#can you guys tell that i love spooders?

[a-twistedheartslonging]

Hiii, Harpy anon again.

I have more thoughts. Instead of making Idia a dog boy, I say we make him an insect. Mostly because there are some insects out there that just make sense for him. (Also because he kinda look like bug to me tbh)

For example, spiders. (Yes I know they aren't insects but they look insects and that's all that matters) Spiders specifically have a lot of significance in Greek mythology, so it would make sense for Idia (who is based off a Greek god) to have some kind of connection there. But also spiders tend to be solitary creatures, they don't live in groups and only come together during mating. And a lot of the time, during mating the males are killed by their female mates. Which..I feel like is why Idia would avoid Yuu like the plague. Because all he can think about near them is "Mate.Mate.Mate.Mate.MATE-" and he's scared if he tries anything he'll get killed immediately.

Now I don't know if we've talked about Ortho yet but I feel like he's a little robot bee. I know it doesn't really go with spider Idia but Robot bee Ortho would be so gosh darn cute. There was a study done on bee's that came to the conclusion that when bee's bump into eachother they make a little "Whoop" noise. IMAGINE BUMPING INTO BEE ORTHO AND HE JUST GOES "Whoop!"

AGSJSGAHSVSS

Ahem, sorry got carried away there for a sec. Bee's are also very protected of their hive and other bees in said hive, so I can't help but imagine if Yuu gets picked on Ortho immediately just pulls out the laser beams. Bee's can also smell fear. Giving bee Ortho this trait is like giving a toddler a glock and telling them to go do a crime. It is both horrifying and hilarious at the same time.

Robot Bee Boy.

BeeBot that makes cute noises when bumping into things.

So very cute. I don't have much to add to that except look at this cute bee butt.

Now...spooder Idia...

Did anyone else see Kar'niss from Baldr's Gate 3 and thought he was hella fine?

What kind of spider would he be? If he's one of the fluffy kinds I love the idea of his floof matching his hair. Would he have multiple eyes? Fangs on top of having those already pointy teethies?

Did you know an interesting thing that bee's and some spiders have in common his helping with pollinating plants?

Hmm drider's are usually big and people in general already don't like regular spiders very much. Poor Idia is just going to keep getting more reasons to not leave his room. 😔Oh Jeez Jamil would prob freak out seeing him.

Man, Idia and Azul have it bad. For females of both of their kind if they don't kill you after sex cuz doing the diddly works up an appetite, they might kill males that they simply rejected...or just because they got too close.

Another thing that both male octopuses and spiders have been shown to do to lower the risk is present their possible mate with food. Azul's an amazing cook with his own restaurant and Idia has a surplus of every kind of snack/junk food you can think of so at least they have that going.

Still, I would like to think that even if that happens with their kind in that world it's not nearly as bad or quite as common. Funny though to think of Idia screeching when he sees you and tossing a few bags of gummies and chips at you.

Also....to avoid getting eaten after sex some male spiders will actually tie the female up in his web and set her free after. Do with that info what you will.

Some spiders also do a mating dance, but you have a snowball's chance in hell of seeing him do that.

Still, it's just more things that get these types of nonhuman boys thinking that you the little would be the best choice when it comes to finding a mate. AMAB? Cool. AFAB? Well, human ones don't cannibalize so it's all good....well once the guys learned that they don't.

Plus, once he gets to actually know you and see how you're the least threatening thing in the school things will be easier.

Once he's comfortable around you get to see something amazing...

That he's a snarky little shit with so much sass. He's a weird combination of having issues with self-loathing while also having an ego.

One time you tried to bite him for mouthing off and he was legit scared for a sec but once he saw those little teeth of yours couldn't even make a scratch on the exoskeleton on his arm, he gets super freaking smug, and now he's even more of a shit when teasing you.

One of the cool things is that you can legit ride him places cuz he big spooder. It's too bad it rarely if ever happens with being a shut in.

He'll still let you sit on him like that when you guys are in his room.

A cool thing he can do is climb on walls and ceilings, does it often when trying to sneak to the vending machines on campus without being seen. He has unfortunately been seen once or twice though and it scared the hell out of the poor student to see a giant freaking spider on the ceiling and almost made Idia drop his snacks.

His webs are pretty and glowy, he kind of has them around his room set up like fairy light.

Weird fact, spiders can taste with their feet.

Cute fact, some spiders will keep a frog as a pet. Frog helps keep the spider's eggs from getting eaten and the spider protects the frog from other things.

I'm kind of picturing Idia as the spider and you as the frog. You are his emotional support human that he keeps close when he has to leave his lair.

He unintentionally gives you scary dog privileges.

Imagine working your shift at Twisted McDonald and a little human comes up to you with this big-ass sharp-toothed spider dude behind them, you are scared out of your mind but then the human says "Excuse me, he asked for no pickles."

[hanafubukki]

Hey Hana!

Its me the anon from those accountant asks. Can I just say this guy needs to be a canon character immediately?!!! I dont need these other guys this spooder is all I need. Also the image of him in spider form swinging around looking at multiple papers is funny lmao. Hes your friendly castle spider-accountant! Oo also can I be spooder anon??

[Masterlist]

Hello Spooder Anon🌺🌻💚,

Yes! Of course you can be Spooder Anon ☺️💞💞

I’m happy to hear that you like the accountant fae. He has such a avid fan 💞☺️💚 I think he would be such a funny and relatable addition into the story 🤣🤣

I love to think that when he tries to escape, he just…attaches himself to the ceiling and hopes no one sees him 😂 , unfortunately for him though, he has other people who hangs upside down too; mainly Lilia. 🤣🤣

For you my dear Spooder Anon, I give you this:

“I can’t with these rich people.”

You were startled when you heard the same exact sentiment echo right next to you.

You turn around and saw a fae looking as surprised as you.

“Greetings,” the fae bow to you.

You offer your hand and shook his, “Nice to meet you, I’m YN.”

The fae introduced himself to you.

“I didn’t expect anyone to share my sentiments about…well,” You gesture to the room.

Only for you to be stunned as the fae went ahead and started rambling about how expensive it is to hold these balls, and not only that but the cost for food and decorations.

Let alone how perfect everything has to be, and it wasn’t easy appeasing Queen Meleanor.

Poor guy was clearly stressed, you guessed he must have been the castle’s accountant.

“I’m sorry!”

“You should have thought of that before you mentioned a Bog of Stench to the Queen.”

“On the bright side, you will have less snooty Senators to deal with.”

You smiled at him as he sighed.

“Fine. You’re right. Now shoo shoo before I have to deal with your husbands.”

“They aren’t that bad!”

“The General looked ready to throttle me and your Knight gave me a look that was much worse. I don’t know how it was even more unpleasant than the General’s, but it seemed like he was disappointed in me. Which made me more uncomfortable!”

You laughed as the accountant flopped onto his table in despair.

“I’m back!

“No! Not my balanced sheets!”

“Hey!”

“Why are you under the table?”

“To escape this misery.”

“It can’t be that bad.”

“It’s worse! Who spends so much on a raffle!”

You didn’t disagree there.

“I brought you chocolates? Levan also passed along this expensive looking wine.”

“Can you tell your family to stop with their extravagant spending? That would be a better bribe.”

“…I can try, but no promises.”

Poor Spider accountant fae 😂😂

I guess I should make a name for him now huh 🤔, I have such a difficult time with names 🤣, maybe I should just call him Peter the spider fae 😆😆

I have a funny scenario where YN once mentioned how she didn’t like spiders before because they are venomous and she hated getting bitten by them.

Only for the spider accountant to start rambling how not all spiders are venomous and that applies to the spider fae as well, and it was basically a Malleus level lecturing 😆🤣

[hiseyebrowsaregone]

Peter x Harley fic recs? Pls?

Had to do some digging because I had all these fics bookmarked on my old account but here you go! @loveluststerek

shoulda worn a clean shirt by Bundibird

| 1/1 | 2,169 | General | Parley |

"What the shit," Harley says, and punches Tony in the arm. "You didn't tell me your other adopted waif was hot!"

"Excuse you, what?" Tony demands, at the same time that Peter says, "Um," and blinks his (in Harley's opinion) unfairly attractive eyes.

"Hi, I'm Harley," Harley says, striding forwards and ignoring Tony's spluttering. "And you and I should totally go on a date."

"What have I done," Tony whispers.

(Or: Peter is a disaster bi, and really so is Harley, but at least Harley has his shit together enough to ask Peter out on a date the second he meets him. Meanwhile, Tony is suddenly certain that by introducing these two, he's just triggered the apocalypse.)

PROOF SPIDER-MAN LOVES CLICKBAIT by mauvera

| 33/33 | 87,736 | General | Parley |

When Peter Parker gets a job working at Buzzfeed there's really only one subject he can write about: superheroes. And what superhero does he know better than everyone's friendly neighborhood Spider-Man?

What he didn't expect was that everyone would think Peter's new obsession with the hero would be interpreted quite like That.

it's always who is spider-man, never how is spider-man by i_regret_thatpersonalityquiz

| 40/40 | 176,100 | Teen and Up | Parley |

"Stay?"

Peter finally looked down to see Harley Fucking Keener, Iron Lad, the boy who had caused his shoulder to be throbbing all night, looking away with a slight tint to his cheeks. Peter opened and closed his mouth, no sound coming out.

And he sat back down.

OR: Peter had been living on the streets, dealing with your average homeless vigilante stuff. Things got a bit more complicated when the Avengers started to chase him down.

Who Needs Peter Parker Anyway? By mauvera

| 3/3 | 15,604 | Teen and Up | Parley |

When Harley finally gets to come to New York to hang out with Tony he's excited to build some robots and blow stuff up. Instead Tony is insisting that he meets that damn intern that he's been bragging about for months. Harley doesn't even have to meet the guy to know he's already sick of Peter Parker.

In other news that cute guy that hangs around the tower keeps running away before Harley can find out his name. Damn it.

sleep deprived superheroes (and twitter aren't a good mix) by red_01

| 30/? | 46,565 | Teen and Up | Parley |

spooder @ActuallySpider-Man

yo I think I got stabbed lmao

Iron Stank @TonyStark

KID WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU IM ON MY WAY

spooder @ActuallySpider-Man

omg it's mr iron can

-

no.1 SI intern @peter-parkour

uh so yeet ig

no.1 SI intern @peter-parkour

[image of Tony asleep in lab bench, amid bits and pieces of Iron Man armour]

he finally fell asleep binch

-

Peter starts a Spider-Man twitter and an intern twitter. It goes just as well (and just as gay) as you'd expect.

The New Intern by TakenByEmrys

| 10/10 | 27,463 | Teen and Up | Parley |

Tony tells Peter Parker that a new intern is coming to work at SI for the summer. Peter's class is taking an SI field trip when Harley arrives. Good thing Peter decided to skip the field trip.

Now I apologize if any of these aren't up to your standards, I haven't read them for a long time and just went off of my old account bookmarks. If you want more or have read all of these or want a specific thing just ask! :D

[buglife]

Social Spiders: A Ramble

HELLO FRIENDS!

@nurgletwh was wondering about if there are any 'social spiders', and I decided to write here instead of spamming it on AO3.

Firstly, lets define the difference between 'social' and 'communal', as both exist and can be used to describe various species of invertebrates.

Communal means that the organism can exist with other organisms with it's type and generally not have any problems. They don't actively help each other, but are kinda like buddies in the same room. Millipedes and Isopods are examples of communal invertebrates, just hanging out doing invert things.

Social means that the organism exists with other organisms of it's type and have active, defined roles within to benefit the group as a whole. Ants and honey bees are good examples, as everyone actively works to better their colonies/hives. There is active care for each other involved, such as feeding each other, grooming each other, or conveying messages and signals. Think of them like a family. Swarming occurs when the colony gets too large and splits, with the leaving group establishing a new colony elsewhere.

Most spiders are solitary and only pair up when it's time to mate. Many are maternal and will carry/guard their eggs until they hatch, which then they go off on their own when ready. Either by ballooning (letting a thin string of web catch on the wind and carry them away) or by just jumping off mom and going their own way. Point is that slings (baby spiders) don't stick around too long.

Annnd under the cut, we will talk about spiders that DO stick around! Warning! I will be including pictures of spiders under the cut! I hope you will still read if you are able, but don't distress yourself in the process!

