lady spends a fair amount of time entangled with the crew. Her connection with Lady is what helps establish herself amongst other information brokers. It also puts her directly at odds with Dante, who’s involvement with Lady results in countless collateral charges. 

As for how she meets Nero? She first learned of him through her time spent visiting The Order on Fortuna. Though she did not pay attention to him at first, more enamored with the recent success of Credo; a human having survived the Ascension Ceremony with his mind in tact. 

She would properly meet Nero and Nico sometime between 4 and 5 when Morrison sends them to her to collect job details. A love of supernatural weaponry unites her and Nico. Her and Nero however? The pair are volatile together, constantly egging the other on. Unstoppable Force meets Immoveable Object.

Daccapri takes to Nero the most because she enjoys toying with him. She also sees a bit of herself in him. She also wants to completely eviscerate him due to the age old grudge she was made to fulfill but its easily overcome with the power of friendship! He gives as good as he gets and she's absolutely enthralled at having to earn his respect, she loves a good challenge.

After the fall of the Qliphoth, Daccapri steps in as the primary informant for Nico and him and even accompanies them on missions.

Where did she learn her gunsmithing skills? What kind of guns does she make, and does she use them?

She learns them during her time with Uroboros. In my perfect little world, she would have learned from Agnus. (Whether that could be "canon" or not really idc cause she would have encountered The Order when funding their research so it doesn't matter when) She has a preference for making Devil Arms, she has a disdain for the stink of gunpowder and prefers any alternative. Despite this she wields Arius’s revolver, though she does end up heavily modifying it. She tends to use regular guns more as a melee weapon than as a ranged weapon, unless you count throwing it at someone at Mach speed(which I do at least).

She does try to use magic to concentrate bullets but regular weaponry tends to jam or stall at the rate she fires them. It's easier to avoid it entirely.

She herself uses a big stupid fuck off OP weapon that’s a gift from her mother. It's like Pandora’s box but bigger and gaudier. She spends most of her time studying it to try and replicate it, all attempts have failed but it's her own pet project.

I haven't sat down to properly draw her arsenal yet,,, my apologies

Tell us more about this demon witch that possesses her sometimes, assuming that's still canon.

So the demon witch that possesses her sometimes is actually her Mother, Fortuna. 

Fortuna is my Bayonetta OC. At this time she doesn't have a design so I'll give you Daccapri's Trigger design that invokes her

Madama Fortuna, was a former angel who spurned Iustita and wished to take over them rather than be just a servant to them. Cast out of Paradiso, she took well to the shadows of Inferno. Should a conjurer sign a contract and trade her soul, the demon will bestow her [[enourmous power and great wisdom]]

Witches who do their research can utilize her blinding lust for conquest to overwhelm her better judgment to manipulate the demon to their will. Following the witch's fall, they are destined to live out all eternity in her circle. Souls brave enough to fuse with her, or romance her, will become attached to her gown where she flaunts them for intimidation.

Fortuna grants her conjurer what is essentially plot armor. While the user is blessed with good luck, all those around her are given her misfortune. The last witch to enter into a pact with her was able to survive the Witch Hunts but wasn’t able to save anyone else during the war due to how her passive ability works.

To what extent this ability affects Daccapri, having both the Fortuna’s blood and her soul bound to her weapon, is unknown at this time.

The human disguise Fortuna wears is the last witch to willingly enter a pact with her.

________________________

I think that's everything. Hope that was somewhat helpful! Thank you for the question

[aita-blorbos]

AITA for "playing the villain" to protect some kids?

I (30s, M) am a "former" convict. Nowadays, I'm a high ranking official at the prison that once held me. 'Cause of this, it's my responsibility to guard the prison's secret. A lethal secret that could kill everyone in this prison, or even the entire country in the worst-case.

Recently, an external organization has been sending moles into my prison, my home. To find out about this secret. It's a delicate situation, so I've had most of them removed. It's been a hassle but nothing serious. Until they sent some kids down here.

Orphans. Three of them, siblings. Their foster father, one of the big shots in this organization, sent them down here to weasel their way into the fortress's secrets. Knowing full well what happened to the others, and surely knowing a thing or two about the nature of this secret. Maybe she knew I wouldn't hurt a kid, and she was hoping I'd leave them be. But there was no guarantee I'd go soft on 'em, and no guarantee that they wouldn't die (or worse) in the line of getting to this secret. So does she just see them as disposable tools with a slightly higher chance of success? Honestly, the idea sickens me.

I wasn't about to needlessly cause them harm, so I stayed out of their way. Until they got too close. One of the kids ended up nearly dying in a biologically hazardous area— as soon as I found out where he went, I sent a trusted colleague to fetch him and my nurse to tend to his health. Another ended up too close to the heart of this prison, so I had to stop her by force (she was well taken care of, though. I ensured that she had some fresh tea and a comfortable bed when she awoke).

Which leaves the last child. At the time, I didn't really think of it from his point of view— how it would feel to be isolated in a strange place like this, under orders from a supposed loved one, where neither of his siblings showed up when they were supposed to.

He correctly assessed that I was behind their disappearances, and came to confront me about them. I could tell from the look in his eyes that giving up wasn't an option for him, but I couldn't let him risk his life to get near this secret. So, I acted as if I was keeping his siblings hostage. Told him that if it was information he wanted, I wasn't opposed— but I would only tell his "Father" directly. I couldn't risk him using the information to pursue deeper answers himself, and it just seemed disgustingly low to send a bunch of children up against someone like me. Was she that afraid of getting her hands a little dirty? Did she care about them that little? Especially considering how.... absolutely terrified, this eldest child was, of failing her, disappointing her.

Anyway. I made a bit of a show of it, he begged for his sister back, refused to call this supposed "Father" down to talk with me, and I had to eventually subdue him (with the assistance of my nurse). I figure it's one thing if they return to this "Father" empty handed and feeling like they didn't try hard enough, and quite another if their hands are empty because the big bad head of the fortress got in their way and overpowered them. But in hindsight, I think I may have caused some psychological damage, since this kid really did think someone bigger and stronger than him had actually kidnapped his siblings. I don't feel that it would be right to apologize, but I do have other ways of making amends, if necessary. Friends on the surface and all.

