#cat and jean's friendship is so special to me

[letterstoanoldfriend]

Cooking with Cat is, secretly, Jean’s favorite part of the day. He would never admit that out loud to anyone, not even under threat of horrifying punishment, a practice with which he was all too familiar. He is not very good at it, still, but Cat shimmies past him tonight as he is carefully slicing a bell pepper and whistles.

“Those are looking good, Jean! Look at you, knowing which knife to use and using it so well, it’s almost like you’re a real boy,” and she hip bumps him as she continues on her way to the fridge. Jean looks down at his pepper slices. They are uneven in some places, and there are seeds everywhere, and he moves so slowly compared to her fast chopping on the other side of the counter that he sometimes feels as if he’s hurting more than he’s helping, but he feels a sweet tendril of something warm curling up under his ribs at her words, and he feels very much like he might want to smile, if that was something his face was more accustomed to doing. He reaches for the onion, instead.

They work well together in the kitchen, Cat dancing around to the music pouring out of her boombox, chattering away about some of the latest drama with the other Trojans. Jean listens with half an ear, but he mostly lets the sensations wash over him—the sharp smell of spice from the chicken, the dull sound of his knife hitting the cutting board, the warm heat from Cat’s back as she stands at the stove. There is something about being in the space, something about preparing a meal, something about Cat and her music that centers him. He is not hunted, here. He feels safe. He steps up next to Cat, putting the ingredients for their sauce into a battered blender that lives to the right of the stove. She smiles at him as she stirs the chicken into the peppers and onions, asks him how he’s feeling about classes starting soon. He frowns.

“I do not care. Classes are a necessary evil to allow for playing that are ultimately a waste of my time and yours.”

Cat snorts. “You know what I love about you, Jean? You’re just always so goddamn cheerful.”

“It is true,” he argues, “I do not need to know the things in these classes. All I must know is how to play. How to win.”

Cat shrugs. She gestures for Jean to blend the sauce while she grabs plates. He does. When the sound dies down, she takes it from him and shows him how to pour it over the chicken and the veggies on the stove, talks him through how it thickens up over the heat, holds plates while he scoops out portions of rice and ladles the stir fry on top. As she sets the last plate on the counter and switches off the boombox, she points to the meal they made together and says, “there can be more to you than Exy, Jean. If you let there be.”

[passivenovember]

This just fell out of me, team. I hope you enjoy it!

--

Steve’s wearing a sunhat.

Billy spots it on his tromp down the front steps, a nondescript canvas bag balled and clutched in one hand like wilted butcher’s paper, and thinks it could be a dinner plate on top of Harrington’s quaff. A trick of the early morning light slotting an obvious hole in the world.

It’s a sunhat, though.

The bag crinkles in Billy’s fist. Its folds and edges could draw blood. He tugs Steve’s passenger door open with his free hand and settles into the cab. Catches his breath. Says, “Why are you dressed like that?” When Steve only stares at him.

“We’re going to the Farmer’s Market,” Steve says. “It’s a special occasion.” 

They go to the Farmer’s Market every weekend, Billy doesn’t say. Since March, stretching all the way to last summer; off and on while Billy settled into it like a drowned cat, Steve eventually snapping, “We can do this,” Hands on his hips. Jars of pickled vegetables fresh from his little tote bag, glittering on Billy’s kitchen counter. “We can have this.”

“Non FDA regulated vegetables?” Billy had asked, grinning when Steve flushed, turning to dump Billy’s half of the loot into the refrigerator. 

Billy never asked what ‘this,’ meant. What they could have. Thinks he has a decent idea.

“You didn’t need to put a fuckin’ hat on,” Billy says now. Didn’t need to wear that hat. Particularly. 

He’s cute, though. Younger, where its wide, formless brim hides the salt and pepper that’s been slinking up Steve’s temples for the last couple of years, reminding Billy of the decades that rest like rain slickers on their backs. Floppy hats on their heads.

“It’s supposed to be in the low hundreds today.”

“It’s seven-thirty, pretty boy.”

“I’m not taking any chances,” Steve says. He throws the car into reverse, but really it’s more a gentle nudge of the gear-shift until the car rolls with gravity into the street. Harrington always driving like a fifty year old man long before he was one. “I read an article that sunscreen isn’t enough anymore,” Steve says bluntly.

“Isn’t enough to what? Keep you celibate?” Billy digs around in his jeans pocket for his cigarettes. The white lighter that Steve had had an aneurysm over when he first saw it.

“No, to stop skin cancer. These days, how the Baby Boomers fucked up the Ozone, you’ve gotta wear sleeves, and sunscreen, and sunglasses, and fuckin’, sunhats,” Steve yanks the lighter out of Billy’s hand before he can spark up. Ignores the punch Billy lands on the one that came, fresh from 1993, with the car. 

America used to be a country. Smoking used to be good for you. 

Steve shoots him a side-ways glance, as if reading his mind. “You’re gonna kick rocks at sixty, Bill. Way you smoke.”

“They don’t make sun hats for lungs yet,” Billy says. The car lighter pops free so he snags it, waiting patiently for the hot-plate coil to catch his cig. When it does, he puts it back. Inhales slowly, peering out the window as the early morning shoots by at 30 miles per hour, a dying star.

He can feel Steve watching him. Now. Always.

“You could stop,” Steve says softly. “Smoking. You’re still young.”

Billy snorts. “Yeah, and you could mind your business.”

“Fuck you, you are my business.”

Billy’s stomach flips. He’s surprised, still, that his guts aren’t knotted and non-functional after all this time. Decades of friendship; career changes and new houses, new wives that slip steadily into ex wives. Kids. One kid. Billy’s. Decades of Steve, worrying about Billy’s diet and nagging at his bad habits, and. Saying shit like that. Flipping Billy’s stomach over on itself.

Billy puffs on his cigarette, rolling his eyes when Steve coughs dramatically into one elbow. He blows a huge cloud, just to be an asshole.

“Dude,” Steve says, leaning away so the car jerks suddenly to the left. 

Billy yelps, jostling against his seatbelt, “Harrington, you’re driving.”

“This is your lungs on nicotine,” Steve says, “A shitty old car driven by a lunatic middle-aged divorcee. Out of control. Veering into a ditch, or–”

“--It’s just a goddamn cigarette–”

“--With every pack you’re killing babies,” Steve tells him. The next streetlight turns gold. Steve runs it. 

Billy hangs on. His heart thumps with every twist and turn of the road. Hawkins races by, a blur of neon green oak trees and dark, supple earth. The grass is burned away in some places. Steve’s ancient car groans in the rising heat, its tires buff their tread against hot pavement.

At the next stoplight, Steve slams on the breaks. 

Billy almost flies through the goddamn windshield. He sits back against car seat leather. He breathes through his nose, counting to ten before he realizes that he’s covered in cigarette ash. His cigarette isn’t lit anymore.

Steve watches him evenly, soulful brown eyes calm.

Too calm.

Billy frowns. “What the fuck is going on with you, man?”

Steve shrugs. 

“It’s just a cigarette,” Billy presses forward, turning in his seat to give this his full fledged fucking attention. “You’re acting like you did when I was moving back home and you thought you couldn’t ask to come. Right before you broke Tommy Hagan’s nose when he said–”

“I know what that asshole said, I’m fifty, not a hundred,” Steve snaps. “I’m not acting like anything.”

“Yeah,” Billy says, shifting, “Yeah, you are. Like that time Alice wouldn’t let you come visit because she was doing that bullshit Home for 40 Days thing after Serena was born,” Billy tells him. He watches Steve’s face. Notices the crack before it happens because they’ve been friends for decades. 

It hurts him. “Steve–”

“I asked to come eventually,” Steve says, voice soft as feather down, neglecting to mention that he didn’t stay in California. “You moved back after the divorce. When Alice–”

“The light’s green,” Billy says. 

“I’m fine,” Steve tells him. “It’s fine.” He breathes through his nose, pawing at the brim of his dorky sun hat like he forgot it was there, for a moment. Like he wants to rip it off. 

Suddenly, with the force of a riptide, Billy misses the wave of Steve’s hair, still impossibly thick even into their middle age. He wants the hat gone, the sun free of all its massive danger. 

“I won’t smoke anymore,” Billy says, “If you want me to stop, I will.”

The moment hangs between them, and then, behind, someone honks.

“I want you to live forever,” Steve admits. Soft. Sweet.

Billy almost breaks in half. Isn’t sure why they’re talking about this now, in a car, on their way to the Market. But that’s what happens when you get older. Every moment like an oak leaf on the wind, slipping like water through clenched fists. 

He frowns, asking, “What about you?” Because. He wouldn’t want to spend forever alone.

“Why else am I wearing a fucking sunhat, Billy?”

Billy’s stomach knots. He opens his mouth to admit that he’s been in love with Steve for forty years, and he’ll always be the kind of man who burps and says the wrong thing and pushes too hard and smokes cigarettes, but. 

He loves him. 

Steve waits. When the second honk comes, he turns away, pulling his shitty old car onto Menard Street without another word. 

Billy swallows love, the movement as familiar to him as their friendship. It tastes like cigarette smoke. He tosses his unlit fag out the window, feeling like the shit hole scum of the earth when Steve reports that 30% of wildfires start with a carelessly discarded cigarette.

There’s a drought, too, Billy doesn’t say.

He should’ve thought it out. But it’s Steve. He only wanted to suck the wound.

–

Steve’s been twitchy for as long as Billy’s known him. It’s worse when he has something to say, when the skeletons in his closet regrow their ligament to stand on knocking knees, banging on the door, asking for an escape. 

Billy’s been around long enough to know that it’s best not to push, even when that’s all he does, all he’ll ever do. But. When it comes to Steve Harrington, things are different. Always. 

“What should we do first,” Billy asks. Knowing Steve’ll talk when he’s ready.

Harrington parks his car, the last in a long line of hybrids and hatchbacks, near the edge of the park. “I’m looking for honey,” He says, voice pulled tight like an out-of-tune string instrument. In a hurry. One wrong stroke and he’ll snap.

“‘Kay,” Billy says. 

He doesn’t know what to do with his hands once they’re out of the car. He resists the urge to lick his palm for a breath check, knowing he’ll find coffee and burnt toast and filmy pink love; tries to stop himself from tucking his shirt into the waist of his jeans, unfurling into the type of man that stops smoking and goes to Farmer’s Markets every weekend because his best friend asks him to. Against all odds.

Billy trots with Steve over the hill and into the market, his heart in his throat. They find the honey booth quickly and wait in line together, Steve tapping out an impatient rhythm on the cobblestone.

“You’re so squirrely today,” Billy says. He claps a hand on Steve’s neck, trying to squeeze out the tension. Wanting to touch him. 

Steve shrugs him off. 

Dick.

Billy rolls his shoulders and crosses his arms for safe keeping, having learned long ago that his hands will gravitate to Steve Harrington if given the chance. Billy aches for a cigarette, squints into the strengthening sunlight, yearning for his sunglasses, sunscreen, a sun hat–

“Lot of Pride Flags,” Billy says gruffly. His palms sweat, tacking unhelpfully to the hair on his forearms. It’s like he blinked, came up for air, and Indiana got progressive.

Steve stiffens next to him, “It’s June first, I think,” He says, hiding something.

“No shit?” Billy turns just in time to catch Steve watching him, a weird look in his eyes. “Should call Serena this afternoon.”

“Let’s go lesbians,” Steve says, a soft, pink smile on his face. 

Billy wants to ask about Robin, even though he just spoke to her on Wednesday when she called to demand how he keeps his tomato plants blooming into November. He wants to grab Steve by the face and say see, I’m alive. I’m here. I have a garden, and a daughter, and Robin remembers how I used to drink shitty Miller Lite and blast Elton John when you went out with girls. She remembers how much I wanted you. I would carve your name into every piece of driftwood that I threw into the quarry because my skin would scar over. Useless. Old and bereft while the driftwood would float forever, dissolving into the earth with your name sheathed in its very matter, bright and evergreen—

Steve buys two jars of honey.

He buys two of everything, at the Market, one for himself. One for Billy. Billy tries not to think about it.

“Where should we go next,” Steve makes room in the folds of his bag for the first of their loot. 

Billy only ever buys books at this thing. He raises one eyebrow, sidestepping a pair of lesbians that send a shock of tenderness down his spine. Heather and Robin in ‘87. He bites his tongue, though, thinking through their usual haunts. “What about the corn booth?” 

Steve loves sweet corn. He’s a cliche, shrugging his shoulders, “Could do that. We could try something else, too.”

Billy looks at him, grinning, “Okay, what do you have in mind?”

“Well. We started with honey.”

“Yeah.”

“The bakery booth is supposed to be out this week, I heard.” Steve hasn’t shut up about the orange-cranberry muffins he got on a lunch break two weeks ago. He shrugs, thinking better of it. Feigning nonchalance. Billy would fall for it if they hadn’t known each other for years. “Or we could go to the book stand,” Steve says. 

Dangling hope in the starched summer air.

Billy startles a laugh, “Already? We haven’t done your grocery shopping for the week.”

“It’s hot, we don’t have to stay long,” Steve says, watching the crowd thrall around them, “You deserve something for coming out with me today.”

“I come out with you every weekend.”

Steve groans, “C’mon, I’m trying to be nice. Either we go to the book stand, or we’re getting muffins.”

“I’m trying not to eat so much sugar,” A blonde boy skitters into the Market lane, turning to grin past the swell of Billy’s shoulder. There’s a pride flag painted on his cheek bone, smeared delicately by the slide of lips. Billy tries to look away, “Gluten, either.”

Steve gapes, “So you’re not eating sugar or gluten anymore but you’ve never met a cigarette you didn’t like?”

The blonde waits in the sunlight, fingers stretched out in front of him until a boy with huge, soft brown hair knits into all his boyfriend’s empty spaces. 

They kiss. 

Billy looks at Steve, flushed. 

Steve holds his gaze. Finally, “Let’s go to the book stand,” He says, catching Billy off guard. Throwing him a bone.

–

Hawkin’s Public Library was forced, a screaming, tantrum filled child, into the new millennium about a month after Billy and Alice divorced and Serena told the judge she wanted to move back home to Indiana. 

To be with Uncle Steve. That’s what she’d said to the judge. “Daddy and me want Uncle Steve,” Billy had noticed how Alice went ram-rod straight at the name. Like she always did, sour by the way Billy and their daughter, both, couldn’t seem to live without him. “We want to go home.”

So, they went. Alice didn’t try to stop them.

Really, home in the textbook sense was always California. Serena was born in Long Beach. She could stand on a surfboard by the time she was two years old and she abhorred the winter, any item of clothing that sat too close to the base of her neck. The smell of barley. None of that mattered, in the long run. 

Hawkins was home to her. Their clumsy, earnest, well loved vernacular to the court’s stuffy, clinical language.

It didn’t matter to Serena that Indiana was a relic in Billy’s history. She had never moved past sleepy summers spent landlocked, running through sprinklers with Max and Lucas’ wheat-fed kids and eating bomb pops in the swimming pool with a slew of found family aunts and uncles, her halo of blonde ringlets crunchy from too much chlorine. 

Even into her adolescence, the only person she let brush her hair straight out of the pool was her Uncle Steve. The only person she cried to was Uncle Steve. The adult she loved most in the world, except her dad. Maybe.

Billy’s own memories of that time were worn thin. Throbbing with heartache, like a damsel who was bound to find her way back home at the end of some terrible, cruel romantic comedy. He ached on the plane ride to Hawkins. Burned when they moved into the new house. Crumbled as he slept alone every night, grateful in tiny, hidden places that Serena had seemed to process her parent’s divorce and their subsequent move across the country before the first box had been unpacked.

For Billy, things weren’t so easily digested.

He needed time to let the guilt swallow him. The sting of hurt to lick at his fingers. Alice and the tattered flag of their loveless marriage paled in comparison to the way Steve had slipped wordlessly into her place.

It almost killed Billy that they were happier, here. That neither one of them had tried to hold on to their life back in California. 

–

Point is, they used to take Serena to the library together.

Billy’s own mom had believed that books were the key to everything. Children learn by watching colorful characters trail their way through the hills and valleys of friendship. They’re introduced to death and loss in the fold of a page, the monochrome glint of words on yellowing cardstock. They learn to let go by watching someone else do it first. 

Really, Serena hadn’t needed the library. Even at that age she was more level-headed than Billy had been in his entire life, but Steve suggested they go, anyway. “We have to raise a reader, like you.” He’d said. As if Billy was the best thing a person could be.

We.

We have to raise a reader.

–

Hawkins Library sells used books at the Farmer’s Market these days. Budget and funding cuts forcing their hand, Billy caught in a violent spell of fifty-cent paperbacks. 

The memory of Serena holding Steve’s hand, trailing excitedly down every aisle. Even the grown-up ones. Scowling when Steve would snatch every book from her hand, spitting they were, “inappropriate for little girls, Serena.”

Demanding to know when she’d be old enough to read anything with vampires in it.

Billy smiles at the memory, heart fluttering as Steve trails in front of him now in his dorky sun hat, calloused fingers dancing over the spines of every book on the Memoirs shelf. 

Without his salt and pepper showing, and if Steve’s face wasn’t furled in concentration so that his laugh lines gouged deeper into the split around his mouth; Steve looks the same as he always has. 

Billy side-steps another pair of lesbians, running head-first into the LGBTQIA+ Romance section. His heart thuds. He looks around, trying to catalog this territory. Pride flags, Cher playing over a pill-sized bluetooth speaker.

The portable shelf has a flier stuck to it. A disco ball with rainbow streamers falling like wet rags from the words Hawkins Community GSA Presents: Queer Prom. Get Your Tickets at the Booth!

Billy turns, heart in his throat. He watches Steve mouth along to the back of whatever book he’s holding. Catches sight of some president, or something, staring nobly through the break of Steve’s fingers. 

Some twink, sandwiched between the next row of shelves, laughs, and Steve looks up. Catching Billy. He deposits the memoir back on the shelf. “You drug me all the way over here and you haven’t even looked at anything.”

Billy swallows the lump in his throat. “What’s going on, Steve?”

“I don’t know–”

Billy rips the flier from the book shelf, thrusting it into Steve’s wide, waiting palms. 

Steve mouths along to the words. Like he did with the memoir. Like he always has, with the instructions on Betty Crocker Cake Boxes, and the confusing swirl of the How To’s for little girl’s play sets, stretching all the way back to the spring of 1985 when he would pay Billy in saccharine smiles to read Kafka out loud. Write Steve’s essays for him.

“Huh,” Steve flushes bright pink across the bridge of his nose. “Get your tickets at the booth,” He says, artfully avoiding Billy’s gaze, “Cool idea. The instructions aren’t very clear, though, there’s so many booths–”

“You said today was a special occasion,” Billy accuses flatly. It’s getting harder to breathe. “You said you weren’t acting weird, but you’re acting weird, and I–”

“--Will you go to prom with me?” Steve says. Then, Immediately, “I don’t want to freak you out.”

Billy snatches the flier back from him, shaking all over. 

“Okay, alright,” Steve swallows, fingers splayed like Billy’s a junkyard dog who’s backed into a corner. Who’ll attack any minute now. “Look, I just. I thought if I was gonna grow a pair of balls, like. If I was ever gonna do this, I should do it here.”

That doesn’t make sense. Nothing makes sense.

Steve inches closer, his lined, aging, familiar, beautiful face open like a sunroof. Like a hole in the sky. “Billy,” Steve says, “Ever since I met you–”

“--What the fuck is going on–”

“--Stop, okay? Just. Let me say this?” Steve waits, patiently, for a confirmation. Billy doesn’t move or breathe or blink. Steve presses forward, “Ever since I met you when I was seventeen years old I thought. You were someone I could spend the rest of my life with.”

Someone exhales all the wind in their lungs. Billy. 

Steve bristles at the sound. He pulls inward, seeming to notice that people are looking at them over the bookshelves with the kind of intensity that puts a basketball court under Billy’s feet. That reminds him of how Steve would defend Billy to the world before he got better.

Before he was worth anyone’s love.

“So,” Steve lifts a hand to his forehead before realizing he’s still in the sun hat. He takes it off, “I had a speech,” He tells the sun hat, folding the brim between two fingers. Hair a mess but still perfect. “Do you wanna hear it?”

“I think I’ll pass out,” Billy admits earnestly.

“I’d catch you,” Steve says, so. Billy takes a timid step forward, flinching out of his skin when Steve looks up and says, “I’m in love with you.”

Once upon a time, Billy thought the world would collapse if they said those words out loud.

It doesn’t.

“So,” Billy rasps, wringing the flier in his fist, “You thought. You could ask me to prom?”

“We didn’t get to go to prom when we were kids.”

“You went with Nancy,” Billy snaps, strangling the flier. “You danced. I watched you dance–”

“--We didn’t get to go together.”

“You wanted to go to prom with me?”

“Of course. Billy, I moved to California because I was in love with you.” Steve says, like just saying it out loud points to the bread-crumb trail of what they’ve been dancing around for all these years. Like ah-ha. Checkmate.

Billy sniffs. Something wet on his cheeks. “You left California.”

“Because I was in love with you.” Steve nods slowly, “You. You met Alice, and. I thought–”

“--I can’t go to gay prom with you, Steve.”

He doesn’t even bat an eye, used to Billy’s flair for the dramatic. “Why not?”

“Because,” Billy says, looking around desperately. All he finds are lesbians and twinks weaving in and out of the aisles, caught in their own little crystal-clear worlds, useless. “Because I’m in my fifties. And so are you.”

“The event is all ages,” Steve tells him, bored, “Well. Really it’s for old people. Because we never got to have one.”

And. 

The fact that Steve went to prom with Nancy, that he bought flowers and pinned a satin pink corsage to her dress, holding her hand while they danced under seafoam lights, but it wasn’t what he wanted. 

Who he wanted–

Billy sniffs. Trying to stamp out the fire in his chest. “I have a mortgage and and a tomato garden, and a daughter in New York–”

“--This was Serena’s idea,” Steve admits suddenly. “She’s the one who sent me the information on Facebook.”

Of course.

Billy nods, “You’re wearing a sunhat.” His chest, opening like a springtime rose. Stupid. “You can’t say you love me and then ask me to prom when you’re wearing–”

“I took it off,” Steve says. A smile in his voice.

“I stopped smoking for you,” Bill accuses. 

Steve snorts, “Like you aren’t gonna finish the pack first.”

Billy laughs, and it’s wet-sounding. It rattles in his chest and then bursts into the air between them, somehow pulling Steve across the cobblestone. He pushes Billy’s hair back from his face, fiddling with the same earring that’s been there for forty years. Changed only once, for prom.

Billy looks at him. Catalogs the years, the love that grew like ivy over everything else. He hiccups, “I never thought you’d love me back.”

“Of course I love you back.”

“But,” He says, thinking of how their lives could have been so different, “Why–”

“--We can have this,” Steve tells him, pulling Billy close. “We deserve this.”

Another thing Billy will have to settle into. 

It’s nice. He wants to kiss Steve, so he does, because Hawkins has turned into the kind of place that hosts gay prom, where lesbians and twinks roam freely in their little rainbow outfits. 

Steve licks into Billy’s mouth and they melt into each other, gone soft by the years, and the heat of June. When Steve pulls away, his lips press like stamps to Billy’s forehead, his chin, both eyes, his mustache–

Billy giggles. “We should get our tickets.”

“I already have them,” Steve says.

Billy pulls back, gawking.

“I ordered them online.”

“You know how to order things online?”

“Serena ordered them,” Steve says, shrugging. 

And.

Billy grunts. Wanting to say that he could’ve said no. He’s still himself, after all, smoke free organic or not, but. Steve knits their fingers together, “C’mon,” He says, and Billy doesn’t ask where they’re going next. It doesn’t matter. 

They’ve been in love since they were seventeen. Billy’s just happy that it gets to live out in the open, now. Glittery with pride.

[otomiyaa]

TGI Tournament

Cynonari | Chili | Wrioney | Kavetham

A/N: HAPPY BDAY FABIIII @lovelynim !!! Busy day so a little late, but it's still your birthday hoho. I combined some of your fav pairings into this random fic, hope you enjooooy :3

Summary: Aether launches his first own international Genius Invokation TCG tournament and is surprised when things get a different turn than expected. (Also on AO3)

Word Count: 2.9K

Genius Invokation TCG wasn't just a game. The more time Aether spent traveling around Teyvat, the more he discovered about it. He had come to the realization that this special card game was actually what connected all nations to each other the most.

Not visions, archons, beliefs, cultures or customs: it was one single card game they all had in common. The rules were the same across all of Teyvat.

Sure one person owned better cards than the other and some players were more invested, skilful and passionate, but in the end, the game was also all about chance.

With this game, a young boy like Timmie could beat the mightiest archon if the odds were in his favor. An everyday farmer could beat the smartest Akademiya scholar if he believed in himself. A beginner, like Aether himself not long ago, could beat someone as obsessed and skilled as Cyno.

He smiled proudly. Aether admired all that, and so thanks to his growing love for the game, the day had officially come: the first 'Traveler's Genius Invokation TCG Tournament', hosted by him, with assistance of Paimon, Diona and Amber, right here in Mondstadt at the Cat's Tail!

They equipped the place with smaller tables to fit in more, and decorated it with flags and decorations from all nations. Because, it wasn't just a Mondstadt event. It was international!

Aether had used his own network to invite various friends, not only from Mondstadt but also from other nations, to play in this international tournament. And he felt so gleeful to have gathered such a nice group of people who valued their friendship and also loved playing the game!

"I can't believe so many came from all over the world!" Paimon squeaked, watching how crowded the Cat's Tail was. Aether was truly surprised too. When he sent the invitation, he didn't expect them to travel all the way to Mondstadt.

"Mondstadt economy is booming thanks to us. Next time we should ask them to pay ー" Aether's reaction to Paimon's sassy comment was blowing into her face, and she whined in response.

"Welcome, everyone! To the first edition of the Traveler's Genius Invokation TCG Tournament, in short, TGI Tournament, " he called out to the crowd. Sadly not everyone could come, but there sure were some surprising faces!

Most surprising were Wriothesley and Alhaitham. How were they able to drop their busy work to come all this way? Glancing at Lyney and Kaveh next to them, grinning triumphantly, he vaguely got a clue...

"We made a tournament chart, you can view it on the board. We will start the first round shortly!" Paimon announced next. The crowd gathered around the board, and excited and also enthusiastic yells could be heard.

And so, after a few more minutes of excited discussions and preparations, the tournament started, with quite the interesting first round, which resulted in even more interesting winners, and various words were exchanged.

Cyno VS Kaeya

Albedo VS Tighnari

Rosaria VS Kazuha

Childe VS Diluc

Fischl VS Lyney

Sucrose VS Bennett

Venti VS Wriothesley

Eula VS Mika

Mona VS Kaveh

Xiao VS Noelle

Zhongli VS Lisa

Alhaitham VS Jean

"Bennett? You won? You're not that unlucky after all!"

"S-S-Sucrose just w-went too easy on me...!"

"What's this, what's this? You lost, Diluc?"

"Shut up, Kaeya. You lost too."

"Eula, did you let Mika win on purpose?"

"I did no such thing."

"Hey.. Is it me or did Mondstadt get owned pretty hard?"

"Maybe a little."

"Guys, do you know why no ladies are left in the next round? Because after all, it's a tourna-MEN-t."

"Cyno!!!!"

Aether chuckled to see all the reactions to the first tournament round, and he walked over to Amber and Diona who were busy working on the chart and scores.

"So I guess it's time for round two soon, then?" Aether said, and he glanced at the new pairs.

"Oh. This is interesting," Aether said, seeing the pairs they made especially since Amber and Diona didn't know everyone that well which actually contributed to the fairness. It needed to be completely random.

Diona nodded and misunderstood what Aether meant with interesting: "Ah yes I know. It's bad for Mondstadt we put the only two left on one table. But you see, Bennett said that-"

Amber interrupted Diona and quickly waved her hands. "I-it's just better this way!"

Aether grinned and nodded. Either one of the two, probably Bennett, was too shy to play against people they weren't too familiar with, or they just wanted to play together. Which was fine of course.

