#canon card i just pulled and upgraded

[kanna-kizuchi-enjoyer]

I think they do lesbianings together which is fine

[abitohoney]

Hustle - CH5: Rewards

AO3 link

CH1 || CH2 || CH3 || CH4 || CH5

Sevika x female reader

Rating: Explicit, MDNI, NSFW

Tags: Sevika/Reader, Ran & Reader, Established Relationship, assassin reader, Fluff, Smut, Porn with Feelings, Porn With Plot, horny idiots in love, Dom/sub, Dom Sevika, sub Reader, Humor, Banter, Choking, Spanking, Teasing, Light Sadism, Begging, Strap-Ons, Lesbian Sex, Aftercare, Gambling, Smoking, lack of understanding card games, totally winging this shit, Canon-Typical Violence, Blood, Praise Kink, Vaginal Fingering, Semi-Public Sex, Rough Sex, Hair-pulling, reader is not the most graceful creature, but Sevika adores reader all the more for it, Jealousy, Marking, Orgasm Delay, Cunnilingus, Multiple Orgasms, Hurt/Comfort, a Yordle OC that we will likely never see again but I had entirely too much fun writing, 69 (Sex Position)

Word Count: 9.4k

Summary: Looking to make your nights with Sevika a bit more… exciting, you suggest making use of your shared talent for playing cards. Together, the two of you take the Undercity, and even Topside, by storm. And what’s more exciting than the thrill of winning, or watching your opponents whine and gripe in defeat, or earning far more coin than the two of you could possibly spend? The release of pent-up sexual desire that seems to come with each and every win, that’s what.

AN: This is already in process over on AO3.

With more coin than either you or Sevika knew what to do with, you had spent the several weeks following the Piltover tournament working with the Undercity's most prominent chemtech and augmentation specialist. The same one that had done her old model. You had managed to meet with the man several times without Sevika's knowing, discussing all the upgrades you wanted to include in the design of her new arm.

As you led Sevika down the catwalk that led to the shop, you could sense her weariness, which only served to put you even more on edge. Though you were confident the arm would in fact be an improvement, you weren't so sure Sevika- or more specifically, her pride- would be so accepting of your help.

The bright, neon sign came into view and you anxiously glanced up at Sevika’s expression. She seemed to realize what was going on the moment she read the sign, her gaze dropping to yours, but her face remained stoic, unreadable.

You pushed open the iron door, the sound of the bell chiming above barely audible over the noise of machinery running in the back.

Sevika followed you to the wall of cabinets that separated the main part of the store from the actual workshop. Her gaze roamed over the various parts, canisters, instruments, and metal limbs that sat on shelves lining the walls.

You’d never really asked much about her arm. She’d always seemed to become quiet and distant whenever it came up. So you wondered if maybe coming back was stirring up some unwanted memories.

Hopefully it will be worth it.

While Sevika ‘busied’ herself by looking at a host of weapon-like augmentations scattered along the top of the counter over the cabinets, you poked your head into the back room.

Heinz- the tiny, old Yordle that ran the shop- was busy hunched over one of his machines, grinding away at a piece of metal. Goggles far too large for his little face obstructed his view of you in his periphery, and unfortunately the guy was damn near deaf after years of working with so much loud machinery, so you waited for him to pause.

“Hey! Heinz!” you hollered the moment the machine died down to a quiet hum.

His furry ears perked up and he flipped off the switch to the machine before turning in your direction.

“Oh! Hi! Yes! I didn’t hear the bell.”

He hasn’t heard the bell for years.

“No problem,” you called back.

“What?”

“No. Problem!” you yelled.

“Ah. Yes,” he replied with several nods, knocking his safety goggles right off his face. They fell to rest just below his neck, and he either didn’t notice or didn’t care. “Is she here?” he asked, rather loudly, as he approached the counter.

Eyesight was apparently going too. Sevika was standing not more than three feet to your left and maybe a foot back. “She sure is.”

“Now?”

You blinked a few times. “Yes. She is here now.” You wondered if he was this scatterbrained when he made her first arm. You honestly hoped he was otherwise you’d question if he was really fit to make this new one.

Heinz stepped up onto his little stool behind the counter, beady eyes finally falling on Sevika. “Oh! Good to see you, Susan!”

“It’s Sevika,” she gruffed.

“Ah, yes. Sara.”

Sevika released an impatient sigh, but didn’t bother attempting to correct him again.

He leaned across the counter, hand to the side of his mouth as he whispered, or rather spoke at a normal level which was a whisper to him, “Does she know why she’s here?”

Sevika’s impatient gaze drifted from the Yordle to your awkward expression.

“Ha. Uhm. No, she does not,” you replied, “Well, she’s probably starting to put two and two together.”

“What?”

“She’s probably put-” you started to repeat louder, “-NO!”

“Ah, yes. Would you like to tell her or shall I?” he asked, still ‘whispering’ loud enough for Sevika to hear loud and clear.

“I think I-” you paused again. You needed to be short and loud with this guy. “I WOULD LIKE TO.”

“Ah, yes. Of course. I’ll go grab it while you tell her.”

Heinz hopped down from his stool and disappeared into the back.

You turned to face Sevika, releasing an awkward laugh when you were met with a steely gaze.

“You going to explain what’s going on or just keep standing there with that dopey smile?”

God, she's crabby today… Well- every day, but especially today.

You took a deep breath, straightened up, then released a long sigh. “So, you remember a while back, when I came up with the suggestion to get into a tournament and make some good coin?”

She said nothing, but you took that as a ‘yes’. Or more like a ‘yes, now hurry this up’.

“You were having issues with your arm that day and I was thinking how great it would be to get you an improved one. So, well, that’s what I did with my share of the winnings.”

Just as she arched a brow, Heinz came waddling back out carrying what was obviously her new arm. It was much larger than him, yet he seemed to have no issue handling it.

Well, that’s got to be a good sign. Must be lighter.

“Take a seat, Sally” he chirped, standing on a stool beside a small table littered with parts and tools.

Sevika gave you one last stern look before taking a seat beside the Yodle.

He pushed her cape out of the way and began working on removing her existing arm. “Now, I’m going to have to work in some additional connections to you for this to work properly, which I’m sure you will recall, can be a bit painful and could even bring back some of that phantom limb pain.”

Sevika said nothing, her face unreadable as her gaze drifted between her arm and random places around the room.

You, however, could not hide the concern that painted your face. When you had spoken to him about this over the past several weeks, he had not mentioned any pain or discomfort that would be involved. Your stomach sank.

Maybe this hadn’t been the right choice.

That thought ate away at your insides while you watched her apparent discomfort.

Once Sevika’s old prosthetic was removed from the shoulder socket, the Yordle began working on connecting the new electrodes.

You took a seat on Sevika’s opposite side, hoping to provide her some comfort with your closeness.

Her eyes darted everywhere, anywhere but at the sight of Heinz working on her arm. She was clearly trying to distract herself and remain calm, or at least appear calm. Pinched brows and worry lines gave her state away though.

Your gaze dropped to her human hand balled into a tight fist on her lap, her knuckles damn near white. Cautiously, so as not to startle her, you slid a hand over her fist. She immediately recoiled, pulling her hand away. The look she gave you damn near broke your heart. She was fighting between her desire to appear angry and her natural response of pain and fear. Those beautiful silver eyes of hers sparkled as if on the verge of tears. You were certain you’d never seen her so distraught.

You tried again to touch her, this time placing your hand on her thigh. She either didn’t mind or didn’t notice.

Heinz hummed loudly to some tune you’d never heard before, but it was drowned out with the thoughts- concerns- swirling through your head. This was likely stirring up bad memories for her.

Leaning in close to Sevika’s ear, you shakily whispered, “I’m so sorry Sevika. This was supposed to be a gift. To make you happy. To make you feel good.” You straightened up as she turned, her glistening eyes meeting your own.

Fuck.

Silco’s number one assassin and muscle were both on the verge of fucking tears.

Sevika’s throat bobbed as she swallowed hard. She said nothing, but you could tell she wanted to by how her lips parted and then shut again. She turned away again, staring off into nothingness.

You took a deep breath, then released it with a long, quiet sigh before leaning into her ear again. “Would you like a distraction?” When she said nothing, remaining turned away, you tried pushing a little more. “Want me to tell you all the cool shit this bad boy will do once we get you all hooked up?”

That caught her attention.

She turned back to you, gaze slightly less wavering.

Thank god.

You let a soft smile grace your lips as you started to slowly explain the advancements, your fingers idly caressing the top of her thigh as you spoke. “It’s made of a metal alloy and dipped in a chemical bath that makes it lighter, stronger, and completely submersible. Though the chemical film needs to be applied every other month, I’ve already paid that off and it’s only a ten minute process.”

That didn’t seem to impress her much, or at least not enough to distract her. But it also wasn’t the best improvement.

“No more loud, exposed fan. This baby is gonna be liquid-cooled via a special variant of shimmer we worked with Singed to create.”

Still not much improvement, but you had plenty more to go.

“Besides still being able to use that sexy-ass blade super-heated, that cooling feature can also be applied to it and cause a different kind of pain.”

Now that seemed to catch her interest. That or the way you’d emphasized the pain bit with an obvious sick delight in your tone.

The corner of her mouth twitched. An almost smirk.

“But not just your blade. Your fingers too,” you added with a small grin.

You watched the gears turn in her head.

“You can control the temperature as well. Not just to damaging levels, but also soothing- pleasurable levels,” you added with a wink.

She quirked a brow. Her eyes darted between you and the Yordle.

“Don’t worry,” you spoke in your normal tone, “He’s more deaf than a naked mole rat.”

Heinz continued to work, humming his obnoxious tune and completely oblivious to anything you were saying.

“It’s smoother, has less exposed joints, and can articulate more than the previous. AND- the claws are retractable now. So you can use those fingers on or in more… sensitive objects.”

There’s that smirk.

Sevika’s lips curled into her signature haughty grin, and just as Heinz finished adding in the new connection points.

“Alright, let’s get this on and give it a try,” the old Yordle squawked.

Both you and Sevika turned your attention to her shoulder as he shoved the arm into the socket with a surprising amount of strength, then gave it an equally hard turn to latch it into place.

“Go on, Sandra,” give it a try.

Sevika peered at you, to which you shrugged and offered her a small smile. She lifted her arm, shiny and new, embellished with bits of gold as you had requested. She deserved something fancy given what she’s done- what she’s sacrificed- for the sake of creating the future Zaun. One after the next, she flexed each individual finger. Each one moved surprisingly smoothly, with even more precision than her old prosthetic. Surprisingly, she was even able to retract and release her claws without the need for explanation.

You could see the impressed look gradually building on her face as she moved each joint, testing the speed, precision, and capability of each.

“I tapped into some unused nerves for the new temperature control for the blade and your fingers,” Heinz explained, “Still activated and deactivated the same way as it was for the plasma blade, only now the strength of the signal controls the temperature. Will take some getting used to. Fingers are activated by the muscles you would have used to bend your natural wrist, so it shouldn't be too hard to relearn.”

Like the goddamn showoff she was, Sevika immediately activated said upgrade, the three of you watching as her fingertips grew red hot, then quickly switched to an icy blue-white.

So fucking hot.

And cool.

You couldn't wait to see her use that to kill some bastard.

Or to tease you.

She held her arm out in front of her, the blade slicing through the air awfully close to your face.

Her smug grin grew wider and you rolled your eyes.

“Looks like everything is in functioning order!” the Yordle chirped loudly and hopped off his stool. He paused, then turned to you. “Oh! Did you tell her about the vibrating function?”

Your cheeks burned. You had planned on bringing that up in private.

“Still not sure why she wanted that,” he said to Sevika, “but we should test that before you leave.” Somehow, he was completely oblivious to the way your cheeks threatened to burst into flames, or that Sevika’s eyebrows had skyrocketed.

“Just above your wrist is a little access panel. Pop that open and push the little button,” he explained.

Sevika’s now deviously sparkling eyes fell on your nervous ones. After retracting her blade, she flipped the panel open, and sure enough, there was a small, red button. She pressed it, her lips immediately curling into a sinister little smile as her hand started vibrating.

“You can control the intensity and patterns of the vibrations- which I truly have no idea why your friend had so many strange requests- but those can be controlled by pressing the button until you find the desired setting.”

“No idea why you wanted this,” Sevika sneered, watching your face as she cycled through each setting. Her brow rose and arched at each wild setting, clearly amused with your perverted and selfish addition to her new arm.

You laughed awkwardly. “It’s for back massages.”

“What?” Heinz hollered.

“IT’S FOR BACK MASSAGES!” you hollered right back, perhaps with a bit too much venom behind it that time.

Sevika however, was terribly amused if that damn mirth-filled smirk and glint in her eyes was anything to go by.

“Ah. Yes,” the little Yordle agreed with a nod. “Well Savannah,” he said with a nod to Sevika, “and-” he paused at you, clearly having forgotten your name as well, “Shelly’s friend. I wish you both a good day. Pleasure doing business with you. And if you have any problems, you know where to find me!”

And with that, he plopped his oversized goggles back over his eyes and waddled back to his workshop.

You turned to Sevika, whose expression had fallen right back into that damn stoic and unreadable state.

“Are you mad at me?” you asked softly.

“What?!” she asked incredulously. “Why would I be?”

You looked down at the floor as you spoke, “You seemed incredibly upset about the arm- and I was afraid it was causing you a lot of pain, and discomfort, and maybe bringing back some traumatic memories- I- I just hadn’t even thought of that. I really wanted you to like this. I wanted to give you something great. Cause you’ve been so wonderful to me and-”

You paused your ramblings for a moment, and braved taking a peek at her expression.

Oh fuck.

There was that damn heart-breakingly vulnerable look again. And she was the one unable to look at you.

Gods did it hurt to see her like that.

“Baby-” she started quietly, her raspy voice threatening to break. She released a long, defeated sigh and shook her head. She met your gaze and forced herself to continue. “It did hurt. It did bring back some haunting memories-”

Your heart sank into the pit of your stomach.

“-But,” she continued before you could spiral, “this is-” she paused again to hold her arm out. “-incredibly thoughtful. I can tell you put a lot of thought into this. And I…” she trailed off, her voice wavering.

But she didn't need to say more. You knew she was trying to thank you.

You stepped in front of her, toe-to-toe, and slowly wrapped your arms around her waist. You closed your eyes and pulled her into a tight embrace. For a moment, she merely stood there. Finally, after another long sigh, she wrapped her arms around you to return the hug.

It was as if all the remaining tension slipped away- from both of you. You could feel her muscles relax against you, the fingers of both her human and prosthetic hands gently caressing your sides.

You felt her press her lips gently against the top of your head.

“Thank you.”

She whispered it so softly, you weren’t sure you’d heard her right. But when you tilted your head back to peer up at her, you saw the genuine little smile playing on her lips. Then it curled higher, and you knew she was thinking something clever.

“Ready to go really try this out?” she purred.

Her fingers slipped down to give your ass a rough squeeze.

You beamed up at her. “You really need to ask?”

She chuckled, the deep rumble vibrating against your chest.

Gods did you love her laugh.

She wrapped her arm around your waist, guiding you towards the door. As she swung open the door and allowed you to step out first, she bent down to bring her lips to your ear. “Guess we’ll see just how wet these new fingers can really get.”

Bottom lip tucked between your teeth, you fought back the big smile that threatened to take over your face. Sevika's arm wrapped around your exposed middle did little to ease that excitement.

Sevika bent down, bringing her mouth to your ear, breath tickling the tiny hairs along your neck. "No peeking," she whispered.

You could hear her own excitement hidden in that low tone of hers. Had you not been wearing those damn heels she insisted you buy again, you would have been fucking skipping. "I'm not!"

"Good girl," she whispered against your hair. She pressed a soft kiss to the side of your temple, and you could feel her playful smirk.

You heard the familiar grind and clank of the lift coming to a halt and swinging open.

Where the hell was she taking you?

Sevika gently guided you onto the lift, closing the door with a soft click.

You turned towards her, keeping your eyes closed as instructed, but titled your head back as if looking up at her. "Where are you taking me?" You asked quietly, unsure if you two were alone.

You felt her arms wrap around your middle and pull you closer until your near-bare chests touched. "Gonna have to be patient, Princess."

You could hear the smirk in her tone, and you couldn't help but smile back. You wrapped your arms around her waist and rested your head just below her shoulder.

The lift traveled for quite some time, most certainly past the Promenade level. Which meant wherever she was taking you would be Topside. Perhaps that explained why she had you both wearing your fancy outfits again.

“Aren’t you afraid of being caught again? Especially in the same outfits?” you asked.

“We’ll be fine. Won’t be any Enforcers where we’re going.”

Someplace secluded?

Unable to contain your elation, you buried your face in her exposed chest to hide the enormous smile that spread across your face.

A soft chuckle made her chest shake against you. Her human hand stroked along the bottom of your spine.

When the lift finally came to a stop, you took in a deep breath, reveling in the fresh air that blew through the iron bars of the lift with a gentle breeze.

With her metal hand resting on the small of your back, Sevika carefully guided you out and onto the pavement.

With your eyes closed, you could truly hear all the commotion of the people filling the streets. That included the hushed whispers, most assuredly directed towards the two of you.

And as those voices grew louder and more dense the further you two walked, you were truly at a loss as to what her surprise could be.

Then you heard it.

That familiar, odd magical sound of the hexgate. And it was close. Very close.

"Two?" You heard a man ask in your direction, followed by Sevika pulling something from her jacket pocket. Then she was guiding you up a ramp.

Oh. My. God.

"Sevika!" You exclaimed as quietly as you could.

She said nothing, but gave your waist a gentle squeeze.

"Don't open your eyes," she repeated.

Your stomach did several backflips. You were quite certain you knew what was going on. It was just a matter of what exactly it would entail. That and when the hell she would let you look and thank her properly.

You heard more hustle and bustle, various accents not from around there, while she continued to lead you through what you assumed were hallways.

It wasn't until you heard the sound of a door closing and the click of its lock that you two were finally left in silence.

And alone.

"Can I look now?!" You asked, not bothering to hide the enthusiasm or impatience in your voice.

Sevika brought her lips to your ear again. "Go on."

You opened your eyes to find not only what you expected, but much- much more.

Directly in front of you was a large sliding glass door overlooking the outside of the airship you were on. An absolutely stunning view, with a private balcony. You almost didn't notice any other details besides that as you scurried over to peer out the clear glass and down to the tiny people scattered along the docks below. Your room must have been near the widest point of the sphere, leaving you two with the best- most unobstructed- view. You spun around with the intention of running to Sevika, but that was when you caught the remaining details of your room.

It was dimly lit, but not like the cheap lighting of the Undercity. It was intentional. Mood setting. All the furnishings were made of dark colors, much of it black. Your color palette of choice, but with mixes of deep hues of red and gold accents, also part of your favorite palette since falling head over heels for Sevika.