[allgonejeon]

7/29/23 1:24am • Age

I don’t think I’ve ever felt this depressed since Dav back in 2021. And I don’t think I’ve ever told you about him. Although I don’t spend my nights praying to God to remove the life from my body so to not continue feeling pain like I did then, I’m grieving. I cried when you sent that last text but my body only allowed myself to do so for only a few seconds. I’ve been sleeping a lot. My body is reacting now. I woke up with chills without having a fever. It only lasted half an hour. Today was the first day since my breakup back in ‘21 that I spend the whole day without eating or drinking water; that’s until I went over to my friends house and had pizza. I feel like Jah knew I would need a busy weekend, and god did I need it. It was nice being with friends. But to be honest, the thought of me wishing you were there hit me a few times. I think you would’ve liked my friends. The guys would’ve loved you. There were like ten of us at my friends house, we were all on the couch voting on what to watch. I told them I voted for Shrek 2 and the dude next to me agreed. I told him “nah dude but like I’m gonna be super annoying though because I quote the whole entire movie and won’t shut up” and he said “that’s okay, I can quote the whole Nacho Libre movie and won’t shut up”. That reminded me of you, and all I could do was smile. Actually, I talked to my friend Bridge about you. Whenever I talk about a situation I’m in with anyone, I tend to throw myself under the bus. And so I did in this case too. But what she said to me was so true. I told her how sorry I was about hurting you, and especially for bringing up your spirituality more than I should’ve because it wasn’t my business. And she said “Ash, although you could’ve probably delivered your concerns to him in a better way, and although his reasons for leaving are valid. You were not the person who put himself in that situation, and he shouldn’t be blaming you for him leaving. At the end of the day, had he not fallen into temptation, he would’ve never gotten reproved and he would’ve met you and you two would’ve been perfect. But since he did, he has to live with the consequences, and one of those consequences is losing someone like you even if it was his choice. At the end of the day, your concerns about him weren’t wrong. And he sounds to me to be very insecure and is probably projecting that onto you in a small level. You moving on, he told you he didn’t have feelings for you and he’s also made it clear he didn’t believe in waiting for anyone. So you moved on and now he’s putting that on you when he admitted to talking to another girl too after you broke up, only it didn’t work out unlike you and C. Him not measuring up to your expectations, he could’ve been there had he not done what he did in the first place and that’s something he has to live with. All in all, it is not your fault.”… I just stood there and all I could say was “But what if I am to blame? Maybe I’m just a bad person, what can I do better?” And he goes “Nothing at all. I know you’re a helper and a fixer by heart but you’re exactly where you need to be and you don’t have to help anyone. You dodged another bullet. Because you need someone who’s willing to put as much effort into the relationship as you have been. It’s not fair to you.”

And to be completely honest, that whole conversation was exactly what I needed. I know you’re never gonna read this, Age. But I think Im gonna be ready to let you go soon too. I’m sorry for hurting you, but I really don’t need to be lead on and let go so many times from the same person. Or to make me feel so replaceable because all you can talk about to me are about other girls. I don’t deserve to feel like I always need to be interesting or hot in order to get the attention and praise I always needed from you. And I don’t deserve to feel like I’m still competing with E when clearly she’s all you still think about. It all hurt me so much and had put such a deep cut on my heart and on my self esteem but I still stayed and I never complained to you. I didn’t deserve to feel like a trash person or boy crazy when I moved on with another guy given that I felt like the one person I ever wanted wasn’t going to be in my life anymore and I needed to move on for my own sake only for you to come back out of the blue. And only for you to open my heart back up again and get me to the verge of me falling in love with you only for you to leave me again for good when I never left you. You never had the intention of staying or working things out. You always left when things got too hard which is something I never did to you. And I NEVER brought any of it up because I was always made to feel like it’s my fault for not making our relationship work. And I think it’s time I start to learn my own worth. Even when I still love you. And I still feel so damn pathetic that I do. Because you really don’t deserve for me to love you as much as I genuinely do.

[spirituallyghostly]

Insomnia kicked my ass into staring at a wall for 6 hours, so I'm giving up on that. It's gonna be easy mode challenges today at the gym ('help the Dreepy out of trees', 'round up all the Gastly that decided to haunt the janitor closets' 'remove the rotoms from the internet router' type shit), but while I'm still up against my will before my shift, I might as well ramble about my current team.

So, Baby is my starter, she's been with me since I was 8 or 9 (a lot of that time period is a blur in my memories, don't worry about it), and I personally hatched her from an egg. My family's lived in Unova for generations now, but my dad's side of the family started out in one of the islands surrounding Galar, and they send our side of the family random eggs every once in a while. Mom and Dad expected something like a Rookidee or a Galarian Meowth, maybe a Clobbopus or Impidimp at the high end (dad's starter is a Klinklang and mom's starter was a Gyarados within a year of her getting a Magikarp, they're not directly trainer-oriented professionals but they know how to take care of pokemon), so it was a bit of a shock to everyone to get a tiny little Ghost/Dragon instead. We spent years not even focusing on battling or anything, just kind of hanging out and learning how to communicate and exist together, until she evolved into a Drakloak when I was 16 and decided she needed to be more active in the competitive scene. We didn't do any official badge runs or anything, but we did go around to a few regions and hung out with other Ghost trainers and occasionally gym leaders, just learning the ropes and fighting for fun. She didn't hit her final evolution until 4 or 5 years ago, while I was beginning to leave my preschool work and began attending college, and she still has a super soft spot for little kids, which translates into the entire local Dreepy line colony hanging around the local schools and daycares. THAT was a weird conversation to have with the authorities, but it ended well, so no harm done.

Jade was a Duskull when we found him in Hoenn, not actually around Mount Pyre but in a field outside Verdanturf, off route 116. We still have no idea why he was there, but he seemed lost and stuck around with my team while we traveled the region and studied under Phoebe's family. Eventually, it was time for us to go, and he wanted to come with us, so he got his wish. He's been with me for 8 years now, and he's been a Dusknoir for about half that time; getting him the cloth to evolve took a bit of doing and a lot of money, but he was determined to become a Dusknoir, and I can't say no to that kind of thing. He tends to just hang around in my shadow most of the time, but he's very protective and has been known to mess with annoying challengers by untying their shoelaces, opening all their bags and pockets, and generally being as annoying to them as they are to me. He's a good friend, and an amazing helper on bad days.

Lady C is my newest pokemon, I've only been her trainer for a little over a year now. She came to the gym fully evolved, and the details of her life before the transfer are a little murky. I think she was a service pokemon of some sort before she evolved, since she's extremely practiced in taking care of people and younger pokemon, but she's very quiet and doesn't seem to want to talk about it at the moment. Originally, she was going to be one of the gym leader's gym challenge pokemon, but she never really took to the role, and isn't really the battling type in the first place, so he let her help me out in my non-challenge duties, and eventually she just came home with me and never left. She's a huge help with the younger challengers and pokemon, and usually makes sure I take care of myself. Her name is actually a reference to a video game I was playing, one of the antagonists is named Lady D, and she took a shine to the character over the course of my playthrough. I only realized she'd named herself when I called her Lady C on accident one day and she didn't even bat an eye.

[razorblade180]

Nine Days of Lancaster

[Day 4: Soulmate au]

Everything has a routine. From the everyday worker, to the cat resting on a fence. Cars pass by, birds call, life goes on. I’m truth, there’s nothing wrong with that. Not everything is meant to be grand. However, everything was meant to have color, vibrant and glorious visuals that made the mundane a little more grand. Unfortunately such a right was only given when life’s greatest thing was found, love.

Jaune Arc walked through the muted Vale streets. It wasn’t too bad. Color wasn’t truly loved, but never experienced deeply by most. Faint flickers of green signaled him to cross the street which, rushing to lunch before meeting with his visiting family. He weaved around the colorless bystanders then continued on his way. He was making good time. That was until Jaune made a sharp left turn around a corner. The young man was stopped dead in his tracks as somebody crashed right into him, toppling them over and sending a skateboard into the road.