Either way, the next line-up was mostly interesting because for some magical reason they happened to put at least 4 couples together, and not many people knew about their relationship, let alone Amber and Diona!

"That must be a coincidence," Paimon whispered the obvious as she looked over Aether's shoulder, and he nodded.

So, round two:

Cyno VS Tighnari

Kazuha VS Xiao

Childe VS Zhongli

Wriothesley VS Lyney

Bennett VS Mika

Alhaitham VS Kaveh

Amused, he watched how the pairs sat at a table together. Bennett and Mika started playing their game quite cheerfully. Kazuha and Xiao were the ultimate combination for a quiet, calculated and intelligent game of cards without many works spoken.

But those other pairs....

"If I win this, you'll have to listen to at least ten of my jokes without running," Cyno said as he rolled the dice.

"You're going to claim such a big prize after just the second round?" was Tighnari's sassy response.

"Finally. I thought you were never going to play against me again after that last massacre~" Childe sang.

Zhongli did not seem amused. "Stop talking. It's your turn."

"Look at us, traveling all this way for me to beat your ass like I can do at home."

"Don't be so confident, jail guy. I have polished my skills since our last game."

Aether gulped to hear this remark from Wriothesley towards Lyney, but then giggled to hear Lyney's new nickname for the confident Duke.

Alhaitham and Kaveh were having a hilarious staring contest, barely looking away from each other as they played card after card.

"I win. I win again. Oh, I win." Alhaitham was clearly winning and liked to rub it in with live commentary.

"If you say it once again I will kick your ass," Kaveh grunted.

"Are those guys close?" Diona asked as she noticed the interesting dynamics, and she cocked her head.

"They... They are all from the same nations," Aether explained with a stiff smile.

"Eep! Did we mess up?" Amber squeaked.

"No that's fine. I like it this way," Aether said, smirking to see more funny situations unfold.

He was just gazing at the quiet game between Kazuha and Xiao when a funny noise could be heard from another table.

"Childe, stop."

Aether stared. What was... "Hmm, why?" Childe said, followed by the same funny sound.

"Dohohon't!" Seeing Childe reach under the table, there was no doubt he was tickling Zhongli's leg.

"Do nohohot distrahahact mehehe!"

"So you admit. This is distracting you."

Aether smirked. How childish. "Chihilde!"

Not many people present seemed to know how rare it was to hear Zhongli's laughter, and as it was getting louder, he could see Venti walk over there. He had been spectating the game between Kazuha and Xiao, but now joined in with teasing Zhongli.

"What's going on here?" he chirped.

"Hehe's c-cheheating!"

"How's this cheating, then? Old man?" Zhongli's laughter increased when Venti tickled his sides, and the concentration and focus that had been very strong in the first round, now crumbled.

"I'll tell them to stop," Diona said, walking over there, but the moment she was gone, Aether heard another laugh. He turned his head and saw the one laughing was... Cyno!

"Huh?" Paimon had been too busy serving drinks to the participants who lost the first round, so she hadn't noticed the funny mess at Zhongli's table. However she came to look the moment Cyno could be heard barking near them.

"Nahaahahari! Don't dohoho thahat! Thihihighn-aahaha!"

"That's right. I'm tickling your thigh."

"Nohohot fuhuhunny!"

"You dare tell me my joke isn't funny?"

Whatever the reason, Tighnari must've been inspired by the tickly mess at the other table. Right at that moment, Aether heard a loud noise. Lyney just banged his head against the table from underneath. Huh?

"WRIAh- nohoho! Don't you dahahare- why ahahare you- gahhh!"

"For a magician, that was petty and embarrassing. You dropped the dice on purpose when they didn't give you the result you wanted. You know I won't let you get away with cheats, kitten."

Aether blushed when he overheard the exchange. These two weren't subtle at all. He watched how Wriothesley tickled Lyney who had crawled under the table to pick up the dice, but Wriothesley was tickling his sides and ribs relentlessly, trapping him under the table and punishing him for his apparent attempt to cheat.

"Why did it turn out like this?" Amber sighed when Diona returned to their side as well.

"They're not stopping," she complained, hehe, poor girl. Only Aether seemed to be amused by the little chaos. Childe had even jumped up and teased and tickled Zhongli with the help of Venti.

Aether noticed Bennett and Mika had stopped playing for a moment and watched the tickly chaos with smiles on their faces.

Kazuha and Xiao were still playing as if nothing was happening.

Ah, he then remembered he hadn't checked on Kaveh and Alhaitham who were tucked away with their table in the corner, surrounded by various Mondstadt people who were watching their game. He could hardly see them, but sounded like they didn't let the others bother them.

A loud cry made him look away from the busy table again to see Wriothesley throw his head back as he laughed loudly.

"Ahahalright! Alrihihight alreheheady! L-lehehet's continuehehe!" he laughed, and Lyney was still under the table but there was no doubt he was tickling Wriothesley's knees and thighs from under there.

"You started it, Wrio. Besides, I wouldn't have dropped the dice if you weren't distracting me on purpose. And then you accuse me of cheating?"

Aether had no idea who was in the right, but he decided to not interrupt them and walked around, ending up at Zhongli's table.

He tapped Venti's shoulder who was still tickling him together with Childe. "Let's not disturb their game," he said. Venti whined.

"Why? We're having fun."

"At least keep it in between them," Aether disagreed, dragging Venti away, but it didn't stop Childe from simply abandoning his own seat and wriggling himself onto Zhongli's lap, just to tickle him uncontrollably. There was no game to speak of anymore, except a tickle game.

Looked like their duel of Genius Invokation TCG was already abandoned.

"Disqualified," Diona said as she stood next to them, but the Harbinger merely responded with a cheerful peace sign.

"Did you hear that Zhongli? We're disqualified."

"Stohohop thihihis instahahant!" Poor Zhongli. Luckily he didn't need to be too embarrassed since by now, the duos not having a silly tickle fight at their table were in the minority.

"Disqualified."

Wriothesley and Lyney were next, but there wasn't much left of their game anyway. Besides the dice, also some cards had fallen off due to the struggle under the table.

"I think they are still trying to play," Amber said, pointing at Cyno and Tighnari. Despite getting tickled, Cyno was playing card after card, and Tighnari was laughing too, so it looked like they were having a tickle fight under the table while playing the game.

"Stop that, or, disqualified," Diona told them. It seemed to work at first, but the moment she left, Aether could see they started again. Hehe, how cute and silly.

At this point everyone was just laughing and messing around. "There goes our tournament!" Amber whined.

"You'll pay for that!" Cyno and Tighnari had now left their table as Cyno chased Tighnari to the other side of the room. Aether saw that their game was totally messed up, cards and dice scattered over the table and floor.

"Disqualified after all," Diona muttered next to him, shaking her head in disappointment. Tighnari fled into the crowd around Alhaitham and Kaveh's table, trying to hide behind the usually cool and aloof Alhaitham, but it didn't stop Cyno from chasing after him, hands formed into claws.

"Guhuhuys hehehelp!"

"I'll get you for ruining our game!" Everyone backed away and squealed and cheered in surprise when Tighnari was thrown over Kaveh and Alhaitham's table, sending cards falling and flying, and Aether covered his own face in defeat.

"Game over," he said, trying to hide his smile while Diona fumed angrily.

"Such bad manners!" she cried. Tighnari was laughing and flailing as he was tickled by Cyno, and Kaveh and Alhaitham merely got up and went to get a drink, giving up without a complaint.

"You must be glad about this. I was winning," Kaveh said proudly. Alhaitham rolled his eyes.

"How can you say that when I was about to obliterate your final card?"

"I had a strategy."

"A strategy for loss, indeed."

Aether finally stood on top of a table in the middle and clapped. "Alright you guys! That's enough!" His voice wasn't loud enough to interrupt the tickle chaos, so Paimon took her megaphone and yelled instead.

"STOOOOOOOP!" All laughter stopped abruptly. Diona also climbed on the table and crossed her arms.

"Is there anyone who is still playing?!" she yelled. Bennett shyly raised a single finger.

"I won..." he said shyly. Mika scratched the back of his head and shrugged.

"Bennett is really lucky today," he said.

"Anyone else?" Amber asked kindly, looking around. Kazuha also raised his hand.

"I won," he announced sweetly. Woah. Aether saw the indifferent look on Xiao's face and giggled. He felt sorry for him. Xiao was the only one who didn't get a proper invitation, but he simply summoned him by calling his name and dragged him into this.

"Sorry," he mouthed in his direction, to apologize for the chaos, and he was pleased to see a gentle nod in response. Xiao didn't seem to blame him for losing control over the tournament.

"Good! Well then," Paimon said, and she pointed towards the board where Diona made the final adjustments. Exactly two people were left for the finale which ended up taking place sooner than planned.

Cyno VS Tighnari

Kazuha VS Xiao

Childe VS Zhongli

Wriothesley VS Lyney

Bennett VS Mika

Alhaitham VS Kaveh

While the final table was prepared for Kazuha and Bennett's duel, Paimon passed by the other duos to scold them.

"I can't believe all of you just turned it into a tickle fight! YOU started it!" she yelled at Childe, poking his chest and making him giggle.

"Sorry not sorry. Maybe next time we can have a tickle tournament instead," he said, probing Zhongli's side playfully.

"Don't give the Traveler ideas," Paimon sighed. Aether was already smirking. Don't, indeed. The idea of a tickle tournament sounded quite interesting.

"Well then! Last round!" Diona and Amber looked exhausted as the final round finally started. This time everyone was gathered around Bennett and Kazuha's table, with some people getting drinks and giggling at the funny turn of events.

Walking around the room to check on everyone and clean up some of the mess, Aether then saw an interesting display, and shuffled closer to watch and listen.

"D-dohohon't! You bohohoth ahaahare-eepp!" To his surprise, Kaveh had cornered Alhaitham in an abandoned spot behind the crowd and was tickling him now.

Alhaitham was also a rare one to witness laughing, so Aether couldn't help but chuckle at the remarkable sight.

"Y-you g-gaahha q-quihihit ihihit! Y-you're suhuhuch a sohohore loseheher!" Despite laughing, Alhaitham didn't seem amused, but Kaveh wouldn't let him go.

"Sore loser, me? I wasn't losing though." Kaveh looked smug, and Alhaitham appeared very flustered to get tickled in public like this. Not that anyone except Aether was noticing them now. And- woah.

He gulped to see Alhaitham lose his cool. He managed to break free from Kaveh's grasp, grabbed his collar and dragged him outside. Oh. Aether had a feeling that they were returning to their hotel room and that Kaveh was going to get a taste of Alhaitham's revenge in private.

"What are you spacing out for? The finale is almost ending! Come, quick!" Paimon suddenly squeaked, making him jump. Aether quickly returned to the table, making his way through the crowd, and was just in time to witness a unique sight.

Bennett won.

"Congratulations," Kazuha said, shaking his hand formally. Before Aether could say anything, Kaeya already dashed forward and lifted Bennett up.

"We have a winner! Woohoo!" Amber and Diona cheered as everyone applauded. Who would have thought. Bennett, the unlucky guy, but lucky today.

Aether nodded proudly and stepped forward. "Bennett! This is for you." He handed him the trophy he had crafted specially for this event, and Bennett took it with sparkling eyes.

Seeing him so happy, Aether thought that the fact that many other pairs ended up getting disqualified, shortening the tournament enormously, might have contributed to Bennett's luck. He absolutely deserved the win.

Seeing the smiles on Diona and Amber's faces, and the proud Mondstadt people, Aether was glad they also weren't too upset that their tournament turned into a little chaos.

"Let's do this again next year!"

Aether nodded proudly. "We will," he said, although he had to admit the thought of a Tickle Tournament was now paving its way into his mind first. He wondered if he could get anyone to participate...

[nochuelinha]

Too Sweet - Chapter 5 - Bed 3:00 AM

Ellie had invited me to go to a pub with her. Well, it was the first time we went out together without planning Sara's wedding, so I agreed. I dressed as best I could, but also comfortably: a red knitted vest, loose-fitting jeans, and black All-Star sneakers. I grabbed a small side bag, checked my light makeup, and headed out, finding her already waiting for me.

Ellie looked beautiful as always, wearing a black top with a button-up shirt over it and black tailored pants.

"Sweetie, you look magnificent," I thanked her.

"Ellie, you're a spectacle yourself," I returned the compliment, and she winked at me, starting to drive towards the pub. She had mentioned it was her friend Dina's birthday. The pub was very nice and quite crowded; at one of the tables, I saw a girl with black hair waving enthusiastically at us. Ellie placed her hand on the small of my back and guided us over there.

"Everyone, this is Y/N, Sara's friend, now mine too," Ellie introduced me. The girl smiled widely and stood up to kiss my cheek; next to her was a guy, also handsome. Apparently, Ellie knew a lot of good-looking people.

"This is my boyfriend, Jesse," he nodded and smiled at me, and I greeted him back. I sat down in front of them, and Ellie settled beside me. "You're even prettier than I thought, Ellie talks a lot about you, but never gave me a detailed description," Dina seemed like a child with a new toy.

"Dina, don't scare her, please," Ellie's tone, although playful, seemed to reprimand her. Dina stuck her tongue out at her, and the rest of the night was filled with conversations and laughter. Some other friends arrived and settled around us; Dina would occasionally leave to give them attention. I was drinking gin and some other drinks; Ellie said she liked the craft beer from that pub and was enjoying it. The hours were passing quickly, and alcohol was making me quite cheerful, but I needed to go to the bathroom. Ellie was at the bar, talking to a girl with Asian descent, I think her name was Cat.

I headed towards the bathroom and, to my surprise, I was feeling much more dizzy than I had imagined. I waited in the short line and entered the bathroom; there were 3 stalls. When I came out, the girl who was with Ellie was leaning against the sink. She smiled at me, and I smiled back.

"What are you to Ellie?" Her tone was strange, almost irritated.

"We're friends," I replied as I washed my hands, looking at my reflection in the mirror and seeing two of me, I laughed.

"Friends? Ellie doesn't have friends, she has flings and casual sex," she was now looking at me with a penetrating gaze. I didn't understand what she meant. Of course Ellie had friends, I was one of them. "I was one of them. Dina has stayed with her and several others. She discards people when they're no longer interesting to her. So don't kid yourself, you're not special to her," her harsh tone wasn't making me very comfortable.I was stunned by her words. How could someone misunderstand Ellie's friendship like that? She might be outgoing and know many people, but I knew she valued her true friendships.

"Are you a little jealous because she has friends now?" I wasn't thinking clearly and didn't know where this conversation would lead.

"What?" She turned red. "I'm helping you, warning you, stay away from her," and then she quickly left. Ellie also knows strange people. I knew she and Dina had a brief romance in their adolescence; she ended up letting it slip spontaneously while we were talking about our lives on another day at our café. I knew that because she flirted a lot and was very attractive, there would be people after her. To be honest, even I felt attracted to her sometimes, or all the time? The disconnected thoughts made me laugh a little, so I decided to go back to the table.

Ellie was leaning against a wall near the bathroom; she smiled at me and waited for me to come to her. "You're quite cheerful, aren't you?" Her tone was playful, and her laughter was easy.

"The drinks Dina gave me were excellent," I commented, still tasting the drinks in my mouth. Ellie agreed and ran her hand over my waist, a gesture that comforted me. Her smell, minty and strong, was familiar and comforting. It was her smell, the one I associated with safety and closeness.

"Very well, sweetie, but only water for you from now on," she joked, causing a pout on my lips. I laughed along with her, accepting the guidance with a resigned gesture. After all, being by her side was enough to make me forget the temptation of drinks.

"Your friend Cat came to talk to me," I blurted out without thinking.

"What did she want?" Her face wasn't smiling anymore, and her tone turned colder.

"She told me to stay away from you."

"Do you want to stay away from me, sweetie?" Her voice was even lower, her eyes very intense. My mind spun and spun a little more, now that she was so ingrained in my life, now that I was so used to her presence, her quirks, and her jokes, I couldn't imagine what it would be like if suddenly she wasn't here anymore.

"No," I replied honestly. "Are you going to hurt me?" The question slipped out unfiltered.

"Never, sweetie," she said, then kissed my forehead.

"I had a great time," I smiled at her as we walked out of the pub. Ellie smiled back, her eyes reflecting the dim lights of the street. "I'm glad you did," she replied, and we continued walking towards her car. The night air was cool, and the streets were quiet, a stark contrast to the lively atmosphere of the pub we had just left. As we drove back to her apartment, I couldn't help but feel grateful for Ellie's company. Despite the unexpected encounter with Cat and her unsettling words, being with Ellie always made everything feel right.

Ellie took me to her apartment, but simply because I had lost my house key at the pub, how? I have no idea.

"Mi casa, es tu casa," Ellie said as she opened the door to her apartment. I was immediately enveloped in a familiar and cozy atmosphere. The space was a perfect extension of her creative and welcoming personality. Furniture made of metal and wood added an industrial and modern touch, while an abundance of plants scattered throughout brought life and freshness to the place. The apartment seemed to breathe art, with paintings hung on the walls and shelves displaying unique decorative objects.

In the corner of the living room, a guitar rested on a stand, emitting an aura of serenity. It was evident that this instrument was more than just a mere decorative object; it was an extension of Ellie's soul. Along the walls, brushes and paint tubes were arranged, silent witnesses to her passion for painting. The vibrant color palette and expressive strokes of the displayed artworks revealed Ellie's artistic skill and her ability to convey emotions through art.

Ellie's apartment was a haven of creativity and inspiration, where every element reflected her essence and personality. It was easy to imagine the hours she spent there, immersed in her artistic expressions, finding peace and contentment in every brushstroke and guitar chord. It was a place where I instantly felt at home, welcomed not only by the warm atmosphere but also by the love and dedication Ellie invested in making it unique and special.

"I like it here," I said, still feeling contagious joy. Ellie laughed and took my hand, guiding me inside and giving me a mini tour of the apartment. She showed me the powder room, two bedrooms, and a spacious kitchen, each space reflecting her unique and welcoming style.

Our tour of the apartment ended with both of us sitting on the floor of the living room, leaning against the sofa. It was a simple moment, yet filled with meaning, where our physical proximity seemed to intensify our emotional connection.

"Do you mind if I smoke a joint?" Ellie asked, looking at me. I shook my head. I won't lie, I've tried many things in my teenage years, so today I'm much more relaxed about these matters. She got up and opened one of the drawers, taking out a small jar and an old lighter, adding a chic touch to the scene. Ellie sat back down beside me, lighting the joint and taking a deep drag. The smoke dispersed gently in the air as she seemed to relax gradually, resting her head on the sofa. "Want a hit? I promise it's pure," she offered, handing me the joint. I accepted, taking it in my hands and mimicking her movements. The sensation was smoother than I remembered, and the pleasure even greater than in my teenage years. I passed it back to her, feeling more relaxed and light.

"This isn't your first time, is it?" Ellie asked, looking at me with a smile. I smiled back. "Sweetie, you're showing me new sides today," she remarked, her gentle tone revealing a touch of admiration.

It was already late at night, and I found myself thinking about the last time I had stayed up so late. The conversation with Ellie had become slower and more gradual, and everything around us seemed to be enveloped in a peaceful silence. The soft aroma of the herb filled the air, mixed with the scent of incense in the corner of the room.

"Sweetie, you're high," Ellie said, her contagious laughter echoing through the room. Her eyes sparkled with a mixture of fun and tenderness as she leaned back, resting against the sofa. "I can't remember the last time I laughed this much."

I couldn't help but laugh too, infected by her joy. Her laughter was truly enchanting, filling the space with positive and welcoming energy.

The clock read 2:45, and Ellie looked at me tenderly, her eyes reflecting the gentle moonlight peeking through the window between the curtains. "I usually go to bed at this time," she commented softly, her voice enveloping me like a comforting caress, "staying up until the early hours has become a habit for me." Her fingers played absentmindedly with the tip of the joint, and her gaze seemed distant for a moment, as if she were lost in memories. "I guess I've always been a night owl. I like the calm of the night, the feeling of freedom it brings. It's when I feel most like myself, more connected to my thoughts and emotions." Her voice was gentle, filled with a serenity that seemed to contradict the intensity of the moment. She smiled, as if sharing a special secret with me. "And it's nice to have your company to make these nights even more special."

"You make everything feel more special, I think you have an incredible gift, Ellie," I said softly, my words carrying a genuine warmth and admiration.

Ellie's eyes softened, and a faint blush colored her cheeks. "Thank you, sweetheart," she replied, her voice touched with sincerity. "But it's not just me. It's the connection we share, the moments we create together. That's what makes everything feel extraordinary." Her words resonated deeply within me, reaffirming the magic of our bond.

"I can't remember the last time I stayed up this late," I remarked, breaking the comfortable silence between us. "I know, Miss Morning Person," Ellie teased, her playful tone bringing a smile to my face. I leaned my head against her shoulder, reveling in the warmth of her presence. "We're complete opposites," she continued, her voice softening. "Our personalities are different, our habits divergent, and hardly anything seems to be 100% compatible between us. Yet, despite all these disparities, I feel like I fit perfectly with you. It's almost magnetic, an attraction that transcends our differences and binds us in an inexplicable way."

I lifted my head to look at her, and it felt like the first time I truly saw her. Everything about her drew me in: her eyes reflecting a captivating depth, her smile illuminating my soul, every gesture emitting an aura of authenticity and warmth.

Looking at her in that moment, I felt an overwhelming wave of desire and tenderness wash over me. It was as if the whole world disappeared around us, leaving just the two of us in our own universe of intense emotions. It was then that the urge to kiss her became irresistible, an urgent need pulsating within me, begging for expression.

"Can I ask you something?" I said softly, seeking permission. She nodded in agreement," Kiss me", her eyes holding nothing but certainty. And then, she kissed me.

Her lips on mine felt like a revelation, igniting a fire within me that I never knew existed. In that moment, time seemed to stand still as we surrendered to the passion and connection between us. It was a kiss filled with longing, with promise, with the recognition of something profound and undeniable. And as our lips parted, I knew that this was just the beginning of something extraordinary.

Overwhelming, that's how her kiss felt—intense and ablaze with a fervor that left me craving more. Her lips were so soft, her tongue so precise, that I found myself lost in that moment of pure surrender. She was everything I wanted in that instant. Then, she pulled me into her lap, and my hands automatically found solace in the comfort of her hair. I became fire in her arms, everything around us seeming to burn with desire. I was completely melted by her. The clock read 3:00.

[withhertea]

Maisie Peters: coming of age

With heartfelt songs of crushes and overcoming heartbreak on her number one album 'The Good Witch', 23-year-old Maisie Peters deftly captures the agony and ecstasy of youth. Here, she discusses her friendship with Ed Sheeran, the ups and downs of being online, and how she mines her personal life for inspiration.

By Charlotte Manning

It is Halloween when I sit down to chat with Maisie Peters. It almost feels too perfect a time to take a deep dive in and around her summer album release The Good Witch, packed full of spooky connotations and an exploration into, well, witchery. She promises that “some effort” is going into the costumes for tonight’s Bristol gig, teasing: “You’ll have to just wait and see.” 

This is a pop star who is used to being very much online. She’s wearing a non-serious T-shirt bearing Robert Pattinson’s face, and one of the first things I’m shown is a cat meme that I — also chronically online — have seen dozens of times before. “It’s been the most mental year of my life,” laughs Peters. “Everyone keeps joking that my eyes are getting smaller and smaller. I’m giving… Have you seen that cat meme? It’s like, ‘I’m awake, but at what cost?’ (She quickly searches for it on her phone.) This is what I’m giving right now. I sit across from people and give this tired cat that says, ‘Awake, but at what cost?’ And that is me.”

The 23-year-old is the recipient of The Breakthrough Award, supported by Volvo, at the first Rolling Stone UK Awards. It’s a category stacked full of young, rapidly emerging talent, including names such as Olivia Dean, Shygirl and Wunderhorse. But it’s Maisie who is this year’s stand-out. She played Glastonbury’s Pyramid Stage the day her second album dropped, and when it quickly shot to number one in the UK Official Charts, Peters became the youngest female act to achieve this feat in nearly a decade, plus her UK tour culminated in a sold-out date at Wembley Arena. It doesn’t really get better than that, does it?

“We drove into Glastonbury and listened to the album; it had just come out, it was really cool and special,” she recalls. While her gigs often feel like a party, she had even more to celebrate this time around. Peters and her band stayed in a very apt “fairy-castle hotel” near the world-famous festival and decided to simply spend the album-release weekend living their best lives at Worthy Farm. “We played the show. It was kind of crazy because the new album came out that day. Imagine working on your job, and it’s the biggest weekend of the year? All systems go. This was the biggest week we were going to have. 

As I approach the O2 Academy Bristol via a slightly dodgy backstreet later that rainy evening, there are hundreds of buzzing fans queuing, who, like me, are largely girls in their twenties. I end up feeling pretty under-dressed in my reliable straight-cut jeans and ribbed crop-top gig combo. As I enter, it’s clear that under the sea of raincoats and umbrellas, a lot of preparation has gone into these outfits. A mixture of Halloween fancy dress (mainly witch costumes, of course), alongside pleated miniskirts with Y2K-style “baby tees” (concocted by Peters, which she often dons on tour) are there to greet me. This (now very signature) look came “very naturally” to her: “I thought it would be fun if we made little baby tees with lyrics on before the album came out, to tease at the shows. People were like, ‘Oh, my God, Maisie Peters has done another baby tee.’ Then people also started making their own. I thought, ‘Well, this is cute, this is a thing!’ So, I kept doing it. People started making their own, and it became almost like a little uniform for this album. To me, that’s what style is — it should be easy, and you should just feel good.”

At one point, the crowd scream the words to ‘Mr Perfectly Fine’ by Taylor Swift as the excitement builds. I somehow feel I’ve missed the memo on this being a collective anthem among fans, but it makes a lot of sense. Swift, Peters says, is an artist she’s “extremely honoured” to be often compared to as her star only continues to rise. “I love the music that she makes. I love her records; they’re all so important to me. I’m really, really honoured to be compared to her, and to be thought of in the same frame of mind, in anyone’s mind, as her. She’s a big inspiration of mine,” she says. 

From seamless guitar changes to refreshingly honest interactions with fans (“There’s nothing scarier than my romantic history… ghosts, demons, clowns. This year, I graduated from clown university”), the singer proves throughout the evening to be an absolute master of the crowd, a skill she’s no doubt developed in spades after spending time on tour with her ‘boss’, Ed Sheeran. 

After signing with Sheeran’s Gingerbread Man Records back in 2021, Peters has now released both albums under his label. The pair have a strong friendship, and she recounts an afternoon they spent watching Star Wars movies earlier this year during “the craziest one-day trip of my life” in New York. 

“We did America, Australia, New Zealand, UK, Europe… It was crazy,” she says of the experience. “I learned so much. I see videos of myself from the first Irish shows, where we began, and it feels like a different lifetime, a different version of myself. I just felt like a different person before this year. I’m so grateful that he took me around the world and believed in me.”

To nobody’s surprise, she marks her territory as the “number one Ed Sheeran fan in the world”. It would be hard to argue with that claim at this point. “He’s so generous and kind, and he’s really talented, and he’s smart,” she continues. “It’s a privilege to get to tour with somebody like that, someone that’s also just so good as a human being. It’s the easiest and the best thing because he’s so lovely.” 

Sheeran would later appear at her Wembley show to perform his own breakthrough hit ‘Lego House’ together in a gorgeous full-circle moment: “He let me play his Wembley, so I figured I should let him play mine,” she tells the crowd on her final night. This is a sentiment she jokes about again during her Rolling Stone UK cover shoot, teasing: “It’s great to be able to support up-and-coming artists.” 

At her Rolling Stone UK cover shoot, Peters’ warm persona lights up the room. She takes turns to chat to everyone in between being snapped, and answers questions to camera with ease, often checking the prompting notes she’s made on her phone. The soundtrack of the day is purely Girls Aloud — later that day it’s confirmed the group will be having a revival. How perfectly… witchy. 

