#but yeah i finally summoned up the courage to read that volume

[waveoftheocean]

vash for wip wednesday!! (idk what i'm doing but this is part of a vw reincarnation au thing that i've had on my mind for the last few months kajcjdka)

[letsquestjess]

Books and Roses - Part 1 (Hunter x GN!Reader)

Summary: A usual day at your job in the library turns into a fateful meeting with Pabu's newest resident.

Word count: 1.9K

Warnings: None.

A/N: This one absolutely ran away with me but I finally got it finished. I'm not sure when it will be posted, but I plan on doing a part 2.

-- -- -- -- --

Singing softly to yourself, you cautiously ascended the stepladder and arranged the books in your arms, sliding another into its home on the shelves and rearranging the ones that had been misplaced. Many of the mid-afternoon patrons stopped and smiled to greet you as they searched for their next read. A few lingered, chatting away about the delightful weather and asking if there had been any new arrivals they might like. 

An excited hum of conversation echoed from the far bench as a group of schoolchildren eagerly discussed their work. Their whispered chatter grew into a rumble of voices clamouring to be heard until the head librarian hushed them with stern warnings about the library’s rules. Some of them stifled their snickers, but the others extended their apologies and promised to be quiet. 

Months ago, you had suggested allocating specific hours after school for those studying for exams and projects so that they could exchange ideas and work together without worrying about the noise, but your boss dismissed the idea with an irritated scoff. “Libraries are houses of silence and order,” he had asserted. “They will learn that or find some place else to study.” No matter how hard you tried to make your case afterwards, he remained unmoved and bluntly told you to not bring the subject up again. 

With your arms empty, you climbed down the ladders and scooped another set of returns from the tray. You flicked through them as the doors squeaked open, and you spared a brief glimpse at the man stepping in. He adjusted his crimson bandana, tucking the stray midnight strands from in front of his face, and scoured the library. Like a whirlwind, a blonde girl from the group of school students flew to him and clung to his waist. He chuckled and ruffled her short hair. 

They whispered in muffled voices before she pointed in your direction and walked towards you. As they got closer, you realised he was one of the clones who had recently settled on the island with his siblings. You had noticed them a few times in town, but you never managed to summon enough courage to appease your curiosity by speaking to them. 

“Anything you need help with?” you asked, welcoming them with a smile. 

“Omega is looking for some books on Pabu folklore,” the man replied. “We were wondering if you could tell us where they are.” 

“I’ll do better than that, I’ll show you.” With a wave of your hand, you invited them to join you as you walked to the back of the building, through the wedges of sunlight gleaming in from the gardens outside and past the wall of bulletins advertising local businesses and upcoming events. “Folklore is my speciality,” you told them, “so if you’re looking for anything specific, I can point you in the right direction.” 

“Oh, stuff with sea monsters,” Omega said. “And magical birds.” 

You meandered the aisles dedicated to the island’s myths and paused at a sapphire-bound volume, its cover adorned with bronze foil ripples and faded, swirling clouds. “This one contains a collection of stories about the water and air elementals. You know the pillars out by the docks?” 

“Yeah.” 

“It is believed that a sea king built his palace on the top of them. It stretched all the way out to ocean, almost touching the horizon, but it was destroyed by a giant bird after he nearly shot it down.” 

The girl listened captivated, and you retrieved more books. All the while, her guardian followed, his smile pushing at the crinkles by his eyes as you shared your stories and piled up the reading material.  

Once she had as many as she could carry, you led them back to the desk. “I’ll add a couple of extra weeks onto them so you can enjoy them without having to rush.” 

“That’s kind of you,” the man said. 

“No problem, um…” You racked your brain trying to remember if he had introduced himself, but he quickly spared you from your dilemma. 

“Hunter.”

He extended his hand to you and you shook it, introducing yourself. “You moved here recently with your family, right? How are you finding it?” 

“It’s… different.” 

“A good different, I hope.” Scanning the last book into the system, you typed in the extra data and handed it to Omega. “You’ll have to let me know what you think once you’ve finished them.” 

“I will,” she promised. “Thank you for helping me.” 

With a friendly wave, she hurried to the door with her brother trailing behind her, urging her to slow and taking on the burden of some of the books she was carrying. 

* * *

Your day began as usual. You arrived, stored your belongings in the staff room locker and got to work organising the extensive stack of returns and finding spots for the new arrivals. A few sparked your interest, and you decided to take a look at them during your lunch break. 

Not long after the afternoon regulars, the local students shuffled in and settled at the far desks. Glum faces stared at notepads and flipped through their assignments. Another librarian offered her assistance, and the confused expressions gradually turned into ones of understanding. 

The bell on the countertop chimed. “Omega,” you said to the girl patiently waiting for your attention. “How can I help you?” 

“I finished the books,” she declared, hoisting the hefty pile and setting them onto the desk with a muted thud. 

“I see someone is an avid reader,” you said, surprised. “You’ve only had them a week.”

“They’re really interesting. Especially the one with the wizard and glass dragon.” 

“Ah, if it’s magic you like there is a brilliant story about a woman who harnessed the power of an ancient cave to bring back the sun after it disappeared.” 

“What happened?” she asked. 

The weight of the returned texts in your arms brought back a flood of memories as you began to recount the wondrous legends you had absorbed as a child. Tales of sparkling, celestial-born creatures, and renowned figures who formed the island. Magic spilled from your words and Omega clung to them, occasionally helping you by handing you books to place on the topmost shelves while you balanced on the stepladders. Before long, you had checked in and replaced all the returns and you were nowhere near done with your stories. 

As the door hinges let out a protesting groan, Hunter strolled in and spotted you both talking, Omega perched on the reception desk sipping on a fruit juice carton and you with a steaming cup of caf in your hands. 

“Hunter,” she called, waving him over. “There’s a cave close by that has magic in it. Can we check it out?” 

“I suppose, if it’s safe to get there,” Hunter replied, glancing at you questioningly. 

“It’s not that far along the coast and it’s perfectly safe,” you assured him. “It gets fairly cool in there in the warmer months, so people stick close to it when they go to the beach.”

Hunter noticed a fresh selection of tales by Omega, almost as tall as the last lot. “You’ve made quite the impression,” he said to you as his sister hopped down from the countertop and bundled the volumes into her backpack.

“Any chance I get to talk about the folklore of this place, I’ll take it,” you chuckled.

“Perhaps you might tell me about them sometime.”

Heat crept into your cheeks at the sincerity in his tone and you stared at the warm tendrils escaping your mug. “Well, you know where to find me.”

His gaze lingered on yours before he shifted to Omega. “Come on, little adventurer,” he said. “Let’s get you home.”

* * *

You exhaled a breath of relief as you sank into the plush cushion of the desk chair, feeling the pressure of another overburdened morning lift off your aching feet. The past few weeks had been a monotonous slog of reorganising, double-checking and triple-checking systems until you could recite the lists in your sleep. But now it was completed. Catalogued. Authorised. Done. 

Hunter’s regular visits had made the workload a little more bearable. He had taken to showing up earlier to catch you on your break, asking about the myths and legends of Pabu before conversation and curiosity prompted him to ask you about yourself. During the hours you’d spent either cooped up in a private corner of the library or basking in the sun on the bench outside, he’d told you about his own past and his brothers. 

As the weeks proceeded and your meetings became a daily occurrence, you felt the stirrings of admiration. You noticed how the faded detail on his facial tattoo crinkled when he smiled, the faint highlights in his hair that drank the sunlight and deepened the midnight shades, the rhythmic tap of his fingers when he got lost in contemplation. And the way that his eyes brushed across your face when he thought you weren’t looking. You’d caught his reflection many times in the window, captivated like a stargazer enthralled by the night sky in the seconds before he regained his composure. 

But you silenced the hopeful whispers of your heart. He’s probably grateful for the non-judgmental attention you give him, you thought to yourself, struggling to ignore the pondering in your mind that asked if he shared your feelings. 

“Working hard as always,” a low, jovial voice said, tenderly pulling you from your daydreams.

You swivelled in the chair and pushed yourself up, checking the chronometer on the computer screen. “I didn’t realise it was that time. Did you want to sit outside today?”

“Sure. But before we do.” 

He slowly withdrew his hands from behind his back and a fresh floral perfume drifted from the basket of lilac and gold roses he placed on the counter. “For you,” he clarified at the puzzled lift of your eyebrows. “I saw these, and they reminded me of the story you told me about the purple sea and the warriors who turned the droplets into petals at sunrise, and I thought that maybe you’d… Sorry, I’m rambling. Maker, it’s usually Tech doing that.” He attempted to stifle his anxiety with a cough, but it only intensified his trembling, his mind racing, and his fingers running through his hair as he desperately sought to find the right words to say. 

“Thank you, Hunter,” you breathed, trying not to let your smile betray how endearing you found him when he was flustered. “I wasn’t expecting… you didn’t have to…” You paused and collected your thoughts. “They’re perfect.”