A small table for two sat before another window with an equally amazing view, already set with a bottle of whiskey- which made you chuckle out loud- plates, fancy dinnerware, candles, and menus.

The large four-post bed in the center of the room was furnished with the softest, sexiest looking black sheets you'd ever seen, despite the fact that there was likely to be very little sleeping going on in that room. Not with you two in it.

Then you finally met Sevika's gaze. Her dark lips pulled up at one corner, a small grin at the sight of your beaming face.

"Sevika, this is so- how did you even know I wanted to ride an airship?" You asked, absolutely flabbergasted that she had set all this up.

She strode over to stand in front of you. "Why don't we talk over dinner," she suggested, tilting her head towards the small table.

"O-okay," you stammered, still overcome with emotion.

Before you could turn away, she wrapped her arm around your waist and pulled you close. Thumb and forefinger captured your chin between, tilting your head back so she could slowly bring her lips to yours.

Your eyes fluttered shut, hands sliding up the silky material barely covering her chest to fist the collar of her jacket. You pulled yourself closer, reveling in the softness of her lips.

When she pulled away, you felt almost breathless despite the kiss being so much more tender than her usual wild, passionate ones. It took you a moment before you could even open your eyes, too lost in the moment and the feelings buzzing through your mind and body. But when you did, you were met with uncharacteristically soft gray eyes.

Warmth spread through your cheeks, her attentive gaze leaving you feeling entirely too giddy. Feeling suddenly shy, you looked away and let your hands fall back to your sides.

Just when you thought she couldn't be any sweeter, she surprised you yet again by pulling your chair out for you.

"Thank you," you said softly, completely genuine, unlike when the men at the tournament had done the same thing. This was entirely different, and meant so much more coming from Sevika.

Sevika's charm didn't end there either. After you took a seat, she opened the bottle of whiskey and poured you both a glass.

You peered up at her with a smile, pleased to find the corner of her mouth tugged into a small grin despite her obvious attempt not to. "You going to cook and serve dinner too?" You teased playfully.

As if on cue, you heard a knock at the door.

“Come in,” Sevika called out as she took a seat across from you.

The door opened to reveal a man dressed in a black and white suit, a folded towel draped over his arm, clearly a waiter.

You quickly snatched up your menu, unsure what kind of options you were going to find. After a quick scan, it was quite clear this was nothing like Jericho’s. And fuck if you even knew what half the things were, let alone how to pronounce them.

With the waiter at the side of your quaint table, you tried to catch Sevika’s gaze. Eventually, she did notice your pleading look, but simply peered back down at her menu with a crooked little grin.

Ass.

She had to know you were clueless as to what, or how, to order.

“We’ll have this,” Sevika stated to the waiter as she pointed to her menu.

Okay. Maybe that was a bit harsh.

“Of course, ma’am. Fine choice. And would you care for your dessert now or later?” he asked as he took both your menus.

“Just send it all in at once,” Sevika replied, then met your eyes as she continued, “We’d like to be alone as much as possible.”

“As you wish,” he replied with a bow before turning to leave.

As soon as you heard the door click shut, you blurted out, “What the hell did you just order us? Could you even read it?”

Sevika took a sip of her whiskey, but not without you fist catching the way her lips tugged higher. “Might have studied up a bit beforehand,” she admitted with a smug smile. “ Authentic Noxian cuisine,” she added in a mocking tone, clearly a jab at whoever had told her that was what they’d be serving.

“Why Noxian? Because of our disguises?”

“That, and that’s where we’ll be traveling.”

Your eyes went wide. “What?! Really?!”

Sevika nodded.

“How long are we going?”

“One week.”

“WHAT?! And Silco okayed that?”

“Wasn’t up for negotiation.”

You gaped at your lover like a damn fish. Had she really told Silco you two were going? Just like that? No asking? Just laid it out like he had no say?

“Wow,” was all you could manage to get out.

She chuckled lowly. “So, Princess Ameya, do you have any clue why Ran chose our names?”

“Well, yeah. They chose Princess for me to be an ass and give you an excuse to keep calling me that pet name despite us supposedly not knowing each other. And made you a warband leader because, well-” you swiped your hand in a horizontal motion in front of you, “- just look at you.”

Another, slightly louder and more mocking chuckle erupted from her chest.

“Not our titles, Princess. Our names.”

You took a sip of your own drink. “Ameya and Shakti?”

“Mhm.”

“I don’t know. Because they’re Noxian?”

“Not quite.”

“Well, I give up. Just tell me already, Shakti,” you replied with a dramatic roll of your eyes.

“For their meanings.”

“Which are?”

“Shakti- for ability and strength.”

Oh boy.

You rolled your eyes again. Ran wasn’t wrong for picking that one for Sevika, but god she did not need her ego stroked any further.

Then her smug smile faded into something more– adoring? “Ameya- for boundless devotion.”

Oh.

Your expression softened. Now you felt like the ass.

Not only was that incredibly sweet of Ran, but what touched you even more, was how that seemed to affect Sevika.

“Sevika, I…” You trailed off, not sure what to say. It didn’t matter anyway. A knock at the door brought an abrupt end to that conversation.

“Come in,” you called out this time, unsure if the interruption was an unwelcome one or a saving grace. For you or Sevika.

The waiter entered carrying a large tray full of food, followed by yet another waiter with a smaller sized tray. The first one, the one that had originally taken your order, emptied the various plates onto your shared table.

There were several courses worth of food. Far more than the two of you could possibly eat. Fancy hors d'oeuvres that you swear were too pretty to eat. Assorted vegetables, fruit, bread, and meats filled the other plates. Though you could not exactly identify any dish by name, you could tell that each one contained at least one of your favorite ingredients. Sevika had obviously picked them out for that very reason.

You bit the inside of your cheek, once again fighting the urge to smile broadly.

Sevika could tell though. When you met her gaze, you found her watching you intently, the corner of her mouth tugging upward at your obvious delight.

The other waiter, younger and clearly new given how he nearly dropped his tray, set it on a small end table just behind Sevika.

Curious, you leaned to your side to peer around her.

Dessert!

And it looked just like one of your favorites you remembered enjoying as a child.

“Is there anything else we can get either of you?” the older waiter asked.

Sevika turned to you.

You shook your head. There was enough food on those two tables to feed all of Silco’s crew.

“We're good,” Sevika stated gruffly.

With that, the two waiters nodded and took their leave.

“Sevika!” you gasped the moment the door shut behind them, “There is so much fucking food here!”

“Wasteful,” she muttered, but you caught the way she smirked at your enthusiasm to dig in.

The two of you had stuffed yourselves silly. Or at least you did. You weren’t sure silly could ever apply to Sevika without any sort of negating word preceding it. You did, however, make sure you left just enough room for some dessert.

“You’re not going to eat the cherry?” you asked, flabbergasted as you watched Sevika pull hers off the dessert and set it aside.

“No.”

“Can I have it?”

Sevika shrugged her shoulders, but eyed you wearily when you rose from your seat to saunter over with a suspicious smile on your face.

Making sure she was watching you, you plucked up the cherry by the stem and slowly brought it to your mouth. With a very deliberate- and sensual- swipe of your tongue, you licked the remaining cream from the fruit. An overly enthusiastic moan rose from your throat as the sweet taste filled your mouth.

Sevika shook her head.

There was no fooling you though. You saw how her mouth curled into a tiny crooked grin at your little performance. So you continued to play.

You made a show of wrapping your lips around the cherry before pulling it from the stem. More inappropriate moans filled the room as you chewed and swallowed the sweet red fruit.

And then, for the cherry on top (pun intended), you called her attention back to your mouth. “Watch this.” You were met with a bored expression, but you knew she’d find this entertaining. Even if she may not admit it.

You put the stem in your mouth, using your tongue to expertly fold, curl, and push it into a small knot. Trick complete, you stuck your tongue out, plucked the knot from your tongue, and tossed it onto Sevika’s plate.

She stared down at it for a moment, face unreadable, before finally turning her attention back to you with a smirk.

Ha!

She was impressed!

Or so you thought.

“If your tongue is so bored you need to do silly parlor tricks with it-” she sneered, and you realized this wasn’t going where you’d thought it was. “-why don’t I give you something better to occupy it with.”

“But what about my dessert?”

Sevika arched a single brow. “ This-” she emphasized as she turned to face you with spread thighs, “- is your dessert, Princess.”

Heat bloomed in your core and spread throughout your lower half. A dull ache followed in its wake when your eyes fell to the apex of those powerful thighs.

You slowly dropped to your knees between the spread of her legs, eyes locked on hers. Your tongue slipped out to wet your lips. God, were you hungry for her. Your eyes drifted to the dessert lying untouched on her plate. But you were hungry for that too.

"You want both, don't you?"

Your gaze darted back to her, eyes wide, fearful you had upset her. To your surprise, her smirk still remained. “Can I have both?” you asked softly.

“So greedy,” she teased.

“You could have both too,” you offered with a sly smile.

She arched a brow. “That so?”

“Mhm,” you answered with a nod.

She said nothing more, but picked up her fork and cut a small piece of dessert. Gray eyes fell to your lips again as she brought it to your mouth.

Wrapping your lips around the fork, you let your eyes flutter shut and a moan pull from your throat as you slowly slid the sweet treat off and into your mouth.

Sevika hummed softly, appreciatively.

Eyes open again, you peered at her own mouth. “Do I get to feed you too?” you asked with pleading eyes.

She chuckled softly before handing the fork to you.

With a giddy grin on your face, you rose higher on your knees and cut a piece of equal size.

Sevika looked as if she was fighting back her amusement as you excitedly brought the fork up to her mouth. “Say ‘ah’,” you said playfully.

She deadpanned, her lips pulled into a straight line, and for a moment you worried she may have changed her mind.

“Just- don’t,” she grunted.

“Ok. Sorry.” Your lie was more than evident with how you continued to smile up at her.

She finally opened her mouth, but only just enough for you to slip the bite inside. Unlike you, she did not add any theatrics whatsoever to her eating.

Party pooper.

You handed the fork back to her and she fed you another, considerably larger bite. This time she was the one to wear the grin, watching with mirth as you attempted to open wide enough. She didn’t allow you the time to make a show of it either, shoving the piece in immediately. Cream smeared across your lips where it didn’t fit.

“Uh-uh,” Sevika chided before you could attempt to lick your lips clean. When you obediently paused, she dragged the pad of her thumb sensually across the crease of your lips.

Before she could pull that digit away, you wrapped your lips around it and sucked, swirling your tongue around the tip and cleaning it of all the sweet cream.

She watched your mouth with unabashed lust, pupils dilating. Once satisfied with your teasing, she pulled her thumb back out with a wet pop.

“Good girl,” she murmured.

Just as she had given you an oversized bite, you in turn did the same for her. And you made sure to get cream on those delicious dark lips of hers too. She, however, seemed far less amused by it than you were. But you’d change that.

Without warning, you grabbed a fistful of the collar of her jacket and pulled her down to you. She released a startled grunt, which you ignored, and promptly ran the tip of your tongue across her top lip, then the bottom.

You had expected her to pull away, but to your surprise, you felt her flesh fingers slip behind your head and her lips pressed into yours. Your short startled gasp dissolved into a soft moan when her tongue slipped between your lips.

Neither of you were in the most comfortable position, but Sevika was quick to remedy that. Both her hands slipped around and beneath your ass. Fingers sank into the plush of each cheek as she hoisted you up into her lap while her tongue continued to explore your mouth.

Hands still firmly gripping her jacket, you tried to match her fervor by pulling her closer. It was impossible though, given how her tongue easily dominated yours.

Heart hammering in your chest, you felt lightheaded from the lack of oxygen. Finally, you broke the kiss. Struggling to catch your breath, you gazed down at her wantonly. “I- I’ll take that- other dessert- now.”

That was all it took for her to lift you up as she rose from her chair.

With your legs wrapped around her waist and your arms around her neck, you locked eyes with hers. Her mouth found yours again, kissing you hungrily as she carried you towards the bed.

She crawled onto the bed, holding your body close to her. She carried you up to the pillows before dropping you rather unceremoniously onto them and subsequently breaking the kiss.

She knelt over you, gray eyes nearly black with lust.

“Gonna be hard on me now?” you asked breathlessly, a playful smile playing on your lips.

“Is that what you want?” she husked.

“So I get to choose?”

She sat up, shrugging off her jacket and tossing it aside without looking. “I didn’t say that.”

Your gaze fell to the expanse of exposed flesh between the generous opening in her dress shirt before darting back up to her face. “But you ask-”

“Asked if that’s what you want.” Her mouth curled into a lopsided grin and you knew she was just toying with you. She pulled her top off and tossed it aside, then unfastened the belt at her waist, making short work of that as well.

You watched her undress, admiring the view of her swiftly stripping down her pants and underwear. "Is both an option for this too?" you asked and smiled up at her.

She gazed at your smile adoringly. "You're just never satisfied with one thing, are you Princess?" She kicked off her shoes and socks, quickly slipping her clothing the rest of the way off before straddling your chest.

Fuck, you could already smell her arousal.

"I just want to have my cake and eat it too," you quipped.

"Then that's what you'll get." Sevika husked as she lined herself up over your face.

Flesh fingers slid through your hair until they rested at the back of your head. She carefully lifted your head up as she sank lower.

Your breaths came on quicker, excitement already building. Tongue out and ready, you let your eyes flutter shut as her wet folds met your lips. The moment the taste of her filled your mouth, you felt your body temperature rise. Your arms moved on their own accord, wrapping around the powerful thighs on either side of your head. Your hands slid up the sides until they rested comfortably over her hips.

The low, quiet groan that pulled from her throat shot straight to your core. The ache built fast, spreading down your legs. With each swipe of your tongue along her entrance, you could hear her own breathing becoming more strained, encouraging you to work your tongue more.

Using the grip on her hips as leverage, you dipped your tongue inside her cunt and pulled her against you, sinking as deep as you could. With the tip of your tongue curled and pressed along her soft walls, you slowly drug back out.

“Fuck, baby,” Sevika cursed under her breath.

Fingernails dug into your scalp. You welcomed the sensation, releasing your own moan against her wet cunt. You licked a stripe across the entirety of her entrance, tip of your tongue pulling back just before reaching the bundle of nerves above.

Sevika bucked her hips toward your face. Her clit dragged along your nose, another groan rising from her throat. “I’m gonna- fuck that pretty face- so good,” she ground out while she rocked against your face.

With your tongue pushed out as far as you could manage, you allowed her to set the pace. Your hands at her hips helped guide her motions, and keep her from completely suffocating you. Not that you would have minded that.

The tension quickly built for both of you, but all you could manage to ease your own was to rub your thighs together.

Her pace quickened, breaths ragged and grunts broken. It was maddening how hot she was like this. You slowly opened your eyes, peering up past her sweat-slick abs and heaving breasts. Her face contorted in pleasure and concentration, brows pinched and lips parted. Her eyes were focused on where her cunt met your wet face, but you weren’t so certain she could truly see it. The blacks of her eyes had almost completely taken over the gray.

You released a keening whimper against her, mind reeling with how turned on you were. Unable to take it any longer, you slid one hand off her thigh and beneath the skirt of your dress to circle your clit. Your eyes closed again, relishing in the sounds of her grunts, panting, and broken groans. The feeling of her soaked pussy dragging along your tongue and nose combined with your own touch was dizzying.

God, you would gladly have her like this all fucking night if it weren’t for how sore your poor jaw would get.

Then, all of a sudden, she stopped.

Your eyes flew open to peer up at her. She was still pressed against your tongue and nose, but no longer moving. Her eyes were glossed over, barely open as they peered down at you. Her chest still heaved with her ragged breaths.

Did she already cum?

There was no way. You’ve had her cumming far too many times. You knew how her body reacted when she did, and she definitely had not gone through any of the usual.

Before you could attempt to move your mouth enough to ask, she finally grunted out, “Take your clothes off and lay on your side.” She moved off to kneel next to you.

“What?” you asked, dumbfounded. “Was I not doing well enough?”

She looked as if she was about to get angry until she caught the sincere concern in your eyes.

"No, baby. You- were doing great,” she panted. Then her lips curled into a smirk, or at least as much of a smirk she could manage given how worked up she was. “I want my dessert too.”

Your eyes went wide with realization. You two had not done that before. More than eager to give it a try, you quickly- or as quickly as you could given the complexity of your skimpy dress- stripped down.

You laid on your side as instructed.

“Lift your top leg,” you grunted as she lay down in the opposite direction on her side, facing you.

Obediently, you bent your leg and rested your foot on the bed and out of her way. You watched her scoot her lower half closer to your face before lifting her leg into the same position as yours, leaving her glistening cunt wide open for you.

Eager to get back to it, not to mention receive your own pleasure, you rested your head on the thigh she had lying on the bed. You could feel the mattress shift as she adjusted more, swinging her other leg over your head. Then you felt the tickle of her hair and the weight of her head on your thigh.

“You’re already so wet Princess,” she huffed, still not quite recovered from your previous ministrations. “You really get so worked up just eating pussy?”

“Your pussy,” you clarified.

You could feel her smirk without even seeing her.

With one hand firmly gripping her asscheek, you pulled her closer to your face and wrapped your lips around her swollen bud. Her hips jerked, pushing her cunt against your nose. You smiled against her, but she wiped that clear off your face the moment you felt her tongue dip between your wet folds.

“Oh god,” you groaned, releasing her from your mouth.

She dipped her tongue in further, her chin bumping against your clit.

This was going to be very difficult.

You took her clit back between your lips, alternating between light suction and teasing swirls or flicks of your tongue.

Sevika took a slightly different approach, fucking you with her tongue. She slid in quickly, chin pressing against your clit each time, then drug back out slowly.

Any tension you had lost in that short intermission to change positions immediately started to rebuild. You were pretty sure it did for Sevika too given how hot and ragged her breaths felt between your legs.

The moment her hips started rocking, you knew she was getting close. Your face was coated in her fluids, but it only made that coil in your belly pull tighter. Her tongue worked up to match the speed of her thrusting, bringing you close to the edge as well.

Mind filled with the haze of pleasure, you started to lose the ability to control your lips and tongue.

“Don’t you stop, or I will!” Sevika growled against your cunt.

The rumble of her voice resonated all the way through your lower half and you almost came right then and there. “No! Please don’t stop,” you cried out. “I’m sorry, it just feels so-” your last word was cut off by her wet slit slamming against your face.

Fucking impatient.

Your fingers tightened their grip on her ass, trying to ground yourself and manage her movement so could return your attention to her clit. Lips wrapped back around the swollen bud, you sucked and licked, trying to work a rhythm you knew would get her going.

“That’s it,” Sevika grunted. “Fuck, yeah baby. Don’t stop.” Now the one struggling to utilize her mouth, she slipped two fingers inside you, clear to the last knuckle.