Speaking of witchiness, sophomore album The Good Witch was written about a surprisingly short period in Peters’ life, and its contents again prove how well she can connect with her audience. “I really do write for the girls,” she observes. “I really made a whole album based on a relationship that lasted for one month and maybe two weeks.” The record is a painfully familiar look into the heartbreak, frustration and unpredictability of a short-lived romance, yet she provides drops of joy and growth in equal measure, meaning a sense of hope always remains at the core, never allowing the sadness to win. “I wrote this album about that time in my life. It depicts the same six months with, give or take, a few different songs.” 

But she doesn’t always write that way: “As I get older, I’ve tended to draw on my own life more frequently, but that’s not necessarily always chronologically accurate. I’ll write about something that happened four years ago like it was yesterday — it doesn’t matter to me. I am The Good Witch; I make what I want out of the things that are happening.” Peters has also remained adept at turning fleeting moments into the basis of a whole track. In 2022 fan-favourite release ‘Cate’s Brother’, she recalls meeting her housemate’s brother for the first time and quickly developing a huge crush. This led to intense lyrics, “And my heart went ‘Love him, he’s the one, and we shall wed,’” she sings.

The album and its subsequent deluxe version —released in October — touch on literary inspirations, including influences from the world of Greek mythology and fantasy, alongside a dose of religious imagery too. ‘The History of Man’ is a prime example, dotted with Biblical references: “So Samson blamed Delilah…”. Elsewhere, ‘In Guy on A Horse’, one of the deluxe tracks, Peters compares herself to Joan of Arc, depicting an elevated version of herself, as she criticises an ex-partner’s habit of looking down from his high horse.

“It wasn’t conscious. I wasn’t mood-boarding all my different literary inspirations or anything like that,” she explains, but there is an element to The Good Witch that acts as a conceptual album of sorts. “I got to write in that universe, which I loved. ‘The History of Man’ has some Greek mythology in it, and then ‘Wendy’ is essentially about Peter Pan. I was dancing around these universes.” 

Gender is another theme very present throughout much of the record, with Peters viewing her journey between debut You Signed Up for This to The Good Witch as “giving girl-to-woman”, having done a lot of growing in the past two years. “There are a lot of threads and themes that look at gender and in what it is to identify as a woman and what it is to know men, which sounds a bit dramatic,” she says. “It’s funny because if you were to count the most used words in The Good Witch, they are the words ‘obsessed’ and the word ‘man’. I don’t know what that reflects about me, but it’s something to think about…”

The extended album closes with gorgeously nostalgic ‘The Last One’, which very nearly made it into You Signed Up for This. “‘The Last One’, I wrote for my first album, but right at the end, so it didn’t make it. It feels like such a closing track. But ‘Tough Act’ became the closing track on my first album, so that was done [and] dusted.” She believes some songs can have extremely specific destinies in that they must be placed at certain points on a record “or it’s not going to happen”. She continues, “Sometimes I write a song, which I know is either the title track of the album, and it opens the album, or it will just never come out — ‘The Last One’ was one of those songs. But I love that song, and it feels really special it now gets to close The Good Witch.”

Her favourite lyric of the entire album comes from the song ‘Yoko’, dealing with misunderstandings that followed after Peters left a relationship she really hoped would work out, relating this to the common misconception surrounding Yoko Ono’s part in the break-up of The Beatles. “‘Yoko’ is one of my favourites, and I always wanted that to be on the album, but she didn’t quite make it. There’s a lyric in that song that’s my favourite lyric from this whole album: ‘You have a phone, you should have called’.”

While the two LPs in her discography may seem quite different on the surface, she feels there are many similarities. “I always say they are sister records to me,” she explains. “Even the Deluxe really emphasises that because there are songs on there that I wrote for the first album. The Deluxe is a good way to tie up any loose ends, I guess, and to make sure everything I wanted to say from those years, hopefully, is out. I mean, there’s always more things I want to say!”

Elsewhere, Peters’ online persona is generally an incredibly positive one, having created a space in which her fans clearly feel extremely comfortable, seen and safe. However, this hasn’t made her immune to her fair share of negativity on the internet too, something she’s experienced more this year than ever before. Yet she still manages to deliver a witty response to the not-so-nice comments she’s been on the other end of. “You can say with a wry smile, ‘At least I’m relevant,’” she smiles. “It’s really difficult, and you get bitten twice as hard when you’re someone that is online,” she says. “You’re engaging, and giving yourself to people, and then, suddenly, the mood changes, and people don’t like you, or don’t like what you’ve given them. You’re like, ‘But I was just trying to create, or I was just trying to show you this new song!’ It feels very personal, even though you try to turn it off.”

Through any negativity, Peters remains incredibly self-aware, and doesn’t seem to hold any resentment towards those directing the vitriol her way. “These people don’t know you. It’s normally a teenager tweeting, and good for them! I was a teenager tweeting once too. We’ve all done it. As long as I shall live, there will be teenagers tweeting, as they should.” Still, she admits it’s hard to not feel that she’s being “personally attacked”, and the comments have taken their toll at times. “People forget I’m still a person that’s seeing this. I’ve experienced that this year. I’ve found it really difficult. When you’re touring and away from home, and you’re really tired and running on empty, and then you just see X, Y and Z on TikTok or on Twitter about yourself, it really takes it out of you.”

Being present on the internet has been central to Peters’ career — she started out by posting videos of herself singing on YouTube when she was 15. But this year, she reached new peaks of online fame when her ‘There It Goes’ video went viral on TikTok in early autumn, painting a very relatable picture of the aftermath of an intense end-of-summer breakup in a vast city like London. Fans latched onto a couple of specific lines, “I’m doing better / I made it to September / I can finally breathe”, and “The comedown of closure / The girls and I do yoga / I wake up and it’s October / The loss is yours”. Fans started producing their own visuals to the track in cute clips which soon flooded the app. 

“Everybody wants something to take off on TikTok or to have a moment, but it was so fun that this moment was so organic,” she reflects. “What started happening was actually just this wonderful, sweet, pure, wholesome thing where people were using the sound, ‘I’m doing better / I made it to September,’ to round up little edits of their life and all the great things in it.” Peters admits she “couldn’t believe it” when she realised the song was going viral. “To see all these videos showcasing love and friendship, healing and growing and people just being themselves, I was like, ‘This is so cool.’ I’m so pleased and happy that was the moment, that’s what took off, because it’s so beautiful and lovely.” 

In what Peters calls a “cliche” answer, it’s her parents she immediately shouts out when asked who she wants to dedicate The Breakthrough Award, supported by Volvo, to, as they have been by her side on her incredible journey since she was a teen. “They drove me to pubs to play when I was 15,” recalls Peters. “My dad would come with me when I was busking so that if anything shady happened, he could be there, but he would also pretend not to be my dad, he’d just loiter around. They’ve always just been really supportive, so yeah, I would like to dedicate [this award] to them.”

On what’s next after this whirlwind year, Peters has a clear objective: “I’m going to bed!” she declares, itching to spend some time at home. “I haven’t spent more than two days at home since July. I’m going to be in London, just walking around, so say hi if you see me. God damn, I hope I’m in my rest and relaxation era.” She plans to spend the coming weeks “cooking meals and going to exercise classes” and generally doing very little. “Is it the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory grandparents who are in bed all day? That’s what I’m going to channel. I want to collect my thoughts a little bit. Then in the New Year, that’s when I’ll start making some more music. I have some thoughts and ideas [for the third album], but we’ll have to see what happens. Life takes you in surprising places sometimes.”

Taken from Issue 14 of Rolling Stone UK, our Awards Issue. You can buy it here.

Words: Charlotte Manning Photography: Lewis Vorn Fashion & Creative Director: Joseph Kocharian Styling: Luci Ellis Hair and makeup: Elizabeth Rita Styling assistant: Chessie Lulli

[factorialsotherfandoms]

A breakdown of character appearances and hybrids and stuff in qsmpxcomau for @rabbit-harpist

As fair warning I can't easily summarise the eggs and don't have drawing spoons rn so um... ask me for specific eggs if you want one and I'll do my best <3

In the context of the au, 'human' means any human or hybrid. (These are mostly based on common stuff I see around fandom. but only speak English so shh). Generally for things like hair their cubitos are a good shout.

General wear is like... armour for missions, then it depends. For truly casual hours (think the Brazilians in France) they do have their own clothes - at least a few changes - but anyone who does combat stuff tends to sleep and hang out in jumpsuits. Because the armour just goes over them, and everyone is on call 24/7. The exception is the non-combat people, some of whom still wear them. They do come in many colours at least! And some of them have decorated with embroidery.

Own clothes are mostly in the region of modern clothing. I'll pop some NPC screenshots below for vibes and the like.

If they're being undercover or around civilians, trench coats, jeans, hoodies, big workboots - think like.. cyberpunk but then take all the cool neon strips away when they're somewhere they can't relax but need to look normal.

Under cut is notes on specific people, then also a bunch of reference images

Notes for individuals:

Antoine - just... Okay you know those fan designs for him where there's the cube with faces on and the rest is a flesh coloured slightly torn up at the bottom all the way around cloak and what's underneath is a mass of black shadows? That. He basically looks like if a Mimikyu tried to make a human suit with a changable expression hat. Don't worry about it I'm sure he's a perfectly normal and lovely person and did I mention he has a cult?

Aypierre - a dude. I really like the robot extra arms headcanon I see around, but he only really uses those in the lab. Both for higher stability and to handle dangerous substances. Lab coat in the lab, jeans and knitwear (Gegg shirt is now a knited jumper) vibes casual hours. Heavy scarring on the back of his head, much like Felps', but much more obvious as shorter hair.

Baghera - is... not strictly a hybrid, but lets call her one. Human shaped, but all of her skin is covered in yellow feathers, and she actually kinda has two mouths. She has a fully functional bird beak, behind which is not her throat but a normal human mouth. Everyone calls her a high-expression duck hybrid but, um, yeah no. She has wings, but they're clearly badly stunted.

Bagi - cat hybrid, but she doesn't have ears or a tail, only retractable claws. Wears big trench coats and hats or hoods, and while out working always brings a gas mask. Her eyes also reflect like a cats, though the shape is normal. Just likes big and loose clothing generally. A strong believer in many layers.

BBH - demon. Legit just a demon. He cannot really hide he's demonic given the pure black skin is demon-only trait, but he claims he's just a couple of generations down from a demon and a human having a kid together. Big hoods, even in casual wear.

Cellbit - cat hybrid. No those aren't cat ears, shut the fuck up. (They totally are, and that's a tail, and unlike his sister he can't even claw you - he used to be able to, but when he 'joined' the Federation they forcibly and surgically declawed him, and there's scars on his hands from it). His goggles are a Tazercraft special and have all sorts of access to various feeds and tv stations and infrared view. Heavy scarring he can and does keep under his clothing. Friendship bracelet worn around his ankle and in his boots instead. Goes in a safety box if doing anything very dangerous. When using psionic powers, his eyes go red. The level of red scales with the strength of the power, unlike Tazercraft where it's just very colour or not. Roier's jacket is slightly too big for him and usually either worn or around his waist.

Dan - really was just a guy, poor dude.

ElQuackity - Scroll down to Quackity. They're identical twins, ElQuackity just prefers suits and smirking. Doesn't have scars. Like suspiciously few scars everyone has at least a couple here or there, simply from life, except for him.

Etoiles - yes the cucumber thing. Plant hybrid because it's fucking cool okay??? Grows flowers in the spring, but they're extremely vulnerable and tend to get knocked off him easily. Tends to wear a full helmet when fighting because he throws himself around and likes having to worry less about head injuries.

Felps - is almost a generic just a dude as Dan. Has heavy scarring at the base of his neck thanks to the surgery to remove the implant. It's mostly hidden between his very thick hair and his neck tattoos. This is a thing from, well, the coma story onwards. When working in the command room uses in-ear headphones and wears a stabproof vest. It's not a lot of armour, but he can't handle full and they're not expecting problems there, everyone's just comfier if he wears it. Almost certainly has scarring on the back of his hands and insides of his arms and at his shoulder from the IVs while he was in a coma. While away in France was probably in a cute dress Festa Junina style. Friendship bracelet was stolen by aliens :( (Cellbit has it though. Once he gets it back, it's always there and on display). Various tattoos you know how it is.

Fit - biologically only human and there's no specific feature you can pin it on, but there's something clearly off about him. Scars everywhere, but the heaviest scarring is around his left shoulder, and across his chest. Heavy burns, usually hidden. Prosthetic left arm, made with scrap and junk rather than good quality materials. Scarring gets heavier as plot progresses - they do have means to minimise scarring, but they don't work well on him.

Foolish - Shark thing is too fun. Little feet and wrist fins, though the head is just a hat (one he uses to cover his gills as too much exposure to air upsets them). Skin varies between the smooth grey of sharks and a golden metallicy texture. In universe nobody knows what that means (totems no longer exist, but he still has a bit of their blood in him from many many generations ago. The shark component made it stand out). His features also look oddly flat to the human eye.

Forever - a very pretty guy, but a guy. There might be some trace of something elven or fey in his ancestry, but if there is he doesn't know it. He's given up on formal wear when conducting operations, choosing stuff that's easy to run in and wash instead. Loose trousers, good boots, shirt he only needs to undo the top few buttons to take on and off - has to look presentable to their allies. Rather than a jacket will usually be wearing something in the order of a bullet or stab proof vest. Much like Felps isn't in the field so isn't taking the good armour, but given position and what's happened in the past isn't comfortable without something. Friendship bracelet worn usually openly, but under gloves to keep it safe if it risks being damaged. Has a USB stick on a necklace chain he wears under his shirt, containing both the most secret info of the group and digital versions of photos of his family. Various tattoos, mostly arms.

IronMouse - actual demon, perfectly happy to admit it. She's also PsiOps so while they /want/ her in armour, she has been known to magically reinforce her cute dress when needed for something and doesn't have time to change. Just wears what she likes, doesn't bother with the jumpsuits. If she has time to change she will, if not you get her as she is.

Jaiden - bluebird hybrid. Has the lovely toned wings, though they're a bit too small to fly with. Perfectly healthy size, just she didn't develop that trait. Normal bones, too. Does not believe in sleeves, largely because she finds armour on her arms obstructive and blood in fabric uncomfortable. Blood just on skin is her preference - if its acidic it'd get in the armour anyway. Nobody's happy about this, but like, are you going to stop the woman with the highest kill count? Off duty if its cold she will wear a hoodie, specially adjsted for wings. Heavy tattooing on her arms.

Luzu - Jeans and hoodie guy. Mostly looks normal, unless you squint too hard and realise his one visible eye is cybernetic and there's something very slightly off about the way he moves his jaw. Incidentally, sometimes that eye changes colour - and at the same time it does, the colour of the lights on his little flying helper robot also sway.

Mariana - looks mostly human, though there's light, pale cream feathering around his ears. He's called a dove hybrid for it, but it's not quite right... Leather jacket with lovingly applied patches.

Maxo - just a guy, but sunglasses. Always looks exhausted even hiding his eyes. None of the group (except ElQuackity, and Forever on meeting days) are especially neat, but Max is extremely scruffy. Likes his collars to stick up, covers his lower face with a bandana while on mission, keeps his hair in a messy bun. Keeps a locket and many changes of pairs of gloves.

Mike - pink hair, you know how it goes. Likes his bright colours and shorts and lab coats while around and about, is much more restrained when fighting. He likes having a body. A bit of scarring, but most of hs damage is internal. His and Pac's friendship bracelets broke, so they combined the beads and take it in turns to wear it. Mike wears it as a necklace. There's nothing paticularly special species wise. Usually just like. Brown eyes. When he uses psionic powers more complex than telepathy, they glow green. If Pac is in his body (and therefore using psionics to be there) one eye turns blue. If Mike isn't in his body at al but Pac is, both eyes are blue. If nobody's there even slightly, pass out time. If they're perfectly in synch to the point they should be considered one entity in two bodies, both have the grey-green-blue of aquamarines (think like when they were heisting right before Mike was kidnapped for timing). After his kidnapping he has claw scars scraped down the left side of his face, and just spots where the claws dug in over his right temple.

Missa - Skeleton hands! Acid is a problem but immune to most poisons on his hands. It probably spreads elsewhere, but he likes to keep himself covered up. Big hood, skull pattern tattooed on his face which he sometimes uses facepaint to decorate the skull. His armour is a purpley blue and painted with a skeleton over it. Does also have a skull mask, though it's too fragile to wear in combat. The facial tattooing is to cover up heavy scarring, which becomes obvious if you look closer. And, well, being part skeleton was an obvious choice. Post-plot there's heavy burn scaring reaching from his belly button to his left shoulder, and slightly on his neck. But, not until the very very last mission (Leviathan). Until then his scars are smaller. Actually has very sensitive pads on his feet.

Pac - Hoods, even when on mission. Hides in them. Turtlenecks or scarves, too. Blue is his favourite, jeans are his friend. If its hot he might wear less, but he'd much rather keep on his hoodie over a turtlenecked shirt. Left leg is prosethetic, custom built by him and Mike. He actually has a couple of prostheses of different designs for different purposes. A more comfortable everyday one, one suited to difficult terrain, a running one, one built of acid and fire resistant materials, etc. Mike makes him more out of scrap as a way of showing affection. When he has the friendship bracelet he loops it a few times around his wrist - or ankle if he's doing lab work. Prefers trainers, does boots for heavy work like missions. See Mike notes for eyes - normally brown, his psionics colour is blue. After he nearly dies has burn scarring most places, heaviest up his left side and across his back.

Philza - crow hybrid. Very high expression, having large enough wings for flight, hollowed bones in his wings, spine, and hips, some feathering around his ears. Wings could fly except that they are visibly damaged. It's hard to tell what, but the feathers are messy and he clearly struggles for the strength to keep them up (the feathers cover large scarring, but did manage to gorw back through). The hat cannot be lost, neither the emerald or the charity ribbon. He ties the ribbon to hs armour when fighting. For fighting he has a veil on his hat. He's also one of the first to pull out gas mask during fighting, because his theoretical ability to fly leaves him more vulnerable to certain toxins. (When all is said and done and with the right combos of surgery and physio he will be able to short flights again, but not as far as he used to. And they'll always be sensitive. And not until the aliens are gone and not without a lot of research.) Does the perching when he thinks.

Quackity - ducky. The little wings in his hair you get in some fanart as I adore it. Also wings - actual duck wings while the hair ones are yellow - but a little smaller than Jaiden's. Tracksuit with slightly too small trousers and a much too big jacket vibes. He keeps the gunshot scarring on his chest very hidden, though there are also clear places his feathers were plucked and failed to grow back. Does not remember what the injuries were from. Smilier than his twin.

Roier - spider hybrid! Almost as obvious as the birds and their wings is the fact he has six eyes. His two central ones are the largest, while thinner ones above and below. The bottom ones curve upwards along his cheekbones, and are a little chunkier than those above.When on assassin duty he kept to thick but tight fitting clothing. He still prefers it now, though his red jacket was given to Cellbit once he found the guy again. While Mike has claw scars which go down his face, Roier has some which go across.

Slimecicle - just a gloopy guy. Slime hybrid. As he's a hybrid not a slime he looks mostly person, except his skin is able to secrete slime. Generally it doesn't, bu does if he gets scared or stressed or too hot. Really intolerant to temperature changes - cold makes him seize up, and hot makes him unable to get up as his muscles jelly a bit and he gloops all over the floor. Despite looking funny, it can be extremely dangerous for him. Clothing he prefers things that stay cool - thin t-shirt, some shorts, he'll just grab Mariana's jacket if he gets cold.

Spreen - bear hybrid. High expression. Has the ears, but also much of him is covered in black fur. Claws. Joins Max in the sunglasses club.

Tina - demon pretending to be a goat hybrid, keeping her horns ground down. They don't have nerves so it doesn't hurt, but it is uncomfortable with the vibrations into her skull. Likes cute pastel colours, and likes how blood splatters on them.

Vegetta - does not believe in shirts, and has the scars on his chest to prove it. I'm sorry I'm at the bottom of the list and bored now >.<

Walter Bob & Fred do not take off their armour. I'll include a sample of what it looks like below. (Fred leads their group, Walter Bob stopped by once for a mission and can be called again but stays with his group)

Wilbur - he's just a guy in knittwear and jeans and maybe suspiciously pale and hungry, but he's got a guitar and he'll sing for you.

Screenshot time! Options are very limited in the character maker but like. For the vibes.

First some NPC stuff:

Then our three Chosen, left to right Hunter, Warlock, Assassin (internet can find full images I guess)

A Reaper (AKA Bagi's class) in full combat getup (just normal looking person under mask and all)

Skirmisher (renamed Deserter in this), so Walter Bob/Fred/Ron etc

Now some screenshots from my game not just cutscenes and renders!

Missa and Roier in the common room, with Cellbit and someone at the back

An extremely busy infirmary at... some point in the game?

I'm preeeeetty sure is Mike and Felps hanging in the command centre, but unsure on the Felps there's no many customisation options so he's just generic black haired guy there

Baghera and Mouse at the training range

Fit and Jaiden at the front, Foolish and maybe BBH (unsure couldn't make a demon at all) in the middle, I think Tina and someone at the bar

Commander's Quarters, a bit nicer than Forever's Office but you get the idea

Just the whole inside of the ship zoomed out, or as much as I could get

Fit showing off armour (late game, mid game, early game in that order)

Roier (human obvs) in "spider suit", special armour I gave him allowing grapples to higher elevations as a free action

Jaiden (late game armour)

BBH attempted with facepaint, with his ghostie in the background (this is the in game design. Only BBH's and Tubbo's use that model. Phil, Mike, and Luzu have custom ones not found in game)

There's no good skull facepaint in game to use as either mask or tattoos, but here's what I mean about Missa's armour being decorated like a skeleton

There's also these which are like... A selection of posters made in game. Some auto-generate at certain points, others I made at the end of missions. Also forgot Max's sunglasses in one but shhh. Just to fill up the max pictures allowance now screenshots for now

Cool screenshot I found

Also please just the position Mike was yeeted into the cell in while captured the poor man (towards left)

[noneuclideanwhimsy]

Ok so designs and songs because. Yes

Tommy (S.T.A.R. Child): Ok so first off he has his propeller beanie again, but his party hat from being Bones is always tied to the belt loops of his pants as a reminder to himself. He usually wears faded jeans or some other sort of comfy pants with a t-shirt with some sort of soda logo on it. He still has ball joints but he doesn't have any missing flesh or anything. He also wears friendship bracelets for the rest of the Science Team (and Sunshine, he does have a seperate one for Gordon.) Instead of black goop, stardust trickles out of him!

Benrey (Digital Affection): He no longer has wings or a halo, and he glows more blue then yellow (which is good! Nature is healing!) He usually wears a black half sleeved turtle neck with white spots where he used to have bullet holes, and they are connected like constellations! He also wears ribbons on his neck and wrists, they kinda replace the strings! Of course he still has his helmet but sometime he add things like dinosaur spikes or cat ears to be silly

Coomer (All Dolled Up): He also wears a lot of ribbons, including ones in his hair because he's pretty like that. Glitter flows from his eyes instead of the goop, and while his face crack is still a little visible it's more just shimmery, and he's dressed it up with fake stitches. When not on stage he wears one of those gauzy sweaters, but when he's drumming he tends to wear t-shirts that are cut up and sewn back together. (He did not mean to go for the Frankenstein's monster aesthetic but he leaned into it.)

Bubby (Queen of White Lies): He does still have a third eye but he does wear special glasses to cover it up too because it's cooler in his opinion. He wears those huge Medic TF2 style gloves in cyan constantly, and is always in a nice button up (always in funky patterns) over the most ratty jeans ever. Of course because. Song. He wears a crown with cyan and lime green jewels.

Sunshine (I Love the Stars): Ok ok so Sunshine actually has chin length hair now because he's being a bit unique. His colour is also sky blue, with yellow accents, instead of orange as it used to be. His usual outfit is a bright yellow shirt with a blue sweater with star cutouts. He also wears friendship bracelets from everyone (not one for Gordon though). He usually changes up other accessories often because he is still trying to figure himself out

G-man (Children of the Stars): Tbh he just looks normal.

YES I LOVE THIS I LOVE ALL OF THIS YES!!!

Okay hear me out… what if G-Man starts developing a constellation ‘crown’ like Starman has? And also has a friendship bracelet from Moonlight maybe?

It looks like this and all the beads are cool rocks found in the Special Nowhere!

[ryuka-takane]

🖤Hey, welcome to my RP blog for Ryuka! This character is my OC for Alice in Borderland. I've been writing a fic with her, but this blog is specifically for RP interaction. I accept interactions/prompts through ask.🖤

A few rules:

Canon-typical violence is allowed. But please do not god-mod.

Mun is NOT muse, please do not confuse the two! When OOC, I will indicate it with parentheses.

Respect mun's personal life. Mun is barely divorced and trying to sort life out as a single mom to a baby born in '22 of October, so very much still needs me when I'm not at work. (Job searching since I've moved)

Family comes first for mun, work second, and then hobbies such as fic writing and RP.

Making a pass at mun at any time is unacceptable; I have had it happen before, but will be quick to shut it down. If we are RPing and this happens, the RP will also be stopped if my boundaries aren't respected. We can be friends, mun just isn't looking for more than that!

Minors DNI! This blog, as with my main blog, is 18+ only. Mun is 29 going on 30 this year, and I will not budge on this rule.

Smut is not a topic I particularly wish to delve into. Romance is fine, but Muse (Ryuka) only has romantic interest in Chishiya, and thus, I consider her to be demisexual. Other writing will be platonic. Again, please don't cross Mun and Muse when it comes to romantic interactions.

Have fun!!

Rules being covered, here's Muse's bio!

Ryuka Takane (she didn't originally have a last name; Takane is her last name)

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

Age: 24

Height: 5'3"

Weight: 115 lbs (based upon BMI research)

Hair color: Chestnut brown with crimson streaks

Hair length: Falls to her upper thighs, with sideswept bangs. Eventually cut just above her collarbone (events leading to this may differ from fic)

Skin color: Pale, but not devoid of melatonin.

Eye color: Golden hazel

Profession before the Borderland: Customer Service Representative in a music store; specialized in the guitar section, particularly bass.

Nationality: Japanese-Korean-American (Mother is full blooded Japanese, father is Korean-American)

Personality:

Ryuka Takane is typically soft spoken and keeps to herself, outside of her job. Though ready and willing to help customers, when it comes to social interaction outside of work, she prefers to keep to herself. She has very few friends because of this, but once attached to someone, whether in friendship or otherwise, she will defend them unless they give her reason not to.

Ryuka has a hot temper hidden behind her sweet, quiet demeanor. It's both easy to fluster her, and to make her tick. She's seen herself as an outcast since childhood, and her lack of social interaction as a result has made it difficult for her to manage her emotions at a base level. Witnessing a divorce as a young teen caused some hang ups with romantic viewpoints, and resulted in a terribly failed relationship at 17 years of age, after which she swore not to get attached to anyone again (and hasn't). One may describe her as being "tsundere," if they get to be around her for long enough.

Ryuka has a moderate level of intelligence, often surprising others around her at how perceptive she can be, though her skills are best suited to pattern recognition and reading facial queues. She isn't a genius by any means, but she makes an effort to let her intelligence be known if slighted.

Attire:

Ryuka is typically seen wearing three colors--black, violet, and lime green. She cycles through loose fitting hoodies and skinny jeans, to regular form fitting t-shirts and tank tops with skinny jeans. Combat boots are her preferred shoe. Most of the hoodies she's had typically have cat ears sewn onto the hood of them. She likes to wear wrist bands as well, and may occasionally be seen wearing a choker. Save for her ears, she has no other piercings.

Hobbies: Singing (when alone), dancing (again, when alone), playing bass guitar.

Likes: Music, alone time, cherry blossoms, k and j-pop, j-metal and American metal

Dislikes: Excessive physical activity (though she has excellent stamina and reactionary skills), being lied to, extroverts, being treated as if she's stupid.

Fun fact: Ryuka can absolutely hold her own in a fight if she needs to. That isn't to say that she doesn't slip up at times, getting herself hurt if she grows overconfident in her ability to take someone down, but most would be surprised at how tough this tiny woman is.

