#but somehow two of them tied together pretty nicely

[prkhaven]

your size training with jay made me think who do you think would be an exhibitionist?

OOOOO please keep these coming, i'm living for it

in my opinion i think i would go with either jay or jake as the most but i feel like the hyung line has their own little spunk to it, i'll explain more under the cut

warnings: smut minors do not interact, quite lengthy, profanity, exhibitionism, in a dressing room, p in v, oral (f rec.), consensual photography, alcohol mention, listening but not seeing, dirty talk

─────────୨ৎ──────────

jay, i could see him be lowkey into it. like he would take you on a beautiful date (especially if you guys are traveling) that he’d pampered you throughout the entire thing.

suddenly he tells you that he rented out an entire hotel floor just for the two of you. it’s nice and sensual at first, you guys shower together but it’s all cute and stuff nothing too out of the ordinary.

but right when you two are just in robes, he’s pouring out some wine to look over the beautiful view that is you while you admire the view out the window, your eyes sparkling.

he wouldn’t even make it to take a sip from the poured out wine. when you were bringing the glass to your lips to taste it for the first time, jay grabbed it from you.

you whipped your head but his lips suddenly crashed onto yours. it was soft and mellow, your mind automatically mushy, feeling his hands roaming around and teasing the knot tied robe before undoing it with his mouth still attached to yours.

in all the blur, you somehow ended up with your body pressed up against the large hotel window, he was sliding in and out of you as you tried to grab onto the class for support. “Taking my cock so fucking good darling” he’d breath out focusing on how he disappeared inside of you

“The people have the greatest view ever” he whispered in your ear, “Seeing you lose yourself on me”

you clench around him at his words, the bubbling feeling your stomach made you whine and he’d smirked as he pressed your back to his chest pushing you further up against the window with him now ramming into you.

—

jake on the other hand, i feel like he pops a boner every second he’s with you so what better way to relieve than to have a quickie in the changing room of his favorite store.

you were showing off clothes you thought were nice and you innocently wanted to ask for his opinion but instead it ended up having you sitting on the edge of the small chair inside, your legs thrown over his shoulders, panties pulled to the side and his face buried deep in between your legs.

his nose hitting your clit every time he moved, his tongue lapping nonstop while his mouth hinged into a lock as he took as much as he possibly could before sucking every ounce of your leaking juices onto his taste buds.

“So pretty. So sweet. The best” he blabbed, his mind wandering off into the clouds of your essence as he got lost in your juices

You grabbed onto his hair, bitting back the pitiful moans that wished to spill out but forcing yourself to keep quiet, “Jake” you would lowly call out his name

“Could have you forever” jake’s muffled voice let out as his mouth opened and closed on you

his soft wet kisses mixed with your wet core loudly mixed in the air, bouncing off the walls of the dressing room.

then his tongue protrudes into your hole, a soft squeal you let out caused him to smile against you. your hands grabbing tighter onto his hair, your mouth falling slack but nothing coming out.

“Let me hear you please” he would plead softly as he suddenly slipped a finger in while his mouth found it’s spot directly on your clit

—

sunghoon i can definitely see him printing out compromising pictures/polaroids of you to put in his wallet, to have in his camera roll and basically have them scattered around his place not caring if anyone that came over and saw them.

his friend would gasp when going to his bathroom and low and behold there’s a picture of your naked self, head turned to the side as your hand cover your mouth but unable to hide your smile that sunghoon took and left there.

needless to say, every time his friends leave his house, they have a tight feeling in their pants that they can’t do anything about all because sunghoon just loves to leave your pictures laying around everywhere because why not?

in the beginning it started off with the one time you agreed to let him record one of your guys sex sessions just to test the waters and after that he realizes he loves having you on film.

soon he’s buying cameras left and right, some with the best quality on the and then some with the worst quality because he wants to see you in every way possible.

he’d be shirtless, your giggly self laughing at him as you wore his button up shirt watching him unravel himself from the camera hanging from his neck.

he’ll sink down to his knees, perking up the new camera he bought, “lay on back and open your legs for me”

and you’d listen. exposing yourself to him and his camera, “just like that” he’ll whisper to himself as he snapped endless pictures. his smile growing by the second showing off all his teeth as his fingers spread open your folds to perfectly capture your pussy in all it’s slick glory.

—

heeseung would like it a rub to his friends face(this is a little indulgent of what was supposed to be the nnn!heeseung drabble i made but never completed)

he agreed to be celibate for as along as he possibly could after making a bet with his friends who didn’t have girlfriends unlike him.

you were shocked when he broke the news to you but you accepted it knowing he wouldn’t be able to last long regardless of his competitive nature.

and you were right cause not even two weeks in he was behind you, your upper body pressed on his gaming desk, your hands grasping on the edge of it to hold your body as he eased himself into you.

his headphones on your head, mic directly on your mouth, his same friends that he made the bet with on the other line hearing your moans as he slams into you. “They can hear you baby” he’d reminded you but that was what he wanted in the first place

he knew his friends had a weak spot for you. seeing the way their eyes racked over your or how the friendly hugs you distributed to them lasted longer when they held onto your tighter.

you tried to keep yourself in check already knowing you were exposed to his friends but his tip hit just the spot that has you a mess, “that’s good… don’t be quiet” his hand would rub your back, his hips harshly meeting yours

from his side of the call all that could be heard was skin meeting skin, your whines and moans mixing together as you call out his name, and his response being, “let them know whose fucking you this good”

——

[froggibus]

Hello hello!

If u r okay/cool with it: Could i pls request venture!amab x reader nsfw hcs? I love the way u write them!

(Also I just saw ur post about that u wanted ppl 2 be specific and im sorry i wasnt when i asked the first time D:)

NSFW Headcanons- Venture

Pairing: AMAB! Sloan Cameron x reader (no pronouns—reader is implied to have a pussy but it’s never directly stated)

Genre: smut/NSFW

CW: established relationship, sub/dom dynamics, switch! Venture, switch! reader, edging, overstim, bondage (mild), breeding/creampie, unprotected sex, riding, cowgirl, doggystyle, missionary, full nelson, oral, face fucking, praise, aftercare

awww no it’s all good!! I don’t mind at all ^^ i just added that clause recently cause of all the Ven reqs I got, it’s not like a hard requirement or anything. anyway thanks for the requests & always being so sweet! your comments on things always make my day :)

Sloan is the exact opposite of a selfish lover

even when they’re in more of a dominant mood, their main priority is always to make you feel as good as possible

they’re pretty flexible in bed too. usually they’re very casual, all of their focus is on you & they don’t worry much about sub/dom dynamics

but they’re a switch at heart and whatever you want, that’s what they’ll be

they LOVE giving head and if you let them, they’ll be between your legs for hours

they can be such a tease too, but nothing feels better to them than when you cum on their face

tbh they could cum right then and there, just from seeing you whine and fuck yourself against their mouth

they love getting head too

the second your tongue hits the head of their cock, they’re a total goner

they’re such a sucker for giving/receiving praise too

they’ll tell you how perfect your pretty little mouth is, how it was made to take their cock, how good you are for letting them use you

they could get you off with praise alone tbh

they love love LOVE it when you ride them

just watching you bounce up and down on their cock, whining and breathing shakily while you try to fit as much of them in you as possible >~<

nothing in the whole world feels better to them

when they’re feeling more submissive, sometimes they liked to be tied to the bed or have you holding their wrists

they LOVE when you use them for your own pleasure, whether you’re grinding against their muscly thighs or you’re sinking yourself low on their cock

or if you have them restrained somehow and use their mouth however you want

maybe you’re sitting on their face, or you have them kneeling on the side of the bed so you can fuck their tongue how you please

they’ll look at you with hearts in their eyes and thank you for using them so well

don’t forget to praise them tho!!

if they’re feeling more dominant however

it’s so over for you

they’ll grip your thighs and pull you down onto their tongue and fuck you until your thighs are trembling

and that’s just the start

if you’re being a brat specifically, they love fucking you doggystyle, shoving your face into the pillow and snapping their hips against yours until you can’t even think straight

they like to manhandle you and remind you of how much stronger they are than you too

full nelson is one of their faves for this. they love gripping your thighs and guiding you up and down their cock, using your body like their own little fleshlight

or if you’re open to it, they’ll cuff your hands together and make you ride them, watching as you squirm and struggle to take them with no hands

eventually they’ll take pity on you and fuck into you

whether sub or dom they always wanna cum inside of you

theyll whisper in your ear so nice and beg you to let them fill you up

their breathy sexy voice and their whiny moans push you over the edge and you give in every single time

once is never enough for them, especially after they’ve been at a site for a long time

they can go at least two rounds but they’ve got major stamina

they were a little awkward about aftercare at first (mostly cause they didn’t know how to do it) but once they learned what you need, they’re the best at it

loves cuddling after sex and reminding you how much they love you

masterlist | overwatch masterlist

(if you enjoy content like this, interactions go a long way! comments, likes & rbs are always greatly appreciated ^-^ !!)

[dellalyra]

𝐑𝐢𝐛𝐛𝐨𝐧𝐬 - 𝐍𝐞𝐮𝐯𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞 𝐱 𝐟𝐞𝐦!𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫

pixie says: i got him i got hydro daddy so here’s some celebration fluff ft my babies the Melusine’s.

Imagine Neuvillette coming to you, a small box in his hands and a Melusine skipping alongside.

You had been close to the Iudex for a very long time, two of the eldest beings in Fontaine. The Hydro Dragon and the leader of the remaining Naiads were bound together by fate - spirits and embodiments of the nation’s elements. Although he posed now as the Chief Justice, as you as a florist - you maintained that friendship from all that time ago.

However, his arrival at the beach you would always sit on after work with his small companion, Liath - you recognised - was unexpected. The fact he knew where to find you was enough to set your heart alight.

“Madame Y/N, please do excuse our interruption - I hope we are not intruding?” Neuvilette asks, poised as ever.

“Nonsense, Neuvilette. Come, sit. Hello Liath, how has your day been?” You say, patting the space your large cloak has been spread out on the sand.

Liath immediately pulls Neuvillette by the hand and they sit down beside you, the Melusine immediately climbing to sit on the man’s lap and the soft smile on his face makes your stomach feel warm and fluttery.

“I’m afraid I must ask for your assistance, it appears a skill of yours has eluded my talents. A skill in which Liath is currently searching for.” He says.

“Oh? How can I help?” You smile, turning to sit facing them.

“Liath came to me today, mentioning how much she admired the style you wore your hair in several days ago - however, I am not well versed in the art of braiding.” He says, face extraordinarily serious for a man asking for braiding advice.

“Oh well that is something I can help with! You want your hair to be like mine, Liath?” You ask, patting her small hand.

She nods and turns to Neuvillette who passes her the box on his right. Her small hands present the blue box tied with a blue ribbon to you and you unravel the bow to find a ridiculously excessive amount of hair clips, bows, ribbons and bands laying underneath a silver soft bristled hair brush.

“I was not entirely sure of what accoutrements you would need for this endeavour, Madame, so I collected everything I could think of. I do hope the brush will suffice, it is my own.” The man says, resting his cane against his leg as Liath crawls from his lap into yours.

“This is more than enough, I could braid the hair of every Melusine in Fontaine with all of this!” You smile.

“Can you do my hair like yours, please? The one long plait with a big ribbon at the end?” The darling on your lap asks.

“Of course, sweetling. Monsieur, sit closer - I will teach you how to do this in the event I’m ever occupied.” You say, patting the space beside you, to which obliges and shifts to sit at your side.

You pointedly ignore the hammering in your chest when the breeze wafts his scent toward you: sea salt, fresh air and something cool and calming.

You begin to brush the Melusine’s hair, soft gentle strokes removing any tangles and easing a path for the style.

“So you just gather hair as you go along, make sure you have three strands - and you overlap them like so, see? If it’s tighter, it will last longer - however I find if they’re too tight it tends to give me quite the headache so I’ll do it nice and loose for this little angel.”

Neuvillette watches your fingers weave through the silky strands and deftly manoeuvre it to your will - or rather - Liath’s will.

“And ta-da!” You say, securing the soft pink ribbon at the end.

Liath reaches up and feels her hair, before looking at the small compact mirror you produce from your bag and smiling.

“Oh thank you so much! I look almost as beautiful as you now! Papa - doesn’t it look pretty!” She spins toward the man beside you.

“Beautiful as a pluie lotus, dearest.” He responds.

“I’m going to show Sedene!” She scampers off toward the Palais, leaving you with the Iudex.

Somehow - this became routine. Every day, Neuvillette and Liath would show up to your spot on the beach, or your florist as it rains - and you would fix the hair of the Melusine. However, the second day - Sedene joined too. Then Aeife, then Elphane, then Blathine and soon you had a gaggle of giggling Melusines decorating each others hair in a chain of styling.

“Madame Y/N?” Liath asks about a month into this newfound tradition.

“Yes, sweetling?” You say, finishing up her hair as she turns to curl into you.

“Are you our mama?” She asks, yawning and nuzzling into you.

At this, the Iudex snaps his head from the newspaper he was reading across from you.

“Would you like me to be?” You ask the cuddled up bundle.

“Very much so. You do our hair, and take care of us if we’re not well and give us kisses. And since Monsieur Neuvillette is like our papa - and he thinks you’re beautiful and he feels a lot of love when he looks at you then that would make you our Mama!”

The Melusine has no idea what she’s said.

You snap your head to look at the hydro dragon.

His eyes are wide, newspaper held tighter in his grip as he looks between you and the little gossip.

“Does he now? Well, then - I suppose I am your mama, if you would allow me the pleasure.” You smile, settling a blanket on the sleepy child.