“Ugh..what on Remnant?” Jaune groaned as rubbed his side. It felt like he hit a car instead of a person. He looked across from him to see why that was. Oh it was a person alright. Unlike him however, they had a helmet. “Hey, are you o-”

His words were caught in his throat as the stranger sat up, removing the helmet to rub their head. Slowly, as if like tie dye, color begin to spill into the world before his eyes. Stark black hair revealed hints of red end. Their fair skin became more peach while white jeans became blue and muted gray turned to black. The only color that remained unchanged was the pool of silver eyes he peered into. With a couple blinks, Jaune Arc’s world became vibrant.

Ruby looked that boy she just hit and gasped, hoping to her feet. “Oh my goodness! I’m so sorry.” She reached her hand out to help him up. “Dad always tells me not to skate on busy sidewalks. Guess I should’ve listened. Are you okay?”

“Umm…uhhhh”

“Oh no, I broke you!” She panicked. The girl had half a mind to call for medical help, when a hard snap made them both turn around to see a big truck pass by and broken board in the street. Her jaw dropped and so did her head.

“Woah, bad luck.” Jaune said.

“Oh, so you can speak? Guess that’s good.” She sighed, “Well, guess I deserved it.”

“I’m partly to blame. I shouldn’t be running around corners like that. Are you…okay?” He quickly became aware of this girl’s beauty again, making him nervous.

“Me? I had the helmet. You’re the one rubbing your ribs. Oof, please tell me they’re not broken?”

“No, no, I’m…pretty sure?” He was legitimate pain but not that much pain. “I might bruise by I tend to bounce back quickly.”

He saw her frown. Clearly she wasn’t convinced and by her earlier reaction, probably feels bad. Jaune wasn’t really sure what to do. He didn’t even know her name. Also, she didn’t appear to be as startled as he was either. He didn’t want to think about it much but it’s entirely possible that he was only one seeing in color now. That’s happened to more than a few unfortunate people.

“That’s unfortunate.” He thought to himself. Still, everything and anything became more…alive. Even the sky he’s seen all his life was finally the magnificent blue his parents described. That alone was a blessing. Not the mention the sense of warmth he was getting from her. It made him nervous, but not unpleasant.

“Were you going some place important? With your board gone, I don’t mind buying you a bus ticket.”

“Don’t worry about all that. I wasn’t going any place special. Just my sister’s. Anyways, scroll.” She holds out her hand.

“Excuse me?”

“Your scroll. I’m giving you my number. If you end up having to see a doctor or anything then call me. I’ll pay the bill.”

“Oh, you don’t really have t-”

“Scroll please.”

“Yes ma’am.” Her stern yet polite voice was somehow both sweet and intimidating. He got his scroll back and took a look. “Ruby Rose, that’s a nice name. I’m Jaune Arc by the way. A not as nice name.”

“Hehe, I don’t know. Rolls off the tongue pretty easily. Well I hope you feel better genuinely. If not, don’t hesitate to call. I’m a clutz but a responsible one.” She said with pride.

Jaune got a laugh at that. He nodded and just like that, Ruby went on her way. He saw her look at her board for a moment before her shoulders slouched as she abandoned the idea of grabbing the pieces.

“Ruby Rose…huh.”

xxxxxx

“I can’t believe you hit someone!”

“Leave me alone!” Ruby yelled defensively, plopping down on her sister’s couch. “I lost the board and my knee hurts. I’ve suffered enough. Yang, please tell me you have an ice pack or something?”

“You’re lucky I always have a bag of something frozen whenever you get hurt. Hold on.” She walked over to her kitchen.

“You always have something because you don’t cook.” Ruby mumbled.

“What was that?”

“Nothing~”

“Thought so.” Yang chuckled, opening the freezer. “So, what’s this Jaune fellow look like?”

“Tall, a bit scraggly, but seemed nice. Also…deep blue eyes.”

“Oh yeah? That sounds n-” it took a second but did she hear that right? Yang immediately closed the fridge and ran back to the living room to see her sister bunched up in the corner of the couch, a deep blush on her face.

A smile slowly started to spread across the older sister’s face. “Ruby, can you see in color!?”

She hugged her knees, “Oh you know…yeah~”

“You ran over your soulmate!?”

“It was a crash and I think I did!”

Yang in her special way started off getting really excited for Ruby, before immediately bursting into laughing. All Ruby could do was cover her face in embarrassment. She didn’t need any color to know just how red she must’ve been. Oh well. At least she got his number.

[tommyspeakycap]

omgg write something about playing or braiding jack’s hair

oh em gee I love this !!!!! I loved his hair braid too omg

Jack had a very specific barber he liked to go to to get the same quality haircut he always got. He trusted that specific barber and his appointments were always made in advance to absolutely ensure he could get it done the way he liked by whom he liked at the right time so it never got overgrown or hard to manage. Jack was very specific about his hair and about keeping it the way he liked it to be. It was part of his image, part of him really. The Brummie boy hated when anyone else touched it. Be that joking team members giving his head a teasing push or his dad ruffling his hair each time he walks in the door, it irks the living daylights right out of him.

So it seems as though it’s Jack’s own personal nightmare now the barbers are shut with absolutely no sign of opening up for at least another month and Jack can’t seem to take one minute more of training with his hair getting all up in his eyes, dropping into his face and blowing wildly in Birmingham wind even with a headband in. It is driving him absolutely insane. It’s all he can think of in this moment.

And that is because he currently has your fingers tangled in it completely absentmindedly as he lays in between with your legs with his legs stretched out along the L section of the L shaped couch. Your eyes are fully focussed on the storyline evolving throughout an old episode of Greys Anatomy. Jack’s arms are around your torso as his head rests comfortably on your lower stomach with his eyes peacefully shut. He would usually engage in the TV with you, but the preseason after an unexpected break that had him doing less exercise than he definitely should have been doing had him absolutely shattered.

It was rare for even you to touch the locks he took so laughably serious, but it felt like the most soothing experience he’d maybe ever had to feel the gentility of your finger massaging over his scalp in the most relaxing manner he’d ever known. Even his sports massages after long matches weren’t this relaxing.

“Mmmhm, feels so good.” He murmurs, his voice ticking your stomach as he speaks against it, the sigh that leaves him making you giggle in response. “So annoyin’ in training.” He adds tiredly, but not lacking in the obvious irritation he feels towards it. Jack tends to feel a lot and often, and even seemingly small things like his hair getting in the way of his play was unimaginably irritating for him.

“I could cut it?” You suggest.

“Yeah,” he snorts, “And end up like the poor dog? I’ll pass love.”

“Aw come on! It wasn’t that bad.” You retort

“He looked like a street rat with curls, sweetheart.” He laughs, despite the disappointment he feels for your hands leaving his hair for the first time since he lay down tonight.

“Cheek.”

“Sorry baby.” He lulls, finally looking up at you for the first time, lifting his face to offer you a smile that strained him. Holding his head up like that was too much for his already tired muscles, so he’s quickly laying his head back to its resting place. You can’t think of anything else to retort with, knowing full and well the incredibly poor state of affairs that occurred in your household three weeks into Lockdown 1 after you attempted to give the dog a haircut out of pure boredom and lack of open dog grooming services. The state of affairs being Jack crawling to the bathroom on his knees and one hand with the other hand holding onto his crotch because he was trying so hard not to wet himself from laughing at the poor pup who looked so confused that his dad hadn’t been able to greet him as normal when he returned from the weekly food shop.

