#chapter 400 is actually so lit

[astro-can]

why does haikyuu give me so many goosebumpsadihlajdhajshda

[roseghoul26]

Part 4

Arthur Morgan x f!Reader

"'Do you love me?' You asked, voice barely louder than a whisper.

Arthur nodded, gazing at you like you hung the moon and the stars.

'Then say it. I promise you, nothing bad is gonna come from it.'"

Synopsis: A retelling of the mission "Blessed are the Peacemakers", where instead of Arthur getting kiddnapped, it's you.

Tags: fluff, friends to lovers, eventual smut, smut, torture, mentions of sexual assault, no actual SA, dutch is father figure, so is hosea, arthur morgan deserves everything, fem reader, afab!reader, she/her pronouns used for reader, not beta read

Author’s Note: this part is the smut part, with some story too. i struggled with this chapter cause i’ve only written smut like twice so here we go lmao.

next fic i’m thinking of doing javier or charles (loml), and i have different ideas for both. and i’ll def. write for arthur again, and feel free to send requests or ideas (or literally send whatever i love getting messages)

Taglist: @photo1030

part 1 ❉ part 2 ❉ part 3 ❉ part 4

And it was a long ride, done in silence as the two of you made it to the meetup place. The cowboy occasionally looked over his shoulder at you, but other than that there was little interaction. There was tension between the two of you that was on the cusp of snapping into a million pieces, but there was nothing you could do about it right now. Mustering what patience you had, and also pushing down your desires, you made your way to Emerald Ranch. 

Lenny arrived a short while after you and Arthur, sweaty and anxious, but thankfully alive. And he wasn’t followed, so you thanked the universe that luck was on your side that day. 

After meeting up, you’d sold the stolen goods to the fence, and with the combined cash you’d pick up, the three of you had a nice haul of about 750 dollars. After everyone received their cut, there was almost 400 dollars left to donate to camp, which you stuck in the box with a proud smile. Not bad for your first job back, you thought. 

Dutch seemed to think so too, complimenting you as you wrote in the ledger. “How we managed to survive those weeks without you, I’ll never know. Thank you, dear.”

You just shrugged. “Don’t mention it. And you can thank Arthur for keepin’ us afloat.”

Dutch didn’t say anything to that. Instead, he lit a match for his cigar, moving so his back was facing his tent as he smoked. Now facing you, you saw him in your peripherals observing you as you finished writing, letting the ink dry before closing the book. Not appreciating his staring, you questioned him with a look. 

“Take Arthur to Saint Denis to… look for leads. Yeah, go look for leads.”

“Huh? Right now?”

“That’s what I said, right? I’ve heard that the hotels ‘round there are brimming with opportunities. And take as much time as you need, if you catch my meanin’.” He gave you a wink, but you continued to stare at him like he grew a second head. “You’re smart, dear. You’ll figure it out. Now go, before I change my mind.” He dismissed you with a wave, staring out at the open water as you left.

“Oh… o-okay?” You were halfway to your tent when it dawned on you: Dutch was giving you permission to leave camp for a bit, which was convenient, to say the least. You turned to thank him, but he seemed lost in thought, so you saved it for later. “Make sure Lenny gets sent out too,” you still shouted out, hoping that Dutch heard you. 

Entering your tent, you found Arthur already there, which was no surprise. He had practically beelined there after you all arrived at camp, barely giving you a passing look. You hadn’t given it much thought at the time, but when you saw him hunched over as he sat on the edge of the bed, knuckles white as he gripped the edge of the cot, you immediately became concerned. Racing through your thoughts, you tried to remember if it seemed like he was in pain earlier. It wouldn’t be unlike him to get injured and then hide it. 

Rushing to his side, you were on your knees as you looked at him, scanning his body for any blood or obvious injury. When you found nothing, you looked into his eyes which you found closed. “Love? What’s wrong? Are you alright?” you asked, brushing back some of the hair that had fallen in his face, his hat discarded somewhere nearby. His cheeks were rosy too, you noticed.

When he opened his eyes, you were startled to find how dark they were, and he stared through you. “Shit, did you hit your head?” You moved to stand and examine his head further, but a gentle hand on your shoulder had you sinking back down to your knees. 

“I’m alright,” his voice was strained. Arthur didn’t provide any more details, and you heard him let out a huff of air when your hands rested on his knees, your face only a few inches away from them as you peered up at him. 

“Then what’s goin’ on, Arthur? You’re scaring me.” He placed one of his hands atop yours, fingers shaking slightly from the strain of gripping the cot. It tickled when he started dancing his fingers across the skin, but you kept your face still as you watched him. 

“Oh, princess. You’ve got no idea what you do to me, do you?” His voice was breathy, barely audible to you as his hand stilled. Finally, his eyes focused on yours, growing impossibly wider when he realized the position you were in. “Here,” he extended a palm up, offering you to put your hand in his. When you did, he kissed the back of it gently, before bringing it right above his heart and pressing it to his chest. Even through his shirt, which you had just noticed he had a few more top buttons unbuttoned, you could feel his heartbeat, which was beating like the speed of a hummingbird’s wings. 

Suddenly things started making a whole lot more sense with the dilated pupils, heavy breathing, and his sporadic heartbeat. Immediately your concern was replaced with something less selfless, a hungry need growing in you as you took in Arthur being in such a state, and all because of you.

“Since last night, I can’t stop thinkin’... and ever since the house it’s gotten worse. I can barely look at you without remembering the way you felt… and you’ve got me so damn turned on I can’t function.” His voice turned into a growl at the end, and you felt yourself pressing your thighs together, trying to ease the growing tension building between them from his confession. God, everything felt warm. 

Arthur didn’t miss the movement, as subtle as you tried to be. With a knowing grin, he pressed one last kiss to your hand before setting it back on his knee. “It took everythin’ in me to not take you right there in that house,” he said it so casually that you almost didn’t register what he said. Your grip on his legs tightened, and you found yourself sitting up straighter on your knees, now at chest level with him. 

“I would’ve let you,” you confessed, and Arthur moved closer to you, almost touching his lips with yours. Slowly, just like Arthur had done to you, you brought your hands up his thighs. You felt them tense under your touch, and you heard Arthur let out a little noise as your hands traveled up.

And up. 

And up until they rested at his belt, and you toyed with the loopholes as he started down at you. You could feel his breathing grow rapid, huffs of warm breath against your face. As you halted, you heard him groan. “You want me to touch you?” It was a redundant question, but you asked anyway. 

Arthur swallowed. “Yes.” He tried to press his lips against yours, but you kept your head far enough away. The hands on hips helped him stay put, and you relished in the fact that he could easily break free from your “hold”, but he didn’t.

“Then tell me. Tell me what you’ve been thinking of.”

You saw his blush extend past his face and down his chest. “That… it ain’t proper.”

You chuckled at that. “Since when do we care about what’s proper, Arthur?”

“I suppose we don’t,” he agreed, and he relaxed some. A few moments passed, then he was resting his head against yours. “You want me to tell you, or show you, princess?”

“Why not both?”

“Can’t do that.”

“Can’t, or won’t?” You pestered, a teasing grin on your face.

“I can’t, cause there ain’t gonna be much talkin’ when my head’s between your thighs.”

Whatever rebuttal you had died instantly in your throat. “Oh,” was all you were able to get out, your mouth growing suddenly dry at Arthur’s boldness, and that tension growing was starting to become unbearable. 

“Oh?” He mocked, laughing when you softly slapped him on his leg.

“Shuddup,” you rolled your eyes. Placing your hands back on his thighs, you felt the thick muscles there, built from years of a hard life and survival. “Tell me more,” you asked, moving your fingers closer and closer to the zipper of his jeans, looking down at your task at hand. Your face flushed when you saw the very noticeable bulge between his legs. 

“You never answered my question,” you felt rough, calloused fingers under your chin, which gently brought your gaze back up to Arthur’s. 

“Show me, Arthur.”

He nodded, a light smile on his lips. “Alright, princess. We’re gonna have to be quiet though.”

The whole reason why you came into the tent came back to you. “Well, maybe we don’t have to be. And I did say I was gettin’ you out of camp, and, well, Dutch has told me to bring you to Saint Denis to ‘search for leads’,” you said, hoping that Arthur got the hidden meaning quicker than you did. 

“Did he now?” You nodded. “Well, why didn’t you say so sooner. Don’t wanna waste any time now, do we?”

“In my defense, I thought you were in pain when I walked in. You jerk,” you bopped him again. Arthur just shook his head at you. 

Standing up, you supported your shaky legs by holding onto his shoulders. Despite being fully upright, you still held on, not really wanting to stop feeling him. You now stood above him, able to look down at him as he sat on the edge of the bed. Bringing your face lower, you kiss the space between his brows, then moving down the arch of nose and planting one on the tip. Then kissing the apples of each cheek in quick succession, you hovered just above his own, and you cupped his face in your hands. Your thumbs rubbed the stubble of his cheeks, and you couldn’t help but wonder how it would feel between your thighs. It wasn’t the first time you’d wondered, but you hoped that soon your questions would be answered. 

At last, your lips finally made contact with his. If there was one thing you would never tire of, it would be kissing Arthur. His lips were surprisingly soft, plush yet firm. Even though you had kissed him many times before, each time felt like the first, the overwhelming feeling of him taking over every sense, every nerve in your body buzzing with energy. Eagerly Arthur reciprocated, lips moving against you like they were created to fit with yours perfectly. Before you allowed the two of you to get swept away, kissing his forehead before stepping away.

“C’mon, pretty boy,” you grabbed his hat, affixing it atop your head with a wink as Arthur scoffed. “Let’s go to Saint Denis. I’ve heard the hotels there are… lucrative.”

Arthur stood now, rebuttoning up his shirt and attempting to make himself more put together. “I’m sure they are, princess.” He gestured you out of the tent, and the midday air did little to cool you off. 

Walking toward your horses, you saw Dutch talking with Lenny, before the older man patted him on the shoulder and walked away. Because Lenny was facing you, you gave him a questioning thumbs up, and he nodded in return. “Have a good night then, Lenny,” you called out. 

“You too, miss.” You saw his eyes flick behind you. “Both of you,” he added, before walking to a nearby campfire and plopping down, laughing lightly to himself. Reaching your mount, you patted TT on his neck, and then offered him a sugarcube from the saddle bag. He gladly ate the treat, snorting when he finished. 

You went to mount TT, but Arthur calling your name had you halting, only one foot in the stirrup as you turned over your shoulder to look at him. He stood beside his horse, holding the reins in his hands. “Ride with me?” he asked, smiling brightly when you made your way over to him. 

When you got close enough, after giving you a quick peck on the cheek he placed his hands on your hips. Easily lifting you on the rump of his horse, you immediately wrapped your arms around him when he mounted. Scooting forward as best you could while sitting sidesaddle, your chest pressed against his back, and you rest your head on his shoulder. His hat was kind of in the way, but you didn’t dare take it off. 

After ensuring that you were secure, he began moving, the camp quickly leaving both your visions shortly. He kept his horse at a fast pace, which was nowhere near as fast as you were going earlier, but you didn’t mind. You sighed in contentment, finally able to be alone with Arthur and place any worries about camp behind you, at least for a couple days. No petty squabbles, no jobs, no Pinkertons. Just you and Arthur. 

Arthur seemed to feel similarly, based on the way he relaxed in your grasp, leaning back slightly against you. Letting go of the reins in one hand, he rubbed your leg affectionately. His chest tumbled beneath your hands, and you realized he was talking, but you could barely hear him. 

When you asked him to repeat himself, Arthur turned his head to the side, making it easier to hear him, but it made you have to lift your own off his shoulder. “I said ‘thank you’.”

“Okay? You’re welcome?” you responded with uncertainty. 

“For gettin’ me out of camp like this, and despite how much I wanted to fight it, you knew I needed it.” 

“I mean, I wasn’t the one who got you out. You can thank Dutch for that.”

Arthur shook his head. “Sure, only after you presumably said somethin’ to him. And you’ve been the one trying to get me out all day! Don’t downplay yourself like that.” Arthur paused for a moment before continuing. “And you’ve always stuck your neck out for me like that, even before,” he gestured to your arms wrapped around him, “this. You’ve always seen me as more than the camp workhorse, more than a means to an end… more than myself… and I guess what I’m tryin’ to say is I appreciate it. For carin’ about me.” Arthur sighed. “I don’t really know what I’m saying…” he trailed off, refacing forward.

The sincerity in his voice had you heart breaking, but you also felt angry. Not at Arthur, but at the others, for using Arthur until he wore thin. Angry at the world that told him he wasn’t worthy enough to be loved, to be cared for. And you were angry at yourself, for holding off on telling him how much he mattered and meant to you. 

Grateful that he had his back to you so that he couldn’t see the tears in your eyes, you clung on tighter to him. Your voice cracked as you spoke, and you prayed that Arthur didn’t hear it. “You don’t gotta thank me for that. You deserve more, so much more, but I’ll give you all I have. I love you, Arthur Morgan, and I mean it. I’ll never stop sayin’ it until the day I die.”

Something wet hit your hand, and you realized Arthur was crying. Not sobbing, or making any audible noise; his shoulders didn’t shake either. But a few tears had left his eyes, one of them hitting you as they fell. “Arthur?” You asked, concerned.

Arthur, who clearly wasn’t expecting you to see his tears, quickly wiped them away, his hand no longer resting on your leg. “I… shit. Sorry.” You could tell he was embarrassed, trying to gloss over his emotions.

“I didn’t mean-”

“You ain’t done anything wrong,” Arthur reassured. “It’s just… I never thought I’d feel this way again, not after… not after Mary. I thought this part of me died a long time ago, and I just accepted that. I thought I’d never be loved again.” He chuckled humorlessly. “A part of me can’t believe this all ain’t a dream. I’ve wanted it so long that it seemed unobtainable.”

You knew about Mary, from the bits and pieces you learned from Hosea and Dutch. Arthur had never spoken about her with you, and you never asked, not wanting to push that boundary. Shamefully, you expected to feel some tinge of jealousy at the mention of his ex-lover, but you didn’t. You felt angry at her, for the way she broke his heart, and made him believe that he was unlovable. And strangely enough, you felt the tiniest bit of gratitude, but you weren’t quite sure who it was towards. All you could say is that you were thankful that you were now entrusted with Arthur’s heart, and you were going to cherish it. 

“Well,” you returned your head on his shoulder, “you’re very much awake, and I hate to break it to you, but you’re stuck with me now.”

“Thank God,” he responded. You couldn’t tell which part he was thankful for. 

Glancing around, you saw the outskirts of the town or Rhodes behind you, and the fence marking off the Gray’s property ahead of you, meaning you and Arthur were well on your way to Saint Denis. Another ten or so minutes of riding would get you there. Arthur had returned his grip on your thigh, and you settled in for the remainder of the ride. 

─•~❉᯽❉~•─

You weren’t a fan of Saint Denis, with the polluted air and dirty streets, and the equally filthy people. Although it was deemed to be the pinnacle of modern civilization, you had to disagree. What “great” city like this would leave parts of their population unhoused, unfed, uncared for. Or elect snakes in positions of power instead of people, whose only interest in mind was their own. Or how the joy of living seemed to be sucked out of the people, and how they’re now only soulless husks whose only purpose was to work and sleep. 

You voiced your thoughts to Arthur as you rode in, the metal archway proudly reading Saint Denis disappearing behind you. Passing by a group of well dressed individuals, Arthur nodded in agreement. 

“And to think, they wanna make everywhere like this.”

Arthur didn’t respond, just continuing to lead his horse though the streets. The sounds on hooves on the cobblestone was quite loud, but it was still barely audible over the sound of machinery and engines. People stared at you two as you passed, and their eyes lingered on you for longer than necessary. It occurred to you that you probably looked quite out of place because of the way you were dressed.

You wore skirts and dresses from time to time, and you liked wearing them, but they weren’t the practical option for days like today, where you’d need to quickly get on and off your horse, and would have to move quickly and silently. But every scrutinizing glance from well-dressed strangers had you regretting your choice of apparel. You told yourself that you shouldn’t care what these people thought of you, but the innate human desire to fit in and be accepted was overwhelming, especially now. 

“You’d think I’d grown a third arm, the way people are lookin’ at me,” you joked. 

“Don’t let ‘em get to you,” Arthur sent a deadly glare to one said person, whose face turned ghostly white as he scampered away. 

Chuckling, you kissed Arthur on his cheek. “My knight in shining armor,” you swooned, earning an eye roll from the cowboy. 

“Not like you need one.”

“Maybe not. But if my knight was you, I wouldn’t say no.”

He chuckled lightly. “What’s so funny?” you questioned, laughing slightly yourself. 

“Nothin’. Nothin’ at all, princess.” 

Turning the corner, you were met with with a rather crowded street with buildings towering over you. But directly ahead of you stood your destination, a large hotel that spanned three floors and the name of the establishment sprawled across the front in a language you didn’t recognize. 

As Arthur made his way to one of the many hitching posts in front, you felt your heartbeat begin to accelerate as you remembered why you were here. Anticipation had your body on edge, almost tense in the way you held on to him.

You were always impressed at the way Arthur seemed to notice every small detail, but right now you found yourself cursing that ability. He took note of the way your body went rigid, and he reassuringly squeezed your thigh. “You good?” You knew that he wasn’t just talking about right now; he was asking if you were still comfortable continuing what had started last night. 

“Yeah,” your voice was breathier than you would’ve liked. “I’m just… excited.” Sure, you were nervous as well, but it was easily alleviated by the trust you had in the man. 

“Good,” he smiled. Bringing his horse to the post, he quickly dismounted, securing his mount with a loose knot. Next, his hands met your waist as he helped you off. Your legs were slightly numb from the way you were sitting, but you stayed steady as your feet made contact with the ground. 

After double checking that his horse was secure, and had plenty of food and water nearby, he held out his hand, pulling you along when you took it. He held the door open for you, and the joke you were about to make fell short as you took in the interior of the hotel. 

Large, swooping archways cascaded above your head, the large vaulted ceilings filled with paintings and statues that observed you as you walked in, your hand still linked with his. It reminded you of something you'd heard about a while back, some chapel in Italy with painted ceilings like this. The walls were stark white, and no less decorated, paintings with golden frames facing you, and the marble floor beneath you clacked as your boots made contact. An ornate chandelier lit the room, located directly in the center of the entrance area. Its jewels glinted in the light, reflecting tiny rainbows across the walls.

It was breathtaking, to say the least. Eyes wide, you let yourself be pulled by Arthur as you took it all in. “Maybe it ain’t so bad they’re tryin’ to make cities like this, if this is what it turns into.” You laughed in disbelief. “It’s beautiful.”

Arthur seemed less impressed than you, eyes barely glancing over the various art pieces adorning the walls and ceiling. “Don’t go changin’ your mind now. This,” he waved his free hand around, “is how they get ya. This is all just a front.”

“You’re no fun,” you chidded, and your vision was suddenly obscured as Arthur flicked the hat down on your head. A very improper squawk left you as you quickly fixed the hat, glaring up at him with no real heat. 

“I’m plenty fun, princess.” By this point, you’d reached the front desk, where a very impatient looking man stood. As Arthur ordered a room, you continued to peer around, not paying much mind to the conversation. We weren’t only distracted by the art now, but your mind began to wander to the events that were sure to transpire shortly. You shamelessly ogled his body, now realizing he left his usual jacket back at camp, only down to his undershirt now. His well built shoulders caused the fabric to be pulled taught against his body, leaving little to the imagination. How would they feel under your touch? Would you grip on to them tight as he took you, letting you leave scratches down his back? Would they spread your legs apart as he-

Your thoughts were broken when you felt a tug at your arm, and you glanced at Arthur who regarded you with an amused glance. Based on the way he was grinning at you, you knew he knew where your mind had gone. “Bath?” He asked, and your mouth felt dry as you tried to respond.

“After.” The clerk couldn’t have done a worse job hiding his disdain, but you ignored him. Arthur took the room key from him, not even thanking him before heading up the staircase behind the front desk. 

It felt like forever, the walk to the room. You’ve had your share of encounters in the bedroom, but it had never felt like this. It never felt this right. 

It seemed like hours went by before Arthur was unlocking one of the rooms, letting go of your hand for the first time to get it open. Like the gentleman he was, he held the door open for you again.

The rooms were no less decorated, but once the original splendor wore off, you found yourself caring less and less. A large four poster canopy bed sat in the center of the large room, a plush fur carpet beneath it. The room was well lit, with a balcony on the right side that was allowing copious amounts of sunlight into the room. The window for the balcony was left open, and you found yourself quickly closing it, the curtains settling as the wind was cut off. A basin with water along with a few towels and rags occupied the leftmost side of the wall with the balcony, with a wooden dresser neighboring it. 

Now in the room, you took off your boots and socks, not wanting to track too much dirt across the carpet. Leaving them near the wardrobe, you made your way to the bed. The fur, which had to be some kind of large white bear, felt pleasant against your bare feet as you approached. The sheets felt even better than the carpet, rich silks flowing through your fingers like water. 

Sitting down at the foot of the bed, you dragged your hand across, and you made your way up one of the wood posts, the material sturdy and well polished. You wondered how much a room like this cost to rent for a night or two. Turning to ask Arthur, you found him at one of the nightstands that framed the bed, unholstering his gunbelt and placing it there, as well as taking off his own boots. 

When he felt your attention on him, he smiled warmly, leaning up against the post you were examining after reaching you. He had his hands on his hips, about where he would rest his hands if his gunbelt were there, looking at you with such fondness that you completely forgot the question you were going to ask. Staring up at him, any rational thought went out the window to your right; the only thing on your mind was him. He must’ve seen this change in your demeanor, pushing off the post and stopping now right in front of you.

“Show me, Arthur.” It came out less like a request and more like a demand. 

Arthur chuckled, a low yes ma’am leaving him before his lips were on yours. It wasn’t soft like you were expecting. The force in which he kissed you had you nearly landing flat on your back, but you caught yourself with one arm, the other finding purchase on the side of his face as you cupped it. Kissing you like you were the only thing keeping him alive, he leaned over you now, but the angle he was doing it was not the most comfortable, relying on only his core muscles to keep him upright and not crush you.

Breaking away, you took a gulp of air, laughing at the way Arthur chased after you, like he couldn’t bear to be without you for only a few seconds. Scooching back on the bed until your back was resting against the multitude of pillows available, you opened your arms up. Crawling up after you, Arthur sighed, content, when your touch returned, still holding him in one of your palms.

Wasting no time, he fervently resumed his kiss, teeth grazing your bottom lip gently. His hands tangled into your hair, his hat falling somewhere on the bed, but you were too engrossed to care. One of his knees slotted between your legs, the other resting by your hip. As the tension in you returned, you found yourself inadvertently grinding against his thigh, trying to find some sort of relief. Arthur groaned when he felt you begin to use him, his mouth going slack against yours. 

Moving from your mouth to your jaw, he pressed open mouth kisses as he went along. When you tried to move your head to follow him, you felt his grip in your hair tighten. Not enough to cause any pain, but it kept you still as he continued his exploration. You weren't able to do much but sit there, hips grinding against Arthur, but it wasn’t doing anything except get you more and more heated.