As she drifts off to a well deserved nap - the man turns to you.

“I do apologise, Madame. Liath - I did not expect her to be so free with her words. If my presence makes you uncomfortable I shall take my leave immediately.” His horns seem to droop slightly, and the sky turns a little bit greyer.

“Well - someone had to make a move. After all, I have been waiting for 700 years.” You smirk, shifting to stand and lay Liath on the armchair of your apartment above your shop.

Neuvillette snaps his head to you.

“I - 700 years? That was when -” The man stands up and walks toward you.

“When we met, yes.” You take his hand and pull him to your kitchen - where you can speak without volume concerns.

He looks at you as if you’ve grown another head.

“I have been in love with you since the moment I stormed into your old home with intention of befriending the mighty Sovereign of Hydro.” You laugh, taking your hand and placing it on his cheek to which he subconsciously leans in to - every touch starved ounce of his body singing in delight.

“A Melusine revealing my love for you wasn’t quite my intention, yet I fear my lack of romanticism would have impeded any attempts made by myself.” He says, and you huff a small laugh at him - never giving himself enough credit.

“Yet, as we are here now - I’ll do my utmost. You have enchanted me, body and soul, from the day a young Naiad flung open my doors. I’m sure you’re reasoning for keeping these feelings to yourself are similar to mine - you were far too precious and integral to my life to allow myself the risk of you no longer being a part of it.” He says, stroking a long finger across the rise of your cheek. You agree with him, voicing the same opinion that he was far too meaningful to you to potentially lose, yet you figured he felt for you about 50 years ago - but thought it best for him to figure it all out by himself rather than moulding things for him - given his nature and responsibilities. You can see a trail of shimmer on his lower lashes, this sweet, oh-so sensitive man. You wipe the beginnings of tears from his eyes.

“Hydro dragon, hydro dragon, please don’t cry.” You smile, seeing him grin down at you and the mirth in his eyes lights your heart.

You tilt your head up to him and he cups your face with his large hands.

“May I kiss you, my darling girl?” He asks in the gentlest voice imaginable.

“Please.”

His soft lips press to yours and you feel as if you’re floating in the purest, warmest most divine pool of water as the clarity of kissing your love sets in. The kiss is gentle, romantic and full of pent up longing - the soft swipe of your tongue across his lower lip makes his hand grip tighter on your waist as you wind your hand into the silky white hair cascading down his back.

He pulls away, both needing a reality check - he looks at you as if to ensure you’re real and you smile at him, pecking his lips once more.

“I love you, Neuvillette.”

“I love you, dearest Mate of the Hydro Dragon”

“And we love you both too!”

The cheerful, loud voices of 3 melusine’s make you both jump as they appear at your door - boxes of cakes and sweets in their arms.

“Liath! Wake up! Papa finally kissed Mama!”

[silassinclair]

It’s my first time requesting, so I’m sorry if you don’t understand my bad english ;-;

May I request a GN readerx Yandere Wild West Outlaw (my brain can’t remember his name) with a reader who sleeps anywhere on anything? There will be one time this man has seen his darling somehow out of the ropes and is sleeping on the roof.

I understand if you don’t wanna do this request, but if you do it thank you from the bottom of my heart! <3

Always take care and take a break when needed~

This request is so silly I have to do it. Also your english is great, don’t sweat it!!

Yandere Wild West Outlaw x Sleepy Reader

CW// Nothing, just wholesomeness

Masterlist

It’s yours and Maddox’s first night together after he took you from your home. You two are camping out in the desert by a cave. There’s a small fire lit and Maddox’s horse Jasper is munching on some carrots.

But it’s been awfully quiet, the outlaw thinks. Why is it so quiet?

He realizes it’s because of you! You’re usually always thrashing and screaming at him and now you aren’t!

He also realizes that you’re no where to be found… It makes him panic slightly. He shoots up from where he’s sat and he looks around the camp. The desert is dangerous, what if you got stung by a scorpion or bit by a rattlesnake!?

“You come out from where you’re hidin’ missy! Or I outta shoot-”

He nearly trips and falls flat on his face. Looking down he sees you taking a dirt nap, quite literally in the dirt. How did you get so far away from camp? Did you sleep walk? Fall asleep while trying to escape? Whatever it is Maddox doesn’t give a damn, he’s glad he found you.

“You’re a dumb little thing. What would you do without me?”

From this moment onward Maddox sees a repeating pattern. You sleep anytime, anywhere. And on occasion you can even “teleport”. He thought about calling a priest to perform an exorcism on you once.

“Sweet Jesus, this ain’t possible… How’d ya get out here!?”

When you fall asleep while on his horse he sits you in front of him so he can act as a back rest. He doesn’t want you falling off now.

Loves it when you fall asleep on him. You’re so vulnerable when you’re asleep like this. He can touch you without getting yelled at or smacked. So he takes advantage of it.

Combs his hands through your pretty locks of hair and caresses your plush cheeks. Sometimes when you squirm in your sleep from a nightmare he shushes you like a baby and rocks you back and forth.

Stays by your side from now on when you’re asleep after… the incident.

The Incident:

After over a week of being on horseback and foot Maddox finds an old house for them to settle in temporarily. It’s a cute house with victorian architecture. It’s definitely abandoned and all the owner’s belongings are still there. They most likely fled due to the Native American tribe near by but Maddox isn’t afraid of them. He actually gets along with the tribesmen better than the whites who hate him for being half American and half Mexican.

“This place is nice. It almost the same size as my old home.” Y/n mutters as she admires the decor. But her eyes feel heavy, she needs to sleep. This past week has been exhausting.

Maddox notices how worn out she is. She’ll be no good to him if she’s a mopey, tired slug. So he brings her upstairs to the main bedroom. The bed is dusty but it’ll have to make do.

“You’ll sleep here sweetheart. But I’m gonna have to tie ya’ down. I don’t need ya’ escaping now.” Maddox ties a rope from the bed post to her ankle.

Y/n doesn’t even bother to yell or fight back from being tied down. She just falls asleep immediately like a hibernating bear. When she’s asleep Maddox unpacks some supplies down in the living room. He also cooks up a can of beans and digs in.

It’s quiet. All his life he’s been alone, but he’ll never admit he feels lonely. He’s never had anyone to trust or rely on. Most nights he’ll sleep under the stars and talk to Jasper. But he’s a horse so talking to him is one sided.

Even though Y/n is sleeping just upstairs he misses her. Misses her snarky comments, creative insults, and the way she smacks his chest when he gets too close.

“What are you doing to me woman..” The outlaw mutters to himself as he trudges himself up the creaky wooden stairs. He’s in front of her door and he opens it slowly, peeking his head in. But then he slams it open when he sees she’s gone.

“Y/n?” He shouts, looking around the room and searching every corner. She’s missing again! Maddox runs like a cat out of water as he searches the whole house. What if she got hurt!? He could never live with himself.

He kicks open the front door and looks around the property. What if the tribe found her and thought she was a threat? Every negative outcome of what could happen to her comes to his mind. Getting eaten by a coyote is a possibility too.

Maddox takes his hat off and grips his black hair.

“FUCK!” He shouts and kicks the dirt on the ground, the cloud of brown blowing with the wind. Maddox walks back to the house in defeat where he tells Jasper that Y/n’s gone, and she is never coming back. But the horse only exhales loudly and shakes his head back and forth.

“She’s gone buddy. I know you liked her but she’s probably dead in a fuckin’ ditch somewhere!” The man snaps.

Jasper slams his front leg down and neighs loudly. His nose is pointed up towards the house.

“What are ya’ on about you?” Jasper never behaved like this before unless he wanted to try and tell him something. He’s a smart horse, so any sound or motion me makes is usually when he tries to convey a message.

Maddox looks up at the house where Jasper is looking and squints his eyes. He puts his hat back on to cover his eyes from the beating sun. Looking closer he sees a familiar head of h/c hair on the roof!

“Y/n!?” Maddox says in disbelief. How the fuck did she get up there!? Does she even know she’s up there? Probably not.

“Shit boy, what do we do?” He turns to his horse. Jasper neighs louder and Maddox looks back up and sees that she’s about to fall off the roof!

“SHIT!”

Y/n turns in her sleep and falls off the roof. Maddox feels his heart drop and he breaks off into a sprint. Just before she hits the ground he catches her, making them both fall to the dirt.

“Y-You?” Y/n wakes up and sees she’s outside and that god forsaken outlaw is beneath her. His head is under her dress making her squeal and scramble away.

“W-What in the hell!? What do you think you’re doing? Why am I outside and why was your ugly mug up my dress!?”

Maddox groans and rubs his head. He turns to her with a glare and grabs her wrist, pulling her up.

“I ain’t ever takin’ my eye off you again! You ought to be a witch or somethin’!”

From that moment onward Maddox sleeps next to Y/n in a bone crushing cuddle. When he feels her move in the slightest he wakes up and tightens his hold. No way in hell will he let something like that happen again.

[tgmsunmontue]

Season to Taste - 18/? WIP

Explicit Hangster - Celebrity Chef Bradley and Naval Aviator Jake Seresin who have a relationship spanning the globe before they realize how tightly bound they are to one another. Heading into this little world.

PROLOGUE/ONE TWO THREE FOUR FIVE SIX SEVEN EIGHT NINE TEN ELEVEN TWELVE THIRTEEN FORTEEN FIFTEEN SIXTEEN SEVENTEEN

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

                He starts keeping a record of his favorite dishes, what he likes and doesn’t like about places they eat. And they eat at so many different places. While he might ring Ice once a week or every other week, me calls Leandro and Silvia almost everyday. And everyday Leandro or Silvia give them another instruction, a food to try or a place to go and visit, or a restaurant to go to. Ask to meet the chef, tell them who you are. They are expecting you.

                It’s the fact that they’re always somehow expecting Bradley and Violet means they can’t not turn up. Sometimes it’s high-end places where they are so incredibly underdressed it makes him uncomfortable, but he notes that in the best places they don’t pay any attention to what he’s wearing, all customers treated with the same level of respect and deference and he likes it, reminds him of Leandro’s restaurant.

                “Why are you keeping all these notes?”

                “I… I think I might want to open my own restaurant.”

                “Holy shit. Really?”

                “Yeah. Is that crazy?”

                “Yes. Absolutely insane. Where?”

                “I don’t know… Where do you think?”

                “Well. How much money do you have?”

                “Shit. That’s a good question.”

                “It’s a good thing I have a business degree.”

                “What do you mean?”

                “Well, I’m not letting you go off and do it alone.”

                “Thanks Vi. I love you.”

                “Ew gross. Feelings. Love you too though.”

…            …            …

                He hears the door and the sounds of Jake kicking off his boots before they’re carefully placed out of the way. It’s after midday, so he’s not sure if Jake would have eaten yet, he’s just making some sandwiches, easy enough to simply put away for later if needed. Jake doesn’t bother calling out, heads straight for the kitchen like he knows that’s where he’ll find him and it feels nice, that he already knows Bradley so well.

                “Hey, how was your morning?”

                “Torture…” Jake offers. “But somehow not illegal.”

                “That bad huh?” Bradley asks, and Jake comes to stand at the corner side of the kitchen island, leans forward to give him a kiss and he can’t help but smile into it. The easy gesture of affection but also Jake’s dramatics over his sisters torturing him.

                “Do you promise not to hold my family against me?” Jake asks

                Bradley grins, goes to immediately tell him of course not and then pauses.

                “Well. As long as you can promise me the same, I guess. When the time comes.”

                “Pretty sure my five sisters are scarier than any family you can throw at me…”

                “Yeah… you’d think so. Probably. Just… uh. It’ll be fine.”

                They need to actually reach a milestone of maybe months or a year together before he considers raising his relationship with Ice. Vi might think his fame would cause issues, but he honestly thinks Jake won’t give a damn. Vi’s right, he’s far too down to earth and grounded to care about what fame or money Bradley might have behind him. He cares about the person Bradley is and it’s nice, makes such a nice change. However he suspects that Jake will care about his deeper ties with certain members in the Navy, especially given that they’re all Naval aviators as well. Right. Like what he thought before, he’ll cross that bridge when he comes to it. Jake has shifted closer, has stolen a sundried tomato and popped it into his mouth and chewing while he grins and then he’s kissing Bradley properly, the sharp tang of tomato still in his mouth.

                “Why are you always initiating sex in the kitchen...?”

                “It is pretty much where you spend a lot of your time. Where I find you…”

                “Huh. Yeah. I guess you're right.”

                “Hmm. Maybe spend some time somewhere else and then you might find me doing this in other places…”

                “Mmm. So it’s not me in the kitchen gets you going huh?”

                “Baby, you anywhere and everywhere gets me going. Think we've already determined the fact that all I need to do is look at you...”

                “Sweet talker.”

                “Just for you. Also we ain’t having sex yet. This is just a welcome home kiss. You forgotten what sex is already?”

                Bradley laughs against Jake’s mouth.

                “Yeah, think it’s slipping from my memory. You better remind me…”

                “Mmm. Hard job but someone’s got to do it…” Jake murmurs and Bradley hadn’t meant it as an invitation, not really, but Jake steps behind him, draws him back so that Bradley’s ass is cradled against his hips, he can feel Jake’s growing erection pressing through the layers of denim and his own cock has already started racing to catch up, an almost Pavlovian response now to seeing Jake simply walk through the door and surely he’s going to get used to it eventually. He braces his hands against the counter, shivers as Jake nips at the side of his neck, his hands pressing down over Bradley’s.

                “Yeah, keep them there…”

                “Huh?”