Jack very nearly did piss on your good cream carpet that day, so it was fair for him to not trust your barber skills either. Especially being the way he is about his hair.

“You know the old episodes make me miss Derek.” You announce after a moment of only the television speaking between the two of you.

“He the one with the hair?” Jack mumbles. You snort a laugh.

“They’ve all got hair, Jack. Go on, say it then?”

“Fine,” he huffs indignantly, “The one with the good hair.”

Your giggle makes his heart erupt into butterflies that dance through his stomach and chest just like it does every single time he gets to be lucky enough to hear it. Jack doesn’t like to admit when others have hair he likes. He prefers to live in a world where his hairstyle is simply the best, and truly he usually does. He tends to live in his own world anyway. The world where his hair is fantastic, he gets to do what he loves for a living and come home to you each and every day. That’s his world and fucking hell does he love that world.

In reality though, part of that world is that however fictional Derek Shepherd may be, his hair is fantastic and always looks rather immaculate. Something Jack can’t quite relate to at this current moment in time. “You know this episode is kinda about his hair,” you note softly, hands smoothing back over your boyfriends brown locks. He knows by the tone of your voice that you’re going to go into more detail about the episode currently playing through on Amazon Prime TV. Some people may well have been annoyed listening to their girlfriends recounting entire episodes of TV shows that they weren’t exactly inclined to watch, but Jack was not one of those men. He didn’t care what you were talking about, just the sound of you talking was enough to make him listen intently. He loved to hear you talk, and if that was the only thing that he ever got to hear for the rest of his life then he’d still be happy.

“They adopted a little girl and he hasn’t quite figured her hair out yet but everyone’s shocked ‘cause his hairs pretty good. Like you, a little. You got good hair, just haven’t learned to manage it yet eh?” You explain, weaving your fingers in and out of those stands of hair that make him hum in both understanding and enjoyment. He isn’t sure what you’re doing, but the weaving of stands, pads of your fingers dancing over his scalp carefully, softly feels like what he might imagine heaven to be. “Yeah?” He asks, “And what does he do then?” His voice is filled with genuine interest for what you were saying. It was the first time you’d ever known that in a relationship. He heard you snigger softly to yourself. “He learns from someone who knows a bit more about hair than he does.” You state pointedly, prompting him to roll his eyes even if you can’t see him.

“I’m not letting you cut my hair, (y/n). Not happening, I’m sor-“

“Alright, Jack. I bloody know! That’s not what I meant.” You grumble. Jack can immediately imagine your disgruntled pout already, with those irritated narrowed eyes and the playful scrunch of your nose. “Sorry.” Every time he sees that look on you, he moves to kiss that furrow out of your nose. It makes his heart smile each and every time he sees it. You are simultaneously the most beautiful, more adorable and hottest woman he has ever laid his eyes on. “Sorry baby,” he reiterated, “Go on.”

“I could braid it for you?”

That earns a belly laugh from him that reverberates through your body, jostling with the force of his whole body laughter. “So you will,” he bellows in breaks between the ever comedic gasping from breath after each loud laugh. “Not a chance.”

He pushes himself up to sit back on his knees, trapping your legs between his as he looks down at you with a huge grin still stretching his lips and creasing his eyes, yet they still sparkle in adoration for you. “Oh yeah?” You muse with a giggle to follow despite the firm attempt to seal it behind clenched lips. The giggle sets those dimples into your cheeks, his eyes just drinking you up as you lounge back on the huge couch there in front of him, sinking back into the pillows just like he had been sinking against you in comfort for hours only moments ago. “Yeah.” He repeats firmly, the playful jest of his words not lost on your ears as he leans forward.

With the emission of only a small, surprised yelp from you that turns the head of the dog in his bed for only a moment, Jack has grabbed your legs to tug you down so you were laying flat on your back on the L of the sofa. He leans over you, hands and strong arms keeping him above you with ease. “Realllly?” You tease, one eyebrow quirked. Jack loves it when you do that, mostly because he can’t and he finds it beautifully funny.

Your hands reach up to his face, cupping over the beard on his cheeks to bring his face down to peck his lips before letting him press back up like a simple press up over your body. This was a common occurrence between the pair of you and Jack had always loved to show off. “Not cuttin’ about with a braid in my hair baby, sorry.”

He dips down for another kiss and you break out another giggle that parts your lips from his. “You already are, bub.”

“Ya what?” He pops straight up, sitting again back on his knees. “Not falling over your face now eh?” You taunt with a cheeky grin that makes him furrow his brows. Jack removed his hands from beside you to run one after the other over the top of his hair, a weird mix of a grin and disbelief washing over his face. Your sweetheart smile warms his heart as you lay there looking up at him with tired eyes and a lazy smile, cheeks flushed and one of his old cotton shirts keeping you warm long after his body raises from yours.

“Wait there!” He yells, bounding off the couch to all but leap through the living room until he reaches the mirror in the hall just outside the door. “Babe!” He cheers through the house, appearing back in the doorway of the room. “Nah it’s kinda cool, you fuckin’ smashed that!” You sit up and turn around towards him with your hand covering your mouth in a giggle that makes him stride forward and tug your hand away so he can see that beautiful smile. He jumps back again. “And look; stays in when I move around like-”

An immediate howl of laughter breaks out of your mouth with your head tipped back in hysterics as you watch him run on the spot, jump on the spot and then shake his head around like your puppy when he had a cone on his head. You laugh so hard your laughter looses its noise, simply existing as a elongated wheeze and a sudden gasp for desperate air to aid and allow for only more laughter. “Why you laughing for?” He yells, his words split by his own laughter as he tugs you to your feet, standing taller than him when your on your feet on the couch. Jack wraps one arm around your waist and moves the other down to the bend of your knees to sweep your legs from beneath you, perching you on the edge of the back of the couch.

“It,” kiss, “is,” kiss, “perfect.” Kiss.

“Just like you, baby.” He rumbles lowly, “Perfect just like my girl. Gonna wear it to training. Keep hair out my face, remind me of you, perfect.” He just keeps talking, keeps praising you between kisses while he brings you closer and closer to him until you can wrap your legs around him. Locked in place, he takes your face in his hands.

“So you’ll let me braid it again?” You chime, eyes lighting up. Jack chuckles, thumbs smoothing over your cheeks with a kiss pressed to the tip of your nose. “Course baby. Every day.”

True to his word Jack Grealish is. Every night he comes home from his training, he’s laying on the couch letting you massage the days stresses out of his mind, letting your fingers weave the tension out of his scalp. Jack’s never let anyone take care of him so much. He’s never felt comfortable to be taken care of like this, but you are his exception. His one single exception. And every morning he sits in the floor at the foot of the bed while you sit with a leg on either side of him, fingers weaving the strands into place for the day and tighter for match days. People make comments but Jack doesn’t give even half of a shit. His hair is how he likes it; out of his face so he can concentrate on his game and it gives you more of a reason to actually be up in the morning when he leaves before the sun rises above you. That’s perfect for Jack.

Until his next haircut, the only time that footballer doesn’t have a braid through his hair is when your fingers are tangling in it while he’s between your legs for another very enjoyable reason.