At a nearby table, Omega shifted her gaze away from her homework book, carefully watching your exchange before quickly looking back down when her brother caught her. 

“There’s a really nice cafe near the beach,” you said, running the pad of your thumb over a satiny petal. “They make their own pastries every morning and the caf is delicious. I’m planning on heading there for breakfast tomorrow before going for a walk along the coastline. You’re more than welcome to join me.” 

Hunter’s hand glided across the desk and grazed over yours on the side of the flower basket. His fingertips fluttering against your skin, he waited for you to pull away, to flinch or recoil, but you didn’t, and his adoring gaze met yours. “I would love to.” 

“Shall I meet you here in the morning and we can walk down together?” you asked, heart pounding and a tiny flame of hope burning inside you. 

With the slightest shuffle and the sweetest smile, he nodded. “It’s a date.”

TAGLIST (Message if you’d like to be added, 18+ only)

@skellymom

[bothcreativitybois]

Karaoke

Pairings: Intruality, pintroverts

TWs: Alcohol, the word sex, slightly angsty ending, non sexual ‘Daddy’.

Songs: I’m Not That Girl (Wicked) I Don’t Dance (High School Musical 2)

Taglist (ask to be added): @star-crossed-shipper @crazydemigod666

Karaoke night. The night once a month that half the sides love and the other half dread.  For Janus, Logan and Virgil the night was torture. Drinking, performing, making an idiot of himself. However the more boisterous sides thrived on these nights. Remus usually took the helm, Roman saw it as a ‘waste of good talent’. However he was never alone.

“Get another umbrella drink!” Patton cheered. When Thomas was drunk so were the sides, so both of the sides had pink flushed cheeks and trouble controlling their volume. Patton didn’t really need to be there but he enjoyed the night and always stuck around.

“That isn’t their name, Daddy.” Remus teased. He knew what Patton was talking about, the drink they’d been having all night and Patton had quite enjoyed it. However he did not enjoy the name. Patton looked down at his crossed legs.

“But it has a bad word…” He whimpered. Remus found Patton’s hesitation adorable although he did also enjoy pushing him. But even drunk Patton wouldn’t say a bad word, especially when the whole name made it more vulgar.

“Another sex on the beach then!” Remus shouted. That drink was perfect for the two of them. Patton enjoyed the pretty colour and sweet taste, Remus enjoyed the name and how drunk it made Thomas. The liquid courage fuelled him. Remus guided Thomas to the bar and he ordered another drink. They looked at the stage where a member of Thomas’ group was singing I’m Not That Girl. Patton bopped along cutely, Remus was mesmerised with his adorable little bounces. Patton noticed Remus staring and giggled.

“What?” Patton pushed Remus away playfully. 

“Watching you dance like that makes me happy.” Remus usually didn’t have much of a filter. The only thing he’d block was his emotions, especially ones he saw as weak, like the growing admiration he’d been having for Patton, but when drunk those final hurdles shifted down too. Patton covered his face but Remus could still see the wide smile under his hands. Something about Remus being so genuine made Patton melt. When Thomas turned to get his drink he noticed a new group enter the bar, specifically one member. A familiar cute nerd with dark hair and stubble. Patton hit Remus’ arm and pointed to where Thomas was looking.

“Code Flores!” Patton squeaked. Remus’ smirked. Roman wasn’t around, now Thomas might take his suggestions for seduc- flirting with Nico. Especially since he’s drunk. 

“Oh hell yes! The night just got interesting.” Remus enthused. Patton enjoyed seeing Remus so excited but was stuck on what Roman would think. Thomas waved at Nico, he smiled and began walking over. Thomas picked up his drink and Remus summoned identical ones for him and Patton. 

“What are you gonna say?” Patton asked looking up cutely at Remus, his heart skipped a beat. All the things he wanted to say to Nico… he couldn’t say in front of Patton. Hell, Patton wouldn’t even say the word sex when it was in a drink name. Remus looked up at Nico then back down to Patton. 

Maybe… just maybe…

Remus thought of all the things he wanted to say to Patton.

“Hi there!” Nico gave a little wave as he spoke.

“Didn’t expect to see an angel in here tonight.” Thomas responded. Nico blushed and laughed.

“How many drinks have you had?” Nico asked playfully. “You seem a lot different to the guy who fell in a trash can.”

“Well I’ll need something else to fall into tonight, how strong are your arms?” Thomas reached out and gave Nico’s arm a cheeky squeeze. Patton chuckled.

“I love watching you work, Remus.” Patton encouraged. “Roman would never be that forward.” Remus took a moment.

“...You enjoy me being forward?” Remus asked, confused. This whole time he was holding this stuff back in fear it’d be too much for him, but Patton was not only receptive but enjoying it.

“Sometimes.” Patton diverted his eyes. “It gets the job done.” Remus knew Patton enjoyed things more storybook romance, he knew how to provide that.

“Are you gonna sing tonight?” Thomas asked Nico. The man rubbed his neck shyly.

“I’m not sure I could do something like that…” He admitted. “Being up there alone... everyone looking at me…”

“Yeah that’s the fun part!” Thomas joked. “And who said you’d be alone?” Nico blushed. Patton caught on to Remus’ plan.

“Are you suggesting a duet?” Nico raised an eyebrow. Thomas put down his drink and put out a hand.

“If you would be so kind?” Thomas joked. Nico slipped his hand onto Thomas’, both men smiled and blushed. Thomas began to drag Nico to the stage. Patton’s eyes sparkled.

“Remus you’re great at this!” Patton marvelled. Remus smiled at him.

“Now it’s your turn.” Remus elbowed Patton flirtily. “What song should they do?” Patton’s face lit up. He looked closely as Thomas flipped through the folder of songs available.

“That one!” Patton pointed to one of the songs written under the heading ‘Duets’. Patton somehow smiled in a way that was devilish and sweet, it made Remus’ heart flutter. Thomas jammed a finger onto the binder.

“You up for this?” Thomas looked back at Nico and asked, he was met with a smile and nod. Thomas handed the book to the DJ and took two microphones from them. He and Nico’s hands brushed as he handed over the microphone. Thomas took the opportunity to drag him onto the stage. Remus and Patton sat back as the first notes of I Don’t Dance flew from the speakers. Thomas and Nico’s voices bounced off each other perfectly. The boys danced together, which gave Patton an idea. He grabbed Remus’ hand just before the instrumental solo.

“Do the thing!” Patton demanded. Remus looked at him confused, head fuzzy from the alcohol and the feeling of Patton’s hand slipped on top of his.

“Do what?” Remus asked. Patton rolled his eyes and pulled Remus to his feet. He began dancing to the beat, body close to Remus’. Thomas mimicked his movements with Nico. Remus began to understand what Patton meant. Remus took control, Thomas mirrored. Remus slipped his hands onto Patton’s hips, he guided him to loosen them to the beat of the music. Patton’s whole body tingled from the touch.

“Relax. It’ll help you.” Thomas whispered in tandem with Remus. Thomas and Nico separated to continue singing, but Remus and Patton didn’t. Their movements slowed, they blocked out anything that wasn’t each other. Patton had moved his hands to Remus’ shoulders. As Nico and Thomas belted the last notes, Remus rested his forehead on Patton’s. The soft side bit his lip.

“Is that what you meant?” Remus purred quietly. Words got caught behind the lump in Patton’s throat and instead he nodded. “We should get back to Thomas…” Remus trailed. He began to remove his hands from Patton’s hips but was stopped with arms draped around his neck. Both the sides felt warm and drawn closer.

“He can handle himself.” Patton whispered. Remus took the hint, it was the green light he’d been waiting for. He pulled Patton closer so their bodies were touching. Patton was surprised with how gentle Remus was being, as much as he enjoyed the rough chaotic Remus, this was bringing up something else. “Please kiss me.” Patton finally gave in. Hearing that, seeing how close Patton was, Remus couldn’t hold back. He lifted Patton up to him and kissed him deeply, Patton kicked up one leg behind him. They stayed there until neither could breathe then pulled away. Only then did they realise what they’d done. Surprisingly Remus was the one who pushed off first. He stared at Patton in a way he couldn’t read.

“Patton- I shouldn’t-” Remus couldn’t complete his thoughts. Patton reached out a hand, but Remus just sunk out.

Patton and Remus really like karaoke night. 

But they know the others don’t.

[marithlizard]

First Impressions: RWBY v8c9, “Witch”

"Witch", huh?  Presumably Salem.  Are we going to get more backstory lore? Because YES PLEASE.