                Then Jake’s palming his cock, fleshy part of his palm dragging and pressing and he jerks a little, caught between wanting to grind back against Jake’s cock or press into the friction of his hand. He can’t decide, glad Jake clearly has a plan as he works Bradley’s jeans open, hand slipping inside and pulling his cock out, starting to work it, not giving him time to think other than I was making sandwiches for lunch. Instead he’s panting, hands white-knuckled on the kitchen bench as he feels Jake’s body flex behind him as he works his hand down-up-down.

                “One day I’ll come home and you’ll be in nothing but the apron…”

                Bradley lets out a choked laugh, wants to say something about saving it for a special occasion, he’s not wearing an apron right now, but Jake is shifting so he’s more caged in by his body, more of him is pressed up against Jake as he grinds his hips against Bradley’s ass, his teeth nipping at Bradley’s neck.

                “Love making you come for me…”

                “Oh,” the breath punches out of him and he doesn’t last much longer, Jake holding him in place as he shudders through his orgasm, can’t believe a handjob has him coming that hard. Jake makes a humming sound and Bradley wonders if he’s imagining him sounding pleased with himself, before he’s stepping away to wash his hands in the sink and Bradley’s glad he’s supporting himself against the bench.

                “You going to let me take care of you now?”

                “Oh sweetheart, I’m banking on it.”

…            …            …

                Jake isn’t sure what has opened the floodgates for Leo, but he listens as talks about his childhood, his dad dying in a training exercise at Top Gun and now that he thinks about it, he vaguely remembers reading about it, like they have to read through all the accidents and incidents so they can be better prepared. Bradshaw. That’s why the name rings a bell.

                Then his mom being diagnosed with cancer, his godfather being there when he’s not deployed. Other naval aviators being present as he grew up and he uses callsigns like they’re as natural as breathing and it occurs to him then that when Leo had said he knew what Jake’s job entailed he had really meant it. He knows it can be dangerous. He knows Jake will be gone for long periods of time and that communication might sometimes be difficult, even if it has gotten much better. Leo was raised not only by a family in the military, but by naval aviators and if Jake had been looking for someone that might understand his job without doing the job themselves, then he couldn’t find someone better.

                Then Leo talks about his mom dying, his godfather pulling his papers and his immediate and drastic decision to take the first plane out of the country. He files it away, that Leo’s first response when hurt and angry was to run away, wonders if that’s still the case. Then Leo is talking about his other family, the Gallo’s, and the way the name sounds has him grinning.

                “Sounds like you’re saying gallows…”

                “Yeah, pretty much. Why is that funny?”

                “Well, I know it means rooster, among other things…” Jake says, and he can’t help the grin as he thinks of the sexual prowess and loud voice. “But my callsign is Hangman.”

                “Okay…” Leo says, and it’s clear from his tone that he has no clue what Jake is referring to.

                “You’re clearly not a Styx fan. But there’s a line, Hangman is comin’ down from the gallows… You’re the Gallo…”

                “Then the line needs to be changed a little. Maybe going down on instead?”

                “Yeah? Just maybe?”

                “Yeah. Just maybe.”

NINETEEN

[roosterforme]

Old Habits Die Hard Part 15 | Bradley Bradshaw x Reader

Summary: Bradley gets drunk at Tyson's birthday party, but once again, your heart is the one feeling the pleasure and the pain that comes with being around your boyfriend.

Warnings: Angst, swears, smut, fluff and non-consensual touching/groping

Length: 3500 words

Pairing: Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw x Female Reader (fuckboy college student Bradley)

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Tyson's birthday party was the loudest thing you had ever heard. The music and conversations seemed to be competing with each other, so you stuck close to Bradley. Wordlessly, he pulled you into the kitchen where it was a tiny bit quieter. 

"Grab us some good beers, Sugar," he told you as he reached for the bottle opener. "It's gonna be a long night."

"Why are there so many people here?" you asked, holding out both beers for him to pop the tops off.

"Tyson is our chapter president. The head honcho always gets a rager," he said, taking one beer from you and kissing your cheek.

"That makes sense."

"Stick with me, Sugar," he said, running his fingers along the knot you had tied in his tee shirt before stroking your bare skin. "We'll have fun."

That's all it took. Both bottles ended up getting set down on the counter as you wrapped your arms around his neck. "I always have fun with you," you told him between kisses. And just as you felt Bradley's hands run down your back and over your butt, the kitchen door opened to reveal Tyson.

"Hey! It's time for shots! Let's go, you two!" 

He already looked drunk for how early it was, and you didn't know how many shots he would be able to handle.

"Twenty two shots?" Bradley asked, grabbing a bottle of vodka from a cabinet along with a shot glass. 

"Is that a good idea?" you asked, looking between your boyfriend and Tyson. 

Bradley just chuckled. "He's allowed to ask other fraternity brothers to help him out at any time."

"I hope you're thirsty," Tyson said, pointing to Bradley. "And I hope you're ready to make sure he vomits in a toilet and stays out of trouble," he said, pointing to you.

You just shook your head and followed them back into the noisy front room. Dev was standing on a table yelling that it was time for Tyson's birthday shots, and Bradley was wrapping his arm around your waist. 

"I'm really sorry about this," he told you, shaking his head and grinning. "If I end up throwing up all night, I'll make it up to you later, okay Sugar?"

You kissed his lips and laced your fingers through his. "I'll take care of you, Beer Boy." You thought it was kind of nice that his fraternity brothers wanted him involved.

Tyson deferred to Bradley and Dev after five shots, so you watched Bradley climb onto the coffee table and down six of the shots on Tyson's behalf. You sipped your beer and tried not to laugh as Dev only made it through three. 

Bradley smiled and winked at you as he handed his shot glass back to Tyson and jumped back down. You watched a bunch of girls grabbing at him as he made his way back to you, never stopping until he was at your side. 

He kissed you, and the taste of vodka permeated your mouth. "Beer pong?" he asked, and you led him toward the table. 

When Bradley started to spend more time with his hands on your hips than off them, insisting he was helping you get squared up to the table, you knew he was pretty drunk. 

After he drank a few beers, somehow he got even better at beer pong, so you kept on playing with him. He was standing behind you with his arms wrapped around you, chin on your shoulder as he said, "I'm glad you're not dating Jeff."

You turned your head and kissed him as the other team threw their balls. "How could I have been interested in Jeff for one more minute after I met you?"

He smiled and spoke right next to your ear. "You liked me right away?"

You pressed your lips together and let him kiss your neck. "Of course I did."

"I liked you right away, too. Wanted you to stay in my room, Sugar."

"That's not a hard sell now," you told him shrugging out of his grasp with a grin when it was your turn. 

After you lost that round, Bradley was all over you in a very sweet way for someone who was drunk. "You let me know when you want to go upstairs and we can cuddle," he said, running his fingers along your cheek. "And I can sing the Grateful Dead to you until you fall asleep."

You laughed as he hiccuped, but you let him pull you against him as the party raged around you. It was getting so hot in the house, and you wanted another beer, but you thought you'd better stop now. Somebody was definitely going to need some sort of assistance tonight. And you were afraid it was going to be one of the Beta boys.

Now you saw Jeff up on the coffee table, chugging what was left of the bottle of vodka. Eventually a bottle of tequila got passed from Tyson to Bradley, and you watched him drink some before he tried to pass it to you. 

"No thanks!" you shouted over the music, passing the bottle right along to Dev. You danced with Bradley for a while, bumping into seemingly everyone else in the room in the process. You watched him fade out more and more, and at one point, you took a beer out of his hand and stashed it behind the couch; you'd come back for it tomorrow when you helped him clean up. 

"Bradley! Let's go to the kitchen!" 

He followed you there like a puppy on a leash, scooping you up and setting you on the counter. 

"Beer Boy," you whispered as he kissed your neck, and then he was pushing you back, guiding you down along the counter and jumping up to join you.

He was untying the knot in the Grateful Dead tee and pushing his hands up to your bare breasts. "I knew there was nothing under here," he said against your lips before dipping his tongue into your mouth to taste you. His fingers stroked your tattoo softly and you moaned for him; he always seemed to be able to find that spot without looking.

He slid the shirt up to your neck and lowered his mouth to your right breast. 

"Bradley," you whined, turning toward the door. Someone could walk in here at any time, but the last thing you wanted him to do was stop. 

He was sloppy drunk, his lips and tongue a little rough as he licked and sucked, but you liked it. He was palming you through your shorts, encouraging you to rub yourself against his hand. "Sugar," he whispered against your tattoo. His voice was deep and raspy. 

You let your fingers lace through his hair as he teased your left nipple into an almost painful peak. You felt desperate, the pressure building each time you hit the heel of his hand through your shorts.

"You gonna get off like this?" Bradley asked you as you turned toward the kitchen door again. It was dark in here, and you wanted to.

"Bradley."

"Just like the library, Sugar. I'll rub you until you cum for me."

"Bradley!"

Your hips were moving faster as he kissed your chest, and the kitchen door slammed open. Janessa stumbled in giggling and heading for the refrigerator.

You sat up, quickly trying to cover your breasts, bumping Bradley's face in the process. "It's okay, let's keep going," he told you, pushing your thighs further apart as Janessa turned toward you.

"Damn, you're a lucky bitch!" she whined. "Tyson is so drunk, there's no way he'll be able to get a boner!"

"Bradley, stop," you said, trying to get his hands out from under your shirt. But he was trying to get his mouth on you again, and Janessa was just staring.

"Feel like sharing?" she asked, erupting into giggles. Bradley had his lips around your nipple again, but he popped you out of his mouth when you finally managed to push him off.

"Come on, Sugar," he said with a crooked grin, reaching for the zipper of your shorts. "I'll make you feel good." He didn't seem to notice that you had company.

Janessa squeaked. "Bradley, what do you think?" she asked, and he finally turned toward her. 

"Janessa. What's up?" he asked, still trying to unzip your shorts like it was no big deal.

"You two are so bad!" Janessa said, erupting into more giggles. "I wish Tyson would do me in the kitchen." Now she was pouting and swaying on her feet a little bit.

"You want me to do you in the kitchen again?" Bradley asked you, reaching up your shirt and teasing you some more. 

The need you felt for him was ridiculous, but Janessa was still looking at him like he was a four course meal.

"Upstairs, Beer Boy." You wiggled your way out of his grasp and jumped down from the counter, and he followed you, unsteady on his feet. "I'll tell Tyson when he's sober to do you in the kitchen," you told your roommate when you led Bradley past her. 

"Where are we going?" he asked, reaching for your waist. "Getting more to drink?"

"You do not need another drink! And it's late! Let's go upstairs," you said, walking backwards to the stairs so he would follow you.

"Are we cuddling or fucking?" he asked, and you started laughing.

"You have no filter right now, and it's kind of funny." You walked slowly up the steps, practically pulling him with you.

"Listen, I'm drunk, but I could fuck you if you want, Sugar. And I can't guarantee I won't have a hangover tomorrow morning."

You managed to prop him up next to his bedroom door and kissed him once. "I'm going to run back down and get you some water and something for the headache that will definitely be starting up soon. Go wait for me."

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

Bradley was wasted. He was seeing two of you now, but both of you were telling him to go into his room. 

"Wait, wait, wait," he said, reaching for you as you started to head back to the steps. "I want Sugar."

You had that cute, reluctant smile on your face. Well, whenever your face was in focus you did. "And I want Beer Boy," you told him, kissing him hard again. You pushed him up against the wall, and Bradley swore nothing had ever felt as good as your hands on him. "I'm just going to run back to the kitchen. I'll be right back."

Then you were gone, and he was turning toward his door. He pulled the key down from the top of the door frame and tried to work it into the keyhole. 

"Shit," he murmured, because the door was already unlocked. He fumbled for a second, finally getting the key back up where he kept it. His room was cool and quiet, and he tore off his sweaty shirt and started working on his shoes. He clicked on his desk lamp and braced a hand against his desk so the room would stop spinning. 

He was hammered, and he knew it. But his dick was still half hard from the kitchen. If you wanted him, he was going to suggest you decide now. Otherwise he was going to pass out with his arms wrapped around you for at least eight hours. 

A muffled, "Bradley," came from the bed as he unzipped his jeans and took them off.

"That was quick," he said with a laugh, walking toward his bed. Before he even touched you where you were all bundled up in his comforter, hands reached out to the front of his underwear.

But your strokes felt unfamiliar once you had pulled his dick from his boxers. Your hands didn't feel right as he eyes closed. He couldn't open them to try to figure out what was wrong. He supposed it still felt good though. 

"I knew you missed me." That wasn't even your voice. "I knew you'd come back like you always do. I'll bet that little bitch sent me the photo, not you."

"What the fuck?" Bradley asked, cracking his eyes open. Phoebe was hanging off the side of his bed. She was in her underwear with his cock in her hands. 

"Come on. I'll suck you off."

"No," Bradley said, trying to get her hands off him. "I don't want you. I want Sugar."

He felt like he was going to throw up or pass out. Phoebe was licking her lips and smiling at him. "No, you don't, Bradley."

"I want my girlfriend."

Phoebe was clicking her tongue now. "Ugh, you're getting soft. How much did you drink?" she asked, but Bradley was peeling her fingers off him the best he could.

"Are you fucking kidding me?!" That was your voice. Coming from his doorway. Coming from his door. The door he had painted. He painted it because he needed you.

"Sugar."

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

Was he so drunk that he was actually talking to himself? The idea of it made you laugh as you carried some Advil and water bottles toward his room. 

"I don't want you. I want Sugar. I want my girlfriend."