[dearestones]

Hetalia Matchup: America

Warnings: Fluff.

Anonymous Request: Hi hello! First of all, I want to say that you are lovely! I really enjoy your writing ♡♡

Then, mm if it's alright, may I request a platonic matchup for Hetalia fandom? Oh, and I don't mind to be matched with male/female character! They're all lovely for me ♡

So... appearance, right? I'm average height. I have wavy red hair (that I dyed since I was in high school) and dark brown eyes. I have light skin... and my style of clothing, it changes everyday I think? Sometimes I wear hoodie and jeans, on the other day I wear white shirt and long skirt. Whatever fits my mood that day!

You call me Nacchan! I loveeee reading. I mostly read fictions, though! My favorite books are The Wandering Cat Chronicles, The Outsiders, Sherlock Holmes, Agatha Christie's novels, Frankenstein, Jane Eyre, andd some local novels from my own country heheh. I also love learning history and baking cakes!

Hmm, my personality... I'm not good with crowd, or talking to a lot of people in general. I'm good with talking to one or two people, but more than that and I will have nothing to say ahahah. To people who are closest to me, though, I'm really loud. I lovee talking to them for hours-- about anything! As long as it's fun and not offensive. I also love cracking jokes and making them laugh! My mother often calls me an airhead. Sometimes, she calls me crazy-- I know it sounds harsh, but it's not! Rather, it's a... term of endearment? Mm, I love making people happy, though. I want to be the reason they smile and laugh.

I kin Toga Himiko and Dabi from BNHA, Kanroji Mitsuri from KnY, and Amane Misa from Death Note.

I think this is all?

Thank you so much! I hope you have a wonderful day ♡

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After reading through your rather lovely description, I think you match best with America!

Based on your physical description, America can rather tell that you’re a go with the flow type of person and that you don’t box yourself into one specific kind of aesthetic. That’s his favorite type of person to be honest; as long as you’re yourself and you’re comfortable, then that’s the way it should be!

Let it be known that America values you for who you are and not what you wear. 

He adores your red hair (and that may be because it reminds him of his ever favored “stars and stripes”) and will like watching it flow in the breeze. He says it’s because it reminds him of freedom, but it’s mainly because he gets distracted easily sometimes, but your hair is enough of a grounding force to get him to refocus. 

America isn’t always that big on reading fiction, but he can appreciate that you have great taste. As a former colony of England and a large importer of British publications in his local bookstores, he has a pretty good guess of what your tastes are. For your birthday and special anniversaries, you can guarantee that you will see a few new novels with your name on them (not literally, but written on a card and gently caressed with a red ribbon). 

So you’re sort of introverted? That’s quite all right with America! He can talk enough for the both of you when in large crowds, but once it’s just you two or with close friends, he hopes that you return the favor. 

You can talk about anything, on any day, and this man will look at you with hearts in his eyes. He loves a good debate and will engage you as much as possible, but he’s just as happy listening. 

Awww, you don’t have to try so hard to make America smile. He’s already smiling knowing that the both of you are great friends. But, hey! He won’t say no to a great big bellyaching laugh here and there. In return, he’s going to either make you laugh until you start tearing up or he’ll give you a few burgers just to get a second wind from all the laughter.

All in all, your friendship has a great foundation and is expected to last for many years to come! America loves it when you smile and laugh, but don’t hesitate to call him if you need a shoulder to cry on. You’re strong, but sometimes even strong people need a hand to help lift them up in hard times. 

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If you want to donate a Ko-Fi, feel free https://ko-fi.com/devintrinidad.

HETALIA AXIS POWERS/WORLD SERIES MASTERLIST

[honorguk]

birthday boy ➔hybrid!chanlix

» navigation

pairing ━ hybrid!chanlix x hybrid fem!reader genre ━ smut words ━  2K warnings ━ soft dom!felix, soft dom!chan, sub!reader, chan is a wolf, felix is a cat and so are you, felix is a bit of a voyeur, penetrative unprotected sex, fellatio, threesomes, established relationship summary ━  the boys spend chan’s birthday at your and felix’s apartment, and felix lets you on a little secret about chan’s views of you, escalating into much more than just dirty thoughts.. ↳ requested!

────✱*.｡:｡✱*.:｡✧*.｡✰*.:｡✧*.｡:｡*.｡✱ ────

“Babe?”

“Hm?”

“What do you think of Chris?”

You and your boyfriend Felix were lying on the couch late one night, with your head in his lap as he stroked the hair behind your kitty ears, a random show playing on the screen in front of you. You specifically remembered the curious way Felix decided to approach this topic, and how eager you suddenly got after finding out the reason.

“Why?” You furrowed a brow at him, turning your head to face him.

“Just wondering..with his birthday coming up and y’know...the way he stares at you all the time and stuff..” The boy trailed off, taking his hand from your head to the back of his own, scratching it in thought and nervousness.

“Lix, what are you trying to say?” You made your tone more gentle, your tail unconsciously travelling to wrap around his arm, giving Felix a sense of comfort to continue.

“What I’m trying to say is,” he averted his eyes, pressing his lips into a tight line, “he’s into you, so how about we treat him for his birthday?”

Now, it was time for Chan’s special day to actually arrive, and you were seated alongside eight boys all around your living room, cheekily choosing to sit close to the birthday boy himself whilst Felix chose a place on the armchair across.

You’d be lying if you said your mind wasn’t filled with empty worries, and how tonight might end up going, and even having discussed the plan prior with Felix, you still couldn’t help but wonder what it will do to the friendship. Yet, on the other hand, another part of you admired Chris’ alpha appeal, the way his body was built and the not-so-secret attention he always gave you.

The movie playing at the center of the room was surely capturing everyone’s attention, except for you and Felix surely, yet you noticed that whenever you moved an inch closer to the grey wolf sitting beside you under the blanket, his ears twitched, and a gulp made his Adam’s apple bobble, which was clearly a sign that the film did not interest him in the slightest. It was a mere blessing it was playing, because otherwise it would be way too obvious when you began to trace a delicate finger over his forearm and down to his hand, nonchalantly hovering over his thigh and right above his hips.

Chris’ body stiffened, ears facing back from the unexpected contact, and although your eyes were mostly facing the screen ahead, you could still notice a slight smirk playing on Felix’s lips in the corner. You saw his eyes glance over to his bandmate, a silent, nearly breathy chuckle escaping at the elder’s widened eyes. 

“Uh, Y/N, don’t you think w-we’re a bit...too close?” You heard Chan whisper in your ear, your hand still ghosting over his leg. His jeans felt tighter, legs pressed together, the only response from you being a slight giggle and a rapid movement of the hand as you took out your phone to check up on your boyfriend, completely disregarding the heated up boy next to you.

You babe are u still okay with this?

Felix instantly took out his phone upon feeling it vibrate beside him, as if he was expecting you to speak up, and pressed his lips tightly once he answered, not looking in your direction to not seem suspicious. 

Felix  is it bothering u?

You no just making sure with you :)

You saw the boy’s lips turn upwards this time as he held his bottom lip between his teeth, quickly typing up a presumably cheeky response.

Felix keep going love as long as you’re the one sucking me off in the end, i’m cool with it 

You gulped, a red blush coming over your face, and you felt your tail unconsciously wrap around your own waist from the anticipation. You glanced at Chris and at his struggling physique, pressed your head against his shoulder nonchalantly and glued your eyes to the screen.

And yet, once again, all faces turned back to the TV, and the movie carried on playing whilst the attention spans were getting lower, and lower, and lower. Thankfully, it was nearly midnight and the film was coming to an end, and as expected, the boy beside you still hasn’t taken his mind off of your earlier actions (as if you couldn’t tell by the tent in his pants). Right as the final credits began to roll, he stood up as fast as lightning and headed towards the hallway to grab his shoes. The rest of the boys, excluding Felix, followed and mimicked his actions, all gathering their things and thanking you two for the wonderful opportunity to relax for Chris’ birthday at their house. You saw him in the corner of the room, glancing at his wristwatch, and you couldn’t help but proudly smile at your doings. The poor wolf was nearly shedding, silently begging the members to hurry up and leave with him. 

Yet, you and Felix had other ideas.

Out of respect, as the boys started piling out of the apartment, Chan stayed behind and was the last to step out of the door, but halted in his tracks before doing so.

“Thank you, Felix, Y/N, for having me ‘round. It was a great birthday and I appreciate you guys offering to host it at your home.”

As Chris was speaking, your boyfriend and you only had one thought circling your heads. Felix snaked his arm around your waist upon Chan finishing his words and took his other hand out of his pocket.

“But why don’t you stay a little longer? I know how much you like Y/N’s company..” he smirked, borderline sadistically, and awaited Chan’s response.

Chris just gulped, his eyes wide and ears shifting, as he muttered out a “W-What?”

You giggled at his shaken state, and hopped towards the man in front of you only to grab him by the collar of his dress shirt and pull him closer, whispering into his ear.

“Why don’t you join Felix and I tonight?”

In a sudden blur of actions, moments later you find yourself on top of the wolf, pressing gentle kisses all over his chest, neck and face, choosing to avoid any contact with his own lips. Chan’s shirt was on the floor as he whines, and digs parts of his claws into your body, his still tense towards your contact. He holds in a suppressed moan as you start to suck purple marks into his pecs, and his hands go to lay obediently beside him, not daring to touch you elsewhere without your boyfriend’s permission.

Felix was sat on the armchair once more, a hand pressing on his growing bulge. Something about how eager you were to please two men at once, or the way your body curved on top of the leader’s made Felix a little too excited a little too quickly, but his thoughts of you getting fucked raw into the couch were interrupted by his friend’s voice, one that belonged to Chan.

“Lix, w-what am I allowed..to do?” Chris gulped, his own brain bordering the idea that this is all wrong but so right, as Felix chuckled lowly and looked him in the eyes.

“Use her how you must.”

From then on, you instantly felt the older man’s hands exploring your body, often landing themselves on your hips, again, and your ass, as he groaned at your grinding waist. Felix couldn’t help but furrow his brows at the intimacy, not expecting the change of atmosphere to be so sudden, so he stood up and approached the couch, standing beside you and pulling on the hem of your shirt to take it off. He grazed his hands along your chest as he tugged off the top, and pressed a chaste kiss to your neck. 

You giggled at the interaction and went back to working on Chris, trailing small kisses and bites down his abdomen. His bulge was gradually getting more constricted as you went on, yet right before you could take off his already unbuckled jeans and boxers, you felt a soft hand card through your hair, pulling you up from your bent position.

“Remember what I said, princess,” Felix purrs, and walks to the other side of the couch as you switch your posture, gesturing for Chan to sit up and settle down behind you. Now, you were facing Felix’s crotch, glancing up at the boy for reassurance before undoing the zipper.

In the meantime, behind you, you felt the birthday boy pull down your shorts and panties, his digits instantly latching onto your dripping heat. He toys with your nearly-aching slit, slipping in two of his fingers in an attempt to stretch you out. You moan, your nails digging into Felix’s thigh, who was evidently enjoying the show considering his hard-on.

Within minutes, your mouth was pressed around your boyfriend’s cock, being careful not to touch him with your pointy teeth, at the same time as the tip of Chris’ own member was entering you from the other side. Softly, you bob your head, knowing Felix likes a delicate start, but in contrast to the man you were dating, Chan didn’t waste his time and started to slide in and out of you at a rough, established pace.

A small howl erupted from the boy behind you, and the room became full of slapping sounds, meanwhile your hands and head were working around your boyfriend’s length. Felix groaned, too, and all of these actions were overwhelming your senses, a knot in your stomach building up simply from the aura.

Automatically, as if it was natural, Chan leans down to place a harsh bite onto your shoulder, his own fangs delicately piercing your skin with a pleasurable sting that follows. You moan onto Felix’s cock, the vibrations making him arch his back and thrust himself deeper inside you, as a dark purple hickey forms on your back. 

The more Chris was focused on slamming himself into you, the more his brows furrowed, a mixture of grunts and growls escaping his lips, his tail pressed between his legs. Felix’s head was thrown back in immense pleasure, vocal mewls and purrs sounding like music to your ears. Every second that passed made you clench tighter, and finally, when Chan’s fingertips found themselves latching into your clit, you released onto the man, nails digging deeper into the thighs of your boyfriend. 

Felix grips your hair tightly, helping you not stop the movements of your head as he twitched in your mouth, acidic precum signalling he was close, as Chris helped your shaking figure ride out its orgasm. Not long after, his movements became sloppier, and he finished in time with Felix. 

You gasped for air, released Felix from your mouth with a pop, and Chan pulled out, collapsing on the couch and watching his seed drip out of your abused cunt.

You looked up at your boyfriend who pet your head lovingly upon seeing your glistening eyes, and went to take a seat in between you and his bandmate, flopping effortlessly on the couch.

“That..was great,” he thought aloud, earning an agreeing nod from Chan who was still panting, dazed from the contact. 

“It sure was,” you said back.

“This was an amazing birthday gift, I can’t lie,” The eldest huffs out with a grin, earning a small chuckle from you and Felix.

“I’m glad you enjoyed it,” The cat pats his shoulder and glances onto the couch. He spots several dark marks beside him, his cheeks flushing red from the sight. “But you better buy us a new couch after this. I think we deserve it.”

This makes you giggle and Chan laughs audibly, reaching for his boxers and sweats on the floor.

“Will do, Felix,” he gets up, dressing himself and heading towards the door. “See you around!”

You both smile as you watch Chris head out, and not even a minute later, Felix’s takes your hand into his, his head whipping around to face you with an eager simper.

“Round two?”

[genshin-impacted]

liquid courage // Kaeya x Reader

Word Count: ~3k

Notes: gender-neutral reader, Kaeya/Reader; cw alcohol, established friendship; friends to lovers (real quick); tons of flirting/bantering (and kissing), PDA, third-person POV of relationship

Summary: And there it is again-- another chance to back away. You wonder how many times there have been close calls like this when the flirting feels all too real and your feelings almost bubble to the surface. Tonight, the two of you are a little tipsy, a little braver, and more reckless-- and you do not back down from Kaeya when he looks like he wants to kiss you.

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Kaeya is an intelligent, well-to-do charming individual and the whole of Mondstadt knows it. As far as the citizens know, he’s the captain of utmost chivalry (especially to the elderly population), and to the Knights, he’s a thinker who, despite his status and position, keeps people at arm’s length.

Except for you.

For most of the people in Mondstadt, they take a look at you and Kaeya and there is no doubt you are the closest of friends. When you buy dinner at The Good Hunters, you always order skewers for Kaeya, and when you are late for your nightly drinking, Kaeya subtly slides his drink to the side to save a seat for you. In both daylight and nighttime, the two of you exchange words in a fast-paced banter that makes it easy for either of you to get along. Or so the common folk assume; they certainly do not converse with Kaeya the way you do, which has always, in some way or another, included some back-and-forth-- some more flirty than others.

"The bed was lonely without you," Kaeya croons when you finally get back from a week-long journey. You choke on your spit when he gives you his best sultry stare. Before, this statement would have turned heads, but the Knights and citizens of Mondstadt are far too used to hearing these snippets of your conversation-- not that it makes it any less interesting to listen to. (And if people take notes on the flirty comments for future use, that is neither here nor there.)

"The feeling is mutual," you coo, recovering quickly as you grasp your hands in prayer. "I spent every night looking at the stars and thinking how much they reminded me of your eyes."

"Oho, thinking of me before you sleep, huh?"

"Every night--"

God forbid a child hears the two of you, but for the most part, you keep it friendly. A jab here-- “I didn’t know you were such a… slacker”-- a flirty remark here-- “Kaeya, just who are you trying to show off to with that outfit”-- whatever makes the other's lips upturn and whatever comes to mind first almost like a battle of wits. However facetious your comments are to each other, the people do not question your friendship for the times you bump shoulders after coming home from an expedition in varying levels of wear and tear with a grin on your faces.

(“I’m just glad Kaeya has someone to look after him,” Jean answers when someone asks about the two of you. She pauses and sighs. “...And the other way around.”)

For whatever reason, no one has ever taken your flirty remarks to each other seriously despite how long they’ve been going for. Nothing has made them question your friendship for how long it has stood or how real the flirty remarks are (if they ever have been in the first place).

The problem with joking about something or doing something ironically is that oftentimes it ends up being quite real.

"Sir Kaeya," you say dramatically one day when Kaeya comes back from an expedition that takes twice as long. You place your hand over your heart, ignoring the way it beats rapidly at the sight of him safe and sound. "Oh, how I have missed you."

"And I, too, my dear heart," Kaeya replies back without a beat in between. And it seems you cannot hide the relief on your face because he drops his flirty grin to settle into a soft smile. "Worried about me?"

Without a flirty remark to hide behind, you can only nod.

(If not for the fact that sometimes you actually feel your face warm from Kaeya’s comments or praises-- and more so when they are actually genuine-- you would have been otherwise ignorant to your own growing feelings for a certain cavalry captain.)

Kaeya always ruffles your hair then, even if you squawk at him and jab at his non-injured side, and those feelings are placed in the back burner to brew later.

The tender moments come and go, and neither of you is the type to sit in it, for how easy it is to clear the air and go back to bantering. You don't mind either way if you were honest. You're the only one who Kaeya shamelessly flirts with and you're the only one privy to the thoughts he holds (especially when drunk). You hold a special position as his friend and he has a special place in your heart as well.

You would be lying to say that everything between the two of you was platonic, not when sometimes you catch yourself staring at Kaeya when he's not looking or wondering briefly what his hair would feel like through your fingers. (You attempt to run your hands through it once but he's much too quick and tall for you to catch him unawares, and now it has become a game that usually ends up with your hair looking like a nest gone wrong.) The thoughts come and go, and you are content with being Kaeya’s friend, for now.

"Another, please!" You wave your hand in the air as you grin, Diona huffing even as she provides two new drinks for you to bring back to your table. "Thank you," you sing, walking with a sort of sway that makes you spill some of the drink on your hands. You're buzzed, that much is certain; you lick at your hand to save what you can before you slam the drinks down in front of Kaeya.

"Bottoms up," you cheer, clinking glasses with Kaeya who laughs a little more freely now that he has a few drinks in him.

"Are you sure you can handle any more?" Kaeya asks, swirling his drink with an amused smile. "No use in pushing yourself. If you're trying to drink as much as Rosaria, you might as well stop now."

"Friends that drink together stay together-- or however that phrase is supposed to go," you say, waving your hand flippantly as Kaeya snorts in his drink. "Something, something, I can drink more. Trust."

"Stop," Kaeya laughs, putting down his drink and throwing his head back. You grin up at him when he throws his arm over your shoulder. "You didn't even give me a real reason."

"You didn't give me a reason when I caught you day drinking the other day," you retort playfully, and Kaeya snickers again, putting his hands in the air.

"What, can't a guy enjoy a Death After Noon... after noon?"

"You're terrible."

"I'm terrific."

You're warm from the drink pouring down your throat and the arm comfortably hooked around your shoulder. If Kaeya notices you lean into him more, he does not say a word, but you joke again, not straying an inch from his side as though you're addicted to his warmth. And aren't you, in a way? With how you keep coming back to the thought that your best friend is one of the most attractive men in Mondstadt, that his eyelashes are unfairly long, and that sometimes you wish you could kiss his eyepatch-- just to see if you can fluster him like he always does to you with you.

Ah, you think, feeling the heady pull of intoxication, there are those thoughts again.

You laugh lightly at something he says under his breath about one of the other customers in Cat's Tail and take the moment to push the thoughts away when Kaeya suddenly cups your face. You would complain about the way he maneuvers your face to his pleasure, turning your head this way and that, but you laugh instead, inwardly pleased by the attention.

"What is it?"

"Lipgloss," he says, and you blame the alcohol for dulling your senses when you only stare blankly at him, wondering if you accidentally missed a piece of the conversation. He snorts when he sees the evident confusion and explains, "Lipgloss-- are you wearing them right now?"

"No?" You ask back, laughing as you shyly swat his hands away to no avail, "I don't think so?" When Kaeya only hums, you reply back almost instinctively, spurred on by your thoughts and-- well, your remarks have always been on the cusp of being real. You press your lips together as your heart races. "Why, they look kissable?"

"Very," he says teasingly, and you smile widely at him as though the two of you were not in an intimate position.

There's always a way out, you realize, at every step of the way-- to deescalate, to redirect the conversation, and treat it as a joke. You could have changed the subject and talked about how dry the weather has been; Kaeya could have replied back as sultry as ever and dropped his hands from your face.

But he doesn't.

Instead, his thumb surreptitiously brushes over your bottom lip, and you look up at him and wonder what your eyes look like to him at the moment.

It would be easy to playfully push him away and call him a flirt. But you don't.

You meet his eyes and say, "Why don't you find out for yourself?"

There is a pause, then-- "Alright." And you can feel Kaeya close the distance between the two of you, his free hand wrapped around the arm you placed onto the table. Your breath hitches when Kaeya stops with his lips an inch from yours and looks at you searchingly.

And there it is again-- another chance to back away. You wonder how many times there have been close calls like this when the flirting feels all too real and your feelings almost bubble to the surface. Tonight, the two of you are a little tipsy, a little braver, and more reckless-- and you do not back down from Kaeya when he looks like he wants to kiss you.

Your eyes flutter closed, and that is the last thing Kaeya needs to close the distance completely.

It is a kiss that is all too chaste-- something that, when people think of Kaeya, is not what they would associate him with. But this is a Kaeya you're familiar with, have seen a glimpse of-- and you are warm everywhere when Kaeya gently slides his lips over yours and tilts his head to fit with you better. Everything is hazy, and you think it's the alcohol, but you're hyper-aware of the softness of his lips on yours, the way your hand reaches out to hold onto the front of his shirt, and the way he holds you so tenderly.

You think you can kiss him forever.

(Neither of you takes note, but the bar has quieted down considerably as the table next to you stares, gaping as the two of you kiss. And with their heads turned, others turn with them as the two of you inadvertently pull the rug from under all of them. The two of you are dating? Since when? Was the flirting never just a joke? What was happening?!

I need a drink, someone says, and the rest of them nod in agreement, much to Diona’s dismay.)

Kaeya is the one that pulls away first, laughing under his breath. “Are you even breathing?” He asks you teasingly, his hand still cupping your face. “I know I take your breath away, but you can’t faint on me.”

You snort, your hand raising up to cover your smile. “Sorry,” you drawl, watching as his hand falls to your thigh. “You were just so breathtaking I forgot how to do anything.”

“Well,” Kaeya says, his voice low enough to be a purr. “You sure knew how to kiss, though.”

You laugh, waving your hand flippantly. “Why, thank you,” you simper, doing a mock-bow. “Same to you. Excellent skills, Sir Kaeya; my heart skipped a few beats there.”

Kaeya lets out another laugh as you pick up your drink and smile into it. And like that, you two are where you first started-- almost.

The two of you talk about whatever comes to mind, bantering ever so often. But for the rest of the night, Kaeya’s hand stays on your wrist, his thumb rubbing over your hand absently, and you catch yourself staring down at his lips as he talks. If you end up in his space again, you stay a little longer, even as you start to sober up and feel your eyes grow heavy.

“Aw, is it your bedtime?” You hear Kaeya say from the temporary darkness you placed yourself in as you bury your face into your arms on the table.

“Shut up, Kaeya.” You snicker, swatting away his hands when they poke at your cheek. “It’s been a long day.”

“Well, I suppose I’ll just have to walk you home now, don’t I?”

This time you are the one looking up at him searchingly, watching for signs of whether he’s joking or not. Your eyes stop at his lips and you turn your head into your arms again. “...Sure,” you say. “Thanks.”

You aren’t sure if you can ever flirt with Kaeya in the same way again, with how your heart skips at the thought of him, but you will manage if that’s what you have to do. You push your stool under the table and throw Kaeya a smile when he opens the door for you to exit first. (You don’t know why Diona glares at the two of you when you wave goodbye, but judging by the cat-nipped smile on Kaeya’s face, you can probably ask him later.)

You’re surprised from your thoughts when you feel a weight on your shoulders, and when your hands reach up to touch it, you feel fur wrapped around your neck. It smells like Kaeya.

“You looked cold,” Kaeya says when you look at his cardigan wrapped around you before glancing back at him. He does not let you provide a response when he starts walking ahead of you. When you make a noise of displeasure, running to catch up to him, he laughs, quietly slowing down his pace until the two of you are walking synchronously.

For once, the two of you are silent.

Every so often your hands brush over his, and your thoughts are loud when they tell you how much you want to hold his hand. You think you will dream of that kiss you shared with him tonight, and then tomorrow the day will begin as normal, teetering on the edge of platonic and romantic. The more you think about the less fine you feel about leaving everything as it is. You don’t want to overcomplicate things but there are so many questions that you want to be answered. Did that kiss mean anything? Does Kaeya have feelings for you? Does he know you like him?

The walk to your home is much too quick this time around, and you are already shedding the cardigan Kaeya has given you as the two of you reach your doorstep. Wordlessly, Kaeya takes back his jacket and you open your mouth without anything to say.

Of all the time for you to be speechless in front of your best friend, it had to be now.

“Kaeya--”

“Good night then,” he says, a second faster than you. With the moon behind him, it’s hard to see his face, but you can imagine how his lips quirk up into a soft smile with how he speaks to you-- and your heart tightens. “Be sure to drink some more water. Can’t have you waking up with a hangover now, can we?”    

You nod, lowering your head. “Yeah,” you say. “Same to you.”

The silence is deafening.

Without another word, you hear Kaeya’s boots shift the gravel underneath his feet, and though there is no more liquid courage coursing through your veins, you tell yourself to be reckless anyways. Your relationship will survive, you tell yourself. Whatever happens, Kaeya will be important to you.

You call out his name.

When he turns around, you ask him to kiss you again.

It’s hard to imagine what sort of expression he has on his face when you’re in uncharted territory, and the slow response has you sweating bullets. But then you hear a quiet “Alright,” and Kaeya is in front of you, putting his hands onto the wall behind you.

You are ready when he dips his head down to kiss you again.

It is just as good as it was the first time.

You wrap your arms around him, a hand buried into his head (finally!) and another clasped behind his neck as he pulls you closer to him with a hand on your waist. Those with Cryo Visions run cold but Kaeya’s lips are nothing but warm as they nip at you and press onto yours over and over again. You bite back a pleasant gasp when you allow him entry, his tongue sliding across yours that has you hazy.

You break away first, and you note vaguely that you are not the only one breathing heavily.

“On a scale from one to ten,” Kaeya says, holding you close to him with a grin, “would you say that was better than what we did in the tavern?”

You roll your eyes even though your face warms at the comment. “Bold of you to assume I would kiss and tell.”

“I do well with constructive feedback, you know,” he quips, making you laugh. “What? Are you saying I don’t?”

“No,” you say, breathless from the kiss and from the elation that everything was okay. “No, I’m just thinking how I would write an evaluation for you with strengths, weaknesses, and improvements--”

Kaeya kisses you again and you forget what you wanted to say.

“...Is this all I have to do to win an argument against you?” He says teasingly, and you headbutt into his chest, much to his amusement.

“It’ll stop working eventually,” you say, settling your hands behind his back as you rest your face onto him. He hums as he holds you close, and you look up at him again and grin. “Guess you’ll have to see how many times it’ll work though.”

And Kaeya laughs into the kiss as you pull him down for another one.

[kingexpl0sionmurder]

Missed Connection - Shinsou Hitoshi

Author: @kingexpl0sionmurder​ Rating: NSFW 18+ Warnings: Unprotected sex, blowjobs, dirty talk, poking fun at fakes who shop at UO and wear band t-shirts for bands they don’t listen to, terrible poetry, Kaminari is a weirdo. Pairing: Shinsou Hitoshi/F!Reader Words: 4,554 AN: This is for the bnharem server collab, the theme is pen pals! We were able to write basically anything as long as there was some kind of communication/writing/texting etc! This is the first time I’ve written for Shinsou and I head cannon him as a fucking closet goth so don’t at me. Collab Masterlist (Please go check out everyone else’s contributions!) My Masterlist Buy me a Ko-fi -- When his phone started ringing, Shinsou was tempted to throw it halfway across the room. Whoever thought it was okay to call him at - he turned to squint at the clock on his bedside table - 10 in the morning on his day off, better have a good excuse. He frowned at the screen once he’d found his phone, and sighed.