NOW, on to SOCIAL SPIDER BUDDIES!

Firstly, lets look at perhaps the best example of a social spider, the Anelosimus eximius. The entire genus of Anelosimus has a sliding scale of social interactions by individual species, which makes it excellent for studying social behavior and how it evolves.

Anelosimus eximius are quite small, and are less than 8 millimeters at the largest size of the spectrum. This is an adult female. Teeny.

Here is a colony all grouped together. You might think, 'oh, this is just a small little nest', but you are WRONG.

Their nests are HUGE (around 25 feet LONG) and can contain more than twenty to fifty thousand individual spiders. (Don't worry friends, this particular species only live in warm tropical areas of central and south America.)

But you ask yourself, why would these spiders choose to work together when they can just fuck off and do their own thing? Well, it's for the same reason we humans lived together in colonies. You would find more similarities between us and them than you can think!

1. Food. By using this wide net, these spiders can catch very large prey, including BATS and BIRDS! Mostly however, they eat larger insects. The colony shares their catches with the rest and allows the injured and sick to share as well. They may not be able to catch big prey very often, but when they do its a influx of nutrients that an individual spider would never even dream of getting!

(Anelosimus eximius swarm their prey like a wolf pack!)

2. Reproduction. To keep this species in check, only a few females in the colony will lay eggs at a time. This isn't due to a caste system, since they have none, it's just a way to be sure there is enough food to go around. Since there are less females laying eggs, the entire colony participates in guarding and caring of the eggs and slings. The quality of their young is much higher than those of a solitary spider, who have a lot of babies in hopes that some will make it to adulthood. But with these guys, the babies are cared for and have a much better chance of making it and becoming another member of the colony. A.eximius females even feed the slings like a mother bird does to her chicks!

(Delena cancerides live in family groups, headed by the matriarch (mother) spider.)

3. Altriusm. This is a trait where you do something because it is kind with no real reward involved. These spiders have undergone experiments where they have adopted slings from other nests and seem to not really care about where they came from. Some other spiders will do this as well, such as wolf spiders. However, by developing altruistic traits, it helps out the rest of the colony in ways that will keep philosophy majors debating for centuries. Also, with more spiders helping, individual spiders have more time to rest and eat, reducing stress and becoming healthier!

(Theridion nigroannulatum is another social species, and you can see females with their egg sacks being guarded by other members of the colony)

4. Defense. The more individuals are in one place, the better they can defend themselves. These spiders often have to deal with kleptoparasites, other animals that feed themselves by stealing from others. Having more individuals helps them drive away these nuisances and protect their resources.

5. Maintenance. More hands (or spinnerets) means more can get done in a shorter amount of time. Some spiders of the colony will repair webs or lay down new lines. Some will remove mold and parasites and dispose of them. Some will keep the web and other members clean. A rainstorm that destroys the web of a regular spider will take a long time to repair, but for Anelosimus eximius, there's already someone fixing it as soon as it happens. Oddly enough, many members of this species fall into roles they feel are most suitable to them. They are egalitarian!

(Stegodyphus dumicola work together to repair the web and keep it clean.)

A great big negative however, is lack of genetic diversity. It is difficult for 'new blood' to enter a colony, because the colonies around said colony are offsets of said colony. Colonies within a specific area tend to be related to each other, so the spiders themselves are essentially clones.

The positives outweigh the negatives in terms of forming a colony, so why don't all spiders do this?

Because different spiders occupy ecological niches and some of those roles don't allow for much socialization. The amount of food needed to feed large colonies is huge and it must have consistent prey. Environment and weather provides a factor too. It takes the right environment, weather, and prey density to allow a species to evolve to band together for mutual benefit. Some species figured out that banding together gets them through rough times and have stuck with the strategy since.

(To study how social spiders divide labor and develop personalities, some poor intern had to catch a bunch of Stegodyphus sarasinorum and put paint on their butts.)

There are only about 23-27 confirmed (some debated) species of social spider (that we know of here in Aug 2021), which is quite small compared to the large number of other kinds of spiders! There are over forty thousand species of spiders currently recorded as of Aug 2021, so that means that social spiders only make up around 0.06% of total recorded species of spiders! You can see just how rare they are and why they are studied so much in the entomology field!

I hope you enjoyed my little ramble about these precious and rare critters <3

(Anastoechus nitidulus: AKA the author of this post)

[yanderecandystore]

could you make moth boi go feral and then soft when his s/o comes to calm him down?

Yes, YES! Y A S!!

Sure boo :3 (yes I'm excited to write about Aven, don't judge me-)

Should I make this gender neutral or male y/n?

I'll go with male reader if you don't mind, I hope it doesn't bother anyone tho-

TW/Tags: I'll make reader be a small creature in this one cause sometimes you just want to be to be able to hide under a mushroom man- // this post is in reference to [💐🧚💡] // Aven is your time to shine my boy- // I was writing this and got distracted by spooders :3 🕷️✨ // I'm sorry I may have flipped your ask entirely ;^; //manipulation // guilt tripping // mentions of past stalking/obsession

🍭꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍮꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍰꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍮꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖🍭

Feral fluffy boy [Yandere!Moth OC x M!Reader - Headcanon]:

Aven is a generally sweet guy. Really shy, really soft and normally really kind. However our sweet fluff man is not exactly perfect, as he has also committed actions that are quite terrifying and wrong on their own.

Aven used to be mistreated by most of the fairies around him because of his looks, considering how he looks more moth like than well, fairy like- He had found himself crushing on one of the most beautiful fairies around these woods, Al was almost like an angel to him.

Aven would never tell you what really happened, what he did after Al rejected him, he would never tell you how dangerously obsessed he was with Al- But he would confess that the two of them had some history.

Not the type of history you would really want to hear about, even Aven knows how far he can go when he sets his mind on something. He can agree that maybe he has pushed Albedo a little bit over the edge, just a bit-

Not like he didn't deserve it though.

Aven has changed a lot over the years he spent alone, yet his possessiveness and need for emotional attachment has only grown over the years. He has been alone for so long, of course he would get like this!

Oh boy, when he hears that you actually tried to date Al and failed miserably, he isn't going to act like the soft boy anymore- He feels so pissed off- There is something oddly insulting about knowing that you, the person he loves, loving someone else- Who he used to have a crush on. It's the most painful irony he can imagine.

What makes it worse is that it wasn't you who told him, he got to learn about this because some fairies were gossiping about you and him after you two went out publicly on the Blue Moon Festival. He isn't really mad at you, or Albedo himself- He is mad at the situation itself.

Even when he tries to distance himself from Albedo and from what happened that day, something like this happens. It's so… Frustrating!!

You found him in his house, curled up in his couch not wanting to talk with anyone at all- Well, except you. You're so sweet for asking him what's wrong, he almost forgets that he is angry, keyword almost.

He'll tell you what happened, after all there is no point in hiding his frustrations. He'll tell you about what happened the day he confessed to Al, how he humiliated him in front of everyone, how horrible Al has been. He'll tell you about how the other fairies always mocked him, and how today was no different.

He'll make you feel pity for him, feel bad, terrible about yourself for not telling him about your relationship with Albedo. It's not like he isn't terribly hurt by it, believe me, he is! It's just that- Well, you're so trusting! So kind and sweet- You understand him right? You'll protect him from them right?

He loves seeking comfort in your touch, but even more so knowing you love helping him feel better.

He didn't talk about the "incidents" involving Albedo. There is no need to worry your little head about it! The stalking, the threats, the lies, the manipulation, the blood- All of that is in the past!

He is with you now, and you'll protect him just as he'll protect you!

Hopefully he won't have to commit the same mistakes again, dearest~

🍭꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍮꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍰꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍮꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖🍭

[pearl-blue-musings]

Never Been Kissed: Hizashi Yamada

HI I’M ON A ROLL

so this combines NYE and Valentine’s Day soooo yeah

Pairing: Hizashi Yamada x fem!reader

~~~~~~~~~~

Conflicting schedules had always been a problem in your relationship, but it never stopped either of you. Sure you had made plans with your boyfriend for your first Valentine’s together, but plans always change.

Your work hours got shifted around again.

He had to work extra hours at the radio station because someone else requested time off. It was always something.

But that’s how the two of you worked.

You knew being in a relationship with the radio hero and teacher Present Mic would me taxing, whether emotionally or mentally. It was hard dealing with his early mornings and late nights, but you persevered. You just thought that maybe you’d be able to spend time with him on a day that meant a lot to him. You weren’t too surprised that he really and truly loved this day. With how loud he shows his emotions, you figured this holiday was perfect for him.

But his softs were always the most serene softs you’d ever experienced. Everyone knew Present Mic, but few knew Hizashi Yamada. And you were one of the lucky few to know him. You knew him not just as a person and hero, you knew him intimately. I mean, of course you did, you’ve been together for over a year! Like the cheesy man you know him to be, he had planned it out all perfectly during a New Years Eve show. You had been on a few dates but nothing had been official, so you were surprised he had invited you to see him do his show. He had wanted to spend the holiday with you but had to work so he thought, why not both?

The night was going swimmingly, filled with laughter and nostalgia as he recounted events that had happened all the while playing incredible music tied with great stories either from him or his little listeners. You were in awe, seeing him in his element and thriving; it was a sight to behold. Hizashi was like a siren and you were the unsuspecting victim and it was honestly a sensation you wanted to happen more and more.

Midnight was a second away and he had begun the count down be saying various quotes and well wishes for the new year. You were simply enjoying yourself when it was down to the final 30 seconds and he spoke up.

“Alright little listeners the time has come! Just under 20 seconds until the new year! Grab your sweetheart, your best friend, your pet, and give em a smooch at the count of zero! And don’t worry,” he looks over to you at the 10 second mark and announces, you think, only to you. “I’ve got my girlfriend here to kiss so no kisses from you all to me, ya dig?”

He leaves his desk, clicking the right settings to mute himself so he can whisper to you. “What do you say? Be my girlfriend?”

You’re stunned and just nod frantically, unsure of what to do as you saw zero approach on the clock. Hizashi unmutes his mic and safely yells, “Happy New Year!” before quickly muting and bringing you into sweet kiss. He tasted like mint chocolate and the thought sent shivers down your spine.

It was weird to you that this year was going to be your first Valentine’s Day together, despite being in a relationship for a year. The previous year he had to work and you had a family emergency, so he knew to not push it onto you. But this year Hizashi wanted to spoil you like the queen he knows you are.

But Present Mic always had his late night Valentine’s show that was a hit and he couldn’t miss it.

When he told you, you smiled nicely and told him it was okay. And it really was! You weren’t too big on the holiday yourself but you knew he was. On the day, you woke up to an array of flowers and cute little love notes left all over your room. You giggled to yourself as you walked into the kitchen, knowing he was already at U.A., and you see something boxed up on the counter.

Hey baby girl!

I made your favorite early this morning, but I’m sad I can’t eat it with you! I can’t wait to see you tonight my songbird!

Your Hizashi

If it was possible to love this man more than you already do, then this might’ve been the tipping point. You were overjoyed at his little acts of love that he showed you, knowing he won’t be coming in until practically midnight and it made your heart flutter.

At the end of your work day, you had already gotten a few text messages and calls from him reminding you that he loves you so much. And when you got to your newly shared apartment, you were greeted by a gigantic teddy bear with balloons and another card.

Sweet baby,

I didn’t mean to check your browser history but I know this little, well big, guy has been on your mind for a bit. But check what he has in his paw! I’ll see you later tonight baby!

Your Hizashi

You’re relieved no one saw the happy and flustered dance you did outside your apartment door as you shuffle in all the items your doting boyfriend bought you. Once your shoes are off and you’re more adjusted, you open the envelope. “What!?” You yelled to no one.

He had gotten you tickets to a spa and hot springs for a whole weekend?! And it’s the one you’ve been dying to go to? You quickly dial his number.

“My favorite listener!”

“You’re gonna kill me Hizashi! I-I mean, the spa, the food, everything! God, I love you.”

You hear him sigh and hum contentedly. “Anything for my lovebird! And there’s one more surprise, but you have to be listening to the show at exactly 8:55 okay?”

You nod into the phone and tell him you love him again before hanging up. You were positive you had all the ingredients for his favorite meal and dessert and you couldn’t wait to make it for him and have it ready for when he comes home. The first time you had made dinner for him after a late night radio show was one of the softest and happiest you had seen him. And in turn when you’ve had late shifts he’s done the same for you.

You had decided to wait until later to make his food, so you watched a couple movies and ate some leftovers to tide you over before making your special meal. You knew it would take about an hour for everything to be ready and since he comes home around 9:30 these nights you began your meal prep around 8:30.

25 minutes later you tuned into his show while taking a break to change your clothes and put on a robe. While you were changing you heard his voice coming in loud and clear.

“Listeners, it’s almost time for me to go but I have a quick story, okay? Over a year ago, I asked my beautiful wonderful girlfriend to be mine and she said yes! We even had our first New Years Kiss then! We’ve been together ever since, but this is our first Valentine’s together. And you all know how much I love this holiday!

“Her father had passed away the week before so we didn’t do anything. I was honestly afraid to express how much I love this day but she constantly reassured me that it was okay. And so I waited, ya dig?”

You almost dropped whatever was in your hands at hearing him through your speaker. What, just what is he doing?

“So this year, I’ve gone all out! But everything I did, I kept her and her family in mind! I sent her mom and grandmother everything I had given her today! My girlfriend didn’t know that but now she does! She’s really the best, you know? She’s even supporting me working today and everyday! I couldn’t have asked for a better gift than her. And I know today is hard for her, but that’s why I gotta pump it up for her!

“I love you, sweetie, and I can’t wait to see you when I get home.”

Hizashi was more than eager to make it back to his apartment where he knew the love of his life was waiting. His show was more tiring than usual but he knew he could endure it for you. He had already washed his hair and changed clothes at the station before coming home. Before entering, he could already smell the food you had made and his mouth began to salivate.

He presses his way into the apartment, and was thrown off. You weren’t in the kitchen. The table was set with candles and the food but where were you? He hopes you’re not upset over what he did or worse yet, crying because of your father. “Baby girl?” He asks the air, but is relieved when he hears you respond from your bedroom. “I didn’t see you in the kitchen or at the table so I got concerned because I-“

Rarely is Present Mic left speechless.

Rarely is Hizashi Yamada left speechless.

But here he is, stunned into silence at seeing you, donned in what he dubs the sexiest lingerie he’s ever seen. Sitting on your bed, no kneeling, so he can see all of your body covered in lace.

You whisper out while your own hands roam your body. “Happy Valentine’s Day, baby.

“Come unwrap your gift.”