[ganymedesclock]

A random collection of Sonic headcanons since I’ve been stimulating that part of my brain lately:

Sonic is the absolute last person anyone who’s spent time around him expects to be a foodie considering he eats like absolute garbage and gets away with it because his metabolism will kill him if he doesn’t eat like five meals a day so odds are decent any time he’s not up and about he is probably either napping or snacking. In defiance of this, he actually has a surprisingly worldly palate, since he’s been just about everywhere and has a high natural curiosity about food; he’s tried and enjoyed a lot of stuff, including weird stuff. This is a guy who just knows offhand what haggis tastes like. This also gets to him sometimes because he’ll occasionally get a hankering for like, the authentic street food of a specific city in a country two continents over and he can’t just drop everything and go GET some because there’s an OCEAN in the way

Shadow’s body naturally produces and maintains a pretty potent charge of energy which he uses for his chaos attacks. His inhibitor rings basically work as heat vents to bleed off the majority of that power so he can’t build enough of a charge to fry himself just by not letting off a chaos blast every five minutes. This process is normally silent and extremely subtle- under high duress however they may hiss and release steam because his energy levels fluctuate with his mood and because of his PTSD and other problems his adrenaline levels can spike (and thus, spike his energy) when he’s actually not in a combat situation and has nothing to use all that for. This is not a problem at all as long as he checks his inhibitors in for regular maintenance / keeps the emergency coolant reserves in them topped off, but it tends to scare the crap out of people the first time it happens.

Silver has asthma. Silver does not know what asthma is. Really his health overall is not great but on account of growing up in an apocalypse he has an actually really concerning pain tolerance and has internalized some really bad attitudes about trucking through it so after several people take him aside for an intervention and explain certain important concepts like the use of a rescue inhaler he’s genuinely astonished to realize how many incidental parts of his life are actually serious medical conditions.

Amy is a hobbyist magician and really good at sleight of hand. This messes with at least half of the superpowered people in her life because they KNOW she’s not doing that with literal magic but how did she do that. She’s also great at figuring out those puzzles where you remove two tangled threads without untying them at either end.

Big’s largely hermetic existence does actually get boring sometimes although he’s loath to go into Station Square further than the regular shop he buys fishing tackle from or the open-air farmer’s market where he sells fish, and he’s actually quite well-read as a result, though the majority of his reading is nonfiction. As a result there are a large number of topics where, if incidentally prompted, he’ll be able to explain the minutiae of it in intense detail. These interest areas include:

fishing as a sport

laws about hunting and fishing

the ancient echidna civilization

the entire plot of an obscure period soap opera in a language Big doesn’t speak and the original novel it was based on

engines

woodcarving

almost any animal that can be found in the mystic ruin rainforest basin and surrounding area (he started with frogs and didn’t really stop) 

amphibians in general

the history of umbrellas

badniks (sometime after Final Egg was abandoned, Big started wandering around its perimeter and scavenging both for interesting bits to expand/repair his house and out of genuine curiosity)

Jet’s actually a pretty darn competent thief when he keeps his ego out of the way, something that continuously surprises the main targets of his competitive streak.

Charmy’s actually a really deep sleeper which works since he often gets tired on long stakeouts. This will semi-regularly result in either Vector or Espio carrying a sleeping Charmy around. Espio will go for a fairly dignified piggyback carry while Vector will go with whatever position is the most efficient without compromising Charmy’s health. At least once he’s walked around the majority of Westopolis with Charmy dangling halfway out of a normal shopping bag completely dead to the world.

Omega adamantly maintains that his exclusive purpose is to be an efficient engine of destruction but he actually really enjoys looking his best. After a while Rouge picks up on this and they have several discussions about custom paint jobs. Omega thinks it would be interesting to try blue but vetoes the idea because he’s fairly sure it would go straight to Sonic’s head.

Rouge is a regular gym rat, not just because she uses muscles for her work but she just doesn’t feel right without a proper workout. Afterwards she tends to soak it off, so it takes a while for people to realize that her idea of a spa day involves 30lb weights, which she’s just fine with.

Tails is actually scared of a lot of things besides lightning; he sleeps with a nightlight and has bouts of social anxiety. He tries not to let this on because he thinks it’s childish and stupid and he’s clearly so smart he should be acting like an adult already right- needless to say, his friends are a lot more supportive when he talks to them about this. Knuckles uses the master emerald to charge a shard of ordinary crystal to give Tails a battery-less unfailing flashlight for his birthday one year.

The absence of light pollution on most of Angel Island and its usual cruising altitude affords it a great view of the night sky, especially from the slopes of red mountain. Stargazing is one of Knuckles’ main pastimes, and he also uses this to track the Island’s position as it moves.

[lilith-of-rivia]

The Witcher's Healer (GeraltXfemaleWitch!reader)

Master List

Trigger Warnings: None

Pairing: (GeraltXfemaleWitch!reader)

Word Count: 2,539

The morning was quiet as you left the warmth of your small cottage. The sun had barely risen. Frost thick on the grass, as it crunched under your feet. The fall was deepening, winter not too far behind it. The empty water bucket hung lazily from your arm as you walked in silence to the river, Poe your guard dog in toe. The cool breeze chilled you to your bone, making you pull your wool sweater closer to your body. The river got louder as you approached, the water clear. It was very low this time of year, the snow on the mountains nearly gone as the summer came to its end.

Poe splashed recklessly around the water near the bank as you filled the bucket you had, glancing around looking at the fall greenery that was in need of picking. You grabbed the shears from the pocket of your skirt, leaving the bucket on the bank, and walked around, plucking, pulling, and cutting the foliage, putting them in your pockets. The season for growing was coming to an end, meaning your little herb and veggie garden had to be harvested, tilled, and re-seeded for next spring. A lot of work, but being a healing mage in the middle of nowhere far from any town meant fending for yourself. Most of the time at least.

The door to the house shut behind you, Poe sitting on the rug in front of the fireplace, warming his cold toes. You poured the bucket of water into the kettle over the fire, waiting for it to boil while you went to the small kitchen in your cottage. The sun was now coming up over the mountains, shining brightly through the window onto your cold cheeks. You plucked and pulled at the greenery, hanging bundles over the fire to dry. The day’s chores only grew as the sun got higher in the sky. From feeding Poe to checking snares in the woods behind your house. Thankfully you had been lucky, catching multiple rabbits and even a deer. The process of butchering, cleaning the hide, and smoking the meets would take nearly the rest of the day.

You walked back inside after checking the box in the ground that you had built to smoke meats and keep animals away, the hides now tanning on a rack outside the house. You walked over to the basin by your bed, washing the blood off your hands and forearms. Glancing over to your bed you saw the tick marks. Today marked 397 days. 397 days since you last saw your love. Since he kissed you goodbye, said he’d be back in a year or less. He was thirty days late. He had never been late, in your nearly 50 years of tending both physically and emotionally to him, he had never been late. It made your stomach ache. You would never know if he was dead or not, his line of work being increasingly more dangerous than your own.

“What if he doesn’t come back?” You whispered to yourself, tears threatening to spill down your face. If your love did not return, you had no idea what you would do. Your heart said you wouldn’t make it on this earth without him. Being a mage meant immortality. An immortal life without him was not something you wanted.

