#did i tear up a bit? admittedly yeah a little bit

[ratatatastic]

"ive played in a canadian market ive been in st louis in the summer they won—ive never seen buzz like this" "we're really lucky we get to play hockey in such a nice place" the C and A clocking in on their Praise South Florida as a Hockeytown shift

2024-25 Media Day | 9.18.24 (x)(x)

[zepskies]

Every Second Counts - Part 4

Pairing: Russell Shaw x F. Reader

Summary: One date with your best friend’s brother leaves you wanting more, even though his questionable job and vagabond lifestyle make you want to guard your heart. When your brother falls into trouble, however, Russell is the one you trust to help you find him. 

AN: No cliffhangers this time, I promise. 😘

Word Count: 4K

Tags/Warnings: Perilous situations, blood and violence, some more protective Russell, angst, hurt/comfort, and fluff.~

💜 Series Masterlist

Part 4: “Mountain Man”

You were running for your life. 

Blood dripped down into your line of vision, but you swept it away from your face with a haphazard hand, along with your tears as you nearly stumbled on the path. 

A gunshot rang in your ears and hit a tree instead of your head.

Shit! You screamed and ducked, but you kept running…

After you tumbled down the hill, it was a small mercy that you didn’t break any bones when you eventually landed at the bottom. You’d stared up at the sky, winded, your back aching. Until you noticed Rick, one of Eddie’s men. He was sliding down the hill after you. 

You didn’t know what happened to your brother after he attempted to push you out of harm’s way. That thought alone gripped your heart like a vice, but you knew you couldn’t stay here on the ground either. 

You forced your body to move, whimpering at the pain and stiffness. Shakily you pushed onto your feet and slipped on dead leaves as you went. You moved your legs faster, until you were able to take off running deeper into the forest.

You gasped when your foot caught on a large rock. It sent you crashing into the ground. With your hands still bound, it made pushing yourself back up that much more difficult.

You spat out a couple of leaves. Fuck…

When Rick caught up to you, fear made you jolt into action. You wrapped your gathered hands around the rock that felled you and tossed it at him with all the strength you had. He blocked the projectile with the same hand that held his gun, like an idiot. You really couldn’t be blamed when the gun went off in his face.

He screamed, and so did you on reflex. Though his cheek and brow had been grazed by the bullet, he was lucky he still had both eyes. He blinked a bit of blood out of his left one. You scrambled back onto your feet and meant to keep running, but Rick still managed to surge forward and get a hold of your hair. 

Uttering a short scream, you grabbed his shirt and kneed him as hard as you could between the legs. You hoped you crushed his dick and balls.

“Oh, f—” He went down to the ground, sinking onto his knees as he dropped his gun. He glared up at you. “You little bitch!” 

You were panting for breath, but you didn’t wait for him to recover and grab his weapon again. 

You ran. 

You ran, even though you had no idea where you were going. You just knew that you couldn’t stay in one place. But if you couldn’t find your way around a college campus, how the hell were you supposed to navigate the damn Medicine Bow National Forest?

Along with your desperation and fear, tears kept filling your eyes whenever you thought of Charlie. 

Please, please, please…

“Goddamn, they could be anywhere,” Russell groused, as he and Colter hiked through the forest. He was, admittedly, breathing a bit harder from the trek uphill. “It’s been hours already.”

“It’s barely been an hour,” Colter reminded him. And he didn’t look winded in the least.

Bastard. Russell glanced at him, but then he focused on the horizon. The sun was finally starting to come up, which was good for them. They could see the trails more clearly.

“Remember when Dad used to make us free-climb the cliffs in Sierra?” Russell asked.

“Yeah,” Colter said. “You used to beat me every time. Wonder what happened to that guy.”

His tone was teasing. Russell shot him a look, half annoyed, and half amused.

“Yeah, well, he turned 40,” Russell replied.

Colter smiled, but both of them paused when they heard a gunshot ring out, followed by two more.

“That was close,” he said.

“Yeah,” Russell agreed, drawing his own gun. Colter did the same, and they hurried up a roaming hill that had Russell briefly peering over the side. In his mind’s eye, he had to shutter away the memory of seeing a body flung over the side in the dark and the rain. Then him looking over the edge of that cliff and recognizing his father’s twisted body.

And Colter, shouting up at him with angry, tearful, accusing eyes.

A male groan broke Russell out of his thoughts as he and his brother came up on a grim scene. Two men laid dead, and another young man with dark hair was lying prone on the ground, clutching his wounded leg. He’d been shot, though a gun also was held tightly in his own hand. He aimed it at the newcomers.

“Charlie?” Colter asked. He recognized the other man from your family photos.

Charlie blinked up at him in surprise, but not without a grim set to his jaw.

“Who the hell are you?” he asked.

Russell let out a subtle breath. Colter was relieved as well.

“I’m Colter. This is my brother, Russell,” he said. “Your sister asked for our help to find you.”

Charlie’s eyes widened. All of them slowly lowered their weapons. Russell gestured at the bodies lying yards away from him.

“I’m guessing one of those guys is Eddie Mendez?” he said.

Charlie nodded, gesturing at the man closest to him with his gun. He groaned at the agony in his right thigh. Colter quickly went to his side and began to wrap a tourniquet around his leg to stem the bleeding.

“Did the bullet go through?” Colter asked.

“I think so,” Charlie replied.

“Where’s your sister?” Russell asked, his impatience evident in his stance and the way he held his gun while scanning his surroundings. His frown deepened when he didn’t see you.

“Oh, fuck!” Charlie said, and not at the pain of Colter wrapping his leg. His eyes were wide with panic. “Rick’s after her. I clipped him, but he slipped by me.”

“Where?” Russell asked. Charlie pointed down the side of the hill.

“Down there. Headed north I think, but I’m not sure,” he said quickly. “Help her, please!”

Russell didn’t need any encouragement. He started down the hill first. 

After making sure Charlie was stable for now, Colter followed after his brother a few minutes later. 

Russell called your name as he searched through the dense trees. Sunlight was beginning to filter through their leaves in dappled color on the trail. It gave him a better view ahead.

He stopped short when he saw a splatter of blood on the ground, painting the dirt and some dead leaves. A well of unease rose in his gut.

He headed toward the sound of running water, and he soon found another cliff. Just beyond it was a waterfall, and river below. Seeing no signs of life, he pulled back and continued to call your name, and all the while, pushing down his worry.

“Russell?!”