You whined against her, eyes squeezed shut tight as you desperately tried to focus on getting her to completion so you could then have your own.

And then- praise whatever deity heard your cry for help- her top leg came crashing down, sandwiching your head between her powerful thighs. Her hips jerked erratically, cunt dragging against your face as her orgasm took over her body. Her fingers faltered inside you. Not that it mattered though. The moment you felt that spurt of warm liquid coat your tongue and fill your mouth, you were falling off the cliff with her.

Unable to pull away from the death grip of her thighs, your muffled cries drowned against her slick hole. Your toes curled and uncurled as shock after shock of pleasure shook through your body.

“Shit, baby!” Sevika cursed.

Her words were barely a hum between the clamp of her thighs and the blood roaring in your ears.

After the last aftershocks died off, the two of you simultaneously rolled away from each other and collapsed onto your backs.

You gazed up at the black chandelier hanging from the ceiling, lost in a daze. Your chest rose and fell with deep breaths, heart still hammering in your chest,

“That was so fucking hot,” you panted. You shifted your head, craning your neck to peer down at Sevika. She was in the same position, looking back at you nearly as fucked out as you were. However, her face was completely coated with your release. Far more than usual.

Your eyes went wide as saucers.

“Oh my god Sevika. Your face!”

“I know,” she huffed. “I felt it.” Her lips pulled into a weak smirk. “You must have really enjoyed that position.”

“I did,” you admitted with a shy smile. “That was so fucking sexy. Difficult. But sexy.”

“Hmm,” she hummed with a crooked grin.

You wiped the excess fluid from your face with the back of your hand as she flipped over and turned to crawl up your body.

She hovered over your face for a moment, just wearing that haughty grin that always left you wanting to slap her or fuck her. Or both.

You opened your mouth to ask her what she found so damn amusing when her slick-coated lips suddenly crashed into yours. Your gasp quickly dissolved into a soft moan when she pushed her tongue inside your mouth, forcing you to taste your own release. Your hands slid up and around her back to pull her flush against your body.

The two of you were a fucking mess. Her mouth- no- her whole face, and now yours as she kissed you sloppily. Your thighs. Her thighs. And the longer you two kissed, the more you two ground against each other, spreading your slick up each other's stomachs,

Before the two of you could get too worked up again, Sevika finally broke the kiss and ceased her motions. You peered up at her through half-lidded eyes. Both your chest and hers heaved with renewed excitement and desire.

“As much as I want to fuck you again, I’m spent from this morning.” she huffed.

You smiled up at her. This mornin g had been a bit of a fuck fest when the two of you were in the shower. Memories of that weren’t exactly helping your current predicament though. But you were tired too.

“Maybe later?” you asked with a cheeky smile.

You were met with her crooked grin. “If you’re a good girl.”

“And if I’m bad?”

“We’ll do it twice.”

You laughed, more than happy with either of those outcomes.

Sevika rolled over and onto her back, her human arm pulling you with her so you curled up against her side.

You gave her cheek a quick peck before snuggling up closer to her warm body.

You’re not sure how long you two were lying there in your post-coital bliss, but you both had drifted in and out of sleep several times. You lay tangled in the soft, black sheets, limbs just as tangled with Sevika’s. Your head rested just below her shoulder, her heartbeat a lulling melody in your ear. Your fingers traced along the smooth, hard planes of her abs.

Her flesh fingers combed through your hair while her metal ones traced random patterns along your skin.

Despite how delightfully relaxed and comfortable it felt to be snuggled up to her, the two of you were unfortunately terribly hot after your romp. Not to mention Sevika was just a natural furnace.

“I need to cool off,” you said softly.

“Hmm,” she hummed, chest rumbling beneath your head.

“Come outside with me?” you asked, lifting your head to peer down at her.

Her lazy gaze met yours, but she said nothing.

You pressed a soft kiss to the tip of her nose. “Please?”

With a resigned sigh, she started to sit up.

After placing one more kiss, this time on her scarred cheek, you rolled off her and started gathering up your clothing, which was really just your skimpy dress.

“Go on. I’ll grab us a drink,” Sevika stated while she finished pulling her pants up.

The moment you stepped out onto the balcony you were greeted by a chilly breeze. You wrapped your arms across your chest, hands rubbing up along the sides of your arms, elbows resting on the golden railing.

Sevika appeared next to you shortly after, a glass of whiskey in hand. She offered it to you, which you took with a soft smile.

Her metal fingers trailed down one of your arms, leaving behind goosebumps in its wake. You shivered, but felt her step closer, the warmth of her body welcoming.

"Cold?" She asked against your ear.

Despite the pleasant warmth of her breath along your neck, her husky voice sent another shiver down your spine.

"Yes."

Next thing you knew, she had backed away, only to replace that lost heat with the warmth of her suit jacket draped over your shoulders. Standing by you once again, she wrapped her human arm around your waist and pulled you closer to her side.

You rested your head just below her shoulder and sighed contentedly. Her warmth, scent, embrace, and the lulling sound of her heartbeat filled you to the brim with the most wonderful feelings. Safe, happy, and cared for.

You both stood like that for a while– silently staring off into the endless distance, occasionally taking sips of your shared whiskey. The night sky was so much different than what you two saw beneath the depths of the Undercity. Hues of gold, pink, orange, and even violet painted the horizon. It was truly beautiful. Not that you wouldn't call your home beautiful. Just a different type of beauty. One you had to live with to fully understand and appreciate.

"The sky really is pretty up here," you sighed.

"I've seen prettier."

Brows furrowed in confusion, you peered up at Sevika. Before you could ask where, you knew the answer with the way she looked at you so adoringly.

Your stomach fluttered, cheeks warming. "You're really gonna have to work hard tonight to make up for all this softness," you joked with a shy smile.

She said nothing, simply grinned down at you with that knee-weakening smile and set her glass down on the small table beside her. She pressed her forefinger beneath your chin, tilting your head back.

To your surprise, she didn't immediately go in for a kiss. Instead, she gently swiped the pad off her thumb across your bottom lip, her eyes glittering silver in the remaining sunlight peeking up past the horizon. They danced across your face as if taking in every feature like they were something to treasure.

Your heart swelled, almost painfully so. Then, her silver eyes met yours. Locked them into the most adoring gaze, and you felt as if your chest would burst open. “Sevika, I-” you started softly, nearly choking as your throat constricted with your brimming emotion. You swallowed hard, then tried again. “This was all so wonderful. And- and I don’t mean just this ride on the airship. I mean everything. Everything you’ve ever done for me. Sevika, I-” You paused, another swallow as tears welled in your eyes. You had to get this off your chest. It weighed so heavy, but you just couldn’t quite do it. Held back by what though? Fear? Fear of her not reciprocating? Of her leaving? Or what it could mean if she felt the same?

Sevika almost seemed to not hear you, her head slowly canting to the side and lowering.

You licked your dry lips. One more try. You had to say it now. “Sevika, I lo-” Your words died in your throat as she pressed her lips to yours in a mind-numbingly tender kiss.

Head completely empty of all words, you gave into her kiss and pressed your lips further against hers. Turning fully towards her, you wrapped your arms loosely around her neck, fingers threading through her silky, soft strands.

You didn’t know if that interruption was a sign that perhaps it wasn’t the right time. Or if it was a way for her to say she felt the same without actually saying it. Whatever it was, it didn’t really matter. You knew how you felt about her. And you knew she felt something equally strong. It was only words.

And you had all you needed. Your reward.

Her.

[robertdowneyjjr]

Congrats on graduating grad school!

Picture Tony bursting into Steve’s room/place of business to announce his finishing of grad school feeling what you are feeling now. How would they celebrate? Maybe Tony has been waiting to confess his feelings until he was done and has time now and he better use this moments and it’s energy before he wimps out!!!

ahh i’m so sorry it’s taken me a while to respond, but thank you so much!!

now, i’ve given this a lot of thought and i wanted to give it a bit of a canon spin. imagine a post-avengers timeline where everything is domestic and beautiful and we never had to worry about ultron or thanos or magic rocks or any of that. imagine.

——

Steve’s in his studio, putting the finishing touches on a painting he’s been working on for the last two weeks when Tony comes in quietly. He’s holding his hands behind his back, shuffling his feet as if he’s nervous about something. He kind of looks the way he does whenever he’s got something for the team, like surprise gear upgrades or invitations to events. So Steve puts his paintbrush down, wipes off the stray paint from his hands the best he can, and stands up to greet his friend.

“Hey Tony. Whatcha got there?”

Tony smiles and presents Steve with a dark purple envelope. The paper is of good quality, and when he opens it, the contents inside are printed on thick card stock.

It’s an invitation to New York University’s commencement ceremony in May.

“Oh, this is nice! Are you speaking at their graduation this year?” Steve asks.

“Not quite.” Tony chews on his lip a bit before he continues. “I’ll actually be one of the graduates. And I was hoping you’d like to come and watch me cross that stage.”

Oh. Steve had no idea that Tony had been spending his time on another degree. He was busy a lot, true, but he always just assumed that he was working on projects for SI when he wasn’t doing anything Avengers-related. Steve can’t imagine how Tony managed to juggle what basically amounts to two full time jobs and a full time degree. But they don’t call Tony Stark a genius for nothing, and if anyone was going to pull off something like this, it would be Tony.

“Oh wow! Tony, that’s amazing. Congratulations! Of course I’ll be there to cheer you on. We all will.”

“Ah, well, I’d be glad to see the rest of the team there too, obviously.” Tony’s eyes crinkle as he smiles at Steve, and a slight flush crosses his cheeks as he sheepishly rubs at the back of his neck. “But see, the one person I really want to be there is you. Because you’re kinda the one who inspired me to apply for this program.”

“Me?”

“Yeah, you. I didn’t get another doctorate. I went for a master’s this time. A dual one in art and science, and it’s all because of you,” Tony explains. “You see, when we became friends, like, really became friends, I got to see the side of you beyond the master tactician. Your passion for art is incredible, Steve. Not just the way you talk about it, but the way you always try to refine your craft whenever you have the time.” He gestures around the room. “I mean, look at everything you’ve created in the last few years alone.”

Now it’s Steve’s turn to blush. To this day, he still finds it hard to accept any compliments on his art.

“These are just doodles and experiments, Tony. They’re nothing like the art you see in museums.”

“That’s not true at all, and one day I’ll finally get you to believe me.”

Steve kind of wants to kiss Tony right now, but he brushes the urge away.

“So a dual master’s in art and science?” he asks instead.

“That’s right. It’s the art conservation program at NYU. The perfect blend of art and science. I studied art history and also the science behind the preservation of art. I never thought about how much technical work goes into art conservation and it’s been a blast getting to learn all of this. They let me fast track the program and get my degree within two years instead of four. And I ended up choosing time-based media as my specialty since it involves a lot more technology than more traditional art like paintings and photography, because, well, you know me.”

Before Steve could cut in and ask some more questions, Tony steps forward to take his hand and keeps talking.

“But yeah, that’s what I’ve been doing in my down time for the last couple of years and I’m hoping that one day, if you’d like, we could work together to make sure every single piece of art you create stands the test of time. Because you are so talented, Steve, and your legacy deserves to be more than just Captain America.”

Steve really wants to kiss Tony now.

So he does.

Tony responds immediately, his lips moving in tandem with Steve’s like they’ve been doing this for years instead of seconds. He doesn’t know how long they stand there in each other’s arms, but when they finally pull back for air, the invitation lays on the floor in a crumpled heap, having fallen at some point when Steve let it go in favour of grabbing Tony by his hips.

He picks it back up and smooths it against his chest the best he can, and grins at Tony.

“I’d be honoured to go to your graduation ceremony, sweetheart. I’ll be there cheering louder than anyone else. And afterwards, I’m taking you to dinner to celebrate, then we’re coming home to celebrate some more.”

He leans down to capture Tony’s lips again.

All the while, he thinks about all the paintings he’s done of Tony, hidden away behind other canvases. He wonders what Tony would think when Steve finally shows them to him, if they could match Tony’s grand gesture that was two years in the making. Because Tony may believe that his art is worth conserving, but as far as Steve’s concerned, it’s Tony—his smiles, his genius…his everything—whose beauty should be preserved for the world to see.

[queen-of-the-avengers]

Iron Man: Part Six

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Female!Reader (implicitly)

Word Count: ~2.1k

Warnings: canon violence and angst

Author’s Note: any and all comments are appreciated <3

x

Laying low is exactly what Tony doesn't do.

Since he's back home in his normal lab, he works on creating a better arc reactor than the one he created inside the cave. At least this one will be more sustainable at keeping him alive. Pepper is doing some paperwork on her tablet while you sit next to her and watch some show talk about Tony and his company.

"Stark Industries!" the announcer on the TV shouts. "I've got one recommendation! Ready? Abandon ship! Does the Hindenburg ring any bells?"

"Can you turn that down?" you ask with a sigh. Pepper turns it off altogether and looks at you in sympathy. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure."

"What did that agent want to talk to you about at the press conference? Phil Coulson?"

"He wanted to brief Tony on the circumstance of his escape. I gave him my card so we could set up a time to speak."

"Can I come to that meeting?"

"Sure, I don't see why not. How did you know his name?"

"He's an old friend," you white-lie.

Old, yes. Friend, not so much.

"Y/N get down here," Tony's voice comes over the loudspeaker.

"What?"

"Get down here. I need you."

"Okay, be right there," you say and get up.

You walk down to the lab to see Tony lying on a hospital-like bed with wires hooked to his body to measure his vitals. He has his shirt off which exposes the arc reactor in his chest, and he has another one just like it.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm swapping it up for an upgraded unit and I just ran into a little speed bump."

"What does a speed bump mean?"

"It's nothing. It's just a little snag. There's an exposed wire under this device, and it's contacting the socket wall, causing a little bit of a short."

"What do you want me to do?"

Tony reaches into his chest and pulls out the existing arc reactor and hands it to you.

"Put that on the table over there. That is irrelevant." The lab door opens and Pepper walks in since curiosity got the better of her. Neither of you see her at the moment. "I want you to reach in and gently lift the wire out."

"Are you sure? Is it safe?"

"Yeah, it should be. It's like Operation. You just don't let it touch the socket wall or it goes 'beep'."

"You know I don't know what the hell that is."

"It's just a game, never mind. Gently lift the wire, okay?"

"Okay." You make sure any and all rings are off your fingers before reaching down into the small metal container. When you get down far enough, your fingers meet a slimy liquid gel thing. "What the fuck is that?"

"It's an inorganic plasmic discharge from the device."

"It fucking smells," you groan.

"Yeah, it does. Do you feel the copper wire?"

"Yeah," you say and hook your finger around the wire.

"Don't let it touch the sides when--" You pull on the wire to get it out when your hand twitches and it touches the side of the metal container. It shocks Tony and makes the monitor beep in distress. "--you're coming out!"

"Sorry," you bite your lip nervously.

"That's what I was trying to tell you before. Now make sure that when you pull it out, you don't yank the magnet out." As he is talking, you yank on the wire exposing the magnet at the end of it. "Okay, yeah, you just pulled it out. That was it."

"Shit!"

The monitor starts beeping like crazy and he begins shaking on the bed like he's having a mild seizure.

"What is happening to him?" Pepper gasps. 

"Tony, what do I do? What's wrong?" you ask, ignoring her.

"Nothing, I'm just going into cardiac arrest because you yanked it out like a trout."

"You said it was safe!" you say and set the magnet on the table.

"Take this." He hands you the new arc reactor. "You have to switch it before I die."

"Okay."

You take the end of the cable and shove it inside where you attach it to the base plate. Immediately, the monitors quiet down and Tony can breathe without feeling like he's dying.

"Was that so hard? That was fun, right?" he chuckles.

"Are you okay?" Pepper asks.

"Yeah, I feel great."

"What do you want me to do with this?" you point to the old reactor.

"That? Destroy it. Incinerate it."

"You don't want to keep it?" Pepper asks and picks it up.

"Pepper, I've been called many things. 'Nostalgic' is not one of them."

Pepper leaves with the arc reactor with a slight smile on her face. She turns to look back at Tony and sees you lean over him with a smile. You smooth his hair back and stare into his eyes.

"I don't need you dying on me, okay? You're too important to me."

"No promises," he jokes.

Pepper walks off without another word. Tony wants more support with the new direction he's taking with arc reactor technology, so the first and only person besides you is Rhodey. He went to talk to him alone in hopes he can get Rhodey on his side, but no such luck. Rhodey is really by-the-book. He believes Tony should be making weapons for the military to use but Tony is so over that.

He wants to build suits that he can be in. If his weapons can't protect people, then he is going to be the one to protect them. In order to do that, he needs a suit powered by arc reactor technology. A suit that will generate a ton of attention, so he needs all the allies he can get on his side.

So far, you're the only one.

Tony meets you back at the lab where he begins working on a secret project only you know about. He taps his workstation and starts typing on the holographic keyboard that pops up.

"Jarvis, you up?"

"For you, sir, always."

"I'd like to open a new project file index as Mark Two."

Jarvis pulls up blueprints for the suit he made inside the cave, and Tony drags the hologram over to a different table to take the suit apart and study it. Whatever he doesn't like, he tosses into the holographic trash can.

"Shall I store this on the Stark Industries Central Database?"

"Actually, I don't know who to trust right now. Until further notice, why don't we just keep everything on my private server? The only other person allowed to fully access this file is Y/N. Are we clear?"

"Crystal, sir. Working on a secret project, are we?"

"I don't want this winding up in the wrong hands. Maybe if in mine, it can actually do some good."

The materials he needs for the suit are easily accessible right here in the lab. If it's not, then he can order it to be shipped to the house. Tony does most of the hard work while you stand by and watch but you two enjoy each other's presence. If you're not sitting by watching, then you're helping him heat metal, cool it down, or remind him when he needs to eat and drink.

Dum-E, a robot he invented to help him with side projects, is helping sodder the left boot of his suit. He is holding the magnifying glass for Tony to look through but isn't doing a very good job. He keeps moving it and getting in the way which is frustrating Tony. 

"Move up," Tony says. "Not in the boot, Dum-E. Right here. Stay put."

"It's looking good if it works," you smirk.

"It'll always work."

Dum-E moves the magnifying glass again when Tony moves thinking he's being a good robot and helping but Tony sets his tools down and sighs.

"You're of no benefit at all. Move down to the toe. I got this. You are a tragedy."

"You're so mean to it," you giggle.

"It kind of deserves it."

Creating a boot that will fit his leg took a lot of time, but once he knew how to do it, the second one was ready in no time. He connects wires from the boots to controls he can use remotely so he can move around the space and test out his equipment. You stand off to the side while Jarvis records everything to track Tony's progress.