The Atlas army vs. the whale whose teeth loom like mountains on the horizon.  They look like toys. I can't help thinking these soldier mooks equal any Huntsman in courage, if not in skill.  And this is the first real large-scale action any of them have seen - that anyone in the world has seen in their lifetimes.

eyy Ren has gotten over the snappishness as well as the despairing angst.    Suddenly gaining control of his evolving Semblance must help a lot with the feelings of powerlessness.  (And though we haven't seen him use it on Jaune or Yang, I'm thinking being able to know for certain how much your friends care about you and have your back  is a source of power in itself.)

They're discussing fairy tales MY HEART

Ozpin continuing to confirm he has handed over the reins completely to Oscar.   I don't like this about the accelerating merge, though. It feels like we're going to lose Oz  very soon. And yet,  Jinn's vision definitely showed us Oz and host coexisting in middle age.  Did they not use magic in that lifetime?  Or is the merge somehow not about "losing" either one of them?

Team FNKI in a line of regular soldiers!  They've got to have mobilized all the students, but I wonder if we'll see any others besi-  Neon. Neon you are wearing rollerskates to the apocalypse.  

...well, why not?  

Marrow,  YOU'RE just a kid.  You can't be more than a few years older, and you're not that much more seasoned. Though I understand the feeling.

So, Hazel, you're ready to rejoin fact-based reality?  Or at least listen to someone who pretty much definitionally can't be lying?  

(Actually...the only information we have about Jinn comes from her, and it'd be a hell of an interesting twist if she was editing facts to fit her own agenda.  I don't think it's very likely for meta reasons, but it'd make a great fic premise, wouldn't it?)

Huh.  He sounds much much calmer, and like he's been thinking through everything for the last few hours.  

....what? He's not even going to ask???  THAT is a surprise.  The existence of Jinn and knowing Oscar  gave him the password in good faith  were enough to deradicalize a violent extremist. (Wish it was that easy in RL.)

Oscar's little wave

(You know, now that I think of it,  Ozpin has never interacted with Jinn himself.  She's greeted him twice and he hasn't answered.  Does he resent her for not answering his predecessor's questions more helpfully?  Mistrust her?  )

yes rescue Emerald good

"Just to be  clear" - oh god I thought that was Salem's voice and nearly jumped out of my seat.

"I'll come back for it"  crap crap crap  Hazel's redemption arc is going to be short, painful, and fatal.   And Salem will keep the lamp, if not have the password.

And we'll just all turn our backs on the divine artifact-entity and walk away.  I guess they don't think she's enough of a person to say goodbye to?  

And our eavesdropper is...the one person who CAN'T summon Jinn or ask her a question.  

Oh no. No.  Please don't have the fandom descend into "Jinn is ablist" discourse. (ETA: upon thinking further I take it back,  the gods suck and providing a Relic that not everyone can use is in its way a tiny symbol of their callous attitude to people. ) 

RJY working smoothly together, nice. 

Robyn said people are always suspicious of her, and her truthsense ability has a clearly visible limiting condition.    But Ren can apparently read the emotions of everyone around him all the time without them knowing.  Surely that would make a lot of people uncomfortable.  (Although I expect  the writers to ignore this, and will be pleasantly surprised if they explore it at all.)

That's always the way isn't it, you roll a 4 on your concentration check right when a demonic jellyfish is floating by.

Huh, they separated from Oscar?  And Hazel is worried about him? I'm still dizzy from the speed of this 180.  

uh...hi, Salem.  Nice...weather outside the whale today?  Seen any good dismemberments lately?

Hazel,  you are a terrible liar and you can't bluff.   Admittedly the stakes are a lot  higher here than in the weekly WTCH poker game.

Salem NYOOM

No one can accuse Yang of not understanding the core competencies.

"Juan"???  I did hear that correctly, yes?  Marrow not remembering Jaune's name is hilarious.  And I was about to say understandable, but no, they worked with the Ace Ops for weeks!  Did you just have him mentally filed as "the blond himbo tank"?

O-kayyyyyy.    I can't blame Emerald,  but this could go so horribly wrong so fast. 

Isn't Hazel-disguised-as-Oscar  way too heavy to pick up like tha-  OHHHHHHHHH.  Now things make much more sense.  Oscar was the one worried about Hazel earlier,  and failing utterly to bluff.  Infinitely more in character.

Awkward Semblance is also extremely convenient in short-cutting negotiations. Nice.

I do not, in fact, have any doubt that Winter would blow up her sister.   And in this situation  I can't say it's the wrong thing to do.  As far as they know their bomb is the only hope.

Wow. I really did not think we’d go to toe to toe with Salem herself at this point in the plot.  It's so traditional to save the final boss fight for, well, the final boss.  She's terrifying and unstoppable, but not actually more terrifying than the giant whale.    

Her regen is just like  the Hound's body morphing, but far smoother and faster with a thousand "deaths" of practice.

She sounds more normal right now, oddly.   Her voice is lacking both the measured slowness and the resonance it has when she's making speeches.  I like the idea of that falling away when she's surprised and exasperated.  

Our heroes are very very lucky that RWBY is not a darker show, or those Grimmhand  restraints would be doing a lot of gross agonizing damage with their nails.   There's no reason she'd want to be gentle at this point.

Yeah, there's the sonorous voice again. Although it wavers again with that "Why do you Keep. Coming. Back?"   Does she not know? How can she not know, Jinn's vision said Ozma told her everything.  Perhaps she means: why do you keep fighting  me instead of hiding like the hermit.

Yang, don't give her information,  gah!   "Her again."  She sounds pleased.  I think we are going to find out Summer's fate this volume after all.  Salem will reveal it to break Ruby’s spirit.  Prediction: it will work. 

(EDIT: I completely missed the significance of Yang calling Summer “my mom”.  Wow.)

She definitely intends to turn Emerald into something like the Hound.

"No more Gretchens."   Oh, of course that's what Oscar said he needed before they could leave, the cane.

Hazel's life expectancy is minutes long but at least it included a satisfying KAPOW.   And every single sparkly crystal he owns.  Somehow he seems smaller here, less bulky than he did at Haven.  Less a titan and more a man.

yigh he's pounding her into mush.  Which he has several times before, apparently.  This is all to buy you time, Emerald, why are you not running.   (I know, I know.   She's never had someone actually help her and care about her, only scraps of affection to establish control.    At this moment Cinder's hold on her is breaking forever.)

(Neo, on the other hand.  Will she bring the lamp to Cinder, who frankly has been a totally crap partner and deserves no loyalty?    Is she still after revenge?   My bet is still firmly on her planning to backstab Cinder as soon as Ruby is gone.  But beyond that, we don't know her thoughts at all.  She might join the heroes, or disappear like Raven to hide while the apocalypse works itself out.)

That's true, Oscar, but what can you do to stop her?  

Hah!  Clever,  Hazel.  And she's actually screaming in pain from the fire, whereas she didn't make a sound when being pulverized.

What does the cane DO?  It's impressive as heck, but I can't tell.  Channeling his magic, certainly.  Are we going to lose Oz  right now?  With no chance to talk to Ruby or Qrow or anyone, to reconcile?  It seems all too likely, and such a waste.

Which makes me think, in turn, that perhaps we will lose Oscar too in a way.  Unexpected - I have always thought the merge would end with Oscar holding all the memories.  But maybe he won't be quite either of them anymore, even if he remembers both and the others still call him Oscar.  And that thought also makes me sad.

Anyway,  good episode, though now the title doesn’t seem particularly relevant. Hazel was much more the focus. 

[megapandathing]

After Ruby helps her with some school work, Joan promises to repay her. Two weeks later, and Joan wonders if that was a good idea. Mainly because Ruby’s favor involves relieving the pent up members of RWBY, who are more than happy to release their lusts on Joan. (FutaRWBY, Consensual, blowjob, handjob, titfuck, Double and triple penetration, cumdrunk, cumflation, facials, bukkakke?)

(Sorry this took so long, I hope you like it!)

Joan was so grateful that Ruby helped her finish her essay on time, she had been stressing about it for weeks. Ruby’s offer of help was accepted happily by the blonde girl, Ruby had proof read her writing, helped her when she couldn’t think of what to write and most importantly helped her take a break when she needed it most. So, when Joan promised to repay the silver eyed girl, she genuinely meant it. Ruby gave Joan a key and directions to what Joan recognised to be an empty dorm, never used because of it was too isolated from the rest of the campus to house anyone.

“Thanks Ruby, what will I be doing to pay you back?”

“You’ll see, Joan. Just head to this dorm in two weeks. You’ll love it!” Ruby said with a confident smile and a wink.

Two weeks later Joan was getting nervous on her way to the empty dorm, she began to feel like she had made a mistake agreeing to repay Ruby. She found herself standing in front of the isolated dorm, taking a deep breath and summoning her courage Joan knocked on the door. After a few seconds of waiting the door opened and Joan realised what Ruby intended to do with her, before her stood all four members of team RWBY. Each of the girls were completely naked, exposing not only their variety of feminine assets, but that each of them had a big, long cock. Joan acted on instinct as she stepped into the room, only just hearing the sound of the door close behind her over her mind processing the sight in front of her. They were all so perfect in their own ways, Ruby had the body of an athlete and a cock that went down to her knees, Weiss was similar to Ruby however her legs were thicker and her cock was not as long as leader’s, Blake’s infamous Bellabooty was in clear view and the faunus had a cock that put both Ruby and Weiss to shame and last of all was Yang. Yang’s body was a perfect combination of huge breasts, curved hips and a cock that made Joan drool just at the sight of it.