He turned sharply to see you coming out of your hiding place—a large fallen tree. A smile started to raise his lips, but no sooner had he taken one step in your direction, when he almost got a bullet in his head for his trouble. 

“Watch out!” you yelled. Rick came out into the clearing and aimed at you next. 

“Get down!” Russell shouted. 

Without blinking, he shot Rick three times: once in the shoulder, twice in the chest. 

The man went down. He was dead before he even met the ground. 

It was then that Colter finally caught up. Russell nodded at him, but his focus was on heading for the fallen tree after he stowed his gun.

The moment he took a step over it, you popped up with a yell, ready to smack him with a tree branch. He leaned back raised up his hands in defense. 

“Whoa, hey, it’s okay! It’s just me, slugger,” he said with a grin. 

You let out a sharp sigh of relief. The branch fell from your loose fingers. As you caught your breath, your mouth trembled, and your eyes filled with tears at the sight of him. 

Russell softened. He reached for you.

“Come ‘ere,” he said. Your hands slipped into his, and he helped you over the trunk of the tree. After using his handy pocketknife to cut through the zip ties binding your wrists together, you landed right into his waiting embrace. There, you spilled hot tears into his bulletproof vest. 

“It’s okay, sweetheart. I’ve gotcha,” he said. His voice was low and soothing. “You’re okay.”

You raised your head with a desperate question in your eyes.

“Charlie?” you asked.

“Charlie’s okay too,” Russell assured. His hand soothed over your tangled hair and down your back. He could feel you trembling as you rested against him and sobbed. He held you tight, safe, as he rocked you a little from side to side. His own relief was a weight off his chest. 

Colter stood by and watched with a secret smile. 

With his bare hands clawing into damp soil, Colter dug up the crate Charlie buried near the base of the waterfall. True to his word, it was filled with precious artifacts. 

“Just, please be careful,” you warned him again over his shoulder. “These are quite literally hundreds of years old.”

Before Colter could assure you, again, that he’d be careful, you actually set a hand on his shoulder and implored him to move back.

“Matter of fact, sorry, let me do this part,” you said. “I’m the only one who’s really trained to handle these. Plus, your hands are dirty.”

Colter raised a brow, but he obliged you. He glanced over at his brother. Russell just watched in amusement while you opened the crate. 

You wished you had gloves on for this, but you supposed it couldn’t be helped. You stopped just shy of touching them—a bow and arrow, three spears, and a couple of knives. Each were crafted with wood and bone, with designs carved and accented in faded red and blue.

“Wow,” you whispered. Your historian heart was singing right now. 

You made sure each artifact was intact and hadn’t sustained water damage, then you covered them back up with the lid to the crate. 

“Okay, now you can take it, thank you. This thing is heavy,” you said, with a pat on Colter’s shoulder. 

His lips played at a smile, but he accepted the responsibility of carrying the crate.

Russell rested a hand on the small of your back to subtly help you back up the hill. You couldn’t help walking closer with him, your arm brushing against his side. You glanced up at him with a smile. He matched you, then looked up ahead. 

Charlie was waiting for you all while leaning against a tree. He still looked like utter hell—cut up, bruised, bloody, and now shot in the leg. You went to his side and gently grabbed his arm. 

“God, Charlie. You sure you’re okay?” you asked. He curled an arm around your shoulders and flashed you a familiar grin. 

“Oh, yeah. I’m like a cockroach. Just keep coming back,” he said.

You had to agree with that, laughing through the spark of your tears. Russell came on his other side and shouldered most of your brother's weight off his bad leg. 

“Okay, here we go. One step at a time,” Russell said.

Slowly, painfully, Charlie managed to make it back to Colter’s truck with you and Russell supporting him. Colter brought up the rear with the artifacts in tow. 

And behind you all, the sun broke more fully across the dewy trees in a morning swathed with orange and gold.

After Colter drove you and Charlie to the hospital, he and Russell took off again soon after to do something with the three bodies hidden under a tarp in the bed of the pickup truck. The thought made you shudder, along with the fact that the Shaw brothers knew how to hide bodies.

But you supposed it was better than the alternative.

As it was, you, Colter, and Charlie had to lie to the hospital staff about how you both had earned your injuries—in a brutal mugging, where Colter was able to scare off the men that got the jump on you and Charlie.

"I never saw their faces," as he'd later told the police, while the nurses prepped him for surgery. "I just tried to protect my sister the best I could."

You backed him up on the story, even as the lie felt bitter on your tongue and made you nervous (especially when you thought of poor Dr. Feinman).

Despite that little break-in at the museum yesterday, you'd never been good at being a rule breaker. Fortunately, Colter's calmness when he gave his corroborating statement helped you. Like Russell, he was a solid, anchoring presence...if in a different way.

For the crate of relics, Colter advised Charlie to ship them back to the museum anonymously. It would be the easiest way to encourage the police to lose steam on looking for who took them in the first place. You and your brother begrudgingly agreed, even if you had a secret thought of sending the artifacts to the NMAI. Maybe you could convince Charlie to send them there instead, or to one of the local Native American tribes here in Wyoming.

Hours later, however, you were able to finally be with your brother when he came out of surgery. In that time, your own bruises and the cut above your brow had been tended to in the Emergency Department. Now, you sat by his bedside while he slept off the anesthesia. You stroked his scuffed hand on the bed.

He really was a mess, you thought, as a tear rolled down your cheek. But he was alive. That was what mattered now.

A quiet knock at the door had you looking up, and then smiling to see Russell.

“Hey,” you said quietly, and in surprise. “Everything…went well?”

Russell’s lips quirked. “Yeah, we’re all set.”

No one would be finding those bodies anytime soon. He had a buddy in Denver, Colorado who happened to be a cremator. It was only a couple hours over from Laramie. He and Colter had just gotten back from driving the bodies there.

Before Colter drove over to Dory's apartment next, both to check on her and to fill her in on everything, he'd dropped Russell off at your house so he could get his car. He hadn’t felt right about leaving you in the hospital by yourself, even if you did have your brother.

Not without saying goodbye, at least.

“You know, I need to ask his doctor a question about his post-op care,” you said, gesturing at Charlie. “Can you stay with him for a minute while I go find a nurse?”

“Sure,” Russell agreed. You smiled gratefully and touched his arm as you passed him.

When you were gone, it left a heavy silence in your wake. Russell looked over at Charlie’s sleeping form. Russell sighed and sunk down into the chair beside the bed. He rubbed his tired face with both hands.