"Dum-E, look live. You're on standby for fire safety. Roll it," he says to Jarvis. "Activate hand controls. We're gonna start off nice and easy. We're gonna see if ten percent thrust capacity achieves lift. Three, two, one."

Tony squeezes the hand controls to activate his boots, but he goes flying backward into the wall behind him.

"Tony!" you gasp. Dum-E points the extinguisher and fires as if Tony is on fire. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm good," he coughs and glares at Dum-E. "Why don't we move onto the arms? Give the boots a little break?"

"Yeah, sounds like a good idea."

Tony works on making the arms of his suit while you clean up the mess caused by the boots. If he is going to make a suit that will protect humans from threats, he needs some sort of weapons to do that. He likes the idea of repulsors on the palms of his hands, so as he is working on one of the arms, he designs a repulsor to go hand-in-hand with it.

It takes the rest of the day to build the arm which is only wires and a skeleton of what the arm looks like, but it's still early in the testing phase.

"You think it'll work?"

"Did you really ask me that question?"

Pepper walks down the stairs to the lab and puts in her code to gain access to it. She is holding a clipboard with a brown box on top of it, and two cups of coffee on top of that.

"I've been buzzing you. Did you hear the intercom?" she asks. "Obadiah's upstairs. He just got back from New York. What would you like me to tell him?"

"Great. I'll be right up."

Tony lifts the metal arm off the stabilizer to test it out.

"I thought you said you were done making weapons."

"He is," you say, and she sets down the brown package on the table.

"This is a flight stabilizer. It's completely harmless."

Tony fires the repulsor expecting nothing big to happen, but much like with his boots, he goes flying back from the impact. Pepper jumps at the noise, and you sit down with a smirk.

"He's okay," you say to her.

"I didn't expect that," Tony groans.

Since Obadiah is waiting upstairs for Tony, you two take a break from testing to chat with him. He's playing the piano when you two get upstairs. Pepper follows behind and sits on the couch to continue her work before he arrived.

"How did it go?" Tony asks. Obadiah went to talk to the board about you and Tony and the future of his company. There is a box of New York pizza on the table which makes you think it didn't go so well. "It went that bad, huh?"

"Just because I brought pizza back from New York doesn't mean it went bad."

"Sure it doesn't," you say sarcastically and sit next to Pepper.

"It would have gone better if you were there."

"You told me to lay low. That's what I've been doing. I lay low and you take care of it all."

"Hey, come on. In public. The press. This was a board of directors meeting."

"Yeah, we really wouldn't have done well in there," you scoff.

"The board is claiming you two have posttraumatic stress. They're filing an injunction. They want to lock you out."

"That's bullshit," you gasp.

"Why, because the stocks dipped forty points? We knew that was gonna happen. We own the controlling interest in the company."

"Tony, the board has rights, too. They're making the case that you and your new direction aren't in the company's best interest."

"I'm being responsible! That's a new direction for me--for the company. I mean, me on the company's behalf being responsible for the way that... This is great," he scoffs.

He grabs the pizza box and starts to walk away but Obadiah won't let him get away that easily.

"Hey, Tony. Listen, I'm trying to turn this thing around but you gotta give me something to pitch to them. Let me have the engineers analyze that," he says about the thing in Tony's chest. "You know, draw up some specs."

"No, no. Absolutely not."

"It'll give me a bone to throw the boys in New York!"

"Fat chance, Obadiah," you say.

"Forget it. It stays with me and Y/N," he says.

Obadiah grabs the pizza box from Tony.

"Alright, this stays with me, then. Do you mind if I come down there and see what you're doing?"

"Good night, Obie," Tony says.

You two walk back down to the lab to continue what Tony started. There is something about Obadiah that you've never liked, even when you first came into Tony's life. He's hiding something... something he doesn't want you and Tony to know.

x

Follow my library blog @aqueenslibrary​​​​​​ where I reblog all my stories, so you can put notifications on there without the extra stuff :)

[phoenixcatch7]

Omg you're too kind I'm so excited -

So my main overarching plan is based on a fusion of the two games that's basically as close to their own respective canons as possible, where the world building sort of grows around it rather than shaping it. In this, persona awakenings happen basically the same - at least to my understanding!

In Third Eye, personal personas are pulled from the sea of souls to bond with and reflect their user - they're not created from the users soul but are more akin to Bayo's demon summoning, where powerful and exclusive contracts can be forged where both demon and witch can be called upon by the other at their will, their magics entwined.

But bayonetta has multiple contracts, though they're weaker and less loyal than her main with Madame Butterfly, from whom she can use her limbs to attack and her wings to fly. Advanced rituals allow witches to take on halfway forms of their main demons, which may put you in mind of the fanart of joker in arsenes outfits :D. This is actually pretty similar to the wild card ability, where joker has his main/true persona Arsene, but can still form contracts with and use other persona he finds along the way!

Speaking of his persona, though, one of the things that I struggled with was what to do about his own demon contract. I spent ages trying to work satneal being half demon half persona into the world building somehow, but it just wasn't clicking, because I had three slots that needed filling but only two things to fill it with.

But then I found out about that one p5r dlc, which has akiras THIRD freaking awakening: Raoul, the false alias of Arsene Lupin. Sometimes lover, sometimes ally, sometimes the false name he disguised himself by. But his design is giving yellow Sci fi street thug who thinks he's all that compared to Arsene and satneals gorgeous black and red prince vibes ToT. Anyway, the fact that the other personas have actual upgrades, but Akira just has a false identity, that was actually really interesting. So, as long as we can overlook the yellow, it occurred to me that I might change it up.

What if this joker, with his secret identity of being an immortal gun slinging witch in training hiding from the government, awakened to raoul instead of arsene? And only after growing to trust his friends, his new family, and being able to open up to them about his past would he be able to awaken his true persona, the unmasked and unrepentant Arsene.

Because in canon it's the other way round, isn't it? Joker arrives as a kid who has nothing, a kid who got caught for doing the right thing regardless of the government, and it's only later that he builds a second life and learns the deception and subterfuge necessary to being a phantom thief.

And then satneal, the whole actual demon lord, could be his demon summon!! And his shadow would turn into a six winged bat demon hehe.

And the best part is there's a whole secret back story in bayonetta about how the current world began - there was a huge war aeons ago between the forces of heaven and hell that I think killed all of the Actual Universe Creating Deities, called Dea (bar one survivor who fell and now runs an underground weapon shop/bar that a xenomorph wouldn't look out of place in. As a piece of furniture). So both inferno and paradiso are notably lacking their bosses while earth still had Aesir (the guy who later split into loki and loptr). The angels wanted their boss back (who btw is a girl) but got tricked (by evil loptr) alongside the humans into basically an armageddon situation to resurrect loptr in his full power instead. Bayonetta teams up with Jeanne to summon the mysterious demon boss (?) queen, who then throws him into the sun before it gets to that point, destabilising reality. Basically in this au satneal is both very, very old, very, VERY powerful, and has been missing since the universe began. Him showing up to contract with Akira would be a HUGE issue in the bayonetta world, and I'm all for it. Let your kid out of your sight for less than a year and he summons the presumed KIA devil.

Man, I haven't even actually talked about the whole overarching plot. And why it's called Third Eye.

Right, the whole deal is that the trinity of realities are rapidly destabilising after the bayonetta games. Two magic cores called the left and right eye of the world (belonging to the sages and witches) got nuked. Demons are escaping summons, angels are going crazy and failing to pick up souls destined for paradiso, there's freak weather events, earthquakes, that sort of thing. Eventually the whole thing is, within the next millennium or so, going to shake apart completely and then we'll all be back in the primordial soup.

Loki tried to prevent loptr from making it worse (stabilised, yes, but much worse for humanity) by using humanity's free will to establish the meta verse and persona, so that humanity might have guardians of their own immune to the corruption that befell the sages and witches (persona users being immune to the mental corruption that would lead to forming Palaces). He hoped that by returning magic to humans the flow of energy would once more stabilise.

UNFORTUNATELY loptr caught on while he was making his own plans (involving possession and giant statues and I kid you not capitalism cults). And managed to break into the velvet room. Whether ol' yalda (aka demiurge) is loptr reborn or just his special minion idk I'm still working on that. But he finds akechi.

Akechi, who is a distant descendant of the sages on his mother's side. Who is almost unnaturally tall and beautiful and capable of the immense magic needed to be a wildcard, although his non-fool arcana limits him. Akechi would be perfect to sow the fear and destruction he needs to win humanity's thoughts and thus, their minds.

There's always something juicy about a 'last of their kind' finding someone like them, and I think it'd really enhance the tension between Akira and akechi. Akechi, who never knew why he and his mother were so different to everyone else, who could never have gotten the training Akira did. Who grew up having to conform and perform to public scrutiny in ways that Akira needed to reject in order to fully grow into his abilities. And the inevitable tragedy of his death, how he was already too far lost to ever be safe to tell, but he knew Akira knew something anyway. The rage of never being told. The guilt of never telling, even as it keeps your family safe.

But anyway. This story ends with the stabilisation, not destruction of the meta verse, that humanity can forever dream of bigger things than they will ever see. The phantom thieves of hearts might be young, but they have proved the strength of their very souls, and should the day arise that they are needed, they will be called upon once more. Though the two eyes of the world are long destroyed, the third eye, the third path has opened, and as one, humanity shall finally pave their own way.

Basically thank you so much for asking @thegarlicthief 💖💖💖💖

Y'know what my knowledge of bayonetta may be limited to badass witch lady but I'd still like to hear about your Third Eye crossover thingy

Omg what a thing to wake up to thank you so much :D!!!

To quickly summarise, Bayonetta is an unhinged fast paced fighting game (trilogy) about an immortal witch with demon summoning gun wielding powers, who hunts angels for their halos to earn money and feed the demon contracts so they don't eat her instead. It's incredibly campy and shameless, but behind the scenes it's got some seriously well researched lore and a wealth of world building that drew me to writing for it. It's visually gorgeous and amazingly cohesive.

So what started it all was a meme going around the smash bros community a few years ago when joker and bayonetta joined, about how she was joker's mother. And I, having played both games (but not smash, ironically), was instantly hooked. I really wanted to see a story exploring that, but there was only a handful of fics or comics that, while good, weren't what I was looking for.

So I started writing my own. It's a story about joker (I'm using the name Akira for him) being the blood son of bayonetta, and his life being raised by her and fellow witch Jeanne, who in this fic is living with them and co-parenting hehe. It's following him through his trials and tribulations of being the son of the last witch (they were all killed off in a very violent war with their counterparts the sages), his own training to be a witch via time travel (it's a whole thing) and - in the second half - the circumstances around being forced to leave his small circle of protection and being pulled under government scrutiny after saving shidos victim, where any wrong move risks exposing the last dregs of the supernatural to people who would want to ruin everything.

I'm purposely keeping it unclear how Akira was conceived/born, or who the other parent is (if there even is one), because it's not really relevant and I like the mystery! It's also unclear if Jeanne and bayonetta are in a steamy relationship or just doing a besties cohabitation thing for the sake of the kid, but again it's on purpose ;). And lets me avoid writing romance LMAO.

Unsurprisingly, it's the world building that's really making me struggle, but the general gist is that the afterlife is VERY convoluted.

So, in p5 you've got the meta verse and the sea of souls, which is where persona come from. Persona, who are mythological, literary or historical figures. You can summon persona and kill them to make weapons and accessories. Though you don't lose your persona upon entering reality again, it can't manifest.

In bayonetta, there's three planes of reality. You've got the obvious paradiso and inferno, and then purgatorio, a second layer of earth's reality where the games all primarily take place, where living things become faint shadows oblivious to your chaos - though they will freak out when you blow up their car! Angels and demons alike can be summoned to this plane, (though they often show up regardless lol), being sometimes mythological, literary or historical figures but usually just generic mob enemies (hey, just like persona!). Certain enemies can be taken to a guy to be killed and turned into weapons and accessories. There's a lot of similarity!

So, in Third Eye, the sea of souls that living humans cannot reach is referring to the three planes of reality, where angels, demons and human souls can be pulled into the meta verse to become persona. Awakening a 2nd tier persona is an evolution of the user's soul, strengthening it and making the magics easier. It's a third equivalent to the witch/sages, which is going to be VERY relevant in the second phase.

Also, in the second game, spoilers, there's a blue kid called loki who uses tarot cards to fight, who ends up being the amnesiac god of free will trying to save humanity from his evil counterpart loptr who wants to take control of humanity and remake the world in his image, and eventually he sacrificed his life to do so, with a promise to one day be reincarnated.

So that's where philemon was while Igor was taking over his velvet room :D.

Thank you so much for asking ^u^! If you're curious about more I'd be delighted to talk about it, especially the details of jokers altered persona ;)...

[peachywritesstuff]

Vance Hopper with a black!reader

I got to thank Vance for giving me the inspiration to write again

Now I don't know who in the hell headcanon Vance as a racist person but he is not that st all. Not on my page hell no

Yes the man's got some anger issues and fighting problems but that doesn't mean he is a racist prick.

But anyway let's get onto the canons shall we :)

Ya'll will be so fucking adorable.

It's the late 70s/early 80s so sadly racism is a very common thing 😕

Doesn't put up with any of that shit fr. He knows you can look after yourself but people would try to hurt you if they could and he doesn't want to see anything or anyone try to hurt you.

He almost beat someone unconscious becuase they called your relationship "disgusting"

Not trying to pull the "white bf saves black gf from racism" card or anything like that. It's not like you are a damsel in distress. But he got your back 24/7 just like you got his

So If anybody got something to say then they can fuck off for real.

He is most definitely not afraid to get into a fight for you.

Or get arrested

With you around you most definitely help him get his anger issues under control.

You most definitely don't let him talk to you the way he talks to other people.

The people in town do notice that he has gotten...nicer? He is not really nice nice but his first option isn't to beat the ever living shit out of someone for a minor inconvenience.

So I guess it's an upgrade?

He absolutely loves the way your hair smells/the way you smell in general.

Those coconut scented hair products just really makes his knees buckle.

Your skin is always so fucking soft he can just run his hands on your arms or thighs all day.

Definitely likes to stare at you when you go outside when it's sunny.

It doesn't matter if you are light skinned or dark skinned the way the sun just bounces of your skin just makes Vance want to stare at you all fucking day.

And don't even forget about the cookouts

When you start inviting him to cookouts he is so fucking awkward.

He just kind of hangs off of you for a little while cuz he literally doesn't know what to do.

Until some of your little cousins/siblings drag him away to play a few games.

Plate is filled to the brim and is stuffed like a turkey on Thanksgiving

Aunties will definitely compliment his hair cuz have you seen it? So beautiful

You most definitely get that boy a hair routine. With all them curls in his head he needs one

He has no experience whatsoever so ofc your going to have to do it for him a few times and teach him.

Could fall asleep with your hands massaging his scalp

Vance wearing a bonnet to bed is just has me laughing my ass off.

"I don't need a fucking bonnet" yes baby yes you do.

Him grumbling and mumbling becuase you made him wear your spare bonnet that just so happens to be pink and black.

He swears that if anyone sees him in this state that he is actually going to punch them in the face.

Knowing Vance he would.

But after a few nights he can see why you need to wear one if you have curly hair.

His hair never looked this good in a while.

He likes to watch you do your hair on hair wash day.

He won't help you unless you ask because he is afraid to fuck something up out of fear so he just admires from afar.

Is most definitely in disbelief with how many hair products you use/ have

"Babe you use all of these?!"

"That's not even half of what I have, there is more under the sink"

"THERE'S MORE?!"

When he is more confident into the relationship,it's okay with you, he will help you pick your afro for you if your arms are tired

Or if you don't have an afro he will help you detangle your curls

Hell even with people with relaxed hair still have a few curls to manage as well.

Even tho he can do his hair now he still wants you to do it.

Sitting inbewteen your legs and just drifting off

He is always assured that he can out his guard down so he doesn't need to he so tough all the time.

That you won't judge him for being vulnerable.

He can say with full confidence that he loves you ❤

And you love him ofc

Yall make each other very happy 😊

You don't know this but Vance hopes to marry you one day.

Cuz he really can't picture himself with anybody else

[crimsonxe]

So we’ve now reached the stage of things where there’s someone who says BB is endgame, but also QB. I hate to pull the card but “back in my day” QB was 100% tied to LGBT+ pairings not happening; now its whether its happening at record speed and according to entitled viewer’s pacing.

Though this person also was bitching about the show not literally spoonfeeding them obvious things like Blake and Yang’s fear towards bringing up moving out of friends into romantic territory cause neither knows the other’s feelings. Which was demonstrated in their reactions towards Harriet and Elm’s dismissal of teammates being anything more than just business, where it was obvious that struck a chord with Blake and Yang specifically.

They also say how Yang has no self-doubt issues cause obviously she’s “confident” in v7-8. So I guess anyone that presents as confident is being 100% and isn’t at all putting up a side of themselves to cover another, which has been repeatedly spotlighted for Yang as doing. Yang’s self-doubt/lack of self-value is everywhere in the damn show for those paying attention; same with Blake only in her case there isn’t the other side presentation. Not to mention having an entire song (All That Matters) revolving around her self-doubt towards Blake feeling the same romantic feelings for her (which we the audience know is wrong but Yang doesn’t). Oh but they say that they shouldn’t have to go look up a lyric vid for a song and that its a v5 song, cause y’know the emotions put forward in it vanish away after the volume its in is over -eye roll- Though they also are in the camp of failing to realize that Yang’s entire character is a complex dual-state, where one side is the confident, cheery, and strong front to the other’s self-doubting, cynical, and vulnerable.

As well as Blake’s lasting trauma and reservations about relationships after Adam and everything to do with him, including the doubts he’d have put into Blake. Because its not explicitly brought up in the show and instead the writers expect you to have some basic tier emotional fucking understanding and brain-power, the person says it doesn’t count. That Blake is fine cause she’s flirting with Yang, cause like with Yang’s self-value issues if there’s any complexity involved then the underlying thing gets tossed out for the surface level.

For some reason it seems to be becoming a recurring thing to reference Pirates of the Caribbean, since they bring up Will and Elizabeth “having a romantic upgrade in the middle of a fight”; as well as Arkos; and Renora. Oh and if bringing up the fact that in Arkos’s case it had to with her literally being planned to die, that’s just “being meta” vs. y’know an obvious reality of that case.

Also Arkos and Renora count as having mentioned feelings (even though only Pyrrha’s are brought up in Arkos and Renora has “we’re just friends” jokes attached to it), but not BB even with Nora’s canonizing comment in v7 about BB; because it doesn’t have either Blake or Yang involved. Like since when has that ever been a needed damn thing in regards to setting up, locking in, and foreshadowing a relationship; its not by reasonable people.

I’m truly so damn tired of entitled dumbasses

[doctorstethoscope]

The Right Chapter 5 || Aaron Hotchner x Fem! Reader

This is a big one babes!! Hold on tight!! 