“So, here’s the deal Joan, I helped you with your school work and now you are gonna let us use your body for our lusts.”

Joan grinned as all doubt left her mind and she walked confidently into the centre of the dorm, team RWBY slowly starting feeling around Joan’s clothed body before Weiss took the initiative and began removing Joan’s uniform. Joan blushed as more of her body was gradually exposed to the horny girl’s, now team RWBY’s hands were all over her naked body. Before Joan could enjoy the sensations, the girls were bringing to her body, Ruby forced Joan down onto her knees. Bringing Joan down to the same level as the horny girl’s cocks. Joan understood fully what they were after and enthusiastically plunged Ruby’s cock into her mouth, bobbing her head along the thick shaft in a steady pace. Ruby grunted softly and smirked down at her team’s new plaything, they had been pent up for weeks and neither of the girls had found a fitting release for their lusting urges. Ruby knew that Joan would the perfect person to ease their sexual frustrations, she watched as Yang and Blake stood to Joan’s left and right. Both girls stroked their cocks until Joan raised her hand to firmly grip their cocks and started to slowly pump her hands up and down the throbbing lengths presented to her.

Weiss decided that she would wait her turn and pleasured herself at the sight in front of her, the way her team grunted and moaned at Joan’s efforts and the way Joan expertly pleased her three teammates gave Weiss the greatest show she could ask for. Stroking her cock furiously Weiss let out loud growls of pleasure as her cock hardened in her hand. She watched with glee as Blake struggled to hold back her orgasm, the faunus had always acted so calm and collected but Weiss knew Blake was just as sexually frustrated as the rest of them. Weiss saw Yang was doing much better than Blake, she knew Yang had far more experience with her cock being serviced by beautiful women so it would be obvious that she would keep her composure in this situation.

Ruby was loving the feeling of Joan’s mouth around her cock but she wanted more as a new idea crept into her not so innocent mind. Moving Joan to lay on her back Blake and Yang got on their knees so Joan could continue pleasing their cocks, while Ruby straddled her and placed her saliva covered length between Joan’s huge tits. Using her palms to squeeze their fucktoy’s breasts around her cock Ruby began thrusting her member between them. Joan barely held in her moans as her soft mounds were fucked, sending jolts of arousal through her body. She looked to Blake whose cock was throbbing harder and twitching as if it were about to blow, opening her mouth Joan was about to take the cat faunus’ length into her mouth when Blake suddenly let out a satisfied purr as she shot her first load onto Joan’s beautiful face.

“By the gods she’s good at this!” Blake exclaimed

“Yeah she really is the perfect slut for us” Yang replied through small grunts

With her first load spent Blake sat back and took a moment to rest as Weiss got up and lined her cock up with Joan’s pussy, the white-haired girl slowly teased Joan by gliding her length across her folds before slowly pushing into the needy pussy before her. Joan gasped as she felt her insides tighten around Weiss’ shaft jolts of pleasure from Ruby using her breasts and the divine sensations coming from her pussy blended into one constant wave of burning desire as she intensified her pumping motion on Yang’s shaft. Joan was an incoherent mess of moans and gasps as her body was used to please the urges of her friends.

“I think I’m gonna cum! I think I’m- “

Joan was cut off by Yang suddenly plunging her cock into Joan’s mouth, before Joan could make motions to please Yang, the blonde began roughly fucking her mouth. Joan continued to moan loudly around the thick cock that was dominating her mouth as she came hard around Weiss’ cock. Her insides tightened around the heiress’ cock cause her to howl in joy at the feeling of Joan’s tight pussy gripped her dick.

Ruby felt her own orgasm build up as Joan’s wonderful breasts enveloped her cock perfectly, Ruby almost growled as a stream of cum came out of her cock, covering Joan’s breasts in the warm white liquid. Yang followed shortly after and gave no warning as she came down Joan’s throat, making the girl gag loudly as she swallowed the thick torrent of cum. Joan felt her stomach begin to bloat as the huge volume of cum flooded her body, her mind was awash with a cum fuelled haze as her mind and body demanded more cum.

As Yang pulled out of her mouth, Ruby stopped straddling her and Weiss reluctantly moved her cock out of her pussy, Joan showed her cumdrunk hunger by getting on her hands and knees. Putting all her holes on display for the still horny girls, they all hardened once again as Yang got behind Joan and flipped her over so that her back was resting on Yang. Joan felt Yang’s enormous breasts press up against her back and her cock poked at Joan’s asshole, the other three members of team RWBY took up similar positions as Ruby and Weiss were ready to begin filling her waiting pussy with both of their thick cocks. Blake resumed Yang’s former position and placed the tip of her cock on Joan’s soft lips, Joan felt an overwhelming surge of lust as she felt all four of the cocks penetrate her at once.

“MMMH! GLRK!”

Joan was pushed beyond her limits as her cumdrunk mind rewarded her with a constant burning pleasure as her entire body was made into a slutty plaything for team RWBY. For what felt like hours Joan was fucked and brought to orgasm hundreds of times, team RWBY came just as much and Joan felt her stomach inflate more and more each time her body was pumped full of cum. Now Joan looked halfway through a pregnancy as her belly bounced like her breasts from the constant pounding she was receiving, moaning around Blake’s cock as it pulled free from her mouth the girls shifted again and now Weiss was pushing her cock into Joan’s mouth as Blake took Weiss’ place in her pussy. Yang was busy slamming her shaft into Joan’s incredible ass, reshaping her insides to suit her cock perfectly. She had cum inside Joan so many times that she felt no resistance from the insides she was pounding, hearing Joan make such slutty noises as she was fucked turn the four girls on more than anything else as they all released another wave of cum into the girl as they finally reached their own limits.

Joan came for the final time that day as her belly expanded to accommodate the hot, sticky loads she was already filled with. All four girls pulled out and she found herself laying on the bed instead of on Yang’s muscled frame and she was covered in cum once more as the remains of team RWBY’s climaxes where dumped on her face and body.

As all five of them panted in exhaustion Joan spoke in a slurred voice

“We should do thish again honeys…”

She would be receiving much more help from team RWBY now that such a wonderful reward was on the table.

[the-gay-in-the-way]

The Great Boop War of 2018, Part 5

The Beginning of Something Great

(Happy New Year!)

(Gy-new/young)

(To celebrate the end of 2018, I’m leaving you guys with the final chapter of The Great Boop War of 2018!)

(Let’s end this year with a bang and some fluff!)

(Here’s the first part, if you haven’t read it.)

(Thank you guys for reading this, if you do, and I hope that you enjoy this ending.)

((((((((())))))))))

It was strange, how they’d never noticed before.

Virgil and Patton had been friends for years at this point.

And the game, or whatever it was, seemed to be something they’d been doing for just as long.

And yet, nobody had actually realized it was happening.

Nor why it was even happening in the first place.

Not until now.

“Boop.”

“No!”

Patton’s shout shook with giggles as he reached up towards the side towering over him.

“That’s not fair! We just got back! And it’s movie time! No Booping allowed! That’s the rule!”

Virgil raised an eyebrow while resting against the back of the couch where Patton was sitting, as the other side started gently ruffling his hair.

“I never agreed to this rule.”

“But it’s still a rule!”

Virgil shrugged with a small smile as he moved to sit on the couch next to his best friend.

“Rules are meant to be broken, Pat.”

His smile grew as he flopped down against Patton, causing the other to giggle even more at the motion.

“That still doesn’t make it fair, Virgil.”

“That’s true. But you can just get me back for it later. So it’s fine, right?”

Sharp violet eyes were calm and happy as they met with the gentle blue, which softened at the sight.

Patton huffed and wrapped his arms around the one leaning against him, smiling all the while.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right. I’ll just have to make sure it makes up for it somehow.”

And Virgil laughed, making everyone in the room smile involuntarily, as he settled more comfortably within his best friend’s embrace.

“I look forward to it.”

“Alright! That’s it! I can’t take it anymore!”

Roman’s loud words averted everyone’s attention away from the two cuddling on the couch, and the princely side stood up from where he’d been sitting on the floor, hands resting on his hips as he stared the two down.

Virgil raised an eyebrow again.

“What?”

The creative side pointed a finger at his shadowy counterpart, and waggled it around a bit for good measure, as he continued to speak.

“You two have been doing this boop thing for a while now. And I know for a fact that I am not the only one who wants to know what it actually is. So I’m just going to do what we’ve all been wanting to do since the beginning, and ask the question.”