“The world better be on fire, Kaminari.” His palm rubbed over his face as he pressed the phone to his ear, his eyes closing again.

The blonde chuckled, full of energy as usual. “Aw, come on ‘Toshi! It’s not that early.”

A million ways he could kill his friend and make it look like an accident flashed through his mind. “You know I like to sleep late on my days off.” He left it at that, no further explanation needed. Kaminari knew he stayed up impossibly late on his off days, crawling under the covers only when the sun started to rise.

“You want to hear this, I promise. I wouldn’t call this early unless it was important.” Shinsou listened to the sound of a keyboard clicking through the phone, waiting impatiently for his friend to continue. 

“So, you know how I sometimes like to fuck around on the internet?” This was a rhetorical question. Of course he did. “Well, occasionally I like to browse through Craigslist, and this morning I was in the missed connections section, and I found something interesting.”

“Why do you look through missed connections?” He didn’t really care, he just thought it was kind of...weird. But, then again, this was Denki, so he shouldn’t have been surprised.

Kaminari huffed. “Dude, sometimes it’s so sad to read how they saw someone and thought there was a connection. It makes me wonder if they ever find each other.” He was quiet for a moment like he was deep in thought. “But then sometimes, it’s like ‘You farted in the produce section and I’d still date you, let’s go out’ and it kind of loses the romantic appeal.”

“You’re a sap. Also, gross.” He found himself drifting off, bored with the conversation already. “Do you have a point?”

“God, you’re impatient! Listen, I was scrolling through the ads and I found this one, I think you should hear it.” Clearing his throat, he began to read. 

“You were the sleepy purple-haired man in the cat cafe on Main, I was hiding behind an orange tabby by the window. I was staring, but I wasn’t trying to be creepy. You just looked kind of lost, and the black and white short hair on your lap seemed to have all your attention. Oh, I think his name is Socks. Isn’t that unoriginal? Anyway, I’ve seen you there a few times and I want to know more about you. If you see this, please respond.”

Shinsou sat up in his bed, ignoring the sharp pain of his muscles protesting at the sudden movement. “What the fuck?”

“This is about you, isn’t it?” Denki’s excitement was clear. “You’re the only sleepy guy with purple hair I know who frequents that cat cafe on Main Street.”

“How long ago was that posted?” Hitoshi felt strange, restless energy flowing through him. Someone had noticed him and decided that he was interesting enough to want to get to know? He wasn’t anything special, and he kept to himself mostly. What did this even mean?

“Last night! When did you go to the cafe?” He didn’t even wait for a response. “I’m forwarding this post to you, and you better send them an email! It’s been too long since you’ve dated someone, ‘Toshi, and I’m concerned.”

Unfortunately feeling more awake than he wanted to be, Shinsou shifted until his feet were on the floor. “Yesterday afternoon. And it hasn’t been that long.”

“It’s been like a year, dude.” Kaminari sighed. “Okay, I sent it. Please write back to them. Let me live vicariously through you in this weird turn of events.”

Shinsou sighed and said goodbye, ending the call and staring off into space for a minute. He needed coffee before he could even think about reading it for himself and then maybe responding.

--

Uh, hello.

 I can’t help but feel like this was about me? I’m not even really sure what to say. This feels weird. You could have come over and said hi, maybe. I don’t bite. I might have stared at you and made things awkward but I feel like it would have been a surefire way to talk to me instead of posting this on craigslist of all places and expecting me to see it. 

You’re lucky I have a friend who likes to scour the dark recesses of the internet for entertainment purposes and happened upon this post.

-Shinsou

--

How do I know this is really the person I’m talking about? What were you wearing when you went to the cafe? That’s like the only way I can be sure you are who you say you are. 

The only reason I didn’t come over and talk to you was that I had Oliver on my lap and he is a grump and didn’t want me to get up until he was good and ready. (That’s the orange tabby’s name, by the way.) By the time I was able to coax his fat ass off of me you had gone. 

Honestly, I’d let those cats climb all over me like their own personal cat tree all day long and not complain about it, but I digress. 

I didn’t expect you to find this or reply, it was kind of my way of convincing myself that I’d given it a shot, even though I really hadn’t done much.

-Y/N

--

I was wearing the following:

A Joy Division t-shirt depicting the cover of Unknown Pleasures, which is arguably the most cliche t-shirt I own. It’s become one of those shirts that people wear who have no idea who Joy Division is, they just like it for the aesthetic. (I’ll have you know I happen to know who they are and like their music very much.) This shirt was more than likely covered in cat hair.

Black jeans, which were probably covered in cat hair as well.

Black boots, a staple of mine.

I am a closet goth. I don’t know what else to say. I won’t deny it. I’ve learned to embrace who I am. I happen to know that Oliver is a grumpy shit, so I am not surprised he kept you pinned down for so long. That cat has been known to knock people over and purr loudly while “making biscuits” on their chests for hours at a time. I’m glad to know that you survived his assault.

So what are you going to tell me about yourself now? I have confessed to you about my goth status, so I demand something in return.

-Shinsou

--

Yeah, it was you.

I was hoping that you actually liked Joy Division and you weren’t one of those Urban Outfitters aesthetic people. I can now rest easy. I like them too, but I really like New Order more? I hope this isn’t the end of our budding friendship.

I will not say that I am a goth, though I have goth-like tendencies? Or I just appreciate the music. Whatever. I don’t have, like, a pet bat or anything. I own a pair of Doc’s, though.

I have been on the receiving end of one of Oliver’s attacks before, so you don’t have to tell me about them. I have experienced his pushy demeanor on more than one occasion.

So, something about me? I don’t know. I spend a lot of time in that cafe because I love cats, but that’s kind of a given, isn’t it? I usually bring my laptop and make an attempt to work on my homework, but it’s usually futile. I’d rather pet the cats. 

Oh, I guess that counts as something right? I go to college. I’m an English major and taking a fuck ton of creative writing courses. What about you?

-Y/N

--

An English major? That sounds like fun. I think if I had a need to go to college I’d have liked to take something like that. I have a friend who writes ultra depressing Gothic poetry, that would be right up his ally as well.

I’m a pro hero, hence why I didn’t need college. Saving people is something I’ve always wanted to do, especially since I was always bullied about my quirk as a kid. It kind of made me more determined, I always wanted to prove those assholes wrong, you know? So, here I am.

I’m glad to know we can wear matching Doc’s together, and that you don’t keep a bat as a pet. As cute as their faces are, they’re not very easily domesticated. 

New Order is fine. The real question is, The Smiths or The Cure? Your answer to this question will be what determines the longevity of our friendship.

-Shinsou

--

This is the worst question you could ever ask me. How could you do this? I could never choose between them. Both? The answer is both.

I hope your next email will not be your last.

Bats are cute but they always seem to dive bomb my head when they’re around. Not that I go places with bats often, but I used to go camping as a kid and they always did that. It was not a good time.

I think it’s amazing that you’re a pro hero! You’re really out here, fighting the bad guys and saving people and then coming into the cat cafe and petting kittens and drinking coffee like a normal person. I think it’s admirable how hard you worked to achieve your dream. I know we don’t know each other that well, but I’m proud of you. Why were you bullied for your quirk? You don’t have to answer that if it makes you uncomfortable.

I wish I could write ultra depressy Gothic poetry. Here let me try:

The night is black like my soul Clove cigarettes burn slowly My life is Meaningless

How was that? Do I get a gold star? Or a black skull? Which is appropriate?

-Y/N

--

I’m printing that and sending it to Tokoyami. Thank you for making my entire existence with that poem. I’m breaking out the red wax candles and putting on “How Soon Is Now?” right now.

You get a star, but it’s a pentagram. We have to keep with the theme.

My quirk has to do with mind control, so I was always told I was meant to be a villain. You can imagine what that could do to a kid’s psyche, being told by peers and adults alike that you weren’t hero material, when that’s all you wanted. It’s okay though, I did what I wanted and they can eat my ass.

Sorry if that was too raunchy, but it’s how I feel.

If my earlier comment wasn’t proof enough, I prefer The Smiths, but I cannot deny the impact of Disintegration. Lullaby is a really great song.

That being said, this will not be my last email, so you can breathe easy. 

On a semi serious note, I really enjoy talking with you. We have a similar sense of humor, and you like cats which makes you automatically better than most people. Would you like to get coffee sometime? I know a nice place that’s quiet and filled with fluffy kittens...

-Shinsou

—

I’m glad I haven’t lost your friendship due to my opinion. I know how important that feud can be to some people. People get very passionate about it. Kind of like with Blur versus Oasis, or Brand New versus Taking Back Sunday. I hate that these are the only examples I can think of. 

It wasn’t too raunchy. Those people can most definitely eat your ass. I’m glad you have decided to use your powers for good. You’ll have to explain to me how your quirk works sometime. 

I shall treasure my shiny pentagram sticker with my entire heart.

Isn’t Tokoyami the Jet Black Hero: Tsukuyomi? He looks like the type to write Gothic poetry. I am not even mildly surprised. 

Even though the way we met was unconventional, I’d like to think I’d have gotten up the courage to speak to you the next time I saw you in the cafe. Somehow this is better, though. It makes for an interesting story, you know?

I’d love to get coffee. I think I know the place you’re talking about. Let me know when.

-Y/N

—

Shinsou was nervous. It was stupid really. He’d been exchanging emails back and forth with you for a few days, and even though you’d barely revealed much about each other, the easy banter through your messages was comforting. He felt like the two of you would be compatible. He just hoped that he was able to keep the conversation going in real life. 

When he entered the cafe, he ordered his usual and picked his normal table towards the back. Socks, his favorite black and white companion, was at his side almost immediately. He let his hand drift down to scratch behind her ears, his gaze fixed on the door as he waited for you to arrive. 

Out of habit he was a little early, but he figured it would be easier this way. He had no idea what you looked like, but you knew him, so he knew you’d come over when you got there, and it would make things less awkward. 

A few minutes later he saw the door open, and he immediately knew it was you. Black Doc’s and thigh high stockings, a black skirt and an oversized deep red sweater adorned your body, a leather jacket over your shoulders and your hair tucked under a black beanie, cheeks pink from the chill of the autumn weather outside. You were pretty, and he felt his nerves increase tenfold when your eyes met his, a smile gracing your face. 

He watched as you ordered a drink at the counter, the paper cup clutched in your hands as you made your way to his table. He stood up when you approached, letting himself appreciate you up close. “Y/N?”

“Hi, Shinsou.” You were so much shorter than he was, and he found himself having to gaze down at you when he was standing at his full height. 

“It’s nice to put a face to all those emails.” The way you blushed under his attention made his heart flip. “Please, sit.”

You nodded, sliding into the seat across from him. He sat back down, his hands moving to grip his coffee cup. 

“This is kind of weird, isn’t it?” You looked down when Oliver made his way over, rubbing himself against your boot. “I almost feel like I don’t know what to say.”

“I know what you mean. We could just sit here and email each other, if that would make you feel better.” Your laugh was like music to his ears. “I’d rather hear your voice though.”

Your face was red when you looked back up at him. “I have to agree.” You leaned your elbow on the table, your cheek cradled in your palm. “Tell me more about yourself, Shinsou.”

“It’s Hitoshi. You can call me Hitoshi.”

—

If anyone would have told him that the night would end this way, he’d have said they were insane, and should probably get themselves checked into the nearest institution. 

But here he was, his face pressed into the spot where your neck and shoulder met, lips ghosting over soft skin, his calloused palms sliding underneath your sweater. You were purring, your head thrown back and your fists clenched in his t-shirt, your back pressed against the wall in the hallway that led to his bedroom. 

“Fuck, ‘Toshi.” You mumbled, pressing yourself closer to him. “Bed?”

You didn’t have to ask twice, his hands sliding down to lift you up by the backs of your thighs, his cock hard and straining in his jeans as you rutted against him. He turned himself and began walking toward his room blindly, his eyes still shut as he sucked a mark into your neck. 

He pulled back so he could peer over your shoulder and maneuver your bodies through the doorway without bumping into anything, laying you back on the bed. 

The events of the night were a blur, your coffee date turned into him taking you out for ramen at the restaurant down the street, and then he asked you back to his apartment to show you his record collection. 

It was mostly a ruse though. You’d been flirting back and forth, the both of you getting bolder as the night went on. He was only half surprised when you’d entered his apartment, barely removing shoes and coats and hats before you spun around on him, pressing him against the door and kissing him like your life depended on it.

He rested on his forearms, poised above you, looking over your flushed face and kiss bruised lips. Your legs wrapped around his waist and pulled his hips closer, making him groan. “Impatient?”

Your hands moved to cup his face, pulling him down toward you. “Very.” 

He wasn’t expecting your strength, caught off guard when your lips crashed into his, your body pushing him over until he was on his back and you were straddling him, knees on either side of his hips. You ground down against him, moaning when his hips snapped up reflexively. He was happy to give you control for a while, especially when you sat up and grabbed the bottom of your sweater and pulled it over your head. The view was spectacular.

He let his hands wander, tracing along the lines of your thigh highs from under your skirt, and up to the lace at your hips. Your chest heaved as you tried to catch your breath, the devilish glint in your eye was not lost on his as you shifted down his body, fingers swiftly working to unclasp his belt and undo the button on his jeans. 

You slid off of him, and he lifted his hips to aid you in pulling his pants down his legs, his boxers following. His cock was achingly hard, the tip angry and red as it sprung free from it’s confines, nearly slapping his stomach. You eyed it greedily, and he was lost for words when you surged forward, delicate fingers wrapping around his length and stroking him, your tongue peeking out to taste him.

Amethyst eyes rolled back when you took the tip in your mouth, tongue swirling around the head, a low moan sounding from the back of your throat. The warmth and wetness that surrounded his cock when you closed your eyes and bobbed forward had him breathless, his hand threading through your hair, and his palm resting on the back of your head. He kept himself steady, fighting back the urge to buck his hips and push you down further on his length. 

Shinsou bit down on his lower lip, his stomach muscles tensing as he tried to keep it together. Kaminari had been right, it had been a while since he’d been with someone, and he wanted this night to last as long as possible. The sweet and innocent look in your eyes as you looked up at him through your lashes, your mouth enveloping him all the way to base, was nearly too much for him to handle, his hand tugging at your hair gently to pull you off of him. “I’m not going to last if you keep that up, kitten.”

You visibly shivered at the pet name and he grinned, loving the feeling of being able to invoke that reaction from you. He scooted forward when you sat back on your knees between his spread legs, his arms circling your torso as he worked at the clasp on your bra, pulling the straps down your arms when he unclipped it. Strong hands gripped your waist and moved you to the side as he stood up, reaching under your skirt to tug your panties down your legs.

He took a moment to consider what he’d do next. He wanted to taste you, it was only right for him to return the favor, and he was almost certain you would taste as sweet as you looked. Another part of him wanted to hike up your legs around his waist and slam inside of you, desperate to hear you moan his name as he pounded you into the mattress. As he contemplated what to do, reached back and pulled his shirt over his head, and then let his hands wander up to the apex of your thighs, digits sliding through your folds. You gasped, falling back onto your elbows, back arching as he toyed with your clit, letting his long fingers slip inside your heat. “So wet. Just for me?” Eyebrows raised, he teased you.

“Fuck, Hitoshi, please.” Breathless and panting, you gazed up at him, biting your lip.

“Please what? Tell me what you want.” You would make the decision for him. “Would you like my mouth or my cock? I’ll let you choose.”

Huffing, your hips rutted against his hand impatiently. He kneeled on the bed between your legs, adjusting his arm and adding a second finger in with the first, his thumb finding your bundle of nerves again. He listened to your breath hitch, and your quiet mewls, pride filling his chest that he was the one coaxing those noises out of you. Finally, you breathed deep and answered him. “Fuck me, Hitoshi.”

Ignoring the protesting whine that left your lips when he removed his fingers, he brought them up to his mouth, maintaining eye contact with you as he sucked on them, tasting you. “You’re delicious, kitten. I’ll have to make sure to taste you properly later.” 

Wasting no time, he lifted your legs up to rest your legs over his shoulders, one hand on his cock. He lined himself up with your entrance, grabbing at your hips and pushing himself inside you. If he thought your mouth was hot and wet and basically everything he thought was heaven, he was mistaken. This was it. This was everything. He wasn’t even inside you all the way and he was fighting back the need to cum again, cursing himself and breathing deeply. He leaned forward, forearms on either side of your head as his mouth crashed against yours, all lips and tongues and teeth, his need for you growing tenfold as you wiggled your hips in an attempt to feel more of him.

Groaning, he bucked forward, filling you up, the both of you sighing in relief at the feeling. He gave you a moment to adjust, lips moving down your jaw and tongue laving at the mark he’d left on your neck earlier. “You feel so good, kitten.”

“Toshi, you can move…” Your hands were gripping his biceps, nails leaving crescent shapes in his pale skin, breathing ragged as you clenched around him.

Hissing, he followed your instructions, hips pulling back until he was almost completely out, before sliding back in. Your arousal made the glide easy, your back arching underneath him. He started a steady rhythm, grunting quietly and letting the feeling of you pulsing around him keep him grounded. He let one of his hands wander, shifting his weight so he could ghost his palm over your side, fingers pinching your nipple and rolling the hardened bud between them. You keened, chanting his name like a prayer, the sound of blood pounding in his ears almost masking the sound.

It spurred him to move faster, his chest tight, sweat pooling at his temples and between his shoulder blades, purple locks sticking to his forehead. His gaze was locked on you, and it stole his breath. Your chest and neck were flushed, the most beautiful sounds spilling from your lips as he fucked into you. It became clear to him that he wasn’t going to last much longer, and neither were you.

“Hey, kitten. You gonna cum for me?” He shifted back to his knees and trailed the fingers on his left hand down your stomach, coming to rest between your parted legs. “I want to hear how pretty you sound when you come apart.” He kept a firm grip on your hip to keep you from sliding away, rolling his hips and rubbing tight circles on your clit. 

“Fuck, Hitoshi!” The effect was almost immediate, your body and lungs seizing, eyes rolling back as you fell over the edge, your cunt clenching around him like a vice. 

Falling back over you, his thrusts became sloppy as he chased his own release, barely able to move with how tight your pussy was gripping him, your orgasm still rolling through you. He felt your hands on his face, guiding him to kiss you again, fingers carding through his hair and down his back, your nails raking red trails down his back. He felt like he could barely breathe, lost in you. “Y/N…”

He felt his muscles tense, and moved to bury his face in your neck, his hips stilling as he came hard, filling you up with his release. You squeezed around him again, and he sighed into your skin, eyes closed as he tried to regulate his breathing.

Rolling over to the side, he hissed when he pulled out. You chuckled, and he turned to look at you, a lazy smile on his face. “What?”

“Is that what you call showing me your record collection?” 

Snorting, he propped his head up on his palm, leaning on his elbow, his free hand reaching out to push a piece of hair away from your face. “You attacked me, remember?”

“I couldn’t help it!” Protesting, you blushed. “I wanted to kiss you from the moment I walked into the cafe.”

It was his turn to blush. “Yeah?”

Shrugging, you turned on your side to face him. “Mm. Can you do me a favor?”

His body was still buzzing, muscles loose and pliant as he shuffled closer to you. “Anything.”

“Can you thank your friend for being a weird internet troll and finding my post?” 

Shinsou coughed a laugh, leaning forward to rest his forehead against yours. “Please, I can’t do that. It’s all he’d ever talk about for the rest of our lives if I did.” 

You leaned up and kissed him, your fingers pushing back his hair. 

He hummed against your lips, feeling content, shifting himself on the bed and wrapping his arms around your waist, tugging you into him. “Maybe I’ll send him a text later. For now, I have other plans.”

--

Kaminari’s phone buzzed on the coffee table, and he picked it up, eyes widening at the message that appeared on the screen.

Toshi: I owe you a crate full of Pokemon cards and my eternal gratitude for being a weirdo meme king who trolls the internet.

Denki: Oh, you’re in a good mood. Did you get laid?

Toshi: Fuck all the way off. 

Denki: That’s a yes. You’re welcome.

[thefanficmonster]

Never Satisfied [Chapter 6]

Corpse Husband x Original Female Character

Warnings: Language

A collaboration between Vy & Ashens 🖤

“I don’t wanna look like this, fuck”

Previously on Never Satisfied:

Digital Checkpoint activated. Reply to save progress. 💜 — Cora

With minimal contemplation he replies seconds later.

Corpse: save

Cora: your progress has been saved. Thank you for choosing A.S.S. - the Automated Save System. You are now free to activate the digital checkpoint at any time. 

Cora: I had a nice time. Text me whenever you need to. We’ll hang out again soon, deal?

Corpse: thank you

Cora: anytime sugar ;)

Funny how a text exchange so simple and short can turn so much around for a person. Funny how a huge weight lifts off him the second he locks his phone, suddenly finding it easier to breathe, to move, to blink, to function - to live. She gives him that kick he needs to be reminded to live and not just be alive. He’s still not comfortable with how much he’s relying on her but seeing her effect on him is nothing but positive, the most and best thing he can do for himself is go with the flow and let things happen. No overthinking, no planning, no shooting guesses, just facing things as they come face-to-face with him. He may never get used to it, but he won’t know that until he tries, will he?

                                                            *  *  *

Corpse sighs as he looks at himself in the mirror. He’s been trying to step up a little with the dressing game since he’ll be having a special guest over - ok, truth be told, he didn’t invite her, she invited herself but he’s glad she did. Lord knows he wants her company and wants her around but he could never bring himself to invite her over or initiate a hangout. Good thing Cora doesn’t expect anything from him, not of that nature at least. It’s oddly amazing having a person like her - someone who basically reads his mind like an open book and then takes action according to what she’s read. It’s not only the fact that she accurately gauges all his wants and needs, but also how she knows exactly what to do to satisfy them. To calm him down, to relieve his anxiety, to make him feel comfortable. He feels strangely selfish for always being on the receiving end of this friendship, although he doesn’t see much he could do for her. He’s decided to let time have full control of the course of their relationship, hoping his giver time would come soon.

As of now, however, it still hasn’t and he can stomach that.

It’s been about a week and a half since their first hangout but he hasn’t missed her once. That may be due to how much they’ve been texting ever since he unlocked that checkpoint she offered him. To be more specific, it probably has something to do with the fact that her texts are always so full of life and light, sounding almost like she’s there with him, talking in her signature upbeat and bubbly way which is such a contrast to his own melancholic approach to any conversation ever. 

She’s also sent him a ton of memes and selfies, plus pictures she took of clients’ pets. In return for her kindness, he’s sent her bad jokes, weird internet articles about ghosts and pictures of the current game he was playing. Needless to say, their chats have been very colorful.

Now that the scene has been set up a little better, a direct timeline of events lading up to this one would be appreciated, wouldn’t it? Ok so, it all started with an “I’m bored” text Corpse received from Cora about two hours ago. Instinctively, and partially because he didn’t have any idea what else he could possibly say in response to that he sent back an apology. An apology Cora apparently deemed a loophole she could use to invite herself over cause that’s exactly what she did, not that Corpse minds it much. In fact, he felt his heartbeat quicken with excitement when her “K then, I’ll be there in a bit :)” text came in. At first he thought it was his anxiety kicking in but when he realized the rest of his typical symptoms remained absent it took him a little while to pinpoint what that emotion could be.

The epiphany came in the form of the word ‘excitement’.

Regardless of the newfound feeling, or maybe exactly because of it, he attempted to protest. A protest she killed easily with a threatening “I know where you live” text which sent Corpse scrambling to get the apartment in some kind of order. Himself too, it’s safe to say he wasn’t looking the most presentable when he received that message. 

His cleaning session consisted mostly of him shoving the strewn about items in his closet and closing it shut like a wild beast dwelled inside, placing a chair in front of the door as a sign for her not to open it and also as a way of preventing the thing from opening on its own because of how overflowing it was. 

Afterwards he scrambled into the shower to scrub himself down. It’d been too much for him to tackle given he wasn’t doing too well mentally, but considering he was now suddenly expecting company he thought it’d be for the best not to subject his new friend to the three-day-unshowered Corpse stank. 

Right now, his main focus is his face, his stomach sinking at the sight of himself in the mirror’s reflection. 

How does she even want to see me? 

His mirror is cracked along the right side, spider web-like cracks reaching towards the center of it from the impact point serving as a reminder of a particularly bad night he’d rather forget.

He sighs as he combs his hair, knowing the dark curls won’t oblige and behave no matter how much he tries. He touches his jaw, deciding to let himself off the hook by deeming that a shave wouldn’t be necessary for at least another day. And then his eyes land on his clothes - an outfit it didn’t take him long to put together since those are the only articles of clothing in his closet he’d consider presentable enough to be shown off in front of a new friend who is yet to find out how much of a slob he really is. That clothing choice consists of a black button-up shirt and jeans. 

This is nice, right? It’s fine. It’s business casual but definitely leaning more towards casual, as some would say. I look...nice, decent. I’ll take it - it’s enough. Far better than my ‘usual’.

A knock at the door startles him, though it’s quickly followed by a voice he’s grown to find very endearing: 

“THIS IS THE COPPAS! OPEN UP YA’ DOOR!” The voice yells out, probably loud enough for the whole complex to hear but it’s not like he gives a shit. And, as context clues show, neither does she.

Corpse exits his bathroom, heading for the front door, pulling the chain off and unlocking the deadbolt before opening it. The object of his newfound affection stands on the other side, grinning and beaming with that usual light she has surrounding her. Her hair is thrown up into a messy bun - a hairstyle she seems to love - and she’s wearing a simple red t-shirt covered in little chubby, cartoonish black cats that seem to be struggling to exist. 

He smiles a little, finding it in himself to speak up but when he opens his mouth to do so, she cuts him off.

“Jesus, did you just come back from a funeral?” She asks, pulling at one of the buttons on his chest as she walks past him, letting herself in. 

His eyes, completely on their own accord, wander down as she walks on by, causing him to swallow hard as he finds himself staring at a pair of tanned legs, patterned by the fishnets she’s wearing, leading up to a pair of short black shorts. 

She turns on her heel about halfway down the hall, leading him to take an inevitable notice of how her well-loved boots could use a polish. Anyhow, he snaps his gaze away to hide the fact he’s been gawking, despite not really meaning to.

“No, but for real, why are you wearing that? You seem super confined and uncomfy, bud.”

Corpse blinks before swallowing and glancing down at himself, pulling at the button she touched before looking back up, his gaze traveling up the length of her legs. She has suspenders hanging over her thighs, more of an accessory than a necessary addition to her outfit. “I just...I dunno, I thought it looked nice. Does it not? I mean, I wouldn’t know, really. I don’t usually dress like this.”

“I mean, you look dapper as fuck but if you’re not comfortable then change, get your comfy game on. I’m the last person you need to impress in this world.”

God, she sees right through him. Even so, he considers protesting, trying to convince it’s all fine, that he likes this shirt and the outfit in its entirety. But her stare sets the record straight for him - she’ll know it’s all lies. And with that in mind, he lets his shoulders fall. Not a full second passes before he promptly starts undoing his buttons. 

“Oh, thank fuck.”  She comments as he  goes to retreat into his room, stripping the shirt off as he walks, unaware of her lingering eyes on his back, unaware of her lower lip bitten between her pearly teeth. Unaware of the subtle shift in her stance as she looks him over much like he did her moments earlier.

When he returns a moment later in a simple dark grey t-shirt, she greets him with a grin and pats his chest. “Much better.”

It doesn’t take long for them to decide to crash on his couch, throw on a bad movie and just sit in comfortable silence. Comfortable silence - something that usually eats away at him and is anything but comfortable he now sees as calming, a soothe to his ever-racing mind. 

Disrespecting the movie, Corpse takes to analyzing his guest instead. She has so much confidence, he can’t help but notice, like she’s been here hundreds of times, known him for so long. He hates her a little for it. Well, it’s not quite hate, it leans more toward envy. Jealousy. That human-nature characteristic of wanting what someone else has but you desperately need/wish you had. In his mind, she’s almost selfish: Why couldn’t she share some of that confidence and carefree manner with the rest of the world? It oozes out of her like a drip of honey from a beehive, sweet and warm. And all he wants yet has none of.