~~~~~~~~~

@cupcake-rogue @spicy-spooder

[podlingmom]

My thoughts on Seladon

Okay, for real, I have mixed feelings about Seladon. Yes, I love me a Murder Birb, but I tend to enjoy evil characters more than morally grey or vindictive characters. Plus Brea is my sweet summer child and I hate when Seladon is mean to her.

Having said that I understand why she is the way she is. She was groomed from a young age to be the All-Maudra, conditioned to believe the skeksis word is law and I wouldn't be surprised if her mother taught her traitors must be burned.  She felt Brea was given the attention she could never have and took it out on her, then genuinely believed her sister joined an anti-skeksis cult with her new rock friend and roped her mother into it, causing her death. Heck if say, my sister got my mom to do weed recreationally, but I misunderstand and think they were starting a breaking bad drug empire, and my mom gets shot by the cops I would be pissed too.

Many people use the scene where Seledon tries to bargain with the skeksis by offering up her own people as the reason they dislike her, but you see, she literally thinks this is the only way to save the gelfling race. If I were her, I’d offer up Thra’s worst prisoners and be like “Have at it guys, If these scumbags are guilty of half the murders and unwanted diddlings they were convicted of, they still deserved death!”

Speaking of unwanted diddling;

The most terrified I have been while watching this dark-ass series is when the skeksis attacked Seladon. I’m sorry but so many people say how much she deserved that and how satisfying it was but GUYS WHAT THE HECK!! For a few seconds, I literally thought she was gonna get stripped bare like skekSil in the movie. And to note, in Victorian times your underwear was literally just a dress under your dress, and if the Vapra follow the same clothing customs, she could literally be in her underwear. So many people in my life have hurt me but I don't wish that on my worst enemy. Just something in the back of my primal female brain kind of bugs me. Yall are nosty.

I don’t like the scene where she puts all the blame on Brea. I mean, I get lashing out as a defense mechanism after her trauma and shock, but Seladon knew they were all going to die and was willing to leave this world placing a heavy burden on Brea. The last thing Brea would remember is her sister shaming her and feeling responsible for everything before literally getting sucked into oblivion. 

I do appreciate her apologizing sincerely after Tavra’s “death” (i still think she’s in that spooder), but think about this; Seladon and Brea don’t seem to have any happy memories together, it’s just a lifetime of resentment, jealousy and mean comments. I see this more as a writing flaw, the story never shows a bond they used to have or anything, they just tell us “sisterhood is strong”. The only thing they have to bond over is the “death” of Tavra. I will say the “death” of Tavra is what snapped Seladon out of her delusion since Tavra was someone Seladon ACTUALLY had a bond with. But no sis is ded now we super close and all is forgiven. I’m happy Brea forgave Seledon and they can start to create a bond, but I don’t think I’d be able to forgive someone who was NEVER kind to me EVER.

Last of all, LEGALLY, Seladon did not commit any war crimes. She didn't betray the gelfling, she just did what she thought was right, all be it in a very questionable way. PLS stop throwing around the term War Criminal.

I will end this tangent by saying I used to hate Seladon, but thanks to @hollerbatgirl and many other lovely people I don’t anymore, I have my issues with her, but I fully support her redemption arc.

[shellheadtm-a]

Steve x Tony @shieldslinger​ / send me a ship and-

Who asks the other on dates:  lbh with each other here, these are the kind of assholes that have an actual date night.  sometimes they even make it to it and do date things.  but also let's be honest with the fact they've been going on dates for years and were too dumb to realize it.  museums?  burgers and a movie?  you know they've done it, you know it was a date, and you know they had literally no idea.  because they're dumbasses. Who is the bigger cuddler:  with all the unnecessary touching that went on with them from like literally steve's first day out of the ice and you come into my home and ask that question?  as touchy as they were before (those sweet, sweet shoulder squeezes of validation) you know it's worse now.  movie night's probably a nightmare just because you know it's either bc tony's draped some part of himself on steve, or they're jammed so close together you couldn't squeeze a sheet of paper between them, or...listen.  when two tactile people love each other very much, they're probably really gross and annoyingly handsy, and i don't mean in the...gropey kind of way, they're just touchy.  all the time.  must toch.  plus they have a shitton of issues, which probably doesn't help in that either but eh. Who initiates holding hands more often:  there's a theme here, you know that right.  there's a theme here, because it's a theme in canon, and it's tony offering a hand up to steve.  like it's a thing, you know it, i know it, so if you don't think tony's needy hand holder in this relationship, you'd be wrong.  it's sad, he gets this weird little thrill at even being able to do that, and on the one hand...you gotta feel bad for him.  he'd take whatever steve gives him and tell himself that's enough and he's content with it, because it's steve.  but knowing steve's okay with it?  a religious experience.

Who remembers anniversaries:  well, it's not steve rogers, i can tell you that.  and you know what, that's okay, and that's fair, and tony loves him anyway.  he might be the man with a plan, but he's useless with a planner.  he gets caught up in things, it's fine, tony remembers for the both of them, it's why he has friday.  what i'm saying is the only one who really remembers any important dates at all is friday. Who is more possessive:  i don't know that...you could really classify either of them that way?  overly protective, sure.  clucky with mother hen tendencies, the both of them, yeah.  taking what they can of each other's time, even if it's just to be able to say good night and good morning, absolutely.  but i don't think...with who they are as people, they really can't be. Who gets more jealous:  which goes back to being possessive, right, like tony has a little jealous streak but it doesn't manifest blatantly as one.  two, they're public figures so...there's not a lot of room for jealousy there.  like captain america and iron man might be characters they play (which are still them, i know i've talked about it but bear with me, it's an idealized version of them, separate from the inner selves) but they're public, you know, they're superheroes, and there's an expectation you share each other with the job.  and with the people you save.  with the world, really.  i think it's more about taking what time they do have as steve and tony more than anything else. Who is more protective:  this is a joke, right?  this is a joke.  these two idiots would throw themselves in front of each other over and over and over again if you let them.  that said, tony's moreso.  and i'll tell you why.  everything he's done?  all the bad?  the times he's sold his soul?  was to keep steve - and their loved ones - safe.  or happy, in a situation where there was really nothing they could do.  every time.  or i'll go one better.  tony will absolutely trade his own life for steve's in the blink of an eye, because he's always believed between the two of them steve's the better man.  he's done it.  willingly.  without a second thought once he's made the decision to do it.  he probably has a "sacrifing myself for the greater good and especially steve" face.  i'd like to lie and say that he understands if something happened to him how badly it would hurt steve but...if it came down to a choice of tony dying if it meant steve would live, he'd trade himself in a heartbeat.  that's uh.  something he's working on (he's not). Who is more likely to cheat:  this really is a joke.  steve "my middle name is noble" rogers and tony "has been in love with steve rogers for years" stark.  like tony would never, ever, ever say it, but this is it.  i don't mean in some fatalistic way, and i mean he fully believes he has an expiration date so he wouldn't say anything anyway, but this is it.  steve's always been The One.  his Person.  never would happen, not in a million fucking years. Who initiates sexy times the most:  you would think the answer is anthony edward stark and in most cases you'd be right, but steve rogers is not most cases, it is steve rogers and the rules don't apply to him.  by which i mean surprisingly steve is the proactive one here, and i think it's because tony is...he is hesitant.  it's weird, he's pushy with his forms of affection and then he backs off in this arena but i would argue he's getting better about it, and that the only reason he is like that is because he doesn't...he's very careful with steve, really, he's still walking on eggshells a little.  give him time, the tables will turn, he'll be pouncing steve from dark corners like an overgrown house cat with the 3am zoomies and a need to fight. Who dislikes PDA the most:  they're not, you know, public yet.  so it's not like this is really a thing outside of their friends circle, and even then, like.  i'm willing to bet literally nothing has changed in the slightest except you might walk in on them smoochin.  oh, the huge manatee.  tbf, for some people it might be (clint, looking directly at you) considering who wants to see their parents doing that but you know.  tough tiddy.  anyway, they’re just...not really the type. Who kills the spider:  listen they know some spiders who are very good people, and it's not nice to talk about premeditated murder.  there is a strict catch and release program in place and by that i mean tony will absolutely release said spiders back with their people.  except nat, because she's scary. Who asks the the other to marry them:  steve's joked around about that once.  once.  and tony did not take it well with his past history of failed relationships.  not out of a fear of committment, are you kidding me, this is tony who makes being married a personality trait.  but because he thinks he's a jinx.  i can tell you one thing, it won't be him that asks, if they ever get around to doing something more official than cohabitating.  shaking up.  whatever you want to call it.  not unless it's a jokey thing that gets taken seriously (which would change his tune embarrassingly fast).  he's gunshy at this point.  he's been engaged a few times and it's telling that he doesn't have like three divorces under his belt.  and also they're still feeling out the new them, which is fine, it's good they're doing that.  but he'd say yes in a heartbeat. Who buys the other flowers or gifts:  the answer you're looking for is tony stark.  it is tony stark who does this, thank you.  it could be big things, like, i don't know, a mansion (hello, 890 5th avenue).  training robots for the gym that...no one needs to know the price tag on that steve's going systematically tear apart.  training scenarios for the danger room he's spent three days straight coding and putting together.  new uniforms.  or it could be little things like a book steve's been meaning to get and read or his favorite bagel or...either way.  it's just who tony is, he can't help it.  if he has it, he gives it.  honestly i feel like at some point steve's just learned to roll with it because there's no stopping it.  he's been doing it forever, since day one (hey guys, remember the cray mainframe?), but now he's signed up for no complaining so you know.  that's on him. Who would bring up possibly having kids:  said like it hasn't already happened.  it's steve, by the way.  it's 1000% steve and he's already done it and tony's giving ten million reasons why he shouldn't when he knows he's going to say yes, and so what i'm really getting at here is they need to start thinking nursery colors for the mansion, because they're not fooling anyone.  and they're gonna be amazing parents and that kid is gonna be the most spoiled, loved, protected baby ever.  she hit the jackpot and doesn't even know it.  this is also the only superfamily content i am here for.  just a dumbass, a himbo, and a superbaby.  also consider.  all the cute.  knitted things.  i demand cute knitted things, it's not up for debate. Who is more nervous to meet the parents:  that's...not an issue, for one thing.  for another, like.  literally their entire friends group are...all...the same people.  lbr there was literally a betting pool in place and i wonder who won.  it keeps me up at night, wondering who cashed in on tony and steve no longer being quite as big of a pair of dumbasses as they have been.  part of me hopes it was peter parker, i worry about you, spooder-min. Who sleeps on the couch when the other is angry:  tony uh.  will stay in his lab if they have a row but i can promise you he doesn't sleep much.  if at all.  it's part and parcel with the tony stark experience in this case.  he'll stay in his hidey hole and be sad because steve's mad at him, but won't do anything about it at first, just stay and be sad.  because he's sad.  and also Feeling An Emotion is hard and they don't know how to use their words. Who tries to make up first after arguments:  i'd argue 70% of the time it's probably tony.  like, they're both stubborn, we know that.  they both dig in their heels and think they're right, the other's wrong, and they're being stupid about it.  and about some things they're just literally never going to agree but don't know how to agree to disagree.  tony gets set in a rut and won't consider a deviation from what he's already decided is going to happen.  steve gets mulish and refuses to listen to another point of view.  they butt heads.  but honestly, at this point, at the end of the day (if he can stop sulking), after everything that's happened?  you know, at this point it's obvious that when they argue and stay mad, bad things tend to happen.  tony doesn't even have memories of the worst of it but he knows he took it badly, let's be real here (i say, like badly's not a hilarious understatement).  he may not apologize in a way that says he's wrong, but he may do it for helping escalate a fight.  bc, you know, blah blah, not half as good as anything as i am doing it next to you, blah blah, azure eyes, blah blah, good morning beloved. Who tells the other they love them more often:  honestly, now that those big scary words are out there, and there's no takebacksies in having said it, they've both been pretty free with them.  making up for lost time, i guess.  i think they have different tones, though.  tony's as free with those with steve as he's ever been with anything else.  he gives them...often?  and with no expectation of anything in return.  because that's how he's always been with steve.  and from steve like...a lot of time it seems like...as much as he says it?  it's a reassurance more than anything (because we know how tony is).  sometimes tony even lets himself believe it without second guessing himself.