Was he talking to someone? It sounded like another muffled voice was mixing with his. You tossed his door open wider and found Phoebe in his bed. She was grabbing his dick and trying to lick him. You could see the precum on his tip, and Bradley was scrambling to get himself free of her hands. 

"Are you fucking kidding me?" you asked, and Phoebe met your gaze with her malicious eyes. 

"Please, Phoebe. Please! You're gonna ruin it." Bradley was panicking now, you could tell. 

You closed the distance to them and grabbed Phoebe by her wrists and yanked her body away from him. 

"You need to leave!" you told her flinging her hands away from you so hard, that she almost fell off of the bed. "Get out of his bed and go!"

Phoebe stood up and started to reach for her bra clasp. "Why should I? He invited me here."

"Didn't," Bradley mumbled, pulling his underwear back up. "Wouldn't do that. I want Sugar." He tripped back into his desk chair.

"Get out." Your voice sounded crazed to your own ears. "He doesn't want you."

Phoebe was laughing now. "Why are you so desperate for him? He's not going to change."

"I'm desperate? Did you or did you not break into his bedroom?"

She just rolled her eyes and leaned down toward Bradley. "Do you want me to leave Bradley?" she asked in the most saccharine sweet voice that made you sick.

"I want Sugar." It seemed to be the only thing he could say at this point, and he was starting to look a little clammy. 

You'd had enough for one night. For one lifetime. "Just get out," you shouted, wrapping your hand up in Phoebe's hair and pulling hard. "Leave him alone!"

You pulled her, kicking and screaming toward his bedroom door and launched her into the hallway. Then you went back for her dress and shoes where they were strewn on the floor, and threw them at her face before slamming and locking the door.

"Are you okay?" you asked Bradley, pushing your fingers through his hair until his head was tipped back and he was looking up at you.

He just nodded and reached for you. "Don't get mad at me."

You eased yourself onto his lap and let him wrap his arms around you. "I'm not mad at you. I'm just upset in general. And I'm pissed at Phoebe." You felt hot tears leaking from the corners of your eyes, and you buried your face in his hair before he could notice. He probably wouldn't anyway, but you just wanted to cry in private. 

After a few minutes, he started shaking his head. He launched out of his seat, nearly knocking you to the floor, and raced across the room and out into the hallway. You were momentarily terrified that he was going after Phoebe, but he lunged into the bathroom and barely made it to the toilet before he started throwing up. 

You looked up and down the hallway, but Phoebe was thankfully gone. So you closed his bedroom door and went into the bathroom to make sure he was okay. He looked up at you with pitiful, watery eyes once he had flushed the toilet. "I'm sorry. I wish I was a better boyfriend." 

You sighed deeply and really looked at him. His hair was a wavy, brown mess. He had the beginnings of some stubble on his chin and above his lips. His eyes were red and glassy, and he was in just his underwear. But he was good. Really good. 

"Do you want me to help you take a shower and brush your teeth?" you asked softly, and when he nodded, you locked the door and got undressed. 

You washed his hair and body for him, running your hands softly over his skin as he melted into you. You got his toothbrush ready and then used his spare one that had become yours. After he took his Advil and drank some water, he climbed into his bed and pulled you in with him. When you clicked off his desk lamp and snuggled up against him, he said, "I don't deserve someone as sweet as you."

"Beer Boy...you deserve the whole world and the sky and everything you want."

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

Bradley woke up to the sounds of pouring rain. His head hurt so badly he could barely open his eyes. He was reaching for you in the bed, wondering if you had a hangover too, but then he started to remember the previous night. He'd had a ton to drink. He drank liquor, because he was with you, and he felt safe when you were around him. But he had definitely overdone it. 

"Phoebe," he gasped, forcing his eyes open. Phoebe had been in his room, and then you had been here too. You had helped him get a shower, and he was pretty sure you went to sleep in bed with him. But you were gone now.

He fought back the urge to throw up again as he climbed out of bed and pulled on some underwear. He needed to find you. 

The bathroom was empty, and the house was pretty quiet. He had no idea what time it was. Then he heard your soft laughter downstairs. He nearly tripped in his haste to get to you.

"I can't believe what a mess this room is!" you said, your back to him. Bradley smiled at you in his shirt and gym shorts. "I hope Tyson is okay." You were helping Dev pick up the front room. 

"Sugar," he rasped, and you spun to face him.

"Beer Boy," you said with a smile before you wrapped your arms around him. "How are you feeling?"

"Shitty."

You and Dev both laughed. 

"You don't need to clean up," Bradley told you. "I'll do it."

You just shook your head. "I don't mind. Plus I wanted to get the bottle I hid behind the couch before it got broken. Are you hungry?" You were gently rubbing your hand against Bradley's midsection and smiling up at him. He felt like crying, he was so relieved. 

"You're not mad at me?" he asked so softly. 

When you shook your head and smiled sadly at him, he squeezed you tight. "I thought we could watch some of that concert DVD and hang out," you whispered. 

Bradley scooped you up into his arms and carried you to the kitchen. He held you while you grabbed a box of cereal and a carton of orange juice. Then he carted you back upstairs while you protested that he should put you down because you were too heavy. You weren't too heavy, and he wasn't going to put you down. 

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

You sat side by side in bed with Bradley, eating Lucky Charms and drinking orange juice. He looked pale, and he hadn't said much, but every time you moved, he reached for you. "Just turning the volume up," you informed him. "I actually like this," you said with a laugh as you raised the volume on the Grateful Dead concert. 

"I knew you would, Sugar."

Eventually you settled in with his arms wrapped around you, and he sang along.

"You don't know how easy it is. You don't know how easy it is to love you."

His voice was beautiful, and you let it wash over you.

But you knew that no matter how hard he tried and how much both of you wanted it, you wouldn't be able to have this feeling with him forever. Last night proved that, and graduation was right around the corner. 

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

Woooooow, that was a lot. Good thing Sugar wasn't too far away. Thanks to @mak-32 as always for helping so much for this fic.

PART 16

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[baldursgrave69]

The Finer Things

Some Durgetash fluff/angst based on this post

Summary: Enver Gortash invites Agnes (the Dark Urge) to a banquet, as his guest. No one had bothered to show Bhaal’s chosen the finer things; dancing, good wine. She never thought she needed any of these things. They were frivolous wastes of time. But she couldn’t help wanting to indulge in these things with him.

Pairing: gortash x fem!durge (named)

Word Count: 2.8k

Tags: fluff/angst

While writing this I was listening to: As Long As You're Mine from Wicked

Find me on Ao3 here

Agnes tugged at the tight fitting red dress that clung to her body, she wasn’t used to wearing such constricting clothing. Her daily activities did not often allow her to dress so… skimpy. Somehow Enver had convinced her to join him at a patriar banquet, as his guest. Usually he brought her along as a bodyguard of sorts. He could mostly handle himself, but he knew she enjoyed protecting him.

Agnes watched the Banieite from across the room as he adjusted his black robes ima floor length mirror, combing his fingers through his dark hair. As he turned to her, a smile flashed across his face, his eyes darting across her body.

“You look nice,” he hummed, taking in every inch of her.

He rarely saw her in anything other than her leather armor and cloak, tattered and stained with blood. Frankly she would look good in anything, but seeing her like this drove him wild. Such a pretty appearance for such a lethal weapon.

She didn’t see the appeal in fashion as he did. He felt that being put together opened more doors, she was more fond of flashing a blade to do so. He found that often her approach was more efficient, though toying with people was more enjoyable.

“Are you sure?” she asked, feeling insecure.

She wasn’t used to feeling this uncomfortable in her own body. She knew her body very well. How to manipulate it to cause the most destruction. People often looked at her because of her rank, her looming presence, not because she looked nice or even remotely approachable. Most people averted their eyes when she looked at them, but Enver’s lingered, ghosting across every inch of her.

Agnes was not one for flair like Enver. She never wore jewelry, always had her long black hair tied back, and wore practical boots. She was one for efficiency. Though she did like the effect wearing this dress had on her confidant. The way his eyes trailed up and down her body, taking in every curve. It made her feel powerful. She knew he would do anything she asked, with enough convincing. Enver walked over to Agnes, placing a hand on her hip and turning her to look at him.

“Yes, though maybe you could wear your hair down for once,” he purred, twirling her long black braid in his fingers as he looked at her. Agnes pulled back from him, crossing her arms.

“Now that might be a bit too far,” she hissed, her piercing stare boring into him. Enver chuckled, raising his hands in defeat.

“I do have one request, then,” He flashed his eyes at the two blades affixed to her sides.

“For just one night, maybe we can keep the murders to a minimum.”

Agnes huffed, reaching for her beloved weapons, knowing she couldn’t bring them with her. She set them down on the nightstand next to his bed, flashing a condescending smile in his direction. Her hands felt empty without the two blades at the ready, she felt more exposed without them than she did in the tight dress.

“Thank you, pet.”

Enver got off on the influence he had over his favorite assassin. To convince the Chosen of Bhaal to leave her weapons behind for him was a thrill he never knew he needed to feel.

"I hate when you call me that,” she lied, biting her lip and trying to hide the smirk breaking through. If anyone else referred to her with such a name, Agnes would gut them like a fish. But Enver made her feel things she never thought she would get to feel.

Agnes rarely went anywhere without those two blades affixed to her side, she hesitantly walked away from the nightstand and towards Enver.

“You’re lucky I-” Agnes didn’t dare finish that sentence, she didn’t want to give him any more of an ego boost than he already had.

“You what, pet?” he laughed, flashing a devilish grin in her direction.

Agnes rolled her eyes. “Just that. You’re lucky.” Agnes gestured towards the dress she begrudgingly put on.

“I truly am,” Enver knew she was right. He had never met anyone like her before.

She was cunning and far more intelligent than anyone he had met, she was lethal in so many ways. She took her place as Bhaal’s Chosen seriously, murdering in His name. The followers of Bhaal worshiped her as their Chosen. She was destined for great things in her father’s name. And yet, here she was in the bedroom of Bane’s Chosen.

“Shall we?” he asked, extending an arm to Agnes. Agnes rolled her eyes and trudged toward him, locking her arm with his.

“There had better be good wine,” she huffed, straightening her posture to match his.

“I'll ensure you’re… appropriately compensated for your time,” he whispered in her ear, sending shivers down her spine.

Agnes watched from afar with a glass of wine in her hand as Enver Gortash mingled with people at the party. He was so good at making people like him, flashing a charismatic smile here, laughing at a terrible joke there. She envied that quality of his.

Agnes was good with her words, she could manipulate, intimidate, and deceive her way through any situation. But people very rarely liked her. They feared her, sure. But no one would ever wish to be in her presence willingly. No one but him, anyway. He respected her, he listened to her. Her regular company of Bhaalists doted on her, scattering around trying to ensure everything was perfect for her. They worshiped her. But Enver saw her as an equal. Something she had never experienced.

She wished she could pretend to care about the drivel these people spouted to appease them, but it all felt like a waste of time. ‘Networking’ is what he called it, but she figured it was just an excuse for him to show off. There were more pressing matters in their lives than placating a few patriars, but he insisted that this was important. And if it was important to him, then it was important to her.

As she watched Enver speaking to a group of women, a man staggered in her direction, the smell of liquor radiating off of him.

“Ah, you,” he mumbled, nearly falling over onto her. “You’re here with Gortash, eh?” Agnes dodged his handshake, nearly spilling her wine.

“I guess so,” Agnes was hoping to avoid any such conversations about her relationship with Enver.

“I always thought you were just his little lapdog, it seems he’s trying to make an honest woman out of you,” the man spat at her, laughing between drunken hiccups. Agnes felt her blood boiling at this man's assessment of her relationship with Gortash. How dare this lowlife spit such disgusting words at her, the daughter of Bhaal. Didn’t he know who he was messing with?

As her rage continued to build, she felt herself instinctively reach for the dagger that wasn’t there. Cursing to herself, she felt the anger rising, her fingers twitching with anticipation. Enver insisted on no murders, he didn’t say anything about maiming someone.

As she mulled over in her mind all of the ways she could make this man pay for what he’d said, she felt a presence behind her. Enver laid a hand on her shoulder, squeezing it ever so gently, as if to say “Not here”. Agnes shrugged his hand off of her, stomping on the drunken man's foot as she walked by. She dumped her wine into a potted plant, placed the glass chalice on a random shelf, and found her way to the rooftop.

“Bold,” Enver lowly whispered to the drunken man. He could tell the man instantly regretted ever walking up to Agnes. Most men brave enough to walk up to her did.

“She’s something else,” the man scoffed, trying to steady himself on his feet before walking back towards the bar.

Enver smiled to himself, she really was something else. She very well could’ve killed this man right here in front of everyone. It was in her nature, her right as the Chosen of Bhaal to do so. But she didn’t. Because he had asked her not to. He felt powerful, he had this Bhaalspawn wrapped around his finger. 

She would do most anything he asked of her. She had killed plenty of people at his request, people who had slighted him, or looked at him funny. She wouldn’t hesitate to strike down anyone in his way, he’d watched her go to extreme lengths to show him her devotion to him.

This power over her would be most useful, if she didn’t have the same power over him. He was helpless when it came to her. He wanted to fulfill her every request, to be whatever or whoever she wanted him to be. Enver couldn’t help himself around her, her approval was more important than breathing.

Agnes looked out over the city, pulling her hair out of her usual tight ponytail. She raked her hands through her long hair as she mulled over what that disgusting excuse for a man had said. He had called her Enver’s ‘lap dog’. Is this what people thought when they saw her? They should feel fear and dread gazing upon her. She was the physical embodiment of murder. If her father knew about this, about what people thought of her, he would be furious. She wasn’t even supposed to be hanging around the Baneite outside of business. But she couldn’t help herself. He made her feel ways in which no amount of killing or worshiping ever did. He made her feel alive. She knew she couldn’t indulge in this dalliance forever. Eventually, she would kill him.