A pause for dramatic effect, that everyone knew better than to interrupt, occurred.

A breath.

And then...

“What is happening with all of the booping?”

There was a moment of silence as everyone waited for the cuddling duo to respond.

Which was broken with a bang as Patton jumped up excitedly from the couch, sending Virgil tumbling onto the floor without warning.

Of course, Virgil being Virgil, he only fell for a moment before he caught himself with his hands.

Meanwhile, Patton’s gasp of excitement shifted into a cough as he realized what he’d done, leaving the others to watch with some amusement and slight concern as the two attempted to recover from the sudden actions.

Unsurprisingly, Virgil did so first.

“You alright, Pat?”

Patton nodded as the other gently patted his back while Logan, whom had been inside of the kitchen with Deceit this entire time, approached with a quickly obtained glass of water.

The water was accepted gratefully and the moral side took a few seconds to take some sips and clear his throat before speaking.

“I’m fine, thank you, Virgil. And thank you for the water, Logan.”

“You’re welcome, Patton.”

“Oh! And I’m sorry I knocked you over, Virgil. I was just so excited to tell the story that I kind of forgot you were there!”

The other side huffed out a quiet laugh and gave Patton a nudge in the side.

“It’s fine, Pat. You’d have to do a lot worse to make me actually fall, y’know.”

The smaller side quickly grabbed Virgil’s arm in a tight grip and looked at him with a completely serious expression.

“I would never do something like that to you. And if anyone ever does, I will physically fight them for you.”

That garnered a larger laugh and Patton’s serious face broke rather quickly to smile in response.

“Thanks, Pat. I’ll make sure to tell you if that ever happens.”

The moral side smiled even more, pulling gently at the other to sit back down beside him again.

“Great! I’m glad! Now! Let’s start the story! I’ve been wanting to tell everyone about it for ages! It’s one of my favorites!”

Virgil hummed in agreement as he settled, once again, against his best friend on the couch.

“Yeah. It’s a nice one.”

And so, once everyone else was also settled and ready to listen, Patton began telling the story of the Great Boop War, and how it all began.

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

A few weeks after Patton convinced Virgil to be friends, Virgil went to visit him.

The moral side had given him an always open invitation to his realm, so Virgil had arrived completely without warning.

Unfortunately, this meant that he caught Patton while the other was crying his eyes out in his field.

And Virgil, unused to friendship and how it was supposed to work, was left stumbling as he tried to think of a way to make Patton feel better.

“...morality?”

The other side startled at the sudden voice behind him, accidentally sending a small barrage of spiky glowing orbs into the air around him.

Virgil stared at the orbs with some shock, as Patton also stared at him in return.

It took a moment for one of them to finally come back to themselves enough to respond.

“Oh!”

Patton’s sudden shout made Virgil startle this time, as the other quickly flapped his hands to make the orbs around him dissolve.

“I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to make those appear! You just startled me a bit so I just kind of reacted without thinking! I’m sorry! I swear I didn’t-”

“Morality.”

The rough voice halted Patton’s rambles and made him realize how wound up he likely looked.

His hands twitched in the air around his head, before he made them close into fists and fall down to his sides.

Then he took a breath and smiled with a small sniff.

Virgil’s own hands twitched and his frown only deepened at the actions.

“Sorry, Anxiety. I was just having a bit of a rough time. It’s fine though! I’m-”

“Patton.”

Light blue eyes widened, almost comically, and clenched fists loosened in shock.

Patton had told Virgil, as soon as they became friends, that he could call him Patton instead of Morality.

Since then, Virgil hadn’t been able to build up the courage to do so.

He also hadn’t used his ‘scary’ voice around him since then either.

Both happening at once left the moral side frozen in shock and the anxious side trying not to run away out of fear.

But, despite the fear of rejection that was filling him, Virgil stood firm.

This was more important.

“Patton.”

A softer voice this time, matched by softened violet eyes, and filled with an affectionate concern that made Patton’s heart hurt.

“It’s okay. You don’t have to lie or anything. We’re...”

Uncertainty filled the soft gaze and only made Patton want to wrap the other up in a hug and never let go.

“We’re friends, right?”

“Of course!”

The instinctual shout made both sides jump from the sudden volume.

But it also made Virgil smile a little, so Patton was sure it was alright.

“Right.”

Violet finally met blue, and the two stared at each other as Virgil softly spoke.

“So you don’t have to pretend you’re okay. If you’re hurting, you can tell me. And I can do whatever you need me to do to help. Cus...that’s what friends do, right?”

Patton had thought it before and would continue to think it for the rest of his days.

There was no way that Anxiety was a bad side.

He was far too kind.

Tears started falling again, and Virgil took a hesitant step forward, looking like he wanted to help but wasn’t sure how to do so.

It made Patton smile and laugh a little through the tears.

“Yeah. Yeah, you’re right. That’s exactly what friends do.”

Then he raised his arms towards the other, still smiling while his tears continued to fall.

“Can you give me a hug? I think I really need one right now.”

There was barely a second of hesitation before Virgil was wrapping his arms around his smaller counterpart.

And, as soon as he was secured in the arms that left him feeling safe, Patton started sobbing.

His tears fell faster and he held onto the other tightly as his sobs shook his body down to the core.

And Virgil continued to hold him, unconsciously nuzzling him as he did so.

Eventually, small sounds, that Patton had never heard before, started to rise from the darker side’s throat.

They were soft and rumbling, almost like a purr.

And they eventually fell from his lips in the form of little warbling noises that gave Patton a strange sense of comfort.

Time passed with the two of them holding each other tightly, as Patton cried and Virgil tried his best to comfort him.

But, eventually, the tears stopped.

And Patton relaxed quietly into his friend’s arms, said friend continuing to softly warble as he held him and nuzzled the top of his head.

It was with a soft sigh and a sniffle that the moral side finally pulled away from the other.

He wiped at his face, using a tissue he’d summoned, as Virgil stood there patiently.

And when he was done, he smiled.

Though it didn’t quite reach his eyes.

“Thanks, Anxiety. I know I kind of derailed things a bit but, why’d you decide to stop by? Did you need something?”

And Virgil, not knowing what else he could do at this point, decided to do something that had always helped him feel better when he was sad as well.

“Boop.”

It took a few seconds of wide eyed staring for Patton to process what happened in that moment.

Virgil’s hand had moved lightning fast, and the contact had been feather light against his skin, so it had been hard to tell.

But when he realized what it had been, Virgil by now growing nervous and even more unsure about whether he was handling things correctly, his smile was bright enough to rival the sun.

“Oh...”

The anxious side relaxed a little, still nervous but reassured by the smile that finally reached his friend's eyes.

“Um-”

“Boop! You’re it!”

Another moment of frozen shock, this time from Virgil, occurred.

Patton continued to smile, his eyes seeming to regain more and more of their usual cheer by the second.

“Is that how you play tag? Like, your own version of it? Is that why you came by?”

The moral side was starting to bounce now with only slightly restrained excitement.

And Virgil found himself relaxing further, his own smile starting to appear as he was reminded why Patton had been able to befriend him in the first place.

“Yeah. Yeah, you’re right. About all of it.”

He understood him.

“So I should run now, right?”

Not because they were exactly the same.

“Yeah, probably.”

But because he wanted to.

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

“That’s so cute!”

“It figures that’s how this all started.”

“Indeed.”

“I’m totally surprised.”

Patton’s laughter filled the common room, Virgil smiling gently beside him.

“Virgil...”

The anxious side looked over to the logical side on the other side of the room.

“Yeah, Logan?”

“I must admit to being rather curious about this. Where exactly did you come up with this game in the first place? The only one of us who willingly interacted with you back then was Patton.”

The statement left a sour sort of taste in everyone’s mouths, but it did present a good point.

Where had the Boop game come from?

It was with a surprisingly happy smile, and the sudden darkening of the room, that Virgil gave them the answer.

“These guys taught it to me.”

And the room filled with shadows.

They slithered into the room, roaming about to nuzzle against everyone in greeting before returning to Virgil.

“Whenever I was sad and in need of something to take my mind off of things, they’d show up and boop me on the nose before running away. For a while, I was confused. But, eventually, I realized that they wanted me to chase them. And it turned into a game we played together.”

The shadows warbled affectionately before returning into Virgil’s realm, nuzzling against him as they went.

Virgil’s smile was soft and loving as he watched them go.

“Oh my gosh, it just keeps getting cuter.”

Thomas’ words were met with laughter and agreements as everyone returned to their previous tasks, accepting that the story had finally been finished and their questions had finally been answered.

And, as he watched everyone busy themselves with preparing for movie night, Virgil couldn’t help the sentimental feeling that filled him.

It was always a good reminder for him.

No matter how alone he’d felt before becoming a side, he’d never been truly alone.

Even then, he’d always had a family.