You expected to feel him start to leave hickies across your neck, especially when his mouth started trailing down your throat. But he didn’t, rather he was gentle with the soft skin, leaving no physical evidence that he was there. Before you could even comprehend what you were asking for, you were speaking, combing your fingers through Arthur’s hair like it was going to help convince him. “You can mark me, Arthur. Please. Let everyone know I’m taken.”

Your whispered pleas were not met on deaf ears, an almost painful sounding moan leaving the man as he buried his face in the crook of your neck. His breath tickled your ear as he panted, his hands releasing your hair as they framed each side of your head. You thought he was going to turn the idea down, but you were elated when you felt his lips return to your neck, now sucking and biting as well. 

“Anythin’ for you, princess.” He sounded positively wrecked. Traveling down the column of your neck, you felt him leave marks, marks that you were certain were going to be dark purple by tonight.

“Fuck, yeah, you’re so good to me. My pretty boy,”  You cooed, nails scratching his scalp lightly. “Everyone back at camp is gonna see these marks; they’re gonna know what you did to me. They’re gonna know you fucked me so good.”

Arthur sat back on his heels, hair in disarray from your fingers. The sunlight filtering in caused the strands to become golden, like the color of the frames you saw downstairs. He looked almost heavenly in this light, the way the sun illuminated him. God, he looked beautiful. His blue eyes were nearly black with lust, and the normally stoic man seemed to be falling apart. “You- you can’t keep sayin’ things like that… then sayin’ I’m beautiful,” he murmured, running a hand down his face. 

So your thoughts weren’t as secret as you believed. “Why not?” You questioned, a teasing smirk on your face. “I’m only tellin’ the truth.”

“Truth or not, if you keep goin’ on like that, I’m ‘fraid this night’s gonna end quicker than either of us would like.” Glancing downward, you saw Arthur readjust himself. The bulge in his pants looked uncomfortable, painfully even. With a sympathetic noise, you reached for the zipper on his pants, ready to alleviate him. 

You were surprised when he stopped your hand, his fingers wrapping gently around your wrist. “Next time. I… I need to taste you, princess.”

“Is that what you were thinkin’ about earlier?” You tried to sound unbothered, knowing damn well that you were practically throbbing at the idea of him going down on you. The desperation in his voice added fuel to the fire in you, finding yourself growing increasingly wetter at each thing coming from his mouth. 

“One of many things,” he confessed. “Is that a yes?”

“Arthur, if you don’t get your ass-” your comment was cut short by his mouth on yours. It didn’t last long, before he was returning to where he left off on your neck. This time, however, you felt his hands work at your belt, throwing it somewhere behind him when he got it unlooped from your pants, which were next to go. It took a little bit longer, but eventually they were tossed behind as well, leaving you in only your undergarments from the waist down.

You went to start unbuttoning the shirt you wore, but Arthur beat you to it, his dexterous fingers quickly undoing the buttons. He rested his head against yours, eyes looking down as we worked, grumbling obscenities when one of the buttons was stubborn. Eventually it was off as well, the shirt and the bandana adding to the growing pile on the floor. “I thought you liked me in your clothes,” you teased. 

“I think I like you better without any. Now,” he nudged your arms, “up.” You complied, lifting them to allow Arthur to slip your chemise up and off your body, and, like the other articles, found a new home on the floor of the hotel. The cold air on your bare chest caused you to gasp, goosebumps erupting across your skin. All of that was forgotten when you saw Arthur, the heat in his gaze easily melting the chill of the air. 

He sat back on his heels again, taking in your almost entirely exposed body, the only remaining thing on your body being your drawers. Letting out an appreciative noise that sounded almost like a purr, he rested his hands on your hips, squeezing lightly at the flesh there. Bringing his hands up, more and more goosebumps formed following his path, like your body was mapping out the way he touched you.

“God, you’re so gorgeous, princess. Even more so than I imagined.”

“You imagine me naked a lot, Arthur?”

He was right below your breasts now, running his fingers right below where you wanted him to touch. “You already know the answer to that.”

“For how long?”

Arthur stilled at this, a flash of panic cutting through his lustful eyes for a split second. “You want the truth, or a lie that would make me less of a creep?”

Well, now you were curious. Raising a brow, the man on his knees in front of you gave out an exasperated sigh, no longer looking you in the eye as he responded. “Roughly two years ago. I…” he trailed off, moving to rub the back of his neck, but you caught his hand in yours, forcing his eyes back on you. 

You laughed, mostly at Arthur’s expense, but also at how long you firmly believed that your attraction was one-sided. “You silly cowboy,” you urged him back by tugging his arm, and he rested on his forearms, caging you in. “I’d be a liar if I said I hadn’t been doin’ the same.”

He hovered a few inches above you, and you could feel the heat emanating from his body. “I’ll have to see that sometime,” he spoke low in your ear. “You spread open, touchin’ yourself to the thought of me.” He paused for a second. “But that’ll have to wait. You,” he tugged at the lobe of your ear with his teeth, “keep distracting me. Let me get back to work.”

Sitting back up, he returned his hands to your body, still keeping away from where you wanted, just taking you in with his eyes. When you tried to push your chest up into his hands, he gave you a disapproving frown before pushing you back down. “No one ever teach ya patience, princess?” The absence of his body heat caused you to shiver, your nipples pebbling from the cold and arousal. 

His hands brushed over the scars across your body, his touch lingering on the one on your left shoulder, the one the O’Driscolls gave you over a month ago. You didn’t have time to feel self conscious before his lips were pressing light kisses on top of it, murmuring soft words under his breath. Finally, you felt his hands cup your breasts, kneading the mounds in his hands, his mouth leaving marks as it joined his hands in his touch. His hands did feel even better without a shirt blocking them, the callous of his fingers deliciously rough against the soft skin

He didn’t stay there long, his own patience being worn thin. He moved down your body now, pepper kisses across the various marks on your body. His fingers pulled at the strings of your drawers, quickly unlacing the bow there. Lifting up your hips to help him, he pulled them off, and they joined the pile. Finally, you were completely bare to him, and you heard him groan appreciatively. Trailing his mouth down your body, he halted just below your belly button, his hands resting on your thighs. 

He looked up, and his smirk was downright sinful as he lifted one of your legs across his shoulder, further exposing yourself to him. One hand held your hip, the other lying unused by his side. Your hands clutched uselessly at the pillows supporting you, gripping even harder when you felt him part your folds with fingers. His eyes were fully locked onto your cunt now, letting out a whistle when he saw how obviously wet you were. “This all for me, princess?” he asked, peppering kisses along the inside of your thighs. 

“Just for you. It’s only ever you.” You panted.

You felt him smile. “Good.” He removed his hand, and you almost let out a small whine at the loss of contact. You were quickly silenced when you felt those same fingers sweep through you, gathering your arousal on them. The digits were soaked, but you had little time to feel embarrassed before he was running his tongue up them, tasting you. You let out a noise, somewhere between his name and a moan as Arthur cleaned his fingers, his eyes closed as he savored the taste.

“Gonna get me addicted, princess,” he groaned, his fingers leaving his mouth and resting on the inside of your thigh, keeping your legs propped open. “But I bet ya taste better right from the source.” You felt him place one last kiss on your thigh before his mouth was on your cunt, his tongue following the same path as his fingers through you. Going bottom to top, it was a broad sweep of his tongue, not targeting anything specific but you still felt your hips buck against his face when he grazed your clit. 

The hand on your hip moved, resting across your lap to keep you still as he passed his tongue through again, and again. “Easy, girl,” he rumbled, and you would’ve been offended that he was talking to you like a horse if he wasn’t currently buried between your legs. Instead, you threw your head back, the soft feather pillows preventing you from smacking the headboard. Your grip moved from said pillows, moving to burrow into Arthur’s hair. Your fingers went to weave between the strands, but you second-guessed your decision, especially when he started focusing his tongue on your clit. 

You tried to retract your hand, but Arthur caught it no longer holding your legs open. He brought it back to his head, and you gripped on to his hair. Arthur let out a pleased groan at that, and it seemed to spur him on more, lapping at you like he was dying of thirst. Every flick of his tongue sent jolts through your body, cries and whimpers of his name leaving your lips every time. You knew he had a silver tongue, but you never expected to be falling apart on it. 

Because he was no longer holding you open, your thighs closed around his head with both legs on his shoulders, but you were too lost in your pleasure to notice. Now you were able to feel his beard against the sensitive skin, feeling better than you’d imagined. It would probably be chaffed and irritated in the morning, but every time you felt it you’d remember the way Arthur was devouring you. 

You were so caught up on that new sensation that you hadn’t noticed the newly freed hand move between your legs, a gasp leaving your lips when you felt him pressed against your entrance. He stopped at your reaction, but he continued to use his mouth, the tension in you growing and growing at each flick.

When you provided no protest, he continued, slowly pressing his finger into you. It didn’t take much effort, your arousal helping to ease the digit in with little resistance, and within moments he was knuckle-deep. He was big, far bigger than your fingers, and you let out a small noise at the stretch. “You’re doing so good,” Arthur praised, his finger not moving to let you adjust. “My good girl.” His words were muffled, tongue still pleasuring you between words, but you heard them loud and clear. 

You weren’t quite sure why that got a reaction out of you, but a very audible moan left you, and you clenched around Arthur’s finger, pulling even harder at his hair. He let out a surprised groan that turned into a chuckle as he felt you, and you could hear him smirk. “You taste so good, and you’re so tight,” He bent the digit inside you, almost in a beckoning motion, which caused you to see stars. “My good girl’s gonna cum for me, right? Let me feel you, princess.”

You were close, that was certain. That tension, the one deep inside you that had been begging to be released since what seemed like forever, was about to break. You just needed one more push. 

He started slowly pistoning the finger in and out of you, at least as best he could with your thighs in the way. Before long, he was adding a second finger, the additional stretch just about making you finish right there. You tried to convey that to Arthur, but it was coming out as an incoherent ramble. “Arthur… I- I’m… please…”

“I know, princess.” He kept at the same pace, drawing your pleasure out of you. The thing that broke you was seeing Arthur rocking his hips against the bed as he laid on his stomach, trying to find some relief. With a loud wail of his name, you came, trying and failing to thrust against his face as he pinned you down, fingers flexing against your hip bone. It felt like every nerve in your body was alive, buzzing with energy as pleasure wracked your body, and your eyes shut on instinct, which seemed to heighten the sensations you were feeling. Arthur removed his fingers from you, but he kept his tongue moving, obscene noises leaving him as he worked you through your orgasm. 

Boneless, your thighs went lax against his head, hands slumping to the sides of the bed, releasing the man from your death grip. But he either didn’t notice or didn’t care, still drinking you in. But you were starting to feel overstimulated, and you let out a small noise of complaint, which got Arthur to stop. He tried to hide a proud smile as he came back up, but you saw the corners of his mouth were raised slightly as he lay on his side next to you, letting you take a moment to recuperate. 

You took a few moments to just breathe, regaining control over your body and heart rate. Turning your head to face him, you slowly opened your eyes, and you nearly immediately shut them when you saw your arousal absolutely soaking his face. “I-,” if you weren’t flushed before, you sure were now.

Now Arthur was grinning, realizing what you were looking at. He wiped his mouth like he just finished a delicious meal. “I could do that all day.” He brushed his fingers across your body, not demanding anything, but just feeling you. “You doin’ alright?” 

You scoffed. “You’re askin’ me that? I nearly killed you with my thighs!”

“I told you I don’t mind if it hurts. And it’d’ve been a hell of a way to die,” he joked, and you slapped him lightly on the chest, which, much to your disappointment, was still covered with a shirt. You noticed, as your gaze went south, that he was still fully clothed, and you found yourself frowning at that.

“What’s wrong?” Arthur asked, confusion and worry now etched on his face, and he began to retract his hand slowly.

“You’re wearin’ too many clothes,” you whined, tugging at Arthur’s shirt.

He sighed in relief. “Whatever my good girl wants,” he chuckled, even more so when your breathing hitched. He got up, standing right next to the side of the bed. He slowly began unbuttoning his shirt, and you sat on your heels in front of him, waiting. 

When you deemed that he was taking too long, you started untucking his shirt, working the buttons at the bottom. “Impatient?”

“I’ve waited two fuckin’ years, Arthur.” You hadn’t meant to sound angry, but your patience was truly wearing thin. You didn’t feel too bad when he started unbuttoning faster, the article off before you realized, joining the pile beside him. His pants were off shortly thereafter, the belt still in them hitting the ground with a clang, and he kicked them off his feet. 

You moved back to let Arthur get back in the bed, and he sat where you were minutes prior, back against the pillows and headboard. Straddling his waist, your hands immediately started roaming the newly exposed skin, his muscles twitching under your touch. He truly was beautiful, almost aggravatingly so. He was well built, strong muscles protected by a healthy layer of fat that made him even bigger. 

Various scars and marks littered his body, all proof of surviving a hard life; you kissed each one you saw. Your fingers ran across his abs, the muscles tensing as you went along. You were surprised to find that his entire body was covered in hair, not just his arms and legs, but you definitely weren’t complaining, the pure masculinity from it all the more attractive. 

Speaking of masculinity, an experimental roll of your hips against Arthur’s had the man groaning, head rolling back slightly. But it also let you know that he wasn’t just well built, but well endowed. Quite endowed, if you were being honest.

After giving him a quick kiss, you moved back until you were more on his knees, and you tugged at the waistband of his undergarments. Like you, he lifted his hips up, and you quickly discarded it behind you. 

One look and you knew you were in for a long night. He was long, yes, but thick as well, able to stretch you out in all the right places. You tried to wrap your hand around the base of him, your fingers nowhere close to reaching each other. Slowly, you began to pump him, and he let out a strangled moan. His tip was red and leaking, and you wanted nothing more than to lean forward and lick it. And you tried to, at least, but he redirected you with his fingers around your jaw, bringing his lips crashing against yours. 

The kiss was filthy, his tongue sweeping into your mouth like he owned it. The fingers on your jaw kept your mouth open, a moan leaving you when you tasted yourself on him. He pulled back, eyes shutting when you continued to move your hand up and down his length. He stilled you by grabbing your wrist, pulling you back up so that you were straddling his waist again. 

“Y’feel amazin’, princess, I just wanna last.” He let go of you, settling his hands on your waist instead. “You ready?” 

“Please, Arthur.” One hand gripped his bicep, the other on his shoulder. “I need you.”

“And you’ll have me. Just don’t wanna see you hurt.” You felt his hand creep up your front, hovering just in front of your face, and his pointer and middle fingers brushed your bottom lip. “Suck,” he instructed, digits pressing gently against the seam of your lips. You parted your lips, enthusiastically taking them into your mouth, running your tongue alongside the bottom of them. Your eyes never left his, and you felt him twitch beneath you as you bobbed your head up and down. “Atta girl,” he praised, “get ‘em nice and wet for me.”

You’re sure you were soaking his lap at this point, but you didn’t care. Working your tongue along the knuckles, his hand quickly became covered in your drool. With a pop, his fingers left your mouth, leaving you panting around nothing. You watched, transfixed, as Arthur brought his hand to his cock, slowly stroking himself as he coated his length. He let out a soft gasp, eyes rolling to the back of his head, and the delicious noise had you clenching around nothing.

After a few passes, he stilled at the base, holding himself upright. Urging you to get up on your knees, you scooted until you were just hovering above him. His tip nudged your entrance, and you both let out similar moans as you slowly sunk down on his length. Your fingers dug into the muscles of his bicep, most likely leaving crescent-shaped marks in their wake. 

“That’s it. Nice and slow now…” he spoke, voice strained and clipped. The hand on your waist was vice-like, Arthur using every ounce of restraint in his body to not just sink you down on to him. 

Even though Arthur had done some prep with his fingers, and your mixed arousal and spit helped to ease things along, the stretch still burned. You rocked up and down, slowly taking more and more of him in you. Small noises left your lips as you worked yourself down, feeling every ridge of him in you, and your face buried into his neck. “Relax,” Arthur murmured, the hand on your hip rubbing reassuringly on your back. “We’ve got all the time in the world.”

“Arthur…” you moaned, your legs beginning to shake at the exertion.

“I know, princess. You’re doin’ so well. Just a lil’ bit more.” He kissed the top of your head, which would’ve been more wholesome outside the current circumstance. 

It took a little bit of you moving up and down him, working yourself open until you were able to take him completely. Eventually, your hips were flush with his, and your head rolling back as you finally felt him fully sheathed in you. You’d never felt so full before, his cock reaching places you’d hadn’t realized existed. 

When you leaned back, it puffed your chest in his face, and his mouth was on you in seconds, lapping and sucking and kneading at the soft flesh there. “Oh, Arthur.” Your hands were in his hair, keeping him close as he lavished your breasts. “You feel so good.”

Not stopping for a second, you heard him something, and the tone was almost proud, but it was hard to tell over the blood rushing in your ears. As you let yourself get used to him, rocking up and down him slowly, you moved your head to the side to let him bring his mouth up your neck, and you saw something brown out of the corner of your eyes. Turning even further, you saw Arthur’s hat a few feet behind you, and a wicked idea crossed your mind. 

It took a bit of reaching to get the hat, causing you to pull yourself away from Arthur’s mouth. He let out a noise of complaint, hands trying to bring you back until he realized what you were reaching for. “Princess…” his usually gravelly voice was even more so, the word barely audible through his clenched teeth. 

“What?” You flashed him an innocent smile. Clutching his hat in your hand, you slowly rode him, sinking up and down his cock. You tried to seem unaffected, but you couldn’t stop the whimper that you let out. 

You secured it on your head, clenching around him when you heard the almost predatory growl that left him. He was losing the battle with his restraint, and you wanted nothing more than to see him succumb to his desire. Running your fingers though the hair on his pecs, you brought your lips close to his, only a hair’s width away from connecting. “Princess.” It was more of a warning than anything, and you felt him let out a huff of air.

“What’s the matter?” You teased. 

“Nothin’,” you watched his eyes flick down to your entrance, watching his cock disappear into you. You would’ve believed that he was content with you just using him for your pleasure, enjoying the feeling of your walls fluttering around him, but you’d seen the look in his eye when you put his hat on, and felt the way his fingers tightened on you as he fought to not to just take you as he pleased. 

You wanted to see him lose the control he fought so hard to maintain. 

“Really? Cause you seem tense, cowboy. Like you’re holdin’ back.” You smiled gently, rubbing his chest reassuringly. 

“Dunno what you mean,” he tried to play dumb, looking away from you as he spoke.

You brought his gaze back to yours, caressing the side of his face as you did so. “I don’t want you to.”

It took a few moments for Arthur to respond, eyes not leaving yours as you continued to ride him. “Are you sure, princess? I…” he exhaled shakily, “It might hurt-”

“I know what I want, Arthur. You’re not the only one who likes it a little rough.” You brushed your lips over his, and you could tell he was still fighting himself. “I wanna feel you for days after this, Arthur. I wanna be able to feel you whenever I walk, every ache I feel remindin’ me of when you absolutely ruined me. I need you to ruin me, Arthur. Please, fuck me-”

Your rambling was cut short when he smashed his lips against yours, muffling your noises as he effortlessly lifted you off his cock before slamming you back down. He set a brutal pace, hips snapping up as he fucked up into you. The kiss didn’t last long, your head rolling back again, hat barely staying on your head as he took you as he pleased.

The sound of your collective moans filled the air, the sound of skin-on-skin muffled by your voice. “Yes, Arthur!” you cried out, and you felt yourself working up to another climax, already worked up from riding him previously. You tried to praise him some more, but you words came out garbled and incoherent, too overwhelmed with what he was doing to be able to develop a sentence. 

“What’s that, princess?” you could hear him smirk. 

You tried to respond, but all you could let out was a loud moan. You were just happy you weren’t back at camp, or else you’d never be able to look anyone in the eye ever again. 

You heard him moan out your name. “You feel so good, you know that?” He panted. “Like you were made for me to ruin.”

You let out another cry of his name, growing closer and closer to your release. “That’s right, let everyone know who’s fucking this pretty cunt so well.”

In the back of your mind, you knew that Arthur was going to be embarrassed as hell afterwards, saying stuff like this. But the filthy words coming from his lips had you gasping, a jolt of arousal shooting through your body. You said his name like a mantra, spurring him on even more. “Arthur, I’m- I’m so close,” you moaned.

“Fuck, me too, princess,” he didn’t slow down his pace, and you felt him bring his fingers to your clit, caressing the bundle of nerves. “C’mon then, cum for me.”

The added stimulation from his fingers, plus the sharp drag of his cock across your walls was enough to make you cum, his hat finally falling off as your head was thrown back in pleasure. This one was much more intense than the the last one, and you swore you blacked out for a second. 

You probably did blackout, because you hadn’t realized you were on your back until a few moments later, Arthur’s hips snapping into you as he chased his own release. He pulled out suddenly, and you felt yourself pulse around nothing, feeling empty at the lack of him. Arthur was on his knees above you, pumping himself quickly as he came all over your chest, hot ropes of cum hitting your stomach and breasts.

He sagged forward once he finished, hands on either side of your body as he laid there catching his breath, being mindful to not crush you. You ran your nails along his scalp, the man shuddering under your touch. A few moments passed, both of you just basking in the afterglow of your release. The room wasn’t cold anymore, the heat generated from the both of you causing a sheen of sweat to cover your bodies. A bath definitely sounded good right now, but you didn’t want to get up, body pleasantly sore and exhausted. 

You felt Arthur sit back up, getting off the bed entirely. You watched him grab one of the rags from the water basin, pouring a bit of water on it before returning to you. You let out a small hiss as the cold water made contact with your skin, Arthur apologizing as he cleaned you up. His touch was light, reverent, his eyes filled with an emotion you weren’t able to place as he wiped down your body. As Arthur walked away, wiping down himself as well, you situated yourself under the covers, the silk feeling wonderful against your skin as you nuzzled into the pillows.

Arthur joined you shortly, the bed shifting under his weight as he joined you under the covers. You watched him open his arms for you, and you gladly let yourself be wrapped up in them, your chests pressed together, and you felt him press a gentle kiss to the top of your head. “You alright?” 

Smiling, you looked up at him. “I’m amazin’,” your voice was scratchy. “Just sore. And don’t you dare apologize,” you glared at him when he opened his mouth to do just that. 

“We can get you a bath later, if you’d like.”

“As long as you join me.”

You felt Arthur chuckle, his chest rumbling against yours, kissing you now on the forehead. “Whatever you want.”

Sighing contentedly, you stared at Arthur, who had now closed his eyes, his tiredness now making itself known. You were too busy scanning his features that you hadn’t noticed him cracking an eye open, raising a brow quizzically at you. “What?”

“You’re very beautiful, Arthur.”

You watched him stammer for a second, the bright red flush returning to his face from minutes prior. “It’d be pointless to disagree with you, wouldn’t it, princess?”

“Yup,” you giggled. The two of you sat in comfortable silence after that, until a question you’d been meaning for a while came back to you at that moment. “Why’d you call me that?”

“Call ya what?”

“Princess. I thought we already established that I ain’t one.”

“You want me to stop?” 

You shook your head. “You better not. I like it. I’m just curious why you use it.”

“To be completely honest, I ain’t quite sure why either,” he chuckled. “It started as a bit of a joke, before we became serious. But I liked the way you reacted to it, so I kept callin’ you it just to see your reaction. I kept sayin’ it after because you deserve to be called somethin’ unique, somethin’ that’s special to us.”

“Earlier, you said I was something’ better than a princess. What’s that?”