Enver climbed the stairs to the rooftop. He knew he would find her up here, she loved watching the city as it slept. He kept his distance for a moment, watching her as she gazed upon the city, her shoes off and hair down.

He felt a pang in his heart while looking at her. Their relationship was destined for tragedy. As the Chosen of opposing gods, surely only one of them would come out of this. He secretly hoped it would be her. Sure he wanted to live, he wanted to continue ruling with the Black Hand of Bane, to bring the city of Baulder’s Gate into his grasp. To finally be the tyrant he had been striving to be. But if he kept mingling with the Bhaalspawn, he knew he would find himself on the wrong side of her blade one of these days. And he knew she would win.

“How did I know you’d be up here,” Enver smiled, walking towards Agnes. She didn’t turn to face him, but rather addressed him as if she knew he had been there the whole time.

“Does everyone just see me as your little puppy? Some lapdog that you order around,” she asked. Enver walked up behind her, wrapping his arms around her middle and placing his chin on her shoulder.

“Would it be so bad if they did?” he purred, nuzzling his face into her neck, taking in her scent. A light metallic smell nearly perfectly covered by notes of bergamot and vanilla distracted him. Before he knew it, she had grabbed his right arm, twisting it behind his back and bringing him to his knees before her.

“I am no one's dog,” she barked, twisting his arm harder, causing him to cry out. “Especially not yours, Baneite.”

She had him in such a vulnerable spot. One thrust of a dagger and she would be able to feel his warm blood flow through her fingers. She became distracted by the ache in her head as she imagined killing Enver Gortash. Agnes released her grip on his arm, pushing him away from her to avoid hurting him.

“You’re right,” Enver smiled up at her. She scoffed in his direction, turning to face the city below.

“Why did you bring me here, Enver,” she sighed. He rose to his feet, walking up to her and placing his hand next to hers so that their pinky fingers intertwined.

“Truthfully,” he sighed, looking over at her. “I don’t know. Maybe to watch you squirm, make you uncomfortable. To show you off. Because I shouldn’t have, but I wanted to.” Enver had plenty of reasons for wanting to bring her with him tonight, none of which seemed very important now. He just wanted to be with her.

Agnes turned towards him, leaning against the balcony’s ledge. She studied him, trying to map every part of his face, taking in his near black eyes, the dark circles under them, and the scar on his chin that she had given him the first time he kissed her. She knew this wouldn’t last forever and she didn’t want to forget a single detail.

“Don’t look at me like that,” Enver’s face curled into a frown. He knew what she was doing. He hated when she looked at him like this, like it might be the last time. “I don’t want to think about all of that right now. Your father, the brain, none of it. I just want to be here.” Enver moved in towards her, placing a hand on her neck, rubbing his thumb against her cheek.

Agnes nuzzled against his hand, silently agreeing to have this moment for the two of them. They stood, pressed against each other for a moment, before Enver pulled away, a smirk crossing his face. Agnes cocked her head to the side as he stretched out a hand, slightly bowing. 

“May I have this dance?” he asked, eyes glinting in Agnes’ direction. Agnes laughed, she had never danced before. Let alone had someone ask her to. Enver gently grabbed her hand, pulling her close.

“Enver, I can’t dance.” Agnes averted her gaze, almost embarrassed at her lack of experience.

“Then allow me to guide you,” Enver placed a hand on the small of her back, interlacing the fingers on his other hand with hers. She looked up at him, nervous she would fumble or look like a fool. He flashed a warm smile at her, picking her up effortlessly and spinning her around. She giggled, throwing her head back as he spun her.

The pair slowly danced in circles to the music of the night. Enver teaching the bhaalspawn a simple two step dance. Agnes rested her head on his shoulder as he wrapped his arms around her. Time felt infinite in this moment as they spent it in each other's arms, savoring every second.

The Urges in Agnes began to rise, her knife hand aching to cause destruction. Visions of blood and gore swam in her head, the image of Enver eviscerated in front of her, her hands soaked in his blood played in her mind. She tried fighting it for as long as she could, but as day began to break, she untangled herself from Enver’s arms.

“Don’t go,” he whispered, holding on to her hand. She broke free of his grasp, walking over to grab her shoes.

“I need to leave. I don’t want to hurt you.” Enver knew that the Urges were calling upon her. He let out a frustrated sigh as she watched her gather herself. She had no choice but to give in to them, somewhere else, lest she hurt him.

“I’ll see you tonight?” he asked, hopeful she would return to him.

“We’ll see,” she muttered, collecting herself. Enver nodded, adjusting the collar on his robes.

“Thank you.” she whispered, kissing his cheek as she walked away from him.

“For what?” he asked, turning around. She was gone.

As she walked through the sewers back to the temple, Agnes kept replaying the night with Enver Gortash in her mind. He had been so gentle, so kind. She rarely experienced such tender touch. If it wasn’t for the murderous Urges calling upon her, she never would’ve left his side. Walking into her chambers, Agnes passed by a cracked mirror. She stole a glance at herself, her long hair still down, draped over her shoulders. She was still in the red dress Enver had given her, however it was now torn and tattered from dredging through the sewers. A pity.

In a moment of weakness, she straightened up in the mirror, mimicking the movements Enver had taught her when they had danced. No one had bothered to show Bhaal’s chosen the finer things; dancing, good wine, and how to mingle with people. She never thought she needed any of these things. They were frivolous wastes of time, her time and expertise were better suited elsewhere. But she couldn’t help wanting to indulge in these things with him.

She imagined a life with him where she didn’t have to be what she was. Somewhere they could just be; no god’s at their throats, no evil plans. Maybe they would have a little house, a cat? Before resigning herself to sleep, she continued to practice dancing in the mirror. She wanted to be better next time she got the chance to dance with Enver Gortash. Little did she know, that chance would never come.

[darkfalcon-z]

Woven from the Spider Silk,

Or the Grandmasters of Tiny Bunny Cultivation

A bit of a crack idea - I wrote it some time ago

Teenage WWX and LWJ are called upon to become the deities of the forest

They turn tiny because their spiritual power cannot support full size body of a deity

Worse that at the beginning they involuntary turn into little bunnies whenever humans are around and they can’t communicate (this is a spell protecting fledgling deities from being spotted and imprisoned by humans). They also don’t know what is going on until they cultivate for a bit in a forest.

They are removed from Cloud Recess together with the bunnies WWX found for LWJ and set behind the wards so they can’t initially come back and write a message or something

The bunnies are not the culprits behind the transformation, but they are the catalyst. The previous couple of deities either passed on or ascended (this would unclear at least at the beginning) and new people need to fill in the position – this is a natural process (it’s like id an atom misses an electron only more selective), technically anyone could have been chosen provided they had strong enough cultivation and empathy for living beings but the process would only start if a matched set of two was found. The bunnies are kind of like spiritual messengers. The let themselves be caught by WWX, because they sensed his potential, but the transformation only happened when bunnies and WWX came in contact with LWJ

The bunnies become Wangxian familiars (and steeds). The bunnies are black and white respectively

WWX and LWJ still are as strong as ever both physically and with cultivation (a la Nac Mac Feegle) but they can eat less (although more their current body mass could suggest)

All in all Wangxian got nice vacation from everything. They live on an enchanted meadow (although the meadow becomes enchanted because they live in there) in the Gusu Mountains just beyond Cloud Recess wards, together with the bunnies – the bunny family grows because other bunnies noticed it’s a sweet spot to live as no predators dare to approach Wangxian with evil intentions

LWJ forages for spider silk to make them new robes, WWX forages for most everything else and also build them a tiny cottage (they eventually make a little garden as well)

(they earlier made clothes of feathers (because the bunnies sabotages any attempts of making clothes from leaves with their appetites) but there was an issue of LWJ having to constantly deal with WWX in a tiny feather skirt, you must understand that something had to be done)

Wangxian get together early because of all this.

Everyone thinks LWJ and WWX are dead, although how it’s a mystery (most people blame WWX for somehow angering some powerful entity and LWJ getting caught with a fallout) – not that surprising since all they’ve found were intact robes with tied sashes and all – it looked like they evaporated from the inside.

The world however did not stop just because Wangxian disappearance

Wangxian learned that something terrible happened when the Cloud Recess burned because they’ve sees plumes of smoke and light from the fire

They’ve only learned that Lotus Pier Fell afterwards

During the indoctrination JZX’s and few other disciples cores had been crushed before the Xuanwu appeared and MianMian’s face had been branded by WLJ. Some of the heirs had been eaten by Xuanwu as well)

JYL is only surviving Jiang as she was in Meishan when the Wens attacked. She’s largely forgotten, except JGS broke the engagement with JZX since JYL lost her position.

JC had been caught, tortured, had his core crashed and was eventually killed as his return after the massacre – this happened when he saw WLJ disrespecting his mother’s corpse.

JGS pretty much lost the interest with JZX as his heir (he still doesn’t think JYL is a suitable party for him since she has pretty much nothing and lives on the charity of her grandparents’ family) and brought MXY earlier on to the sect as a potential heir (it’s till terrible for MXY, he’s taken away from his mother, his “step mother” hates him, his so called father throws a lot of expectation at him but no love, plenty of Jin cousins think they should be heirs instead)

JZX goes to fight in SunShot Campaign even though he’s coreless and more than little depressed, but without JC and LWJ getting back the swords the SunShot is in dire straits.

Eventually Wangxian managed to get into Cloud Recess, acquire Bichen and they fly to Meishan to JYL, who becomes the first person to learn of their fate (and marital plans)

They manage to liberate everyone swords as well as treasures stolen from Lotus Pier (Suibian among them) and have JYL take the swords to LXC and NMJ

Eventually Wangxian are going to pilot JZX as a mecha (not that’s not accurate, they need him because he has martial arts training but not the ability to use spiritual sword, and they have swords but with bodies so small it would be an issue to go into a battlefield alone, so they need him to carry them around, they don’t usually pilot him). JZX gets secret identity, though. Of course that cooperation doesn’t go smoothly, but JZX eventually grow into a man worthy of asking for JYL’s hand.

LXC and NMJ are probably onto the plan. LXC is relieved that LWJ is safe

Eventually SunShot wins

After the war the Wens are still put into work camps

Idk yet how Wangxian learn about that, but they go there and turn everyone into bunnies temporarily and tell them to run and if they got into Gusu area they would try to help them some more. This is not a perfect solution, since many other those people are old or ill, but they’d had support one another to survive on the way. WN doesn’t die in this au

I think WQ helped out injured MianMian at some point and then met her again after SunShot and told her brother had been kidnapped. MM went to JYL and JZX to ask if they maybe know if something can be done. JZX got the information where the prison camp was and told Wangxian

A-Yuan as a bunny is too little to run anywhere so Wangxian take him with themselves. This is a bit of challenge since it’s difficult to take care of a toddler when you are doll sized. Wangxian have a spell to shrink living being with doing complicated things to qi flow, but it’s not that they can keep A-Yuan shrunk all the time because how would that affect his development. WWX needs to add big boy room to their tiny cottage.

The Wens manage to arrive in the area, but by that time A-Yuan thinks about Wangxian as his parents and no one has the heart to separate them

JYL and JZX probably go to live in Cloud Recess for a while. JYL is regarded as a hero, who liberated the swords, JZX is regarded as a pitiful loser, who lost his core. But he grows a lot as a person. Possibly they are going to reestablish Jiang Sect later on after their son is born.

I’m not sure about JGY in this au.

XY drugged and brutally murdered members of Chang clan, but since Yin Tiger Tally doesn’t exist and no one invented the ghostly path JGS doesn’t have any use for him so he’s promptly executed after XXC caught him

Wangxian have opportunity to me XXC and SL and give them their blessing for the sect they want to establish. I hope they still find A-Qing somehow

People still call LWJ Hanguang-Jun, this time it’s his divine title. WWX is know as a Dark Lord (I think it’s by Xuan-Jun) or Dark Lady sometimes since people think as LWJ “mate” he must be a female

[smash-64]

2024 Game of the Year Countdown Honorable Mention: The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Nintendo Switch, 2023

I feel like I’ve played this game before…oh, right! I did! It was 2018 and the game was called The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. 

Now that at least one person is furious with me, I have to say that I did not hate my time with Tears of the Kingdom. I just don’t think it lived up to the immeasurable hype that I heard from critics, websites, YouTube, and friends. I don’t think I heard a single person say a single negative thing about this game for two months after it came out. I even heard people singing its praises multiple times on NPR, one of the last platforms where I’d expect to hear video game reviews. 

So, let’s start out with the things I liked after the cut, because this is going to be a super long review, for those interested.

I adored exploring the Gerudo Desert, as I did in Breath of the Wild. The Gerudo are a really fun and interesting group, and I spent significantly more time here than anywhere else. It was nice to see Link welcomed into town as the one male with a hall pass, since that meant I didn’t need to make sure to always don the disguise outfit. (Although it’s silly to put on the full Yiga Clan garb and get tossed into jail!) The addition of a subterranean area in Gerudo Town was also cool and helped add to the lore of the Gerudo having a long history. The bright colors and designs of the town, clothing, and the equipment were also still present and welcome. And seeing Riju grow into her role as leader was both cool, as she packs a wallop with her thunder attack, and reassuring as she was fairly self-conscious and unsure of herself in Breath of the Wild. 