Read previous chapters of this fic here!

Contains: canon-typical discussion of violence, soft aaron hotchner supremacy 

wordcount: 1.8k

You barely saw Aaron on Sunday, despite being in his house the whole day-- Jack was practically buzzing with excitement the moment you came through the door, pulling you down to his height and wrapping his arms around your neck to squeeze you in a hug.

“Hey, little man, I’ve missed you!” You said enthusiastically, returning his hug. 

“I missed you too. And so did Daddy. He said you were sick so I drew you a feel better card,” he told you, dragging you over to the coffee table and brandishing the  piece of computer paper he’d folded in two to form a card. 

“I love it so much Jack! I feel better already. Let’s put this on the fridge, yeah?” You said, standing up and shooting Aaron a smile as you crossed the kitchen. 

“Can we play legos now?”

“Buddy, give her a second. She just got here.” Aaron tried to calm Jack down, but you waved him off. 

“Just let me put my stuff away, and I’ll meet you in your room, okay?’ You told Jack, who scurried off towards his bedroom.

Aaron must have found some other way to entertain himself, because you and Jack spent the whole morning together, only taking a break after lunch when it was time for Jack’s nap. He insisted that you put him down, and after three readings of Curious George, he was finally asleep. When you turned to leave, you saw Aaron sitting in the door jam watching you.

“He was so excited this morning you would have thought it was Christmas,” He remarks as you meet him in the doorway. 

“He’s a good kid.” You whisper, slipping out into the hallway and pulling the door shut behind the two of you.

“I’m lucky.” He agrees with you. 

“Come on, Hotchner, it’s not all luck.” You tease him good naturedly as the two of you move back to the kitchen. He saw you headed for the sink, full of dishes from lunch, and sped up to get in front of you.

“Ah, ah ah. It’s naptime.” He told you, placing his hands on your shoulders and turning you around. 

Before you could stop yourself, you stomped your foot, not entirely unlike a child who needed a nap. “Hotch, come on!” 

“We’re probably getting called on something tomorrow, and sleep will be hard to come by, and you’ll wish you’d listened to me.” He tells you.

“You’re acting like you aren’t going to bench me, regardless of whether or not we get called on a case.” You accused of him, and he at least had the good grace to try and look sheepish. “I’m not tired. Can we just watch a movie or something?” You offered a compromise, and he nodded, leading you to the couch. 

You plopped onto the couch and picked up the remote as Aaron crossed the room to grab a throw blanket for the two of you to share. He spread the blanket across the couch and sat down, and you tucked your feet underneath you, unintentionally leaning in closer to him as you flicked the TV to a movie channel. Aaron stretched his legs out in front of him, extending one arm across the end of the sofa and the other arm around the back of it, conveniently making more space for you. As Hotch had suspected, it wasn’t long before your eyelids started to get heavy. 

“The dishes…” you mumbled sleepily. 

“I’ll take care of them.” He whispered, leaning in closer so you could hear him. 

“Later. It’s naptime,” you reminded him, your head resting against his chest in sleep. His arm came to rest across your shoulders and down your side, drawing you into him. He inhaled deeply, trying not to overthink. 

You’re her superior. His brain screamed. She loves Jack, not you. She loves Jack, but that doesn’t mean she wants to raise him. You’re too old, too cranky, too much baggage. This isn’t what you think it is. As much as he wanted to make himself believe all of that, as much as he wanted to accept that even if he knew he would go through hell and back for you, he could never have you, all he could focus on in that moment was the steady puffs of breath coming from your nose and landing on his chest. He realized, with a start, that it felt like walking into the wrong classroom your senior year of high school and locking eyes with the woman you knew you were going to marry.

  Aaron’s prediction had been correct-- Monday morning had found you jetting off to Kentucky, for the murder of three county paramedics-- by the time your plane had landed, another body had dropped. A firefighter. You all climbed into SUVs from the airstrip-- Hotch and Rossi off to examine the bodies, Morgan, JJ and Prentiss to the most recent crime scene, and you and Reid to the police station to the police station to work on the geographic profile. Normally you’d be off with Hotch and Rossi, and examining a body wasn’t technically field work, but you went with Reid with minimal pouting, knowing you were lucky that Hotch had let you leave Quantico at all.

You decided to let Reid drive, and you were fiddling with the radio when he spoke for the first time. 

“I keep… thinking about what there is to say to you, to communicate how much we’re all here for you, how much we all love you and we all want what’s best for you, and it feels like everything just falls short. I have an IQ of 187 and I still can’t find the words, but I can’t say nothing. I was scared for you. I’m proud of you, and if you need anything I just want you to know I’m here. I might not have the right words but I promise to listen, and to make sure you feel heard.” The words stumble out of Spencer awkwardly, but still strike you with their sincerity. You sniffle a little before responding. 

“I know, Reid. I know how much you all care for me. I’ve never doubted that for a second. Thank you.” You tell him, your voice thick with emotion. 

“I just want to make sure you’re okay.” 

“I am.” You tell him with a confident nod. “Or, at least, I’m getting there. I did the hard part. I got out.” 

A few hours later, you were at the police station with Reid, narrowing the geographic profile and spitballing with victimology, when one of the local officers poked his head into your makeshift office-space. 

“Another body dropped. The town librarian.” 

“Two in one day?” You asked. 

“He’s spree killing now. He’s devolving.” Reid supplemented. 

“Do you think it was random? He was killing first responders. The librarian doesn’t fit.” 

“Could be,” Reid agreed. 

“Have you called the rest of our team?” You asked the officer. 

“Not yet.” 

“We’ll call.” You told him, and he nodded. You pulled out your phone and dialed Hotch as Reid crossed the room to call JJ. 

“Hotchner,” he said into the phone. 

“Hey, it’s me. Another body just dropped.”  

“He’s devolving.” Aaron sighed

“It was the local librarian.” 

“But he was killing--” He started, but you could hear the words he was going to say before he even thought them.

“First responders, I know.” 

Aaron let out a deep sigh. “If I take Reid off of babysitting duty, are you going to behave?” He asked. 

You rolled your eyes. “Sure, but I reserve the right to bitch about it when this is over.” 

“Noted. Tell him to meet us at the next scene, please?” He asks of you.

“Will do. Stay safe out there.” 

“You too.” Hotch said before hanging up. 

You sent Reid off to meet up with Hotch, and sat back down in front of your case files and notes, determined to find something written between the lines. After a tortuously slow thirty minutes, a thought occurs to you. You step into the police bullpen and get the attention of one of the officers. 

“Hey. Does this town contract out its EMS services?” 

“No,” the officer tells you. “They’re all employed by the town. They’re paid with a mix of taxpayer and grant dollars.” 

“So they’re government employees?” 

“Yeah.” The officer confirms, and you pull your cell phone out of your pocket, heading out a side door to get a little bit of air and some better reception to call Garcia. 

“What’s new bugaboo?” Garcia asks as she picks up the phone, and you can’t help but smile. The sunshine felt warm on your face as you paced the empty back lot of the police station. 

“Hey, Garcia. Is there any way to track if anyone in town has some sort of anti-government bias?” 

“I can look for fringe political groups-- if the unsub is a member, that might help, but it would take me days to just search through every resident’s social media.” 

“That’s okay, start there. Look for white men between 23 and 45. If I think of anything else that might weed it out I’ll let you know.”

“Okay, kitten. Are we talking strict anarchists here, or should I be looking at groups like--” 

Garcia continued, but you couldn’t hear her over the sound of a gun cocking and the sensation of cold metal at the back of your head. You gasped. 

“Sweetie? Did you think of something?”

“It’s time to put the phone down.” A voice said from behind you. You took a deep breath, trying to remain calm. 

“Who was that? Are you okay?” Garcia asked.

“Go on,” the voice said. “Hang up the phone. Don’t be dumb.” 

You hung up the phone without saying another word to Garcia. The man dragged his gun down your spine, resting it against the middle of your back. “To think, I came here thinking I might kill a couple of cops, and I ended up with an FBI agent. Talk about an upgrade.” You tried to subtly reach for your gun, but it was useless. He strikes you in the head with the barrel of his gun before you can react. “Come on, sweet thing. I told you not to play dumb with me.” 

“You really think you can kill an FBI agent outside of a fully staffed police station without getting caught? And you’re going to call me dumb?” You asked, hoping that he couldn’t hear the fear laced in your voice.

“Who said anything about not getting caught?” He chuckled. “We all die eventually. Might as well make it worth my while.”

tagging:  @the-modernmary @greeneyedblondie44 @angelic-kisses13 @wanniiieeee @hotforhotchner11  @baumarvel @ssamorganhotchner @zheezs14​

[honeybomb4thebear]

nsfw alphabet for souda??

Sure!

Warning: N//F*W!!! (&mentions of piss kink. he doesn’t have it, though)

KAZUICHI SOUDA N//F*W ALPHABET

A=Aftercare - What they do/act like after sex. ⦁ If he is the dominant one, watch him cross his arms behind his head as he dreamily gazes into the ceiling. With his stupid smile that you've grown used to, of course. He will come down to earth shortly after, and will clean you up. ⦁ If he is the submissive one, he will rest his head on your chest, still breathing hard. Pat his head, then clean him up.

B=Bondage - Are they into BDSM, and how far they’ll go if they have a green light. ⦁ Lol why do you think he wanted to date a princess so badly? He'd happily play servant (or slave) for his s/o, both in and out of bed. A masochist too. As long as you don't hurt him much... Also is a canon degradee, so...

C=Cum - pretty self explanatory. ⦁ I doubt Kazuichi has a good diet, so it's kind of bitter. Cums quick yet not much, like he doesn't cum a lot yet it's still above average.

D=Dom - Are they dominant, submissive, a switch? ⦁ A switch sub! Like I said, it's the perverts who are switches lol

E=Edgeplay - Similar to ‘Kinks’ except it’s a lot riskier than usual kinks (knifeplay, breathplay, etc.). ⦁ Lmao he is too much of a scaredy cat to be into it.

F=Fantasy - A fantasy of theirs (ex: a teacher/student fantasy). ⦁ It's basically canon that Kazuichi wants to strip down a girl and check her bone structure. So he wants to strip you down and explore your body, observing your reactions while his hands trail on most sensitive body parts of yours.

G=Got Caught - How they react when they get caught having sex. ⦁ Probably more scared than you. Tears will appear on his eyes as he screams at the other person to get out.

H=Hot Spots - A place that drives them crazy when stimulated (EX: neck). ⦁ Waist & chest. Trail your index finger on his sternum and waist, as you sit on top of him. He'll be blushing crazily and soon will try to take action if you take it too long.

I=Intimacy - How romantic they are, or can be, before, during, or after sex. ⦁ He is much too excited to be romantic- seriously, he is such a virgin lol. He will glance at your body parts intensely, the eyes he used to strip you can now see your actual naked body so it's exciting for him. He'll still be showing how thankful he is, especially if you DEMAND him to do so, he'll happily do it with a joyful smile on his face, as his voice shakes with pleasure.

J=Journey - Their ideal way of leading up to sex. ⦁ Tease him. Make him beg for it. Literally walk around in sexy clothes in the house yet do NOT let him touch you. Show off your body and drive him crazy, yet still reject him when he asks. Eventually, when he gives up to be more specific, jump on him lol

K=Kinks - I’ll list a few of their kinks, be they the normalized ones or kinkier kinks. ⦁ Majesty’s servant, a degradee yet has a praise kink too, and maybe erotic electrostimulation only if he made the devices that he uses on you. It's safer that way, and it feels like he is still the one who pleasures you.

L=Location -  Where they like to have sex at, do they like risky locations, etc. ⦁ He says he won't want to take risks but when given the opportunity he'll enjoy it lol. For example, the public bathrooms, if you guys try to have sex there once it won't be the last time, probably. Since his sex drive is quite high he'll try to pull you away from everyone quite often. Reject him and look at the beautiful disappointment in his face lol-

M=Masturbation - How they are when they get themselves off, what they get themselves off to. ⦁ If you push his limits too hard, he'll go to the bathroom to masturbate. He needs to calm down after all. Please punish him um- ⦁ Other than before meeting you, he had these erotic magazines that you see in animes and masturbated to them often.

N=NO - A few things that they will absolutely, under no circumstances, ever do. ⦁ Piss kink and further stuff. I just can't imagine him doing that at all. Also too risky stuff, like having the risk of one of you dying or sumth. Don't expect him to thrust into you without a condom too. I mean... Probably no.

O=On’s - Their top turn on’s that they have (things that’ll get them super horny super quickly). ⦁ Fix his clothes as you look at his eyes with bedroom eyes. Like, you'd rather take them off completely. Paint his face with lipstick marks, as soon as he sees his face he'll be turned on so bad.

P=Position -  Their favourite position to have sex in. ⦁ If dominant, missionary where he can observe your reactions closely. Or maybe bowstring on the chair. If submissive, doggy style. With a femdom, good ol' cowgirl where you also bring his hands to caress your tits.

Q=Quickie - Do they like it, do they prefer quickies over actual sex, etc. ⦁ He does, like I said he needs to be taken care of quite often so yeah. Probably prefers actual sex, though.

R=Rough - How rough they are, or get, when in bed. ⦁ He'll observe your reactions while thrusting inside various places of you. When he finds your G-Spot, he'll get excited and will be really rough. The more you moan, the more he gets excited and fucks you harder.

S=Stamina - How long they can go before they tap out. ⦁ I'd say 2-3 rounds since he doesn't have the most athletic body.

T=Toys - Do use toys, do they own them, what kind, etc. ⦁ He MAKES toys for you to use on him and to use on you- ⦁ He upgrades your toys as well.......................ofc he does.

U=Unfair - How much they tease you, how they tease you, etc. ⦁ If you tease him too much, he'll try to get back at you but since he's too impatient he'll fail miserably. Punish him again lol-

V=Volume - How loud they get when having sex, things they might say, etc. ⦁ He'll talk about how amazing it feels and is giggly as well. Will be obedient to you, so if you want him to talk about how much of a pig he is, he will. If you want him to praise you, he will. Doesn't moan much but you can still hear his pathetic whimpers.

W=Wild Card - a random letter for the character of your choice. ⦁ Like Teruteru, he will want to use vibrators outside... But on himself. He would never ask you to do such a thing to him, so you should ask him yourself.

X=X-Ray - How they look with their clothes off. ⦁ 5,6 inches erect, 3 inches girth.

Y=Yearning - How often they need to have sex. ⦁ Quite often.

Z=ZZZ - How quickly they fall asleep after having sex. ⦁ Satisfied and happy, will sleep like a baby after taking care of you. Cuddles you in his sleep and you'll probably fall asleep shortly after.

[vikingpoteto]

we don’t have to dance (to the beat of their songs)

Chapter 5 on AO3

______________________

Relationships:  (Gen) Tim Drake & Jason Todd

Tags: Battle for the Cowl, Alternate Canon, Adopted Sibling Relationship, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Canon-Typical Violence, Mental Health Issues, Past Child Neglect, Domestic Fluff, Canon is not valid I am, and I want them to be friends goddamnit

Summary: In the middle of their battle, Jason asks Tim to leave the nest and be his Robin. Tim decides it's not a bad idea, after all.

________________________

Jason Todd is many things. A street rat. A literature nerd. A former hero. A crime-lord. Dealing with anger issues. Ignoring a whole lot of other issues. But he isn’t an idiot. And, while he’s been bamboozled more times he can count, he realizes Tim Drake is a bigger conundrum than he anticipated. He isn’t about to be fooled again.

He thought he had Tim figured out. Rich kid. Too smart for his own good. Smug beyond repair. No regard for his own well-being. Incapable of holding grudges. He thought the kid couldn’t surprise him, not in a way that mattered, until that first night.

That’s when he starts taking note of the small things.

Saturday is uneventful. Jason wishes he could say he forgets he isn’t living alone anymore, but, even though Tim makes little to no noise as he sleeps the morning away, Jason is painfully aware that he has a roommate. He can’t focus on his book, he can’t focus on the absurdly detailed report Tim made him. He definitely can’t focus on anything else after Tim flies down the stairs like a speedster, blurts out something that could’ve been good morning and disappears in the kitchen. Jason heads to his room, assuming the kid is getting himself breakfast, and he tries to take a nap. He fails.

After giving up and heading downstairs to make dinner, he finds the kitchen as clean as he left — did Tim do the dishes? Did he eat at all? — and he can barely hear faint noises downstairs. He makes a mental note to fix the sound proofness of his walls as he climbs down.

In his Office, like Jason calls it, he finds Tim wearing headphones. The music is loud enough that Jason can clearly hear muffled heavy metal. The computer is half dismantled, half loading something somehow, and Tim is carefully tinkering with the suit Jason gave him.

Instead of throwing something at him like he wants to, Jason walks into his field of view and waves at his face. Tim takes off the headphones.

“The fuck you doing?” Jason asks.

“Fixing stuff. I know you love Jane Austen, but do you have to use the same software she used to write?”

Jason punches him in the shoulder. He regrets it instantly and curses at himself inwardly. Tim, however, doesn’t even flinch. He snickers as though that was the reaction he expected.

Huh. Jason files that away for later analysis.

He gets Tim to suit up and they head out for the night.

They don’t go together per se, as Red Hood is still laying low, planting the seeds subtly so no one notices until he’s ready to make an entrance. He gets intel. Ruins the plan of a very misguided small dealer. And finally saves a pair of prostitutes from a harasser. He wears nothing but a domino mask all night, because there are only a few key players that must know Red Hood is back. He smiles at the girls after he’s done and they get excited asking him if he’s the Red Hood. He takes off without answering.

Red Hood has always been popular with prostitutes, as weird as that sounds. What can Jason say? The girls that worked near the street he grew up in were the nicest people he knew; he has a soft spot for them.

He meets up with Tim near the end of the night and he finds that Tim’s spoken reports are a lot briefer than his written ones: he stopped some muggings. Probably broke the kneecaps of some creep near the park. Confirmed intel he got from his research. He actually saved a cat stuck on a tree too, which makes Jason roll his eyes. They go back to Jason’s place without further ado.

Sunday is more of the same, except Jason manages to actually sleep. That is, until the sound of a hammer wakes him up.

He finds Tim in his living room dismantling an old television he got from God knows where. The shouting match that follows should make things more awkward, but instead it makes them easier.

Turns out Tim doesn’t mind exchanging insults or having dusty pillows thrown at him, and Jason feels more at ease by the time they swallow cold sandwiches and head out.

He has this unreasonable pang of anxiety when Tim vanishes into the shadows, but he shakes it off. The Red Robin suit is getting better everyday and, thanks to the cowl, Tim looks older and more menacing than he actually is, meaning no one is going to fuck with him.