“It’s cheesy,” he tried to avoid the question, but you gave him a pointed look. Sighing, he relented. “You’re, well, you. You’re an outlaw, a gunslinger, a survivor. You’re a confidant, a friend, a leader. You’re my girl, my angel, the best thing that has ever happened to me. All things that are infinitely better than some royal title.” He shrugged. “And sure, maybe you ain’t a princess, but you deserve to be treated like one. I guess callin’ you that, it’s a constant reminder for me to treat you like the incredible person you are, and to not take your love for granted.” 

You held back the tears that threatened to spill from your eyes. “You’re oddly poetic at times.”

“I told ya it was cheesy,” he grumbled, the bashful smile on his face dropping when he saw the tears in your eyes. “Shit, it wasn’t that bad, was it?”

Despite the single tear rolling down your face, you laughed. “I love you so much, Arthur Morgan.”

He said your name slowly, wiping away the tear with the pad of his thumb. “I love you too.” You tried to smile at him, but a yawn overtook you, causing Arthur to laugh lightly. “Let’s get some rest. I’ll be right here.”

“You promise?”

“I promise.”

[spiteless-xo]

╰┈➤ eren fucking jaeger - tbaw. ⋙ deleted scene from chapter 11 - eren fucking jaeger.

why was it deleted. originally the eren pov chapter was going to be made up of a bunch of small scenes but it felt too disjointed and clunky. what changed. nothing. ft. fem!reader, eren. cw. unedited, explicit language, second person pov, 400 words.

Please remember that this scene was deleted for a reason and that nothing that happens here occurs in the actual story posted on AO3. This is just fun bonus content for people who are interested in reading more.

context. none needed.

It started with the morning coffees. 

After hooking up with you in the public bathroom of your shared workplace, Eren couldn’t get enough of you. He wanted to be nice and keep himself at the top of your mind and what better way to do that than to make sure you started every day thinking of him? It was no extra burden for him, he just had to ask the barista for a second coffee (girls liked vanilla lattes, right?) and take a small detour around the office to drop it off at your desk. Most of the time you weren’t even there, anyway. 

Then one day you were, and you stopped him to chat. 

“I thought you had forgotten about me,” you said. Your eyes lit up when they met his and it gave him a weird feeling in his chest. 

“What are you, an addict?” he asked, handing you the cup. Your fingers brushed on the exchange and Eren wished your hand had lingered on his a little longer. “Why are you in early today?”

“Jean had an appointment so I had to take public transportation,” you explained. Ugh, he hated the way Jean’s name sounded in your mouth.

“By yourself?”

“Yeah, it was tough— dangerous, even.”

“Yeah? Did you have to beat off a guy with a stick to get here?”

“Well, no, I usually beat them off with my hands,” you said, smirking and making a lewd gesture with your fist. 

Eren liked how funny you were. You were easier to talk to than some of the other girls he hooked up with. Post-sex silence and the awkward drive home together after hooking up in his car used to be his least favourite part, but with you, he almost liked just sitting and talking with you as much as the sex itself. 

“I’m familiar,” he said, leaning forward into you.  You stepped up on your toes and Eren’s eyes drifted down to your lips. They were so soft and pouty, just looking at them made him want to bite them. “Do you wanna hang out tonight?”

“Can’t tonight. It’s movie night with the Roomies,” you said with a pout, pushing that bottom lip out even further. 

“After?”

“It’ll be late.”

“I don’t care.” He really didn’t. Even though driving to see you took him almost an hour, each way, he’d do it in a heartbeat if you asked. Anything to see you again, to feel you.

You smiled and nodded curtly, “Ok.”

[kedreeva]

No tasks, just wanted to tell you good job for all you've done today. I hope you finish your word goal and feel great joy at all the light you bring into others lives.

Thank you!! I made it to 50k and actually did another 400 or so after that to get to the end of the chapter, so I'm very pleased.

Honestly, I absolutely adore every instance where humans are given a chance to be kind and help others and they joyfully take it. What a bonus when it helps themselves too!! And the greatest thing is that I didn't bring the light- I may have flipped the switch but every person that joined in lit the room. So many people said that they saw the asks sent by others and it was knowing that others were doing things that got them up to do their own things. That's so cool!

[misireads]

Myrrys ("Sage") by Anniina Mikama

[ physical book, read in finnish ]

a charles dickens-esque story with a sprinkle of magic set in the kainuu region of finland in the famine years of early 1800s, niilo is an orphaned boy living in poor conditions as a slave in a wealthy-ish farmer family. his life is shit, especially thanks to the cruel master of the house, but he cannot complain since the family bothered to take him as a small child when his mother died. one day a local sage takes niilo as his apprentice as the payment for curing the family's son's leg that's mauled by a bear. niilo is scared of the sage at first because of his reputation as a witch doctor doing black magic in the middle of the woods, but the man turns out to be a fine lad and the first person ever who treats niilo as an equal human being. they live together for almost a year, going through all sorts of experiences and little adventures together, and become close friends. niilo comes to love the wilderness and the forest and also learns some magic from his new master. although niilo's life has drastically improved, the fact that it did angers the asshole father of his old home who continues being a menace to both him and the sage until the bitter end. on the side, niilo begins to learn more about his late parents, what really happened to them, and what kind of future they intended for him.

➕ so this is a book for younger teenagers, it was in the children&teens area at the library, so it has a juvenile vibe that softens the harsh themes a lot. it's a mid-length book, almost 400 pages, and somehow felt simultaneously very long, like the story felt very big for a book of this length, but was fast to read because there's a lot happening all the time also due to the YA nature probably. there are several episodic chapters where niilo and martin go hunting, niilo helps a man out of a frozen lake, etc.

➕ martin the sage is a very sympathetic character, i liked him a lot. niilo has less personality but he's meant to be the young hero character coming from poor conditions and thriving when someone actually likes him and gives him the chance, i find that very dickens-like. there aren't exactly any flaws about him, he's perfect at just about anything he does in the entire book, his "flaw" is that the farmer family doesn't like him. the real MVPs of the story are the pastor who helps niilo to reconnect with his family and the farmer family's son who has the truest character development arc.

➕ the finnish mythology elements

➕ beautifully written, this author's commitment to descriptions of nature and especially the woods is no joke

➖ i don't really like stuff set in historical finland, like the aesthetics of this sort of old-timey living conditions shit are off-putting. i don't even care about museums with this theme or anything.

➖ i was expecting this to have more fantasy elements… the first spread before the real book begins opens with a spell in the archaic finnish style so i really thought that was supposed to set the tone, but it was just kind of a minor element in here after all. i mean it's important, niilo saves the day with his forest magic several times, but overall… just not as much mythology stuff as i expected. honestly my expectations got in the way once again because i was hoping this would be like teen lit about finnish mythology set in modern times so when i realised very early on it's not, it kinda flattened my mood and the start was very slow for me because i was like ehh… meehhhhh…. a farm house in northern(ish) finland in the 1820s….. bleh.... do i have to read this.....

➖ juhani the master of the farm house is such a comically evil character. but i feel like that too is a dickens-esque character archetype? there's the mean, wealthy man who turns out to be fradulent on multiple fronts and it comes down to the young hero to prove it to everyone. still, i just kind of wanted someone to grab an ax and toss it at his head like, five pages in

⭐ score: 4 -- i teared up reading the final page and am not even sure why, maybe some line struck a chord or it was just the story coming to an end. but i never cry at anything so that has to be the sign of a great book

[albdodaze]

blooming. y.itadori

‘she’s satoru’s sister’ (chapter two)

warnings: none

context: IN WHICH kami gojo, younger sister of certain powerful jujutsu sorcerer, meets an idiot who makes cold barrier around her heart melt.

There weren't many things that Kami hated. She probably poured all her hatred onto her parents, whom she felt incredibly sorry for. But there was another thing that Kami hated practically as much as her parents.

"She’s Satoru's sister. From Gojo Family."

Oh, how she hated being seen only as the sister of a famous jujutsu sorcerer and a member of a powerful family.

Kami wasn't powerful, in fact, she had no cursed energy, she couldn't do any cursed technique. The only thing she had in common with her family was that she could see curses, nothing more. She was often referred to as the window of the Gojo family. No one ever wanted to meet her, no one wanted to know anything about her, and when someone actually started talking to her, it was only to find out about Satoru.

Because of this, she was also the scapegoat in the family. Her parents were ashamed of her. In fact, they abhorred her. They couldn't stand the thought that their daughter was nothing compared to her family. Compared to her brother. Therefore, she was excluded from practically everything that went on in her family. Meetings, celebrations, birthdays, nothing. She was always left alone at home, under the care of the babysitter her parents had hired.

When she was younger, she thought it was just the way it was supposed to be, that it was like that in every family. After all, they never hit her, so what was wrong with that? Sometimes they yelled at her, screamed about not being good enough, but they never hit her. So nothing bad happened, right? Right?

The only thing she had in common with her family was her white hair and her rather tall height. And everything else was different. Even her eyes were black. Black. When her family had them blue, heavenly.

As she grew up, she began to understand how different she was from her family. She saw how disappointed they were in her for not being like them. So she began to practice and learn as much as she could. By the age of twelve, she already knew all about cursed weapons, she knew how to use them, how to defend herself. But her parents continued to look down on her. They continued to look at her with the same eyes. With pity and disgust.

The only person who didn't seem to look down on her was her brother. Satoru. And still, Kami hated him with all her heart.

She hated being inferior to him. She hated being compared to him. She hated being in his shadow. She hated all of him.

And yet she continued to stay with him. She stayed with him because of that stupid bond, the fear that no one else would accept her, that no one else would love her. Because no matter how angry, pissed off Kami could be at him, no matter how much she could call him names and tell him how much she hated him, he always stayed by her side and never doubted her.

After all, he was her big brother, how could he doubt in his loving little sister, for whom he would give his life, for whom he would do anything.

Satoru loved—duh—loves Kami with all his heart and considers her the smartest, strongest, and most beautiful woman—not girl, woman—he could ever meet. Satoru is the proudest brother, and he couldn't be prouder of how well his little sister, who holds his whole heart, is doing.

Even though she was over a decade younger than him, Kami was able to talk some sense into him more than once, show him how wrong he was about many things. Kami had taught him everything. It was for her that he tried his best. It was for her that he stayed in his family home as long as possible. It was for her that he befriended Megumi, seeing how well the two of them would get along and not being able to pass up the opportunity to find—probably—a lifelong friend for his sister.

And he found one.

Satoru was able to stay with Kami through the nights while she learned all about jujutsu sorcerers, he would bring her tea whenever she ran out of it, he would make her food when he heard her stomach clamoring for a snack. He would be the one to move her helpless body from her desk chair or the floor to her soft and comfortable bed so her back and neck wouldn't hurt the next morning.

He was the one who brought her breakfast every morning, for which he got up two hours earlier before her alarm clock. And when he was out, he would always send her a simple "have a nice day, don't forget to drink water" in the morning with some stupid meme or gif he found on the internet. It was the only thing Kami always woke up at 6:30am for, a silly and simple text message from her brother.

Let's also not forget the "good night, I love you little sister, sleep well" in the evening. Kami would never admit it, but she has screenshots of every single such message, printed out and tucked away in one of her binders, in case her phone breaks or gets lost.

In the end, Kami snapped. After all, how could she hate her brother, who would do anything to make her the happiest person in the world, who would do anything so that only his sister could have the best life, the one she deserved.

A soft knock on the door of her room snapped her out of her thoughts. She knew very well who it was. After all, he had said himself that as soon as he showed Yuuji around, he would come.

"You alive?" Her brother's familiar voice asked and Kami lifted her head from her pillow, smiling softly.

"How do you feel?"

"Like pulled straight from the grave," she muttered, and Satoru laughed, sitting down on the edge of her bed where she lay. "Itadori's been in his room since yesterday?" She asked, and her brother nodded. "Megumi?"

"He and Yuuji are already on their way to Harajuku where we're supposed to meet the fourth student," he replied, and Kami raised an eyebrow.

"Why didn't you go with them?"

"I was waiting for you," he smiled softly and started to speak before Kami had a chance. "And don't tell me you're not going. The fourth student is a girl, maybe you'll get along. Besides, you need to get out of this room eventually. And I don't mean leaving the room to move to Megumi's room or mine," he said as he noticed his sister opening her mouth to start defending herself. "Come on, I'll buy you a bubble tea on the way, okay?"

Kami glared at him for a good few seconds and finally sighed, which caused a big grin to spread across Satoru's face, which Kami smiled at, too.

With the help of her brother, the white-haired girl got out of bed and put on her feet, covered in black knee-high socks, mary-jane boots—the same colour as her socks—from her school uniform.

She quickly looked at herself in the mirror again, checking if her pleated mid-thigh skirt hadn't rolled up and if her short button down jacket, covering her perfectly white turtleneck, hadn't twisted anywhere. Adjusting her hood pinned to her jacket, she walked out the door that Satoru had opened for her, having previously put her phone in her pocket.

Just as Satoru had promised, they quickly bought her favorite strawberry bubble tea on the way and immediately headed towards the street they were supposed to meet at. As soon as they saw two familiar faces in the distance, Satoru raised his hand.

"Sorry for the wait!" He shouted and headed with Kami towards the two teenagers. "Your uniform made it in time, I see," he added when he saw a perfectly fitting uniform for Yuuji.

"Yeah, it's a perfect fit. Though it's slightly different from Fushiguro's. It has a hood, for one," Yuuji said, taking the red hood his uniform had in his hand.

"That's because the uniforms can be customised upon request," Satoru replied.

"Huh? But I never put in any requests."

"I was the one who put in the custom order. With a little help of our master," Satoru smiled, pointing at his sister, who was shorter than him and too focused on her bubble tea to get anything out of the conversation.

"Whatever, I guess," Yuuji replied.

"Be careful. Gojo-sensei has a tendency to do things like that," Megumi interjected, looking at his classmate out of the corner of her eye. "Most importantly, why are we meeting up in Harajuku?"

"Because it's what she asked for," said Satoru.

"Ahh! Popcorn! I want some!"

After a few minutes, Satoru poked his sister with his elbow and, as she raised her eyes at him, he pointed to something by the entrance to the street, or rather, someone.

There stood a redheaded girl, not too tall, tiring of some middle-aged man, but Kami couldn't hear what was going on through the crowd of people making noise around her. The short-haired girl had a very similar uniform to Kami, though this one had brown moccasins, black tights and a white shirt instead of black mary-jane shoes, knee socks and turtleneck.

"This is kinda embarrassing," Yuuji spoke up with his 2018 glasses on his nose and popcorn in one hand, in the other ice cream. Kami shook her head and closed her eyes, going back to drinking her bubble tea.

"So are you," Megumi heard and she snorted softly making the drink she was drinking fly up her nose.

As Kami tried to get rid of the sticky drink from her nose, the redhead approached them and began leading them to 400 Yen Corner where she could leave her luggage.

As the other freshman girl closed the locker with her things, she turned towards the rest of them and put her hand on her hip.

"Ok, once again," Satoru began and pointed his hand at the girl.

"Kugisaki Nobara. Be happy, boys. I'm the one woman in your group," she said, as if she hadn't noticed Kami standing next to her brother at all.

"And what am I? Guide dog?" Kami said, pulling away from her already almost finished drink. Nobara looked at the girl and her eyes lit up.

"Oh, hey! I didn't notice you. We will be great friends!" she said and returned her gaze to the two boys in her year.

"I'm Itadori Yuuji. I'm from Sendai!"

"Fushiguro Megumi."

"Kami Gojo. Guide dog."

After a few seconds in which Nobara looked like she was thinking hard about something, she finally sighed.

"I always get stuck with unfortunate circumstances," she said and sighed once more.

"She took one look and sighed," muttered Itadori.

"Are we going somewhere from here?" Megumi asked, turning his gaze to Satoru, who only laughed.

"We do have all four of you together. Not to mention, two of you are from the countryside," said Satoru, lifting his head proudly and throwing his arm around his sister's shoulders. "So of course we're going on a tour of Tokyo!"

Nobara and Itadori began shouting "Tokyo!", attaching themselves to Satoru, causing Kami to have to walk over to Megumi, throwing away an empty cup on the way.

"We're definitely not going on any tour," Kami muttered, and Fushiguro-kun nodded softly, knowing Gojo-sensei all too well.

"We love Tokyo!"

"TDL! I want to go to TDL!"

"Idiot! TDL's in Chiba! Let's go to Chinatown, Sensei!"

"Chinatown's in Yokohama!"

"Yokohama's part of Tokyo! Don't you know that? Look at a map!"

Kami, Satoru and Megumi were quietly watching the argument that was going on in front of them when the elder Gojo spoke up.

"I will now announce our destination!"

Nobara and Itadori knelt before Satoru at which Kami shook her head with her eyes closed and Megumi deadpanned at them.

"Roppongi!"

"Roppongi?!" Said Itadori and Nobara at the same time, looking at each other, incredibly pleased with what they heard.

[erensonly]

Cuddle Buddies (Bakugou x Black! Reader)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

                             ~Chapter 5: FaceTime?~

1, 2, 3, 4 

.

.

.

.

.

.

Alright, let me tell you something. When you actually sleep, like really get some decent sleep, you will refuse to wake up, solely because you don’t sleep as much as you should. So when you felt your phone vibrating endlessly, it kinda pissed you off. Rolling over, you grab your phone.

Bakuboy💥

gm dumbass

get up big head

get up im walking you to school

ARE YOU IGNORING ME??

                                                                         Big Head🐥

                                                                        why tf you blowing up my phone??

                                                                        needy ass

                                                                        ill text you when im ready

Walking to the bathroom, you handle your business, hop in the shower, and put on your uniform. You walk to your vanity and just look for a minute, not knowing what to do with that mane on the top of your head. So you go with a simple looking, but actually kinda hard hairstyle. A slicked back ponytail.

Finally finished, you fix your edges and grab your lipgloss and mascara. You know the drill. Walking downstairs, you see a big ass pomeranian talking to your mama. Why is he here?

"Good morning mama," you walk towards her, kissing her cheek. "Why are you here?"

"Because I can. Your mama let me in."

"Duh. Lets go. Bye mama"

"Yeah, bye mama." This cocky fuck. Dragging him out of the house, you punch him in the stomach. "Don't call my mama 'mama'. We ain't married."

"Don't hit me." He bonked you on the head. Like deadass bonked you on the top of your head. "And if I marry you, I can call her 'mama'."

"I- No comment. C'mon before we're late."

Finally arriving at hell, you go to sit down and plan how much you're going to pay attention today. Then Denki walked up to you. You two hadn't interacted much besides small talk here and there. He was cute, kinda pervy, but cute.

"Hey Y/N!"

"Hey Denki. You need something?"

"I was wondering if I could... maybe get your number?" He was very shy. It was adorable.

"Yeah." Taking his phone, you put your number in his contacts. "Text me, kay?" You smiled and turned back around. Then, you noticed it was colder than Santa's ass crack. Putting your arms in your shirt, you put your head down, waiting for Aizawa.

"Damn, it's cold in here." You hug yourself closer, trying to trap any body heat in. One thing you hate to be is cold. Cold is bad. Very bad. Then, you felt a tap on your thigh. You were going to kill this boy one day.

But he handed you a hoodie. Maybe he won't get killed yet.

"Here big head. I saw that you were cold." Awww he was shy.

"Thank you," you muttered, flustered. If you weren't black you would've been blushing, but you can't. The hoodie smelled good. You ain't never smelled something so heavenly in your entire existence. Putting it on, your mood was instantly lifted, but you wouldn't show it.

                                         ~Timeskip to lunch ~

Grabbing your bento box, you walk the cafeteria. Looking for an empty seat you hear someone yelling. "Big head! Come sit here" You look to see the Bakusquad sitting at a table together. Walking towards them, Bakugo scoots over so you can sit next to him.

"L/N, hey!" Denki said.

"Hi Denki!" Then you saw a pink blob, a red rock, and tape dispenser. "Hey Sero. Wassup Mina. Kiri, hi," You said to everyone, facing your attention towards each person. Opening your bento box, you see some wonderful, delectable, delicious gumbo and garlic biscuits. You grab a spoon out of the bento and start to eat, then you notice everyone staring at you.

"What? Is there a problem?" Then they all looked away awkwardly. "No... Of course not."

"So what are y'all looking at?" Looking at them confused, you realize that they had probably never seen someone eat gumbo before. "OH! Y'all wanna try it?" Everyone nodded their heads. Usually, you didn't share your food, but they were curious so maybe this one time you could share. Grabbing an extra spoon, you give everyone a spoonful.

Their eyes lit up instantly. "Big head, what is this?" Everyone looked at you expectantly. "It's called gumbo. It's really big in the States as well as other places. You like it?"

Without even answering, he grabbed your spoon and bento and took another bite. This motherfu- You looked at everybody else. "You guys like it?"

"Y/N, this is amazing! I need to have more of this."

"I can probably get Mama to make some more and you guys can come over and eat."

Then you turn and see this blonde bitch still eating your food. He completely pushed his food aside and started gobbling yours. "Damn! Slow down, this ain't even yours." Taking it back you eat more of it. Enjoying it, you feel someone staring at you. Mind you, everyone has been talking throughout the whole lunch break up to this point and whoever was staring didn't stop.

"What Bakugo? You want some?" He turned around flustered. Of course would be flustered, emotionally constipated bastard. "Here," you push the bento towards him to let him eat again. Before he could start eating again, you take the spoon. "Say thank you."

"Tch," he scoffs. Giving him a look, he mumbles, "Thank you, dumbass." Better. "You're welcome, asshole."

"You two are cute." Mina. Of course she would say that bull. "I know I'm cute, I don't know about him though." You started to laugh at Bakugo. The punched your thigh and kept eating. This big ass hedgehog just punched me. Cocking your hand back, you slap the back of his head. As soon as Denki, Kiri, and Sero heard that you hear: "I like ya cut G."

That pissed Bakugo off. He started yelling and cursing at us, drawing attention to the table. Ew, attention. "Shut up! Stop yelling you damn hedgehog. You got everybody looking at us like we some damn fools. Be quiet!" Silence. "Thank you."

It's time to go now, grabbing the spoon and the box, you start to walk back to the classroom. Noticing you still had the hoodie on, you realize that Mina wasn't only talking about you sharing your food. Discombobulated, you put your head down and wait for everyone to get back.

~Another timeskip because I'm too lazy to write anything else for this part~

Finally, the end of the day. No more being social with people. You start packing up as usual. Getting ready to walk out the door, you realize to still had the hoodie on. You started to take it off, then a hand stopped you. "Keep it." Unsure, you look at him. "Are you sure? I can give it back if you want it."

"If I wanted it back, I would've taken it already. Keep it, big head."

"Thank you. Now, let's go" Grabbing his wrist, you drag him to the exit. It was the usual route, and more bickering amongst each other. Finally at home, you say your goodbyes and start to open the door when you felt a tug on your hand. Then a kiss on your cheek.

He snickered.  Was he copying you? Sneaky fuck. "Text me," was the last thing he said before walking away towards his house. How dare he be so smooth all the time. You were gonna catch him slipping one day.

Walking inside, you start to unwind. Sitting down at your desk to get started on the homework you didn't finish in class, you remember to text Denki and Bakugo. Now you were distracted. You and Denki sending memes and tiktoks, and you and Bakugo with your usual bickering and casual flirting.