You walked back outside, the warm sun hitting your face as you walked into your gated garden, basket in hand. You began plucking and pulling herbs off their bushes, tying them in bundles before putting them in the basket. In a couple of hours, you were done harvesting. Your growth this year had been plentiful, thanks in large to the bag of manure your love had brought to you at the beginning of the season.

Carrots, tomatoes, potatoes, radishes, cabbage, onions, cucumbers, three large squash, and all the blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries you could eat. After taking multiple trips, everything from your year of tending, growing, watering, was on the table in the center of the room. After bagging all the root vegetables into mesh bags and storing them in your cellar you moved onto canning and preserving your fruits. The cans went onto the shelves in the cellar along with countless other jars of fruits from the rest of the season.

“I miss him so much.” You said as you looked from the newly cleaned table to Poe. he was laying on the couch now, his head tilting as you spoke almost as he understood you. Your body started to shake with sobs, your mind racing with what could’ve happened to your Witcher. You heard Poe Jump off the couch, soon his tongue was licking your hand softly as he whined at you. You looked down at him through clouded eyes, his ears were back. You started to pet him, his head pushing into your leg as he cuddled into you attempting to stop you from crying.

“I missed you more my love.” Your head snapped up to the door of your home, the fire lighting up his face in the dark of the night. He stood there, tall, hair a mess, his eyes were sunken in. he had two packs on his shoulders, his swords on his back. You could see the pain in his leg as he winced to put down his belongings. You could hear Roach outside, munching on grass happy her travels were over for a while.

“Oh, Geralt…” Your voice cracked as you cried more, his heart broke at the sight in front of him. You looked disheveled, face sunken in, bags under your eyes.

“Come here, my love.” His arms opened after he shut the door. Before you could move Poe was at his feet, his tail wagging so hard his entire body was shaking. He gently jumped up whining softly at him. Geralt chuckled softly, his hands petting the dog’s head, scratching behind his ears.

“I missed you too, but I need to see your mum” He gently pushed Poe off him, took two large strides, and wrapped his muscular arms around you. Your arms wrapped around him, hands gripping his shirt tightly.

“You’re late…” You whispered into his shirt, his hands stroking your back.

“I know….I’m so sorry.” His warm lips were on your forehead as he caressed your back.

“I thought you were dead…” His hands came up and cupped your face pulling you back so you could look at him. His fingers softly brushed your tears away. No one else on the planet saw this side of your witcher. Only you. With you he was soft, loving, caring. He smiled and laughed all the time. He was everything to you, and you to him.

“Nothing on this continent will ever keep me from coming back to you, dove.” his lips softly pressed to yours, it was soft, sweet. Everything in your body yurned for him. Your hands gently held onto his arms as the kiss deepened.

He pulled away too soon for your liking, making you open your eyes. His eyes were looking over your body. You knew how wrecked you looked. You hadn’t been eating or sleeping regularly. You had lost weight and it was showing. The only thing you could do to keep yourself from crying throughout the day was keeping busy. So you occupied yourself from dusk till dawn, many days only eating some bread with some form of fruit. Not nearly enough for the chores around your household. He dipped his head down, hand cupping your jaw tilting your head to the side. You felt his lips linger over your neck as he inhaled your scent deeply. You could almost see his stress melt away.

“Are you hurt?” You asked. Your hands gently pushed him back as you untied his tunic, ready to heal anything that needed your magic touch.

“Not too bad, nothing I haven’t dealt with before.” You gently removed his shirt, fingers gliding over the newer cuts along his sides and arms.

“Sit down, I’ll go mix the herbs and prepare a stew for you, my love.” You whispered, meeting his eyes. He shook his head and kissed you.

“You have not been taking care of yourself, dove. Let me help.” with a sigh you nodded.

“Go grab some potatoes, carrots, and onions from the seller. I have cured meats in the hatch outside if you’d like to grab some of that as well.” He nodded kissing your head before walking outside to gather the meats first.

You walked into the kitchen, putting a large pot over the fire, and grabbing a bread pan. You quickly mixed some flour and water with a few eggs and rosemary before placing it into the bread pan, placing it into the cast iron stove next to the fire. You grabbed the small hatchet by your wood piled to cut some kindling. Just as you were about to kneel to start the fire, Geralt grabbed your shoulders, lifting you. His hand took the hatchet as he kissed your cheek.

“I’ve got this, dove.” He whispered, steering you in the direction of your herbs. You smiled at him, your heart leaping.

After months without him, it was a breath of fresh air to have him in your home again. His sent clouded your mind as you chopped up the veg, placing it into the cast iron pot with some water and other herbs and seasonings from your cabinets. Once the meet was in the pot you covered it letting it simmer. Geralt had the fire in the oven started, bread in, and had gone back outside to chop some more firewood for the night.

You watched from the window, he was still shirtless even with the cooler temperatures, his witcher blood keeping him warm. You admired how he moved, every muscle contracting in his arms and back as he swung the ax, splitting the logs. You were grateful you wouldn’t have to do that with him home. You were grateful to have him back in arms reach.

“I got you something on the road.” Geralt said as he watched you from his place at the table, his swords in hand as he sharpened and polished them. You were pouring the stew into bowls and cutting the bread. You placed one down in front of him, lightly kissing his forehead as you sat.

“You didn’t have to do that my love.” He smiled and handed you a bag.

You pulled out the contents, your eyes widening. Inside was a beautiful black fur cloak. It was incredibly thick, made from wool and wolf’s fur. It was by far the most luxurious piece of clothing you’d ever owned. Under the cloak was a knitted wool sweater. It was green, brand new.

“Geralt….these must’ve cost a fortune you didn’t have to.” You looked at him with a smile as he ate.

“I know I didn’t have to (Y/N), but you never spend money on yourself, and you’ve been taking care of me for years. It’s no ring, but it’s better than a ring I believe. More practical. And besides your cloak and sweaters are so old, they hardly keep you warm.” He said with a smile, one eyebrow cocked at your slight confusion.

“What ring are you speaking of Geralt?” You asked as you admired the cloak. Your hands brushing through the fur.

“We’ve been together for more than half a century love. You are my wife. We may have never gotten married and I may have not asked you outright. But when women approach me in taverns when I’m away my response is always; “no because my wife is waiting for me at home”.” Your heart raced in your chest, your face was warm and you felt like crying in the best way. You had always thought of Geralt as your husband. He never asked you properly to marry him, but you never pushed, understanding that his trials and mutations had made it hard for him to express his emotions, in fear of the loss and suffering he may endure. But hearing him call you his wife, made you happier than you ever thought was possible.

“Geralt of Rivia, are you trying to ask me something?” You asked with a smile spread across your face. He returned the smile, rolling his eyes playfully as he reached across the table grabbing your hand.

“My dearest (Y/N), will you do me the honor of being my wife?” In an instant, you were in his lap kissing his face all over, not leaving an inch unkissed.

“Yes of course.” His arms circled your waist as he kissed you deeply, holding your body closer to him.

“I love you so much.” You whispered into the kiss. He smiled into your lips, fingers tightening around your waist.

“I love you, my dear.” He pulled you back, leaning over and pulling your chair closer to his. He placed you in your chair and stood up, hanging your cloak and sweater on the wall, before sliding the bowl of stew and bread over.