[sassycassie-s-series]

All My Fault 33

By: SassyShoulderAngel319

Fandom/Character(s): DC, BatFam - Damian Wayne/Batman

Rating: PG-11/T- (for violence)

Notes: (Masterlist) This one jumps around a bit. Hopefully it’s not too difficult to follow.

Tag List (Open): @batboys-and-other-messes @welovegroot @probsjosh  @spooder-moon @lostredrobin @haylo4ever @na-n-na @rachelmorganroth  @reclusive-chicken-nugget​ 

Ch 1, Ch 2, Ch 3, Ch 4, Ch 5, Ch 6, Ch 7, Ch 8, Ch 9, Ch 10, Ch 11, Ch 12, Ch 13, Ch 14, Ch 15, Ch 16, Ch 17, Ch 18, Ch 19, Ch 20, Ch 21, Ch 22, Ch 23, Ch 24, Ch 25, Ch 26, Ch 27, Ch 28, Ch 29, Ch 30, Ch 31, Ch 32

^^^^^

“So, what do we do, Damian?” I asked quietly as Damian and I sat in my room on the floor across from each other. Jon had left to go home to Metropolis so we were alone to have our private discussion.

Damian reached across the distance between us and took one of my hands in both of his. “I want to be with you more than I’ve ever wanted to be with anyone else. However I don’t believe we should go public with any sort of romantic relationship immediately. As far as the rest of the world is concerned, you’ve been back nearly two weeks less than you have actually been in this future, which would make it seem as though you haven’t been back long enough to be in a romantic relationship—perhaps.”

“What about Bruce?”

Damian’s eyes dropped to our hands. “He returns from Metropolis tomorrow,” Damian said. “As I said earlier, he could look between the two of us and make an accurate estimate of what we’ve done while he was gone if he believed we had something to hide. I can tell him that we’ve fallen in love and intend to pursue a relationship—”

“No,” I interrupted. “Let… let me tell him.”

“Nora?” Damian asked, using my name instead of why?

I sighed. “If I tell him he might… freak out less. You know what I mean? Like, if I say I don’t want to go back to the past and explain why… I doubt he’d drop his coffee.”

I set my other hand on top of Damian’s hand holding my other one. I looked up and met his eyes.

“I love you, Damian Wayne. Strange as our situation is, it’s true.”

He gave me the widest and most genuine smile I’d ever seen from him—or either blood Wayne for that matter. “I love you as well, Nora McCloud.” He leaned forward. I closed the distance and pressed our lips together.

It was a far less heated kiss than the night before. Instead it was simple and tender, full of softer emotions than passion.

Damian pulled away first. “I believe you’re correct. You informing Father would be far safer.” He squeezed my hand. “And in a few weeks—perhaps even a month—we will announce that Nora McCloud and Damian Wayne are officially together.”

I snorted. “Press can finally have their field day about us,” I said.

Damian bounced an eyebrow. “S’pose so,” he agreed.

I smirked. “Let them,” I said.

Damian tutted. “Tt. Alright then.”

“But in private, are we officially together now?”

“Only if you agree to be.”

“I do. Heartily.”

We both snickered.

^^^^^

WHAM! My foot connected to the mugger’s chest—and I was fairly certain I heard a rib separate from his sternum. Yowch.

“Batman’s smitten,” Jason said in the open channel. Tonight it was all of us out on patrol except Tim, who volunteered to be on monitor duty. Dick and Jason had told Cass and Tim that Damian and I were in love and semi-officially a couple while we were in private.

I glanced around to see Damian standing on top of a building that made up one of the walls of the alley I was in, looking down at me. Even from my distance below I could see him grinning. I smiled back at him, whacked the mugger again and effectively knocked him out, and nodded to the man he’d been trying to steal from. “Are you alright, sir?” I asked.

He nodded.

“GCPD is on its way,” Damian supplied to me.

“The cops will be here soon,” I said to the man. “They’ll take your statement.” As I spoke I tied up the mugger. “He’ll be out for at least an hour.”

“Are you leaving?” the man asked me, looking a bit spooked by the mugger.

I gave him a smile. “Not if you don’t want me to,” I said, rocking back and forth on my heels. I realized how that could sound if taken the wrong way and quickly amended, “Not if you feel unsafe alone here with this man.” I didn’t need this guy hitting on me or trying any funny business when Damian was literally only a few stories above me. That being said, most of the creeps and misogynists in this city knew that trying anything rude with a girl in a mask and body armor—Batgirl, the Spoiler, Orphan, Batwoman, Cloudburst, and any visiting female heroes—was a recipe for getting several bones broken and sometimes a verbal smack-down.

Didn’t always discourage them from trying, but I’d dislocated eight shoulders and paralyzed three sets vocal chords in the first two years of being Cloudburst and had since lost track of injuries I’d dealt to creeps who grabbed my backside or hands or other places or made disgusting comments.

As it was, this guy didn’t say anything rude or try to touch me.

I touched my comm-link. “By the way, Hood?” I said.

“Yes Cloudy?” Jason asked.

“Shut up,” I said.

I heard lots of snickering from the rest of the Bat-family.

After a few minutes of waiting, the cops came. Once they turned up, the mugging victim thanked me. I nodded and shot a grappling hook to the roof, whizzing out of sight. Once I swung onto the same rooftop as Damian, I felt his arm ensnare my waist and pull me closer to him. He tapped his comms to mute his microphone and smirked at me. “That was attractive,” he whispered.

I snickered and muted my mic too.

He leaned closer.

I put my hand between our lips before he could kiss me. “Batman and Cloudburst can’t be together, Damian,” I said quietly.

He closed his eyes and sighed with complaint. “Why not?”

“Because as far as civilians are concerned, Cloudburst is still between five and ten years older than Batman. That would be weird. And the coincidence of Nora McCloud returning only a week-and-a-half after Cloudburst can be ignored and forgotten. But Cloudburst and Batman getting caught kissing on a rooftop a month before Damian Wayne and Nora McCloud announce that they’re together is downright suspicious,” I said. “Especially coupled with Cloudburst and Nora’s reappearances.”

Damian pursed his lips and stared at me, his green eyes glinting through the eye holes of his cowl. “Alright,” he relented. “Batman and Cloudburst have a professional relationship.”

“You can kiss me in uniform when we get back to the Batcave,” I said quietly.

^^^^^

“Their mics are muted,” Jason remarked to Dick, Tim, and Cass on a private channel. “I can see them talking through my scope but I can’t hear them.”

“What do you mean, ‘scope’?” Dick asked. “Hood, you don’t have a sniper rifle, do you?”

Jason hesitated. “… No?”

“Hood!” Dick protested.

“Hey, wingding! Now is not the time! They’re being lovey-dovey and you’re complaining about me?!” Jason snapped.

“Okay. So their mics are muted so we can’t hear them. What do you mean, lovey-dovey?” Tim asked, interrupting the argument.

“Well Damian’s got his arm around her waist and she just stopped him from kissing her. She’s got this goofy type of lovestruck grin on her face and Damian is grinning. Grinning,” Jason told the others.

Tim and Dick both “Wow”ed Jason’s description.

“Who wants to bet twenty bucks on how long they date before Damian proposes?” Jason asked.

“Me!” Dick and Tim said at the same time.

“I will too,” Cass added.

“I bet six months and under,” Dick said.

“Whoa. Cutting that one fine, eh?” Tim wondered.

“Well it’s not entirely unheard of—especially if both parties know each other well before becoming a couple,” Dick said, a shrug in his voice.

“Which they don’t,” Jason deadpanned.

“Shut up,” Dick retorted. “Sure they do. Cloudy probably knows Damian better than anyone except B, Alfred, and maybe me. Heaven knows she put forth the effort to do so.”

“Mm,” Jason grunted, unconvinced.

“I will bet six months to a year,” Cass said.

“Hmm. A year to two years,” Tim put in.

“Then I guess I bet two years or any amount longer,” Jason said.

Dick scoffed. “Oh please. I know them. Marriage is an important concept to Cloudy and Damian was raised with the League of Assassins where I'm relatively positive arranged marriages for political reasons aren’t uncommon. I doubt they’ll date that long before getting married.”

“Well twenty bucks says we’ll see, then, hmm?” Jason challenged.

“Guess so,” Dick agreed.

“Yup,” Tim said.

“Yes,” Cass added.

^^^^^

“By the way, we should probably sleep in separate rooms when we get back tonight,” I said. “Because Bruce will be back in the morning and I don’t want to have to edit more security camera footage.” I’d already told Damian that Jason and Dick had taken care of the night before’s recordings. “Plus I don’t know when he’ll be back and I don’t want him to come check on you and find us, y’know, in bed together.”

Damian thought for a moment, still holding me close. “You are… correct. We should probably stay in our own rooms anyway, for as much as we can help it. As though we’re a couple who does not live together yet,” he said.

I nodded. “I agree,” I said.

Damian let me go with a little smirk and jerked his head toward the highest buildings in Gotham. “Let’s go finish this patrol,” he said.

I smiled. “Sounds good,” I agreed. He squeezed my hand before letting go. We took off running over the rooftop and leapt off the side at the same time, unmuting our comms as we went. My hair streamed behind me in the wind as we swung off toward the deeper parts of Gotham. I whooped. I’d never get tired of this.

^^^^^

Damian and I climbed out the Batmobile, beating everyone else back to the Batcave. Except Tim. Who was no longer sitting at the bat-computer and probably up in the shower. Damian and I met at the front hood of the car. Damian rested his hands on my waist, tugging me gently closer. My hands found his shoulders. “May I give you a kiss goodnight, my darling?” Damian asked.

I smiled. “You absolutely may,” I replied.

Damian bent down and pressed his lips to mine. I felt a small grin in his lips. “Everything will be alright,” he breathed when our lips parted but our foreheads rested together. “No matter how Father reacts. Everything will be alright.”

“I know,” I said. “I trust this. I trust you.” My hands slid up from his shoulders and around the back of his neck, my fingers sliding over the short hair on the back of his head.

“I would wait forever to be with you.”