After you finished your homework you went to lay down. Then, you got a text from Bakugo.

Bakuboy💥

FaceTime?

Before you could respond you had an incoming FaceTime call. Answering the phone you propped your phone up , grabbing your bonnet/scarf and started to wrap your hair while you two started to talk.

"What are you doing, Big head?"

"Wrapping my hair so it stays protected while I sleep and because it saves time so I won't have to do too much in the morning."

You continued to answer his questions about your hair. You two had been talking for hours, about everything and anything in between. Eventually, you heard a snore. He was sleeping. Looking at the time you saw it was 3:53 A.M. Sinking further into your bed, you slowly start to fall asleep.

You finally felt at peace while sleeping since It had happened. You could get used to it.

.

.

.

.

.

.

And that is a wrap. This piece of crap shouldn't have taken 3-4 days to write but it did. As always, I hope yall enjoyed it. And thank you soooooo  much for 400+ reads on Wattpad. I really appreciate it. I go on wattpad everyday, and everyday there is a new surprise for me there. When we hit 500 reads, I will try put out a new chapter everyday for a week. Thx for reading ♥

[gendercraft]

Outast: Revisited [Chapter Eight: Waylon]

Read on ao3

Synopsis: I’m rewriting Outlast where the first game and Whistleblower are combined, Miles and Waylon are more connected, and also they kiss

Trigger warnings: Sexual assault plus everything already in the game; eye gore; the gore actually gets kinda intense here; let me know if i missed anything

The warm gas spilt over Waylon in the decontamination chamber. His heart raced, his muscles tensed; he was ready to run. The doors were barely open by the time he made it out. 

Manera cut him off as he flew through the labs. Waylon skidded to a stop just in time, the buzzsaw tickling his nose. The saw swung, and Waylon ducked, gasping. Stumbling backwards, he staggered to his feet, and caught the saw just as it came down on his chest. 

Fabric tore, sterile air brushed against his chest. Waylon yanked the saw as hard as he could, and it came free from Manera’s grip, only to hurdle over his head, down towards the decontamination chamber. 

Manera and Waylon stared. Waylon was tense, ready to fight. Manera’s gaze slipped past his, landing on the still buzzing saw. 

Throwing Waylon to the ground, Manera raced towards his weapon. Waylon hit the concrete with an ‘oof’ but immediately stumbled up and sprinted for the door. 

He made it back to the hall and didn’t stop until he reached the chamber with the victim. Heart sinking, he stepped inside. 

The man was dead. Keeping an ear out for the saw, Waylon knelt down and looked closer. It was a security guard. A little bit of weight lifted off Waylon’s shoulders. The security guards had been cause for death even before all this, he couldn’t imagine what this man might have done to patients in the chaos. 

He straightened up and took a second to close his eyes. His mind tried supplying him with thoughts of family, things this man might be leaving behind, but Waylon pushed it away. He wasn’t a man. He was a Murkoff employee. Waylon had better things to be worrying about. 

Like if Miles Upshur would be waiting for him in the prison.

He stepped through the chamber and it led him into the dense gray fog outside, a staircase encased in chainlink. Reloading his battery, he hurried down the stairs. When he arrived on the dirt, he brought his night vision up, only to wince at the brightness. Bringing it down, though, he couldn’t see two feet in front of him. There was no way to cut through the fog. He’d have to be blind. 

“No! NO!” 

A scream. Is it him, the cannibal? Could be pleasure or pain, Waylon wouldn’t guess. Did Manera even know? His voice sounded like… something I wanted while watching the Engine. Its only message was hunger, to crush and consume. 

Waylon whipped around. No one was there. 

“You were mine!” 

Peeking through his camera, he zoomed to the building, one of the upper windows. Manera stood in the frame, face twisted. 

I’m going to try and forget it, Lisa. If I get out of here, I’m going to come back to you. 

He found his way to an open chainlink door, the floor covered in bloody footprints. The trees surrounding him were dead, bare branches arching into the air and poking at his back. Footsteps sounded from every direction, sometimes far away, sometimes close by, and the occasional scream or curse carried in the howling wind. Part of Waylon was curious about what else was going down in the asylum; how many people were trying to escape? How many were succeeding? How many were just venting, killing out their frustrations? The other part of him knew he’d never recover if he found out. 

Two patients ran across his vision, almost entirely obscured by the fog. Waylon held his hands out and got ready to dash but neither of them saw or cared that he was there. He swallowed. There was never any telling who’d attack him in this place. 

A cobble path appeared in the dirt. Waylon followed it to a stone staircase leading to the left and the right. The right was locked, so he headed through the chainlink doorway on the left. It was a small alley between the prison watchtowers and a bricked-in basketball court the patients were supposedly allowed in every now and then. Emphasis on supposedly. 

“Three hundred sixty four…” 

A grunt, a smack. Waylon trailed around the brick until he found a grated door. He zoomed in on his camera, and his stomach lurched. A patient, shooting hoops, with a human head. 

The head looped around the rim and smacked to the ground. Blood dusted the concrete, and the patient strolled over to pick it up like nothing was amiss. 

He’s playing alone and losing. Waylon took a step back. That is what the game is. 

There is a mathematical proof, if you add 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 5 and so on up to infinity, you can arrive at an answer. If you stop shy of infinity, you have an indescribably large number. If you continue all the way to infinity, you arrive at—1/12. Negative 0.0833333 repeating. I’m losing my grip on things. 

Waylon was thinking about the drive to Mount Massive, 400 miles in a rented truck. The job that showed up just in time to cover their bills, their debts, the insurance. The boys sleeping in the back. Nothing but AM radio. Gospel, Country-Western, late night paranoiac talk radio. They sang Patsy Klein songs and laughed at conspiracies of aliens and ghosts. Mile marker numbers passing in headlights. 

I don’t want to die here. 

There was no way forward, so he backtracked. Out of the previously locked right side of the staircase, a patient came running out holding a pipe. Waylon leapt back but the patient ran right down the stairs and disappeared into the fog. Swallowing, Waylon pushed forward through his abandoned open door. 

The ground was wet. Waylon’s bare feet ached, stung, burned. He’d never felt grosser in his life, covered in sweat and blood and snot. 

He didn’t have time to think about that. Finding a hole in the fence, he dropped himself onto a metal walkway. It clanged as he rushed through. Dropping down to the concrete at ground level, he found a ladder that led him up to the courtyard. 

Mount Massive’s prison courtyard was split up into several very small sections by chainlink. Most of the doors would be locked—a maze. He passed by a few wooden picnic tables and reached a hole in the fence that allowed him into the main pathway. The metal poked and scraped at his sides as he slid through. 

Despite the fog, it was a bit more well-lit here. With all the puddles, it must’ve rained recently, and looked like it was about to again. 

He paused as voices purred from the shadows. 

“I would like to kill him.” 

“As would I.” 

Waylon’s hairs stood on end. Two men, naked, identical, passed by the locked chain door inches from Waylon’s face. They disappeared into the fog. 

They can’t find you. Keep going. 

He kept going. 

He arrived at another small area with a picnic table, surrounded in chain link and brick, only for the two men to enter through a side door. One took the right side, the other took the left. 

They stared. 

Waylon inched towards the door they came in from. 

A smirk curled on Leftie’s mouth. Waylon prepared himself to run, to leap, to dodge, anything, but the twins just stared, grinning, smirking, eyes twinkling. Their machetes glinted in the moonlight. Where the fuck did they get machetes? 

Waylon slipped through the door and slammed it closed behind him. He broke into a sprint, racing through the fenced in main path, stepping on broken glass and twigs and rocks. Slamming a chainlink door open, something flew in front of his face. He yelped and stopped. Glancing back, panting, he frowned. Did they follow him at all? They were nowhere in sight. 

He looked down, and his mouth went dry. Another head. What was with these fucking freaks playing basketball with heads? Could they really find nothing else? 

He zoomed in with his camera. The hoop was full of carnage, dripping body parts, red all over the ground below. A shuffle behind him—he whipped around. The twins were coming. They’d been following after all. 

Stumbling into the court, he dodged the blow from the player, who rasped out, “Shirts and skins or fuck off!” 

The player shoved Waylon towards the exit, a ladder leading up the side of the building. “Spoilsport!” 

“Yeah, my bad,” Waylon gasped. The gate creaked open. The twins stepped inside. Waylon ran for the ladder. It led him up to a watch tower, where he took a moment to lock himself inside. He pulled out one of the wooden chairs and dropped his face in his hands. 

I don’t want to die here. 

Something on the table caught his eye, the words ‘exposed to the Engine.’ Pulling the email closer, Waylon squinted at the paper. 

 From: j.billings@murkoffcorp.us.com

To: k.vigalando@murkoffcorp.us.com

Subject: re: “Patient” Samul 

 Kurt, we’ve got another one, and I’m not sure you’re gonna be able to check it off as “Psychopathic Proximity Disorder.” 

 Security guard all the way up in the Admin block is our latest non-patient employee to start seeing Wernicke’s fairy tales. He was never directly exposed to the Engine, never even made it below level 1 in the building. It would be an enormous breach of protocol and security if doctors were speaking of the Walrider within hearing of a contracted security guard. And seems vanishingly improbable that he would stumble into such an obscure mythological story on his own. 

 It’s too similar to the Dr. Samul case, or the others before him. It’s one thing for formally sane medical personnel to fall under the delusions of their patients. It’s another thing entirely for those beliefs to be… I don’t know. Airborne. We need to talk in person. 

 Billings. 

 Waylon stuffed the paper in his pocket. He had no idea what to make of it. Wernicke… Waylon had heard that name before. Checking through the other documents he’d collected, he found mention of Wernicke’s research. Wernicke was why the Walrider existed. Wernicke created the engine. 

Wernicke was the reason he was trapped here. 

He forced himself to leave the safety of the watchtower to head across the catwalk. A patient ran past him. 

“Shhh! Shut up! Shut up, all of you! We’re not alone down here. It’s just what they want us to think. You’re going to draw it. Shh!” 

We’re not alone down here. 

Waylon swallowed. 

He reached another watchtower and climbed a ladder, bringing him even higher. A patient stood at the railing, looking down, looking very much like he was contemplating. 

“Don’t trust them,” he said with a sigh. 

Waylon brought his camera up. 

“They’ll tell you it’s science but it’s not. They were… waiting for us. In this place. Billy understood. They’ve always been here.” 

He wiped his sweaty palms on his jumpsuit and headed for the nearest door. It let him into a larger building, and down the hall by the flickering light, a few patients ran past. Blood splattered the walls. Waylon passed by a barricaded door cracked open, the shadows on the wall beating another to death. Everywhere he went, patients were running, hiding, killing each other, barricading themselves in doors. 

Waylon finally found his way to the security room, where a dozen screens showed the entire prison block. 

And the radio. 

Waylon broke into a sprint. 

“Leadville 911, what’s your emergency?” 

“Mount Ma—” 

A hand closed over the radio. An elbow slammed into Waylon’s nose, his vision blurring as he choked and fell on his back. Jeremy Blaire smashed a police baton into the radio, once, twice, three times—Waylon had to run. He jumped to his feet and headed for the door, only for the baton to crash into his face and land him back on the floor, staring at the ceiling. 

“Fuck!” He gasped. 

Blaire climbed on top of him and pressed the baton to his neck. “Waylon Park!” He laughed dryly. “You couldn’t just…” A growl built in the back of his throat. “You couldn't just keep your mouth shut. You couldn’t just play along. But you’re done talking now.” 

Waylon’s throat burned. His vision was pulsing, his eyes throbbing. His head was going to explode. 

Something crashed. 

Blaire looked back. 

He climbed off of Waylon, who sucked in a huge, gasping breath, and waved the baton at him. “Do me a favour and die here, Park,” he snapped, then ran from the room. 

Waylon couldn’t get up for a good few minutes. He gasped for breath, holding his throat, his heart racing through his entire body. 

He ended up on all fours, dragging himself to the doorway. He was almost to his feet when a body flew through the once-closed door that led deeper into the asylum. Huffing grunts and snorts sounded down the hall. Waylon pressed himself against the back of a desk, eyes wide. He peeked around the side. 

Chris Walker.

[nny11writes]

Hello there. I was reading How to Quit You again and I have a question. What is in the reports on Catra that the Moons keep referencing? Maybe I just missed it in the fic cause my english is not very good. I was just curious.

So, uh, this got a LOT longer than I thought it would and then I started including pictures and basically this got wildly out of hand. Kind of like the fic itself, so I’m not sure what I was thinking lol.

You totally didn’t miss anything! I purposefully left it vague so that people could insert whatever they thought was appropriate (well, inappropriate in this case) there. Essentially to let people ramp things up or down more to their comfort. It was also done in part because back then I wasn’t sure how intense I wanted to make things either. This fic has honestly gotten darker and more mature than I ever thought it would, so leaving it vague has certainly been a benefit to my changing whims lol.

But these days I do have a solid idea for the things that went down. So what I know see happening there is mostly a lot of her mouth getting her in trouble (and not just mouthing off, god Catra wields words like surgical scalpels), but there are a few notable cases where she did physically attack others. 

Catra is still in a bit of Horde mindset here so anything she perceives as someone trying to hold power over her or kick her down demands she respond. Because if you aren’t on top, then you’re getting crushed under someone’s boot and Catra has both 1. Long grown tired of being abused and 2. Gotten used to being the one on top. So she responds with more force than needed and uses preemptive strikes to protect herself.

We need a little backstory here so:

When the whole Erlandia thing went down, Catra was 2nd in command of the Horde. Technically Weaver was, but everyone knew that it was actually Catra calling the shots. She’d had Hordak’s favor for years by that point and practically was the boss of their little posse. But Hordak is VERY vicious in this fic since we didn’t have a Horde Prime when I started writing this (If I were to do a full re-write I’d make Prime be the big guy and the characterization would fit so damn well tbh), and he operates under a fuck you model of catch 22. If you mess up you are fucked, and if you are honest about messing up you are only barely mildly less fucked. So if you can successfully lie or deflect the blame then his wrath won’t fall on you, but get caught lying? Woof. 

So either way is a great way to end up dead (RIP Mantenna I will release your death fic someday), and the higher up the chain of command you are the farther you have to fall. 

(Picture below of the bridge near my hometown I was picturing Mantenna being hurled from in Catra’s place for reference, because I realized no one would understand my falling joke at this point :D)

(Catra had a long way to fall whenever Hordak decided to kick her down)

Once she saw her wanted posters Catra knew she had to flee Horde territory or else she would be captured and probably brutally tortured for weeks before finally dying. And the Horde, who had suffered under Catra’s relentless pace and high expectations (look, they certainly were 400% more efficient at first and then people start dropping for exhaustion and mutiny and worse), they would’ve loved the opportunity to do literally anything they wanted to her. That’s why she ran.

So Catra’s still somewhat in this mindset of “I’m running this operation and if you try to contradict me or undermine me I have full permission to kill you for it” those first few years in Etheria.

Some of the worst of her behavior was actually contained at the Archer’s house where she was living until she got the Brakeman job. (Bow is currently being a little fickle but I am writing from his PoV for another one shot in this AU where he’ll touch on these things a bit too.) By the time she gets that job, Catra is already starting to try and be a better person. Begrudgingly and with a lot of frustration for sure. But she is trying and it’s a painful growing process.

(Hello sir, like that train and view, this is Catra chapter 3 y’all)

So those reports contain her mostly being a smart ass. 

But she also verbally eviscerates people, picking them apart piece by piece in public settings. She caused at least one mental breakdown on the tracks where people need to keep their heads for safety. 

Think of her like someone on twitter who keeps the receipts (and wisely spends her limited time alive compiling them into a list) and jumps on someone for making a mistake, which she then blows out of proportion while never giving them the chance to learn and grow. All while making every bad faith interpretation she can and poisoning the well. She delights in this, she loves tearing someone down to nothing because it means she WON and she was right, and in the moment people seemed to cheer her on. But afterwards, when everyone else gets tied up in the shame and guilt of their actions she doesn’t and it puts her more on the outs. 

The thing about this sort of behavior is that it’s hard to prove when it’s verbal and everyone else involved is too ashamed to admit they participated. So it’s more “hearsay” than anything else. Honestly, kind of like real life there’s a lot of people being told to suck it up, ignore her, or be the bigger person while she is being an outright bully. It’s not right, but it’s what happened.

On top of that, she lies and deflects and blames as well. Nothing can be her fault (because Hordak would’ve killed her, Weaver would’ve tortured her, and worse), so she is conniving and scheming and manages to twist everything so she’s never the root problem even when she is. The higher ups are usually doing their best to interpret what they are hearing (although not always) second or third hand, and Catra can dance verbal circles around her co-workers. 

This doesn’t endear her to anyone either.

I hesitate to say as a consequence of her behavior, because that is some strong ass wording, but essentially her coworkers are fed up with being attacked by her. And they decide to get back at her, and they certainly can’t do that through talking or arguing (some have tried, almost all have failed). So a small group of them do physically attack her.

She uses that as justification to be a right bastard and decides to start doling it out again because it’s proof to her that she was right. She absolutely falls back into destructive, awful behavior. Everywhere is just like the Horde, they just hide it better. Catra doesn’t ramp up, but her attacks become more vicious and more directed after that. And this is also when she finally decides that the Archer’s were an anomaly and she absolutely needs to prove that no one can try to get the jump on her.

So the later reports are fewer in number, but more about her being caught or admitting to doing something physically violent instead of her being sarcastic or verbally cruel. These reports range from throwing a single punch to implying she’d attack with a weapon. Mostly it’s small scale (this is when we see Angella talk to Catra in a flashback), but there is one very notable exception.

Catra was working top with a motherfucker who had determined that no one liked her, so he thought he could try to push her around. They were literally assigned together because no one liked either of them, and they were both known for being violent. So the bosses went, “Let them duke it out on the trains, maybe calm them both down!” (Fucking idiots. Why yes, all this gunpowder should be stored next to the lit oil lamp!) She’s trying to keep it together, but she absolutely loses it and goes feral on him. This confrontation happens when she almost kills him by dangling him over the side of the train as they approached a tunnel. It could’ve been the perfect crime, brakeman is a dangerous fucking job for many reason but falling off the train or getting drunk and getting yourself killed isn’t uncommon. 

(Think like the miners at Cerro Gordo who would ride the ore carts back up from town, and be so fucking drunk they’d stand up and get their heads knocked clean off their bodies.) 

Catra really almost does it too, but the last time she thought she’d had the perfect crime with Weaver she’d been caught and everything fucking fell apart. So she yanks him back to safety, and tells him to fuck off.

Somehow she really thought that would be the end of it (she made her points, made him piss himself, and is now top dog again; good job girlboss), but bastard boy ran to the bosses to report her.

(Look, picture this train going through a slightly smaller tunnel rocking side to side, depending on the rail up to a foot either side, so you would get crushed if you weren’t laying down on top or clinging to the back of the train. You’d be terrified and report someone too.)

This is what Angella is warning Glimmer away over. She’s thinking about this instance, where Catra claims that they did get into a fight and admits to starting it but denies threatening to kill him. He claims that he did nothing wrong while everyone knows he does shit wrong on a regular schedule. And everyone else says, “Well we weren’t there but it sounds like something she’d do.”

Catra is careful to never go too far where it can be proven, and in town she is as polite as can be. Everyone knows she’s a hard worker and slowly but surely she makes a place for herself in the community without even noticing. Most of the folks she works with don’t have the time, money, or energy to build their own reputation as individuals. Company housing was built specifically because the workers were known as being too rowdy. But Catra will burn the candle from both ends to see Bow, Adora, and Glimmer. So Angella is hearing stories from folks in town about that “lovely young woman” and horror stories from the rails about that “hellish bitch”, and she doesn’t know which to believe. 

She’s biased in Catra’s favor because she’s seen Catra be good and lovely, she’s biased because her daughter is crushing on Catra, she’s biased for a lot of reasons.

Angella is also a coward and conflict avoidant. 

It’s easier to give excuses, or look for reasoning, or even twist the narrative so that she doesn’t have to confront anyone. She won’t have to confront Catra and hurt her, which would hurt Glimmer and Bow. She won’t have to confront her workers either, no need to face them down when they are furious with her for inaction. She doesn’t have to fear a fight or even put her reputation on the line as long as she can “prove” that Catra didn’t go as far as the reports say she does. 

I love Angella to death, but the woman has a lot of problems and flaws and isn’t working on any of them. She does care about her workers health and happiness, but not enough to sacrifice her daughters (or herself). Frankly she barely sacrifices her pocket book but she does. Yes she’s semi-capitalist propaganda but this version of the “wild west” is more idealized for sure for sure. :\

Essentially, Catra got fucking lucky that Angella was looking for ways to prove that she was a good person. Because if Angella had actually put her glasses on and faced the truth? Catra would’ve been fired and practically run out of town.

Aaaaaaand that’s what I think was in the reports. :)

[sleepyfoxfanworks]

Got tagged by a bunch of people for this. Sorry it took so long!

List the first lines of your last 20 stories (if you have less than 20, just list them all). See if there are any patterns. Choose your favorite opening line. Then tag 10 of your favorite authors!

20. It had been a pipe dream, anyway. She knows that. They’re at war, have been for years, and there is no time for anything so sentimental. -- The End of Everything, Naruto, a sort of prologue to a multi-chapter fic, to be published for KakaSaku Month.

19. Sakura was desperate. After two weeks of couch surfing at Sasuke and Naruto’s apartment, she had had enough. She loved her boys, but Naruto was terrible about personal space and Sasuke was just...Sasuke, and together they were a disaster and she was going to wring their necks. -- Shut Up and Dance, Naruto, ShiSaku modern AU multi-chapter to be published for ShiSaku weekend.

18. Sakura went into labor at an ungodly hour, her hands holding Kakashi’s in a death grip that made his bones crack. -- Beautiful With You, Naruto, KakaSaku oneshot in the Here’s To Us series, 400 follower giveaway prize.

17. The summons came right as Shisui sat down to eat dinner. He looked longingly at his plate and sighed, shoveling as much as he could in his mouth before the phone blinked angrily at him again. The screen lit for just a moment, but it was long enough for him to see a message from Hokage Tower with a crow emoji. ANBU then. -- And So We Burn, Naruto, KakaSakuShi multi-chapter in the Souls On Fire series.

16. “I’m gonna catch you, Uchiha Shisui!” 

Shisui paused on a tree branch and crouched down to look at the fuming academy student who glared up at him from the ground below. Her long pink hair was tangled with tiny sticks and leaves, and she had dirt smudges on her clothes and skin from her mad run through the training ground, but the fire in her jade green eyes was brighter than the sun. -- Catch Me If You Can, Naruto, ShiSaku one-shot for ShiSaku Day 2021.

15. The universe was determined to hate her. First, the Fourth Shinobi War, a homicidal goddess, reincarnated kages, and now… Now she couldn’t go home because it was gone. Crushed to rubble during the battle, her parents inside.

She stared at the wreckage, gaze focused on nothing and everything at once. She could see what had been, overlapping how it was now. The small family home with the cheerful blue shutters and the neat garden was now a pile of rubble. Some of the bricks were stained with blood, and she knew that it was probably from her parents but she couldn’t conceptualize it without breaking down. -- All That I Am Living For, Naruto, Team 7 gen fic with some NaruSaku oneshot in the Here’s To Us series.