Shit. Now that he thought about it, he could’ve just told Colter to bring Dory here. He pulled out his phone to call his sister, when a low groan caught his attention.

Aw geez. What kinda timing, Russell thought, as he realized Charlie was waking up. His eyes slowly slid open, brows furrowing at the bright lights above him, then at the man beside him.

“Hey, man,” Russell said. “You’re okay. You’re in the hospital.”

“Yeah, I figured,” Charlie said, with another groan as he tried to stretch his body. He found he couldn’t yet move his leg. As awareness blinked back into his eyes, he settled on Russell with resignation.

“Thank you,” he said. “What you did for me, for her…I sure as hell didn’t deserve it, but thank you for saving her.”

Russell shook his head. “No need. Just get better.”

“Yeah. The doc says in a few months, I’ll be able to learn how to walk again,” Charlie said.

Russell gave him a firmer look.

“No, I mean get better,” he said. “You know you nearly got your sister killed.”

Charlie’s gaze fell. His face tightened, but really, he couldn’t even be upset at the accusation. He knew it was true, and his guilt already threatened to consume him. He also knew he should be in jail for what he’d done, and what he’d facilitated for months. After what nearly happened in the past twenty-four hours, he wasn’t sure how you could ever forgive him.

“Look, I served too. I know what you’re going through, being back here,” Russell said. “It feels wrong and right, don’t it?”

After a beat, Charlie nodded. “What branch?”

“Special Ops. I hear you were a pilot, Captain.”

“Yeah, I was,” Charlie said, his eyes lowering. “Now…now I don’t know what I am.”

“You’re her brother,” Russell said. Both his tone and his gaze all but demanded that the other man look him in the eyes. “Not her father or her son, her brother. I know you’ve been struggling. But I think you already know what you need to do, and figure out who you’re gonna be today, tomorrow, and the next.”

Charlie took in those words, and tried not to chafe at them coming from a near stranger. He knew, deep down, that all of it was right.

You came in a moment later with two cups of coffee. You brightened with a gasp when you saw that Charlie was awake.

“Hey.” He found a smile for you. You gave Russell the coffee you’d brought for him, but you quickly set yours down on the rolling tray so you could sit beside your brother.

Russell stepped out to give you two some privacy. You thanked him again and watched him go. Then, you turned back to Charlie with a tearful smile.

“How’re you feeling?” you asked.

“Have I said how much I love morphine?” Charlie remarked.

You rolled your eyes and took his hand in yours. “Yeah, how can I forget your thing for hard drugs.”

That hit sharper than a mere joke. His eyes fell away from yours. You sighed and bit your lip.

“I’m sorry,” you said. Charlie shook his head and covered your hand with his.

“No, I’m sorry. For everything I’ve put you through. And I don’t just mean today,” he said. “I’m going to make it up to you.”

“All that matters is that you’re here, and you’re going to be fine,” you said. “I’ve already put together a list of what you’re going to need when we bring you home—”

Charlie stopped you with a squeeze of your hand.

“I’m not going home just yet,” he said.

“Well, no, not until they discharge you, but—”

Again, he gently cut you off. “You were right. I need treatment, and not just for this damn leg.”

He swept a hand through his hair and sighed.

“When they let me out of here, I’m going back to rehab,” he said. “After that, we’ll see.”

 Tears stung in your eyes…but you nodded in relief. You held both of his hands then.

“You’re not doing this alone,” you told him. “I’ll be with you, every step.”

 Charlie let out a self-deprecating chuckle. He felt he didn’t deserve that, but he smiled at you.

“I know. You’ll be nagging me in my head, even when you’re not there,” he said. You smirked and brushed his greasy hair away from his face.

“Damn straight,” you replied. “I’ve finally become Mom.”

Charlie shook his head in amusement, but he leveled you with a pointed finger.

“But for now, you need to go home and get some rest,” he said.

You reluctantly agreed with that too. After a full twenty-four hours without sleep, you realized that you were exhausted. You leaned over and pressed a kiss to his cheek.

“I love you,” you said. “I’ll come back to see you tomorrow.”

“Good. Love you too,” said Charlie. His eyelids were starting to droop from the pain medication, but he forced himself to stay awake for a little while longer. He even helped you back onto your feet with a guiding hand on your back. “Wait, is someone staying with you tonight? I don’t want you to be alone.”

You grabbed up your purse. “Don’t worry. I think I’ve got that covered.”

Your brother quirked a suspicious smile at the look on your face. The one you tried to hide from him when you noticed his scrutiny.

“What, is it one of those guys who helped us?” he asked. “Is it the blonde one—Ken doll? Or the mountain man?”

Of course he knew their names, but he just wanted to mess with you. He could already see you getting flustered while you twisted the strap of your purse between your fingers and glanced at the door.

 “What? No! Just go to sleep. Take advantage of the morphine while you’ve got it,” you said. “Don’t worry. I’ll call Dory.”

Charlie leveled you with a look. “Mhmm.”

He pulled the blanket higher on his chest and watched you leave. When the door swung open, he saw Russell leaning against the wall, waiting for you. 

Charlie huffed. He should’ve known. 

Okay, mountain man.  

That was the last thought he had before he drifted off.

You left your brother’s room just about overwhelmed with a maelstrom of emotions. However, the moment you saw Russell waiting for you, leaning against the wall with his hands in his pockets, it all distilled into one simple thing. 

He met your gaze and started to smile. 

You smiled back, and you went to him. 

You reached up to frame his face with both hands, and you searched for something in his eyes. They were tinged with surprise, but he waited on you, wondering what you were about to do. 

When you thought you found what you were looking for, you raised up on your toes and pressed your lips to his.

His hands unconsciously found your waist and held you to him. He met your lips in kind, and even deepened the connection. Your fingers slipped into his hair, lightly dragging your nails against his scalp. He hummed in pleasure. 

When your lips eventually parted from his, it was still too soon, he thought. Russell stared down at you with a question in his eyes—one he couldn’t help voicing.

“What was that for?” he asked.

“Thank you,” you whispered. “Thank you for everything.”

Ah… Russell’s smile evened out and faded slightly. 

So that was just a gesture of gratitude. He hoped you didn’t decide to thank Colter that way. 

“You don’t need to thank me,” Russell said. “I’m glad Charlie’s all right.”

“No, I do need to. So thank you,” you said. Your hands drifted down his chest, plucking at the edge of his jacket. 