Even then, he’d always been loved.

(((((((()))))))))

(I’m using a new thing to signify the separations between me talking and the actual fic itself.)

(Not sure if I like it or not, but we’ll see how it goes.)

(Anyways, that’s it!)

(That’s the end of The Great Boop War of 2018!)

(Thank you guys for sticking around to read this entire mess of a fic!)

(I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed making it.)

(This is genuinely one of the things I really enjoyed writing and working on.)

(And it was one of my very first ones for the fandom and the entire CAP universe.)

(I’m pretty proud of how it’s gone.)

(Anyways, I’ll stop being sappy about it and put the taglists here.)

@a-snoway-afternoon @ashrain5 @virgilscat @gumdrop2113@chelama @dragonsight9 @marse-422 @derpiest-unicorn @i-identify-as-a-mango @fearfilledvirgil @let-me-be-an-individual-rachet @blitzgamev @the-life-ofa-troubled-ace @satanblessi @punsterterry

@crownswriter123 @silverrhayn @ab-artist @queva8 @temmiecupcake @phlying-squirrel @danyulsdimple @allierox15      @larkiaquail @cats-with-blogs @whirlwindsworld @adventurousplatypus      @iliveinprocrasti-nation @i-read-by-lamp @xlilllllie @hamilin-manuel-miranda   @entitydark @silver-owl413 @sander-sideblog @ilovemygaydad   @theitalianalchemist  @justmyshitandmoreshit @asymmetricalgarbage8888@blue-wolfbane @bibbity-bobbity-booyah @6tick6tock6 @starryfirefliesbloggo @stormcrawler75 @coconut-caramel @heteroreadmyfics @derp-a-la-sheep @adventurousplatypus

(I hope that I didn’t miss anybody or anything)

(If I did, please tell me so that I know and can apologize.)

(Also, please feel free to tell me if you want to be tagged in my general taglist for all of my other fics, including all the stuff that happens in this universe but not in this particular storyline.)

(Once again, thank you all for reading and enjoying this entire fic.)

(I hope I can continue to make more stories for you guys to enjoy this year too.)

(Here’s the next part of the CAP Series.)

A Bed of Links:

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/Cerillen

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Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPz4p5XdoRESDKZeMDnWXFQ

Discord: https://discord.gg/FsUhc5f

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[hari-writes]

Break It In Two And Keep The Pieces For Yourself - Chapter 2

Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug

Pairings: Marinette/Nathaniel, Adrien/Marinette, Chloe/Nathaniel

Summary: When Marinette and Nathaniel start dating, everyone is happy for them. Except for Adrien and Chloe. Chloe has a crush on Nathaniel and Adrien finally realises his feelings for Marinette. They decide to work together to split the happy couple up, but it’s not as simple as it seems.

Chapter 1

Read on A03

Sunlight streaming through open blinds alerted Marinette to the fact it was morning. She squinted at how bright it was, her hangover making the light seem even more intense. Lifting her throbbing head from a naked chest, she took in her surroundings; the events of last night slowly dawning on her.

Nathaniel was asleep under her, their legs still entwined. His shoulder-length red hair lay tousled on his pillow, framing his face like a lion. One arm was wrapped around Marinette, the other rested on his toned stomach.

Damn, where did those abs come from?!

She looked across the tiny apartment and saw the trail of abandoned clothing leading from the door to the bed and smiled to herself. It wasn’t exactly how she imagined her night was going to go when she left home yesterday, but she was happy that it did. Nathaniel was kind and easy to talk to. They had plenty in common, having known each other since école primaire and sharing a love of art and design. She put her head back on his chest and snuggled in. Nathaniel’s hand moved to stroke her hair.

“You’re awake,” She said.

“I don’t think so,” His voice was deep and comforting, “You’re in my bed so I’m sure I’m still dreaming.”

She laughed and poked her finger in his ribs.

“Ouch!”

“Just checking. You’re definitely awake. I’m really here,” Marinette grinned.

He rolled onto his side to face her, ran his fingers across her bare shoulders, then cupped her cheek in his palm.

“You really are here, aren’t you? Look, I need you to know, if this was just a one-night deal for you, I promise things won’t get awkward. If you want something more, though…” He trailed off. Without wine boosting his courage, the words were harder to say than he thought.

“It wasn’t just a one-night deal for me, Nath,” She assured him, looking him in the eyes so he could see she was serious. “I like you.”

He kissed her, unable to keep the grin off his face. She giggled and realised how happy she felt.

Their phones chimed almost simultaneously and they reflexively reached out to check them.

“Chloé’s summoning us all to brunch at the hotel,” Nathaniel said. “Do you fancy it?”

“Do we have a choice?” She groaned.

“It’s Chloé so, no.”

The message on her phone was from Adrien, informing her of the same thing. Chloé felt bad for skipping the reunion last night so was hosting a mandatory brunch for all her ex-classmates. She quickly typed a response to him, making sure to inquire after Nino at the same time. A reply arrived quickly, informing her that he took Nino home with him and Adrien was currently rubbing his best friend’s back as he cried and dry heaved into the toilet.

Nathaniel leaned over to kiss her.

“There’s time if you want to go home and get changed? I can come get you in an hour,” He suggested.

“Good call,” She said.

After gathering up her clothes, she threw them on and grabbed her bag, muttering profuse apologies to Tikki as she left. She let herself into her flat and immediately opened the cookie jar, letting her kwami help herself to the contents.

“Stop apologising, Marinette. You've had hookups in the past and I managed to zone out then, too.” Tikki reassured her.

“I know, but I still feel bad,” Marinette put her head around the bathroom. “I’m going to shower real quick, okay?”

Tikki had a mouthful of chocolate chip cookie so she waved at Marinette in lieu of a response. True to her word, Marinette’s shower lasted less than ten minutes, then she spent another twenty minutes standing in her towel trying to select an outfit.

“You’ll look great in whatever you choose,” Tikki encouraged her.

“I just need something cute, but casual. Like I just threw it on, but more considered than that.”

“Human fashion is confusing,” Tikki laughed, “I’m glad I don’t have to worry about it.”

Marinette eventually settled on a black shirt dress, cinched at the waist with a pink belt. She applied mascara and sheer pink lipstick and brushed her hair. There was no time to style it properly so she opted to let it dry naturally in soft waves, but she blowdried her bangs so they sat in the right place. Her buzzer sounded as she was slipping on a pair of black leather pumps and she told Nathaniel she’d be right there. She put her bag over her shoulder and opened the clasp to let Tikki fly inside.

On the street, she shared a nervous kiss with Nathaniel before they joined hands and began walking to the Metro station. At Guy Môquet, they boarded the train, finding two seats together. Nathaniel stroked her cheek with his thumb and she tilted her face toward him, gazing into his turquoise eyes. She brushed his hair from his face and felt electricity where her fingers touched his skin.

By the time the changed trains at Saint Lazare Train Station, they had lost all trace of self-consciousness and were becoming practised at public displays of affection.

At Le Grand Paris, they followed the distinctive sound of Chloé’s laugh to where their friends had already started on brunch. There were two seats left around the table, but they weren’t together. Nathaniel kissed Marinette’s hand before he relinquished it and she sat on the chair next to a grey-tinged Nino. Nathaniel sat between Ivan and Max in the space opposite Marinette.

“Hi, Nino,” She said gently. “How are you?”

He shrugged, lips pressed together, eyes watering. Adrien leaned over from the other side of his best friend and answered for him.

“He’s sick and unhappy.” He passed her a platter of pastries and she took a croissant, resting it on her plate.

“Do you know if A-L-Y-A is coming this morning?” She asked Adrien. He shook his head sadly.

“I can spell my own girlfriend’s name, I’m not a child,” Nino objected.

“I know, I thought it might lessen the pain.” Marinette put her hand on his arm, giving it a reassuring squeeze. “I’m worried about you.”

She sliced her croissant in half and buttered it generously before adding jam. She cut each side into three and put one piece on Nino’s plate. He took it gratefully and ate slowly. She gave him another piece when it was finished and the colour gradually returned to his cheeks.

“How did you do that?!” Adrien was astounded. “I’ve been trying to perk him up all morning.”

“As the daughter of a baker, I can’t give away all my secrets,” She winked at him, “but you should know that croissants and jam have restorative properties.”

Adrien laughed, “I yield to your great, mystical knowledge.”

Chloé clinked her fork against her glass until she had everyone’s attention. As she did, waiting staff brought trays of Mimosas and Bloody Marys to the table, placing one of each in front of each guest.

“Hair of the dog?” Marinette suggested to Nino. In reply, he drained the champagne cocktail in one.

“Thank you all for coming to my little reunion,” Chloé began, “I know you all have busy and exciting lives now, but I would hate for us to lose touch because we didn’t make time for one another.”