14. The first time Haruno Sakura took his breath away was the day he made the mistake of letting her hit him during a friendly spar. -- Leave Me Breathless, Naruto, ShiSaku oneshot.

13. Haruno Sakura was grateful for coffee. And for clear skies and uneventful days and genin teams finally learning how not to fall out of trees. Right now though, she was most thankful for coffee. -- Familiar Taste of Poison, Naruto, KakaSaku multi-chapter in the Here’s To Us series.

12. “I want you to teach me the oiroke no jutsu.”

Wide blue eyes stared at her incredulously as Sakura threw back another shot of tequila and slammed the cup on the bar. When he stared at her open mouthed for too long, she leaned against the bar and poked his cheek. “I’m serious, Naruto. Teach me.”

Naruto blinked at her and then huffed a laugh. “Seriously?”

Her grin was lazy and just a bit tipsy, but she wasn’t drunk. Neither was he, and she was one hundred percent serious. “Seriously.” -- Bringing Sexy Back, Naruto, Team 7 gen fic in the Here’s To Us series.

11. “Sakura-chan, you’re a girl.”

Sakura turned her head and regarded Naruto with apprehension. He had matured over the years, but sometimes… Sometimes she wondered if he had actually grown up at all. -- Questions Redux, Naruto, KakaSaku oneshot.

10. Sakura tugged the blanket tighter over her shivering body, adjusting it further when she pulled her knees up to her chest in an attempt to trap even more body heat. It wasn’t the most comfortable position, but it offered warmth and that was her main concern. Not that it would help much. She was always cold at night and no matter what position she contorted her body into, or how tightly she pulled the blankets over her, she always awoke shivering and sore. -- Space Heater, Naruto, Team 7 gen oneshot.

9. “Can I put them in now?”

“Is the water boiling yet?”

“No…”

“Then not yet.” Sakura didn’t bother turning around as she finished chopping carrots for the salad brushing them into the bowl with a kunai. “Can you hand me the dressing?” -- How About Now, Naruto, KakaSaku oneshot.

8. Kakashi had always been an enigma. It was difficult to tell what the jounin was thinking, although if you got an answer out of him you knew it was the truth, because he never lied. His approach to questions was not to tell you the exact answer to your question. Rather, he would say something equally true and related enough to change the subject or provide an answer, just not quite the one you were looking for. -- Knowing You, Naruto, KakaSaku oneshot.

7. Naruto was thrilled when one of his best friends announced that her unborn child was craving ramen. Sakura had only mentioned it because she knew that if she didn’t and he found out that she had visited Ichiraku without him she would never hear the end of it, and she hadn’t spent time with him in several weeks because of their increasingly busy schedules. She missed him. Not that she would tell him that because he might crow it from the rooftops. -- The Making of a Legend, Naruto, Team 7 gen oneshot.

6. It was a very strange occurrence for Echizen Ryouma to be the first of the regulars to reach the locker room in the morning. Ryouma valued his sleep over most anything (save tennis, Ponta and Karupin), and getting him out of bed was a job in itself, but somehow he had managed. His mannerisms hadn’t changed much over the past three years, and he would still sleep in if it weren’t for a particular incentive that got him up earlier in the morning. -- Pre-game, Prince of Tennis, RyoFuji oneshot.

5. Haruno Sakura arched her back, smiling when she heard several pops from her spine. The boat ride home was relaxing with the gentle rocking on the waves, but the wooden plank she sat on was killing her back and hips. The mission had been long, but she couldn’t say she hadn’t enjoyed it. It had been years since Team Seven had all been together again. Now, all jounin – with Sasuke, Naruto and Kakashi occasionally working as Anbu – it became increasingly rare for them all to be paired together for a mission. -- Questions, Naruto, KakaSaku oneshot.

4. You had promised to live a mortal life and now, with your hair gray and brittle and your skin paper thin, you are dying. You led a healthy, peaceful life with your beloved and the other vampires in the mansion, working for most of it as a gardener and occasional errand runner, but it has been more than sixty years and you are tired. -- One Good Turn, Ikemen Vampire, oneshot.

3. Aella should have known Sebastian was up to something when he sent her to wake Napoleon Bonaparte. The tiny uptick of his lips, the gleam in his eyes, and the glances from the others when they saw her taking the stairs was enough of a clue. No one said a word, but she felt their eyes on her as she walked past. Intrigued, she didn’t say a word until she reached the ex-emperor’s door, knocking smartly and calling his name out of politeness. Sebastian had warned her that it was difficult to wake him, but she didn’t want to be rude. As she had been told, there was no reply, and so after a murmured “excuse me” she let herself in. -- Wake Up Service, Ikemen Vampire, Napoleon/OC, oneshot.

2. I’m nervous to start this interview. I’ve been a fan of Given since their first show, and now, 4 years later, they’re bigger than ever. Given had an explosive beginning, and their popularity has grown over the years to become one of the most popular bands in Japan. I’m honored to be interviewing them, both as a lover of music and also as a fan. -- Given Today, Given, RitsuMafu and KajiHaru oneshot.

1. It had only taken a few days for Captain Hook, dashing rapscallion that he was, to get sick of sleeping in a room at Granny's and begin searching for a ship. The stillness of a bed on dry land was strange, leading to many sleepless nights full of tossing and turning before he gave up and went hunting for a sea-faring vessel that would suit his needs. Unfortunately, Storybrooke was not the best place to look for such things. Boats were scarce, and none of them were up to his usual standards. -- Captain’s Log, Once Upon a Time, CaptainSwan oneshot collection.

In conclusion... I have no idea, omg.

Tagging whoever wants to do this. 💜💜

[handeaux]

17 Curious Facts About Cincinnati’s Coney Island

For almost a century, the “Coney island of the West” was the reigning Cincinnati amusement park, despite tough competition from Chester park in Spring Grove Village and the Lagoon in Ludlow, Kentucky. Now operating as a water park and concert venue, memories of the Old Coney abide.

It Started Out As An Apple Orchard Coney Island got its start as Parker’s Grove. In the early 1880s James Parker started to rent out his apple orchard on the banks of the Ohio River as a picnic grove, eventually adding a dining hall, dancing hall, and bowling alley.

For Many Years, ‘Coney Island’ Was Just A Nickname In 1886, James Parker sold his apple orchard to a couple of steamboat captains who recognized the opportunity to collect a lot more fares by shipping customers upriver from Cincinnati. The park got a new name: “Ohio Grove.” The new owners advertised Ohio Grove as “The Coney Island of the West,” after the well-established Coney Island in Brooklyn. It was years later that the resort was officially named “Coney Island.”

Why Didn’t The Brooklyn Coney Island Sue? Didn’t Cincinnati’s amusement park steal its name from a famous New York resort? You betcha! Then why didn’t they sue? The New York Coney Island is not actually an amusement park, it’s a neighborhood. At its height, the New York Coney Island was home to three major amusement parks - Luna Park, Dreamland, and Steeplechase Park – along with a plethora of independent amusements, none of them named Coney Island. Cincinnati’s Coney Island didn’t copy from another amusement park and therefore got away with grand larceny.

The Coney Island Run Was Bad Luck For Steamboats Although most people remember only the Island Queen, over the years nearly 20 steamboats made the Coney Island run. The Mary Houston ran only one season before succumbing to the 1893 ice breakup; the Commonwealth rammed a towboat in 1895; the Princess was crushed when the Ohio froze over in 1917, the Morning Star burned with the original Island Queen in 1922, the Island Maid burned at Madison, Indiana, in 1932, and the second, most-remembered Island Queen exploded in Pittsburgh in 1947.

Coney’s Pleasures Were Not For Everyone It took a concerted effort to open Coney Island’s gates to Cincinnati’s African American residents. The amusement park was totally segregated until 1955 and the Sunlite Pool and Moonlight Gardens did not admit Black people until 1961.

A Narrow Decision On Integration In 1953, Ethel Fletcher and her three children were denied admission to Coney Island because they were Black. With the assistance of the local chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, she sued and won. However, the Hamilton County Court of Common Pleas refused to certify the case as a class action. The decision applied to Mrs. Fletcher, alone. Coney Island was required to admit her, the court ruled, but could deny admission to her children, her husband or to anyone else.

A Really, Really Big Pool Sunlite Pool is the world’s largest recirculating swimming pool. It covers more than two acres. For many years, Sunlite Pool was filled entirely from artesian wells drilled on the property. Today that well water is supplemented by city water originating in the Ohio River.

Coney Island Helped Inspire Disneyland Walt Disney and his brother, Roy, visited Coney Island in June 1953 to gather ideas for the California amusement park they planned. They were impressed by owner Ed Schott, and invited him to advise on their project. At a Cincinnati news conference, Disney said Schott’s advice had been “very valuable” in making Disneyland a success.

Rainy Birth, Rainy Death It rained torrentially the first day Ohio Grove opened in 21 June 1886 and it rained torrentially the day Coney Island closed on 6 September 1971.

One Explosive Act Throughout the summer of 1948, one of the attractions on Coney’s Mall was Captain Leo Simon, “The Man Who Blows Himself Up.” Capt. Simon would seal himself in a box with a lit stick of dynamite and emerge unscathed from a cloud of smoke.

Al Hirt Sets A Moonlite Gardens Record The one-night attendance record at Moonlite Gardens was set 18 July 1964 when Al Hirt packed in 6,266 dancers. Hirt, riding on the success of his instrumental hit, “Java,” broke the previous record of 5,564 set by Ralph Marterie’s Orchestra on 25 July 1953.

A Twelve-Acre Wading Pool Lake Como was excavated and filled in 1893, offering rides in gondolas. It took so long to fill that it was nicknamed “Colonel Brooks’ Duck Pond” by local wags. Most people could walk across Lake Como if they wanted. Completely filled the lake is only three to four feet deep, all the way across. Lake Como covers an area of 12 acres.

Ghost of the Roller Coasters If you’ve ever felt a sort of swooping motion while enjoying a performance at Riverbend Music Center there might be a reason. The  concert pavilion sits on land that once belonged to Coney Island and was occupied by the Wildcat and the Shooting Star roller coasters.

The Inevitable Floods Every autumn, as Coney Island closed for the winter, the hand-carved Grand Carousel horses were dismantled and moved to high-ground storage in the attic of Moonlite Gardens to keep them dry when the Ohio River inevitably flooded. The Grand Carousel was made by the Philadelphia Toboggan Company in 1926 and was moved to King’s Island in 1972.

Old Coney Is Haunted There are multiple reports of a man, sometimes accompanied by a woman, gazing from the balcony at Moonlite Gardens. The man wears old-fashioned clothing. Witnesses, when shown photos of George Schott, Coney Island’s one-time owner, agree he is the man they saw. Schott died at the park from a heart attack in 1935.

Davy Crockett Killed Coney Island In 1968, Fess Parker, the actor who portrayed both Davy Crockett and Daniel Boone, announced plans to build a huge “Frontier World” amusement park in Northern Kentucky. The owners of Coney Island, landlocked and unable to expand, realized the competition would be fatal and quickly negotiated a merger with Taft Broadcasting. Plans for the “New Coney Island” at Kings Mills, Ohio, made headlines in 1969. Coney Island closed in 1971 and Kings Island opened in 1972.

A Gigantic RV Park? Before Taft Broadcasting reopened “Old Coney” in a limited capacity in 1976, the company gained approval from the Cincinnati City Planning Commission for a zoning change that would have allowed parking for 300 to 400 recreational vehicles and camper trailers.

[always5hineee]

Hell and Back- Chapter 8: New Rules (Trials 11-13)

Chapter warnings: Mild language

Word count: 1662

-----

       "Next limit, Sehun." She said as Tao drank a glass of water rather quickly. He was thankfully fine, if anything just a little bit nauseous.

       "I'll take it this time." Baekhyun offered, having seen the last trial up close and deciding it would be prudent to go sooner rather than later. Checking to make sure there were no objections, she pressed his name and allowed the trial to load in. As it did so, she began thinking about her own issues. They didn't want her performing the challenges without any powers, but she would have to do so eventually. The longer she waited, the harder they would get, and yet no one had put her up to one yet. She didn't want to jump in, but... It could turn out poorly later.

       Trial 11: Drinking Eggs

       Drink at least one dozen raw eggs.

       Limited power: Sehun

       Drop-out Fee: $350

       Baekhyun's face immediately twisted in horror as he read this, along with several of the other members. Even just the thought of doing so was disgusting. He wasn't even worried about the threat of salmonella, he was more concerned with not throwing up because of the consistency of raw eggs.

       "Is there any way to get around it? Like with Kai's challenge?" Chen offered, trying to be consoling.

       "Like what?" Kyungsoo argued. "We can't cook them, and he has to drink them. Unless you make it a matter of shells or no shells, there's literally nothing we can change."

       "Eugh, that's gross." Kai muttered, stating the obvious.

       "Yeah, yeah. Do we have eggs?" Y/N, already at the fridge, looked for the familiar shaped boxes as the cold wafted over her skin. Finally, her eyes laid upon not one, but three cartons of eggs.

       "Why are there so many?" She asked, pulling out the freshest carton for Baekhyun's sake.

       "Hey, we're dudes." Kris said. "We eat a lot." That wasn't specific at all. Sighing, she searched through a few cabinets, pulling out a 32oz cup. Grabbing the eggs, she began cracking them in, the boys watching as all their stomachs twisted just thinking about it. After she had poured all the eggs in, she pulled out a fork, whisking the liquid around.

       "What are you doing that for? You're just dragging it out?" Baekhyun complained.

       "Would you rather drink an egg flavored smoothie, or swallow a bunch of egg juice and have to down twelve, big, squishy, yellow-"

       "Alright, alright! Quit it! I get it!" Finishing up and pouring a tiny bit of milk in the mixture (to combine it better) she handed it to him. Looking into the cup face, he sighed.

       "It looks so nice, all yellow and pretty."

       "It's not." Lay said.

       "Yeah, I'm aware." He pressed his bottom lip to the rim of the cup, trying to talk himself into just drinking it. There were about two ounces of liquid per egg, meaning that he'd have to drink around 24 ounces of raw egg as quickly as he could without throwing up. At least, she assumed he'd have to start over if he couldn't down them all. Plugging his nose with a pinch, he started drinking, eyes widened in a spark of newfound revulsion crossing his gaze. About halfway through, he had to remove his mouth from the cup, upper lip shaking with the slimy substance still coating it.        

       He put a hand to his mouth as his stomach rejected the hellish concoction, but he refused to let anything slip. Eyes squinting shut as everyone watched in curious horror, he picked up the cup again and finished it all in a few more swallows. Setting it down with a movement of conviction, he looked to the screen, checking for the completion banner. As it appeared, he immediately turned around to bend over the sink, throwing up rather violently. She winced as he heaved, watching as Sehun walked over and placed a hand on his shoulder, making sure he was alright.

       "Shh, it's over." He consoled as Baekhyun finally coughed to a stop, wiping off his mouth with a towel that Sehun handed him. Shaking his head in revolt, he sighed shakily.

       "Well, that was fun." He muttered. "On that note, who wants to go next?" He asked jokingly.

       "The next limit is Lay." She informed them.

       "I suppose I should go at some point." Suho offered, placing him practically dead center in the lineup. It made sense to a degree, but Y/N was partially expecting him to want to go as late as possible to protect the rest of the team. Regardless, she had no issues with it. She selected his name.

       Trial 12: Anthill

       Stand in an anthilll. Footwear is not permitted.

       Limited power: Lay

       Drop-out Fee: $400

       "Ugh... ouch." He said, groaning at the thought. "I still might prefer it to eating all that gross stuff, though."

       "It just says stand." Kyungsoo consoled. "That could mean for a split second, you just have to stop moving. It won't be long."

       "Still..."

       "There's tons of anthills in that line of trees behind the building. We can find one there." Luhan offered.

       "...Yeah, I guess." Suho said. He was obviously not pleased with his trial, but there was nothing he could really do. He sure as hell wasn't going to drop four hundred dollars on a few bug bites. "Do we have to al go out together? I feel like some of these would be easier if we just... went." Y/N shrugged.

       "I don't know, walk out the door. If it doesn't stop us, I don't see why not. If we don't run out after you, just... go complete the challenge, I guess."

       "Don't bail out, we'll know." Kris snickered as Suho gave him a look, walking towards the door.

       "Should we watch out the window?" Chanyeol suggested with a strange smirk.

       "Dude, that's so weird. Just watch the phone, we'll know when he's done."

       "I'm gonna run and grab Bacitracin from the bathroom." Lay said, walking towards one of the doors as well.

       "Woah, since when did you care?" Baekhyun joked.

       "Shut up, bug bites suck, okay?"

       "Agreed, bugs are disgusting." Kyungsoo said with an acid in his voice.

       "They're not that bad-" Chanyeol started to argue as the screen lit up.

       "Oh... I guess the challenge is complete." Y/N noted as she saw the banner flash by. "So why make us all stay together last night?

       "Who knows..." Tao said passively, finally feeling a little more up to talking in the wake of his trial. "As long as we just do what it says, we win, so who cares?" As he said this, Suho walked back in, mouth slightly tight. He was no longer wearing his shoes, and there were clearly a few red marks interrupting the flow of his pristine skin.

       "Yeah, please tell me it's done."

       "You could have just checked your phone, man." Lay said, offering him the tube and a few bandages, which he gladly accepted.

       "Well, now that that's over..." He breathed, looking at the screen that Lay had held up. "Next one under the bus is-" His eyes shifted momentarily. "Oh, me. So who wants to go?"

       "Who hasn't been yet?" Kyungsoo asked.

       "Uh," Y/N glanced over the list again. "Sehun, Xiumin, Lay, Chanyeol, Luhan, and me, I think?" She offered. "I could be wrong. There are like, thirteen of us."        

       "No, that sounds right." Sehun said. "Maybe we just go in that order, then. I can take the next one."

       Name selected, trial loaded, it was getting tedious already, and they weren't even a quarter of the way done.

       Trial 13: Eat a Raw Fish

       Eat the entirety of a raw fish. It must be at least half a pound, you must complete it in its entirety. It can not be more than one fish added up to the weight requirement. Further questions can be directed to the bar in the Rules tab.

       Limited power: Suho

       Drop-out Fee: $450

       "A bar in the rules tab?" Kyungsoo asked curiously. "Is that new?"

       "I guess?" Y/N stated. Shaking his head, Sehun looked at the challenge.

       "You guys don't want to see me do that. I'll go handle the fish, you figure out the new bar." Before they could even argue, he was leaving, assumedly to go get a fish. Sliding into the rules bar, she saw few updated pieces of information. The two she found the most notable were actually quite interesting. The first was an addition that basically stated that the wish could apply to anyone who dropped out. She herself knew that this must be in application to whatever wish was requested previously, so she decided not to draw any attention to it.

       The second new addition was indeed a type of search bar. She clicked into it, trying to think of something to type. Finally, she just decided to put in something she knew the answer to. How many trials are there? Sure enough, it responded with One Hundred. Curious, she then typed in, What is challenge 54? After a moment of buffering, it replied, That information is not available to you at this time.

       "So, I guess we can ask questions now." Y/N shrugged. "Do you guys have one?" Waiting as they clicked in, Kyungsoo was the first to shake his head.

       "I guess since you're Player 1, you're the only one who gets it."

       "Weird. Well, if one of you has a question, just let me know." After she said this, Suho entered the room again, lips tightly shut. Concerned, Sehun asked,

       "Dude, are you okay?"

       "Yeah," he responded, "I feel much better after throwing it all up." They hadn't even noticed the completion banner due to their exploration of the other tab. Takin his mind off the fish, she filled him in quickly on the search bar. When he was adequately prepared, they discussed the next trial.

Go to Chapter 9

[neoarchipelago]

Lisbon lights (John wick x reader part one)

AN: here's the first chapter of the small serie! Hope you enjoy it guys! 

Edit: i forgot the translation x) *to the Continental hotel please, as quick as possible.

Word count : 4 767

Warnings: cursing, sexual talk?

__________

Walking through the crowded streets of the city, you sighed, feeling the fresh breeze of the ocean hit your skin. The summer heat was sometimes unbearable even in a city so close to the ocean. Your tight black dress that reached half of your thighs was the only way to feel a bit more relieved. The thin straps and the low cleavage showed more skin than it should, attracting some curious looks your way. It didn't matter to you. You had recently finished a contract and was taking some time out here in the beautiful city of Lisbon. The night had already fallen, and the crowd had started to come out into the streets. Music beamed everywhere, as people sang and danced. 

The soft and neon lights everywhere made the city look beautiful, almost like a dream. Walking in heels was nearly impossible though, you mentally noted that whoever had the idea to make soft stone pavements in the entire city must have hated to walk around. You quickly fixed that by wearing some sandals. 

You walked through the streets of  Bairro Alto, reaching a small place where a show was occuring. You decided to stop, watching the drag queen walk around showing to the public it's lit torches. 'I will survive' was beaming loudly from a big speaker, and you watched as fire danced around. You smiled, clapping with the crowd. The man walked around with a small basket to anyone who wished to offer something. You reached your small hand purse and grabbed a golden coin. You received a knowing look as you gave it, as you simply smiled back. 

You kept watching, expecting another show when something felt off. You could feel someone stare at you. You weren't a trained assassin for nothing after all. You looked around discreetly trying to figure out who might be watching you. You started to feel annoyed when you failed to find out the person. Deciding to test out this new situation you walked further down the city, barely a few 400 meters away, to an ongoing concert. Soft classical music played as many people had gathered around the stage. You watched the orchestra play one of Beethoven's symphony, as silence stood among the crowd. You enjoyed this, the complete change of atmosphere through the city at night. You could find some peaceful, classy places and more joyful and energetic ones. 

But as much as you enjoyed the soft tune, your skin still burnt from someone's gaze. You heart rate started to raise as you were now sure someone was following you. You decided not to look around, preferring to take another approach. You started walking down again, going closer and closer to the ocean side of the city. Streets were a bit more lonely, empty, and darker. You still felt at ease though, you knew those streets by heart and could walk this city your eyes closed. Throughout your Journey to the small dock, you still felt like you were being observed. Not observed like the many men did when they saw you walk by in your tight little black dress, no. Observed like you were being hunted by a predator. 

A small shiver ran down your spine at the thought. You were actually enjoying this for the moment. Whoever was hunting you hadn't tried to make a move to kill or hurt you so for now you simply enjoyed the little chase. Slowly walking down, trying not to trip over the slippery pavements you took a quick glance back. Your breath hitched as you quickly looked back towards your destination. Your (e/c) had met dark ones that you knew all too well. Not that you knew the man to be  exact but it was hard not to know him. After all his name was feared by the entire underground network. Baba yaga. 

You could definitely feel yourself getting anxious now. You were being hunted by the most feared assassin there was. Your mind spun at all the reasons why. You hadn't done anything to anger the man, at least not that you knew of. If he wanted you dead, you probably would have been as well, as you had walked through complete empty streets where you were alone with him. You were feeling curious now but decided to walk to the docks first before even trying to make contact with the man.

Finally reaching the ocean you shivered at the sudden cold breeze. You mentally scolded yourself for not bringing a jacket with you, the city getting cold at this hour of the night. You wrapped your arms around yourself trying to feel a bit of warmth. You suddenly felt a presence right behind you, making you hold your breath but not turn around. 