“I would too. But let’s hope that doesn’t happen.” I tilted my head forward and kissed his cheek.

—

Next

[fanficparker]

Next Door | H.O.

Pairing: Neighbour!Harrison Osterfield x Reader

Word count: 1.6k words

Requested: By anonymous - How about a request where Y/n's birthday was a few days ago and Haz didn't know it until Y/n's mom calls him because Y/n didn't answer her texts. And then he realizes she hates her birthday because in the last few years none of her friends attended her party. (I don't know its kinda weird but my birthday is in a few weeks and I feel the same)

Warnings: Swearing, Just a fluff piece :)

Summary: You have stopped making friends, but can your neighbour change your mind?

[ MASTERLIST ]

Harrison was taking a small nap on the free weekend afternoon when he was woken up to his phone ringing. He groaned covering his ears with a pillow. He shuffled his arm on the side table trying to find his phone without opening his eyes or removing the pillow, still succeeding.

"Hello," He lightly groaned in the phone, removing the pillow.

"Hello. Are you Mr. Osterfield from flat 202?" A middle-aged woman spoke up.

"Yeah," He sleepily responded.

"Sorry to disturb you I just wanted to ask for your neighbour from next door. 203, Y/n Y/ln. I'm her mom."

He rubbed opened his eyes sitting on his bed. "Yeah what about her?"

"Have you seen her recently? Is she alright?" The woman asked.

"I actually don't know her very well, but I did see her taking groceries this morning. She seemed pretty alright to me." He replied to which the woman sighed.

"Thank god. I was so much worried. She wasn't answering any of the texts or calls this month. I was so freaked out that I had to contact the apartment owner asking for the neighbour's contact. I actually can now guess why she did that. Thanks by the way and sorry to disturb you." The lady was about to hang up when Harrison interrupted.

"Ah, wait. I meant how can you guess when she didn't answer?"

"Oh that. It was her birthday last week and she kinda hates that day and doesn't like me talking about it, so that's the only reason I could think of her, ignoring me."

"Why? Ah--- Sorry for being nosy---"

"I don't mind. But to be honest she never talks about it so I too... Am unaware."

"Oh. Okay. Got it."

"Thanks." And she hung up.

Harrison kept his phone down and got up deciding to take a warm shower. After showering and scrolling his phone he noticed the call from earlier in his call logs.

How can someone hate their birthday? He asked himself. For Harrison birthdays were one of his best days in the whole year. A day when people didn't bother him for the mistakes he made or the unmade bed or his un-organized flat or messed up kitchen. A day when his friends and family spent quality time with him, even when it meant messing up with their own schedule. All this made him feel special! A little bit extra attention doesn't hurt, right? Damn, doesn't she like feeling special?

Maybe I could visit her. Yeah, I should. I have been living here with her next to me at least for 2 years. I should try to be more social outside my limited friend circle and family. Yeah, I should definitely visit her. Maybe we become good friends. Maybe she turns out to be an interesting person.... who doesn't like her birthday.

First meet then judge! He reminded himself, throwing a pair of blue jeans and a white t-shirt locking his flat.

••• He knocked at your door, waiting for a response. It isn't like you haven't ever met. You have and even talked but only for some important things, like the lift not working, not for 'just knowing each other' purpose.

"Hi!" You said opening the door.

"Hi!" He returned the gesture.

You waited for him to tell what he wanted, but he just smiled.

"Ah, is there anything I could do for you?" You finally asked.

No. I just thought of getting to know you.

"You-your mom called me." He said, unable to think of any right way to start a conversation and he thought he was an expert?!

"She why? Does she even know you?" You asked confused.

"Can I come in?" He asked producing a tight-lipped smile.

"Yeah sorry, I should have called you in." You gave him space to get in a little embarrassed of your ignorance.

"No mention." He said as you gave him a seat on the sofa. His eyes travelled to take a look at the whole flat seeing tons of make-up products organized on shelves and tables.

"Don't freak out, I actually own a beauty salon." You said following his gaze.

"That's great!"

"Why did my mom called you?" You enquired again.

"She was worried of you not answering her texts and calls so she searched for your neighbour's number. Who was me." He answers.

"Oh."

"But why didn't you answer?" He asked.

"I ah... Maybe... I don't remember." You fidgeted with your hands looking down.

"She said something about you hating your birthday to be the potential reason?! Is it true?" He raised his brows at you.

You raised your head to face him standing just near the sofa.

"I don't wanna sound harsh or rude, but I believe it's my life and hence it's none of your business?!" Your voice was calm, but it did sound a bit harsh. Telling people to 'mind their own business' always sounds rude, no matter whatever era we are living in. And he did seem offended or maybe hurt.

"Umm... Sorry." He stood up from the sofa. He was offended for sure. He ignored you and walked towards the door mumbling, "I just wanted to be friends!" And luckily you heard it.

"Friends?" You chuckled, more like produced a frustrated chuckle. He stopped and turned to look at you.

You continued, "I'm sorry for being rude. I shouldn't have said that."

"Why did you laugh at the mention of 'friends'?" He squinted his eyes a bit.

You took a breathe, "It is that friends are the real reason why I hate my birthday."

He didn't ask 'why' this time, remembering the minding business phrase. But his expressions were of curiosity and you could tell.

"You can sit. I'm sorry." You again apologized, but he didn't react.

"Pleeaasseee!" You pleaded and he shook his head at your ministration taking his previous seat and this time you joined him.

"I actually don't 'hate' hate my birthday.  It's just I'm jealous of other's who have reason to love this day." You said making him more confused, but he let you finish without interrupting."When I was younger I loved the day too. So many friends, so much fun. But as time passed they left me. As I passed high school, my school friends vanished. When I passed university, my college friends vanished. Then I realized they were my friends just because they had me to do their work. When they no more needed me I was discarded like rubbish. I stopped making friends all together. It isn't very pleasant to remind yourself of those fake pleasant memories. So I try to ignore this day and mom actually bugs me asking about how am I going to celebrate lab-lab-lab year birthday with my 'friends' who don't actually exist!" You finished giving an embarrassed smile.

"Sorry. I didn't know." He sympathized.

"Because we never actually talked earlier. But hey, do you want tea or coffee? I even have cookies and---"

"I have some work, gotta go!" He said getting up and left.

God, you must have hurt him. "For once someone genuinely wanted to be friends and I not only slipped the opportunity but also offended them!" You cursed yourself and plopped down on the couch rethinking your words, regretting them repeatedly.

••• You noticed the time. It had already been 2 hours Harrison had gone and you were lost in your thoughts. You decided to cook some dinner when you heard your doorbell. You opened the door to face the same gorgeous blue eyes again, hitting you again with a wave of repentance.

"I am really really so---"

"Keep the worries aside. Look here!" He pointed at his hands by shifting his gaze down.

He was holding a plate with a small sponge cake on top of it tucked with some candles. How ignorant of you to not notice it earlier. He fake coughed, shifting your attention from the cake towards him.

"Can I come in?" He asked the same question as earlier, again embarrassing warmth travelled to your cheeks as you welcomed him inside.

He set the cake on the table.

"So I guess you can bring in the cookies or any snacks you were talking about earlier. We can have a small party!"

"Wait. Party? For what?" You furrowed your eyebrows.

"Oh yeah. Happy Belated Birthday!" He cheered.

"I-- umm... said I don't like my birthday?!" You widened your eyes.

"But now you have a friend, sooo?" He raised a single eyebrow with a slight smirk.

"I-I this--you?" You couldn't make complete sentences, you had no idea how to reply.

"Oh wait I haven't introduced myself properly. I am Harrison Osterfield. Actor, adventurer, a really nice guy and the guy next door. Can we be friends?" He stretched his arm in your direction with a beautiful full mouth smile.

You glanced at his hand then at his face and then back to his hand. Warmth rushed to your heart which had the same effect as sunshine on a dark winter day. You accepted the gesture shaking his hand.

"Y/n Y/ln, Beautician and the girl next door. Friends!" You smiled.

And damn if he wasn't so nice and...

* * *

Taglist…

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[desdinovas]

untitled - part eleven

not my gif

pairing: ceo!tom x female reader

warnings: language

word count: 1.4K

notes: this is so short i’m sorry :/

series masterlist

add yourself to my taglist!

You woke up in the bright room and you realised you were by yourself. Thoughts started going through your head and you asked yourself if last night really happened. You felt like you had the best night ever and was waking up with no hangover.

You sat up slowly and looked around for the person you thought you had shared the bed with. He was nowhere to be seen. You pulled your shorts on and threw your hair into a ponytail before making your way slowly out to the hallway. That was where you saw many other bedroom doors and a large living area with the grand piano. Harry sat on the couch next to it with a video game controller in his hand. When he saw you and your looks he smirked and paused his game.

“Well, would you look who stayed the night last night."

You sighed with a small smile and rolled your eyes. “Not like that.”

"Yeah, but I saw Tom emerge out of the same door about thirty minutes ago to go have his quiet time outside, so," he pointed to the back porch and then turned back to you.

"Well, nothing like that happened. We just slept in the same bed." You confirmed and went over to the door. You saw Tom sitting outside reading a book and you smiled to yourself. "I don't want to disturb him."

"He's fine." Harry assured you. “Go ahead. I doubt he'll get upset if you come out there."

"Okay." You nodded and opened the door.

Tom turned around and smiled. “Mornin’."

"Morning." You laced your hand on his shoulder and rubbed it for a moment. “Sleep well?"

"I did." He replied with a sip of his coffee. "You?"

"I did too." You sat down at the couch next to him and looked out onto the backyard and the city. "This is beautiful."

"I know." He sighed and looked out himself. "That's why I enjoy it so much. And why I come out here every morning. I didn't want to wake you."

"It's okay." You assured him. “It was nice to sleep in a bit."

"What are you going to do now that you don't have to spend the day with me anymore?" He asked.

"What do you mean?" You tilted your head. "I'm finished with my paper but I can still be with you... right?"

"Well, of course, yeah." He said. "But you know, you were only supposed to be at work with me while you were also working. It might be kind of hard to concentrate with my girlfriend at the office with me three days a week." He paused, realising what he just said. "Not girlfriend, I mean- fuck, I’m sorry, I-”

You laughed and bit your lip. “Tom, it's fine.” You smiled at him and sighed, "I'll be your girlfriend."

He sighed and chuckled under his breath. “But do you know what you're getting yourself into here?"

"What does that mean?" You furrowed your eyebrows.

"(y/n), you see yourself, I'm a dick." He said seriously, "I'm arrogant. I like things my way. I keep things hidden. I-I'm something no one wants in a boyfriend. It's what they want in a one night stand."

You sighed and got up. He looked at you like he had no idea what was going on and you sat down on his lap with your arms around his neck. You pushed some of his curls away from his face and offered him a slow kiss on the lips. He backed off and looked at you in the eyes.

"I don't see arrogance." You told him. "I see a passion for perfection. And you may keep things hidden but I know more than I need to for right now. And every time I learn something new about you it's like a little present." You laughed.

He half smiled and ran his thumb along your chin. "You're so..."

"Childish." You nodded. "And goofy. I like to have a good time and you like to be serious. That's what makes this perfect, Tom. We balance."

He shifted his arms around and rested one on your thigh and the other on the small of your back. "Teach me how to be childish."

"Where do I even begin with?" You threw your head back with a laugh.

He smirked and your eyes continued to move over each other's faces. You felt like it was so long that you just sat with each other and weren't talking. You waited for the right moment and licked your lips. "I know something really stupid we could do."

"Which is?" He raised his eyebrows.

"We could go into your bedroom and close the door." You told him.

"Mmm." Came his all too normal response.

"And see what's happens from there?" You offered.

"I do like that idea. And it is very stupid." He said lowly.

"And tonight we're going to a club." You placed your hand on his chest. “And I'm gonna dance like a slut with you."

"I dislike the word slut." He reminded you.

You rolled your eyes. "Then I'm gonna dance suggestively with lots of alcohol in my system and then I'm gonna spend the night again here tonight. Sound good?"

"Sounds great." He replied and picked you up with him as he stood.

"You're all or nothing, aren't you?" You laughed and rolled your eyes at his antics.

He raised his eyebrows at you. "Always.”

-

You went home to change clothes and Tom promised he would pick you up at 8 so you could go dancing.