He instinctively tenses up as he feels her move closer before, suddenly, her head drops into his lap, legs kicked over the armrest of the couch. He holds his breath almost subconsciously, staring at her as she remains focused on the television. Unsure of what to do with his hands, he puts one across the back of the couch and the other awkwardly bent above his head. He doesn’t want her to get the wrong idea if he touches her. He doesn’t want to come off as a creep nor does he want to overstep any of her boundaries, despite the fact she’s walking a dangerous line of overstepping his. Well, that would’ve been the case if this was done by anyone but her. The way Corpse comes to this realization is when he figures out that he really doesn’t mind this proximity, as long as he doesn’t embarrass himself or creep her out in any way.

What felt like an eternity passes before she finally speaks up, still without looking away from the movie playing on the screen opposite the couch, “You know, I can feel how tense you are.” 

His face flushes with embarrassment, heating up as his mind immediately goes to the worst possible outcome of this situation.

She’ll probably sit up, or leave, he thinks to himself, heart thumping in his ears as he tries to observe her face the best he can from this angle. Nevertheless, he swallows that fear as she rolls her head to look up at him with those large glittering doe eyes, grinning a bit as she seems to always do, “You can just put your hands wherever it’s comfortable for you. I don’t mind.”

He hesitates for a moment but, as always, he doesn’t get much say cause she makes the choice for him, knowing that pesky fear is keeping him immobile. She takes the hand from over his head and pulls it down to rest just next to her skull. She then drags the one resting at the back of the couch, placing it so his hand is resting dead-center on her stomach. Satisfied with how she’s rearranged his posture, she goes back to watching the movie but not before asking: “This okay?” while looking at him through her peripheral vision. 

He’d have to admit it’s far more comfortable like this.

“Yeah, it’s fine. You’re okay?” He asks, feeling relieved when he feels her nod against his leg. 

He moves his hand a little and swallows hard as he contemplates if he really should make the move he’s thinking of at the moment. And then he abruptly decides not to think. So, instead, he acts on it. 

Without thinking of any potential negative consequences, Corpse slides his fingers to lace with hers, resting their conjoined hands on her stomach in the same spot where she left his hand a bit ago. She curls her digits around his tighter as reassurance that it’s ok. Her palm feels warm in his hand, her thumb tracing his cold metal rings. 

Checkpoint...his checkpoint. 

Is this what it feels like to be normal?, he wonders, Is this what it feels like to really connect with someone? He has never felt this before. He’s never met someone who has such an effect on him, understand him like this - Without even having to ask she grounded him; she knew what he needed and didn’t make him feel like an idiot about it. Instead she gave him the comfort he needed.

And suddenly he finds himself afraid - realizing that this isn’t simply a vibe of two buddies hanging out. He has that subtle ache in his chest that’s telling him he wants something…something substantial from this friendship. He wants this to last, or for it to blossom, he’s not sure yet. But for the first time, he doesn’t feel the overwhelming need to figure it out. That’s one of the many effects this girl has on him - she’s the definition of improvisation, unpredictable and alive. He’s slowly learning to let loose himself, all thanks to her. Slowly, he’s learning to trust time. 

He abruptly realizes he’s glancing at her often as the movie is still running, examining her features and slowly running his gaze down the length of her fishnet-clad thighs before quickly looking away, mentally scolding himself. It’s hard, but he manages to turn his gaze elsewhere for his sake and hers. For the sake of keeping things normal, platonic and not in any way awkward for either of them. The last thing he needs is to make things weird by letting his mind wander and activate his libido and then she’d really notice how tense he is. 

Cora remains oblivious to what’s going on in his head, thank God, as she continues running her thumb across his knuckles, eyes half lidded in calm content - something that’d typically seem like the complete opposite of what she is. He likes seeing her like this, tamed almost. He feels like no one else has had the privilege to see this calm side of her. Maybe that’s not the truth - it probably isn’t - but he still feels special, knowing that it’s a tight circle of people who have seen her this way.

And then he realizes the movements of her thumb on his hand have stopped.

He freezes for a moment, his fearful gaze travelling to her face where he’s relieved to find her eyes closed only seconds before he hears a light snore escape her.

She’s fallen asleep.

It’s an odd scene. She’s such a wild and free spirit, seeing her fall asleep like this is like observing an abnormality, a paranormal event. You know, like something one doesn’t usually believe exists or is capable of happening. He’d never before been able to imagine her asleep. It’s ridiculous, he’s aware - she’s human after all, but his mind has never been able to comprehend the thought and image of her captured by the power of sleep. He simply couldn’t see it happening. But now that it’s happened in front of him, he can’t look away from the sight of her relaxed, peaceful features, overcome by sudden slumber.

And then he comes to the realization that he’s now practically held hostage on his own couch, crippled by the danger of waking her up. It’s gonna be a long while, isn’t it, he thinks to himself, yet there’s still a satisfied smile on his face. A smile that’s a result of knowing he’s held hostage by her. That’s more a blessing than a curse, if he’s being honest.

@fockingwhore  @vixenl  @annshit  @wineandionysus  @wiseflamingoqueen

[immabethehero]

Marvin’s MegaBirthday Story

Guess who made a Megamind AU with Marvin as the title character?

Here’s a quick list of characters so you won’t get confused about who’s who:

Marvin, The Malevolent Magician - Megamind

Dr. Schneeplestein, the Doctor - Minion, but human

The Brighton Shepherd - Metro Man

Jackieboy Man, the Red Marauder - Sidekick to the Shepherd, original role of sorts

Chase Brody, news reporter - Roxanne Ritchi

Anthony/Anti - Hal Stewart, without the creepy simping

CW: Police brutality, hints of starvation, strangulation and mentions of electrocution

It was a glorious day in Brighton City. Even the weather seemed aware of it as the sun shone down brightly on the silver skyscrapers and the brand new museum built into the city square.

 To celebrate the city’s greatest superhero, the grand, new museum had been dedicated to the city’s greatest hero: The Brighton Shepherd. In between the two buildings was a giant curtain, hiding a 55 foot statue for the superhero.

Reporters came to the site as early as 6 am before the crowds could roll in. Among them was the up-and-coming journalist, Chase Brody, who ran the news vlog: “Just Your Average Report”. Wearing a brand new grey and white suit to honour the Shepherd’s signature colour, Chase did vocal warm-ups while his cameraman, Anthony, set up the equipment. Unlike Chase, who had dressed handsomely for the occasion, Anthony simply wore a graphic t-shirt and a fishing vest with blue jeans. Chase tried not to let that get to him. In all the fifteen months he’d known Anthony, Chase had never seen the man wear anything other than graphic tees and the fishing vest. Today obviously wasn’t much different to Anthony.

“We’re on!” Anthony said. Chase held up his microphone in time for the camera light to turn red; he exclaimed, “Happy Brighton Shepherd Day, Brighton City! It’s a beautiful day in our  beautiful downtown, where we’re here to honour a beautiful man: The Brighton Shepherd. His heart is as big as an ocean that’s inside a bigger ocean. For years, he’s been watching us with his super-vision, saving us with his super strength, and caring for us with his super heart. Now, it’s our turn to give something back! This is Chase Brody, reporting live from the dedication of the Brighton Shepherd Museum.”

Chase signaled to Anthony, who snorted as he turned the camera off.

“Damn, the stuff the producers make you read nowadays is incredibly cheesy. Have you considered writing your own stuff?”

“I have. That was one of my pieces,” Chase said with a grin. He reveled in Anthony’s look of horror.

“I mean… I can’t believe that in our modern day society, they let… actual art get onto the news,” Anthony stammered out.

“Nice save, Anthony.”

“Cool. Can we go get a coffee now?”

“Come on, it’s time to get into the Brighton Shepherd Day spirit!” Chase said, nudging his coworker.

Anthony rolled his eyes. “Please. If the Brighton Shepherd really was all that great, he’d be able to properly protect you from the Malevolent and his crazy Doctor. For someone who gets kidnapped and rescued all the time, you sure don’t have good security.”

Chase sighed. This debate again. “I mean, it’s good for my channel! I get to film bits and pieces of the Malevolent’s laboratory! Great publicity.”

“You take too many chances with that man, I swear. What happens if the Malevolent snaps and gets violent with you? The Shepherd and his sidekick won’t be there to protect you. You could die, Chase.”

“The Malevolent won’t hurt me. If he truly wanted to, he would have done so the first time he kidnapped me,” Chase snapped. “If anything, he just wants me for more publicity. I am a popular news source.”

“Yeah? Well, they don’t always strike at first sight, Lois Lane. The dude might be waiting for the perfect moment to torture you,” Anthony continued. “I mean, even if he doesn’t invent the machines, his sidekick is smart enough to make them! I swear that man has seen some stuff and wants to inflict it on the city.”

“The Malevolent and Doctor never want to torture. Their machines may look scary at first, but they’re useless. They only want to scare.”

Anthony began loading up the truck. “You’re too trusting.The Malevolent Magician has the power to mutilate and kill in ways your “friendship-is-magic” brain could never comprehend. The Doctor is no better. They’re both just waiting to strike. Once they do, the Shepherd’s presence won’t feel so reassuring, hm?”

Anthony had his back turned long enough for Chase to feel a cold presence beside him. The smell of gas flooded his senses. The reporter turned to hear a window roll down, though he didn’t see a car. Odd.

Instead a white plague doctor mask glared back at him. Chase groaned. Here he thought he might be able to avoid being kidnapped and used as leverage by the Malevolent Magician. Apparently not! The Malevolent’s sidekick, simply known as the Doctor, was here to claim his damsel in distress. 

The Doctor raised a spray bottle and squirted it directly in Chase’s face. Chase barely had time to scream as a sudden drowsiness overtook him and the whole world went dark.

*

Step one was complete. The annoying vlogger was in the back of the van. With that accomplished, it was time to pick up the villain. Dr. Henrik von Schneeplestein, known to the city as the sidekick to the Malevolent Magician, drove through the busy town square and out of the main city.

The prison where the Malevolent lay was outside of town in a secluded location, or rather, in the middle of the highway leading into the city. Despite its odd location, the security was incredible. 200 security officers patrolled the site, with at least three officers supervising a special room under intense lock and key. The Malevolent himself was usually locked in large chains that only unlocked at certain times, or if Mal had behaved himself for a certain amount of time.

Schneep arrived to see the prison in chaos. Sirens blared loud enough to burst a person’s eardrums while police ran into the grey building, yelling to each other and pulling out their guns.

Amid all the chaos stood a man with a thick white moustache, standing in front of the large electrical gates, The man held up his wrist enough for Schneep to spy a silver watch on his wrist and sighed in relief. The watch had worked.

“Well, hello, good looking. Need a ride?” Schneep said, opening the door.

“Always, my dear doctor!” the man said as he hopped in. He slammed the door closed as Schneep slammed his foot on the gas and flew off.

The man twisted the watch’s case and transformed back into Malevolent. The supervillain turned to Schneep with an evil grin. “Nice job sending me the watch, Doctor! Let’s ride!”

“As you wish, my Wickedness!” Schneep yelled.

The maltreatment Mal received from the prison was not lost on the doctor. His sharp cheekbones were grimy and more pronounced, and his wrists were almost skeletal. Dark shadows hung below his eyes, and it was not from eyeliner. Schneep held back a sad sigh. Thank goodness he left a snack for Mal when they returned to the evil lair. That part could be solved.

*

Back at Brighton City Square, the show was ready to begin. As city officials made their speeches, two superheroes waited behind a painted brick wall to make an entrance.

The illustrious Brighton Shepherd fixed his mask and combed his dark brown hair back. Beside him was his sidekick: the Red Marauder, clad in red, green, and blue leather. Marauder kept peeking behind the wall.

“Malevolent is safe behind bars as of right now, you can relax, Jackie,” Shepherd said, rubbing his protégé’s back.

“I can’t find Chase!” Marauder whispered back. “I’ve scanned the crowds three times and there’s no sign of his face.”

“Perhaps he’s stuck in traffic?” Shepherd said, smoothing out the creases in Marauder’s blue cape. His sidekick really needed to learn how to take care of himself.

“He would have sent me a text if that had happened,” Marauder said with a sigh.

“Went for a cup of coffee with Anthony?”

Marauder turned to the crowd. “Anthony is currently eating a donut by one of the food vendors. I think Malevolent and the Doctor kidnapped Chase again!” His eyes filled with tears.

The Shepherd sighed and put a hand on Marauder’s shoulder. “Okay, when the mayor does her speech, we’ll do a quick speedrun through town. He can’t be far. Don’t worry, we’ll get him back.”

Marauder nodded, blinking back tears. No time to cry when there’s a battle.

“Shepherd? It’s time,” an employee whispered. The Brighton Shepherd cracked his neck.

“Show time, baby.” He punched the painted brick wall concealing him, creating a perfect hole. “Alright, put your hands in the air!” he yelled to the crowd.

*

The lair lit up as the car entered and parked in its appointed place. Marvin threw the door open and breathed in the familiar smell of the evil, abandoned, Monster Munch snack factory. A long time ago, it smelled of moldy cheese puffs and rat manure, but now it smelled of malevolence, metal, and a whole lot of cologne.

No matter how many times he arrived, the sweet scent always relaxed the supervillain after a hard day in jail or fighting the Shepherd. “Oh Doc, there’s no place like our evil lair!”

“I’ve kept it cold and damp, just the way you like it!” Schneep said, hauling the sleeping Chase out of the car.

A swarm of tiny robots flew over to Marvin, their engines whirring with delight. The model was a small purple circle with four robotic legs that could grip and lift up to 1,000 pounds. Of course, each had cat ears attached to the sides of their heads and a cat tail at the back. The CATs,  Marvin had fondly called them. Their singular glowing yellow eyes in the center of their body looked up at their darling master.

“The CATs have certainly missed you, sir!” Schneep exclaimed.

Marvin bent down to caress their smooth heads. “Did you miss your daddy? Who’s a menacing little android? You are, yes, you are!”

One CAT held up a ball of twine. Marvin grabbed it and tossed it across the lair, the CATs trailing after it.

Two older models of the CATs held up a curtain while two others held up Marvin’s new suit. Marvin gratefully ripped off the ugly bluish-grey prison rags and changed into his white button-up, black dress pants, and sparkly purple vest. A CAT draped his famous black cloak with magenta lining around his shoulders while another handed him his beautiful cat mask with the magician’s card designs drawn on. He happily donned the mask with pride and stepped out.

“How do I look, Doctor? Do I look evil?” Marvin asked, spinning.

“Horrifyingly striking, sir,” Schneep said. He opened a small gate to an elevator platform, “Shall we?”

At the top, Schneep set Chase down on a chair while Marvin checked all the monitors and buttons.

“Everything ready?”

“Of course! I would never leave anything unchecked before a big event!” Schneep said. Beside the doctor, Chase began to stir, grunting and yelling muffled by the bag.

“He’s awake! Quick everyone, places!” Marvin ordered. He jumped onto his chair and motioned a small CAT to lie down in his lap while he fixed his hair once more.

Schneep ripped the bag off of Chase’s head as Marvin twirled his chair around, menacingly stroking the CAT. “Mr. Brody, we meet again.”

“Would it kill you to wash the bag?” Chase complained, “it fucking stinks and the spray bottle is no better!”

“You can scream all you want, Brody, I’m afraid no one can hear you!” Malevolent announced. Chase remained stone-faced.

Marvin frowned. “Why isn’t he screaming?”

Schneep sighed exasperatedly and bent down next to Chase, “Mr. Brody, if you don’t mind-”

“Screaming sounds a lot like this: aaaahhhhh!” Malevolent demonstrated. “I mean, that’s a poor example but-”

The CAT sitting on his lap bit his hand. Malevolent emitted a high-pitched shriek as he tried to shake the little robot off.

“Not to sound like a sadist but it’s more fun when you do it,” Chase deadpanned.

“Very funny,” the Doctor snapped. “You’ll be singing a different tune when the Brighton Shepherd is defeated right before your eyes!”

Ignoring both of them, Chase decided to examine the observatory, the usual spot for Malevolent and Shepherd’s battles. Most of it was the usual, a long control booth circling the room, full of buttons and levers that would release death traps, lasers, and other lame inventions. Above the panel were monitors of different sizes. On one side of the elevator was a broken vending machine where Doctor grabbed his sleeping spray, while on the other side was a strange metal sphere with axes and spikes sticking out of it (Chase asked and even Malevolent had no idea what it was).

“Speaking of watching, do you have your camera set up?” Malevolent asked, finally yanking off the biting CAT.

“Yup! It’s in the pin this time! Anthony helped me set it up!” Chase puffed his chest out to show it off.

Malevolent ran a hand through his thick black hair and twirled around, letting his cape fly in the wind.

“So guys, what’s on the menu for today? Robosheep? Typhoon cheese? A big ball of aluminum that will roll around town?” Chase asked.

Behind his plague doctor mask, Schneeplestein grinned. It was his time to shine! “Actually, we created a cool ray that uses the sun to make explosive lasers, wanna see?!” He excitedly rushed over to the main control booth and began typing in the passcode to turn it on.

Marvin yelped and pulled Schneep away from the booth, “Easy there, Doc, we’ll show it in time!”

“Brody wanted to see it!” Schneep protested. “It’s not like it would hurt, would it?”

“Think, Doctor! He’s using his nosy reporter skills to find out all our secrets!” Malevolent accused, snarling at Chase.

Chase rolled his eyes, chuckling. These two could be quite entertaining. “What secrets?! You’re so predictable!”

“Oh, that’s the insult for today?! Tell me, my dear Brody, would you call this predictable?” Marvin pulled down a lever and the floor around Chase opened up.

“Your alligators, yes!” Chase nodded in greeting to the snapping reptiles. “Yeah, I was just thinking about these guys on the way over!”

Truth be told, Chase was dreaming of riding a large parrot to Disney World while in the car. But Malevolent didn’t need to know that.

Marvin turned back to the panel. How dare Chase see through his armour?! He quickly slammed a button. “What about this?”

A sharp razor painted blood red danced in Chase’s face. “That’s kind of tacky.”

Marvin punched another button and a junky invention of multiple chainsaws attached to the ceiling lowered down. The chainsaws had gotten their chains stuck to each other and could barely move. Chase pretended to contemplate it. “Mm, juvenile.”

Marvin pulled another lever. “What about this?!”

A giant fart gun shot green gas out. Chase gagged. “Gross and immature!”

“What’s this one do?!” A weak fire machine coughed out small bits of fire.

“That’s just sad,” Chase said. He looked up and nearly jumped out of his seat. A small spider floated downwards. “Is the spider new?”

Marvin turned to Schneeplestein, who merely shrugged. When this was all over, Marvin was going to give him a stern talking to about bug extermination in the lair.

“Ah yes, the spe-dair-a,” Marvin whispered as he advanced closer to Chase. “Even the smallest bite from Arachnis Deathicus will instantly paralyze-”

Chase blew the spider onto Marvin’s cheek, causing him to scream again. Schneep punched him hard enough to knock him over.

“GET IT OFF GET IT OFF!!!! IT BIT MEEEEE!!!” Marvin screamed as Schneep continually smacked him with a newspaper. The spider fell off of Marvin’s cheek and began advancing to the control panel.

“STOP IT BEFORE IT DISAPPEARS!” Marvin howled as he crawled away from the disgusting creature.

After five minutes of Marvin’s dramatic wails and crawling and Schneep swearing like a sailor, Chase finally put an end to the spider’s life by stomping on it when it got close enough.

Marvin crawled over to Chase and grovelled at his bound feet. “Thank you, you are a lifesaver!” He suddenly spied the pin. “Is that still on?”

Chase smiled smugly, “I’ll burn the evidence if you let me go and we’ll never speak of it again.”

Marvin stood up, scowling, “Absolutely not! We haven’t even gotten to the fun part! Let’s pay your boyfriend and godfather a visit, shall we?”

*

Back at the town square, the mayor had finished up her rather short speech, “It is with great pleasure that I present Brighton Shepherd to his new museum! When you’re ready!”

Shepherd’s laser eyes cut the rope and the great curtains fell, revealing the giant statue of the superhero. A brass band played loudly over the sound of a cheering crowd.

Jackie applauded happily for his mentor, but couldn’t help but feel slightly jealous. In all fairness, the Shepherd had been around longer than he had, and he was still familiarizing himself with the city.

A sudden chill running up his arms woke Jackie from his thoughts. He looked up and gasped. Dark clouds quickly enveloped the museum. People shrieked in terror as a big, black blimp hovered above the great building, rolling down two large projection screens underneath. Once positioned on each side of the magnificent statue, a small circular robot holding a camera turned the screens on, showing the face of the one to blame for the chaos: the Malevolent.

The Brighton Shepherd and the Red Marauder flew up, Shepherd holding up a microphone.

“If it isn’t the Malevolent!”

“Bravo, Brighton Shepherd! Congratulations on your new museum!” Malevolent drawled, clapping slowly.

The crowd began to boo loudly. Malevolent blew a raspberry at the crowd, “So immature!” he scoffed.

“Should have known you’d try and crash the party!” Shepherd said.

“Oh, I intend to do more than crash it! This will be a historic day you, and Brighton City, will not soon forget!”

“We all know how this ends!” Shepherd said. “With you behind bars!”

“Ooh, I tremble in my kitten-skinned cape,” Malevolent hissed, playfully wrapping himself up in his cape. The cape was actually made from cotton, but the city didn’t need to know that.

“What do you want with us, Mal?” Shepherd demanded.

“First off, don’t call me ‘Mal’,” Malevolent snapped. “Secondly, if you and your tomato sidekick don’t leave town in an hour, then this will be the last you ever hear of Chase Brody!” Malevolent punched a button and the left screen presented the kidnapped Chase tied to a chair.

“I knew it!” Jackie muttered behind his mask.

“Don’t panic Chase! We’re on our way!” Shepherd cried out, earning a cheer from the crowd.

“I’m not panicking!” Chase responded, smiling.

Malevolent pretended to gag. “Oh, please. You have to find us first before you save Chase.”

“We’re at the abandoned observatory!” Chase quickly called out.

Malevolent suddenly turned off Chase’s camera, yelping, “WAIT DON’T TO LISTEN TO HIM-”

It was too late. Shepherd and Marauder were already flying above the dark grey smoke. Shepherd quickly spotted the broken down space observatory near the dangerous part of Brighton City beach and pointed it to Marauder. The two began their flight.

Back at the lair, Schneep watched the superheroes from his monitor. “Shepherd and Marauder approaching, sir!”

Marvin turned to Chase, who shot him a smug grin. Marvin only smiled in return.

“Like we said, you’ll be singing a different tune when you see what we have planned!”

The Shepherd would almost be here. Chase closed his eyes and ducked his head for the inevitable ceiling crash.

Shepherd and Marauder flew through the opening of the observatory and landed. Or rather, Shepherd landed gracefully on his feet while Marauder tripped and fell over. Behind them, the heavy doors slid shut.

Shepherd looked around. The place was quiet and eerily empty. No sound of any cat-bots. No evil laughter from the Malevolent.

“Something’s wrong…” Shepherd muttered. He turned to the doors. Were they locked in?! He ran over to check.

Puzzled, Chase looked up. Where were they?

Malevolent reveled in Brody’s confused expression. He fiddled with the control panel, opening up one of the walls.

“You didn’t think we were in the real observatory… did you?!”

Chase could stare in horror as he spotted the real observatory. He couldn’t believe it. He had led the two superheroes right into a trap.

Malevolent laughed triumphantly. “Ready the Death Ray, Doctor!”

Doctor typed in the passcode and pulled the lever down. “Death Ray ready-ing!”

In the real abandoned observatory, Shepherd and Marauder desperately tried to get the doors open.

“I can’t believe Malevolent actually tricked us! How did he seal the doors?!” Marauder moaned.

“Don’t worry Red, we’ll find a way out,” Shepherd said, smiling.

“Over here, boys,” a voice like ice called out. The superheroes turned to see a large projection of Malevolent smiling down on them.

“In case you haven’t noticed, you’ve fallen right into my trap!” Malevolent boasted.

The Shepherd motioned Marauder to find an escape before turning to Malevolent. “You can’t trap justice! It’s an idea! A belief!”

“Well sometimes the most heartfelt belief can be corroded over time!” Malevolent responded.

“Justice is a non-corrosive metal!”

“Then I will just melt it with the heat of revenge!”

“FYI, revenge is best served cold!” Shepherd corrected him. From the side, Marauder shook his head. As much as he respected his mentor and feared Malevolent, their “witty back-and-forth banter” was lame.

“It can easily be reheated in the microwave of evil! Don’t doubt me!” Malevolent snarled.

“Well I think your warranty is about to expire!” Shepherd declared.

“Fuck you, I have an extended warranty!” Malevolent retaliated.

“Language, my dear sir! And warranties are invalid if you don’t use the product for its intended purpose!” Shepherd roared.

“OH! Girls, girls, you’re both pretty!” Chase yelled from his seat. He turned to Malevolent, exasperated, “My whole body is sore. Can I just go home now?!”

Malevolent turned around to throw an empty can of Cola at Chase. It bonked off the side of his head.

“You’ll just have to wait, dear Brody! Your beloved superheroes first must prove if they can escape the inevitable power of the sun! Fire!”

Marauder conjured a shield for himself and Shepherd. When the Shepherd made no move to protect himself, Marauder realized nothing was coming. What happened?

Meanwhile, Marvin approached Schneep and the machine. Schneep learned against the panel, snoring softly. Marvin poked him, “Doctor, wake up!”

Schneep startled, “Oh! Sorry!” He turned to the machine, “The machine is still warming up. I expect we have a few more minutes before it fires.”

Marvin’s face turned as red as Marauder’s suit. “Warming up?! The sun is warming up?!”

Chase started laughing, “The sore arms and legs are definitely worth this riot. Just you wait, the Shepherd and Marauder will be on you in min-”

Malevolent tossed another empty can at Chase. Chase immediately shut up. “That’s better.”

“Don’t worry Chase, we’re on our way!” Marauder yelled from the monitor.

Malevolent stomped over to the camera, “Get here faster, I’m this close to throwing his stupid ass off the balcony!”

This caused Marauder to flip. “Hang in there Chase, I’m coming!” He rocketed up to fly out, only to crash into the ceiling and fall back down unceremoniously.

“Marauder, we’ve talked about this! You need to think before you do anything!” Shepherd lightly scolded. “Now, what do we have that can create a hole in the wall?”

“This whole day is a mess…” Doctor muttered from his spot at the panel.

“I’m sorry, whose side are you on?!” Malevolent demanded.

“The losing side!” Chase interjected.

“Everybody shut up,” Malevolent ordered. He sighed, rubbing his temples. “You know what? I need to take a nap. Call me when the ray is ready!”

“The ray is ready!” Doctor announced. In seconds a bright beam of yellow flew down, destroying the observatory in seconds. Fire and burning metal fell out of the demolished observatory, some of it flying directly towards the lair.

Malevolent quickly waved his hands in a circular motion, muttering. A shimmering purple bubble wrapped around Doctor and Chase. As debris rained down, Malevolent deflected them with bursts of purple fireworks. Chase watched in amazement, gaping.

“I keep forgetting he can do magic...” Chase muttered. “He uses so much technology instead.”

Doctor laughed, “Well, he’s not called the Magician for nothing.”

When the commotion calmed down and the debris stopped coming, Marvin twirled around, blowing a stray hair out his eye. The bright glow of the burning observatory behind the magician outlined his epic form. “Did your camera get that, Brody?”

Two more pieces of falling debris gracelessly smashed into Marvin. Chase happily squealed upon seeing the dusty forms of the Brighton Shepherd and the Red Marauder.

“I… should have seen that coming,” Marvin squeaked. “How did you escape so fast?”

“Laser eyes are a wonderful thing!” Marauder answered, giving Marvin a playful wink as he stood up. Marvin stuck his tongue out.