"Mr Wick. What can I do for you?" You asked in soft voice. 

You heard the man walk to your side, planting his eyes directly into yours. You felt yourself instantly melt under his dark gaze. The man was intimidating, handsome. His perfect looks, three pieces suit, hair gelled back, beard perfectly tamed made you feel hotter than you wished. 

"Miss (y/l/n). I need to talk to you." He said in a serious tone that promised many things. 

You chuckled, sending him a teasing look. 

"But you are talking to me…" you said in a seductive and playful tone, walking around him. 

You took in his body, imaginating what might be under the suit he wore. You stood in front of him again eyeing him up and down, your eyes resting on his strong hands for a second wondering how they would feel around your neck. You looked up at him a dark lustful look on your face. 

John stood there as if nothing happened. You weren't surprised the baba yaga wasn't so easily tricked. 

"I mean business." His voice sounded strict. 

You moaned and frowned softly. 

"I'm on a vacation mister Wick. I do want to mean business." You said in an annoyed voice. 

You turned to look back at the ocean, humming the strong smell of the salty water. 

"You know the city by heart you've been here more than any other… co-worker. I need you to help me find someone." 

You sighed clearly getting annoyed at the man's insistence.

"There's plenty of other people that know the city. I'm not playing the tour guides for you, mister wick." You said looking at him darkly. 

"John"

You stared at the man. Not fully understanding. 

"I beg your pardon?" You asked softly.

"Don't beg, call me John." He repeated.

"No." He looked taken aback and you mentally high-fived yourself for that. You figured it out he was trying to play the same game as you, trying to seduce you to have what he wants. "I'm not interested in calling John. I don't plan on spending enough time with you to do so." You resumed, starting to walk along the docks.

The moonlight reflected in the water, illuminating the waves, who sparkled and danced. You heard John start to walk behind you. 

"So you're still planning to spend time with me just not enough right?" 

You groaned and rolled your eyes. 

"I'll give you half of the reward."

"I don't want it."

"I'll have dinner with you." 

You narrowed your eyes and threw him a dark look before answering in a dark voice. 

"I.don't.want.it."

You kept walking trying to make him lose interest in you. You heard him sigh and out of nowhere felt two powerful arms around your waist. You spun around in his firm embrace, ready to turn around and slap him when he grabbed your wrist. 

"Easy." His dark voice whispered.

You were suddenly too close. You forgot all about the fresh breeze as your body was slammed against his. Your skin burnt under his hand and you felt your heart rate quicken. He was inches from your face, his cologne leaving your mind in a haze. You were a master at seducing targets, being the mermaid that would drown them. Yet in this situation you felt yourself wicken in the arms of the man, unable to pull yourself together. Something about him was toxic, inviting. 

"Please." He whispered again. 

You mentally slapped yourself as you closed your eyes. You quickly pushed him away. Sighing as if he was an annoying child. 

"Who are you looking for?" You said in an angry voice, hating yourself for giving up so easily. 

"Your old boss, Miguel."

You looked at the ocean. You remembered him clearly. He had been your first boss, putting all faith in you. You were young yet he trusted you. He was that annoying rich old man that thought he owned the world. He had a daughter who wasn't any better than him. The Apple doesn't fall far from the tree. You had stopped working for him as soon as you had discovered his real business. He kidnapped young women who traveled to the city and sold them to other countries such as Brezil. You shivered at the thought feeling the need to throw up. You were glad someone was finally taking him out. You were even happy to help John. 

"He usually spends his time at the Palácio Chiado. It's his favorite Hotel in town. A fancy little place of Bairro Alto." You said looking at John. You chuckled at John's confused look. 

"You have really no idea where that is right?" You said slightly laughing. 

He looked at you sending you a dark look, that didn't make you stop laughing but still sent a sweet shiver down your spine. Or maybe was it the fresh air? 

"I arrived in town two hours ago. I only had time to check in at the continental." John said, his raspy voice sounding a bit too sweet to you. 

You sighed. You wanted to help him. After all Miguel deserved to be killed and you were glad a man like John Wick was on the contract. It was just a matter of an hour perhaps. You could then forget about Mr Wick here and go on with your little time off. Just showing the hotel and then leaving to the continental until he'd done with the Job. You looked at him studying him. He saw you analyzing the situation and took a step forward. You took a step back, frowing and sending him a dark look. He simply smirked at you. 

"You look adorable with that frown." 

You starred at him in shock. What did he just say? You felt your blood boil for a second before remembering, that's it. You had to look adorable that was part of your way to trick your targets. Always be like a ghost, leave not a soul alive to tell the features of the pretty face who killed them. Only some rare people knew you correctly. Miguel and his daughter Luana, the director of the Lisbon Continental who's also your best friend Amalia, Winston the director of the New York Continental and probably the high table. Though you had started to suspect that only the Elder knew about you as well. You weren't called for every contract. Simply for those where the death had to stay a mystery. You aced in poison, dagger kills and seducing your prey. Everything that contrasted with Mr Wick's way of working. You threw back your focus on the man in front of you. 

"You should be careful then mister Wick. I'm not only made of sugar, spices and everything nice." You said in playful tone as you started to walk to the Tram's stop. You heard John follow in your footsteps as sat down at the stop waiting. You weren't going back up the hill walking. No. Your were on vacation. John sat by your side, your shoulders touching. The fucking… you closed your eyes. You knew he was doing it on purpose, just to pull you off track. 

"What are we waiting for?" You heard his vocie ring next to you, low and making your skin crawl. 

What was it with the man? Why was he having such a strong influence on you? Maybe was it the myth around him that made you want to have a little one night stand. Maybe was it just too long since you had sex. It was probably that. You were going to find some entertainment right after this. 

"For the train." You simply answered, keeping your eyes closed. 

You shivered slightly as you felt the cold breeze again. It was a big contrast compared to the day time heat. Your breath hitched as you felt his lips close to your ear. 

"You're cold." He whispered in a deep voice. 

You opened your eyes slowly and turned your head to him just as slowly, throwing him a dark look. He seemed unshaken by it as your words dripped of anger. 

"Don't." 

John looked at you before slightly leaning away. You didn't even thought your murderous gaze would make him actually back off, but apparently even the Baba Yaga knew when to back off. You sighed looking at him. 

"I'm helping you because I hate Miguel and he deserves to die. I don't care about you or your stupid contract Mister Wick."

"John." He corrected. You ignored his intervention. 

"I am showing you the hotel and then leaving you there. I'm not helping you, I'm not your fucking tour guide. Mister Wick."

You finished as you looked away. The silence felt heavy between you two for a few minutes before your heard him speak again.

"Thank you for helping. I apologise for bothering during your time off. I know how those can be rare." 

You sighed, feeling your anger already leaving you. 

"Whatever. I suppose one hour won't kill me." 

Well you never thought you could be this wrong in your life. Actually one hour with John was pretty much what you needed to almost get yourself killed. The train had arrived and you both walked in the crowded wagon. The fast start had made you trip and you felt John's powerful arm around your waist again. You had blushed furiously as you hid your face in his chest. You had nowhere to hold onto but him so you let him hold you so you wouldn't fall. He was holding onto the iron bar near the roof, and you were too small to reach it. The heat was getting unbearable but you actually couldn't tell if it was from the crowded place or because your body was slammed against John's, one of his arms firmly around your waist. 

Your face rested next to his neck and you clearly felt your mind get cloudy. Another sharp turn made you cling to John's jacket a bit tighter, falling even more onto him and you swore you felt John groan. You looked up at him, ready to apologise thinking you had hurt him but you froze as you met dark eyes staring at you. 

"Stop that." He said in a very dark and low voice that made you want to moan.

"Stop what?" You let out in a breath.

"Your little game of seduction. Can you be serious for a moment?" 

You felt slightly annoyed at the man. Game of seduction? He was the one whispering in your ear a few minutes ago. You frowned again.

"I'm not playing anything at all John. That's a little hypocrite of you to say don't you think?"

John smirked and you gave him a puzzled look. What was so funny? 

"So it's John?" He said, making you realize your mistake. 

You moaned, closing your eyes feeling suddenly stupid, you opened them again to stare into darker ones that were slightly narrowed. You swallowed hard, being in the man's grip and having him look at you so darkly was too much right now. 

"Don't." His voice was rough, almost mean. 

You felt slightly pained at his sudden mood change, again, mentally slapping yourself and screaming that you didn't give a shit if he liked you or not. 

"Don't what?" You answered just as roughly. 

"Moan. Don't moan." He said in a growl. 

You felt yourself blush again as you looked away, a small smirk on your lips anyway as clearly you could still have some sort of effect on him. You finally reached the stop at Bairro Alto in front of the big place of Camoes where a beautiful and enormous statue laid there. You walked out of the train with John following you as you breathed in the fresh air. You were sweaty because of the heat, and it felt nice to feel the breeze on your skin. Your skin softly glistened under the neon and colorful lights of the surrounding bars. You could feel John's eyes roam your body but you tried to ignore the sinful look as you walked down the street back to where the orchestra was playing earlier. John was walking next to you and the silence between you two was making you feel tensed. You arrived in front of another small place, this time where green grass had grown and a small fountain rested in the middle. On the left side a huge building stood with the words Palácio Chiado written in the front. You stood quite far enough to show John the building while not being seen by anyone you might know.

"Here's the Hotel. Miguel is in the best suite. It's in the last floor, the left door." You said while inspecting the waiters from afar. 

"How can you be so sure?" John whispered next to you. 

"Because like you said I've worked for him. He's not a man to change habits. Plus he adores this stupid hotel he practically made that suite his apartment." You answered monotonously. "The hotel is not in touch with the underground network. The waiters, the cooks the whole place is civilian. There's an entrance in the back that you can reach though the maintenance door in the left corner of the hall. If you're discreet enough you can make your way up there through the staff's staircase." 

You turned to walk away as you finished giving him a few tips but felt his large hand grab your wrist and pulling you so you'd turn to him again. You rolled your eyes, this man never gives up now does he? He looked at you, still holding your wrist.

"Thanks for the help." His voice was soft making you melt slightly. 

You sighed and looked at him in the eyes, getting lost in the darkness for one last time. When you felt your skin burn again you simply nodded and freed your hand. 

"Be careful...Mr Wick." You finished in a soft smirk. 

He smirked back at you and walked to the hotel. You entered a small bar that faced the hotel. You knew you should go back to the continental and forget about all of this. You were sure Miguel or his daughter would try to kill for betraying them like this but hey. They deserved everything that was falling on them right now. You sat down on a table that gave you visual access to the entrance of the hotel. You were just going to check that John had managed to finish his contract and then you'd leave. You were sure it would go smoothly. 

Miguel's daughter was really the one to be afraid of. She was sadistic, taking part in her father's business and managing to be even more cruel then her hideous father. Besides the horrible things she did, she was a very good fighter and you were sure she was a psychopath. She enjoyed torturing in the cruelest ways and see her victims suffer in agony. You remembered that one time she had ordered you to stay and watch her torture a poor girl and you had threatened to kill her 5 mins through. Her father had not punished you since you were one of his most priced possession at the time. You never had to watch again but you grew a large amount of hate towards the egocentric and cruel daughter Luana. 

You had quickly quit after that, finally understanding the family business that was occuring behind your back. You had been told that Luana was not in the country right now, she had traveled to Mexico on a business trip. Miguel was most likely alone, without barely any protection, especially not his daughter. 

The waiter came to you, taking your order. You asked for a cup of Beirão licor. It was quickly brought to you as you sipped the sweet but rough alcohol. Your eyes stayed glued to the hotel for the next 5 mins before you almost choked on your drink. A Bentley parked in front of the Hotel and you watched as Luana got out of the car. 

"Shit!" You half whispered half yelled out loud. 

That was not good. John still hadn't come out and Luana was not part of the plan. If she saw John who just killed her beloved father she certainly would torture him to death. John was a man of focus, commitment, sheer will. You knew he could fight, kill but he also many times was caught. Sure, he managed to escape every time, but Luana didn't need to kill him. She needed to catch him that that would be all. You cursed again as you stood up, leaving money and your still full cup on the table. 

You saw her enter the hotel as the car drove away. You stopped in front of the bar you walked in, pondering on your options. You could run to her, catch her and pretend you needed to talk to her, buying John a bit more time but you were sure that wouldn't work. You and her had nothing to say to each other and Luana clearly knew that you would never come to her to talk about anything at all. Even is she'd accept the conversation she probably would invite you to her father's suite to talk privately. You cursed again, your mind racing. 

You had to walk in, get John and walk out before she reached the suite and without her seeing you. You ran to the hotel entrance and walked in, the waiters not paying attention to you. Luana was at the bar and you thanked the gods for her slight alcoholism. You reached the maintenance door you had told John about and climbed the stairs as quick as you could you while reaching to your right thigh, under your dress, where a thin lace wrapped around it. You checked the small knife you had strapped there. 

Rule number 1: never leave the house without a knife. You ran up the stairs to the last floor and opened slightly the door. You looked into the hallway to see men already lying on the ground dead. You pushed the door open and ran to the door on the left. You opened it and walked in checking that no one was nearby, especially not Luana. You quickly walked into the small living room. 

"John?!" You could feel your lungs burn, but your mind was perfectly clear. You were used to those adrenaline shots though never in a situation where you could be discovered so easily. Usually your targets didn't know you, you had the surprise card on you, but not this time. You heard footsteps coming from the bedroom into the living as you spun to see John. He was holding a gun and looked confused at you. 

"(Y/n)?" 

You ran to him not really caring about the possible threat he was. After all you barely knew him and you had walked in on the Baba yaga hunting. 

"We need to leave, NOW!" you said grabbing his hand and pulling him to the entrance door.

"What's going on?" He asked, following either way. 

"Miguel's daughter has arrived. I didn't expect her to be here." You said opening the door just enough to take a look in the hallway. 

"Alright, and?" His voice sounded amused and you sighed in exasperation. 

You threw the door open when you were sure no one was around and grabbed John's hand again pulling him to the maintenance door. 

"Luana is not her father, she's cunning, cruel, sadistic. She has more security than the fucking queen of England." You walked into the maintenance staircase John still following you. You ran down the stairs your hand still holding John's.

"She has been the one taking care of the family business recently she's the one you should be careful about. She's unreachable for us right now. We don't have the proper attire. No guns, not bulletproof vest. And the worst isn't that she'll kill us no that's the best option." 

John was still frowning but listening closely to you. 

"I saw her torture a 14 years girl because she felt bored. She's a psychopath and trust me." You said as you stopped in between two floors looking at John worriedly. 

"She'll torture us until we beg to die because we killed her father."

John looked at you before slightly squeezing your hand.

"I killed her father." He corrected you.

His words reached your brain and you realized you had thrown yourself into the lion's den without any actual reason. Or maybe there was one. But you decided to ignore it entirely prefering to think of something else instead of thinking that it was to try to save John. 

"I helped you. She'll torture me too." You quickly said, looking away. 

John's hand reached your chin making you look at him. You planted your eyes into John's ones. 

"Thanks for coming for me." He said in a sweet voice. 

You closed your eyes groaning. 

"Oh shut up and hurry!" 

You pulled on his hand as you darted running down the stairs again. This was no moment for this cute shit. You finally reached the bottom floor and you opened the door slightly staring into the crowded hall and restaurant. Everyone seemed busy and that was very good. You noticed Luana wasn't there, so you had little time before she saw her dead father. You opened the door and pulled John with you. You walked normally to the entrance door trying not to attract any suspicions on you two. John wrapped his arm around your waist pretending to be your partner. You could almost feel the relief as you reached the doors. But one last look behind you and you knew your vacation was over. Your eyes fell into deep blue ones, as you looked at Fernando, Luana's personal body guard and sometimes lover. He nodded at you. You realized he probably hasn't seen the dead body yet. You softly smiled and walked out of the hotel. 

"Fuck." You simply said a fake smile plastered on your lips. 

John had also noticed the interaction. Yes. Soon enough Luana would link you and John to the death of her father and your peaceful moment was going to end. 

"Does he know you?" John asked in your ear.

"Unfortunately yes… we're fucked." You said slightly whining as you waved to a taxi. He pulled over and you walked in pushing John inside with you as you were still holding his hand. 

"Para o hotel Continental por favor, o mais rápido possível."*

You said in Portuguese to the driver. He nodded and started the car. 

"Do you think they will link you to this?" John asked lowly. 

"I'm sure they will. You've just ruined my vacation John." You said in an annoyed tone.

"So it's John?" He asked again. 

You turned to him angrily. You didn't actually know if it was against him for joking in such moments or if it was against yourself for putting yourself in this stupid situation for a man like John who probably didn't care about you. 

"Yes it is! We're probably going to spend months into an abandoned building being tortured so yes! It's John! " You said feeling your nerves really being wrecked. 

John wrapped his arms around you, bringing you to his chest. 

"I'm not letting anyone touch you ok?" 

You breath hitched as you closed your eyes your head resting on his chest. 

"You've helped me I'm going to help you now."

The last words brought you back to reality as you slowly pulled away. He was trying to retrieve a favor. Nothing more. You felt anger run through you as you coldly spoke, surprising and confusing John again. 

"I don't need your help. That's the difference between you and me." 

_____

@thatbemyhouse @magdazwolska

[happy-haunts]

The Hostess

Chapter one | Constance pt.1 : Constance pt.2

Chapter two | Mister Topper pt.1 : Mister Topper pt.2

Chapter three | Madame Leota pt.1 : Madame Leota pt.2

Chapter four | The Hostess

Chapter five | Captain Blood pt.1 : Captain Blood pt.2

Chapter six | Emily DeClaire pt.1 : Emily DeClaire pt.2 : Emily DeClaire pt.3

Chapter seven | Finale

I walked with Red and Constance behind me as I held my lamp up beside my head, leading them to a door that said ‘Cast Members Only’ and upon opening they were flooded with the overwhelming pinks, on my walls were several prominent heroes, princesses, magical girls, and fantasy posters. I had bookshelves filled with books- sitting atop them were the animes, manga, and novels of the characters on my walls if not more, hanging in a closet with black beads as curtains were cosplays and an assortment of pastel clothing, my bed was just a standard queen with regular pastel pink sheets(and a body pillow of a really hot anime girl), and last but not least my pink desk with my tiny chibi figurines, pink desk chair, pink headphones, and gaming set up.

I felt rather embarrassed that Red and Constance had to see this side of me but I attempted not to show it as I took a seat in my desk chair. Constance sat on my bed while Red kept standing- she seemed visibly uncomfortable in my room.

“Okay so pushing aside all of the questions I have about just this...” Red gestured to everything, “Maybe you can tell us how you managed to break Constances’ amnesia? Because that would be helpful in the future.”

“I can tell you that but it might involve alot more context.” I poked my fingers together nervously.

Red sighed and sat beside Constance on the bed, “Fine! Tell us your life story!” Constance gave a smile as she poked the body pillow.

❧

I am a twin, but my sister and I aren’t very close since she tends to be so depressing! She asks me if I want to know when I want to die, tells me the world is eternally doomed, and will sometimes quote outdated jokes from the internet. I’m the opposite to my sister, I read manga, cosplay, do seances in my room at 2am because I desperately want a date even if that means I need to sign a pact with a crossroads demon, and sometimes I actually drink the recommended amount of water in a day. Our home life was normal enough, we lived in the suburbs of California which could be kind of dreary at times with how sunny it is, so when my sister and I received a letter to work in a haunted mansion (TM) you could see how we would jump at the chance! It was a dream job for both of us! My sister would get to do more research in the powers of the undead and I could spend all day reading manga and messaging my devil boyfriend who won’t return my summons.

And that was that, I was sent to Liberty Square to await the inevitable rising of my undead ancestors and make sure they didn’t do anything damaging to anyone in or around the mansion.

When I arrived to the rather well-put together mansion I was greeted by a gentleman named Fletcher Hodges who was there to welcome me to the mansion. “Ah you must have been the Hostess assigned to the Liberty Square branch of Gracey manors?” He extended his hand for me to shake as I accepted it.

“Yes, I heard there would be ghosts...? Where are they?”

“Oh they haven’t risen just yet, but according to our calculations they should be due to show in a couple months - if they show at all.”

“You don’t believe in ghosts Mr. Hodges?” He adjusted his glasses and cleared his throat.

“Not exactly, I know they exist since I’ve conducted many experiments and what I’ve recorded is that ghosts are seemingly everywhere - dozens of people who have unfinished business (or in this case cursed) roaming on a plane parallel to our own, but we are unable to see or interact with them without the aid of technology or a highly remarkable gift.”

“Wait if they can’t interact with us then what is the threat of this curse? They’ll all just exist on their own plane.”

“Ah, not exactly! I was reading up on this type of necromancy in ‘Necronomicon on the go’ and there is a footnote similar to this situation -it states that if an apparition gains the ability to raise the dead then it can have a dramatic side-effect, which may cause the user and those risen to exist in the same plane as us mortals while also having their spectral bodies.”

“Well that could be a problem.”

“And as a descendant of the Gracey bloodline we believe it is your responsibility to care for your elderly.”

“Would they really be considered elderly if they’re dead?” Mr. Hodges waved his hand at me and handed me an envelope as well as a box.

“Lets not get into the finer details, here is your first paycheck - you will receive one at the end of every week, and here is your uniform.”

“How will you know I’m even in uniform?” He looked at me with a stone cold expression.

“We know everything.” I raised my eyebrows - that was disturbing. “Now if you excuse me I need to be in Tokyo tomorrow - so I must get to the airport.”

“Wait, isn’t there anything you can give me? Maybe a spirit wrangling lasso?”

“I’m afraid not, but Leota’s headstone is out back so perhaps you can ask her once she’s risen.” He gave me a wave and walked back to his car.

“Well that’s not very helpful.” I opened the paystub and almost choked $400 for doing nothing in an empty mansion! “You know maybe I can figure something out.”

❧

I wasn’t sure how long it would take for these ghosts to appear - or if they even would - but I got started on my room almost immediately, painting the walls myself and buying cheap shelves so I could save up for the books and figures that I always wished I had enough money for.

I remember a very specific weekend when I was putting together a second bookshelf (I had filled the other one up already)and was out of uniform - it wasn’t anything awful just a pink shirt with fuzzy blue pajama bottoms. I heard a voice coming from the hallway and quickly threw on my uniform before walking out to investigate - but we will ignore the fact that I had forgotten I was wearing pink bunny slippers.

Walking down the hallway was a blue apparition, he shimmered like water, his wavy hair floating around his features.

“Emily?” He called, but when he turned his head he only saw me. “Who are you?”

“The Hostess - who are you?”

“William Gracey, is Emily here? Have I risen her?”

“I’m not sure? Maybe die again and come back later?” He gave me a skeptical look.

“I don’t think I can be killed again.”

“I could figure it out probably, I’ve been watching this show about two brothers who fight monsters and -.”

“I’ll stop you, I don’t care.” He then kept walking - mumbling something to himself.

“Maybe if it hasn’t worked you just need to try harder?” William glanced back to me with a dark glare- his glowing red eyes piercing me.

“Fine, why don’t I just raise the entire graveyard!”

“No, no, no, no!”

But I guess I hit a nerve because he raised everyone...

Ballroom dancers were swaying in the parlor, an undead horse charged down the halls, some guy kept throwing around hat puns and making his head appear in his hat suitcase - it was overall a mess.