“Eat.” You listened, eating the stew as you watched him, tidy up the kitchen. Knowing exactly where everything was put.

“Anything exciting happens while you were away?” You asked in-between a bite. He nervously scratched his neck, placing garlic into its hanging basket.

“I went to a very important party for Queen Calanthe’s daughter. Uhm, got a very interesting gift out of it. Not really a gift, a cures more like.” You could sense his frustration, making you worry.

“Geralt, tell me what happened.”

“It was so stupid, all I did was saved a poor knight from being slaughtered because he was cursed, no monster. But the stupid curse broke all because I saved him. So he and Pavetta insisted I take something. Because I’m so stupid I jokingly claimed the law of surprise. I don’t even fucking believe in destiny. You know that. Yet here I am, stuck with a princess’s unborn fucking child.” His hand slammed into the wall as he finished his rant, his chest heaving up with frustration. You pondered his words, thinking over them. A child surprise was a big deal, but nothing you couldn’t handle.

“That’s why I was late, I didn’t want to tell you. I didn’t want to burden you with a fucking child.” You stood from your seat, walking to him, cupping his cheeks making him look at you.

“Geralt, there is nothing in this world we cannot conquer together. You need me as much as I need you. Nothing will drive me away. Unless I catch you with some whore, then you better hope I never find you.” You said the last part with a chuckle. He leaned into your hand. Kissing your wrist.

“What did I do to deserve you?” He asked as he held you close to him.

“From my recollection, you saved me from a Kikimora while I was hunting.” He smiled and kissed you softly.

“Are you sure we can do this?” He asked, closing his eyes, pressing his forehead to yours.

“We can do it, my love. As long as we are together.”

“Together, forever.”

[talatomaz]

kidnapped | hailey upton x fem!reader

a/n: of course, I have to make everything angsty since hurt-comfort is my fave genre 😁

this is based off 5x16 (chicago med) but instead of nat being kidnapped, it’s the reader.

requested by anon: “a hailey upton x female reader. where the reader works at 51 or med and both hailey and the reader have hidden their relationship from everyone.”

warnings: mentions of blood/guns. kidnapping (past and present). sexual references

word count: 2.4k

masterlist | navigation | request rules

after reader gets kidnapped by a murderer, hailey finds herself losing her mind because, though nobody else knows, her and reader have been in a relationship for almost a year and she is the love of her life

i do not give you permission to repost or translate my fics on any platform - likes/reblogs are okay and are much appreciated

“Okay, I’m at work now. Have a great day, love.”

“You too, baby. Bye.”

You smiled as your girlfriend disconnected the call.

You had been dating Hailey for just under a year and you couldn’t help but be a bit pleased that the two of you had managed to keep it a secret this long.

With you working in Chicago Med and Hailey working in Intelligence, there was a lot of overlap with your work and considering you all spent your free time at Molly’s, it was a surprise that no one knew of your relationship.

You’d met Hailey almost two years ago. She had brought in a young teenager who’d been a victim of a home invasion - her parents had been brutally murdered leaving her as the sole survivor.

Hailey had remained by her side the entire time and you couldn’t help but appreciate that. Many detectives tended to just leave the injured with you or your fellow colleagues and then go off to work their respective cases.

Not that there was anything wrong with that, mind you. But there was something about the way that Hailey cared for this child that had just captivated your heart.

And since that day, you’d found yourself pining, for lack of a better word, over the blonde. But what you hadn’t realised was that she had felt the exact same way about you.

For several months, the two of you found yourself dancing around your feelings, both on the precipice of revealing your feelings before relenting at the last second. It was only until Ruzek had hit on you one night at Molly’s that had Hailey finally revealing how she felt about you.

You remembered how she stood there, cheeks red from the cold, eyes full of jealousy and black with lust. Suffice it to say, you couldn’t help but mentally thank Adam for unwittingly hitting on you because it had allowed you to finally be with the detective. And almost a year down the line, you were stronger than ever.

“Morning, Dr L/N!”

Blinking, you gathered your thoughts and turned to see Dr Marcel walking towards you. Furrowing your brows, you spoke, “Didn’t your shift start an hour ago?”

“Forgot my badge in my car. I should superglue it to my forehead.”

Returning his laugh, you spoke, “Think a stapler might work better.”

As you were about to walk away, your head whipped around to face a man running up the two of you. You immediately noticed the blood staining his hands and before you could speak, his voice came out in a frantic and rapid pants. Partly because he was running but mostly, you assumed, because of fear.

“Help! My wife. She’s in labour. She’s bleeding real bad.”

Glancing over at Crockett, you saw that his expression mirrored yours and, without hesitation, the two of you ran after the man, following him to his car to help his wife.

You were shocked, however, when upon approaching the van, you saw a man lay bleeding on the floor. His hand raised, a gun in his palm. Though it was winter, the sun still beamed and the light glistened off the metal, threatening to blind you.

“Give me your phones and get in.” The man, who’d come running up to you just moments before, said harshly.

“You don’t have to do this.” You said calmly, obeying his orders.

You weren’t sure how your voice came out so steady when it felt like your heart was beating out of your chest, the lump in your throat threatening to choke you before his gun would surely kill you.

“I’m the surgeon, alright. Let her go.”

Crockett’s attempts to reason with the two men were futile as they shouted for the two of you to get in.

Holding your breath, you willed yourself to calm down, needing to believe that Hailey would soon be looking for you.

God, please let Hailey find you.

                ✧── ･ ｡ﾟ★: *.✦ .* :★. ───✧

“Get up.”

Turning to look behind you, the man, who’d tricked you this morning, opened the van doors and you fought to hide a shiver as the cold Chicago air blasted through you.

You looked over at Marcel who tried to sit up as best he could, “I’m the surgeon. Let me go. I know what to get.”

“Cuff him. Do it.”

Catching the set of handcuffs that had been thrown in your face, you followed the man’s orders and, with a solemn look, you cuffed your friend to the bar above his head.

“Come on.”

You bit your tongue to prevent a curse leaving your lips as the man, what could only be described as, yanked you out of the van and held you tight to his side.

“Make any stupid moves and you and your friend both die.”

After picking up some supplies, you approached the checkout and silently pleaded at the cashier with your eyes, wishing that he could see the panic in your eyes and alarm someone to your predicament.

When it became obvious that that wasn’t going to happen, you began to lose hope before catching a glimpse of a security camera in the corner of your eye. Glancing up at your kidnapper, you saw he was preoccupied with paying, giving you a brief moment of reprieve to remove your hospital badge, letting it fall to the marble ground.

“Come on, sweetheart. Let’s go.” The man said, feigning a nurturing tone as he spoke to you through clenched teeth.

You winced at his harsh grip and followed him back to the van where you helped Marcel perform surgery to repair the bullet wound in the man’s leg, whom you assumed to be the brother of the driver.

Hailey frowned as she looked at the text she had sent you a few hours earlier; the one tick indicating that you hadn’t read it yet.

Where were you?

She tried to reason with herself, believing that maybe you were busy in the ER but she couldn’t shake the feeling that something bad had happened.

And Jay and Voight’s secrecy only seemed to add to her panic.