“I don’t really want to be alone today, to be honest,” you admitted. “Would you…want to…keep me company for a while? You could rest up at my place.”

Russell’s brows raised. His lips curved. 

“Well, sure. I could do that. Your couch seemed pretty comfortable,” he said. 

“You don’t have to stay on the couch,” you replied. 

And then, Russell finally read your meaning. He saw it in your eyes, staring up at him through your lashes.

Maybe that kiss was exactly what he thought it meant. His smile became more genuine.

“Well, okay,” he said eventually. He wrapped an arm around your waist. “Let’s get you home then.”

You leaned against his side and gave him a lazy salute. “Aye, aye, Captain.”

He shook his head. His smile deepened into a grin.  

“You’re a little delirious, aren’t you?” he asked.

“Probably need some water,” you said with a giggle. “And God, I’m starving.”

Russell laid a gentle kiss to the side of your head that wasn’t bruised.

“All right, we’ll take care of that too,” he said.

“You know what I’m craving?” you asked. He looked down at you questioningly, and again he found your smile.

“Sriracha fries,” you said.

Russell busted out laughing at that. He fist-pumped the air with his free hand. 

“Hell, yeah.” 

For that, and much more, he would count today as a win. 

AN: There we go! A nice fluffy finish for you. How did you like how Charlie's arc wrapped up, along with her reunion with Russell? 💜

But just wait. We're not quite done yet...

Next Time:

He took in your hesitant face, then the pretty dress you had on. The color matched your eyes. Soulful eyes.

He smiled when you let him see them again.

“Can you see the bruises? I think I covered them up well enough,” you said. You turned to look at yourself in the mirror again, touching your jaw carefully. 

Russell’s hand raised to find your cheek, earning your attention with wider eyes. His thumb swept across your skin as you started to blush.

“You’re beautiful,” he said with a smile. “Don’t you worry about that.”

Your face warmed further, despite your smile. 

“Yeah, the makeup helps,” you quipped. 

“I didn’t say anything about makeup,” he replied. Though he grinned and made a show of looking closer at your face. “Although, have your lashes always been that damn long?”

You laughed, but he didn’t let go of you.

▶️ Keep Reading: PART 5 (Finale!)

Series Masterlist

Ko-Fi Me ☕

Russell Shaw Masterlist

Main Masterlist

Russell S. Tag List:

@kazsrm67 @letheatheodore @agothwithheavysetmakeup @jacklesbrainworms @foxyjwls007

@wincastifer @ades106 @iamsapphine @simpforbuckyb @roseblue373

@brianochka @branj19 @hazel-eye-coffee-shop-girl-blog @globetrotter28 @charmed-asylum

@waywardxwords @deanwinchestersgirl87 @this-is-me19 @rachiem4-blog @sweettimelady

@leigh70 @clinicallydepresso @xiphoidbones @skoveu @nyotamalfoy

@kmc1989 @jackles010378 @emily-winchester @waynes-multiverse @jessjad

@my-stories-vault @deans-spinster-witch @syrma-sensei @stellasfictionalworld @ultimatecin73

@jesllianaquilesrolonsworld @pieandmonsters @lhymer1995 @taehyungxjungkookistaekook @lovelystoriesaj

@nicksalchemy1 @spnwoman @onlyangel-444 @sexyvixen7 @illicithallways

@wolkenprinzessin007 @alwaystiredandconfused @carpenterswife @cheynovak @grilledcheeseandtomato

[froggiewrites]

I know you’re not taking requests rn BUT if in the future you wouldn’t mind and think it’s fun: I was working and had disney’s mulan (1998 obviously) in the background, hadn’t watched in a while so I did laugh when mulan was practicing acting like a man and said “ha! I see you have a sword, I have one too! they’re very manly-” and just drops the sword. What if reader had to go undercover as swordsman somewhere and they ask zoro for help/pointers and they do this really bad act in front of him? or maybe it’s something like a first meeting kind of thing where the reader is trying to blend in to escape or something and encounters zoro, does this horrible act and ends up confessing and asking for help? I just think this would be hilarious bc zoro might seem and feel very offended but has probably experienced worse with the crew’s jokes and if feelings are involved he could be like “why am I attracted to this idiot?”, affectionately ofc lol

I had a lot of fun with this one, anon. Mulan is tied for my favorite Disney movie, so I was already super on board with this request, and then as I started writing it just started getting really silly. I hope you enjoy it!!

Make a (Swords)Man Out of You

Pairing: Zoro x Reader

SFW

Summary: Your attempt to go undercover as a master swordsman isn't going particularly well. A kind (if somewhat grumpy) stranger offers you some lessons to help keep up the ruse. Warnings: Fluff, Reader is a loser (affectionate) in this one, Zoro is also a bit of a loser Word Count: 2.5k

You were seriously going to get yourself killed.

You were convinced this was going to be easy. You’d tricked people before, and frankly, how hard could it be to use a sword? You don’t need to pretend to be the best swordsman, just a swordsman!

It turns out using a sword is, admittedly, kind of hard.

You couldn’t count on one hand the amount of times you had nearly cut yourself, or the blade had slipped from your hands, or you ended up not slicing through anything because you messed up your swing. You try to tell yourself over and over again that you don’t need to be the best, just mediocre, but you can’t even manage that at this point. You’re going to get caught. You’ve been undercover in this group for a week now, and you’ve managed to avoid any actual swordplay so far, but you can’t keep this up for long. Not only have you not found the treasure you wanted, you’re probably going to get your head sliced off before you find even a hint of it’s location. 

So here you are, in the middle of the night, trying and once again failing to make a dent on this stupid training dummy.

“You’re not holding it right.”

You nearly jump out of your skin at the sound of a man’s voice behind you. You whip around to see another mysterious swordsman who showed up a few days ago and immediately wiped the floor with several members of the group. You had no idea why he was here, considering he didn’t seem nearly as interested in mindless violence or ill-gotten gains as the rest of the people here. You couldn’t quite recall his name.

“I know what I’m doing,” you grumble, unconvincingly.

“Oh yeah?” He has a smug grin on his face, one that just screams I know more than you and we both know it. “Will you show me, then?”

This is it. You’re caught, he’s going to tell, and you’re going to get sliced to a billion little pieces. You try to keep your cool, to steady your breath and lie through your teeth as you have been all week, but something about him just cuts to your core and you break. “Please don’t tell anyone.”