“Perhaps this is better?” William smirked and disappeared into the walls.

“What a dick!” I shouted, but I had a job to do ... oh crap I had a job to do. “Well lets start with ... A catalog.” So I grabbed a spare journal and began to catalog all the names of of the inhabitants and a short description of them.

Constance Hatchaway : Attic bride - I walked into the attic to try and find that William guy who made my life 999 times harder than it needed to be, sitting on a chest was Constance.

“Hello? I’m making a catalog of ghosts in the mansion, could I get your name and if you can recall - a brief summary of your life?” She stood up and when she turned to face me I noticed the hatchet in her hand.

“Constance Hatchaway - the Hatchaway bride, I killed all of my husbands in life because they were trash.”

“Mhm, mhm, ma’am please set down the hatchet.” She looked at her hand and gave a little chuckle.

“I’m not going to do anything to you...” She sat back on a chest with her chin in her palm. “I just wish I had made some different choices when I was alive.”

“If it helps you have a whole afterlife to do things that you wanted to before? I can come back to talk more with you after the catalog is done?” She perked up and gave me a warm smile.

“That would be wonderful if you did.”

Hatty : origins unknown - I had begun to notice when I approached the inhabitants of the mansion over time a lot of them couldn’t much recall their lives, most of those in particular were quite old ghosts, I’m talking Egypt ghosts which made absolutely no sense! But the puzzling thing was when I approached Hatty - a rather skeletal looking apparition - he couldn’t recall his name, life, or death let alone recall the room he just came out of. I took it upon myself to just go ahead and write down a name for him, Hatty seemed rather suitable given that was his preferred pun.

Madame Leota : Psychic and Scorceress - When Leota finally appeared in her crystal ball she was rather puzzled, not knowing that she would be buried on Gracey soil -thus immortalizing herself within the curse.

“Just call me the Hostess.” Leota eyed me up and down before finally flashing a smile.

“Alright, so what else is it that you need of me?”

“I’m glad you asked, I need to have more power over the mansion’s ghosts than that William guy.”

“Well if you remain inside the mansion’s property you’re out of luck, I gave him all the powers he desires so long as he died and was forgotten.”

“Isn’t there some kind of loophole you can give me just in case this dick decides he wants to go on a power trip?”

“I suppose I could give you something to ward off his presence in a limited manner...” She made a lantern materialize before me, “When a candle is lit inside this lantern, any control William has over the inhabitants of this mansion will be lifted - as well as William cannot step foot into the light to do harm to any apparitions he may wish to hurt.”

“This is fantastic!”

“I could, however, give you all the powers I possess if you want to make a deal?”

“Nah that’s okay and anyway the groundskeeper has been complaining about not having a light at nighttime, so this can double as his little walking light.” I exited the seance room and began looking through my catalog - so far I recorded 998 ghosts, but I hadn’t ran into any named Emily? Maybe William’s attempt to bring this girl back from the dead really did fail?

❧

I walked along the large windows of the ballroom as I watched the dancers spin in circles, but something outside caught my eye - a glowing specter in the distance.

“I am not about to lose a ghost on my first day.” I grumbled and marched outside, it was further away than I expected - sitting atop a hill of wildflowers overlooking the river that reflected moonlight from it’s surface. “Hey! You’re too far from the mansion property, I’m going to need to escort you back inside until I see about drawing up some travel papers - because honestly I don’t think those hitchhikers are going to stay in one place very long.” I placed my hand on my hip with a sigh - I needed a raise.

“I danced with a boy on that river.” The ghost mused, her hair was a dark violet, skin purple, and wearing a white wedding dress with a matching flower crown that left petals scattered through her hair. “I remember that ... I remember everything...” She turned to face me, her eyes glowed blue unlike all the other ghosts, and on her chest was a bright red beating heart.

“I don’t think I’ve met you...” I mumbled, sitting beside her and pulling out my catalog. “What is your name?”

“Emily DeClaire, what is your name?” She adjusted herself so we faced each other.

“I’m the...” I blinked, my heart tugged in my chest as I was about to tell her my job description. “I’m Tera Normal.”

“Good to meet you! But you aren’t a ghost?” She hesitantly reached out her hands and passed them through my arm.

“No, I’m the Hostess I work here to try and keep all of you contained - seeing as you aren’t supposed to be on this plane but rather the one parallel to us.” I sighed “But William really missed you I guess and is looking for you.”

“Oh dear, well I can help in any way that I’m able!” She clenched her little hands into fists, smiling with determination. “But I suppose first I should go see William if he is missing me that much.” She bounced up in realization, “Oh! Is Mister Topper here too?”

“I don’t have a Mister Topper listed...” I furiously flipped through my catalog, “I have an Ezra Topper?”

“No, that’s just Mister Topper’s brother.” She gave a huff as another startling feeling came across my heart, I felt like it was breaking in two. “I suppose he can’t be here can he?”

“Not if he wasn’t buried here.” Another sharp pain pierced my heart. “But maybe William can sort this out?” Part of the aching lifted.

“Do you really think so?” She smiled at me then twirled into the air, “Okay! we can go see William, maybe he knows how to get my Topper back!”

But once we walked back into the mansion I noticed there was something strange going on with Emily. “So does this Mister Topper have a first name or is it just Topper?”

“Who?” Emily turned her gaze to me now.

“Um, Mister Topper? The guy you’re missing?”

“Topper... Top hat...” She mused- but was overcome when she thought about top hat and began crying. “He lost his head!”

“Whoa, okay what is going on with you?”

“Hurry back!” She screamed as her deafening heartbeat made the walls shake. “Please, Hurry back!”

“I’m right here, Emily...”

“Now look what you’ve done.” William scolded as he walked from the walls and wrapped his arms around Emily- who cried in his chest. “Hush, just forget and all the pain will be gone.” His hand slid over her head making her blink - a smile spreading across her lips.

“I can’t even remember what I was doing again, you must think I’m an air head.” She laughed to William, but tears were still streaking down her cheeks.

“What did you just do?” I hissed to the man, he glared at me - releasing Emily and lifting his hand to her.

“Emily can you give the Hostess and I some privacy?”

“Sure!” She sniffled and began floating down the hall, “I sure am crying a lot today.” William watched her disappear behind a door and then turned his gaze back to me.

“You can’t mention that name to her, where did you even hear it?”

“She told me his name! Are you the one making her forget? What is your problem!”

“It’s for her own good, you didn’t see her when she first came back ...” He closed his eyes and sighed, “She can’t remember, just trust me.”

“Well forgive me but I don’t trust you.” I lifted my lantern, reaching into my pockets to find some of the matches I stowed away.

“What you’re going to blind me?” He laughed and made a fist, slipping the hallway rug out from under my feet and knocking me to the ground, I clutched the lantern against me to keep it from breaking- William approached me now, I began crawling backwards in a panic. “I know, how about I have you join the mansion? We are just dying to have you!”

“Or you can shove it six feet under.” I lit up the match and ignited the lantern - shining it on William which pushed him backwards, I could see he was annoyed.

“Fine, you can do whatever it is you do - but leave Emily alone as well as make sure no one interferes with her memory, or there will be deadly consequences.”

“Just keep making death puns, I can sit here all day.” His cheeks glowed with a dark blue as he turned away and walked back into the wall. “He is SUCH a dick!”

❧

I sat at my desk and kicked my feet in my chair, Red and Constance looking at me with great interest. “Fast forward to today I had come across Hatty being crazier than normal, and whatever had been pushed on Hatty was spreading into the other ghosts - they didn’t seem to remember who they were or who I was! The ballroom ghosts were in a panic because they all forgot how to dance, and the Quartet forgot how to sing! So I lit my lamp and decided it was time to find the source - I ran from room to room till I came across you two! And now I know why the mansion is acting strange- because you two are prying into ghost business and William doesn’t want you to.”

“Well someone killed Emily and we think the murderer might *be* William, which means we need to confront him.” Constance had determination in her glowing yellow eyes, “Emily deserves better than to be played like a puppet.”

“Enough.” Came a deep voice, I turned quickly to my lamp to see the nub of my candle was out- the flame had been doused by the wax. “If you are all so curious to have a conversation then lets talk!” The voice boomed and my figurines were thrown across the room making me scream, books flying from the shelves, floor shaking, and lightbulbs bursting leaving us all in complete darkness other than the three glowing bodies before me.

Wait.

Three?

There he was, the first ghost I had laid eyes on when the mansion came to life.

“William?” I whispered in disbelief, Red seemed to be unaffected by this as though she might have guessed.

“What? Cat got your tongue? I thought you wanted to talk.” He grinned.

[infinitesolarflare]

10-1-0: An Incarnate’s Tale

Oh, forgive me, I see there is some information you'd need for this, well my name is Sullivan Koji. I am the one who has taken over the quest of saving our lives, in our world man has been turning a blind eye for too long. There are few selected humans to be one of the "World Walkers". Being a World Walker means you have achieved the highest level of concentration, determination, and compassion.

I guess you should understand, the common conception of time, and the universe as we know it are wrong. Long ago mages, like us humans were created, there purpose was to save the earth from certain destruction. They lived long lives, and as the mages grew old, they became corrupt. This is when man truly entered the dark ages. As the mages battled one another they discovered that after killing a mage he would burn a bright red, then dissolve. The particles of what once made up the mages were thrown farther than any human could ever imagine. These particles are what humans know as stars. Gazing at stars is a human activity with a far greater importance than they know. The mages attempt to communicate with the World Walkers through this, to find if there are any left.

Now, this is where things fall into place. There were 10 mages each holding a section of the Portal. The Portal is the one thing given to the mages so they can infinitely travel in all directions. My mission, embody the mages, become the one and only Mage left. I have been chosen because what the common man takes as a dream, or nightmare is actually a tool. A tool so useful it takes years before one can even view another world.

The one goal for man is to reach the year, ZERO. Once there man can live at peace, without war, death, poverty, hunger, and hatreds. The ones who the mages see fit to achieve peace are reincarnated every 400 years or so, these souls have purpose, they are meant to reach ZERO. Common people are pawns in the world games of chess. Those souls are reincarnated almost every second of every day. Useless people, unworthy of the true paradise, some call it heaven, others don't believe in it. I have not been there, but I've seen it. My goal for now is to build the portal, show humans what life is supposed to be....

This is almost the end of our lesson together, I Sullivan Koji, have been reincarnated only 3 times so far. This is my story, these are my trials, my tests, and my tears. To reach ZERO I must concentrate once within each universe of the infinite universes. The Old Mages War took place on an open plain, which was the only universe at one time. When the High Mage Geishino was murdered his energy, not only burned a hole into time itself but also exploded into all directions, which we know as The Big Bang. Now there were 7 mages after the High Mage. They traveled throughout all universes, battling one another, the 10 portal pieces are somewhere within them, I WILL find them....

The radio in Sullivan's room is playing Good Times Bad Times by Led Zeppelin. He has been awake for 3 days, his eyes are bloodshot, his eyes water as he sits up. "where do I go today?" his thoughts seem as though they were talking to him aloud. Sullivan has only a few friends who understand his destiny. His life long friends, and blood brothers, James Blackard and Micheal Himaru. Sullivan, from an early age displayed signs of being the World Walker this universe needed. His friends thought he was short a few screws. As we entered highschool, I stared to understand what I was...who I was. I confided in them all that I discovered and they wanted to join me in my quest. Before they could do this I needed to explore how to travel through universes.

FEBRUARY 13, 2019

Friday, 06:17

"Its already time to start, ugh this will be a long day." I focused harder and with more energy than the day before, I attempted to complete my first Walk. I sat in complete silence, in a dark room. Which was located in the basement of my parents house, I was only 17 still. As my breathing slowed, and my pulse crawled to almost a complete stop, the very first visible portal appeared in front of me. And just as quickly as it came, it was gone...vanished into the abyss. "All that fucking work, just to have it amount to nothing" I was beyond frustrated at my poor performance at keeping my cool.

FEBRUARY 13, 2019

09:14

I walked out of the basement room, my eyes squinted almost completely shut from the glow of the sun. It was an abnormally warm and sunny day, usually the frozen tundra of which was once new England was gloomy, and around 10* at all times and just a terrible place to be. This is where I called home, this depressing wasteland of no bodies. Today the sun was in full force and it was a scorching 47*. It reminded me of when I was younger, in 2013 there were swimming pools, beach days, and ice cream trucks. That all became history in 2016, the poles reversed their magnetic fields and plunged the northern hemisphere into an ice age, at the same time causing uncontrollable droughts in the southern hemisphere. With scientific advances skyrocketing in the previous years, we genetically enhanced the human races' ability to adapt to changing environments. 22% of Earths population took to the adaptations well, the other 78% died. They all just died, deteriorating to unknown people of what seemed like a time long ago. These are the most important people to my research, proving most humans are just pawns in a war they could never comprehend.

FEBRUARY 13, 2019

11:43

"uh, I am stuffed" there was no response from my abandoned kitchen. Everyone I know, everyone I loved, gone, they never made it through the treatments. There was no known location of James or Michael, or even if they were alive... I thought of them everyday, they were my drive, the reason I kept myself from killing myself. "Today is the day I find my location for my new home, a research lab, something I can control completely. Underground, deep, safe from the environment, somewhere I can keep myself and others I find alive. I gather my gear, put on my jacket, and leave.

FEBRUARY 13

13:17

I walk through the wasteland and look at the building that were once stores, shops, restaurants, and malls. " I wonder which of these will be my lab? These all were places I used to go as a kid, I even worked at a few of them. I can't believe this was all destroyed in just 3 years.. I miss my old life." I came upon the WalMart near what used to be Springfield Massachusetts. I searched for an entrance, everything was locked, boarded up, and chained together. I wander around, coming across the outdoor section of the garden center. I look through the prison like gate, which once housed flowers, lawn mowers, and all the things you could ever need for gardening. "this is how I'm gonna do it!" I pry the gate open at one of the sliding sections of gate. I squeeze through and the gate, clashes against itself as I stand up. I walk to the door and discover a door, no chains, no boards...no locks. I back up about 30 yards, sprint full force into the door. It crashes open, when I readjust to the new surrounding, I am overcome with joy, hope, and a feeling of accomplishment. The abandoned WalMart was lit up, it had power! "Finally, I have found a suitable place to get started on my lab!" The shelves were still stocked with tools, electronics, food (which was mostly useless at this point), and clothing! I wander the empty store, looking for tools to aid my needs. I go to gardening and grab a pickaxe, shovel, and a wheel barrel. I go to the shoes section of the store, rip the shelves down and throw the shoes aside. After I clear myself a space of about 30ft by 30ft I begin my tunneling.

FEBRUARY 13

15:25

"Wow, this is harder than I expected" I had only accomplished a depth of about one foot on the square area. I knew I needed help...but from who? No one was around, I hadn't talked to a human in 743 days. "Fuck this, it'll never work, its not worth it!" I through down my shovel, stormed out of WalMart and hiked home.

I was tired from my failed excavation, I felt disappointed, like I had just failed my drivers test. "SULLIVAN!?" said a familiar sounding voice as I walked down my dirt road. I snapped around with intent to shoot whoever it was, as I drew my gun I smiled, shed a tear, and dropped it. "Michael? I have been searching for you since the day the world froze over...is it really you?" "yes sully, its me. I left my home in Florida to come see if you lived through this nightmare." "wow, I can't believe it, your actually here, you came back..." "well believe it, I'm here and I know James is around still, he told me he was going to his vacation house for a few years, I knew we would all meet up one day." well we need to find him! I hope he's alive.." as we entered my house, Micheal stopped at the front door, and he removed his shoes, just as my mother always wanted. "so where are your parents?" Michael said with a caring tone. "dead. They died once the ice appeared." Michael's face dropped to one of guilt, "I'm sorry Sull..." "Don't, its fine." I just

finished making tea, I went to the cabinet and grabbed the sugar. "still drink yours with 3 sugars mike?" "I see you haven't forgotten a damn thing sully, sharp as always."

CHAPTER 2

A SUCCESSFUL ENDEAVOR

As the sun rose from what seemed to be an unending night, Mike and I unbolted the lock's from our shelter, which had finally been w q the week before, the WalMart was now the number one safezone for surviving. Or so I thought, as we entered the isles of rundown old equipment, the smell of stale food and the sound of mice filled the store. Everything that was once civilization has been turned to rubble, the common man no longer has beliefs, morals, or

[uswntpoet]

Love on the brain (Part 10)

Hey guys, enjoy the chapter :) the song in the chapter is "Sexy Back" by Justin Timberlake. Sorry for any mistakes.

The chapter is also up on Ao3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17576201/chapters/42671246

“Okay who is ready to paaaaartyyyy?” Erin hollers intoxicated. As the evening got by there was lots of time to fill up their tanks with the cocktails, which were so good that Bati claimed they must have been ‘straight from heaven’. So, it’s no surprise that everybody is slightly or some definitely tipsy when they leave the restaurant.

“I think this is our cue to go home.” Kelley’s dad says, looking at Alex’s parents and his wife. The look on his face and the way he is shoving his hands in his pockets causes Alex to smile. If Kelley is in a situation, she doesn’t want to be in, she does it the same way. They all say their goodbyes to the parents and decide to go to a club right across the street that looks pretty fancy. There is a huge line of people waiting in front of the entrance and the group is stopping to wait in line as well. Apparently, the club is pretty popular and also packed because of the holidays. After a minute or so of standing in line, Alex ends her conversation with her sister and turns around, facing the others. The group is now standing in a circle and Alex is surprised to discover that her fiancée is gone.

“Hey, has anybody seen Kelley?” Alex asks furrowing her eyebrows.

“No, I thought she was with you.” Allie says, while everybody starts turning their heads, searching for Kelley. However, just a moment later Kelley, walks up to them with a huge grin on her face.

“Ah, there she is.” Jerry says, pointing in her direction.

“What did you do? Why are you smirking again?” Erin rolls her eyes.

“Come on guys, we don’t have all night.” Kelley says motioning for the group to follow her.

“Babe, I thought we wanted to go in?” Alex asks, pointing to the line in front of them.

“Yeah, we are, what are you guys waiting for?” Kelley grins.

“Kel, that’s one of the most popular clubs in New York, you can’t just walk in there.” Bati points out.

“Uhh, Bati? I think she’s not.” Alex says slowly, the meaning of the look on Kelley’s face beginning to dawn on her.

“Yeah, no, I’m not. So, I once knew this guy and apparently, he now owns this club and long story short, we don’t have to wait in line.” Kelley says, holding up a bunch of wristbands for the VIP area. All heads turn to look at Alex questioningly, who holds her hands up cluelessly.

“Don’t look at me guys, life with her is still a surprise every day.”

“We know that feeling.” Erin reassures Alex, motioning between Jerry and her.

“Yeah, and we share the same DNA.” Jerry says concerned.

“Actually, we don’t. Biologically seen we only share the same DNA to some extent, let’s say about 50%. The other chromosomes-”

“OH MY GOD, SHUT UP WORMS.” Allie groans loudly, interrupting Kelley and knocking her elbow into her ribcage.

“Aaaalright, who’s up to party?” Kelley asks excitedly.

“Hell yes!” Jen’s husband exclaims.

“Man, Kelley that’s just fucking dope.” Jeri says.

“You, my friend, are a legend.” Bati says, grabbing Kelley’s shoulder impressed. After everybody expressed their appreciation and excitement they start to walk towards the entrance. Kelley waits to go in last, so everybody gets past the bouncer. Alex waits for Kelley in the entrance area, smiling at her, shaking her head.

“What?” Kelley grins.

“You are an enigma.”

“I hope in a good kinda way.”

“You’re all the things in a good kinda way.” Alex grins, leaning closer, biting her lip.

“Oh, am I?” Kelley says, looking at Alex’s lips. Alex looks at Kelley’s lips as well, nodding while closing the distance. When they pull away their gazes meet and their smiles get brighter.

“By the way, that’s such a Kelley thing to say.” Alex says.

“What is?”

“That thing about chromosomes and the DNA.”

“It’s true, tough. They are just dumb.” Kelley says seriously.

“Such a Kelley thing to say, again.”

“Sorry.” Kelley chuckles.

“Don’t apologize, I love it when you say stuff like that. You’re smart, it’s sexy.”

“In that case, that dress you’re wearing would look even hotter accelerating towards my bedroom floor at 9.8 m/s2” Kelley says with a sexy voice.

“Oh yeah, talk dirty to me.” Alex says going in for another kiss. Kelley winks at her, while Alex takes Kelley’s hand in her own, pulling her towards the group, which is already walking down the hallway. When they enter the club it’s just as packed as it looks from outside. The club is lit in light neon blue and the furniture is all white, making everything look rather expensive. If you’d asks Alex the atmosphere somehow is pretty sexy, people are dancing close to each other and the music the DJ is playing underlines that. However, she’s not sure if that’s just the drinks talking. Somehow, Kelley’s acquaintance managed to clear a table for them and now they gather around it. Jen and her husband, as well as Erin, Kristy, Jerry and Allie sit down on the white leather sofa, that is lit at the bottom with blue light as well. Around the table boxes of some kind of very expensive champagne were converted into bar stools. Alex sits down next to Allie on the white sofa, while Jeri and Bati sit down on the boxes. Kelley stands in front of the table, waiting for everyone to settle down. Alex looks up at her pouting, holding out her hand for Kelley to take and motioning to come sit with her. Kelley takes her hand, but remains standing nonetheless, wanting to go to the bar first. Looking at Alex she knows that her drunkenness has reached the needy stage.

“Guys, drinks?” Kelley smirks, wiggling her eyebrows.

“Yeah, let me help you.” Bati says, getting up.

“Babe, you want anything specific?” Kelley asks leaning down, so she can hear her over the music.

“I’m fine with whatever you’re getting, but thanks.” she says, giving her a peck.

“Oh, so Alex can choose something specific and we have to drink whatever?” Allie smirks teasingly.

“All it takes is a kiss.” Kelley says, puckering her lips and moving towards Allie, who pushes her away.

“You’re so annoying.”

“Karma is a bitch, Long.”

“You’re a bitch.” Allie counters and her laughter is interrupted by the look on Alex’s face, her mouth agape and her eyes giving her a look of ‘You did not seriously say that.’. Kelley watches Allie freeze mid-laughter, looking at Alex guiltily. Kelley laughs loudly at the interaction.

“And you say I’m whipped.” she chuckles.

“You guys are such a shit show. I swear one day, I’ll kill the both of you.” Alex rolls her eyes. Kelley and Bati make their way to the bar inside the VIP section and order a huge bottle of rum and some drinks to mix it with, as well as a round of shots. Alex can’t seem to keep her eyes off of Kelley, who walks through the VIP area confidently. To Alex Kelley always looks amazing, so much even that she sometimes thinks it becomes a serious problem when she needs to get work done or when they are fighting about something and a look at Kelley makes her forget why she way angry. However, tonight is one of those nights, where something about her just screams extra sexy with a big exclamation mark. Apparently, she isn’t the only one thinking that her fiancée looks stunning. Kelley is attracting the attention of both men and women all around the club. The gazes are following her everywhere and to be honest Alex can’t stand it, but she lets it go for the moment. Kelley and Bati carry the ice bucket with the drinks over to the table and Jeri gets up to help them with the shots.