Marinette rolled her eyes, most of Chloé’s speech was taken word for word from the message she sent to her friends a few days earlier. Across the table, she saw Nathaniel smirk, possibly realising the same thing. She caught his eye and winked. His smirk turned into a snort which he tried to hide unsuccessfully.

“Is there a problem, Nathaniel?” Chloé demanded.

He shook his head, unable to answer through the fit of giggles that caught hold of him. Marinette laughed too, gleeful chortles that made her eyes fill with tears as she tried to suppress them.

“Do you want to share the joke, Marinette?” Chloé asked haughtily.

For all that she was a much nicer person these days, Chloé was still a self-important attention seeker and she didn’t take kindly to having the spotlight diverted from her.

“I know what’s going on…” Alix teased, her quick blue eyes darting between the two laughing figures.

Marinette and Nathaniel shot her warning looks, but Alix wasn’t intimidated easily, especially not by desperate eye contact.

“Marinette and Nathaniel got it on last night!” She announced proudly. “Didn’t you guys?”

Neither of them had to answer, their blushes spoke volumes. Their friends cheered, hugged them and clapped Marinette and Nathaniel on the back and shoulder, asking for details. Only two friends didn’t react. Adrien stayed in his seat, looking pensive, and Chloé continued to wait for everyone to return their attention to her.

“Really? Tell us the story,” Nino said, looking genuinely happy for the first time in days. Marinette didn’t have the heart to refuse his request.

“Uh, well, we walked each other home last night and when we stopped outside Nath’s apartment, we… um, kissed.” A squeal of delight rose from her friends. “Then, well…”

“...I invited her up to mine and…” Nathaniel picked up the story. “...and Marinette and I. We… she stayed the night.”

“Yeah, she did!” Kim whooped.

“You two are great together,” Mylene said as Rose and Juleka nodded enthusiastically next to her.

Juleka muttered something that sounded like, “Double date” but Marinette wasn’t totally sure.

“ANYWAY,” Chloé practically shouted, “I think you all interrupted me.”

The friends groaned and grabbed their drinks, ready to let Chloé finish her plagiarized speech. As she listened to her own words being spoken back to her, Marinette was very aware that someone was looking at her. She glanced towards Nathaniel, but his attention was back on Chloé. She glanced to her right and made eye contact with Adrien Agreste, who was watching her, not the haughty blonde at the head of the table. She gave him a quizzical look, but his expression was brooding and she couldn’t find any answers on his face.

♥♡♥

Adrien hung back at the hotel after the rest of his old classmates had left. Chloé had excused herself as soon and the first guest announced their departure and he was worried about her. It wasn't like her to leave an event until the last guest left.

He found her sitting on the floor of her walk-in wardrobe, holding Mr Cuddly the bear and sucking her thumb. He sat next to her and put his arm around her shoulder.

“If it’s any consolation, I don’t think they meant to interrupt your speech,” He said.

“That’s not why I’m upset,” Chloé huffed, “I stole that stupid speech from Marinette. It’s just… Why does she get everything she wants?”

“Does she? Oh, Nathaniel,” He realised. “You still like him?”

“Since collège. I was so awful to him back then, I’ve been trying to redeem myself for years and I thought we were getting closer,” Chloé sniffed. “And, then Marinette Dupain-Cheng comes along and jumps into bed with him.”

“Yeah. What does he have that her other male friends don’t?” Adrien added absentmindedly.

Chloé removed her thumb from her mouth with a pop and gasped. “You like Marinette!”

Adrien nodded. “It took me too long to realise that she’s so much more to me than a good friend, and longer to stop pining over Ladybug. I missed my chance.”

“You know, there is something we can do about it,” A wicked expression crossed Chloé’s face. “You want Marinette, I want Nath, so let’s go get them.”

“Split them up?” Adrien was shocked. Chloé had come such a long way over the years, he sometimes forgot how self-serving and malicious she used to be.

“Why not? We’d be there to console them afterwards, nobody really gets hurt.”

“No, Chloé, I can’t do that to our friends.”

“Fine,” Chloé looked unconvinced. “You know where I am if you change your mind.”

♥♡♥

Marinette and Nathaniel decided to walk through Place des Vosges on their way to pop into see her parents and tell them the news. It was a beautiful day, and they both felt the need to walk off their brunch cocktails before they reached the bakery. They stopped in the park and sat on a bench to discuss their friends’ reaction to the fact they were a couple.

“I’d have preferred to tell them one or two at a time, not all together like that,” Nathaniel admitted.

“Same here,” She agreed. “Now everyone knows except Alya and I wanted to tell her first.”

“I’m sorry,” He pushed a loose strand of hair behind her ear. “I’m the one who drew attention to us.”

“No, Nath,” She put her hand on his face, “It was both of us, we should have known we couldn’t hide it from that lot.”

He laughed and pressed his forehead to hers. She sighed, and closed her eyes, feeling completely at ease with him. When she felt his lips brush hers, she chased his mouth, willing him to kiss her. Teasingly, he moved away a little so she grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled him into her. Their kiss quickly intensified when Nathaniel sucked on her bottom lip, biting gently on it. She shifted to sit on his lap and he ran one calloused hand up her bare thigh.

Someone near them cleared his throat and the pair broke apart, pink-faced and breathless. They looked to the source of the noise. Adrien Agreste was standing over them, looking crestfallen. Maybe he didn’t agree with public kissing?

“Oh, hey, Adrien,” Nathaniel said.

“Hi,” Adrien replied. “Erm, congratulations, you guys. You seem very happy.”

“Thanks,” Marinette smiled shyly, “We really are.”

“Great,” Adrien muttered and continued his walk through the park.

Marinette and Nathaniel watched him leave, a little concerned by his downcast demeanour. They saw him take his phone out his pocket and, after selecting a contact, he put it to his ear. He was too far away when he finally spoke so they didn’t hear what he said to his oldest friend.

“Chloé? I’ve changed my mind about this Marinette and Nathaniel thing. Let’s break it in two and keep the pieces for ourselves.”

Caffeine and positive feedback fuel me, buy me a coffee?

[romioneflufffest]

Late Night Snack

Title: Late Night Snack

Author: @aloemilk

Prompt: The Burrow, middle of the night

Description: Nothing short of a raging war will interrupt them again.

Rating: K+

Ron woke without opening his eyes. Filtered by his closed eyelids, it seemed to him that there was no light in his room; he guessed it was all pitch black. Through the soft mist clouding his waking mind, he realized then he had probably slept a whole day and at least half the night.

He tried to go back to sleep, but soon gave up. He opened his eyes to look around his room, a world of black and grey around him and around Harry, who was sleeping in his cot.

Harry, who had ended the war. Harry, who had insisted he would sleep in the same lumpy mattress he had gotten used to over the years, when the house had filled up with all of Ron’s family after the Battle. Harry, who was now snoring away, clearly still needing to rest after all they had done and survived over the past few weeks. Over the past years, really.

But Ron didn’t want to think of that. He didn’t want to think of hardship and loss and grief. The war was over and it was time to think of hope and happiness and a bright future. That was what they had fought for, wasn’t it? He would be honouring everyone… and Fred… if he did just that. So he got up quietly, trying not to wake Harry, promising he would focus on healing and growth and the full potential ahead. That’s what you lived for, brother. I will do it for you.

He went to the bathroom, where he checked his watch to learn it was 3:32 in the morning. But he was thirsty, and he was ravenous, so he ignored the notion that going for breakfast this early would be a bad idea. He would willingly ruin his chances of settling into a normal schedule if it meant his stomach would stop rumbling, so he went straight to the kitchen. Apparently, Ron wasn’t the only one who had decided to ignore sensibility, for Hermione was sitting there, her back to him, holding a steaming cup of tea in her hands.

He stopped at the doorway, hesitant to disrupt her, but she must have sensed him for she turned around on her chair to look at him.

“Hey,” she said.

“Morning,” he said back, and walked to the food cupboard. “Are you eating anything? I’m starving.”

“I had a couple of biscuits. There are more on the jar.”

“Biscuits? Nah, I need something more filling right now. Do you want a sandwich? I can make you one if you like.”

It took her a moment to reply, which he knew meant she was hesitant to eat at this absurd hour. She must have been as hungry as he was, for she finally relented. “Thanks, I’d love that.”

Ron worked quietly, unsure of what to say. As soon as he had seen her sitting there, he had been invaded by a million and one thoughts and visions and wants, but none seemed to distill into an idea or plan. Only one thing was clear: he wanted to somehow steer the conversation to the kiss they had shared about twenty-four hours ago, and ask whether they could do it again.

He really, really wanted to kiss her again.

The day before, once the family had done all that could be done at the school, they had used the fireplace in what had been Dumbledore’s office to come home. They had had a quick bite at the castle and had not bothered eating once at home, before they had all disappeared to their bedrooms. He had hoped at the time to have some alone time with Hermione, but Ginny had looped her arm around Hermione’s shoulders and had taken her straight to Ginny’s bedroom to sleep. The only thing they had shared before she disappeared into the room had been a lingering look.