He takes a step back at the panic in your voice, immediately looking unsure at the sight of your tears. “I’m not–I–Stop crying!” He says it roughly, more of a command than anything else, which only makes you cry harder.

“Please, I don’t want them to kill me! I didn’t think it’d be this hard! I just wanted some treasure, is that so wrong? Life is expensive!” Your blubber would be embarrassing if you had any coherent thoughts through your fear.

“Who said anything about killing you?” He moves forward, his hand covering your mouth and muffling your sobs and panicked words. “And seriously, stop crying. You’re being too damn loud, you’re going to get yourself caught! God, it’s a wonder you haven’t been caught already. You’re so obvious I knew from the moment I walked in you were trying to run some kind of con.”

You try to ask him how he knew immediately, but the words don’t make it through his palm.

“Stop talking. It’s fine. No one’s going to kill you.”

You think he can hear you promise? through his hand.

“Yes, I promise. Just…stop.”

He frees your mouth, and you take a deep and steadying breath.

“So why are you pretending to be a swordsman?”

“These bandits have been stealing a lot from people here, and I heard they stole a big priceless artifact from a nobleman. I figure if I get that, I can get off the island, sell it, and be set for life.”

“So you said you were a master swordsman?”

“Yeah.”

“You didn’t think about lying about anything more believable?”

“They said they needed one. And I didn’t think I’d be this bad at it.”

He closes his eyes, pondering a moment. “You do seem pretty uniquely terrible at this.”

“Wow, thanks.”

“No problem.”

You try to steady your breath, and while you do, he takes your hands in his, turning them over and glaring at them as though they were an insult.

“Why are they so soft?”

“What?”

“Your hands. They’re too soft. You don’t have a single callus.”

“Why are you saying that like it’s a bad thing?”

“It means you don’t do anything with them. It means you definitely don’t hold a sword. If anyone here were capable you’d have been out on your ass day one.”

“I don’t think most people would notice that.”

“Any decent swordsman would. You’re damn lucky I’m the only one here.”

You want to scoff, to ask him what makes him so qualified, but you know he could sound the alarm at any moment, and it’s stupid to piss off a man who holds your life in his hands. “Why haven’t you turned me in already?”

He scoffs. “Why would I?”

“They’d probably give you a reward or something. You don’t get anything out of helping me.”

“What, are you trying to convince me to do it?”

Your heart clenches, your voice raising with fear. “No!”

He shushes you harshly. “God, it was a joke! Be quiet!”

You shrink in on yourself, covering your mouth before he gets the chance.

He sighs. “You’re terrible at this. Why the hell did you think you could keep up this act?”

“I’ve tricked people before!”

“Did those people have swords?”

“...No.”

“Did you keep up an act for weeks at a time?”

“Well–”

“Yes or no.”

“...No.”

He pinches his forehead, muttering something under his breath about an idiot you remind him of, and you pout indignantly. 

“I’m not an idiot!”

“Oh yeah? Because everything I’ve seen tonight has been pretty dumb.”

“Okay, well why are you here then, genius?”

He goes quiet, his eyes sliding away from yours.

“What, no answer?”

He mumbles something.

“What was that?”

You can barely hear the words, almost lost as he whispers them, his head tilted down in embarrassment. “I got lost.”

You can’t help the bark of a laugh that leaves you. “What?”

“I got lost! I was going to find my ship and I got turned around, so I decided to stay and see what this place was about! So what?”

“You got lost so you decided to join a group of bandits? And you’ve been here for days! Don’t you have anybody looking for you?”

“They’ll show up eventually!”

“Why didn’t you just ask for directions?”

“I don’t need directions!”

“Clearly, you do!”

You both groan in unison at the other, fighting frustration. You aren’t in much of a position to judge, but how could a person be more helpless? At least you got yourself into trouble on purpose.

“Where is your ship supposed to be docked?”

“I don’t remember exactly, it was near an opera house.”

“An…opera house?”

“Yeah?”

You cannot believe this is happening. “We don’t have one of those.”

“What?”

“There isn’t an opera house on this island. The closest one is a day’s ferry trip away. How the hell did you get here?”

“I walked.”

“That literally cannot be true! Like physically!”

“Well it is! So you must have forgotten!”

“Forgotten about the layout of the island I’ve lived my entire life on? Really?”

“God, you’re so annoying. I can’t believe I was going to help you.”

You pause. “You were going to help me? With what?”

“With swordplay! Obviously! You can’t even hold the damn thing right, you clearly need it.” He’s pouting, his lower lip jutted out like a child about to throw a tantrum. You just barely hold yourself back from telling himself that. As fun as it may be to taunt him, you really do need the help.

You can swallow your pride for the night. If everything works out, maybe you can make fun of him for this later. “...Would you still be willing to help me?”

“Why should I?”

“I can get you back to your ship. After I get the treasure, I mean.”

“I don’t need your help.”

“No offense, but you definitely do. And I kind of want to go with you anyway. I’m a little worried you’ll just walk off into the ocean if I don’t.”

He glares at you, eyes raking up and down your form, considering for a moment. He sighs. “Fine, I guess I can help.”

You feel hopeful for the first time in a while. Your new friend, who informs you his name is Zoro, seems rather skilled. Maybe this plan won’t get you killed after all!

Two days later you’re kicking yourself for daring to think that even for a second.

“How the hell are you still doing it wrong?” His hands are on your back again, adjusting your posture for the twentieth time today. “How hard can it be just to swing a sword?”

“It’s not! I’ve been swinging it this whole time!” You aggressively bring the blade down on the training dummy you two had stolen for your lessons. Zoro had thought you would need a day at most to get the basics down, but you were nearing the end of day two and making absolutely no progress.

He sighs, wrapping his arms around you, pressing his chest to your back as he adjusts your hold. You try not to blush as you ask, “What are you doing?”

“Fixing your hold. Come on, we’re going to swing it together. Clearly just telling you isn’t working, but maybe this will.” He puts his hands over yours, and you feel the heat radiating off of him. You try to focus on the movement as he guides you, but you can’t help but be distracted by the feeling of his muscles against your back. “Did you get that?”

“Huh?” You’re so grateful he can’t see your face right now. “Sorry, uh, can we do that one more time?”

Instead of making fun of you or complaining, he simply guides you through the motion again, going slow to ensure you understand every step, before repeating it again closer to a normal speed. “Did you get it?”

“I…think so. Maybe.”

He chuckles, and you can feel the rumble of his chest against your back. “Alright. Try it yourself, now.”