It’s fine. They have a plan. It’s working. There are rumors that Hood is back, though nothing but whispers. Enough to stir his territory without getting unwanted attention from the better neighborhoods.

It isn’t until Monday at around 1pm that the other shoe drops. Jason wakes up scratching his belly and walks past Tim on the way to the kitchen.

“Morning, sleeping beauty,” Tim mumbles.

“Fuck off, Replacement,” he says back.

The kid is fucking with something that smells like oil on the kitchen table. Jason thinks to himself he should have words with him about it… after his morning tea. Morning tea at 1pm, but still.

He’s boiling water and staring blankly at Tim when he realizes: it’s Monday.

“Wait, what the fuck are you doing here?”

Tim stares at him. Back at the myriad of circuits spread around the table. Then back at Jason

“Wrist computer,” he says.

“No, here !”

“The kitchen?”

“Home! You’re, like, 17, right? Shouldn’t you be at school?”

Tim stares at him as though he’s grown a second head. “Jason. I don’t know how to tell you this, but I stopped going to school after my father died again and I traveled abroad to work with an organization of murderers.”

“That was a fucking month ago. You get a month of skipped classes, your dad died. Now that you’re here, you can go back.”

His chin actually drops and Jason is greeted by the sight of a nearly white chewed gum threatening to fall from Tim’s open mouth.

“I’m not going back to high school. Are you insane?”

“Are you insane? Of course you’re going back to school. Don’t you have, I don’t know, friends or a girlfriend or… whatever!”

“No, I don’t?” Tim scowls. “You want me to go to school so I can date? Why don’t you go to school?”

“Everyone thinks I’m dead.”

“Oh, heck off, you don’t get to pull the death card with me,” Tim rolls his eyes. “It works with Dick and Bruce, but I’m immune.”

“The fact that you still say heck off means you definitely should be at school around people your age. Get some bullies. It builds character.”

Tim’s pale cheeks go crimson and Jason has to bite back a grin. Knowing that Tim blushes like that opens so many teasing opportunities.

“Shut up, I got used to it because Alfred got mad at us for cursing! And I don’t need school to get bullied, I have you right here.”

Jason decides to test a theory. It’s a wicked idea, but Jason isn’t known for fighting fair.

“Tim. I ain’t raising an uneducated goblin.”

“I’m seventeen ! You’re not fucking raising me! You’re like a muscular child sharing a place with a slightly smaller child!”

“If you don’t go back to school, the deal is off. I’m not keeping you around.”

And, just like that, Tim closes his mouth and all the color drains from his face. Jason expected this. He doesn’t feel great about it.

“Y-you… Dick will notice if I start going back to school,” he tries. “This is against the plan. Batman will know we’re working together.”

“No. He’ll know you’re back in town. Make an excuse. I know you’re great at it.”

“This will affect my productivity. I won’t be able to upgrade your gear as fast and I’ll have to sleep more. This is-”

“Non-negotiable. School or no partnership.”

Jason knows it’s too late for him. It might be too late for Tim, too. But not late enough that Jason will let him give up. Tim may never have a normal life - the fact that he’s working with his almost murderer more than proves it. Jason selfishly wants to make sure he has at least a little normality.

This is about Jason, not Tim. Jason doesn’t think he can live with another deadman walking.

“Fine,” Tim says, like he’s agreeing to a death sentence. “I’m going back to school tomorrow. You happy?”

“Hella,” Jason says.  He turns back to his tea. “And Tim? I’ll know if you’re skipping and I’ll kill you if you do.”

Tim starts listing a colorful collection of insults a lot worse than heck off. Jason grins at him and Tim, in his teenage rage, doesn’t seem to notice that the smile doesn’t reach Jason’s eyes.

So Jason's theory is confirmed. Tim Drake doesn’t care about attempts on his life. He isn’t afraid to fight an armed man. He isn’t afraid of having a familiar person taking a swing at him, so Jason doesn’t think that he has issues with physical abuse.

Nothing freaks him out as much as someone critiquing his work, though. And not in the asshole way, that would be way too easy. As cocky as he is, Tim doesn’t look like the type to think he can do no wrong. He wouldn’t get irrationally angry over someone pointing out he can do better. He does, however, flip out at the mere possibility that he’s done something wrong and didn’t own up to it already.

Jason thought he knew Tim until he jokingly complained about him sleeping on the job and saw genuine horror in his eyes. Horror like never before, not even when Jason beat him and tried to leave him for dead. Hell, at that point the kid said he was a better Robin right before passing out.

Who did this to him, Jason wonders? Who convinced Tim that the worst he can be isn’t a high school dropout or even a dead boy, but a person who messes up?  His biological parents? Bruce? Is Tim even aware of it?

Jason doesn’t know, and he isn't sure what to do about it. Can he do something about it? He remembers far too well, thinking Bruce brought him in because he wanted another Robin. How every time he made Bruce laugh, or solved a case, it felt like a victory. How every time he got scolded, he expected Bruce to send him back to where he came from. He remembers having that fear confirmed when he heard from Talia that he’d been replaced.

Is there really something to be done?

Despite a good deal of complaining about work hours, Tim starts going to school. Jason hounds him to make sure he isn’t lying and he’s pretty sure he’ll have to keep checking regularly, because, if he learned anything about Tim, is that the kid is scarily patient and spiteful.

He stalks him all the way to school on the first day, making it painfully obvious that he’s there even if Tim puts a lot of effort into pretending he can’t see him. He pops at Tim’s classroom window and waves cheerfully as Tim flips the bird at him. Waking up early was hell, but Jason finds it ridiculously fun to make Tim annoyed.

On Friday, Jason decides to pick Tim up after class just to keep him on his toes… then he almost crashes his motorcycle into a lamppost when he sees a fancy car and a familiar man leaning against it.

Dick Grayson.

Despite the fun distractions Jason came up with, his whole damn body still remembers the beating he took. He wonders if Dick took as long to recover after that night.

His fake second death would be really short-lived but, lucky for him, Dick is preoccupied with something else. Jason parks around the corner. His height wouldn’t allow him to hide among the flux of rich kids walking out of school looking for their chauffeurs, but he has to come closer.

Well, time to get those stealthy muscles to work.

Ironically, it was Dick who taught him that the best hiding spot was in plain sight, and that’s how he casually walks behind the sports car and heads towards a beaten phone booth.

Dick doesn’t notice him.

Whether it was thanks to Jason’s skills or the fact that the older man looks like he’s having an internal anxiety attack, Jason may never find out. He does, however, hear it when Tim’s voice lets out a long word that definitely isn’t heck . He risks taking a peek at the duo and sees Dick smiling. He looks tired.

“Timbo,” he greets.

“Don’t call me that,” Tim groans. He would’ve sounded like your everyday grumpy teenager, but there’s too much tension in his jaw.

“Welcome back,” Dick says. “Were you planning on telling anyone you’re around?”

“I’m assuming you don’t mind, since you kept paying for my school. I was also checking to see how long it’d take you to find out.”

Jason almost snorts. Who knew the kid had it in him? Furthermore, it’s impressive how Tim methodically and deliberately hid all signs of displeasure. He looks earnestly happy to see Dick and he almost makes his barb sound like friendly banter.

“Timmy, you were gone for almost two months. Where were you?”

“I was pursuing a lead. It didn’t pan out. So I’m back.”

Dick is quiet after that. Jason assumes he knows damn well Tim isn’t one to give up just like that. At the same time, Jason can see Dick assessing the differences between the kid in front of him and the kid he last saw.

“Let’s go home. We need to talk,” he says finally.

“Sorry, I can’t. I’m heading to a friend’s house so we can do homework together. I have a lot to catch up.”

“Tim…”

“You were right, Dick.” Tim smiles softly. “Damian needs you now. I don’t.”

Dick flinches. “I didn’t mean…”

“I know,” he chuckles. “Let me rephrase that: I’m fine. You know, when you first asked me to help Bruce, I planned on staying for a few months. A year, tops. I was always supposed to go back to my normal life.”

“Timmy, you’re family,” Dick pleads. “Your normal life doesn’t include going home?”

Tim’s expression is empty of emotion when he replies: “I need space now. I’m not going back, Dick. I’m sorry. I have a place to stay. You don’t have to worry about me.”

“ Where are you staying? Do you need help setting up anything or…”

“I’ll text you the address later. Right now I really need to go, though.”

Dick presses his lips into a tight line. He hesitates before reaching out to hug him. Surprisingly to Jason, Tim allows it and even hugs him back, even if not as tightly as Dick does.

Jason didn’t realize that. The whole time, he thought Tim needed his older brother and Dick was painfully blind to it. It never occurred to him how Dick also needed Tim. He wonders if Dick felt lost when Tim went away, or if he realized how messed up it was to rely on a teenager.

And Jason’s file on Wayne drama keeps growing thicker.

“Come over for dinner tomorrow?” Dick tries again. “Alfie misses you.”

“And annoy Damian in the process? I’d love to.” Tim deadpans.

Dick finally pulls away from the hug. “He’s made a lot of progress. You’d be surprised.”

“I’m sure he doesn’t remember I punched him before I left.”

“Tim. Dinner?”

“Why would I say no to free food?” Tim gives him a crooked smile.

Dick moves as though it’s painful to let Tim go. He retreats to his car as slowly as it’s humanly possible, like he expects Tim to change his mind and join him. Tim smiles and waves until Dick vanishes around the corner. His look turns hollow, but none of the kids walking past him seems to notice it. Not even when Tim calls out:

“You can come out now. He’s really gone.”

Jason pretends not to hear two girls letting out startled little squeals when he leaves his hiding spot.

“That was cold blooded, Replacement,” Jason says, stretching his hand to Tim. “I knew you were a liar, but that was impressive.”

Without blinking, Tim takes out a tracker from the collar of his shirt and another from his hair. He hands both to Jason. “I didn’t lie, mostly,” he says. “I did plan on leaving after Bruce got better. Or at least when we found a better replacement. That didn’t work like I expected.”

Jason doesn’t say anything as he casually crushes one of the trackers under his boot and places the other on a random kid passing by. He knows how magical it feels to be Robin. He doesn’t think he could quit out of free will. He still remembers the addicting adrenaline that makes you feel like you’re really a bird soaring across the sky.

Until you’re not.

He notices it when Tim looks down at his own feet. Without thinking, he reaches for Tim’s head and messes up his hair.

“C’mon. I got the parts you asked. You can finish tinkering your suit tonight.”

They take the night off. It’s too risky going patrolling the night Dick found out about Tim’s return. Instead, they sit in the living room and Jason turns on the TV while Tim finishes adjusting the suit. The documentary about fish only keeps Jason’s attention for about five minutes before he notices Tim is butchering his cowl. Of course they start bickering.

The new mask isn’t quite a domino. It still has a nose guard similar to a bird’s beak that creates the illusion that Tim’s nose is more aquiline rather than a small snub, which is good to hide one’s identity. Still, Jason thinks going out without head protection is fucking stupid and Tim goes on a rant about looking like he’s wearing a condom on his head. Jason didn’t say anything when Tim replaced the old bandoliers with yellow ones with more compartments. The condom head thing hurts, though, and he ends up beating the shit out of Tim with a couch pillow.

A good deal of screaming and kicking each other later, they return to the task of redesigning. Tim replaces the RR in the middle of his chest with a bird-like symbol that hides a panic button. He switches the black gloves for sleeker red ones, although the middle finger and indicator are black. Jason thinks Tim is trying to make it more dramatic when he flips the bird (heh. Robin flipping bird) but Tim punches Jason’s shoulder and says the new gloves allow him to use his wrist pad more easily.

Jason hits him when he notices he weakened some of the defenses, and they bicker some more before Tim gives in and puts the shin guards and knee protectors back.

The cowl and the cape are gone, much to Jason’s annoyance, and he says Tim’ll look stupid. Tim calls him a knock-off Iron Man. Jason tries to smother him to death with a pillow when Tim doesn’t stop laughing.

It’s the most fun Jason had in… God, how long? He doesn’t remember the last time he could just joke back and forth like this. It doesn’t do good to your reputation as a crime lord if you give the drug dealers a noogie. Tim, on the other hand? Tim gets at least five noogies a day because he’s a dumbass.

It isn’t until they head to their rooms, later that night, that Jason realizes he hasn’t thought about his fight with Dick at all since they started working on the suit. He would've never guessed Tim’s presence wouldn’t be a bitter reminder of everything Jason lost, but rather than a good distraction.

Another week goes by before the suit is finished.

Jason swallows his pride and admits (to himself, at least) that getting rid of the cape was a smart move when he and Tim stand next to each other in full uniform. Tim’s new outfit doesn’t look out of place near Jason’s bulletproof vest and leather jacket. They’re a lot less dramatic than the Bats, and Jason likes that. They’re their own team, not one of them .

“Comms?” Jason asks.

“Tested and protected. Even Oracle would have to manually tinker with them to get into our frequency.”

“And you decided your field name yet?”

Tim hesitates. “I… Red Robin is fine.”

Jason nods. “Plan?”

“Break into Black Mask’s warehouse through the vent, plant…”

“Red Robin,” he cuts off. “Plan.”

Tim sighs. “Make Roman our bitch.”

“Atta boy. Let’s go.”

It’s an operation as simple as it is petty: Black Mask thought he could take over one of Hood’s warehouses. Jason was going to prove him wrong. It wasn’t a key hideout, but it was a relatively safe place if you were in the business of laundering money — discreet, easy to access without being noticed by the pigs, with most of the sewers around it hadn’t been blown up, which was always a plus. Hood was almost sure Roman took it just to show that he could and turned it into a drug warehouse to spite Hood. The fact that he disliked drugs wasn’t exactly a secret, after all. Szazs probably was involved in the process, Jason was sure.

In the end, Tim convinced him the stealthy approach was better. Just get in, ruin the whole operation and, by the time Black Mask realized it, he had lost a ton of money. Poetic justice and all that.

Jason complained about the plan being boring, but, as they get on their bikes to head out, he feels almost jittery. He doesn’t know if it’s just the thrill of being on the field again after so long — sue him, he’s an adrenaline junkie — or the prospect of the petty revenge. Either way, Red Hood grins under the helmet and, almost as though he can see his expression — or as though he’s feeling the same — Red Robin smirks back.

Just like that, they take off into the night. The wind howls past them as Hood leads the race, fast enough that it seems like he’s riding aimlessly. It doesn’t mean he isn’t choosing the way methodically. He knows he’s picking the right streets, the dark ones in which the dark red leather merges perfectly with the shadows. They rush past buildings with closed windows, sure that no one is stupid enough to glance at the two suspiscious riders.

Red Hood makes a sharp turn that would’ve made a less experienced driver fall into the asphalt. He hears Red Robin whooping excitedly behind him and he can’t help but laugh.

When they’re just a few blocks from the warehouse, they stop. At this point, Hood almost considers throwing the plan away — crashing the motorcycle into the place would make for an excellent entrance — but, as though reading his thoughts, Red Robin gives him a pointed look before getting off his bike.

“You’re such a wet blanket,” Hood says, even though no words were truly exchanged before that.

“And you’re a drama queen,” Red Robin retorts. And he grapples up to the nearest rooftop before Hood can give him a noogie for that.

Lighter and more agile, Red leads the way now and Hood is happy to be his shadow until they reach the strategic spot they picked — the two story building next door.

“Thank god this place didn’t crumble,” Hood comments absently. “The other buildings are too far for a clear view.”

Red gives him a strange look. “I checked whether it was still standing while we were planning the attack. Do you not verify the surroundings when you’re making strategies?”

“I like to leave room for improvisation; I’m not a stick in the mud like you.”

Red rolls his eyes under the mask as he reaches for the binoculars in his belt. Hood does the same. There shouldn’t be a lot of activity tonight if their intel is correct, and it looks like it is. They can’t see the inside of the warehouse — which is why Red Hood liked the place so much, damn it  — but they can still see the roof as clearly as they can see the vent they chose to… Hood freezes.

“Hey Hood?” Red Robin calls.

Jason pulls a face under the hood. “Yes?”

“Remember our plan to lay low so Batman doesn’t notice us?”

“Hmm.”

“Remember how I wanted to check on the rogues and you told me to stop being a stick in the mud?” He hisses.

“No one likes a bitching vigilante, Red.”

“Freaking Poison Ivy is here.” Red Robin gestures widely at the roof of the warehouse, as though Red Hood can’t see the green lady trying to get in through the very same vent they planned on using.

“See, that’s the beauty of crime fighting. You make a plan. The plan goes wrong. You throw the plan away.”

“Oh my freaking God,” he groans, “this is Young Justice all over again, but worse.”

Despite the complaining, they seem to be in agreement about what to do next: they take their grapple guns and shoot at Ivy’s blindspot. Red Robin is already getting his rebreather to filter whatever toxins they’re about to face.

The boys land almost silently all things considered. Without thinking, Hood points at  the other side of the roof and crosses an X in front of his lips, before closing a fist. Red Robin nods and sprints without a question.

For the second time, Jason freezes. The instructions were clear — take the other side, we’re going for a surprise attack after cornering her — but they shouldn’t have been. He didn’t realize he kept using those gestures to give orders, because he hadn’t had anyone working this close to him in literal years. He didn’t realize he still remembered the whole language — ASL, but also specific gestures that only made sense among Bats — until he had Red Robin following his orders. Something in his stomach feels heavy.

“... Hood ? Do you copy? ” Says a hushed voice in his ear.

Shit. Get it together, Jason.

He presses the comm button. “Listening.”

On the other side of the line, Red Robin sighs. “ Oh thank god, I thought the comms were suddenly fried. I’m in position. ”

Shit . “Hang on,” he says. He finally starts moving, extra careful not to make any noise.

“ You good, man?” Red asks, and Hood can practically see the confused furrow of his brow.

“Yeah, yeah, be quiet before Ivy hears us.”

He finally gets close enough to see her — she’s unscrewing the air vent cover to get in, even though she could probably just get a giant peach to roll over the place or something. It looks like Red Hood and Red Robin weren’t the only ones trying to be stealthy tonight.

He takes one step closer, and many things happen at the same time: the metal roof creaks under his boot. Ivy goes stiff for half a second. Then Jason is doing a backflip to avoid being bombarded with freaking thorns? When the hell did Ivy add a machine gun of thorns to her arsenal?

“Red Hood?” She stands, frowning. “Huh. I heard you were dead.”

“I get that a lot,” he says.

He reaches for his guns as Ivy waves her hand gracefully. Red Hood watches, with mild disgust, as what he thought was a weird belt snakes its way up Ivy’s torso until she has two venus flytraps settle on her shoulders.

“Fucking gross,” he says.

“I get that a lot,” she quips.

When he shoots at her, she’s ready. A branch grows fast enough to take the bullet for her and, before he realizes, she’s already inside his personal space. Hood dodges a punch in the throat but she keeps advancing. She knows better than letting him keep her at shooting range.