Maybe, alone now in the kitchen, he could fix that. It was kind of his turn, after she had jumped at him and kissed him in the Room of Requirement.

Jumped at me. Kissed me. Blimey.

He cleared his throat.

“How did you sleep?”

“Wonderful,” she replied. “I don’t think I’ve slept that deeply in months.”

“Yeah, me too.” He grabbed the plates and set one in front of Hermione and the other at the place next to her. Pretending like it was the most natural thing in the world, he went around the large table and sat by her side.

Silence. It was so quiet, that Ron swore he could hear her jaw working through the food.

“Tea?” she asked with no warning, using her wand to summon a cup; she filled it with the aromatic liquid, added three sugar cubes to it and a dash of milk– just the way he liked it.

“It’s funny that you know how I like my tea, isn’t it? And I know how you like yours: only one sugar and twice the milk I like.”

She continued chewing her food, and didn’t reply until she had swallowed and drunk from her cup.

“It’s to be expected, isn’t it?” She stared down to the table as she spoke. “I’m pretty sure we know as much about the other as any coup– any two people can. We’ve spent so much time together. We practically lived together over the past year. We are bound to notice these things about other people after spending all that time in each other’s presence.”

He had been looking at her, curious at what her answer might be. But now a hopeful smile pulled up at the corners of his mouth. He couldn’t have imagined that, right? She had insinuated they were a couple, right?

“You know,” he said, making up his mind and leaning to the side, so that his bicep bumped against her shoulder, “I don’t know how Harry likes his tea.”

She set her cup down and turned her head to look at him. “You don’t?”

“Uh-uh.”

He could still feel the smile on his face, and saw how the corners of her own mouth curling up, even as she nervously bit her bottom lip.

“Actually, I don’t, either.”

Ron took a sip of tea with as much aplomb as he could muster, trying to look casual and collected. He then turned on his chair to face her and, leaning in a third of the way, asked the rhetorical question dancing in his mind.

“And why do you think that is?”

Hermione turned, mirroring his position, and lifted her face to him in a sign of courage, even as she dropped her hands to her lap and wrung them together.

“I think that, perhaps, we have been paying special attention to each other,” she offered.

“I agree. I have loads of small tidbits of information about you. For example,” he continued, leaning in a bit further, “I know you have a small mole behind your ear.”

“And I know,” she added, not biting her lip anymore but still smiling, “that you mess with your hair when you’re tired.”

He lifted a hand to her face. “I know that when you get sleepy while reading, you do this–” he tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear–“over and over in an effort to wake yourself up.” He left his hand there, his fingertips curling around the curve of her neck.

“I know that, even when you complain, you do listen to me. You mentioned Gamp’s Law and then… and then you mentioned the elves.”

His heart hammered at a hundred beats a minute, but the rush did not reach his vocal chords. It got stuck in his throat, so his voice came out as a whisper.

“I know that as soon as Harry forced us to stop kissing, I was determined to kiss you again.”

Ron tried to ignore the way his voice had trembled, even in its low volume, or how his stomach had rolled with butterflies.

“I know,” she began and hesitated. She seemed to come to terms with something, and got closer to him with unwavering eyes and a nervous smile. “I know I would like you to–”

She didn’t get to finish; Ron had interrupted her with the kiss that had waited on his lips for years. It was the kiss he had envisioned himself giving to her, on all those nights he found it hard to sleep thanks to his romantic frustration; a kiss that stopped her in the middle of a rant or well-deserved nagging, one that had been born from longing and passion and love.

She responded with as much enthusiasm as he had during the kiss in the middle of a war.

Their knees bumped together now, both fully facing each other. He lifted his other hand to cradle her head, savouring her lips and the softness of her skin. He felt her hands make contact with his chest and climb up to his shoulders, where they grabbed a handful of his ratty pyjama shirt. He was immediately ready to take it further, he–

“I knew I would find you here. I–”

Unwillingly detaching his lips from Hermione’s but keeping his hands around her face, Ron looked up behind her towards the door, where a sleepy Harry had frozen in place.

“Mate,” Ron warned, “please sod off.”

“But… food…” Harry tried, evidently stumped.

“We’re not in the middle of a battle anymore, Harry,” Hermione said. “I don’t want to stop what I’m doing right now, if you don’t mind.”

Harry looked like he wanted to argue, but he didn’t. Instead, his mouth curled into a mix of exasperation and acceptance. He lifted his wand and summoned the jar of biscuits, which he promptly tucked under his arm. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but finally only shook his head, leaving the kitchen in a huff.

As soon as Harry left the kitchen, Hermione turned back. Ron, not missing a bit, leaned in back to her, his lips a whisper away from hers.

“Where were we?”

His rhetorical question was left unanswered.

[dyde21]

RWBY Vol 5. Rant

This last episode’s reaction proves why I’m pretty much done with the FANDOM, not the show. More below the cut w/ some spoilers. 

There so much salt and hatred in the fandom, it’s ruined itself for me. I’ve been unfollowing more and more RWBY blogs as time goes on, just to stay distanced from it. I love the show still, watch it every week, but I’m done with the fandom. 

Spoilers below:

I get it, half of the FNDM doesn’t like Jaune, other half loves him. What I really hate though, is how people can only look at events from one point of view. 

With Weiss being stabbed, Cinder did it obviously because she’s vindictive, and Jaune who isn’t afraid of death (that’s so fucked up, that poor kid) and the only way she can mess with him is to hurt one of his friends. My guess is she wants Ruby to pay in an incredibly painful way so she just chose the person who was the easiest target aside from her. 

People complain that it’s reducing Weiss to just a catalyst for Jaune’s awakening of his semblance most likely. And I kinda get that, in that moment Weiss was a character used to further Jaune’s development. But that is such a small minded, focused view of the situation it bugs the heck out of me. This show shifts it’s focus a lot, some episodes characters are more important, some episodes they aren’t. Jaune didn’t get much attention this volume, just in the group shots with everyone aside from his mini rant about his semblence when Ozpin cheered him up. Ren and Nora haven’t really had any important moments either, they were all just there in the group moments which is fine. 

But Weiss has had a lot of development the past two volumes. She finally got the courage to bust out of her old life on her own to meet up with her friends. SHE LEARNED to SUMMON efficiently. She had an awesome fight with the wasp things, then bust out of her own cell in the prison camp. She’s gone through a lot, and grown a lot. With her fight against Vernal, it shows that she seems to be a little reliant on her summoning now, and is still only trying to summon her knight. Clearly she has some stuff to work out with her fighting. She also was the one to calm Yang down and help her be a little less angry about Blake.

So yeah, Weiss has gone through a lot, it’s okay that if for one moment, she’s used to develop other characters. That happens all the time, and is something that needs to happen when developing 8. Jaune was going to be reduced to a damsel in distress when Ruby awakened her eye powers again, but they subverted that trope slightly with Emerald. Also, Jaune’s not the only one going to affected by that choice. It showed how ruthless Cinder is that she’s toying with everyone. Character development for her! Yang was shown starting to be pissed I doubt that’s going to be ignored. She just watched a friend get stabbed again. There a chance for development there as well. Imagine Blake’s freaking reaction when she sees Weiss has been stabbed? 

I get it, seeing a character you loved hurt in a way that helps fuel another character’s growth that you may dislike can be kinda dumb. But don’t tunnel vision on ONE character in a scene. There are SO many characters in that room, all that will be affected by that strike in some way. Cinder and Jaune have been set up to be rivals since Pyrrha, Ruby is going to have go after Salem in the end after all. She has bigger fish to fry. 

So yeah, the hatred in this freaking FNDM is what’s made me leave it. I’m tired of reading things about hating Jaune, Pyrrha deserving better than him, even stuff about her cheating on him if they were in a relationship. Arkos has become just  collection of painful memories to me now. 

Oh, and a few other thoughts:

-I don’t think RT is going for JaunexWeiss at all. He hasn’t been interested in her since volume 2, and they are all friends. It’s been said countless times. All 8 of them were friends. Jaune wants to help her as a friend would. Guys and girls can be friends without it immediately jumping to ship them!

-Mile’s voice acting was AMAZING this episode. Like, I was legit impressed. 

-PYRRHA WASN’T JUST REDUCED TO A DEVICE TO FUEL JAUNE’S GROWTH. God, that bugs me so much. Pyrrha made a choice. She knew she would die, she knew she didn’t stand a chance. She made the choice, no matter how lopsided the options may have been presented to her, she made the choice to go after her alone even after Jaune warned her not to. It was a very in character choice as well. Saying she was reduced to a plot device for Jaune spits in the face of the development and inner turmoiled they showed her going through before she made her choice. Not all choices always get a happy ending. They gave us a really really dark setting for RWBY to take place in, we were playing with fire from the beginning.