You do, and for once, the sword flies through the air with ease, and makes a sizable slash in the dummy. You stare for a moment, dumbfounded, before you drop the sword and whirl around to face him. “I did it!” You can’t stop yourself from throwing your arms around him.

“Wha–Hey! Don’t drop your sword!” Despite his scolding tone of voice, his arms are gentle as they wrap around you, lifting you up slightly. “...But that was good.”

Is that a hint of red at the tips of his ears?

No, of course not. It couldn’t be.

He sets you down, picking up the sword and placing it back in your hand. “Now do it again. If you can do something as simple as that, you can probably keep up the facade long enough to find your treasure.”

You do the motion ten, twenty, then thirty more times while Zoro watches on with satisfaction. “You know, I could probably make a real swordsman out of you if we had the time.”

You laugh. “Maybe you could. I don’t have anywhere to be after this. Does your ship have room for one more?”

You say it as a joke, but you can see on his face that for a moment, he genuinely considers the possibility. “It’s a big ship. You’d have to get approval from my Captain, though.”

“Do you think I could?”

“He’d love you.” He smiles fondly. “You’re just as reckless as he is. And you’d get along with everyone else, too. Nami would appreciate having someone else who knows the value of a Berry around. Usopp would love how gullible you are. And that cook…” He makes a quiet noise of disgust. “Anyway, you’d fit right in.”

You can see the affection radiating off of him as he talks about his friends. You can’t help but smile back at him. “They sound nice.”

“They have their moments.”

You sheathe your sword, rolling out your shoulders and neck. “Well, I think I only have a bit to go before I get the treasure. I’m so close I can taste it. I bet I can find it by tonight.”

“Here’s hoping. As you are now, you’d still get caught the moment you got put into a real battle. We have to find it quickly.”

You freeze, your heart pounding a little faster. “...We?”

“Yeah?” He looks at you like it’s obvious.

“You’re coming with me?”

“You thought I wouldn’t?”

“I don’t know! You never said you were going to!”

“I thought it was obvious. We’re going to go in, grab the treasure, and run like hell.”

You don’t like the way he simplifies it, but you have to admit that’s basically your entire plan. “And then I take you back to your ship?”

“It’d be hard for you to join if you didn’t.”

You can’t hide your shock. “You were serious?”

“Were you not?”

“I mean–I’d like to, but–”

“If you want to, then there’s no but. It’s settled.” He says it so easily. You wonder where he gets the confidence to speak things into existence like that, to say things as though they’re sure to happen simply because he wills it. His next words are spoken as an afterthought, as though they left his mouth before he even realized they were coming. “That’s good. I didn’t really want to let you go.”

“Huh?” Your face is definitely red now.

“Huh?” His face might be redder than yours.

“Did you–”

“No, definitely not.”

“You didn’t let me finish.”

“Doesn’t matter.” He sharply turns around. “We have a treasure to go steal.”

Well, if he isn’t going to be brave about this, you suppose you’ll have to. You wouldn’t survive the tension-filled boat ride over otherwise. “Oh, the brave swordsman is running away?”

You see his shoulders tense, and you know you got him. “I am not running away.”

“Then why aren’t you looking at me, Zoro?” You keep your voice teasing and sickly sweet.

He slowly turns, desperately avoiding your eyes.

“You still aren’t loo–”

Before you can finish your taunt, chapped lips are pressed against yours. It’s jarring and all too brief, gone before you even realize it was there. By the time you can blink, he’s backed away again, stalking off with a purpose. “Come on. We’re losing daylight.”

“That’s the wrong way.”

He turns back around without a word, rushing past you. You can’t help the goofy little grin that makes its way onto your lips. You won’t tell him, not now, but you didn’t really want to let him go quite yet either.

Tag List: @pandora-writes-one-piece @shy-writer-999 @dreamcastgirl99 @tochillwithamockingjay

[valentine-cafe]

I wanna see some of your characters (*any* of your characters honestly, i'm not that picky and theyre all attractive anyway😍) and their first time bottoming for dom!top male reader because ive been going through that tag specifically and i would just love more of that typa content with your characterss

(Ps. Ive been reading your works for a while now and i gotta say im a huge fan)

. ˚◞♡ 𝒕𝒐𝒑𝒑𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆◞ ₊˚

𖹭. a selection of characters when you top them for the first time /top male!reader

꒰ EEE we’re so happy that you like our content! we wanted to write this with all the characters but who knows how long that would take us sobs - might redo this req in the future with even more! BUT YES MORE TOP MALE READER <3 . . . might have gone a bit wild with rishen 1311 ꒱

⊹ ۪ ࣪ ꒰ ALESSIO 781 ꒱ is someone that people tend to forget is a switch. top-leaning, yes, but a switch no less. he’s gotta really trust you in order to let you take control though. but when you do? he makes you work for it. the first time you topped him was a late night in his apartment. both of you kissing and making out on the sofa after playing a few games. the last thing he expected was for you to actually fight him for dominance. it was thrilling - but what was even more thrilling was when you won.

admittedly he was a little nervous. it was so new. seeing the cocky merc now gripping onto your arms and looking at you with those glassy emerald eyes of his. “stop if I tell you to - okay?”

but oh he wouldn’t even dream of telling you to stop. he was squirming and creaming everywhere by the time you fucked the bratiness out of him. which took quite a bit in all honesty.

but when you had him there. pinned to his bed and pounding into him from behind. so that all he could do was cling onto the sheets and let out all sorts of noises of pleasure. his deep voice now pitched. whiney.

“a-amor - d-dios amoorcittooo,” he whines out as you milk another orgasm out of him. all while he whimpers for you to fill him up again. splutters about being a good boy for you. it’s like a complete switch up when you get him under you — and the poor thing cums like a fountain.

he wants you to manhandle him. to be rough. mean. put him in his place and make him feel vulnerable — because he let you. and he wants you to fuck him until he’s on a verge of tears. might as well make the most of it, yeah?

mercenary x reader, antihero x reader, enigma x reader

 

⊹ ۪ ࣪ ꒰ RISHIMA 781 ꒱ would be quite the surprise for you as well. one would think that someone of her demeanour is a top dom, right? she’s a switch — she can quickly flip between being the mommy making you hump her high heel or the pillow princess.

listen, she also needs some taking care of. especially with how hard she works. so when you offered to top for the first time she wasn’t too opposed. doesn’t mean she didn’t make you work for it a little.

she can be a brat too — but one who backs off immediately when they know they’ve met their match. needless to say, when you had her bouncing on your dick and digging her black nails down your shoulders and back, she had long since given in.