“To the best year that’s yet to come.” Alex says, raising her shot to the middle of the table, looking at Kelley intently. Everybody grabs a shot and moves it to the middle so all the glasses are clinking together.

“To 2019!” Jeri shouts, while everyone hollers.

“To the best that’s yet to come.” Kelley whispers, looking at Alex, their gazes holding, while everybody already chugs down the shot. They both clink their glasses again and chug it down as well. Alex grimaces at the taste.

“Wooo.” Kelley exclaims, shaking at the taste. This attracts the attention of one particular girl from the table right next to them again, who tries to make eye-contact with Kelley, smiling flirtatiously. The girl immediately was a thorn in Alex’s flesh, because she has been shamelessly checking Kelley out ever since they stepped foot in the club. Alex leans forward slightly, giving her some serious side-eye, but she’s so focused on Kelley that she doesn’t see Alex’s warning looks. The girl tries to get her attention by playing around with straw in her drink, moving it in her mouth, while eyeing Kelley intensely. Like always, Kelley is totally unaware of the looks she’s receiving. She is distracted by Allie urging her to tell the story about how one time at camp she shattered a window, trying to proof that she could do handstand push-ups. After Kelley finally told the story and everybody laughed loudly, she is looking over to Alex, who has gotten rather impassive over the last 10 minutes.

“What’s up with that look on your face, pretty girl?” Kelley yells over the bass, pulling her stool closer to Alex, putting her hand on her knee.

“That girl at the table next to us, and don’t look, is undressing you with her eyes.”

“Bullshit, she’s probably only watching my gorgeous fiancée, in which case I can’t blame her.”

Alex rolls her eyes at Kelley.

“What? Or maybe she likes my shoes.”

“Kel, you’re fucking hot.” Alex states with a hint of aggressiveness.

“Ehm? Thanks?”

“I think you tend to forget, that you are really sexy. There are thousands, if not millions of people, who would bang you without any question or even a hello, 350 of which are in this club right now and there are only about 400 in here. Don’t act as if this girl is only eying you constantly since we step in, because she likes your damn shoes. And now give me a kiss, before I go over there and cause a scene.”

While Alex talks Kelley watches her face closely, looking for any sign of a joke, but she doesn’t find it. Therefore, she knows not to question what Alex is requesting, not that she would either way, but whatever. Kelley leans in and starts kissing Alex sensually, not only giving her a kiss, but fully making out with her, to which Alex complies happily. The kiss is lasting quiet a while and turns pretty steamy.

“Gosh, get a room Kellex. What are you? Horny 16-year olds?” Allie jokes. However, with getting harassed by their teammates constantly, they don’t even bother acknowledging a word that is leaving Allie’s mouth, but instead keep on kissing, until it’s getting too excessive. By the time they pull away, everyone is already minding their own business again.

“You’re mine.” Alex claims in the close proximity of Kelley’s lips.

“Possessive much, huh?”

“Only a tiny bit.”

“I see.”

Alex leans in for a short, sweet kiss, smiling into it. Kelley grins at her brightly, the smile making Alex forget, why they were kissing in the first place. Their attention is drawn towards the rest of the group, when Jerry starts pouring them a new round of drinks. For the next hour or so, they all fuel their bodies with plenty more drinks and after a while there is no denying that everybody is not only tipsy, but definitely drunk now. They left the table a while ago and are dancing on the dancefloor ecstatically, the mood getting more and more exuberant by the minute.

“I’ll be right back, you need anything?” Kelley yells in Alex’s ear. Alex shakes her head in response.

“No, thank you.”

Kelley makes her way to the bar. The DJ plays some throwback songs and Alex and Allie scream the lyrics to David Guetta’s ‘Memories’ loudly, while jumping around with all the others. Arriving at the bar, Kelley orders another Rum and Coke. The bartender, gives her a nod and starts making the drink. Kelley turns around and leans against the bar, smiling, watching her fiancée having a blast with her friends and family. A hand on her shoulder pulls her out of thoughts.

“Hey, can I buy you a drink?”

Kelley turns towards the voice and is met with a girl, looking like some kind of model, who is eyeing her up and down.

“Thanks, I’m good.” Kelley says shaking her head, turning back around, watching Alex.

“You sure? You look thirsty.” the girl says into Kelley’s ear, lowering her voice. Kelley turns around yet another time.

“Look, you probably are a nice person, but I got a fiancée.”

“So?”

“Okay, you aren’t a nice person. That’s okay.” Kelley says in an indifferent tone, turning away again. Her gaze is meeting Alex’s, who is looking at her questioningly. Kelley, rolls her eyes at the girl next to her and waves it off, gesturing for Alex not to worry about it.

“I live right around the corner, we could just go there. Your fiancée doesn’t have to know.”

Kelley doesn’t really listen to a word the girl is saying, she just looks in Alex’s direction, seeing something she doesn’t like.

“Dude, what’s taking so long?” Kelley says to the bartender. The bartender looks at her apologetically.

“I know you want to.” the girl insists.

“Rum and Coke!” the bartender calls. Kelley grabs her drink and when she takes a step in Alex’s direction the girl is blocking her way.

“Or maybe you could just bring your fiancée.” the girl says biting her lip. Kelley watches her attempt to look sexy emotionlessly. When Alex does something like that, it’s driving her nuts, but looking at this girl, who is doubtlessly very pretty, she feels nothing at all.

“Okay listen, I appreciate the compliment, but I’m really not interested. See, I asked the most amazing girl in the whole wide world to marry me and she said yes. So, you may understand that all I ‘want’ is to get back to her. And if you don’t, that’s not my problem.”

Kelley walks past her determined, shaking her head. She makes her way through the crowd, but Alex is nowhere to be seen. She doesn’t come far until a hand is grabbing her shoulder yet again. Kelley turns her head to see Alex, who is looking at her concerned.

“Everything okay?”

“Yeah, just a very persistent girl making an offer.”

“What kind of offer?”

“First it was a drink, then sex and after that she even offered for you to come.”

“Oh my god, I can’t even let you walk to a bar alone?! Where is she???” Alex asks fumingly.      

“Babe, ignore it, I told her off.”

“Ugh, going to a club with you is exhausting.”

“Look who’s talking.” Kelley says raising an eyebrow.

“You’re exaggerating.” Alex says innocently, looking anywhere but Kelley’s eyes, knowing damn well that she is right.

“Alex, we are here for a little over an hour and I told 5 people to leave you alone. I don’t call that exaggerating. And don’t think I didn’t see you holding up your engagement ring to number 6, while I was at the bar.”

“How the fuck did you see that? You were talking to that girl.”

“Concerning you I see everything.”

“Is that a threat or a promise?” Alex smirks.

“That’s for you to decide.” Kelley winks at her, which makes Alex laugh.

“Let’s get back to the others, you creep.” Alex teases, pulling Kelley deeper into the crowd. The beat the DJ was playing, changes into the beat of ‘Sexy Back’ by Justin Timberlake and Kelley stops in the middle of the crowd, making Alex come to a halt as well, due to them holding hands. Alex turns around to see what’s stopping Kelley, but there is no sight of a distraction. Kelley just raises her eyebrows at Alex challengingly, which causes a smirk on her face in response. Kelley intertwines both of her hands with Alex’s, walking a few steps backwards to the beat of the bass, pulling Alex along. Alex laughs at the flirty look on Kelley’s face, but follows her lead nonetheless. Kelley comes to a stop and pulls Alex closer, guiding Alex’s arms around her neck. She closes the space between them, pulling Alex as close as possible in one swift, rough motion. It’s the good kind of rough though, the one that you use while dancing to manifest that you are the lead. Nevertheless, it surprises Alex, who squeals shortly. Their faces are just inches apart and Kelley’s hands are holding on to Alex’s hips, pressing their bodies together.

“I’m bringing sexy back” Kelley breathes against Alex’s lips, who finds it harder to breathe, each passing second.

“Them other boys don't know how to act (Yeah) I think it's special, what's behind your back? (Yeah)”

Alex’s hands are dangling off of Kelley’s shoulders and their foreheads are pressed against each other.

“So turn around and I'll pick up the slack” Kelley sings, while turning Alex around in another smooth motion. Alex’s breath hitches in her throat. Kelley places her hands on Alex’s stomach, hugging her from behind, her head resting in the space between her shoulder and her neck. One of Alex’s hands moves to Kelley’s nape, holding onto her hair. Kelley starts grinding into Alex from behind, to the rhythm of the song, their bodies synchronizing as if they are one.

“Dirty baaaabe, you see these shackles, baby, I’m your slaaave” Kelley whispers into Alex’s ear, the hot stream of air, causing goosebumps on Alex’s skin.

“I'll let you whip me if I misbehave (Uh-huh)”

Kelley leaves open mouthed kisses along Alex’s neck, who rolls her neck to the side, so Kelley has better access.

“It's just that no one makes me feel this way” Kelley says sexily, through gritted teeth, her lips brushing against Alex’s neck.

“Come here, girl (Go 'head, be gone with it) Come to the back (Go 'head, be gone with it) VIP (Go 'head, be gone with it) Drinks on me (Go 'head, be gone with it) Let me see what you're twerking with (Go 'head, be gone with it)”

Kelley continues to grind into Alex, the temperature in the club feeling like a hundred degrees. Alex feels extremely turned on and she is glad that she is no man, because otherwise her excitement would be visible by now. The alcohol in her system is making her feel everything even more intense and every touch on her skin makes her yearn for more.

“Look at those hips” Kelley sings grabbing onto Alex’s hips.

“You make me smile” she grins in Alex’s neck, while singing, which causes Alex to smile sexily, leaning even more of her weight into Kelley.

“Go 'head, child (Go 'head, be gone with it) And, get your sexy on (Go 'head, be gone with it) Get your sexy on (Go 'head, be gone with it) Get your sexy on (Go 'head, be gone with it) Get your sexy on (Go 'head, be gone with it)”

Alex can’t really take it anymore, she turns around in Kelley’s arms, grabbing a piece of her shirt with her fist and pulls Kelley through the crowd and towards the restroom. Everything feels like it happens in slow motion and that may also be because of the alcohol. Luckily, the music is also booming loudly in there and no one is waiting in line. As soon as they enter the room, Alex turns around and starts kissing her roughly. The kiss tastes like rum and Coke, mixed with coconut and fruit, due to the drinks they had before and they can’t seem to get enough of the mind-blowing taste. Kelley walks further into the room backwards, not breaking the kiss. She hits her body against several doorframes and door handles on the way, but has no reason to complain at all. Alex pushes Kelley into an empty stall and presses her against the wall roughly. The kisses are turning messy and Alex grabs onto Kelley’s belt to open up her pants. She unzips them and her hand disappears inside without hesitation. To Alex there isn’t even time to pull Kelley’s pants down properly, but instead she comes straight to the point. The both of them know, that at this point no foreplay is needed, the intoxication pushing them to another level, which is why Alex simply goes for it.

“Alex!” Kelley breathes almost voicelessly, when two of Alex’s fingers enter her. She starts moving them at a fast pace, while kissing Kelley’s neck, sucking hard on her pulse point.

“Yes! Keep going!” Kelley moans. Alex moves up to kiss her needy. Their breathes are matching into one, putting everything in perfect sync. Mid-kiss a huge smile is growing on Kelley’s face, causing Alex to also laugh into the kiss. Alex snakes her tongue over Kelley’s slowly and teasingly. They are both fully aware, just how crazy the situation is right now. The cute moment is interrupted by Kelley throwing her head back and moaning loudly, when Alex’s other hand springs to action, alternating between rubbing her clit and stroking her folds. Kelley’s hands tangle in Alex’s hair and Alex bites Kelley’s neck. Alex starts working her hands faster, knowing that Kelley wants her to go faster by the way she’s pulling her hair lightly. The whole situation is turning Kelley on in a way that quickly lets her feel strong pleasure and everything Alex touches feels like she sets it on fire. Her chest falls and rises at a quick pace and Alex knows Kelley is close, due to her closing her eyes and her mouth being slightly opened, causing this incredibly sexy face she makes right before she’s coming. She tries to hit the spot, that will bring Kelley over the edge for sure, repeatedly. Alex can see Kelley’s neck veins pop out and it turns her on immensely, leaving her even wetter than she already is. She tries to go faster and keeps on going in and out of her with a strong, incessant, steady rhythm, while rubbing her clit in circular movements. A few seconds later, Kelley reaches her climax with a loud: “Fuck, yeees, Aleeex!”

Before even properly coming down from her high, Kelley switches the positions they are standing in and pushes Alex up against the wall. With her pants still open she grabs onto Alex’s right thigh, pulling it up to her hip, causing Alex’s dress to ride up in the process. Alex watches Kelley pushing the seam of the dress higher teasingly, while sliding her hand up her leg. Their gazes meet and Alex’s pupils have dilated so much, that Kelley almost can’t see the pretty blue she loves. Kelley’s right hand moves to the middle of Alex’s legs and she can feel the wetness through her underwear, which is completely soaked. Kelley starts applying pressure, rubbing her through her string.

“Ooooh.” Alex moans loudly, pushing into Kelley’s hand, her eyes closing in bliss. Kelley pushes the garment to the side and starts sliding her fingers up and down. Right now, Alex swears this feels like dying and ascending to heaven, since she also feels like she would have exploded with just one more passing minute of Kelley not touching her. Kelley hooks her left arm under her butt and lifts her up quickly. Alex’s legs tangle behind Kelley’s back to hold onto her and she leans down to kiss her hungrily. Kelley’s fingers move further south and she enters her. Alex’s mouth forms a perfect ‘O’ and her nails dig into Kelley’s back, spurring her on to keep going. She feels the pressure in her whole body, her back arching, so that her body is pushing into Kelley even more. Kelley starts going in and out very fast and Alex loses every control over her body.

“Oh my god, yes! Faster!!”

The stall feels like a sauna and Alex feels her mind fogging up as well. She rocks into Kelley’s pushes and the walls of the stall are shaking. Over the music you can hear a thumping of Alex’s body being pushed against the wooden stall every time Kelley pushes inside her. Alex feels the orgasm building in the pit of her stomach and she shuts her eyes tightly. That’s when Kelley hits a spot that almost makes her come right away.

“Fuck yes, Kelley, right there!!!” she moans loudly.

Kelley pushes into her even harder now and Alex feels the pressure becoming an unbearably tight feeling that is just waiting to be released. Alex hears a loud crack, but doesn’t give it any attention and she’s not sure she is even able to at this point. The feeling that’s taking over her body too overpowering to be aware of her surroundings. It feels like electricity causing through her veins and she knows that this orgasm is going to be intense. Kelley kisses Alex’s lips sensually and hits the spot over and over, making Alex feel like she’s not on this planet anymore. Kelley’s voice brings her back to reality.

“Babe, look at me.” Kelley orders, brushing their lips together. Alex obliges and as soon as their eyes meet, Alex comes hard. Hot pleasure is flowing through her body and she gasps for air.

“Keeeelleeeey!” Alex moans loudly against Kelley’s lips. In fact, she moans so loudly, that Kelley has to muffle it with a kiss. Alex doesn’t know what has gotten into her, but the orgasm leaves her shameless even though they are in a public place, the feeling just too amazing to possibly stay quiet. Her walls are crushing against Kelley’s fingers hard and her body is trembling, the orgasm lasting for some time. They share some kisses, while Alex needs a while to come down from the high. Kelley lets Alex down slowly, who’s arms still rest around Kelley’s neck, while Kelley strokes her waist up and down.

“Holy shit.” Alex chuckles, in between kisses.

“Mhhm, I agree. That was some wild sex.” Kelley grins. Suddenly, Kelley furrows her forehead.

“Uhh, babe?”

“Yeah?”

“Did you also hear that cracking sound?”

“Oh, that really happened?”

They both start looking around and Kelley starts laughing loudly.

“What?” Alex asks confused. Kelley pulls Alex towards her, turning her around in the process.

“Oh my god, shit!” Alex says, her jaw dropping. The wall she just leaned against has a huge tear in the middle. She looks at Kelley in disbelieve, who is still laughing.

“Did I just fuck you so hard that the wall broke?” Kelley smirks.

“Oh no, will this be something you take pride in?” Alex groans.

“You can bet your ass I will.”

“Uuuuugh, no.” Alex says hitting her head against Kelley’s chest.  

“Come on babe, it’s just another performance to be impressed by.” Kelley winks at her.

“That actually was quite the performance.”  

“Top 3 of wildest public restroom sex?”

“Definitely top 3, but do you remember that time after the game against-“

“-Canada? Yeah, that was definitely number 1.” Kelley interrupts. They high five, followed by a kiss and fix each other’s clothes, before exiting the stall. On their way out they wash their hands and check themselves in the mirror. When they rejoin the group, Alex immediately starts dancing with Allie again, who pushes another drink into her hand. Kelley and the others make their way to the table again to also fill up on drinks. After an hour, Kelley and Bati make their way back to the dancefloor, to check up on Alex and Allie. Meanwhile, the rest of the group already wanted to head home. When they approach them Kelley and Bati share a knowing look.

“Baaaaby, wwhere were youu? I misssed you.” Alex slurs, running towards Kelley, throwing her arms around her.

“Babe, how about a round of water?” Kelley laughs.

“Noooo! How abou’…annother roun’ of drinkss?” Alex asks, pushing her pointer finger in Kelley’s chest.

“Alright, you wanna go sit?”

“Ohmygo’, yes, my feet hur-t ssso much.”

Kelley hooks her arm around Alex and guides her to the table, where Alex sits down exhaustedly.

“Just stay put for a minute okay?”

“I ain’t goin’ nowhere, Officer.” Alex says holding her hands up innocently. Kelley makes her way to the bar and orders a huge glass of water. When she returns, Bati has also managed to convince Allie to sit down for a minute.

“One special drink, for my special girl.” Kelley says, sitting down next to Alex and handing the water to her, who immediately starts drinking it thirstily until the glass is empty. She then leans her head on Kelley’s chest, cuddling up to her.

“Baabe?”

“Mhm?”

“I’m not ssstupid, that was water fo’ ssure.”

“Thank me later.”

Kelley looks at Bati and gestures for them to leave. After 15 minutes of convincing the girls that it’s time to go home, Kelley and Bati are happy to stand outside, waiting for the Uber. He first stops at Allie and Bati’s hotel and after long goodbyes and a few more minutes in the car, Kelley and Alex finally arrive in front of their apartment building. Kelley wakes Alex up, who fell asleep just moments ago and tips the Uber driver. She helps Alex out of the car and hooks her arm around her again, since she definitely needs some stabilization. They walk into the building and towards the elevator wanting to get up, however Alex gives Kelley a look of horror, due to a sign sticking on the door.

‘Out of order. Will be fixed first thing in the morning.’

“Damn it.” Kelley rolls her eyes.

“I’ll sssleep in the lobby then.” Alex slurs, leaning against the wall next to the elevator, closing her eyes. Kelley is totally aware that there is no way Alex’s is going to make it up all 12 floors using the stairs. Actually, she isn’t so sure that Alex would even make one floor, without breaking her neck, considering her state of drunkenness. Therefore, she walks up to Alex and squats down in front of her.

“Jump on.”

“Baaabe, wha’ are you doin’?”

“I’ll carry you.” Kelley says matter of factly, turning around to look at Alex.

“Are’ya craazy? I miight be drunk...BUT there’ss nnno way I’m gonna let’cha carry me 12 floorss.” Alex slurs.

“And I’m sure there is no way you are going to walk them. So, it’s either sleeping in the lobby or me carrying you. And since my fiancée isn’t sleeping in any lobbies, as long as I’m around, you’re going to have to hold on tight, babe.”

“But-“

“End of the discussion.” Kelley says squatting down again. Alex does as she’s told and holds on tight, as Kelley makes her way up the stairs with an unfaltering pace. On the way up, Alex starts very typical drunk conversations and Kelley really has to focus, so that she doesn’t have to laugh.

“Baby?”

“What is it Alex?”

“Baby, yur ssso perfect. Nooo, like reeeally reeeally perfect. Like I don’ deserv’ you.”

“That’s nonsense, princess. You’re even more perfect.”

“Sssee! You always ssay sstuff like tha’, with’cha perfect voice and cha perfect ssmile and- I jus’ love you sso much.“

“Babe, you’re drunk.”

“M’not druunk.”

Kelley stops in the middle of the staircase and turns her head to throw Alex a look of disbelief.

“Oookay, I migh’ be druunk.”

“That’s what I thought.” she says, starting to walk again.

“I loove you, though.” Alex says, pressing a kiss to Kelley’s neck.

“Duuuh.” Kelley says with a Valley girl accent, which causes Alex to laugh. When they finally arrive in their apartment, Kelley carries Alex up the last set of stairs and let’s herself fall on their bed backwards with Alex still on her back.

“Oh my god.” she breathes out exhaustedly, laying on Alex and staring up at the ceiling. Alex’s legs are still wrapped around Kelley’s hips and she softly caresses her collarbone with the one hand and her rib cage with the other. Meanwhile, Kelley strokes the back of Alex’s thighs, which she still holds on to. Alex moves to kiss Kelley’s temple and Kelley turns her head to give her a soft smile, their faces just inches apart.

“You…are my her-o.” Alex whispers, looking deep into Kelley’s eyes. Kelley can see the beautiful blue again, which seems to be even more intense, due to Alex’s eyes being glassy and a little red, which always happens when she’s drunk.

“Wanna know a secret?”

“Yah, what is it?” Alex asks lost in Kelley’s eyes. Kelley leans in and kisses her tenderly.

“Don’t tell anyone.” she whispers when she pulls away. Alex looks at Kelley infatuatedly, releasing a deep breath.

“You drive me craazy.”

“Ditto, but now it’s time to go to bed.” Kelley says pushing herself up and sitting between Alex’s legs at the edge of the bed.

“Nooo, I don’t wanna though.” Alex complains. Alex musters Kelley closely, who’s stretching her arms.  

“Your arms look ssso goo’.” Alex says, sitting up as well to kiss her back, while running her hands over Kelley’s arms. She then snakes them around Kelley’s waist and under her shirt, stroking her abs. The horny type of drunk coming out again.

“Alex.” Kelley says warningly.

“I know you wan’it, tiger.”

“I really do, but I also already had ‘it’ tonight.”

“Your sexiness is fffucking me.” Alex whispers against Kelley’s ear sultrily, causing goosebumps all over her body and heat shooting through her body. Kelley knows exactly what Alex is trying right now. Over the years, Alex has mastered to push her buttons and it demands a shit ton of self-control not to give in right now.

“Alex, stop.” Kelley says weakly.

“Look at me.” Alex says, kissing Kelley’s ear.

“I can't look, because then I see your face and it will be over.”

“Babe, I want’cha to fu-“

Kelley stands up quickly, groaning loudly, running her hands through her face in frustration.

“Uh-uh, you’re not getting in my head right now, Alex. I see you’re getting horny again and as much as I want to, we’re not doing this right now.”

“Damn, I almos’ gotcha, right?” Alex slurs.

“You always got me.” Kelley winks, starting to undress and helping Alex out of her dress as well. Kelley chuckles, when Alex immediately falls asleep as soon as she’s undressed. She makes her way downstairs again, getting another glass of water and places it on Alex’s nightstand. When Kelley’s back hits the mattress, Alex seems to sense it and rolls around, laying her head on her chest and clinging onto her as always. Kelley puts her arms around her, holding her tight and falling asleep just seconds later.