“The gig is up, Mal. We’re taking you back to jail, where you belong!” Shepherd declared. Marvin sighed and slammed his head down on the floor. Naturally, he lost. Again.

Schneep’s distressed cries snapped Marvin back to attention. He turned to his head to see Marauder on top of a struggling Schneep. Schneep’s whimpers and half-sobs were lost on Marauder, who continued tying his wrists behind him.

“Might as well send the Malevolent’s accomplice to jail as well! That way he won’t escape again!” the sidekick reasoned.

Something in Marvin snapped. “NO!” he screamed, startling the Shepherd. With his nemesis off his back, Marvin set his eyes on Brody and magically put the reporter in a choke hold.

Chase gasped raggedly as the air left his lungs.

Marvin whirled around to face Marauder, growling, “Let the doctor go!”

“Get your hands off Chase!” Marauder yelped, staring helplessly at his struggling brother.

“First, free the doctor!” Marvin shouted. He tightened his grip on Chase, lifting him out of the chair.

“Put Chase down!” Marauder roared, eyes glowing red.

Chase wheezed pathetically, black spots darting in his vision. He couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t breathe. He let out a strangled sob, tears falling. In all his time with Malevolent… he had never felt so scared.

Jackie’s eyes lost their glow and he loosened his grip on the Doctor. Underneath him, the Doctor moaned in pain.

“Let him go, Red.” Jackie turned to Shepherd in shock. The usually optimistic and brightly-smiling superhero had a grim expression on his face. Jackie spluttered.

“B- but- The Doctor will just free the Malevolent again! We could stop them both once and for all-”

“You heard me. Let him go,” Shepherd ordered. Reluctantly, Jackie stood up and backed away from the Doctor. The shaking man took no time running to the stairs and quickly disappearing.

Marvin waited until Schneep’s footsteps faded away before releasing Chase, gently laying him down. Chase gulped in tearful breaths, his body trembling. Marauder rushed over to free Chase while Shepherd tied the magician’s hands behind him.

The minute his hands were free, Chase threw his arms around Jackie. Jackie gently hugged him.

“Are you okay?” Jackie whispered. Chase nodded, still gasping.

“I’ll take Malevolent to jail,” the Shepherd said. “You get Chase to a hospital!” He took off, Malevolent dangling in his arms. The magician waved goodbye as he and the Shepherd disappeared into the city.

Jackie picked up Chase bridal style and started flying as well.

He kept the flight light and steady to keep Chase from getting sick. Chase buried his head in Jackie’s shoulder for most of the trip, eyes squeezed shut. He hated heights.

As they arrived at the hospital, a medical team waited outside to take Chase in. After the first few kidnappings, a special team offered to dedicate themselves to healing Chase in case he needed it.

“Ja-Jackie?” Chase stuttered. Jackie looked down at his almost unconscious friend.

“Ma-Make sure th-this doesn’t reach An-Anthony, oh-ok?” Chase begged between gasps.

Jackie nodded, confused. “Alright… I won’t tell him.”

*

The cell stunk. No one here ever bothered to put an air freshener in his jail cell, despite Marvin’s numerous polite requests to have it put in. According to the security guards, the Malevolent “could use it as a weapon” or a “gas bomb”. Please.

Marvin sighed as best as he could. As if to enact revenge for strangling Chase, the security staff had clamped an even smaller chain around his neck, making it hard to breathe. Or move. Or do anything. The rest of his body wasn’t much better, with a larger chain wrapped around his waist and movement sensory chains bruising his wrists. If he tried using any magic, the chains on his wrist would shock him. After today, electrocution was the last thing Marvin needed.

Marvin looked up to check the premises. After checking to make sure the guards were gone, Marvin snapped his fingers, careful not to move his wrists too much. Immediately, the chains loosened, allowing Marvin to take a shuddering gasp. He knew the minute he heard the guards coming to check on him, he had to tighten them again, so he took advantage of the situation.

At least the Doctor was free. He wasn’t being made to sit in a stinky, small cell, wrapped in large chains that threatened to strangle him at any moment. He was free to relax after a hard day, planning for the next breakout. For now, Schneep could rest.

Marvin leaned back against his chair, closing his eyes. Schneeplestein would help him escape again. For now, the magician himself will think of another plan to get back at the Brighton Shepherd.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

@graysun, @florenceisfalling, @miishae, @lonelyseiren, @goldenoceanaart, @oasisofgalaxies, @fleecal, @kofi-kiing, @myspatialspace, @jo-ann-ahh-2, @huffletrax, @indic0lite, @dumbasticart, @lunaarmada, @meteorshowersfillthesky, @uhhbeans,  @the-pastel-kitsune, @ptide  @climbing-starrs, @the-spawn-of-loki, @jadehowlettthewolf, @obsidiancreates, @rammypaige, @cest-mellow, @randowaffle, @green-protects, @dezi-popp, @badlypostedeverything, @crystalninjaphoenix, @milokno, @pixelpixie-pix, @why-killed-markiplier

[cosmic-goddess-leo]

Familiar Face - Ukai Keishin x Reader

Summary: Ukai catches up with an old friend who has returned to Miyagi after being gone for 7 years.

Word Count: 4469

Warnings: SMUT. If you are uncomfortable with sex then DON’T READ THIS.

Author’s Note: I like dropping hints that I like older men... I like older men. Also, special thanks to the Haiku Writer’s Chat for helping me with this fic! 

Tagging: @cmllnc​ @haik-whoo​

“And look at this picture! He totally went bald, it’s only been a couple years and he’s completely bald!”

Ukai sighed deeply, trying to tune out Shimada’s and Takinoue’s gossip as he flipped through a magazine at the store counter. 

Shimada had recently made it a point to friend all their old classmates on FaceBook, claiming it would be good to ‘get in touch’ with everyone and set up a reunion.

Ukai was sure it was an attempt to rekindle old flames with their female classmates.

“Why haven’t you joined FaceBook, Ukai? If you join and you friend me, I’ll only be a couple more people away from having our whole class on here!” Shimada exclaimed, continuing to scroll through his feed while Takinoue looked over his shoulder.

“I don’t need a bunch of strangers to know my business,” Ukai replied, not bothering to glance up at them from his magazine, “If they matter, they’ll already know.”

Shimada huffed before returning to his recommended friends list.

A chirp from the phone followed by an excited gasp caused Ukai to give another irritated sigh.

“(Y/n) friended me back!” Shimada said excitedly.

Ukai finally looked up from the reading material, resisting the urge to completely set it aside and attempt to snatch the phone from his friend’s hands.

“Woah! She looks totally different- she messaged me!”

Well, that was enough for Ukai to toss the magazine aside and try to get a look at the phone.

“What? What’d she say?”

“Oh nowww you’re interested!” Shimada huffed, shielding the phone from Ukai’s eyes. “She said she’s moving back to town for work. She wants to meet for dinner and drinks tonight.”

Ukai would never admit to it, but that made his heart drop. He hadn’t seen or heard from (Y/n) in 7 years.

She decided to go to college in the city, meaning she left everything behind. Including Ukai. After being best friends since middle school (and boyfriend and girlfriend their third year of high school) she just left.

It wasn’t like Ukai didn’t understand. He totally understood why she wanted to go. That didn’t make their breakup any easier though.

“Lucky for you, she’s asking me to invite you and Takinoue.” Shimada smiled, typing out his reply to her.

“What are you saying?” Ukai asked, crossing his arms and sitting back in his chair.

“That we’ll see her at 7 at our old spot.” Shimada replied, sending the message before any of them could object. Not that Ukai would.

He would have to haul ass back to the shop from Karasuno, get changed into something presentable, then haul ass to the restaurant. But he would do it if it meant seeing (Y/n) again.

And that is exactly what he did.

He rushed his last words to the team before sprinting out of the gym, leaving the the boys confused and Takeda scrambling to come up with words of encouragement on the spot.

Once Ukai arrived at the restaurant, he was showered and dressed in jeans and a casual button-up. Something to show he tried but not really.

Shimada and Takinoue had seated themselves to face the door, meaning (Y/n)’s back was to Ukai when he arrived. Once the two started to wave Ukai over, (Y/n) turned to look at him and smiled.

Ukai was suddenly 18 years old again; palms sweaty and knees weak from that familiar smile.

“Keishin!” (Y/n) got up from her spot and leapt into his arms, wrapping her arms around his neck in a tight embrace he wasn’t expecting. “It’s been so long!”

He quickly returned the hug, lifting her off her tip-toes for a moment. “Too long.”

Ukai set her back down, pulling out of the embrace and repressing the blush he had felt creeping up his neck.

The two sat down, all while (Y/n) continued staring at Ukai. “You look so different, look at this hair!” she beamed, lightly tugging on a blonde strand of hair. “You got your ears pierced too!”

“Yeah,” Ukai smiled, scratching at the back of his head, “I went a little overboard after graduation but I think it fits me...” More like after you left...

“Well I love it. It definitely fits you.” (Y/n) smiled, her gaze lingering on him before turning back to her drink.

“Well, let’s toast! To rekindling old friendships!” Takinoue held up his glass, clinking it against the other three.

Ukai watched (Y/n) from the corner of his eye as he sipped at his beer. It was almost room temperature since they ordered it before he arrived, but his thoughts were wandering elsewhere.

It would be way too forward to tell her how beautiful she had gotten in the years she was gone. When they finally got together their third year, she was a budding flower, still beautiful in her own right as a young woman. Now she was fully bloomed, radiant and flawless. A woman.

Rather than spilling his guts to her about how much he missed her and how these past 7 years were agony, Ukai spent the night laughing about old times while also catching up on more recent events.

“You’re really coaching at Karasuno huh? And to think you gave your gramps all that shit for sticking around like that...” (Y/n) smirked, downing the last of her drink.

“This is different, they really needed it.” Ukai smiled, tapping his fingers against his glass.

“You guys really needed it too, though.” she quipped, earning a laugh from Shimada and Takinoue.

“And what about you? You said you came back for work. What work?” Ukai asked, lightly nudging (Y/n) with his elbow.

(Y/n) shrugged, “I’m an athletic trainer and physical therapist. I’m interviewing for a job tomorrow. That’s all I’ll say about it because I don’t want to jinx it.” There was a coy smile playing on her lips. Either it was the alcohol or she was up to something.

“Well good lu-” Ukai was cut off by (Y/n) covering his mouth.

“No! You’ll jinx it!” (Y/n) giggled, keeping her palm firmly against his lips.

Ukai responded in kind by dragging his tongue along her palm, earning a squeal of disgust from (Y/n) as she pulled back.

“Sick! Keep your bodily fluids to yourself!” (Y/n) groaned, wiping her hand on his shirt.

“Need I remind you there was a time when you didn’t mind my spit.” Ukai smirked, looking away from her to hide his slight blush.

“Oh I don’t need any reminders there.” (Y/n) replied, rolling her eyes at him.

“I can’t believe you two dated.” Takinoue sighed, resting his chin on his palm.

Ukai sent a small glare his way.

“N-not as in you two weren’t a good fit! It’s more like... we all kind of expected you both to get together, when it finally happened it was like a dream!” he explained.

“He’s right,” Shimada added, slowly nodding. “No more tip-toeing around each other. No more cat and mouse. Just boom! Ukai and (Y/n)! They’re like an elephant! When they walk into a room it’s like, okay! They’re in there!”

Now there was no hiding the blush on Ukai’s cheeks. He looked down at (Y/n), who had started shuffling in her spot.

“O-okay, judging from his volume I think it’s time to call it a night.” (Y/n) said, checking her phone for the time. “I need to get to bed soonish anyway. Interview’s in the afternoon but I still want time to get ready.”

“I can get him home.” Takinoue said, dropping cash on the table and helping Shimada up. “We’ll catch up again soon.”

Ukai and (Y/n) bid them goodbye as they began fishing for their wallets.

“You back home home? Or have you found a place?” Ukai asked, helping (Y/n) onto her feet once she paid her fair share of the tab.

She shook her head, “Im in a hotel kinda nearby. Thought it would be weird going back to my parents’ place as a 26 year old...”

Ukai chuckled, following her out of the restaurant. “I don’t blame you.”

The two went silent for a bit, shuffling their feet and hesitating to make eye contact.

“...Shimada never could hold his liquor, huh?” Ukai asked, earning a giggle from (Y/n).

“You’d think after all these years he would have learned...” she mused, running a hand through her hair.

They both went silent again until (Y/n) spoke up, her tone conveying an inkling of hope.

“I have to get up early and all but even then... I’m still kind of thirsty...”

Ukai gave her a small smile, “We can get some beer on the house from the shop...?”

(Y/n) smiled back, “I’d like that.”

He offered (Y/n) his arm, hiding his excitement when she linked their arms and began walking with him in the direction of the shop.

He was sure to lock the door behind them, keeping the lights off so they wouldn’t be disturbed. Even though the shop sign read ‘closed,’ some of the Karasuno boys would still try to get in if the lights were on.

“Do we get to drink in the dark the rest of the night?” (Y/n) asked, taking a swig of her drink.

“We can go upstairs... sit in the living room and talk.” Ukai offered, his palms getting sweaty all over again.

Once (Y/n) accepted, he lead her up the staircase in the back of the store, unlocking the door to his flat and letting her enter first.

“Ooooo, bachelor pad.” She teased, looking around the room. It was surprisingly clean, except for the clothes trail towards the shower he had left earlier.

“Nothing to see here!” he shouted, swiping his boxer briefs from off the floor and throwing them into his bedroom.

(Y/n) giggled, turning away to look at the wall decorations he had strung up. Some movie posters, one karasuno poster, and a couple pictures of their friend group in high school.

She paused at a particular photo of the two of them at graduation, smiling fondly at the memory. “Bring a lot of women up here?”

Ukai had been gathering the rest of the clothes on the floor, pausing at the question. “None that are really noteworthy...”

(Y/n) hummed to herself, tearing her eyes away from the picture and making her way to the couch.

“It’s kind of awkward since the town is small... so I’ve kinda stopped doing that.” he explained, retrieving his beer and sitting beside her.

“Kinda?” she asked.

Ukai shrugged, “I’m only human... I slip up and break my own rules every now and then.”

(Y/n) smiled slightly, shaking her head and taking another drink. “Some things never change...” she mumbled against the bottle.

He kept his eyes on her the whole time, tapping his thumb against the glass. “Did you...?”

(Y/n) bit her lip, unwilling to meet his gaze before taking a big swig of her drink.

“You seemed so sure you would before you left... but it still feels like the same (Y/n).” Ukai continued, slowly looking her over.

“Is it bad if I didn’t change?” she asked, staring at a random corner of the room.

“Not at all...” Ukai paused, unable to hold back a sigh before continuing. “It just makes me wonder... why break up if the only thing that really changed was your zip code...”

“I mean- I did change. I grew up, you did too. I just didn’t want it to end badly because of those growing pains.” (Y/n) explained. “Did... did you think it ended badly?”

“N-no, no I didn’t. I’m grateful it ended the way it did, rather than you falling out of love with me or something... Not that you still love me now- I’m just- Ugh! Bottom line, I’m fine with how things happened. It just... stings...”

(Y/n) chewed at her lip, something Ukai knew she did when she was anxious. He just made things super weird, all cuz he wanted closure.

“Do you have any regrets?” she suddenly asked, finally looking up at him.

Ukai sighed softly, slowly nodding his head. “Yeah... just one... I didn’t go after you.... Do you...?”

(Y/n) chuckled softly, turning back to her bottle. “Yeah actually... I didn’t stay with you.”

The two went silent. Ukai hadn’t meant for the conversation to take this turn. He wasn’t even drunk and he was still spilling his guts over a breakup from 7 years ago.

(Y/n) downed the last of her beer, setting the empty bottle on the coffee table before fully facing Ukai. “Can we try something?”

He raised an eyebrow at her, setting his bottle on the coffee table before turning to her.

“You’re going to kiss me. And if we don’t feel anything, I’ll leave and act like it never happened...” (Y/n) explained. It was a simple set of instructions but it had Ukai’s heart ready to jump out of his chest.

“And if we feel something?” He asked.

(Y/n) shrugged. “I dunno. But I won’t leave...”

Ukai took a deep breath, closing his eyes momentarily to regain his confidence.

“Okay,” he opened his eyes, “I’m ready.”

“You’re kissing your ex-girlfriend, not disarming a bomb.” (Y/n) quipped. 

“Well, now I have to take another deep breath because you broke my concentration.” Ukai complained.

“Will you just hurry-”

Without warning, Ukai cupped (Y/n)’s cheeks and pulled her into a gentle, passionate kiss.

He told himself to keep it simple, but 7 years of repressed feelings suddenly began pouring out into this one intimate moment. Before he knew it, (Y/n) was kissing him back, hands clinging to his shirt and pulling him closer.

(Y/n) brushed her tongue over his lip, earning a moan from Ukai as he pulled her body flush against his.

(Y/n) pulled away for a moment, lightly pushed Ukai to lay on his back, then moved between his legs and flush against him.

Ukai breathlessly pulled her into another kiss, sighing shakily against her lips as his hands roamed her body. He was beginning to regret wearing jeans instead of his usual sweat pants.

(Y/n) tossed his hairband aside and began running her fingers through his hair, causing another moan to bubble from his lips.

No other women made him moan like this. But this was (Y/n). (Y/n) who knew him inside and out. (Y/n) who he knew inside and out.

He brushed his hand through her hair, lightly gripping it and pulling her away, tugging her head to the side and dragging his tongue up her throat. She moaned shakily, gripping his shirt so tight that Ukai thought the buttons might pop off.

The sudden feeling of (Y/n) grinding her hips against Ukai’s had him tugging her hair harder and biting her neck.

(Y/n) whined and began shakily unbuttoning his shirt.

He parted from her neck and moved her to sit up, taking off the button-up and his undershirt.

(Y/n) had gotten busy trying to take off her dress, she almost didn’t notice Ukai’s shirtless body.

She went hot, looking over his amazing physique. He looked nothing like this when they were last together. Something special caught her eye, causing her to smirk once her dress was tossed aside.

“When’d you do this?” she asked, brushing her fingers over one of his pierced nipples. Ukai shivered at her touch. He retaliated by reaching around her and unclasping her bra, tossing it away.

“I told you I went overboard after you left...” he mumbled, kneading her breasts.

(Y/n) moaned shakily, peppering needy kisses against Ukai’s lips. “Take me right here...” she murmured between kisses.

Ukai suddenly flipped their position, getting (Y/n) on her back and straddling her. He pulled his wallet from his back pocket, beginning to take a condom out until (Y/n) stopped him.

“Nuh-uh, I’m on the pill. I’m clean. I want you raw.” She panted, hastily unbuckling his belt.

This was a dream come true.

Ukai threw the wallet aside and tugged off (Y/n)’s panties, stuffing them in the pocket of his jeans before tugging his pants halfway down his thighs.

(Y/n)’s eyes went wide at the sight of him. She gripped the couch cushion as he rubbed his tip against her slit, sighing shakily.

“Maybe I should have stretched first...” (Y/n) breathed, hips twitching as Ukai eased the tip inside of her.

“You’ll get a good stretch from this, angel...” he grunted, her old nickname adding onto the pleasure they were both experiencing.

Ukai eased in deeper, his hips stuttering as (Y/n) dug her nails into his arms. His teeth dug into his bottom lip and his eyes screwed shut. They moaned in unison once he was fully inside of her.

“Kei, if you don’t move...” (Y/n) whined, rolling her hips to gain some friction.

Ukai moaned shakily, slowly rocking his hips against her’s. “Y-you’re as tight as the first time we fucked...”

(Y/n) gasped as Ukai suddenly hit her g-spot, prompting him to thrust faster into that spot he instantly recognized. “Has my angel been waiting for me this whole time?”

She moaned louder, dragging her nails down his arms, earning a symphony of moans from him as well.

Ukai hooked one arm under her leg, spreading her legs wider as he continued plowing into her. He struggled to keep himself propped up with the other hand, shaking hard as (Y/n) began to tighten around him.

He pressed his forehead to hers, growling as she stared into his eyes and clawed at his shoulders.

“Keiiii pleaaaase!” she shrieked, squirming against him.

“T-that’s it, angel. Let me have it...” he groaned, brushing his lips against hers.

(Y/n) screamed shakily, burying her face in Ukai’s neck and biting him.

Ukai came after a few more thrusts, emptying himself inside her while he moaned wildly.

They both panted hard, a wave of euphoria crashing into them in the wake of their orgasms.

(Y/n) tangled her fingers in his hair and pulled him into a sloppy kiss.

Once they parted, he stood straight and took off his jeans, standing completely bare in front of (Y/n).

She was slightly confused until he lifted her off the couch and took her to his bedroom. He carefully laid her down before flopping onto the bed beside her.

(Y/n) let out a tired giggle, looking Ukai over as he still struggled to catch his breath.

“I think I have a cramp in my leg...” he groaned.

“Want me to rub it out?” (Y/n) teased, reaching towards him and brushing a strand of hair out of his face.

He slowly shook his head before taking her hand and kissing the tip of her middle finger. “Anymore friction from you and my soul will ascend into heaven.”

(Y/n) sighed softly, relaxing into the mattress and closing her eyes. “I shouldn’t stay... I have my job interview tomorrow.”

Ukai moved closer to her, pressing a soft kiss to her temple. “I have to open the shop up early tomorrow. I’ll wake you up so you have time to go to your hotel and make sure you’re ready... okay?”

(Y/n) slowly nodded, leaning up and kissing him once more.

“I guess this means we still feel something, huh?” Ukai asked, pulling the covers over their bodies.

“I guess so...” (Y/n) smiled, gently hugging his waist. “Maybe you can take me on a proper date tomorrow night... then it can be official.”

He chuckled softly, the need to sleep overcoming his need to say something clever. “Goodnight, (Y/n)...”

“Goodnight, Kei...”

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

The next day went by like a breeze for Ukai. He got one last kiss from (Y/n) when she left that morning, along with her new phone number. She didn’t even ask for her panties back.

Ukai wore a hoodie that easily covered the bite mark (Y/n) left him, meaning he wouldn’t have to deal with stupid questions from the boys at Karasuno.

Speaking of the boys, they were responding well to the new drills he and Takeda drew up. They were already showing improvement with their spikes and their serves. It was a perfect day.

Ukai was in the process of taking a swig of water when he heard the gym doors open, followed by a “HEADS UP!” from Noya.

The sound of a volleyball smacking against someone’s arm’s made the gym go silent. Hinata caught the stray ball, looking helplessly at Ukai.

The coach turned to see who had entered and blocked the ball.

He snorted, keeled over, and spat up the water he had been drinking onto the gym floor.

Takeda began slapping his back to help clear his airway as the school’s principal thanked (Y/n) profusely.

Ukai figured she had sidestepped in front of the principal and blocked the ball from smacking him right in the family jewels. She never joined Karasuno’s girl’s team, but she had helped Ukai practice enough to know how to receive a ball.

The principal cleared his throat, regained his composure, and led (Y/n) towards the coaches.

Ukai stood up straight, still struggling to breath as he looked her over. She was wearing a button-up shirt, a pencil skirt and heels. She was like an image out of a sexy librarian fantasy... only this was the real world. This was really happening.

“Coach Ukai, Coach Takeda, I would like to introduce your new athletic trainer!” the principal announced, beaming as Takeda and (Y/n) bowed to one another.

“It’s wonderful to meet-”

“What are you doing here?” Ukai coughed, interrupting Takeda.

(Y/n) smiled bashfully, giving him a small shrug of her shoulders. “I told you at dinner I didn’t want to say more about the job... I coulda jinxed it...”

“Ohhh!” the principal exclaimed, “I don’t know how I didn’t realize you two were classmates! What a wonderful reunion!”

“I did tell you we needed a trainer to come in and help before nationals...” Takeda murmured, nervously shifting where he stood.

“Well, I’ll leave you to it. Her first official day is tomorrow.” The principal left with that, Ukai realizing how silent the gym was as his footsteps got further and further away.

“H-Hey! What are you doing?! Get back to your drills!” he shouted at the team.

The boys got their asses back in gear, stealing glances at the coaches and their new trainer every now and then.

“I’m going to... go... over there...” Takeda stuttered. He quickly bowed to (Y/n) before running to the opposite side of the court.

“Are you really that upset?” (Y/n) frowned.

Ukai sighed softly rubbing at his temples. “No... I just really wish you told me...”

“Well... I didn’t exactly plan on last night-” (Y/n) paused when she noticed one of the boys, Hinata, slowly sidestepping closer to them to listen in on what was happening.

“Get back to spiking or you’ll be on towel duty for a month.” Ukai grumbled.

Hinata squeaked before running back onto the court.

“I didn’t plan on last night to go the way it did. I thought we’d get dinner, go our separate ways, then surprise! I’m here and we get to live out some slowburn fantasy where we fall for each other again.” (Y/n) explained, keeping her voice low.

Ukai sighed, closing his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose.

He felt (Y/n) slowly place her hand on his arm, wandering until she took his hand in hers. “Please just give me a chance? I want to help you get them to nationals...”

He slowly opens his eyes, groaning at the way she batted her eyes at him.

“Fine.”

(Y/n) smiled wide and hugged him tightly, snickering when he completely flushed red. “This is gonna be so much fun... now introduce me to the team.”

Once their current drill was complete, Ukai called the team over, noting the way the boys eyed (Y/n) with a mix of curiosity and confusion.

“Alright, this is (Y/n). She’s an old friend and she’s going to be our new athletic trainer. She’s gonna do everything in her power to whip you into shape for nationals. So do as she says and we won’t have any issues.”

A couple of the boys raised their hands high.

“Wow, there are questions about that... Tanaka.” Ukai pointed at the redhead.

“Is she your girlfriend?” he asked, no hesitation or shame in his words.

Ukai tensed. (Y/n) snickered.

“N-Not relevant!”

“Is she our Coach Mom now?” Noya piped up.

“No!”

“So you're not our Coach Dad?” Noya asked.

“Of course not!”

“I have a question not having to do with Coach Mom at all!” Hinata shouted.

Ukai breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank god. What’s your question?”

“What’s on your neck?”

Ukai went completely red again as (Y/n) tried to stifle her laughter.

“Is that from Coach Mom?” Noya shrieked, grabbing Asahi’s arms and shaking him wildly. “That’s from Coach Mom!”

“It totally is from Coach Mom...” Suga mumbled.

“Don’t encourage them.” Daichi said, nudging Suga.

“THE NEXT PERSON TO CALL (Y/n) COACH MOM HAS TO RUN 50 LAPS!” Ukai yelled, finally silencing the boys.

“L-lets just get back to our drills!” Takeda shouted, ushering the boys back onto the court.

“I just wanted to know what was on his neck...” Hinata pouted, “Did Coach Mom really do that-”

“50 laps Hinata!”

“Awwww! Do I have to, Coach Mom?!”

“100 LAPS!”

“No!” (Y/n) barked, lightly pushing Ukai before turning to Hinata. “That’s absurd, you don’t have to.”

Ukai adjusted his hoodie, glancing at (Y/n) as she crossed her arms. “You’d think you’d be a little less tense after last night-”

“Please just go home.” Ukai sighed, taking the keys to his flat from his pocket and placing them in her hand.

She blinked down at the keys in shock.

“I don’t want you in some hotel room when I have a perfectly good bed at my place... I’ll help you get your things from the hotel once practice is over...” He explained, scratching at the back of his head while keeping his eyes on the team.

“Guess you are my boyfriend then...” (Y/n) smiled. She quickly pressed a kiss to Ukai’s cheek before turning on her heels to leave. “See you at home, Coach Dad...”

Ukai turned to watch her leave, a small smile on his face. It wasn’t such a bad nickname when she said it...

[sexysilverstrider]

Icy Jealousy (Kaelumi)

  Kaeya was never much of a jealous person.

  He had his own ideals to chase. His own agendas to fulfil. He had no time to indulge in such trivial matters. He may have a fling every now and then, but all that would be snipped away in a blink of an eye before any of his playful encounters could even take a glance at his guarded heart.

  Kaeya had no need to be worried about such mindless—laughable, even—matters.

  That was…until she came into his life.