“f-fuck - fuck anh doll - please - please can’tcantt-” she’d bury her face into your neck to try and hide her noises. you’d have to stop her from rolling her hips down and trying to please you instead. murmuring to her ear about how tonight was about her.

you’d push her into the pillow eventually. letting her rest comfortably while you did the work. being mindful of how overstimulated she can get and making sure to eat her out nice and slowly when it was all over. all so she could gasp into the air about how perfect you were while clinging onto your hair and whimpering.

scientist x reader

 

⊹ ۪ ࣪ ꒰ RISHEN 209 ꒱ is another switch but god is this man a brat. he’s awful. riling you up in so many different ways because he wants to see just how far he can push you. because he’s in for it. whatever your kink is — so is his. he’ll go to the extremes and he wants to know just how far you go too.

so imagine his surprise when you pinned him over his examination table. pushing the dress he’d worn for work up and spanking his red-laced ass. how you tied his hands behind his back with his lab coat. pushing into him without a care and rutting his poor, bratty hole until he was creaming all over.

he’s sensitive. beyond sensitive. by the second climax he’d be whining for you. spluttering out apologies and trying to earn your favour. if only to grin at you all tiredly and splutter out a firm no when you asked if he was “really sorry?”

strap his wrists down to that examination table and make him fuck his hips back into you. make him work for it as he cries and whines to cum. because here's a beautiful thing about the scientist - he can’t make himself cum.

“p-please- por favor p-porr favv- hngh b-baby I - I’ll be good pleaseplease hnnhh need t-to cum so bad.”

be rough with him. force him to his knees and fuck his throat. he’ll look at you with pretty maroon eyes and beg even more. all so that you can ram him on your cock again and make him squirt until he’s seeing stars. make him feel helpless. make him feel like all he’s good for is clenching around your dick and cumming all over himself. he’ll love you for it.

mad scientist x reader, moth-mantis-spider monster x reader, yandere x reader, villain x reader

 

⊹ ۪ ࣪ ꒰ HAITĀO 99484 ꒱ is a bottom who was more than thrilled to have you top. he did inform you of his scoliosis before hand, reminding you that while he did have quite the stamina as a reaper, to just not overdo it because of the pains in his back.

as such you’d make sure to lay him back nice and comfortably. your first time with him was rather slow and tender. mostly because you were a little afraid of hurting him.

he’s whiney. vocal. making sure that you know just how much he’s enjoying it. the way he keeps pressing desperate little kisses down your throat and stirring his hips up into you tells you that he wants you to feel just as good.

might at one point beg to take a break just so he can suck you off for a bit. he loves the feeling of your hand in his hair and gently guiding him. and his mouth? fuck it was heaven, he definitely knows what’s doing.

would eventually offer to ride you after. which you were a little hesitant about because of his condition — but he assured you that he’d be fine. so the night would drone on with your back against the headboard and arms hooked around you. kissing and whining into each other’s mouths as he bounces at the pace you set for him.

“s-s’good gege - gege,” he whines, creaming all over your abdomen again as he rocks his hips sloppily. “m-more please - please gege, promise I won’t break, please?”

grim reaper x reader

 

⊹ ۪ ࣪ ꒰ YIZÉ 9948E ꒱ is another switch who really loves the rough treatment. he really likes the fighting for dominance. however, he might find himself in some conditions where he just wishes to be pampered and taken care of.

your first time topping was the former. he’s a mercenary and a reaper — he had you pinned and taking his dick first - if only for the tables to be turned before he even knew it. slammed into the sheets and forced to stay still as you snatched a pair of handcuffs he always seems to keep in his drawer.

oh he loved the way you took charge. how you degraded him. bit into his neck and shoulders. spanked and clawed and made his eyes roll back as you pounded him into his own sheets.

all so that he was drooling. all so that he could barely whine out your name. and when you’d slow - thinking he had enough?

why he’d grunt at you to keep going. maybe even call you a bit of a coward.

“wh-what? done? can’t fuck me right yeah?” would quickly turn into a series of gasps and sobs and - “s-sorryssooryy b-baby sorry I’m sorry nhhgfuck fuck! please!”

hes’s a loud one. that much you’d garner. until you fucked his mind numb and he was left to aimlessly cling to you. begging you not to stop. . . even if he blacked out. he’s a wild.

 

⊹ ۪ ࣪ ꒰ RISHEN 1311 ꒱ is a switch who just yearns to be taken care of. he wants it rough yeah, he’ll fight you for it a bit. but you know what? someone of his stressful work life and always having to be the one in control. . . he really wants to let go for someone.

he wants you to take it from him though. he doesn’t want you to be gentle — he’ll tell you that too. tell you that he wanted you to claw, and bite and take.

so when you yanked him by the hair and pushed him up against his desk - making him stand on his high heels as you leaned him over edge. pressing into his front and shoving your tongue down his throat. . . oh he was in heaven. how you gripped at his jaw and made him keep eye contact with you. ordered him too.

how you shoved his panties off to his thighs and mocked him for the lace. he’d be whining for you before you even put it in.

don’t expect him to be so pliant though. he’s got quite the sharp tongue. maybe he just likes the thought of riling you up too.

“that all you got?” “fuck hurry up.” just to see how he gets to you. but that would all fade the moment you’re fucking up into him. forcing his leaning body to steady itself on those high heels that are stained with the number of times both of you have come.

he’ll rake his nails down your shoulders. try to hold his sounds until you’re yanking him by the hair and encouraging him. make him ride you while you sit on his chair. fuck him until he’s squirming and telling you its too much. because it’s never too much. you can tell each time you try with withdraw and he instead pushes his hips down and forces his ass flush against your dick. squirming.

“f-fuck me - fuckmeeplease dios lo n-necesito tanto.” ( “god please I need it so bad” )

he’ll let you take him back to his apartment to go at it again. fuck him into his sofa, his bed, anywhere you want. he’s all yours. always. and god is he touch-starved enough to keep reminding you of that. even when he’s all covered in your cum.

assassin x reader, spy x reader, admiral x reader

 

⊹ ۪ ࣪ ꒰ DENARA 9819 ꒱ is a bottom who really wants to make you feel good and might tire herself out in the process. she’s so used to pressure and having to perform well so during your first time topping her you had to quite literally pin her down and tell her to stop. tell her that you were gonna take care of her. that she needs to relax and just let you fuck her the way she wants.

and oh once you got that out of the way she was all over you. denara is a freak. you got a kink? sure, she’ll try it out. her only request is that you fuck her dumb and drooling.

she was so loud when you took control and drove her into the sheets. admittedly she kept whining about wanting to ride you so eventually you let it happen. pulled her onto your lap and bounced her on your cock. didn’t even give her a smidge of control. watching as her tits bounced and her thighs jiggled as she whined for you.