The Yiga Clan are also still around, and I found them more interesting than in BotW. I wish we had a little more from them, but they’re supposed to be in disarray after we crushed them in BotW, so it wouldn’t make a ton of sense from a narrative standpoint.

Music was generally pretty good, especially in the more plot-centric sequences. The classic Zelda swells and melodies bring emotion to the forefront, most notably nostalgia. The credits music ties the whole experience together. Can’t really go wrong with a Zelda soundtrack, although it was a touch less subtle than Breath of the Wild.

Tulin was a really refreshing character that somehow struck a balance between over-eager young bird with skills, and annoying kid. In fact, he’s one of the only kid characters I genuinely enjoyed from start to finish in any game. He’s determined to help his village, prove himself, work as a team with Link, and follow through with his new role once you complete the Wind Temple. 

Finally, the characters themselves all seem to have had a bit of a glow-up, design-wise. Everyone looks great. There’s also a focus on making characters stand out more, with more unique designs and more plot relevance. Some have more of a part to play than others, but there were seemingly fewer one-off interactions in TotK. Many sidequests have multiple parts to them that occur across the map, so expect to see characters popping up more than once.

Something that has undoubtedly stood out thus far in my review is how often I have referenced Breath of the Wild. It is fully unavoidable to review Tears of the Kingdom on its own. It looks, sounds, feels, and plays like Breath of the Wild. I have heard criticisms of Majora’s Mask from some people who claim they couldn’t enjoy it as much as Ocarina of Time due to the reuse of assets, claiming it was too similar, or even lazy (which just proves they don’t know the actual history of Majora’s Mask, but I digress). But even those critics have to recognize that Majora’s Mask shares little beyond the reuse of assets as the game is fundamentally different on so many levels. 

Tears of the Kingdom is so similar to Breath of the Wild, I find it hard to not look at the whole game as anything other than a massive DLC. We’re on the same map. We’ve got towers and shrines all over, and while they’re not in exactly the same spots…they’re not that different and serve the same purpose. Zelda needs rescuing. Ganon(dorf) is the bad guy. Enemies are the same. Controls are the same. It felt like I was playing the same game, maybe just a different post-game story. 

The addition of the sky islands and the ill-lit underworld were so underwhelming to me that I never felt compelled to explore beyond a few minutes, aside from when I was forced to do so. I just didn’t find anything interesting about them at all. It was difficult to even get to the sky islands in the early game, and once I finally made my way there, I was expecting unique weapons and enemies, or powerful ingredients for cooking. I got neither, so I don’t really see the point. Perhaps I missed some massive highlight, but I have yet to hear about anything that would make me seek out some special, far-flung sky island for amazing content. 

The same goes for the dark abyss area, which I heard was this hugely fun land to explore. When I got there, it was just…dark. I couldn’t even see anything off in the distance to entice me into exploring, and the light seeds you get don’t travel very far, nor do they light very much of the area around you, so you’re still stumbling around and hoping to just chance upon something. As a result, I didn’t do much of anything down there at all. 

The Zonai tech was a huge letdown, too. I didn’t exactly adore the magnetism, bombs, stasis, etc. from BotW, but it was serviceable. This new stuff in TotK was downright not fun. When I see people building these huge, elaborate devices with fans and batteries and whatnot, I honestly cannot fathom the enjoyment they’re getting out of it. It got to the point where I just never did any shrines ever again. I’d find one and activate it as a warp point, and never go inside because they were annoying chores. 

The new tech felt gimmicky at the best of times, too, and I was disappointed that the developers clearly focused so much time and effort on it instead of…anything else. Being able to throw random objects onto a sword isn’t as interesting as discovering well-crafted weapons that have a bit of lore or culture behind them. Instead, we just get a couple of very basic weapons and are expected to combine them with random monster parts to make stronger ones, but they always end up looking held together with paper clips and bubble gum.

Perhaps my time playing games from Falcom’s Trails series has bled over and corrupted my ability to fairly assess the storytelling and writing in other games and series; and while there was definitely a bigger focus on story in TotK than BotW, I still found the story to be lacking. Maybe it was just my disinterest, but it came off as very underwhelming to me. I liked individual moments, like Riju standing on her own or Zelda actually playing a part in the plot, but the overall story just didn’t click with me. It all felt like something I’d already done before.

I found the difficulty in this game to be a bit of a mixed bag. I welcomed some of the more difficult enemies and the increase in the number of boss fights, in general, but the final gauntlet was such an enormous leap in difficulty that it was ultimately the thing that made me put the game back on the shelf for about five months. I was getting bored with the game, skipped both the Goron and Zora areas, and was forced to fight their bosses at the end of the game as a result. This was definitely a difficult surprise since I had no tips from the respective champions, and while I did manage to scrape through, I never felt a sense of accomplishment, only frustration and annoyance. I appreciated the option to skip Divine Beasts in BotW, but this felt like a harsher punishment in the endgame.

Even in BotW, I was never one for “proper” Zelda combat, with parries and such, not to mention being moderately underpowered. So brute forcing it was kind of my MO, and TotK very clearly doesn’t want you to do that. As I’ve gotten older, I enjoy Hardcore Gamer Moments™ less and less and I think my favorite thing to happen to video games is the difficulty slider that allows me to choose the type of experience I have. Work and life is stressful and I don’t generally want my games to be the same. Or, at the very least, I’d like the option to choose.

Now, I must admit that when I got frustrated and put the game back on the shelf, I wasn’t really intending to ever return to it because I wasn’t having fun. However, after five months, something changed and I was open to making another attempt. The water and fire temples were extremely unenjoyable experiences, with the very long, drawn-out quests for the Spirit Sage and Master Sword being only slightly less chore-like, and this has essentially always been the case with Zelda dungeons for me. I almost never enjoy them, which explains why the list of Zelda games I like is shockingly short. I actually gave up on the Master Sword quest because it involved expanding my stamina gauge, which meant completing shrines and I hated shrines in this game, so I said screw it.

However, I did beat the game. I sought out the temples I originally skipped, finished them, and headed back to Ganondorf for a second attempt. It was definitely easier, but still a jump in difficulty compared to the rest of the game. I didn’t feel satisfied with the fights, only annoyed that I had to be troubled to finish them at all. 

My last real gripe is just how this game is essentially one massive roadblock. Every single thing you want to do will be locked behind having to complete some OTHER quest first, which is supremely annoying and a complete break from what Breath of the Wild was. I found myself just wishing I was playing Breath of the Wild instead, which cannot be a glowing endorsement for Tears of the Kingdom.

I can’t say I regret playing TotK and I didn’t hate every minute I spent with the game, despite some of my grumblings. It didn’t reach the heights of BotW, but I did spend over a month playing it, when it’s all said and done. I still like the open world Zelda aspect and the art direction is still top notch. Nintendo always puts their A Team on Zelda projects, so it’s never a franchise you can ignore, even if individual games don’t do it for you.

[szollibisz]

■ curtwen?

bedroom/house/living quarters headcanon!

Ok, so I'm not sure if with curtwen you meant both characters separately or both of them if they lived together, so I'm just gonna go with both options.

So, to me, they are both quite neat people in different ways. Owen likes his stuff organized very specifically, and doesn't believe in decorations. Meanwhile Curt has a way more lived-in house, while pretty clean there are some papers lying around where they probably don't belong and a bunch of memorabilia that needs dusting off.

I like to think that after they got together and spent some time at each others' places, Curt got fed up with Owen's house looking like a dentist's office, so one lazy morning while Owen was still sleeping he snuck out a bought a bunch of shit to liven up the place. I'm talking throw pillows, picture frames, decorative books that Owen would never actually read, a nice rug, maybe a vase or two (with flowers <3) etc etc.

After Owen saw everything he tried to act annoyed, after all this was Curt heavily encroaching on his house and his habits. But as much as he wanted to feel mad, it was still one of the nicest things anyone's ever done for him. Each little item was handpicked, and even if no extensive thoughts went into some of them (Curt just thought they'd look great) It was still a radical and positive overhaul for him.

(After the fall, of course, when he goes back to his old house it's all a big reminder of Curt, and how much Curt said he loved him, only to betray and leave him for dead a few years after. He breaks a lot of the things he was given by Curt.)

Curt's house on the other hand has much more subtle reminders of Owen.

Curt doesn't usually smoke, only with other people, so for the longest time he didn't have an ashtray. (If he had a one-night-stand over who really wanted to smoke, so small dish sufficed) And despite the number of times Owen had stayed at Curt's place is way smaller than the number of times he brought a guy home who really wanted a smoke afterwards, he still bought an ashtray just for those few occasions with Owen.

He always has some tea in his kitchen cabinets, should Owen show up unannounced, and he has a few loose hair ties here and there too for the same reason. (Similarly to how Owen keeps some great fancy whiskey in his house, despite not liking it at all)

If they were to move in together they'd have a great ideological clash over furniture I think. Curt's a pretty modern guy. He doesn't even really have a good taste in interior design he just likes what's the newest and trendiest, and somehow it works (He may have bad taste, but he'll never escape being a mama's boy) Meanwhile Owen is more of a simple guy in that regard, or more like. Quaint. He's very space efficient and practical, but he does appreciate some fine woodworking (his bookshelves would cost more than the rest of his apartment combined) So they debate argue for a long time on what should they do. At the end of the day Owen cares the least about how things will end up looking, so as long as they include some of his stuff and he gets to decide which drawer will contain what he's fine.

[the-last-f2p]

hiii may I request yandere the drinking buddies (oda ango, dazai together but all platonic)

with a (gender neutral) reader who has very long hair ( like to their feet).

and they are just so surprised bc reader always were it in a bun

#the strugles of long hair featuring Y/N lol. Tw: Yandere behaivour , stalking, Dazai being Dazai aka suicide mentions

You always saw your hair as a nuisance. It's not like it was ugly actually the oposite but the length was always a problem you never had the heart to cut so you just kept it in a bun no more accidently stepping on your hair.

Then you met them. Well more specifically him. Odasaku Sakunosuke at cafe you immeditaly started to get along you don't know what it was but by the time you had left you practically knew the man well enough that most people would asume you've been friends for years. But unlike the other people you've met Oda had no idea about your hair. After that you met two other people. You were invited to go to a bar with Oda it wasn't really your thing but he somehow convinced you to come. You were expecting to be the only people in the bar tonight but you suprisngly you were joined by two men called Ango Sakaguchi and Osamu Dazai. Dazai obviously adored you not only did Oda like you which made you great in his eyes but you also were just so nice I mean of course you were but still. Ango was less captivated by you than the over two he just had no opinion. Yet.

It had been a couple of days since you started hanging out with the trio yet they were always just around the corner wether it be Dazai coincidently going to the same park you go to after work and start talking about his latest suicide attempt which obviously failed but still it was a good time for him. Oda always gifting you things and telling Dazai to tone it down though it never worked. And finally Ango to you he was doing nothing to you having some ties to the government really helped watching you everywhere through cameras not's not his fault you're just too cute alright?

But still after all that attentive watching stalking they still didn't discover this.

You started to have a bad headache you couldn't tell if it wasn't from the alcohol or how tight your bun was but you decided to take your bun out effectively making your hair go down to your feet. Also making Oda, Ango and Dazai's mouth gape open from the suprise. Your hair isn't that long right? Wrong. "Woah your is so long Bella Donna do you think you could strangle me with it?" Dazai's eyes practically have stars in them as he asks the question. "Dazai don't ask that I mean even though Y/N's hair would be long enough to strangle you and it's amazingly cute asking that is just weird." Ango takes a sip from his drink while he says that he obviously sounds suprised even though he indirectly complimented you he just went on. "Why not? They haven't even said anything so it's obviously their way of excepting my offer!" Dazai interupted Ango he obviously took your silence as a yes and started to grab your hair that hurt. ALOT. "OW! No just no get off my hair Dazai!" You push Dazai away from your hair as you say that. "Aww why so cruel?" Dazai pouts. "Your hair is nice Y/N. To be fair I wasn't expecting it but it's pretty." Oda smiles at you.

You giggle a little "Thanks Oda." You spent the rest of the night talking with the three even though their attention was more focused on your hair than anything you didn't think about it too much and that was probably good. Nothing has changed Dazai is still conviently on the same street as you and Ango is still watching you though expect Oda to give you a couple more hair care products than usual..

[aanoia]

your taylor swift song imagines give me life so I HAD to request one. Can you do something to Timeless from Speak Now TV with either james, sirius, or remus? whichever one you see fit!

I'm so happy I give you life ;) I chose James bc deep down I'm a James girl and it just fit best with him imo. I hope you like it!

Timeless

James Potter x reader words; 2230 song; Timeless by T Swizzle (TV, duh) alright y'all, this one might get a little confusing. Let me break it down for you. italics is lyrics (and two other super small things, you'll know it when you see it), italics and bold is memories, there's two memories split into three parts total, when the story starts saying would that means thats what would happen if it did, yk. You and James do die, I just wanna make that clear. if you love a song, the marauders, and my writing, request a song fic and your wish shall be my command. now, i have two things. one, you can give me requests anyone in the marauders era btw, not js the actual marauders (i'll even accept Peter because i like to think he never became evil and was always just shy little Peter). Second, GIVE ME PREFERANCES PLS they'll be good fillers for in between longer fics so please pls pls i rly want sushi rn anywho HAVE FUN

Down the block there's an antique shop

And something in my head said "stop", so I walked in

Y/n quietly walked into the small antique shop and the woman at the counter smiled kindly at her. She smiled back and gave her a small nod before looking around the shop. It was much bigger than it looked on the outside, so she assumed an enlargement spell was used on the inside. There were loads of trinkets across the many shelves, big and small.