"So you made it official?" Lindsay sat with her chin resting in her hands as she watched you get dressed. She was laying on your bed listening and asking questions about your and Tom's last few days.

"We did make it official, yes.” You smiled at her and began to try on dresses to wear.

"Sealed it with?" She asked with her eyes wide.

"Last night a kiss on the lips." You teased, "and today with kisses everywhere else." You sighed happily.

"No fucking way." She yelled. "How is he?!" She jumped up and was sitting up on your bed intrigued.

"I don't even wanna talk about it." You shook your head. “He was so good." You lied, trying to supress your laugh.

"Really?" She sighed contently. “I'm so jealous."

"Why?" You laughed. “You always say Tyler is good."

"Tyler is good," she repeated with a nod. “But I doubt he's 'young, hot CEO and record producer' good. That's like another level of good."

"I'd have to agree." You pulled on a fairly classy black romper and red heels to match it. You curled your hair lightly and smoked out my your makeup to bring it to a night time status just before Tom knocked on the door.

"I got it!" Lindsay jumped for the door.

"Linds, no!" You called out and went to run to catch her. You were too late.

"Hi, Tom." She smiled at him.

"Hello, Lindsay." He smiled at her sweetly and looked at you. “Ready to go?" He looked you over, "I love that outfit."

"Thanks," you smiled at him and grabbed your favorite clutch and your phone.

"Did you two have a good time last night?" Lindsay pried even though you knew Tom wouldn't crack.

"Yes, yes we did." He kissed your cheek and took your hand. "I'm sure (y/n) will tell you the details when she feels appropriate. I'll leave it up to her." He raised his eyebrows.

"I'm sure she will." Lindsay winked at you both and smiled. “See you tomorrow, (y/n/n)."

"Bye, Linds. Go call Tyler!" You reminded her of her boyfriend and she gave you the finger before closing the door. "One of these days she'll get used to you, I promise." You laughed as you walked down the hallway.

"It's fine." Tom laughed too as you strolled. "She's just not used to seeing me as a normal person."

"Basically." You nodded.

“Why do I feel like you told her we had sex?” 

You chuckled, “because I did. Messing with her is always fun. You don’t mind, do you?”

He shrugged his shoulders. “Nah, you’re good.”

"So we're going out officially.” You changed the subject. “And this time I get to show you how much fun it really is to be twenty two.”

"Oh, really?" His eyes widened and he licked his lips while he took another look at you. "You really do look fantastic. I just hope the other guys get the idea that you're mine." He smirked.

Tom opened the car door for you and you giggled. “Trust me. They will."

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[sinkdraws]

I was tagged by the lovely @jackal-of-tartarus !

rules: post the rules, answer the questions given to you by the tagger, write 11 questions of your own, and tag 11 people.  

1.How do you feel about oatmeal cookies?

*insert harrison ford* evil

2. Which cartoon/tv show makes you feel nostalgic?

Avatar the Last Airbender for sure. I grew up watching it on NickToons

3. Do you have a pet? Tell me about ‘em! (And if you don’t tell me a pet you’d like to have)

I have two pets! They’re chihuahuas tho i don’t think one of them is a pure chihuahua she has to be a mix. the only way she looks like a chihuahua is with her ears. Her name is Emma and she is super duper friendly and loves everyone and sleeps with me at night bc she loves my bed a lot. The other one Peanut, he’s a teacup, he is the devil incarnate. He’s the reason I can’t have people over. Pretty sure I saw my boyfriend try to kick him once bc he wouldn’t stop barking and trying to bite his feet.

4. Dumbest thing you’ve seen a friend do?

Be themselves. In public.

5.Which anime character would you defend in any argument no matter what?

Juvia Lockser from Fairy Tail even though I don’t really like Fairy Tail anymore. I will fight you over my water queen /always/

6.Do you believe in cryptids?

Like bigfoot or the people I call cryptids cuz they never leave their house? To both of them, no. 

7. Tell me about that kid you hated when you were 12.

Oh man there was this guy in my Texas History Class (yes we did have to take that 7th grade unfortunately) who kept saying “I’m democratic bc I’m black” but proceeded to tell me about how women shouldn’t have any rights and that only a man should be in office and how poor people suck. Also about how I’m a heathen for not going to church and I was going to burn in hell. Someone needs to whoop his ass.

8.What’s your opinion on pineapple on pizza?

*insert harrison ford* evil

9. Dark, milk or white chocolate?

MILK MILK MILK MILK MILK

10. Who’s your favourite superhero?

Spooderman spooderman does whatever a spooder can

11.Tell me something cool about yourself!

My favorite color is purple but not bc I think it’s pretty but because I think that it’s great for shading everything

Alrighty then! Time for my questions.

1. What college do you want to go to if any? And if you are in college, where at? (If you feel uncomfortable sharing with the world your location, maybe give a general location like “New York” or “somewhere in England”) And if you did go to college, where did you go?

2. Biggest basic fear?

3. If you could change your eye color, would you? And to what color?

4. Which looks cooler: Favorite or Favourite? 

5. Do you still live in your childhood home?

6. If you could have a different first language, what would it be? 

7. Favorite reaction gif?

8. Favorite mode of transportation (plane, train, or boat)?

9. If you could change your first name, what would you want it to be?

10. What’s one talent you wish you had?

11. Ever been kicked out of class?

Oh man I don’t think I know 11 people. uhhh @gravity-chan @amethyst1995-20xx @tsukiyas @quirquay and uhhh anyone else who wants to be tagged let me know

[sassycassie-s-series]

All My Fault 32

By: SassyShoulderAngel319

Fandom/Character(s): DC, BatFam - Damian Wayne/Batman

Rating: PG-11/T- (for implied mature themes but nothing explicit)

Notes: (Masterlist) This story is so long. It really got away from me and got out of hand but... heck I still dig it! Also I’m aware this has taken forever to update, please don’t be mad at me.

Tag List (Open): @batboys-and-other-messes @welovegroot @probsjosh  @spooder-moon @lostredrobin @haylo4ever @na-n-na @rachelmorganroth  @reclusive-chicken-nugget

Ch 1, Ch 2, Ch 3, Ch 4, Ch 5, Ch 6, Ch 7, Ch 8, Ch 9, Ch 10, Ch 11, Ch 12, Ch 13, Ch 14, Ch 15, Ch 16, Ch 17, Ch 18, Ch 19, Ch 20, Ch 21, Ch 22, Ch 23, Ch 24, Ch 25, Ch 26, Ch 27, Ch 28, Ch 29, Ch 30, Ch 31

^^^^^

I got swamped in a Superboy hug the second I entered the parlor. “Cloudy!” Jon exclaimed. “I can’t believe you’re alive! How come you still look the same as how I remember you? Shouldn’t you be older? How long have you been home without telling me? How come you never said anything? What’s really going on between you and Damian? What—”

“Kent!” Damian protested. “If you could shut your trap long enough for either of us to explain anything, that would be helpful.”

“Damian, play nice,” I said, giving Jon a hug back. “We’ll explain everything, Jon. Just settle down a little, okay?”

“Okay. Sorry,” Jon said.

The three of us sat down and Damian and I explained how I ended up in the future without aging after going missing for eight years. I laughed when he said that his parents hadn’t told him I was back even though his mom interviewed me—as Cloudburst—and his dad had Tweeted me when it was first discovered I was alive. “They probably thought you already knew,” I reasoned. “It’s not their fault you never check your social media.”

“Mm. Yeah probably,” Jon agreed sullenly.

Explaining that Damian and I had fallen in love with each other was a little more complicated, but after a lot of awkward silences and searching for words, we managed it. “But you can’t tell anyone,” I added at the end. “At least. Not yet. Just… don’t say anything about it. Please, Jon?”

“Can I talk to Richard about it?” Jon asked.

“No,” Damian and I said at the same time.

“Why not?”

“Because given half a chance he’d tell the entire Justice League about it. We don’t need anyone encouraging him,” Damian said.

“Why don’t you call him Dick?” I asked Jon, not meaning to change the subject exactly but genuinely curious.

Jon refused to meet my eyes. “Because it’s a bad word,” he mumbled.

I giggled. “Jonny, please never change,” I said.

Damian pinched the bridge of his nose. “Kent, you’re eighteen,” he said.

Jon pointed at me. “She’s twenty-one and she doesn’t swear!”

“Fair point,” I said, giving Damian a look. “But Jon, you still can’t say anything until we… go public about it, okay?”

“Ooh! Like a secret romance!” Jon said quietly.

“Yeah!” I agreed with a smile.

“Something like that,” Damian said, still pinching the bridge of his nose in exasperation.

^^^^^

“Dick!” Jason hissed, hurtling around the doorframe and into Dick’s room. “Dick guess what?”

“What?” Dick asked, looking up from his phone.

“Cloudy and Damian—”

“Got it on? Did the dirty? Had some hanky-panky? Whatever euphemism you’re gonna use, I already know,” Dick said with a smile.

“How did you find out?”

“I heard shouting from Damian’s room and went to make sure nothing bad was happening and apparently Jon had snuck in through Damian’s window to ask him about something and found them lying naked in bed together. Which they still were when I got in there,” Dick said. “How did you figure it out?”

“I found Cloudy sneaking back into her room wearing the same clothes as yesterday and her hair was messier than usual. She said she passed out in the game room but I went in there after patrol this morning and she wasn’t there.”

Dick laughed. “I can’t believe it worked. And Bruce and Alfred thought a sleepover in Metropolis for that shareholders meeting or whatever was a waste of time,” he said. “BUT the two of them have sworn me to silence.”

“Yeah Cloudy practically begged me not to tell anyone,” Jason agreed.

“So we’re telling Cass and Tim right? Because they’re in on our little plot?”

“Absolutely.”

“Alfred will probably figure it out in two seconds, but let’s pray Bruce never finds out,” Dick said. “Because if he finds out…”

“He’ll kill them both. Twice,” Jason said.

“I wouldn’t go that far, but he might undo all our fine work of getting them alone all the time.”

“What do you mean? You don’t think he’d kick Cloudy out of the house, do you?”

“No. No. He wouldn’t kick Cloudy out. But that doesn’t mean he wouldn’t forbid them from ever being alone together ever again while they both live in this house,” Dick said.

“And if they really love each other, one or both of them would move out immediately,” Jason mused.

“Yeah probably,” Dick agreed, chewing on his lower lip. “We gotta make sure B doesn’t find out for a while.”

“When’ll he be back from Metropolis?”

“Tomorrow, I think. It was a business trip. Something about boring board meetings at the Daily Planet.”

“So we have that long to make sure he doesn’t find out,” Jason said.

“Yup.”

“Then I guess we have some work to do.”

“Guess so,” Dick agreed.

^^^^^

“Maybe it’d be better if we just… never said anything,” I said to Damian and Jon, winding the end of my braid around my fingers.

Damian gave me an appalled look. “That was one of the best nights of my entire life and you wish to pretend it never happened?”

I sighed, refusing to meet his eyes and instead looking at my knees. “Just… just for a while. Just until we decide… what to do. Your father would kill me—and then you—and then me again if he knew what happened.”

“I assume he will walk into the house and immediately realize. He was called the greatest detective in the world for a reason,” Damian said.

I rubbed my temples. “I know. But… what else can we do?”

“Uh, guys? I feel like I shouldn’t be here for this talk,” Jon said, raising a hand like an awkward schoolboy trying to make a comment in class with a teacher he was scared of. “Really. I just came to get Damian’s help on something I’ve been following in Metropolis. You two should really talk about this in private when I'm not here.”

Damian sighed. “Fine. Come with me to the Batcave, Kent. We’ll discuss there. McCl—Nora, would you care to accompany us?”

“No, I uh, I’m going to go have a word with Dick. And maybe Jason. I’ll see you later. Good luck on your case, Jonny.”

“Thanks Cloudy,” Jon said, giving me a hug as we all stood up and left the parlor.

I climbed the stairs to Dick’s room and knocked on the door.

“Who is it?!” Dick called.

“Cloudy,” I replied.

“C’mon in!” Jason’s voice said.

I opened the door and shut it behind me. “Fantastic. Two birds with one stone. Almost literally,” I said quietly. Both of them glanced up at me. The streak of white in Jason’s hair was lit up a pale blue in the light of his laptop screen. Dick was on his bed and Jason at the desk. They both looked interested.

“I think I know what you’re going to say, Cloudy,” Dick said. I cocked an eyebrow.