Welp, brute force it is then.

Hood puts his gun away at the same time he dodges a kick to the face. He takes a swing. One of Ivy’s pet plants almost bites his fist and he barely has time to retreat before the pesky thing takes a piece out of his glove.

“Huh. My sixth grade teacher told me those things are only lethal to flies,” he huffs.

Ivy grins. “My children are special.”

She presses and attacks again, and this time Hood lets her. When her knee hits his stomach, he grabs her by the calf and uses her own momentum against her. She barely weighs anything when he throws her hard at the ground, her back hitting metal and her pained groan muffled by the loud clang. He cringes. So much for stealth.

He makes to kick her before she recovers her wits, but apparently plants are more resistant than they seem. Hood feels his foot stuck to something and he curses when he looks down and sees thick vines holding him back. Shit, why didn’t he consider she had traps prepared around her?

“That was kinda rude, Hood,” she grins, slowly sitting up. “But I’m not mad. I might even give you a little kiss.”

By then, his resistance is futile and he wishes he hadn’t put his guns away so fast, because the vines quickly wrap around his whole damn body and he can’t even shoot the b —

A flying staff hits her on the side of the head.

“ACK!” Ivy shrieks, falling to the side.

“What are you doing, Hood?” Red Robin hisses, pressing a batarang into Red Hood’s hands.

“The hell?” Ivy groans, now looking dizzy. “I thought you worked alone.”

“I’m the intern. They call me Red Robin.”

And he stands over her, looking all heroic and ready to fight. Ivy, however, stays where she is, gaping at him.

“Bullshit. You’re regular Robin,” she says. “I thought you died. We all did when we saw the smaller Robin.”

Hood snorts.

The kid deflates a bit.  “How the hell do you know who I am?”

“You’re Harley’s favorite Robin,” she says simply. “She got really grumpy when we heard there’s a new Robin again.”

“I’m Harley’s — Wait, you guys have favorite Robins?”

“Of course we do. Mine’s the girl one. She didn’t die, did she?”

That’s one of the most surreal conversations Red Hood ever witnessed and he’s leading an unusual second life. Fortunately, Ivy is distracted enough — or at least hurt enough — that she doesn’t intervene while he cuts himself free.

“What are you doing here, Dr. Isley?” Red Robin asks. “Are you aware that this place is Black Mask’s?”

She scowls at him. “Are you aware that Sionis is a misogynistic jerk and he’s doing a lot of damage to the environment in this stupid warehouse? I’m going to take this thing down.”

“Hey, fuck off, this place was mine before Sionis stepped in,” Hood protests.

“I don’t care if you’re his landlord.” She gives him a scathing look. “I want him out.”

“This is great then!” Red Robin smiles. “We also want him out. And we have eco friendly plans for the place after Black Mask is out of the equation.”

Ivy gapes at Red Robin as though he started speaking a foreign language out of the blue. Red Hood is thankful for his helmet because he’s sure his expression isn’t much better.

“Are you suggesting we team up with Poison Ivy?”

“Why not?” Red Robin smiles as if he’s suggesting they should have burgers later. “The enemy of my enemy, right? Plus, I used to give her a free pass here and there because sometimes she’s right, you know?”

“Huh. So that’s why you’re Harls’ favorite.”

Red Robin shrugs again and stretches his hand to her. “Friends for the night?”

To Red Hood’s utter shock, she hesitates for less than a second before taking the kid’s hand and letting him pull her back to her feet.

“Just tonight, though,” she says.

If anyone told Jason tonight he’d be working with no one other than the Poison Ivy to take down one of Black Mask’s drug labs, he’d call them insane.

Nonetheless, he watches as Ivy throws caution to the wind — there’s no way the people inside didn’t hear their little scuffle — and uses one of their sentient plants to rip off an entrance on the metal roof. Right before jumping in, however, Red Robin squeezes his shoulder.

“What was that?” he whispers low enough that Ivy won’t hear them. “You were off. That wasn’t like you.”

Hood shrugs his hand away. “We’ll talk about this later. Come on, we can’t let Ivy have all the fun.”

They can already hear the screaming inside, so Red has no option other than compliance. Time to crash the party, he was looking forward to this.

And it’s fun. Having Tim around is fun. Watching a bunch of crooks run terrified of a plant lady is fun. Rounding up his former employees — those traitors — and watching their comically horrified faces upon realizing he isn’t dead is fun.

So much fun he completely misses the fact that there was someone else tailing Ivy. No one sees it when a young boy clad in bright colors rushes away from the place. Robin doesn’t know what to make out of what he witnessed tonight.

[princess-of-the-corner]

Hero Chat AU – Miracle Queen

I know I discussed Loveater and Miracle Queen, but I wanted to go more in-depth on the battle!

Quick summary on Loveater before we go into Miracle Queen:

Chloé was part of the Adrien/Marinette/Kagami shenanigans in that episode as they’re friends now and she really did not want to be at the party

There is panic over the Adrien/Marinette/Kagami love triangle with the ice cream, but it’s resolved by saying that they don’t want to make that decision right now.

Also I changed Kagami’s ice cream flavor to raspberry because it makes more sense than ornage

So Adrien got blackberry and raspberry, Marinette got mint and raspberry, and Kagami got blackberry and mint.

When Loveater attacked, Chloé sits this one out because fighting her parents will make her be off her game and possibly more of a liability than helpful, but resolves to join if Venom is needed

Mari and Adrien already left in the first place, and Ladybug grabs Kagami for legit reasons, not just because she’s alone with Adrien(partly because she knows Kagami is not alone with Adrien)

Chloé is left alone, and Hawkmoth shows up

On to Miracle Queen

Hawkmoth offers for Chloé to work with him

He doesn’t know she’s Honeybee, so he says that if they work together, he’ll release her parents and she can get the Bee Miraculous back, becoming Queen Bee to work for him.

Since he doesn’t have the Bee Miraculous, he offers her the Tiger instead, making a joke about how he felt she might appreciate the stripes.

Chloé plays along, taking the Tiger Miraculous, calling herself ‘Tiger Empress’ to fit with the Queen Bee theme, and letting him release her parents.

She then uses the Tiger’s ability (Invisibility) to escape.

Though Chloé debates about trying to steal Hawkmoth’s Miraculous, she doesn’t feel confident enough to pull it off without using Venom, but doesn’t want to let him know she had the Bee the whole time.

As using Chloé fell through, Hawkmoth goes with plan B: Lila

He shows up to wherever Lila is and offers her a Miraculous.

Lila throws a fit over the fact that he can’t give her the Fox, but accepts one of the others. It doesn’t matter which one as she doesn’t use it’s power, but I think Hawkmoth would give her the dog as a low-key fuck you

Hawkmoth then Akumatizes Lila into Miracle Queen. She still has the original’s powers, as that’s what Hawkmoth was intending on giving Chloé. Though Lila’s version is more... obnoxiously extra in an attempt to look regal

Meanwhile, Chloé finds the other Heroes and updates them on the situation.

And by other Heroes, I include Ladybug, Chat, Rena, Carapace, and Arashi(Kagami)

They dodge Miracle Queen’s bees by jumping in the water. The Main Five have that Aqua Upgrade, and they either shared with Kagami or she just did the thing where their weapons can be used to breathe underwater.

Chloé does pause to bitch about how Miracle Queen is just knock off Queen Wasp, and even if she doesn’t like the whole Queen Wasp incident, she is pissed that Lila is trying to steal her look

Side note: Part of the situation is asking what happened to Master Fu, as he doesn’t have the Turtle in this AU:

Roaar was aware of what was happening and can fill them in

When Hawkmoth attacked, Master Fu attempted to escape using the Horse Miraculous. He got out, but Hawkmoth has the Miracle Box.

Miracle Queen stings everyone else

Instead of the specific ‘All Miraculous Users come work for me!’ order, she just gathers the class in the hopes to show off/manipulate them and also have some passive-aggressive fun at their expense when giving out Miraculous.

By that I mean insulting them with her choices. Giving Mylene the Pig(poking at her weight), giving Sabrina the rooster(chicken), etc.

No one ends up with their ‘Canon’ Miraculous, and identities are safe.

They show up to fight, and the first thing Honeybee does is dual-wield the Bee and Tiger, calling her fusion ‘Majesty’

Hawkmoth is all ‘how the fuck did you get the Tiger??’

Majesty makes up a lie, saying that Chloé went to try to find them, updated them on what Hawkmoth tried to do, and then handed over the Tiger.

This helps cement the fact that Chloé will never work with Hawkmoth, and he can’t manipulate her by offering a Miraculous

Hawkmoth still has a card to play there, as he could come clean to Chloé about his motives in hope that she’ll turn to the darkside to save Emilie too, but he’s saving that for if he gets real desperate

After that, most of the team ends up dual-wielding as they fight the class and take the Miraculous back

We still have Snake Noir(though Chloé calls him ‘Ferret’ because cat-snake!), and his outfit is way different because of the previously mentioned Upgrades(I might draw that tbh…)

Not sure what Rena and Carapace dual wield. I will be taking suggestions on that.

Ladybug grabs the rest of them, though she only activates a couple for the fight.

Kagami doesn’t get to, as she’s still in her Water Dragon form keeping the bees at bay.

Eventually, using the Tiger’s invisibility, Majesty sneaks up on Miracle Queen and stings her with Venom, which also freezes all the fighters.

Since Akumatizing Lila again wouldn’t help as she’s paralyzed by Venom, Hawkmoth doesn’t try and instead cuts his losses, making his escape.

No one’s at risk of detransforming due to the Dual Wielding thing.

Like, Majesty’s Tiger Transformation wore off, leaving her as Honeybee, but after Honeybee’s timer started, she fed Roaar, transformed into Majesty again, and then detransformed into just Tiger Empress(though no one notices as Hawkmoth already left)

Well, Kagami’s only used 1/3 of her powers so she’s fine too.

Although the Team is quickly losing energy from Dual Weilding, but they’re hanging in and not letting it show

The Team stays by to explain to the classmates what happen

Kim, Max and Alix all try to apologize to getting hit without outing their identities, and Ladybug assures them that it’s okay, it happened to everyone. It probably even happened to her in some of Snake Noir’s resets.

Once they unfreeze Lila, they have to deal with her.

Lila pretends to play nice, claiming to be Akumatized over what happened in Ladybug, as she feels like her friends don’t trust her anymore!

The classmates who still believe her all rush to assure her that they still love her! It’s not her fault she has that disease that makes her lie when stressed!

The Team is so not buying it. As they’re suspicious of how often Lila gets Akumatized, especially because this is the second time she was Hawkmoth’s Plan B when Chloé didn’t work out.

The Team is suspicious af, but they can’t really accuse her of anything. So for now, they settle for getting the Dog Miraculous back from her.

Lila hesitates, as she wants to keep some sort of power for herself that she could use

But she’s still convincing the class she’s sweet and innocent. Not to mention she knows she can’t take on six Heroes at once with a Miraculous she’s never used.

So she reluctantly hands over the Dog Miraculous

As for Master Fu:

Since he escaped, he didn’t have to give up the Miracle Box.

However, the whole incident makes him realize how he’s too old for this. He’s been realizing it ever since Hawkmoth first appeared, when he couldn’t transform and fight so he had to pick new heroes.

But this is the (thankfully metaphorical) nail in the coffin on that. Because the Team protected the Miraculous better than he had. And Marinette’s insistence on having the team made it easier to fight

(Mari was the one who pushed for permanent Heroes back after Heroes’ Day. Master Fu was against it, but she convinced him and was right.)

Master Fu gives up the Miracle Box in a more ‘not a desperate last-ditch effort’ way that lets him keep his memories.

He then meets up with his girlfriend whose name I always forget(Sorry!)

The two of them leave the country. It should be safe as Hawkmoth seems to stay in Paris.

Marinette does still have his number to talk to him, but for safety reasons they agree that she should only use it in major emergencies.

Marinette is still in charge of the Miracle Box now.

Also fuck you the thing stays looking the same and not like a spotted egg

Due to all this happening, Marinette decides that the Miraculous would be better hidden if separated. If Hawkmoth gets his hands on the box again, she wants there to be less for him to have.

The Temporary Heroes keep their Miraculous, but are instructed to only fight when needed, or if they’re in danger.

Though they all go out on Patrol Nights, since that had been Zodiac Team Training Time anyway.

It also makes patrols and the sleepovers easier, as Ladybug doesn’t have to hand out the Miraculous individually now.

Okay I think that’s it. For now!

[r3almellow]

greetings :D i've recently discovered mlqc, your blog was one of the first i discovered, thanks to unlimited amount of internet surfing in quarantine and i can't help but get addicted! this is kinda an embarrassing and dumb question but what's the difference w/ the main chapters to the dates, karmas, sr, phone calls, PVs and the stuff where MC posts pics and the boys comment on it? >_< i'm so confused what to follow, are they all canon? sorry for this kinda question but thank you, keep safe!

Hello!! Welcome to the fandom, my dear anon!! Your question is not dumb at all!! MLQC can be a bit confusing so please ask all the questions you want! I’ll make this as nonspoilery as possible! 

This somehow turned into a guide to MLQC! I’m sorry its so long! 

Some of this might depend on which server you’re playing. The Chinese server is ahead of us by a lot and from my understanding their experience is a little different. Since I don’t play on the other servers I can only give you info based on the English server experience.

Main Story, Dates and Karma

The main story and dates are two separate things. Dates won’t impact the main story at all and your favs won’t bring it up. Like if you’re on a date with Lucien this won’t hurt your chances with Victor. The dates are technically not canon, but I like to think they are set up in different worlds and makes it easier to be with each guy without having to choose. So if you prefer Kiro you can see what being around Kiro is like without disrupting the main story and your relationship with others.

There will be times when one of the guys will appear in another guy’s date. 

Example: 

Kiro being in Gavin’s Trio Date.

But I stress again that this will not hurt your relationship with Gavin in the main story line!!

You need Karmas for a few things. To play the mini games which help you level up and/or progress through the main story and to unlock dates, texts, phone calls, Rumors & Secrets and/or Moments This will depend on whichever card you got. Other than hanging out with your favs, the dates allow you to learn more about the characters and helps you understand the story better. 

Example: 

Gavin’s Late Autumn Karma(SR) can unlock Campus Date and you learn a little bit about MC and Gavin’s high school days. 

Gavin: Late Autumn 

You can also get his Unchained Memory Karma (R) and I believe that can unlock Campus Date as well along with Highschool Memory Moments and if you evolve (upgrade) it you’ll get MC’s Deep Memory Moments.

Gavin: Unchained Memory

So basically whats canon in the dates are facts about the characters themselves rather than your relationship with them. (I.e. I found out Gavin plays the guitar through his Slightly Drunken Date(Cape Holiday Date))  I hope all of this makes sense so far! 

You asked about the Karma ratings so I’ll do my best to explain! 

Each Karma is rated differently. 

SSR- Be prepared to say goodbye to your money and your gems and still not get what you want. 

SR- A little hard to get, but you’re more likely to get 2 SR’s before you get 1 SSR.

R- Kinda common 

NH- Pretty common

N- Super common 

If I didn’t make myself clear SSRs will be the most difficult to obtain. Getting an SR can be hard too, but its way easier to pull them than an SSR.

Like I stated before, you need the Karmas to play the game. The higher the rating the higher chances you have to complete missions without problems and they all unlock different things. Some unlock dates while others unlock phone calls, moments, and more.

Aside from what they can unlock and do for your gaming experience, they are also pleasing to look at. Especially the SSR and SR Karmas. The art is BEAUTIFUL.

You can get Karmas using the wish tree, paying for them (this mostly applies to certain SSRs, but not all of them), signing in for the full month, participating in special events and a few other ways. 

Whatever Karma/Date you get won’t make or break your story. They just make the experience, you’re understanding of the story and characters a little better.

Moments, Phone Calls and Texts

MC’s (and the rest of the guys) Moments (posts), phone calls and texts that happen after you complete a chapter will most likely pertain to the main story. Anything else doesn’t really impact the main story and is just nice to see. 

PVs

I assume you’re referring to the amazing videos we see every so often! 

PVs will either be trailers for the upcoming chapters, special Karma, the latest events, or character introduction. 

Example: 

1. We had the chance to get Halloween inspired Karmas last year and got a whole trailer just for that. 

2. The new character Shaw got a trailer a few days ago and we got to find out which English voice actor will be voicing him (major props to Aleks Le). 

Be careful with the chapter PVs if you’re not caught up. You’ll have more questions than answers if you’re on Chapter 6, but watch the Chinese version of  Chapters 25-28 PV!

Pretty sure I didn’t explain everything and I’m so sorry for that! There was a post on here that could explain all this way better than I did, but for the life of me I can’t find. I really hope this info is somewhat helpful. Be safe! 

[bygosscarmine]

LOVE SHIFTS SHAPE

Sky High: Magenta x Ethan, post-canon

a multi-chapter reunion story, in continuity with Love, Unspoken

Magenta is dreading the reunion in a mild "I'm in a successful band that has nothing to do with my powers" sort of a way, but she looks forward to seeing the friends she's kept up with at the party.

Then, for a second she doesn't recognize Ethan in his adult form, and things long forgotten (like her break-up with Zach) feel all too relevant again.

Chapter One: For A Limited Time Only

Coming down into Baltimore, Magenta stared from the plane at the citylights glinting off the water. Cars ran through the urban landscape in their binary directions, mapping its arteries in red and white cells. It had been some time since she’d flown into this airport, even longer since she’d done it alone. Strange how that made her on edge. The jolts of landing from a flight usually gave her a thrill, but today it felt just like being shoved around in a crowd after a long day.

The airplane finally stopped moving, and soon the passengers heard the bing of permission to remove their seatbelts. Magenta hadn't flown business class, since she couldn't exactly write off a trip home, so she had to wait for the many rows ahead of her to clear. Even when it was almost her turn to leave the plane, she was forced to lean uncomfortably on the back of her seat, stooped, as the people in front of her wrestled large bags from overhead bins.

She turned her cellphone back on while she waited and saw a message directed at her in the messaging group with her high school friends. When's your flight arrive?

Just now, she replied.

Someone asked, When will you leave?

Day after the party.

It felt weird to not to be going home--but not all bad. It was one less thing to dread, though she'd get a lecture from her mother eventually. She was dreading the reunion enough.

The rental car kiosk was thankfully not over-run at this time of night, so she got a car without too much delay and drove to her hotel. In the pull-through lane in front of the lobby, she handed over her car with luggage to a valet, taking only the disreputably worn-in messenger bag with her wallet and phone that had accompanied her into the plane cabin as well. As she walked into the lobby a middle-aged man with the distinctive style of a traveling businessperson was complaining to a clerk, though he spared a moment's attention to giving her a critical look.