On the counter was a cardboard box

And the sign said photos 25 cents each

Y/n’s eyes caught a bright white sign with bold red letters, “Photos 5 knuts per” she walked over to the table, curious. She thumbed through the pictures, all of them were old, as they were dusty and black and white.

Black and white saw a 30s bride and

Two lovers laughing on the porch of their first house

I smiled as I pulled out a picture of a man and woman. The man was in a nice suit, a bright happy smile on his face as he held the hand of a woman with a beautiful wedding dress on, her smile matching his. They seemed to be laughing in the picture, radiating pure joy. I turned the picture around and read the pen, “Just married! 7/24/36”

The kind of love that you only find once in a lifetime

The kind you don't put down

As Y/n flipped through more pictures, her mind wandered to James. She saw them in these pictures, together no matter the circumstance, with bright smiles on their faces and laughs leaving their lips. They’d be hopelessly in love in any universe, and she knew it.

And that's when I called you, and it's so hard to explain

But in those photos, I saw us instead

“Oh, did you stop by the antique shop?” Y/n’s mom asked as she walked in through the door, a small bag in my hand. 

Y/n nodded with a smile, “I did, it’s pretty cool in there. I’d love to talk more but I need to write James a letter.”

Her mom laughed, “All right, you go, don’t take too long though. Supper will be done soon.”

And somehow I know that you and I would've found each other

In another life you still would've turned my head

James looked up from his desk as a loud pecking noise was made on his window. He smiled as he saw his girlfriend's owl, banging his beak against the glass of his window with a letter tied to his leg and his claws clutching onto a brown package. James opened his window and let the owl in, petting him gently and placing a few pellets on the window cill for him to munch on. 

James opened the letter quickly, pausing as two black and white photos fell out. He furrowed his brows at the photos and his eyes flitted to the package. He grabbed it and untied the string, opening it quickly to find an old book, a few specks of dust on the front. He laughed to himself at the randomness and began actually reading the letter.

Even if we'd met on a crowded street in 1944

And you were headed off to fight in the war

“Off to war?” Y/n would’ve said, a laughing tone in her voice.

James would’ve nodded with a smile, “Yes. But we could write to each other, we could court and then once the war is over we’ll get married!” He‘d say excitedly.

Y/n  would have laughed, “Of course we will.”\

You still would've been mine

We would've been timeless

James would’ve been hanging halfway out of the train, the only thing keeping him in being his friends as he waved to the love of his life.

“I love you!” She’d shout and he’d blush.

“I’ll see you later, love! Don’t miss me too much!” He’d yell back, blowing her a kiss before he was forced back on the train.

I would've read your love letters every single night

And prayed to God you'd be coming home all right

“Oh, Y/n, don’t be ridiculous. James will be fine, I’m sure.” Lily would tease, smoothing down her skirt as she sat on the bed next to her best friend. 

“That’s easy for you to say, Lils, he’s not the love of your life. I don’t know what I’d do without him.” She’d say, setting his latest letter into a box that held all the other ones.

“Y/n, have faith in the man. He’s strong, he’ll make it.” Lily would persist and Y/n would nod with a sigh.

And you would've been fine, we would've been timeless

She’d run to James at the train station and he’d drop his bag and hold his arms out, catching her in an embrace and spinning her around. She’d laugh joyfully, thankful the love of her life was finally home. 

“Oh, I’m so thankful you’re okay.” She’d whisper and he’d kiss her cheek. 

“I’m thankful to be back with you, beautiful.”

'Cause I believe that we were supposed to find this

So even in a different life

You still would've been mine

We would've been timeless

James smiled at her idea, quite liking it himself. He loved listening, or in this case reading, about all her ideas. He knew how much her mind ran wild, thinking of every possibility for every little thing, and he loved it. He loved being a part of it. 

I had to smile when it caught my eye

There was one of a teenage couple in a driveway

Holding hands on the way to a dance

And the date on the back said 1958

James picked up one of the pictures and smiled at the couple, still in their wedding attire, holding hands tightly on a porch. He set the photo down, it not being the one he was looking for, and picked up the other one. He gazed at the two teenagers, almost imagining them as himself and Y/n. He could see it, and he remembered what it was like taking her to the Yule Ball. How beautiful she looked in her dress.

Which brought me back to the first time I saw you

Time stood still like something in this old shop

I thought about it as I started looking 'round

At these precious things that time forgot

Y/n and Lily walked into the train station together, hand in hand, happy to have made a friend before they even arrived at Hogwarts for their first year. Y/n giggled as Lily told her a story about one of her friends, Severus, and promised to introduce the two to each other. Y/n suddenly paused and Lily looked over, concerned.

“What is it?” Lily asked and Y/n pointed to a boy who was messing around with two other boys.

“He’s-” She paused, trying to find the right word. “Beautiful.” Lily laughed loudly and Y/n snapped her head to the side, “What?”

Lily shrugged, shaking off her laughter. “Nothing, nothing.”

That's when I came upon a book covered in cobwebs

Story of a romance torn apart by fate

Hundreds of years ago, they fell in love like we did

And I'd die for you in the same way

If I first saw your face

James looked at the book he had unwrapped and silently read the title. He hummed thoughtfully and opened the cover, leaning back slightly at the dust that filled the air. He smiled at the dedication the author gave. 

“To the love of my life. We, my dear, are timeless.” He read out loud softly. 

In the 1500s up in a foreign land

And I was forced to marry another man

You still would've been mine

We would've been timeless

“James.” Y/n would’ve said, running to him and hugging him after they were finally alone. “I don’t know what to do.” She’d cry softly as he rubbed her back gently.

“It’s okay, we’ll figure it out.” He’d say quietly, being equally as lost as her.

I would've read your love letters every single night

And run away and left it all behind

You still would've been mine

We would've been timeless

“Do you have everything?” He’d whisper outside the castle and Y/n would nod, handing James one of the bags.

“I do. Let’s go.” She’d say and throw the bag over the back of her horse, making sure it was secure as James would do the same. They’d share one last kiss before mounting their steeds and riding away as quickly as possible. By the time the castle woke up and realized the princess was gone, it’d be too late.

'Cause I believe that we were supposed to find this

So even in a different life

You still would've been mine

We would've been timeless

James laughed at her story, setting down the letter and glancing at her owl who hooted softly, waiting for something to return back to his owner. James pet the owl again before pulling out a piece of parchment, his quill, and an ink well, and immediately started writing back.

Time breaks down your mind and body

Don't you let it touch your soul

It was like an age old classic

Y/n smiled as the familiar pecking of her owl reached her ears. She rushed to her window and opened it, petting her owl gratefully and pulling the letter off his leg. Y/n sat down on her bed and practically ripped open the letter.

The first time that you saw me

The story started when you said hello

In a crowded room a few short years ago

It was third year, in the Great Hall. Y/n had spent the last two years of her life pining after the one and only James Potter, who barely even glanced at her. At least, that’s what she thought. But that couldn’t have been farther from the truth. 

“Just go talk to her already, Prongs.” Remus said quietly, patting his friend on the shoulder. 

James shook his head, “No way. I couldn't.”

“Why not?” Peter asked.

“Because Peter, she’s perfect. She’s beautiful, has perfect grades, I mean, she’s probably the smartest witch I’ve ever known, minus my mom. She’d never like someone like me.” He explained and Sirius rolled his eyes.

“Dude, you’re hot. That’s all you need, now go.”

And sometimes there's no proof, you just know

You're always gonna be mine

We're gonna be

“Hi, Y/n.” James said, standing awkwardly as the girl turned around awkwardly.

“Oh, hi, James!” She said, a small blush painting her cheeks.

“Okay, bye, Y/n.” He said, walking off and cursing to himself for messing it all up like that.

“Uh, bye, James?”

I'm gonna love you when our hair is turning gray

We'll have a cardboard box of photos of the life we made

And you'll say "Oh my"

“Aha, look what I found.” James would have said to his wife, pulling out the pictures she had sent him many, many years ago.

“Where did you find those? Did you find the book too?” She would’ve asked, a smile on her face as she would look at them. 

James would’ve shook his head, “Nope, no book. I’m not sure where that went. I found the letter though.” He’d say and pull it out as well. Y/n would smile as she reread her words.

“Oh wow, I’m such a sweetheart.” She’d say with a laugh.

“Not much anymore.” James would tease and Y/n would’ve hit his arm. “See what I mean.”

We really were timeless

We're gonna be timeless, timeless

You still would've been mine, we would've been

“Come on, Harry. I saw this shop when I was going on errands with mum.” Ginny said, pulling her boyfriend into a cute little antique shop. Harry looked around in awe at the shop.

“Why, hello there, young ones.” The lady at the front said, a warm smile on her face.

“Hello, ma’am.” Harry greeted and Ginny smiled at the old woman. 

Even if we met

On a crowded street in 1944

Still would've been mine

You would've been

“Look, pictures.” Ginny said, pulling Harry over to look through them. They sifted through them silently before Ginny pulled one out. “Harry, these look a lot like your parents.”

Harry grabbed the photo and inspected it closely, “They… they are my parents.” His eyes widened as he looked at the cost of the photo. The sign had bright red ink on it, “photo’s 5 knuts per”.

The lady at the front smiled when Harry placed the picture on the counter. She gazed at the photo and shook her head with a laugh.

“I remember when she first walked in here. Ah, it was such a long time ago. She bought a few of these and an old book, and two weeks later she brought him in. They were such a sweet couple. I wonder how they’re doing now.” The woman reminisced as she took the knuts from Harry.

Harry smiled at the woman, holding back tears, “Yeah, I wonder too.”

Down the block there's an antique shop

And something in my head said "stop", so I walked in

my masterlist

taglist (if u wanna be added js comment :));

@loving-and-dreaming @1lellykins @poetrypirate

[ripplestitchskein]

I'm new to stolitz and HB and your takes/ your essay was a breath of fresh air. Maybe it's because I'm new here in the HB fandom, but I've seen more people talking shit about Stolas/"Stolas fans" than actual "toxic" Stolas fans? And don't get me started on those horrible ass takes calling Stolas a sexual assaulter/abuser or comparing Stolitz to Angel and Valentino, likening Stolas to Valentino.

It bothers the heck out of me but at the end of the day, with more exposure to that noise I can navigate how to tune it out and they can stay bitter and talk shit about everything they watch while we wait for "Full Moon"

Welcome Nonnie! Thank you so much! I’ve really missed doing things like this. It’s been awhile since I interacted this heavily with a fandom as nothing has really caught my brain this intensely for a long time so it’s nice to discover likeminded people in it. I’m new too! We can be new together.

It’s funny, I didn’t even know about HB until after I watched Hazbin, I had seen literally zero things about it, and while I had heard of Hazbin over the years and had seen Alastor I didn’t know what it was, I thought it was one of those popular dating sims, or like a new tumblr sexy man thing I hadn’t heard about which is hilarious to me now. A bunch of my IRL friends were talking about Hazbin a lot though and I love musical theater and have been on a personal art journey for a while (it started as getting better at art for video games, I’m a software engineer, but turned into me making a comic somehow because I’m a lifelong writer too) and the art style intrigued me so I decided to check it out. I loved it a lot, but like a normal amount. When I came on here people were talking about Helluva Boss so I’m like “ooh, more content” so we watched that and my brain saw Stolas and Stolitz and started the sirens. Like literally a “Oh no I love him” moment in LooLoo Land.

There are just characters and ships that hit just right. Imagine my surprise when I went into fandom spaces and there were people with these crazy interpretations of them and of Stolas I couldn’t reconcile with what I’d just watched. Like at all. Well I was surprised, but I’ve been around a fandom or two so I wasn’t that surprised but in this instance it was especially strange to me. It didn’t jive AT ALL with the show I just watched. Honestly, that intrigued me as much as the ship did.

Especially the Stolas takes. I’m like “This guy? This complete dork who is trying to mirror what his crush wants so bad he might as well be made of silvered glass?” “Evil Sexual assaulter? The guy in the royal romper who sings to his daughter and gets excited over legal contracts and makes silly little owl noises? This is the guy who has some evil sexual coercion plot over the dude who threatened to fuck his employees 11 minutes into the show and can’t go ten minutes without saying cum?” It was REALLY confusing let me tell you. Like you have this really fucked up reality where murder is A-Okay and characters that say vile shit to each other as a matter of course and people are all up in arms about a transactional sexual relationship? It just seemed like one of the least problematic things some of these characters do lol and I felt like I was in a room where something important happened and I missed it.

I’m pretty good about taking in different views, because of my ND I try really hard to understand where people are coming from and kind of assume I missed something everyone else knew from being in the fandom for so long, that being new I didn’t know, but the more I looked into it the more it seemed tied to an interpretation of the character that wasn’t in what I had watched. I watched the VivziePop channel playlist which does not have the Pilot. When I found out about the original Pilot some quotes made a *little* more sense especially with the huge gaps in content releases, but I’m still fucking baffled a lot of the time tbh. Sometimes I feel like these people are watching an entirely different show based on that Pilot and our social media have crossed universes.

I’m used to this though, the last major characters to take over my brain were MXTX characters, Bakugou from MHA and Killian Jones before that so I am pretty used to people having character interpretations who can’t get past first impressions, and ignore like literally years of development. (More about the last two, the MXTX fandom is one of the best I’ve been in, everyone seems to be really happy with the canon content there all around, I can’t think of any hate I’ve ever seen about any character tbh, even the actual villains. Fan fiction game is on point too, so many good writers in that fandom).