----------

  At first it was her encounter with the mysterious bard. Venti was ever so joyful, ever so clingy. While looking as innocent as any child, Kaeya would be a fool to think the bard was anything of the sort. Clearly there was something more when he looked at him, and oftentimes Kaeya wanted to subtly interrogate the youthful boy. Who knows? Maybe the many information Venti held might be of some use to his grand agenda.

  Well, that was the initial plan.

  “Lumine!”

  To see Venti clinging to Lumine’s arm, Kaeya soon realized that he wished to interrogate the bard for an entirely different reason.

  Shock jumped her shoulders at the playful embrace on her right arm. “Geez, Venti!” Her head turned to the side, lips pulling a pout to see him. “Don’t startle me. If I was any more surprised, I might accidentally punch you as a reaction.”

  Her mild threat didn’t even faze him. “Ehee,” he chuckled, smile as guiltless as his response. “Sorry, Lumine.” His slid a few steps back, though arms now wrapped around her right arm. “Care to join me for a drink? I heard Diluc had some really great wine brought in today?”

  Her pout softened to a smile. A sigh came out next. “If you’re paying.”

  “I got that covered!” Clearly, he did not.

  Nevertheless, arm in arm, they walked towards their destination. Laughter and conversation bubbled between them as they shared stories of her journeys and his travels.

  Kaeya only watched from a few steps afar, silent and analytical.

  The smirk he wore bore such ill will. Maybe he should pay a visit to the tavern today.

----------

  Sometimes, Kaeya had the pleasure of joining her in her little adventures. Whenever she set foot in Mondstadt, Lumine never missed the chance of paying a visit to the knights of Favonius. Kaeya—much to his silent glee—was one of them. The delight only heightened when he managed to squeeze time in his busy schedule to accompany her during commission work.

  In truth, he either changed his knightly tasks to ‘Team Up with Lumine’ or ignore his work assignments entirely.

  He could apologize to Jean later.

  During their travels, Kaeya got to a side of Lumine he rarely saw back in Mondstadt. He saw how fearless, how vigorous, and at times how reckless even to see her in action. Her plans were oftentimes near to perfection. Her movements were like wind itself, rising and soaring as she threw her enemies afar. The more he looked at her, the more he observed her, Kaeya knew he was walking on dangerous territory to regard her in such a…vulnerable way.

  He also knew that he wasn’t alone in this matter.

  “Lumine.”

  His calm voice caught her attention. Dissolving her sword back to nonexistence, she turned her heel. “Yes, Razor?” Her smile beamed upon the rugged boy. Kaeya only stood next to her, a single eyebrow raised in silent curiosity.

  Razor’s whole focus was on Lumine only. “Your hand.” Without hesitation, he held her left wrist. “Hurt.” Carefully he turned her hand, revealing a small gash on her palm.

  As adrenaline slowly eased off from her, realization finally acknowledged the numbing pain. “Oh—ah!” One eye closed as she flinched. A chuckle slipped out like a child in trouble, Lumine scratched the side of her neck with her other hand. “I didn’t realize tha—”

  Slurp.

  Not only the traveler, but shock was clear as day in the knight-captain’s eye.

  The pain was brief, but amber eyes were round as they could be due to a different kind of reaction. “R-Razor—?!” A squeak peeped as she felt his tongue on her palm again. The blood on her skin was slowly being licked away, the pressure stinging her quite a bit but warming her face most definitely.

  “I clean.” Razor merely stated, head lowered to her hand and tongue once again ready to wipe the blood clean.

  …That was…until he felt her hand being snatched away from him.

  Crimson eyes quickly glared at the man next to her.

  Kaeya didn’t say a word, yet a smile was evident, its curve so laced with malice and indignation. A growl echoed in the barren battlefield; he couldn’t tell whether the sound came from the boy or himself.

----------

  The months where he hadn’t seen Lumine were apparently the worse.

  Kaeya had bid his farewells. He had wished her journey a safe one. He had other duties to attend too. And she clearly had her brother to find. He knew this would be a short-lived rela—friendship, and Kaeya had set it clear in his mind that she wouldn’t stay with hi—in Mondstadt—for long.  

  It seemed his heart didn’t get the memo.

  Thankfully, after nearly 6 months of not seeing her, Lumine actually came back. She informed Jean that she dropped by for a visit, saying even that she missed Monndstadt and its people after months of being away.

  When Kaeya heard of it, it truly made his heart flutter.

  When he saw her new companion, however, it truly made his heart burn.

  Zhongli only watched silently as Venti and Lumine shared stories. Happiness bloomed within the ex-archon to see his old friend. Venti was still as witty, was still as cunning, and he found it amusing that the now bard immediately hid behind Lumine the moment they reunited.

  “Just making sure.” A single chuckle held being thinned lips as he brought the scene to his mind. Golden eyes then spotted some strands of Lumine’s hair dangling by the side of her face. They swayed and brushed across her left ear, catching his attention like a cat to a ball of yarn.

  Without a word, Zhongli casually slipped through those beautiful locks with his fingers and gently tucked them behind her ear.

  The simple action surely made Lumine flinch. Quickly she looked to the side, amber eyes wide and face quite warm from the gentle contact.

  Upon seeing what he assumed was a mistake, Zhongli quickly let out a short cough. “Apologies, Lumine.” He placed his cup down onto the table. “Your hair is just simply mesmerizing, I couldn’t help myself.” Honesty was his virtue, and the Geo archon simply gifted the surprised traveler a warm smile.

  Her face felt hotter, it seemed. “It’s okay, Zhongli.” She laughed it off, one hand on her cheek. “I just felt ticklish is all.” The conversation was then cut short to Venti’s sly chuckle, bringing both human and makeshift human back to the reality that they were not alone. Zhongli merely continued indulging in his tea, while Lumine rolled her eyes and teased the bard with many comebacks that she learned from her journey.

  While the scene played out like rainbows and sunshine, the even happening in the bar was anything but.

  “Oi,” Diluc interjected, “can you stop trying to shatter my glass? If you wanted some frozen popsicles, go to the dessert stall down the street.” His tongue clicked as crimson eyes glared at the man sitting across him.

  Azure gaze, cold and icy like the element, kept its focus on the trio.

  “Ah,” Kaeya simply, finally, responded. Fingers released the glass he had clutched. Flakes of ice and snow now enveloped the clear glassware, almost revealing cracks as the liquor inside of it had turned to solid ice.

  He turned to face the pyro user. His lips formed a smile, the corners swirled to a sinister curve that rivalled the spine-chilling element on his fingertips. “Sorry, dear Diluc.” He straightened his back, smile still forced in its place. “Would you be so kind as to warm my drink up?”

  “I’d rather burn you to the ground.”

  Her laughter echoed the second Diluc gave his blunt remark. Her laughter alone was enough to snatch every single attention Kaeya had.

  Her laughter alone was enough to ignite a monstrous flame within his chest.

  “Kaeya!” Anger fumed when Diluc saw the plane of ice on the bar. It seemed that the knight-captain truly wanted to be turned to ashes.

----------

  After a week of contemplating—both his heart and his mind—Kaeya decided to do the one thing that would surely piss Jean off.

  In truth, he actually enjoyed traveling with Lumine and her companions. The adventure took his mind off things. The countless dangerous encounters lit a fire within him. While the Knights of Favonius had special training for those with visions, nothing beat an actual face-to-face against inhuman enemies in order to test his elemental strengths and skills. It truly helped that Kaeya got to see Lumine in action as well, more so than he usually did in the past.

  She was still the same. Reckless but calculating. Gentle but rough. It seemed she had obtained the Geo elemental as well, much to his silent surprise. While Lisa did inform him before that the traveler did not possess a vision, to see her wield both Anemo and Geo further piqued his curiosity and interest about her.

  Well, he knew the secret to her power was only half of his genuine interest. The other half was…something Kaeya still chose not to disclose, be it to her or himself.

  After nearly weeks of camping, they finally decided to rest in Wangshu Inn. It seemed like a giant treehouse, Kaeya mentally noted, and he was widely impressed at how sturdy the structure was despite the amount of people and chaos inside it. Zhongli suggested they rested here for a couple of nights while they restock on some resources and weapons. And although Lumine and Paimon agreed to it, Kaeya soon realized that the ones doing the payment was Lumine herself.

  Like a gentleman, Kaeya paid for his room, of course—and Razor’s too since he warmed up to the young wolf boy during their journey.

  Night dawned upon them, and it was the most beautiful Kaeya had ever seen. Granted, Mondstadt was glorious with its lights and grandeur, but nothing could compare to the beauty nature had exposed before them. The gleaming line of lit lanterns truly complimented the sky above. And for once in his life, he truly felt at peace.

  That was…until azure eye spotted the target of his affections talking to someone new.

  “How do you like your almond tofu?” Lumine asked, head tilted slightly as she looked at the quiet adepti. Xiao merely nodded, gaze on his food and attention trying its best to focus on the delicacy.

  Her laugh was slowly breaking his concentration, however.

  “Hmm…” Slowly he swallowed, then huffed out single sigh. The distance between them wasn’t as far, but it wasn’t as close either. As Lumine rested her arms against the wooden rail of the balcony, Xiao only stood perfectly still with the warm plate still in his hand. He was highly aware of the small distance between them, and this also made him aware of the warmth that slowly seeped into his skin.

  He still refused to move from his single spot.

  “Good…” Whether the answer was for the food or the moment they were having, neither could tell.

  As the two enjoyed their peaceful night, one lone man stood from afar, his breathing exhaled in low specks of a chilly breeze.

----------

  Finally, after 2 months of travelling, they finally arrived in Liyue. The place was gorgeous, Kaeya couldn’t lie. It seemed that the city was Zhongli’s birthplace—"or something like that,” as explained by Venti. The reason of them coming back to the land was because Zhongli had to attend to his own work matter.

  Kaeya wanted to comment on it, but he decided to bite his tongue when he was reminded that he too somewhat shirked his duties to be closer to Lumine.

  He was happy that he finally got to spend time with her. Like a holiday of sorts. While Paimon of course oftentimes clung to her like glue, Kaeya still managed to trick the floating creature with some delicious delicacies in any nearby restaurant. Even Razor couldn’t be seen, as Lumine informed Kaeya that the wolf boy preferred the wild environment, so he made camp in an area not too far from the city so he could come as soon as possible when she calls for him.

  Yes. It truly was the perfect moment for Kaeya to get closer to Lumine.

  …Or so he thought.

  “Ojou-chaaan,” Her name lulled in a singsong tune, she felt her shoulders being firmly hugged by someone whom brought a huge sigh off her chest.

  “Now, now.” Faking an offended expression, Childe placed one hand on his chest. “I’m only here to fight my favourite comrade!”

  Slap. Without haste, she slapped his hands away from her. “I’m busy, Childe.”

  “Oh?” He didn’t take offense at all. “You don’t look busy.” He walked beside her. The more she picked up the pace, the more he followed it.

  Deciding that running would only encourage the harbinger even more, Lumine finally slowed down. She knew he was a very, very persistent man. So with another sigh leaving her lips, she shot a glare at him.

  His eerie smile became a lovely match.

  “I am busy.” Amber eyes looked at the list in her right hand. “I’m searching for stuff and things to buy before we head out. Unlike you—” Another glare was given.”—who seem like he has a lot of free time in the world, I need to keep on moving to complete my mission.”

  The ‘mission’ she firmly stated was something they both knew was a delicate topic, so Childe decided go against asking it further.

  Instead, he still made it worse. “Oh? I’m always busy, ojou-chan.” Lower lip pulled to a playful pout. The back of his hand dramatically moved to his forehead. “Can’t you see how tired I am? I am absolutely fatigued by the amount of work my stupid co-workers have put me through.”

  “If you’re tired, then why the stars do you insist on battling with me today?”

  Lumine honestly expected his playful banter. She had prepared a retort. Her mind had generated words that would surely put him into a stupor.

  What she didn’t expect was her left arm to be pulled and her body being turned to the side.

  Amber eyes were wide. Everything happened so fast as the traveler then felt her chin being tipped upwards from a single finger.

  “Because…” A voice, lulled so close and so deep, brushed her pink lips. “Battling with you is never tiring.” Cobalt blue eyes were as striking as the deepest oceans. “Every time I see you…” His gaze lingered. His voice lowered. “I have this urge to just mess—” His right hand that held her left arm moved down… “—you—” And down… “—up…” Palm pressed firmly against the side of her waist—

  Shing!

  Pupils shot to the side the moment he felt a cold breeze. Instincts kicking in fast, Childe immediately released his hold on her and slid a few steps back. In a flash, he summoned his water blades, expression masked to one of annoyance. Luckily, the ice shard—he soon realized—missed him by a hair’s breadth. The back of his hand still felt the chill, and this only made him tighten his hold.

  In truth, Lumine was ready to summon her own wind element to whoosh the fatui away. As hot as her face felt right now, it seemed that shock still kept hold of her heart and mind as she felt her body being pulled yet again.

  “Oh dear, I’m sorry I’m late, Lumine.” She recognized that voice anywhere.

  One hand around her shoulders, Kaeya graced the harbinger before him with the cruellest, most sinister smile one had ever seen. Though sword not in sight in fear that he might cause enough attention than he already had, Kaeya still stretched his left hand forward. Tiny sparks of ice danced across his fingertips, spiralling small swirls towards his target.

  Fear was never present in Childe’s eyes.

  “Ojou-chan,” he called for her, voice light with poison, “it seems you have something stuck on you. Need me to take care of it?” While his grand scheme was to have a duel with her, Childe honestly didn’t mind a warm-up. White teeth gleamed under the sun’s rays. Gaze never torn from the traveler’s stunned face.

  He was mocking her; Kaeya knew this. “Oya, oya.” A single laugh chilled the Liyue air. “Underestimating me, aren’t you? That’s fine.” While true, his past self did choose to not summon his sword, “I always love to see my enemies being horribly humiliated.” his present self now had other plans.

  The sword breezed and solidified into his hands in a blink. To see the tip of a sharp weapon right in front of him, it only infuriated and excited Childe even further. A gust of ice and a burst of water formed around them, quickly and surely attracting an audience that feared for the sudden animosity.

  Both were ready to fight. Both were ready to spill blood.

  “That—”

  Both…

  “—is enough!”

  …were now being blown away straight to a nearby lake by a powerful tornado.

----------

  It had almost been a year since Lumine’s presence. Almost a year since she changed the lives of many. Her mission was still ongoing. The search for her brother was still top priority on her list. But in her many adventures, her presence did bring joy and hope some thought they had lost forever.

  “Diluc! One more please!”

  It seemed that he was part of the ‘some’, after all.

  “Isn’t this your third glass?” A single eyebrow raised. He watched as she giggled shyly, one finger pushing the strand of blonde locks behind her ear.

  Cute. He understood why Kaeya of all people was struggling when it comes to her.

  “Ma-aybe,” she hiccupped, one hand then quickly cupping her mouth.

  Really cute. He understood why Kaeya had oftentimes lost his cool around her.

  Coughing once, Lumine cocked her head in pride. “It’s a party. No harm in celebrating once in a while. Besides, I still have some senses left in me.” Her smile shined as bright as the flames of his element. Bouncing on the balls of her feet, she then looked around. “Hmm, where’s Kaeya?”

  If not for the many years of masking his emotions so perfectly, Diluc would raise his eyebrows in surprise. “Don’t know,” he bluntly replied, hands continued to wipe and clean a wineglass.

  Crimson eyes observed as her mouth pulled a frown.

  “He was here a minute ago…” She seemed sullen? Crestfallen? Disappointed? The change of tone in her voice evoked a glint of surprise in his eyes. While Kaeya was a master of faking his emotions as he was a master of hiding his, Diluc knew his bro—the annoying cavalry captain lately had a hard time keeping his feelings in check when Lumine becomes the matter. As surprising as it was at first, Diluc soon registered the fact that there was another person—other than him—that could shake the cryo user.

  This was getting more and more amusing, he thought.

  “The fool might be dead in the upstairs balcony.”

  The statement caught her attention. “Oh?” The pep in her voice was back. Whether it was from the alcohol or the excitement itself, it was clear that Lumine didn’t bother to hide her glee. She beamed as Diluc resumed his cleaning, ignoring her altogether as a sign that he wasn’t going to say any further.

  That was enough for her. “Thank you, Diluc!” Smile as bright as the sun, she quickly made way to the balcony on the second floor.

  As he watched her disappear into the crowd, a simple twitch of his lips curled upwards.

----------

  Kaeya always loved watching the stars and moon.

  It was peaceful. Breath-taking. Calming. He was able to register his thoughts and recollect his mind every time he was alone with the twinkling lights. The wineglass in his hand was brought up, swirled gently before he sipped the final contents of his drink.

  Through the haze of his intoxication, his mind wandered to her.

  “Heh…” Lips curled to a derisive smirk. How cruel, he thought, that she still invaded his mind after all these months. When Kaeya decided to come back to Mondstadt due to knightly matters, he assumed that maybe, just maybe, a few more months of avoiding her would be the key to finally take all of this as some harmless crush.

  Alas, as the months rolled by without him being able to see her, it turns out it wasn’t harmless nor a crush.

  His arms leaned heavily against the rails of the balcony. And now that she came back to celebrate Jean’s achievements—and to thank her for all she had done—Kaeya finally had a chance to talk to Lumine. He finally had the chance to see her. He finally had the opportunity to catch up with her without the noisy company of others.

  He honestly didn’t mind Paimon. He did however mind a lot about her choice of human companions.

  He should treat her to lunch and catch up. But no. Instead, he made her do a taxing errand of preparing the feast for the party, while he had other separate matters to attend to.

  At times like these, he truly felt like a fool.

  The party had started an hour ago, and he did compliment her for being the mastermind of the surprise party. While in truth, it was his idea, Kaeya felt it more appropriate for the Honorary Knight to take in all the glory while he basked in the shadows.

  Heh. How fitting it seemed that he never changed.

  “Kaeya?”

  Not realizing that he had his eye closed all this time, Kaeya snapped it open before turning around. “Lumine!” Shock was present on his face, but the cryo user quickly mellowed it with a perfectly curled smile. “Now, what do I have the pleasure to see Honorary Knight out here tonight?” His back leaned against the rail, wineglass already placed on the small table next to him.

  Her response wasn’t immediate. Nor was it verbal. Instead, she gave a smile, one so sincere and endearing, he almost gripped the rail tightly.

  “I was looking for you.”

  Her simple answer shook him once again. Azure eye widened in shock. Lips firmly pressed to hide the emotion that fizzled within him. “Oh ho?” he chimed, the corner of his lips curled slightly. “I didn’t know I was missed.”

  “You are.”

  Her blunt answers were getting better and better. And this truly did not fare well on his end.

  Finally, he was out of words for a short while. And it was that short while that Lumine decided to move forward and stand next to him. Pride itched at her brain to know that she was able to make the cavalry knight speechless. It seems there were many benefits to having countless banters with Paimon and Childe.

  “I mean…” However, embarrassment followed suit at the realization of her words. “I didn’t see you much at the party so…” While common sense still held her by the reins, Lumine wondered if the fast beat of her heart right now was the cause of the man next to him.

  In truth, a huge part of her hoped so.

  “I asked Diluc and he said that you might be passed out in the cold here.”

  A single chuckle burst past his lips. “How sweet that he cares.” He looked to his side, memorizing every shape of her presence. “How sweeter that you care, my dear.”

  A single eyeroll was given. “I do care, though.” Her reply once again stunned him; she was getting better at reading his emotions too. “I…I know you’ve been through a lot, especially with Diluc so…”

  “Ah…” He cut her off, partly in realization and the other part to silently signal her to not continue it further. It seems that he had forgotten for a brief moment that he told her of his past. Months and months of travelling together seems to make a person’s lips looser. It was clear that he trusted her, as much as his heart could dangerously handle. And in turn, Kaeya gave her the reason to trust him.

  Which was also a much worse issue, considering that his role and lies still hang heavily around his neck.

  The smile on his face mellowed. Slowly he turned around, head cocked upwards to gaze at the night sky. “Pretty night, isn’t it?”

  She turned around too, though head tilted in his direction. A frown graced her face. Heat kissed her cheeks despite the cold breeze that caressed her body. “Kaeya—”

  “Where are you going next?”

  Roles were now in reverse as the question caught him off guard. “Sorry?”

  “Your next destination, Lumine.” Their eyes met. “Surely, you’re not going to make me hope that you might stick around longer?” The question laced with sweet toxicity, Kaeya let out another chuckle. “As happy as I am to see you back here, I know you’re on a mission to reunite with your brother.”

  His voice was soft, gentle. His expression bared a smile that strained his face.

  It hurt to watch.

  “Soon…” The reply was meek. Hands held the wooden rail. Amber eyes gazed downwards the people below. “I’ll go to Inazuma in the next 3 days.” Fingers slowly fiddled with one another. “The ship will depart on that day. So…I don’t know when I’ll be able to visit Mondstadt again…”

  Crack.

  Azure eye dulled as he ignored the pain in his chest.

  “I see.” was his only response. Slowly he nodded, mouth thinning to hold back the smile that was faltering. “Well,” One hand moved to her, wavered, hesitant, before he patted her shoulder. “I wish you all the best, Lumine.”

  Crack.

  A deep breath was taken to gulp back the cracks left in her chest.

  Hands slowly cupped together. Tightly. “Actually, I was wondering…” There was a reason she came looking for him. There was a reason she came back to Mondstadt before her next journey. One breath. Two. She closed her eyes before recollecting her thoughts that would soon slur into verbal words.

  She felt his hand pull away. She hated that.

  “I want—” With a heart that wanted to burst out of her ribcage, Lumine took the hand that was pulled away. “—you to join me!”

  Shock was the star of the show in the brilliant evening. One gawked at her as if she grew a second head. The other gasped in silence as if what she had just said was near to impossible.

  When she thought about, considering his role in Mondstadt, it might as well be.

  The grip on his left hand tightened.

  “I…” It was now or never. “I had so much fun travelling with you. It was never a dull moment.” Her head was down. “When we did all those commissions and strange requests, you always had a plan ready. When we were battling the powerful enemies, you always had my back. When I felt down and out of it, you were always there to cheer me up!” Her hands shook. “I—when we went to Dragonspine, you tried your best to find warm shelter to keep everyone warm even though fire isn’t actually your forte.” Archons, she would never forget how grateful she was to have him endure the frigid cold of such an unforgivable place.

  His hand felt warm.

  “We fought side by side all these months and I—” Couldn’t forget it. Couldn’t forget him. “I…” Anxiety kicked in the more she stuttered. Forcing another gulp, Lumine let out a sharp sigh. “Having you so close to me made me realize how much I need you.”

  Blue bangs shielded his eye.

  “Waking up and seeing you bond with Paimon and Razor and everyone else first thing in the morning made me realize how much I miss those moments.”

  Lips were slightly parted.

  “And…” She could do this. “The night that we opened up about our brothers—” She heard a sharp breath. “—that was…truly a night that I felt closest to you.” She felt her hands shake. “I like that. I love that.” There was a reason why she chose to drink more than she could handle tonight—

  “I love—”

  “Lumine.”

  Her shoulders flinched. At the same time his voice startled her, she gaped as she watched his hands slip away from her grasp. She froze as she felt those same hands cup her cheeks.

  “Lumine…”

  His voice was silky smooth, caressing her very skin that sent prickles up to the back of her neck. She blinked once. Twice. Lumine then moved her head upwards by the gentle gesture of his hands—

  Chup…

  Amber eyes were as wide as they could be.

  His lips were soft, sweet, slightly sour with a taste of tangy citrus. While bafflement had her vision open and clear, his eye was closed.

  One heartbeat. Two.

  Realization knocked him hard at the back of his head.

  Quickly his eye snapped open. Immediately he pulled back. “I—!” Hands moved from cheeks to shoulders. It seems that the wine he drank had finally took control of his body. When he listened to her request, Kaeya could only feel his body float like a cloud. When he heard her explanation, he could only feel his heart clawing right out of his throat.

  Love. When he heard that word, that one word, he couldn’t help but to succumb to the feelings he had long tried to destroy.

  He gaped at her. She gawked at him. “Ahaa…” Defeat and shame poured down on him. “Sorry, Lumine.” Now he had done it. “I had uh…too much to drink tonight.” Now he had perfectly fucked this up.

  He should leave. He should walk away. Being here with her was a mistake. Holding her by the shoulders was a mistake. Feeling her warmth, remembering the luscious shape of her lips was definitely, definitely, a mistake—

  “Gaack—!”

  Chuu!

  Words, panics, and fears dissipated like hot steam once he felt the front of his shirt being tugged, once he felt those lips he so dearly missed pressed hard against his.

  This time, her eyes were closed shut. This time his eye was wide as saucers.

  However, bafflement didn’t linger too long, as Kaeya fully registered the moment with an open heart and an open mouth.

  Quickly his eye closed. Hands now moved around her waist, tickling her in the process that Lumine actually wiggled in his embrace. Cute. The word beaming like a beacon, he pulled her flushed against his chest. Cute! Cute! His tongue found and caressed her own, tangling together until breaths became heavy in their lungs. Cute, cute, cute! With ease, Kaeya moved his hands downwards and lifted her up. It seems that the alcohol took hold of her mind too, as Lumine happily wrapped her legs around his waist as she pressed closer.

  Chu! Chuu…chup! Apart they broke for a mere second. Chuuu! Together they kissed again before either could regain proper vision. Her hands tugged and brushed through long, silky blue hair. His hands squeezed and gripped her soft, scarred thighs.

  Pop!

  If it weren’t for the fact that they needed air, they knew there would be no end to this.

  Pants, heavy and warm, stroked each other’s faces. A gaze of pure stupor was given to a face of sheer shock. Red kissed their cheeks as if the sun had grazed them. Heartbeats pumped hard and fast against flushed chests.

  One heartbeat. Two heartbeats.

  After the third beat, realization dawned on them like cold water.

  “Ah—” Both stumbled. Quickly Lumine released her grip and stood in a shaky stance. She kept hold on his shoulders, fearing that the intense moment would make her lose her posture. His hands slid upwards to her waist, his grip not longer rough yet palms pressed firmly on her body.

  They didn’t show any signs of letting each other go.

  Her head dropped. Should she apologize? Should she forgive? Should she say something to dispel this awkward situation that bloomed between them?

  But he did kiss her, though. And while Kaeya had been on her mind all these months since their journey together, never had she thought that her feelings would be requited. She felt giddy. Anxious. A whirlwind of emotions swirled inside her to know, to see, to feel, that the dashing cavalry knight would harbour such feelings for—

  “Lumine…”

  A single gulp slid down a dry throat.

  She cast a peek. Heat burned to the tips of her ears, Lumine found it wise to not say anything yet.

  She was too cute, he gushed.

  “Pushing aside our little…session, which I find absolutely amazing, by the way.” He gently pulled her closer. “I want to answer your request.”

  Her finger unintentionally squeezed his shoulders.

  “Lumine…” His voice lowered to a husky whisper, so loving, so sweet. “I would love to join you to Inazuma.” To join you anywhere.

  His answer lit up a spark of joy on her face. Quickly, finally, she brought her head upwards. “Really—?”

  Chu.

  Glee burst to shock at the feel of his lips.

  “Kaeya!” Instinctively she pulled back, pupils blown in pure embarrassment over his tease.

  Laughter echoed the bright night. While Kaeya was infamous for masking his emotions, the laugh he burst out was both genuine and filled with absolute glee.

  How mesmerized she felt to witness such beauty.

  “Geez…” Quivered lips pressed a shaky smile. Playfully jabbing his chest once, Lumine then wrapped her arms around his chest. “I have to get used to this, huh?” A sheepish mumble left her lips. Her left cheek nuzzled against his warm chest.

  A peaceful sigh left her to feel fingers tickling her back.

  “Pretty much.” Happy. “You wanted me to tag along. You pay the price, my dear.” It felt so sinful to be this happy. He nuzzled the top of her head, inhaling the sweet scent of windwheel aster and vanilla that he so dearly loved.

  It seems his silly jealousy was—after all—silly.

  Finally, her laughter joined his. The two relished in their embrace, making the stars and the moon their witness of the very start of their ever after.

END