Apparently women in smokey eye-makeup and torn jeans didn't fit his image of the Royana establishment.

"Yeah," he said, in that exasperated tone conveying he felt he was being really patient, "I really feel like I should get an upgrade, every other location I've been to has a free shuttle from the airport."

"I'll see what I can do, sir," said the junior clerk, while glancing into the side-office.

The senior staff-member who emerged at this moment saw Magenta and said, "Ah! Ms. Notani. Welcome. We have your Premier Suite ready for you. Just give me a moment to activate your key."

"Certainly," said Magenta. "And please upgrade this gentleman's suite as one of my guests. Thank you."

The man looked flabbergasted (and not necessarily pleased) but Magenta just took her key-card and headed toward the elevators.

She was only in a split second of the advertisement featuring Kitt, the frontwoman of her band The Wastelanders, but the members all had Ambassador status with this hotel. It was nice; if she had to stay in a hotel in her own hometown, it was at least a ritzy one. Her luggage was brought up only moments after she arrived, with a complimentary cheeseboard from room service. It had been a while since she'd given cheese a hard look, but with reunion looming old memories were being dredged from the deeps. There had been a few months in school when pranking her with cheese had been a thing. She'd found it in her locker, left on her usual seats in class, and even (she suspected some of the meaner upperclassman of this one) written over her gym shirt with the kind that sprayed from a can.

Well, she couldn't let them get into her head already. She ate some of the goat feta on the rosemary crackers, and put the rest in the fridge.

She spent the next day pretending to catch up on her correspondence. Somehow she kept getting sidetracked into checking into one of the particularly dumb games on her phone instead. She gave up around three in the afternoon, and started to get ready though it was four hours before the event started. And she wasn’t getting dressed in something that required several hours to dress, either. The coded phrase for the reunion had been business casual, but Magenta didn’t believe in this barren subset of style and owned nothing resembling it. She’d be wearing some of the cigarette jeans the stylist for their tour had talked her into buying which ended up too tight for a night of jumping around on stage, and a blouse she’d picked up before her flight. It looked too dressy for her, so she figured it would work.

She zipped herself into the boots Kitt called "Maj's wingmen" and confronted herself in the mirror. “Am I going to have to get a warm-up drink?” she asked herself. “No, if I’m buzzed when I show up they’ll assume rock star cliches about me.”

It seemed ridiculous she was anxious. It wasn't like this was a group of strangers. Layla would be there. They regularly hung out when Magenta was in town—moreso now Layla lived with Warren, who had a decent living room for video game nights. Dorm apartments were only almost big enough to live in.

She struck out for the hotel bar, but ordered an espresso macchiato instead of liquor. A different kind of buzz would have to do.

There had been debate among the reunion committee, apparently, about having it in the Sky High gym. But aside from the fact that their first dance in the gym had been crashed by a villain, and afterward never felt quite the same to them again, there was the issue of getting a group of adults onto a shuttle in a timely manner. So instead the party was being held at a banquet hall. Because there were some security-risk people in their number, like Stronghold, it was a banquet hall in a government building where they could hire a few bouncers and be fairly assured that any intruder would at least be seen entering, and hopefully heard.

It also meant approaching the place felt a little like walking up to a bank. It looked fancy but not particularly welcoming.

Once she'd followed a couple she didn't recognize from behind to the actual banquet room, though, the crowd was a little less overpolished. Stronghold himself was apparently watching the entrance like a hawk. He bounded over to shake Magenta’s hand with a big grin, and then decide they should hug instead. He was wearing one of the signature Stronghold-color sweatshirts (where did he get those? Were they special made? She had never wondered about this until now) and carpenter jeans that surely were no longer being sold in stores.

“It’s so good to see you. How have you been? A band, right? You’re in a pretty big band! How is that?”

This kind of clueless greeting would be more annoying if Will weren't so incredibly sincere. He was owning that he hadn't been paying close attention, but that now, in this moment, he was interested in hearing more. She knew they'd be cut off before she said anything significant, but that he'd remember anything she did manage to say.

"Yeah, we've been touring most of this year. Feel like we're really building a good fanbase that shares a lot with each other, not just people who come to our concerts, now."

"That's awesome. Must feel great to kind of connect people. Oh, hey, have you talked to Freya? She's just back from teaching violin in Poland! As a cover for her other work, of course. You guys should talk!"

Magenta felt like this was the kind of tenuous connection neither she nor Freya would value the way Will thought they might, but she didn't resist. When reintroduced by Will, it became clear that he had heard about as much from Freya of her life as he had from Magenta. Magenta recognized her as the ice-power girl who had been held back to their grade after the second half of her sophomore year had been dedicated to recovering from a concussion and reconstructive surgery after a particularly poorly thought-out gym activity. Though Freya was a classical musician working as a superhero and Magenta was just a rock bassist, after a few awkward exchanges they discovered a shared a passion for the same fantasy thriller TV shows. They talked vampire casting aesthetics until Freya's old best friend arrived and pulled her away to get drinks.

Magenta both wanted a drink and wanted to not get tipsy around people so soon. Why was Layla not here yet? She was usually timely. Maybe she had tried to convince Warren to come--a losing proposition. There were few things Warren hated more than school functions, and one of those things was making nice at a stilted party. This was both of those things. Love blinded people, so Layla still tried to talk him into stuff he didn't want. As far as Magenta could tell, Warren got his way when he cared about something enough, but a lot of the time he was happy to do whatever Layla cared about.

Magenta had always really gotten Warren's antisocial bit. She'd just never had the balls to go hard-mode with it the way he did.

As she was trying to judge what circle it would pain her least to linger her way into when she heard an unfamiliar voice behind her say, "Hey Maj, how's it going?"

For a second (later she couldn't say why) she looked into the smiling face without recognition. Finally, though, logic suggested that a black young man in this somewhat white-washed crowd could only be one person. This took a split-second only, then she was ashamed. It was the overall expression of his face that confounded her most--by graduation he'd been already considerably taller and socially graceful. This man, though, had self-awareness.

"Hey!" she said, as if she hadn't missed her beat. "Please tell me the rumors are true and the cash bar isn't too far from here."

"I think it's true, but I cannot confirm," Ethan said, "I don't drink anywhere there are so many supers all together."

"That seems wise," she said.

[jitterbugjive]

Would you ever think about writing a book? (like all words and no picture)

If I ever had the time, I’d write Aristotle’s Apocalypse. I have the intro done, it needs serious revisions because I wrote it in Highschool but I’ve always wanted to turn it in to a full novel. I can’t see it working as a comic, there’s too many mental things that would be near impossible to show.

Here, have a read:

A strong wind whipped about him as he stood atop the high building. He glanced down at his black gloved hand in shock, because in that hand was a gun, his finger flexing on the trigger. Something was wrong. Wasn't he supposed to be the hero below? The victorious blond who would triumph over the villain by throwing him from the very building he was looking down from? But there was no time to question, a wave of darkness washed over him. He had to kill. Had to kill the man below, had to destroy his life. He held the gun point down, aiming for the hero’s head. Sweat formed on his brow, but despite his quaking uneasiness his lips twitched into a smirk. He was feeling a pleasure in an evil and wicked thing he would never do in his right mind, an invasion of thought that was not his own, forcing him out of himself. Had to kill; this wasn't right, he was supposed to be the hero below- -A loud blare of noise erupted through his mind. Canon startled awake, grabbing his head and focusing all his thought on stopping the noise, the loud blaring music he had chosen for his alarm chip.

Once the sound finally stopped, he couldn’t think at all, except to know he was awake now, awake and needed to get ready for work. He didn’t dream. At least he didn’t recall one… Did he? But it wouldn’t matter, dreams weren’t real, so why bother remembering? Though… He had a strange feeling that something important was right there, right in front of him, but it was covered by a thick veil. He shrugged off the feeling and got out of bed, changing into his white coat and uniform.

Walking down to the living room, he found what he always did; His younger sister, 14 years old, sitting on the couch wearing her Cinamality headset which beeped as a little warning that it was in use and not to be interrupted. He was used to it. She loved being in movies, it was all she ever did ever since their mother bought their first Virtu-HD a few years back, and now that Cinamality was the newest big thing on the market, she had to get one.

Cinamality… Canon shuddered at the word. He wasn’t sure why, it was perfectly normal… But he never wanted to use it. Something always told him ‘no’ when he looked at one of the blinking headsets. He moved about the room getting his things together, when his sister reached up and turned off her headset.

“Oh Canon, today I was lovely Laurine, and Paul swept me off my feet. It was so romantic, I never felt so loved before. I wish you could have been there to see, you could have been my best friend, Tyler. He’s a handsome guy, you know. Why don’t you join in the second half?” Her voice was airy and distant, as if she were floating in a dream. Her big blue eyes stared at him vacantly, yet expectantly. She was never Crystal anymore. She was always lovely Laurine, or Princess Amber, or the great dragon taming warrior woman from the mysterious east. But never Crystal. Never his sister. And he’d grown used to it.

He shook his head, “I have to go to work, you know that.” He always avoided joining in with her. He hated Cinamality. Something was evil about it. Something wasn’t right, something was horribly wrong about his sister being someone else and not her—Ringing.

His cell chip was going off in his head. It was the loud music blaring through his mind once more. He grabbed his head, closed his eyes and focused in on the call, answering his cell chip. He heard the beep and wandered away from his sister to talk.

“Hello?”

“Hello this is your car service provider, we noticed your back tires are an old brand, and they will be expired in a month, would you like an upgrade?”

Canon paused, was it going to expire? Well he couldn’t be too careful, “Alright, thank you for informing me, I’d like an upgrade.”

“Thank you for using our services again, Canon.” The woman hung up.

What was he doing before his call? He remembered…. Yes… That he was getting ready for work. He grabbed up his things and started to head out, turning to say goodbye to Crystal. But he couldn’t. She was in her movie again, being lovely Laurine as she’d said, the visor pulled over her eyes. He left without a second glance.

He focused his thoughts again, asking clearly with thought alone, ‘What time is it?’ A beep in his mind came as a response, followed by a small mechanical voice saying “It is 45 after 6, morning. 15 minutes approximated in travel time to next destination by car, approximated by height and weight 40 minutes walking at a steady pace. Have a nice day. Beep.” So he had enough time to walk, at least.

He tucked his hands in his pockets and continued on his way down the street. He wasn’t thinking of much, he never did, just counted his steps and whistled the tune his cell chip chimed whenever it rang. Everything was the same, fine, good, peaceful, nothing was wrong, he was well provided for. But he had to stop and look over at a pile of rags. No. Not rags… It was a woman. She was dressed in ripped old clothes, and her face was sunken in. Why would a woman look like that? Everyone had homes, everyone was provided for, poverty was erased 3 years ago… So why would she dress like that? Was she really a poor homeless—Loud music.

He backed away, grabbing his head, again focusing all his thoughts on answering this call.

“Hello…?”

“Hello Mr. Canon, there was an error in your credit card data, we wish to personally apologize and inform you that all matters have been fixed and you now have 500 dollars added to your account. Thank you. Goodbye.”

“500 dollars… Wow, all for an error…” Canon wandered away scratching his chin, pondering what he could do with the extra money. Maybe upgrade his VirtuNews in his room…? He paused this thought, remembering that he was heading to work. What a happy day, so far nothing wrong happened, in fact he just made some extra cash! Everyone was so well provided for; he never had to worry about a thing. He smiled giddily, almost dancing down the street at his new lucky investment. Oh yes, the day was off to a good start, like all the days before them that he could recall.

[mystech-master]

Okay this might just be a me thing

Whenever I think of BBTAG fanfictions or stories, I always like to think that there are two different time periods in which to grab the RWBY characters from, each with their own ups and downs.

Option 1: What we see in game, In between Volumes 2 and 3, before the Vytal Festival Tournament.

and Option 2: In between Volumes 5 and 6, which is the period in which BBTAG was released.

Now just to clarify my thought process a bit more: I imagine 2 ideas for these kinds of stories. Either it’s your usual crossover where characters from franchise A go to franchise B and/or vice versa (think the Jimmy Timmy Power Hour on Nickelodeon), or we do what BBTAG did and have everyone plopped into the Phantom Field.

Here are my opinions on what comes from each era and what it could bring:

Vol 2-3 Period

All the characters are together, happy, and alive. Thus we get the characters who passed away, Pyrrha, Penny, Ozpin (I know he becomes Oscar but Ozpin as himself can be considered differently.

Going off of that, we got Pyrrha who would be a nice addition to the group (maybe she helps give the Investigation Team actual combat training instead of just winging it), we got Penny to add to the group of robot girls to be BFFs with, and I personally feel like Ozpin as the Big Good might garner a bit more respect from the other characters than him in Oscar’s body (I know that these other worlds are a bit more used to immortal children but not all of them might think that way).

No true focus villain yet for the heroes to go against. The only “antagonists” at that point in the series that we knew of, were Adam Taurus (preparing for the Fall of Beacon), and Roman Torchwick (who was imprisoned on ironwood’s ship). Meanwhile Cinder, Emerald, mercury and Neo were all disguised as Haven students. So they can’t exactly run off and join the axis of evil w/o blowing their cover.

You got 3 members of the Oz-luminati to act as the Big Good council next to Kagura, Kokonoe, Rachel, and Mitsuru (not too sure on who’d lead team Under Night In-Birth).

This being before RWBY learns about the Maidens and Salem and the Gods and Ozma, means they may not be mentally equipped to handle the cosmic bullshit that is Blazblue or Persona (not to the same level of Blazblue but still pretty insane).

Other characters/teams being present: like team CFVY or team SSSN, or even some of the other Vytal Festival Teams (ABRN, BRNZ, NDGO, or FNKI)

Volume 5-6 Period

Obviously, more characters are dead, so while we got less characters to interact with, but at the same time, now characters have lost something/someone and are a bit stronger mentally, having steeled their resolve to take on the big bad and avenge their friends.

We got Qrow and Ozcar as members of the team now. Qrow can add a nice level of coolness (him hanging with Ragna or Kagura), then we got Ozcar, who many people compare to Linne (I do like to think that Linne would ask Oscar what he thinks of the whole situation, because unlike Ozma’s reincarnations she immediately takes over the host body and she may have wondered what the people she’s taken over think of her. I mean she’s partially suicidal and wants Hyde to kill her with the Insulator because of this so it must be something she’s thought of).

More villains, not only do we got Maiden-Cinder, with Emerald and Mercury, but we got Psychopath Tyrian, Calm Bruiser Hazel, and Mad Doctor Watts (someone for Relius to talk science with). Not too sure on Salem herself b/c unlike every other villain from the other series she is mostly biding her time and working through others and sitting in her castle. So I don’t feel right plucking her from there.

The characters are now aware of the more cosmic levels of bullshit and thus might be able to keep up with the craziness of Blazblue and Persona.

You got Yang losing the arm and thus giving her more of the comparisons to Ragna that everyone loves, because everyone who writes interactions between them just give Yang a weird feeling in her arm when she hears about it. RWBY characters aren’t psychic “I jut know” kind of characters, it isn’t an anime. Sidenote: People tend to also have RWBY characters just be able to “sense Aura” like the Force or some other anime bullshit, when there is no evidence of this in canon, besides ninja Ren in Volume 4 (and even then he’s the ninja of the team, and I honestly feel like RWBY is getting a bit more anime as of late and I’m not liking that).

Jaune has his weapon upgrade and his Semblance, so he’s slightly less useless. I mean the dude was already a sort of joke character who was way behind in his training (and doesn’t even have a gun function like everyone else, I feel like long range abilities should be essential) compared to everyone else, let’s not have him be another Wild Card best friend character where he is the butt of a lot of jokes and is supposed to be lame to make his BFF look cooler.

Everyone is kinda busy with the Salem war, so I don’t think you could just pull them from this point in the story to go on a Multi-Dimensional side quest. it’d be one thing if it was world hopping (option 1 up top), but since the concept of time does not exist within the Phantom Field, it’s a good way for no one to be in a rush. Think in Persona Q, no one was in too much of a rush and everyone was able to just chill out at the school festival and hang, think that.

Weiss has her summoning down pat, which would give her an interesting arsenal if she happened to kill a Void or Shadow.

Those are just some things I feel like would be considered if using either of these time periods. If I missed something (specifically a pro or con of using that time period), feel free to tell me.

[crossdressingdeath]

Honestly I'm kind of glad they didn't pull in any of the Awakening cast because if I had to choose between them and Hawke I would just die, they're all my babies and I would not be able to pick. But again as you say that wasn't really an option from a game design perspective, given it's possible for all of them to die over the course of Awakening and DA2 if you play your cards very wrong (I think the only way to do it is to not upgrade the Vigil, save Amaranthine and finish the game with Anders, Justice and Nate in your party, then in DA2 not do Nate's cameo quest and execute Anders, so you'd really have to be trying to kill them all (and even that's assuming that executing Anders would kill Justice, but either way he'd no longer be around in the waking world), but it is doable which immediately means having one of them as the Warden ally isn't an option without an additional option that can't be killed). The Warden would've been fun (and I would not be as conflicted about the choice, given the Warden canonically punches Fade rifts closed and would probably have Nightmare begging for mercy within the hour), but the lack of any solid personality options like Hawke has means that was never on the table. But HLtA is hit hard by the fact that the games being so choice-based really limits the writers' options for things like this (a problem that really does a lot of damage to DAI's writing as a whole in both directions; using the advisors as an example they made Meredith's right-hand man the commander of this supposedly neutral organization despite a lot of better options because a lot of said better options were taken off the table by having potential endings in earlier games that for one reason or another would leave them unable to take the position on one hand, and on the other hand had to come up with a ridiculous hand-waving explanation for why Leliana isn't dead even if you killed her in DAO to justify her being there). It's a real shame, because they probably could have made a sacrifice like this hit hard if they'd put just a little more effort into setting it up.

Continued HLtA thoughts: Stroud is so obviously a placeholder option that it's not even funny. I mean, Stroud? The guy Hawke interacts with for like ten minutes total tops across all of DA2? The Inquisitor has no reason to care about Stroud and the player has no reason to care about Stroud! ...Well, the Inquisitor has no particular reason to care about Loghain or Alistair either beyond the vaguest "veteran of the Fifth Blight helped save the world" sort of caring. But the player may well care about Loghain! The player almost certainly cares about Alistair (as long as they played Origins)! Choosing between Alistair and Hawke is hard! Leaving Loghain to die does provoke a small twinge of grief for me! But Stroud? He's just... a guy. If Stroud is your Warden ally it really weakens the impact of the whole quest, because neither you nor your character have any personal reason to care about whether this man lives or dies. The overall weakness of the sacrifice in-universe is somewhat covered up with Alistair and Loghain by the fact that the player has an attachment to those characters, but Stroud? With Stroud it really drives home that the Inquisitor has no reason not to save Hawke.