I’m also used to people ascribing love of a fictional character to a real life moral failing. My view has always been that I enjoy more complex characters and stories that aren’t always squeaky clean because it’s fiction and it’s fucking boring if everyone in it are these perfect unflawed cardboard cutouts who always act the right way, never hurt other people, and never make mistakes or fuck up or miscommunicate. People approaching relationships from differing points of view, struggling with darkness and trauma, and reconciling their issues especially together or to BE together is the fucking BEST thing about fiction.

Fandoms are fucking bizarre is what I’ve ultimately landed on. And they don’t understand what toxic means. Or problematic. Like just plain do not understand those words.

We’ll be fine Nonnie! Let’s just keep flailing over things we love, crying over the angst train that is surely coming full speed at our faces (and will probably have to deal with for years because of the release schedule), and enjoy theorizing, speculating, analyzing and creating content with other like minded people! Come vent in my inbox anytime and I’ll keep writing War and Peace length essays about 15 minute long episodes.

Seriously though, the man wears a ROYAL THEMED ROMPER how could ANYONE hate him? I love him so much.

I will say the one downside of this fandom is I know more about avian genitalia and reproduction than I ever needed to.

[aita-blorbos]

AITA for being rude to my husband's boyfriend after he cheated on me for him, dating my husband's ex, falling for/getting with my husband's boyfriend, and still being mad at my husband?

I (S, 19NB) am married to J (19M). We had met eachother a few years prior as we had been invited to join a lot of the same areas as we had a shared friend group.

Eventually, we were invited to this game show type thing our friend G (19M) had made. Basically, you had 3 lives, and each time you lost one, your color changed, and you became more hostile.

J and I decided it'd be a good idea to pair together, although his ex (M, 22M) wasn't too happy about it. We survived together, even as the game became less and less of a fame. Eventually, he proposed to me with a poppy flower, and we had a small wedding. Unfortunately, he reached his final life much before mine and was killed. I mourned for months, but I was okay once we were freed from the game.

About a year later, another game happened. Now, unknown to me, J got back with M without telling me. This wouldn't have been a problem, we're both polyam after all, but I had explicitly stated I wanted to date everyone he wanted to and vice versa, as well as know when he fell for someone. I never found any of this out until more recently, but it hurts to know he betrayed me before I even knew it. (I won that second game, btw <3)

Then, another year passes by, and the third game happens. In this game, though, your life is tied to another's. J ended up being tied to a different game member, T (21M). I had my own issues with my tied/soulbound, but that's irrelevant. T and J got really close, and it was pretty clear they were dating. They never tried to hide it, and J never told me anything. T definitely knew we were married and also said nothing. After the game was over, I yelled at both of them and told J to choose me or T (which was bad, I know that) and when J tried to talk it out I stormed off.

J and I didn't talk for a year after that, T ended up visiting the place we were both invited to several times. He tried to be nice to me, but I was incredibly cold and harsh. I was rude to him no matter what he was doing.

Then came the fourth game. J and I still hadn't been talking. I ended up teaming with M (J's Ex, whom I previously mentioned) and got really close with him. M and I fell for each other, but before I decided to go ahead and date him, I wanted to give J another chance to talk. So I talked to him, he was rude the whole time, even threatened to kill me. I told him that if he made sure the server killed T before me and let me be the last green life, I'd gladly let him kill me. He got angry and told me I had 30 seconds to run, I told him that I loved him, he refused to say it back and started counting down, so I left.

It's safe to say I decided to date M after that, although I waited to confess until after that game had ended. That same day, two other things happened. As mentioned, T and myself were the final green names on the server, so we were being hunted. Somehow, me and T ended up in a small space together and ended up making out. I also realized I had fallen for T, damn does my husband have good taste.

Eventually, we did talk stuff out. M and I began dating, J and I talked things out, I confessed to T, and we got together, M and J made up and will likely be together again soon, and M and T fell for eachother and are together now.

However, I still feel resent towards my husband. He betrayed me, and his reasoning is that he was scared of my reaction, even though M and T were both people I had casually expressed attraction towards for a long time. I just feel so guilty still, and it's made worse by the fact that bringing it up always makes J feel guilty, which I don't want, because he's my husband, but I do want because he deserves to feel guilt for all the pain he caused me, but I know that's wrong.

I don't know, I just need to clear my mind, AITA?

[vitaeplaysda]

Hullo! 👀

🍧 for Abigail, 🙈 for Elinan, 👑 for Enfenim, 🌈 for Kali

and 📎 for as many as you'd like!

(skip any you don't like, of course!)

[Link to the prompts]

🍧 for Abigail

🍧 SHAVED ICE - do they still have any objects from their childhood? what significance does it have to them? what would their reaction be if they lost it?

They once found an old key on the road while playing outside. It was made of iron with some nice decorations, but simple enough to be used for a closet or chest, there was nothing special about it. But they would make up impossible stories together with their siblings and in their young mind such a key was meant to open magical doors leading to other realms or maybe treasure rooms.

They kept it tied around their neck for many years, considering it one of their most precious possessions.

Now it's kept among their things, but they still have it, yes. It's a memento of better days able to bring a smile to their face.

But in the end Abigail is one to live in the moment, and if they were to lose the key, they wouldn't think much of it. After all it became such a treasure because somebody lost it to begin with. Maybe it's the key's fate to be lost again.

🙈 for Elinan

🙈 SEE-NO-EVIL - whats a side of your oc that they don't want to show other people?

Weakness. They don't want others to see they're tired, worried or perturbed. Half of it it's her people pleasing nature, the other came to be with becoming the Inquisitor and taking lessons about the Game from Josephine and Leliana. While the thing is a bit frivolous in Orlais, it's still very useful when you've got to lead a big organization against the world. Even when Solas dumped her, she remained calm and amiable to his dismay, still offering her support even when she was the victim.

She has her limits though, and when she's burned out or overwhelmed, she usually tries her best to hide in her quarters or by going on solo missions. Her favorite remedy is just to wander pretty places to gather materials and herbs, that's something very useful to leave behind the stress. Baking also helps.

The only ones she can't hide from are the spirits like Cole or Enfenim.

👑 for Enfenim

👑 CROWN - what does your oc want to be remembered as? why?

It's not something he cares much about as they had little sense of self for many years, as a demon he was the embodiment of the very fears and traumas which corrupted him. But as he regained his memories I guess he would like to be remembered as the thing he failed to be: a good protector. A good friend. Someone you can rely upon. As why, probably it would help him mend his spiritual wounds even more, gaining more control, memories and identity.

🌈 for Kali

🌈 RAINBOW - what advice would they give to their younger self?

Kali is someone who knows regrets are never useful and whenever you decide to take a move, you should accept any kind of result, for better or worse. Which means she hardly has much to suggest to a past version of herself like 'you should have done something in a different way' or 'fall in love before it's too late', after all such possible choices could have led her to a darker fate. Maybe she would remind herself that spending some quality time with her sister wouldn't have hurt, considering working for her wellbeing ended up not letting the two see each other for long periods of time.

📎 PAPERCLIP - a random fact.

📎Elinan: She's a master at braiding hair, in her clan everyone would always ask her, many offering their heads to let her try out new techniques. She tried to keep up the role during her time as Inquisitor but somehow she felt like people didn't approve of such a figure doing such mundane things openly. Solas being bald was a tragedy for her arts. Enfenim ending up having a lot of long and beautiful hair once he fully took the appearance of an elf JUST RIGHT AFTER she lost her left forearm didn't help. In the end she taught him all she knew. Same with little Rook. They both now are their successors as braid masters.

📎 Enfenim: Having floated while having five legs for most of his existence, he didn't expect he had to learn how to walk again once he decided to drop the extra three and move like a mortal. He was successful in the end, Elinan helped. People felt less scared of him. And wielding a sword felt more natural. It was a good choice

📎 Abigail: They love to point out as a joke that their Mohawk hairstyle is a way to not forget their surname is in fact Hawke.

📎 Kali: She's very good at baking cookies. That's secretly how she won Sten over. They're also real helpful to raise the Wardens's morale.

[unluckyxse7en]

This is old news now, with the newer cookies released since, but I've been thinking a lot about how the fandom kept comparing Affogato to Pomegranate - for better or worse - because something about it seemed really... Off, you know?

And I finally figured it out: Pomegranate and Affogato are almost nothing alike in actuality. Superficially and aesthetically? Yes they carry similar vibes. But as characters, motivations and backstories go they're almost entire opposites.

Note- A lot of this is conjecture from taglines, defeat sprites, and reading up on wikis, so bear with me.

Affogato's story is one of trying to claw his way up from rags to riches. From being the servant taking orders to being the king giving them. It's heavily implied he's been mistreated and pushed around all his life for his background, and he knows he didn't do anything to deserve it but exist.

His response to this situation is to take charge of his life. He's due a backlog of respect and good treatment, and he fully intends to demand immediate payment, with interest. He is snarky and backstabbing and conniving and manipulative, because he is tired of being trod on and dismissed and abused all of his life. He has been taught that to get good treatment, he has to be underhanded, hard to read, manipulative.

Even so, he is quick to defer to others as a survival mechanism. If you push, he falls over, deliberately. He will surely take revenge later for it, but when push comes to shove, in the moment he will take his hits with a stoic face and avoid further escalation. It could be calculation, but also is likely a trauma response.

So then how does Pomegranate compare to this? Well, it's been harder to analyze her upbringing, any specific traumas or lack thereof, because there's not a lot to go off of for her backstory in crk. A lot of it is 'once upon a time she was a priestess foretold to fall to darkness, and she did the end'. You could argue it either way, as perhaps being foretold to betray her village led to being a social outcast, or that the lack of detail implies her life was pretty bland before Dark Enchantress arrived.

Either way, there's a few key differences between her and Affogato:

1) she has not, cannot and will not experience the exact trauma he went through. She fit in perfectly with others in her village physiologically and had a place she 'belonged' -and from her pov, went from there to a place she Belonged when she joined DE.

2) she is a willing and truly, wholeheartedly Devoted servant. She does not demand or ask to be DE's equal nor superior. She is consumed with the desire for nothing more than to be of some use to DE, to perhaps be praised and seen positively by her, but Pomegranate does not ask for more even if more would be nice. This leads to the next points -

3), unlike Affogato she is not very underhanded. Manipulative? Yes. But a lot of her tricks are done in the open and are not about subtlety or pulling the wool over your eyes, so much as hitting where it hurts emotionally or threatening your safety using DE's reputation. This also ties into:

4) Pomegranate is not actually very self-sufficient or self-motivated. This is where being Affogato's opposite comes into play.

See, Pomegranate and Affogato are two ends of an unhealthy spectrum in this area. From their tactics and backstories to even their attacks and functions in their teams, Pomegranate operates Solely on externalized motivation and power, while Affogato Exclusively sticks to whatever he can do with his own hands. Capitalistic society might argue Affogato's way is 'better' somehow in that he is Always capable, but is he? Did not having anyone to truly rely on or trust work out for him in the end? Not so much.

And in a game like Cookie Run, a game where all challenges are crafted for Teams of cookies, to work together with various strengths to overcome obstacles.... Affogato really isn't going about any of it in a way that will get him where he wants long term. He's a loner in a 'friendship is the true power' narrative world. He has his reasons, but ultimately will not achieve his goals as a result. He'll always have the motivation and drive, but never the means.

Pomegranate also suffers from this construct, but in a different way.

Pomegranate is not looking to be equal to or superior to DE. She places her on a pedestal and is otherwise content serving her, so long as she gets recognition. However, in her drive to get that recognition, she does seek out being above everyone else. Not equal to. Above. She sees herself as a channel for DE's wisdom and while she can never be above or equal to DE as a result, DE's wisdom and intelligence trump all else, in Pomegranate's world. So she places herself above the others, peers and foes alike, and distances herself from all of them.

Even if that weren't a factor though.... Pomegranate dwindling herself down to nothing more than an extension of Dark Enchantress also means she is never truly Capable. She does not function independently the way Affogato does (although the wedges she intentionally drives don't help). But over-reliance is another loss of freedom, even in the 'Friendship Conquers All' narrative.

Pomegranate has no drive on her own, where Affogato has nothing but. She only does what she understands DE wants, and will only cooperate with others just enough for that purpose. If you take DE out of the equation.... What would remain of Pomegranate? What would she even do with herself?

And this is part of why these two are so different. When you take everything from Affogato, his fire continues to burn. He will lose and get beaten up, but he will cut his losses like a lizard with a decoy tail if it means he lives another day, because as long as Affogato lives his drive and purpose remain.

Taking everything from Pomegranate would mean taking away Dark Enchantress, too. You could take anything else and she'd barely bat an eyelash, too unattached (or acting like it) to be impacted. Because so long as she has DE she has all she needs. But if you took away DE?

Obviously it would depend on how you took DE out of the picture for her. If Pomegranate thought she could get her back and that's what DE wanted? She, like Affogato, would stop at nothing. But if she thought she couldn't, or worse that DE fully rejected her?

It's possible Pomegranate would try to take DE's plans into her own hands. But it doesn't feel as nearly a sure thing. Even her role in a team is to support others quietly, bolstering them so they can fight for the cause. She does not take matters into her own hands unless she thinks that's what DE wants.

So tl;dr - back when Affogato came out, the fandom kept comparing the two, and especially used their superficial 'sketchy advisor' shared tropes as a form of discourse on hate of female characters in fandom (???).

But I really think it's a disservice to Pomegranate to claim she's the same character as Affogato if anything. So I had to write out their differences because really when you push aside the superficial traits, they're more opposite than alike. It's only natural some people would like one more than another when they're so different, in either direction.