For the past few hours, her partner had been leaving the district and then coming back with a schooled look on his face that Hailey knew he used to conceal his worry.

And it didn’t help that whenever his phone rang, he left to privately answer it and immediately went to Voight’s office, closing the door which people only did in serious situations.

When Jay left Voight’s office, Hailey got up from her chair and grabbed Jay’s arm, dragging him into the dingy break room.

“What’s going on?”

“What?” Halstead crossed his arms, his attempts to feign confusion failing miserably.

“Never play poker, Jay. What’s going on?” Hailey repeated.

Jay sighed, “Dr L/N and Marcel have been kidnapped.”

The blood drained from Hailey’s face as she grew visibly pale. Trying to keep her voice as steady as she could, she spoke, “What?”

“Maggie found their phones in the car park. There was blood on them and we lifted a partial print and matched it to Tyler Clemons. A convicted murderer.”

Hailey leaned against the table when she felt her knees buckle beneath her.

Halstead stared at her in concern but before he could question it, his phone rang.

Hailey watched silently as he hummed in response to the other person on the line. When he disconnected, he looked at the blonde, his eyes filled with unbridled relief.

“I think we’ve found them. Gear up. I’ll tell Voight.”

Without hesitation, Hailey immediately rushed out the door and ran downstairs to get ready.

                ✧── ･ ｡ﾟ★: *.✦ .* :★. ───✧

“This is Detective Jay Halstead with the Chicago Police Department.”

Your shoulders slumped in relief as you heard your friend’s voice be projected through, what you assumed was, a megaphone.

The two men had taken you to their mother’s home where you gained clarity on the reasoning for their actions.

The injured man, who you learned was called Tyler, had a young son diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. Unfortunately, there wasn’t anything you or Marcel could do, and instead, you’d been forced to restrain yourself to the wooden chairs you were currently sitting on.

You listened as Halstead announced that the house was surrounded, hoping that Hailey was outside but simultaneously wishing that she wasn’t in fear of it going sideways - you didn’t want her to see your dead body.

“Here. Uncuff her.”

You held your breath as Tyler threw the keys at Crockett, not wanting to say a word in case he ended up changing his mind.

After he freed you, you rubbed your wrists, slightly wincing at the red marks that had risen on your tanned skin. Then you began to protest when Tyler made it obvious that he was only letting you go but after some persuasion from your friend, you reluctantly left Crockett in the house.

Opening the front door to the suburban home, you felt another wave of cold air run through you and you raised your hands in a surrendering gesture.

“Patrol, stand down. Friendly coming out.” Jay had yelled and then you found yourself being hurried behind shields to where Jay stood.

And Hailey.

The moment you laid eyes on the blonde, you fell into her arms as she held you fiercely against her.

Her arms wrapped tightly around you before she pulled you back. Her eyes roamed over you, trying to look for any injuries.

“I’m okay.” You whispered, your hands on hers.

Her eyes filled with tears as she tugged you back towards her and kissed you. The kiss was passionate, laced with the ferocity that often came with almost losing someone you love.

Pulling away once more, you rested your forehead against hers and breathed out, your breath coming out in harsh pants.

“I think the cat’s out of the bag now.”

You laughed dryly as you glanced up, noticing Halstead, Maggie, Natalie and April staring at you both with wide eyes.

“I don’t care.”

And you could tell she truly didn’t when she kissed you again, more tender this time.

“God, I thought I’d lost you. I was so worried.”

“I’m okay, baby. I’m right here.”

You reassured your girlfriend as you embraced her once more, wanting nothing more than to feel her bare skin on yours, devoid of the winter clothing she was currently wearing.

“I love you so much, y/n. I never want to be without you again.” Hailey whispered harshly, gently rocking you in her arms, her hand cradling your head against her chest.

                ✧── ･ ｡ﾟ★: *.✦ .* :★. ───✧

“I’m glad to see you’re okay, y/n.”

“Thanks, Kev.”

Almost everyone had gathered at Molly’s despite it being past midnight. You’d all collectively decided that, after the day you’d had, you needed a drink. Marcel had stayed for a while and you thanked him for looking after you whilst you were taken. Hailey also expressed her gratitude to the surgeon which he accepted graciously before deciding to turn in for the night.

You were currently sitting in a booth, cuddled up against Hailey, her arm wrapped comfortably around your waist.

Since the house, she hadn’t left your side once, not when you were getting checked out by the paramedics nor when you were giving your statement to the police.

And whilst being by your side, she also never let her hands leave you. Whether it be a hand on yours or her arm around your waist, she was never not touching you.

To be truthful, you were grateful because her touch grounded you and made you feel safe in a situation where your sense of security had been shattered.

“That was a smart move, dropping your badge on the gas station’s floor.” Halstead commented, sipping his beer.

“Did what I had to do. Speaking of which, Maggie, I’m gonna need that back so I can go to work tomorrow.”

Just as Maggie was about to hand the badge over to you, she snatched it out of your reach.

“Um, I don’t think so. You are taking a few days off, at the minimum.”

You raised your brows, challenging her when she spoke again.

“L/N, if I see you in my ER tomorrow, I’m gonna cuff you to your bed.” Maggie said, making everyone else around you laugh.

“Hey, if anyone’s cuffing y/n to the bed, it’s gonna be me.”

You blushed profusely at Hailey’s comment, the redness of your cheeks contrasting with your tanned skin.

“Kinky.” Jay commented before abruptly closing his mouth when Hailey stared at him.

“Now, how the hell did you manage to keep this a secret for a year?”

“Yeah, aren’t you supposed to be detectives?” Natalie joked, looking at Burgess, Atwater and Halstead.

“Guess we’re just great at keeping secrets. And it became kinda fun, I guess.” You shrugged, glancing up into Hailey’s eyes and she smiled at you.

“Yeah, it became like a game to us. To see how long we could keep it secret.”

“Probably could have kept it secret much longer if you hadn’t kissed me like that.” You chuckled, planting a soft kiss on Hailey’s lips when she playfully frowned.

“Says the one who got kidnapped.”

“Hey, it’s not my fault I got kidnapped again.”

“Again?!”

Everyone except Hailey stilled as they all stared at you.

“It’s a long story.” You stated.

It wasn’t that difficult to talk about now but it still left you uncomfortable and you wished you could will the words back into your mouth.

Sensing your discomfort, Hailey answered for you.

“A story for another day. Come on, let’s get you home.”

Nodding, you stood up and hugged your friends goodbye and then left the bar, your hand clutched tightly in Hailey’s.

“Are you okay?” She leant down slightly to kiss your cheek and then whispered in your ear.

Not wanting to lie but not able to find the right words either, you ended up shrugging instead. At that, Hailey brought your joined hands up to her lips where she gently placed a kiss on yours.

“I’m here for you, baby. Tonight and every other night.” Hailey said, alluding to the bad memories that would surely plague your sleep.

Since being with Hailey, the night terrors you’d once had about your past had become more infrequent.

Though, you were sure you wouldn’t be able to sleep tonight. The trauma of almost dying coupled with your previous abduction would ensure your lack of sleep.

But you would have Hailey next to you, so it wasn’t that much of a bother.

You may not feel safe in the world but you did feel safe in her arms and that was enough for you.