“Oh yeah?” I challenged.

“Yeah. You’re going to order us not to tell anyone,” Dick continued, unperturbed.

“And we won’t,” Jason added.

“Except Tim and Cass,” Dick amended.

“What?! No!” I shrieked. “Listen, if every child in this family knows, then it’s just a matter of time before Bruce finds out and kills me, and then Damian, and then me again and then—”

“Nora! Relax,” Jason protested. He used my real name so I knew he was serious. “Big bird and I are taking care of it as we speak.”

“Huh?” I asked eloquently.

“Girl. Seriously? We’ve been trying to get you and Damian together since you got here and he pulled off his body armor and you stared at him!” Dick exclaimed. “Tim and Cass are in on it too! Why do you think we all convinced Alfred to force Damian into monitor duty for the night when you were taking the night off? His knee injury wasn’t even a pulled muscle. Two ibuprofens and he would have been fine for the night. But no. We wanted you to be alone together. We didn’t need backup at all. And hey, it worked.”

My face went slack the longer Dick talked. “Yeah but what do you mean you’re taking care of it?”

“There’s hallway footage of you two, er, kissing rather passionately that I'm currently erasing and replacing with earlier instances of you two going to your own rooms and then you sneaking out of his room this morning is also being erased and replaced with a couple seconds of nothingness until you came out of your own room all showered and dressed,” Jason said.

“Why?”

“Because we don’t want B to find out yet either,” Dick said.

“Why?”

Jason shrugged. “We don’t want either of you to move out yet and we figured one of you would if Bruce found out. Probably you.”

That was a fair point. “So… you’re not going to tell anyone?”

“Except Tim and Cass,” Dick said distractedly.

“No!” I protested. “No one!”

“We’ll keep the details secret if it means that much to you,” Jason said. “We’ll just say that you two finally admitted your feelings for each other or something.”

I sighed and put my hand on Jason’s shoulder. “Thank you. Seriously. Thank you.”

He smiled at me. “You’re welcome, Cloudy,” he said, reaching up and patting my back. “Can’t guarantee Tim won’t figure it out but—”

“But at least you’d have done your part,” I finished.

“Something like that,” Jason agreed.

I nodded—and then bit my lip. “Jay, can I ask you a question and have you give me a square answer?”

Jason pursed his lips. “I'm really more of a triangle guy but sure,” he said. I smacked him lightly upside the head. Nothing too painful. “Ow, hey!”

I looked him dead in the face. “What should I do?”

“Kid, that’s not a question I can be objective about. You know that,” Jason said. “I love you, Cloudy. You’re exactly the sister I would have loved to have my entire life but I only got you for a couple years. I want to protect you as much as I can but at the same time I want you to be happy.”

“How come you’re not asking me?” Dick asked.

“Because I already know your answer, Richard,” I said seriously. “Something corny about following my heart or doing what makes me happy. Plus I know you saw Damian as more of a son than a brother when you were both younger and I know you want him to be happy.”

Dick grumbled under his breath—something about me making a good point. I turned my attention back to Jason, eyebrows raised expectantly.

He sighed. “Cloudy: do what you want. Are you, like, actually legitimately in love with Damian?”

I chewed my lower lip for a moment. “Yeah,” I said.

“Then, heck, Clouds, date him!” Jason said. “Do what you want and what makes you happy. We both know if he’s ever less than respectful of you that you could kick his butt.” He used heck the way I believed it was originally intended to be used—like he couldn’t decide which curse word to use and ended up combining them. “Look, if you wanna be with him, then just do it. It’ll be a lot easier on all of us if you did anyway.”

I cocked my eyebrow again. “How so?”

“I swear every longing look you two threw at each other across the cave when you thought the other wasn’t looking was going to take a year-and-a-half off my lifespan.”

“He’s not alone,” Dick added. “I noticed too.”

I grunted. “Mm. Thanks,” I muttered.

“No problem. Now rest assured that everything is fine here and we’re taking care of ensuring Bruce doesn’t find out and go be with Damian if you want,” Jason said, giving me a smile. He shook his head. “I can’t believe I'm condoning anyone I'm close to being in a relationship with the little gremlin but…” He shrugged.

I ruffled his hair. “Thanks, Jay.” I looked over at Dick. “And thanks Dick, too. Both of you. For… everything, I guess.”

Dick chuckled. “That’s what brothers are for, right?” he asked.

“Sure,” I said. “See you later.” I ducked out of Dick’s room.

“See ya!” Dick and Jason chorused as I shut the door.

---

Next

[sassycassie-s-series]

All My Fault 28

By: SassyShoulderAngel319

Fandom/Character(s): DC, BatFam - Damian Wayne/Batman

Rating: PG/K+

Notes: (Masterlist) This has been a long time coming but thanks to @i-sttan I’m going to put up a lot of updates in quick succession because I keep forgetting to post them ‘XD (Sorry...)

Tag List (Open): @batboys-and-other-messes @haylo4ever @lostredrobin @na-n-na @probsjosh @rachelmorganroth @spooder-moon @welovegroot

Ch 1, Ch 2, Ch 3, Ch 4, Ch 5, Ch 6, Ch 7, Ch 8, Ch 9, Ch 10, Ch 11, Ch 12, Ch 13, Ch 14, Ch 15, Ch 16, Ch 17, Ch 18, Ch 19, Ch 20, Ch 21, Ch 22, Ch 23, Ch 24, Ch 25, Ch 26, Ch 27

^^^^^

I glanced over my shoulder at Damian from across the Batcave to see him already looking at me over his shoulder. Our eyes met and after a moment we both seemed to realize that we were staring at each other and we quickly looked away, returning to our tasks in almost perfect sync. I noticed Dick look between us off to the side, like the movement caught his attention. It was an unusually quiet morning in the Batcave where everyone was doing projects more than training.

I shook my head to clear it—and to get the soft look on Damian’s face out of my mind’s eye—and went back to my research. I’d been brought up to speed on the Time Bombs enough that I could help the rest of the Bat-Family look for an origin point or any sort of clues.

It was boring, tedious work. I wasn’t interested in it and having a really hard time focusing. I kept tapping my foot and bouncing my leg under the table and drumming my fingers to no set rhythm and completely failing to accomplish anything.

I shot another quick peek at Damian. He appeared to be sharpening a batarang or his sword or something I couldn’t see very well. His shirt was a tad too small and it was stretched across his shoulders. That can’t be comfortable… I thought distractedly before nearly whacking myself in the face with the tablet I was holding. I really needed to pay attention to what I was doing. Why was I having such a hard time concentrating?

I got up and turned my tablet off. I went over to the training mat, stretched out, and started to do an escrima stick drill Dick had taught me. I was just trying to burn off some energy.

I didn’t cry out or make any typical noises the expel all the air from my lungs the way I normally would if I was actually training—because loud “Hyah!”s were meant to get all the air out of my lungs so that it was harder to knock the wind out of me—because I was just moving around, not hitting anything.

Instead, I slashed the practice escrima sticks through the air silently, twisting around as though fighting several enemies at once.

The sticks I was using collided with something else.

Damian’s wooden training sword. He smirked at me. “Do you think you can handle this?” he asked, tone bordering on playful.

I smirked at him in return. “Probably not. Only one way to find out,” I said.

We sparred. I knew Damian was going easy on me. He was an incredible swordsman and Tim and Dick had already beaten the snot out of me while I practiced with escrima sticks since I was so unused to them, but I was holding my own against Damian better than I thought. Which meant he was going easy. Or I was actually improving my skills fighting with Dick’s favored weapons. That didn’t seem as likely.

That wasn’t to say I didn’t get smacked a couple times with a wooden sword blade, but not as much as I got whacked by Tim’s staff or Dick’s escrima sticks.

We slammed to a stalemate, both of my escrima sticks holding back his sword. We panted for a moment, staring at each other over and around our weapons. Damian was smirking playfully. “Are you handling this?” he asked.

I grinned. “Yup,” I said. I locked one leg around his knee and yanked, pushing him to the ground and landing on top of him, my face knocking against his chest. Our weapons clattered out of our hands. I put my hands on his shoulders and pushed my face out of his chest. We laughed breathlessly. “You okay?”

Damian nodded. “I'm alright. Are you?”

“Yeah I'm good,” I said. His eyes were really green in the half-light of the Batcave. They had a glitter in them that I hadn’t seen before—a glitter of humor.

He chuckled. “Good.” He caught me and rolled so he was on top of me, grabbing his wooden sword and holding it to my neck. “How about now?”

I snorted, looped my right leg around his left leg and grabbed his left arm with both of mine.  I thrust my hips up and rolled to my right, knocking him off of me. “Ha!” I crowed triumphantly. “I can’t believe you fell for that one. Oldest trick I learned before I became Cloudburst.” I laughed as I got back to my feet, scooping up my escrima sticks.

“I'm playing fair,” Damian teased.

“You never play fair. That’s kinda the point, right?” I said. We clashed again. Loud clacks echoed through the cave as we sparred. Damian smirked and I snickered. He was definitely going easy on me. I could feel him holding back.

“Scared of me, Wayne?” I teased, ducking under a slash.

“Tt. You wish, McCloud,” he retorted. We both laughed.

^^^^^

“AAHH!” I shrieked, sitting up in bed, panting and looking around wildly. I clutched my covers to my chest and tried to steady my breathing. Panting and heart racing, I blinked rapidly.

My door opened. “Are you alright?” Damian asked, looking concerned but not frightened.

“Bad—bad dream,” I managed to get out. “It, uh, it… it hurt.”

Damian crossed my room, leaving the door open, and sat on my bed next to me. Silently, he opened his arms to me. I slipped out from under my covers and hugged him around the shoulders, burying my face in the curve where his neck met his shoulder. One of his arms wrapped around my back and the other scooped my legs up. He pulled me onto his lap and stroked my hair. “It’s alright. You’re safe. I'm here. I won’t let anything happen to you,” he said. I sniffed.

“Promise?” I mumbled.

“Of course,” he replied, squeezing me tighter.

I nodded. “Thanks,” I said.

We sat in silence for several minutes. I could feel his heartbeat against my own chest. His skin was warm and smooth under my chilly hands—except for the scars I could feel. My right hand found one on his back and began to trace around the outside edge of it, the motion soothing my heartrate.

“Do you wish to tell me what you dreamt of?” he asked quietly.

I shook my head. “No,” I said. “But I… I will anyway.”

“No. No. McCloud, if you aren’t comfortable discussing it, I am not going to—”

“Damian,” I interrupted. “I need to get it out.”

He paused and leaned back enough to look me in the face. “Are you certain?”

“Yeah,” I said.

He held me close again. “Alright. But only tell me what you’re ready to say.”

I nodded into his trapezius muscle. “Right,” I mumbled. “I, uh, I was underwater. In Gotham harbor, I think. Like that time we were fighting a gang and I got knocked off the docks. Do you remember that?”

“Of course. It was only a month before the Time Bombs attacked your past.”

“Yeah. And it was dark and I could barely breathe and I could hear scary maniacal laughter. It was less Joker and more Scarecrow and it chilled me right to the bone. And then the dream jumped and I was fighting some bad guys in an alley but I’d forgotten my suit and I was literally in my bra and underwear and that was it and the bad guys were laughing at me. And then the dream jumped again and I was… I was…”

Damian brushed my hair out of my face. “It’s alright. If you don’t want to tell me, don’t.”

“No, no. It’s… it’s okay. The dream jumped and I was fighting you, Jason, Dick, Tim, and Bruce. All by myself. You were all shouting, telling me I had no place in this family anymore and I was no longer welcome to be Cloudburst. Someone was telling me to hand in my suit and then Dick pushed me off the docks and I was back in the water and it was cold and I couldn’t swim back to the surface no matter how hard I tried and then—and then I woke up.”

“McCloud. I assure you that no one in this family is ever going to kick you out. You belong here and Cloudburst is part of you. This family…” He paused. His fingers tightened their grip in a handful of my hair. “This family… loves you, Mc—Nora.”

“Thanks Damian,” I said. I smiled a bit at McNora.

There was another stretch of silence, during which I heard rain falling and a crack of thunder.

“Would… would you like me to stay here until you return to sleep?” Damian asked.

I thought for a long moment, just breathing in his scent. It was musky, but his aftershave had a spicy kick to it.

“Mmhmm,” I mumbled into his shoulder.

I felt more than heard his sigh. “Okay. I’ll be right here,” he promised. He cradled me to his chest and rocked me back and forth, lowly singing a melodic, pleasant song in what I knew was Arabic. I didn’t understand Arabic at all but I could recognize it when I heard it since Damian tended to rant in Arabic when he was frustrated or just simply speak in it some mornings when he was too tired to think about what language he was speaking in.

The tune must have been some sort of lullaby. It was short and it sounded soothing. I could tell he was repeating it over and over because I started to recognize the tune. He rocked me to the rhythm, slowly back and forth, lulling me to sleep.

I closed my eyes and listened, concentrating on the tune. Damian had a nice voice—it vaguely occurred to me that I’d never really heard him sing before and had never heard him sing in this future. But he carried the tune well and I couldn’t keep the smile off my face. He sounded so captivating. Like I could listen to his lullaby forever.

“‘S pretty,” I mumbled.

“Mm… my mother used to sing it,” he replied softly. “I'm here, habibi. I'm here.”

“You know I don’t know what that means,” I said.

“What, ‘habibi’?” Damian asked.

“Mmhmm.”

I heard a little snicker. “It’s nothing to worry about. It’s a compliment.”

“Mkay.”

“Try and go back to sleep. I’m right here. I’ll keep you safe.” He returned to his lullaby, rocking me back and forth. “Everything is alright. This family loves you and everything will be alright.”

“Mmm… Damian?”

“Yes?”

“Thank you.”

“Of course,” he whispered into my hair. “Now try to sleep.”

“Hmm… mkay…”

———

Next

[sassycassie-s-series]

All My Fault 29

By: SassyShoulderAngel319

Fandom/Character(s): DC, BatFam - Damian Wayne/Batman

Rating: PG/K+

Notes: (Masterlist) Holy cow I intend to have fun with these quick updates. Love y’all!

Tag List (Open): @batboys-and-other-messes @haylo4ever @lostredrobin @na-n-na @probsjosh @spooder-moon @welovegroot

Ch 1, Ch 2, Ch 3, Ch 4, Ch 5, Ch 6, Ch 7, Ch 8, Ch 9, Ch 10, Ch 11, Ch 12, Ch 13, Ch 14, Ch 15, Ch 16, Ch 17, Ch 18, Ch 19, Ch 20, Ch 21, Ch 22, Ch 23, Ch 24, Ch 25, Ch 26, Ch 27, Ch 28

^^^^^

“—then Abigail just tripped over her little shoes and went tumbling down the hill!” Lily exclaimed, clutching at her chest. “Thankfully it was just a tiny little hill and she’s tough as nails what with her older brother picking on her all the time but I was so worried!”

The rest of my high school friends all murmured agreements around the table.

They’d been talking about nothing but their kids for nearly an hour.

And I understood that, don’t get me wrong, but it wasn’t helping me feel better about being trapped in the future. I felt guilty that I hadn’t been there for all of this. That I had less life experience than they did. I knew that they didn’t hold it against me—it wasn’t my fault—but part of me wished I’d refused Damian’s offer to bring me to the future to say goodbye to Dick, Jason, Tim, and Bruce so that I’d (hopefully) still be there for my friends.

I was relieved, though, that they were talking about their kids because it meant they weren’t asking me questions about what happened to me. Questions I’d have to lie about.

So I listened. And I laughed. And I listened more. I got to know their kids through their words.

The thing about my friends from high school was we had all been loyal to each other no matter what. I didn’t feel a single condescending vibe from any of them that I was still practically a child to them after they all grew up and had kids and got married. The one that got her doctorate, Sasha, was out-of-state working so she couldn’t make it to lunch.

I looked around. The women around me were women. They weren’t the girls I played Dungeons and Dragons with in Breanne’s basement. They were still my friends and I knew they still loved me but I could sense a bit of our dynamic being thrown off. Sasha and Breanne were the only ones in the group older than me back when everything about ages made sense, but I’d always been the responsible one of the group. Now I was surrounded by responsible mothers who were all older than me. Leaving me the youngest again by a huge margin.

“Y’alright, Nor-nor?” Amy, who had been my absolute best friend since I was a very young child, asked.

I nodded. “Fine. Just… just thinking,” I said.

“About?” Kaitlin pressed.

“Everything’s changed. I missed so much. I'm listening to all this and I wasn’t here for any of it and this isn’t right!” My eyes started to well up. I blinked tears out of my vision, letting them fall down my cheeks and wiping them off impatiently. “I was supposed to be here for this. I was supposed to be your kids’ fun aunt who spoiled them rotten. The way we used to dream about, remember? It wasn’t supposed to be like this.”

“Oh sweetie!” Kaitlin exclaimed, wrapping her arms around me and putting her chin on top of my head. “We still love you. We don’t blame you for anything that happened. None of this is your fault.”

I sniffed. “I know,” I said. It wasn’t my fault. It wasn’t Damian’s either. It was those stupid Time Bombs’ fault for trapping me in the future by shutting the timeways. “I just… feel like I failed you guys.”

“Nora Jaqueline McCloud!” I heard several of my friends all say together.

I forgot they knew my middle name.

“Don’t you dare say that!” Kaitlin ordered. “You didn’t fail any of us. You had no control over what happened. And look. You’re here now. So none of it matters, you hear?” She grabbed my shoulders and made me look at her. “You’re still an honorary godmother to both June and Matthew—” Her two kids. “—so I don’t want to hear you saying you don’t belong among us anymore, okay?”

Spoken like a true mother. “Okay,” I said.

She hugged me again. “Good. Because we’re your friends and you’re our friend—no matter how much younger than us you are now.”

“Thanks Kat.”

“Of course, Nor-nor.”

The waiter came and brought back our bill receipts—that we’d all requested separately, heaven help the wait-staff—and quietly approached me. “Pardon me, miss,” he said, softly so none of my friends (who had gone back to talking about their kids) could hear him.

“Hmm?” I asked.

“I believe you tipped wrong,” he said, opening the folder that had my receipt and the cash I’d put in for a tip in it.

I glanced down. “No. No I meant to do that,” I said, noting that nothing was missing.

“Miss, that’s a one-thousand-percent tip,” he said.

I nodded. “I know. I also know that the waiters pool their tips at the end of the day and distribute it as evenly as they can. Waiting staffs don’t get nearly enough to live on anyway so I always give what I can. And my lunch wasn’t very expensive so I felt like I ought to tip high because of all the trouble you went to in order to serve me.”

“Miss—”

“Don’t worry, kid,” I said, noting that the waiter was definitely younger than me. “It’s not that big a deal on my end. Please just accept it and leave it.”

“Uh—of course,” he said. “Here’s your card and your receipt.”

I accepted both. “Thank you!” I said brightly, putting both in my wallet. The waiter left.

“What was that about?” Amy asked.

I shrugged. “I did something nice,” I said.

She tilted her head. “How much did you tip?”

“Musta been hefty if he tried to stop her,” Breanne reasoned.

“C’mon, Nor-nor,” Kaitlin prompted. “How much?”

“A hundred and fifty dollars,” I said.

Eyebrows went up. “You gave a hundred-fifty-dollar tip on a fifteen-dollar lunch?” Lily asked.

“Yeah.”

“That’s one-thousand-percent!” Amy said.

“Mmhmm,” I said. “Listen. Wait-staffs are criminally overworked and underpaid. They deal with a lot of crappy customers and I do what I can when I can.”

My friends all smiled and passed around words of agreement. I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned.

Damian stood there. “Sorry to interrupt,” he said. “I’ll be waiting right outside in the car.”

“Be right out,” I said. “We’re just finishing up.”

He nodded and slipped through the restaurant before disappearing.

“Who was that?” Lily demanded once Damian was gone.

“Damian,” I said. “My godfather’s son.” I didn’t like to say Wayne out loud because it always attracted attention.

“That’s Damian Wayne? He grew up into quite a looker, didn’t he?” Lily said.

“Mmhmm!” Kaitlin agreed. “How old is he now?”

“Uh… he’s my age. Or… I guess… I'm his age. Now. Twenty-one. We’re both twenty-one,” I said.

My friends all shared playful looks I recognized—mostly on my brothers.

“So. When’s the wedding?” Kaitlin teased.

“I beg your pardon?” I asked.

“C’mon, McCloud!” Amy joked. “He was totally diggin’ you! And you were totally diggin’ him!”

“He literally said he was waiting for me outside,” I said. “He gave me a ride here while he went to a meeting and he’s my ride home.”

“Right—because he totally didn’t glance over his shoulder at you several times while he was leaving. Nor did you follow him with your eyes till he was out the door,” Amy continued.

“Guys. Damian and I… it’s not like that. And it’s more complicated than that.”

“So un-complicate it, Nor-nor,” Kaitlin said.

“Thanks for meeting me for lunch, guys, really,” I said, getting to my feet and grabbing my purse and sweater. “I had a great time. Let me know when you can do it again. I'm glad we got to do this.” I went around the table and gave them quick hugs before heading out the door. They knew me. They wouldn’t be offended that I didn’t stick around for their teasing.

Out in the parking lot, I caught sight of Damian’s nice Audi.

Mostly because Damian was leaning against the side of the front with his arms folded in a smedium green T-shirt that was just a tad too tight for his muscles. “Afternoon,” he greeted, pushing off the side of his car without the use of his arms and opening my door for me.

“Hi,” I replied as I ducked into his car. He shut the door behind me and circled around to get in the driver’s seat. “You know I could have driven myself.”

“Tt. Yes, but Todd isn’t the only one who enjoys driving with you.”

“I think you guys all like to see how nervous I get when y’all do reckless stuff like take corners too tight,” I joked.

“Or we just enjoy your company,” Damian reasoned.

I ducked my head awkwardly. “Thanks,” I mumbled. I shook my head. “You have impeccable timing, by the way. Did you bug my purse or something?”

“Tt. Didn’t need to. You left your spare comm-link in it.”

I sighed in frustration. “Of course I did,” I muttered. Damian chuckled. Neither of us brought up the fact that he must have, then, heard what my friends said about him—and him and me—after he left. But I could tell he was thinking about it too because we both shot each other tiny little peeks out of the corners of our eyes.

In those peeks was a silent agreement not to mention it.

^^^^^

“Damian? Damian! Damian?!” I called, bolting up the stairs and out of the Batcave, rushing around the mansion looking for him. I ignored the fact that I was still in my Cloudburst suit in the open. I needed to find Damian. Immediately. “DAMIAN!”

“You okay Cloudy?” Dick asked as I crossed into the main parlor.

“Where’s Damian?” I demanded.

Dick shrugged. “Haven’t seen him, kiddo. Sorry.”

I ran out of the parlor. “DAAAMMMIIIAAANNN!”

Strong hands caught my shoulders. “McCloud! What’s the matter?” the Batman in question demanded, pushing me just enough away from him to see my face.

I lifted my hands and put them both on the sides of his face, just to make sure it was really him.

Then I realized what I was doing and dropped them. “I, uh, I just had a really bad feeling that something was going to happen to you,” I said.

Damian scrunched his eyebrows. “Why? Who threatened me?” he asked.

I cleared my throat. “Scare—Scarecrow,” I said. “I was out on patrol and we got into a fight. I didn’t even know he was out of Arkham. He said…” I took a deep, shuddering breath. “He said that I better enjoy my time patrolling with you while it lasted because it wouldn’t last much longer. That soon one of us would be too afraid to even set foot on Gotham’s streets again, and he didn’t think it was going to be me. I knocked him out and rushed home to make sure he hadn’t come to inject you with his toxin or anything.”

Damian pushed my hair out of my face after I was done frantically explaining. “McCloud. It’s alright. I'm fine. Crane was just trying to frighten you and get under your skin. Don’t let him,” he said softly. He caught a few stray strands of hair and tucked them behind my ear. “Are you alright now? Crane doesn’t know who I am under the cowl. He can’t hurt me as Damian Wayne.” A small smirk pulled up his lips. “H*&%, he can barely hurt me as Batman when he’s lucky.” He pulled me into a hug. “It’s alright, Cloudburst. Everything is fine.” He put his hand on the back of my head. “Go shower and change. You’ll feel better after some sleep.”

“Right. Thanks. ‘Night Damian.”

“Goodnight, McCloud.”

———

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