“b-baby babybabyyy y-you’re sosooo mean angh- mnhhhhgg-”

she wants you to be mean though. wants you to pull at her hair. smack her. grab her. anything you want. all so that she can look at you with her black eyes all teary and her make-up all messy.

will probably beg to suck at your dick so give her that at least. you’ll end up fucking her throat anyway and making her cum untouched. if only to flip her onto her tummy again and fuck her until she’s drooling and whining.

she’ll probably hump at your thigh somewhere through the night when it’s all over. just desperate for more.

sorcerer x reader, healer x reader

[suzukiblu]

WIP excerpt for Jan behind the cut; mistaken identities and interdimensional refugees. ( chrono || non-chrono )

And they must have a Clark. Kon can’t imagine how they couldn’t. 

He can’t imagine how anywhere couldn’t, if it came to it. 

Yeah, that’s a healthy thought, Kon reflects resignedly as Alfred shuts the car door and goes around to the driver’s side to slip into his own seat. Alfred starts the engine and pulls out of his parking spot, and Jon nervously grips Kon’s sleeve. He twists his wrist to grab the kid’s hand, and immediately ends up with Jon pressed completely against his side and resuming his earlier sniffling buried against his bicep. It’s whatever, obviously; Kon figures if the kid cries on the suit a bit, he can just get it . . . dry-cleaned, he guesses? Probably this is a dry-cleaning thing? 

God, who knows, Tim got the damn thing for him. It might need to be cleaned by a hyper-specific radiation or fresh water from snowmelt on the Alps or a custom-designed spray from the Batcave, for all he friggin’ knows. 

“Hello, Mr. Kent,” Alfred says as soon as the aid workers on the street have directed the towncar out of the immediate area of the refugee camp, his voice wryly but politely amused, and Kon feels an immediate rush of relief. Thank fuck, yeah, okay. Not that he really thought Alfred of all people thought he was actually a version of Batman, just . . . yeah. Just–yeah. It’s a relief. “Dare I ask why you informed the aid workers that you were Master Bruce?” 

“I did not, but I winked at a pretty lady while wearing a very expensive suit and holding a traumatized kid, so apparently some assumptions were made,” Kon admits sheepishly, and Alfred’s mouth quirks in the rearview mirror. 

“Do tell,” he says. 

“Please tell me Batman isn't gonna pull the ‘no outside capes in Gotham’ card over this,” Kon says, dragging a hand through his hair and slightly wrecking the carefully slicked-back style he had it in. At this point, he does not care. “My Batman knew I was in town.” 

“Oh, did he?” Alfred asks, still seeming wryly amused. 

“Mine too!” Jon blurts, straightening up a little as he leans back a bit from Kon. He keeps a hand on his arm, but Kon figures that’s no surprise. He’s a pretty familiar face, considering. Like, double-familiar, in a sense. 

“Ah, yes,” Alfred says, glancing carefully at Jon in the rearview mirror. “I’m sorry, young man. May I inquire after your name?” 

Well, shit, Kon thinks as Jon wilts immediately and tightens his grip on his sleeve, then buries his face in his bicep again. Not ideal, probably. At least, explaining Jon as a person is probably gonna be a whole thing, and not a thing the local Batman is gonna be thrilled to hear. 

Could be worse, admittedly. Could be “oh, Lex Luthor cooked me up in a basement”. 

Yeahhhhh. Well, at least Alfred actually recognized him, so apparently he does exist here. So like, at least they’ve only got to get through one of those explanations. 

“Jon Kent,” Jon says quietly, and Alfred . . . pauses. Kon does not let himself wince or look guilty or anything even remotely similar. Look, he’d have forewarned them if he’d had the option, okay? 

“I see,” Alfred says carefully. “May I inquire, young Mr. Kent, as to who your father might happen to be?” 

“Clark Kent,” Jon says, his voice still quiet and grip on Kon’s sleeve probably at hydraulic-press levels by now. “And my mom's Lois Lane.” 

“Ah,” Alfred says. “Please don't take this question the wrong way, young man, but would you happen to be adopted?” 

“No,” Jon says, setting his jaw stubbornly. 

“I see,” Alfred says. Kon–sighs, for lack of a better idea, and just wraps his arm around Jon. 

“I got you, Jonno,” he says, trying to sound reassuring. He’s not as good at that as Clark is, which is immediately proven by Jon tearing up and just clinging to him, full super-strength and all. A less invulnerable version of him would definitely bruise. 

And literally any baseline human would get their fucking spine crushed.

“I’m not dangerous,” Jon mutters. “And I’m not gonna hurt anybody. You know I wouldn't, right? I–I know you haven't had me yet in your reality, but–” 

Wait. 

What? 

“–but I'm not bad, I wouldn't hurt anyone, I promise, you know you and Mom wouldn't ever have a kid who was bad!” Jon chokes past an almost-sob, and Kon’s stomach sinks like a rock. 

Okay. Jon does not, in fact, have a version of him in his reality. 

Fuck. 

Also, apparently has some really concerning ideas about biological determinism and nature versus nurture and whatever else, but like, he’s like ten, that’s–normal, or whatever, that’s–

Fuck. 

“Jon, kiddo, no, I’m not–” he tries, and then the car dashboard lights up with a low, melodious sound, and Alfred presses a button on the steering wheel. 

“Report,” Batman’s voice says neutrally from the speakers, and Kon immediately winces. 

Well, this is gonna go just great, isn’t it. 

“Well, it seems Batman doesn't yet have to worry about an interdimensional territory dispute,” Alfred informs him dryly. “Superman, however . . .” 

Fuck his entire fucking life, Kon thinks. 

So much for not having to give both of the awkward explanations. 

“. . . Kent,” Bruce says, sounding immediately exasperated and also way less “Batman”, which Kon wishes he could assume were a good sign. “Why the hell did you tell the aid workers you were me?”

[angelwings-crossbowstrings]

Bring Us Back to the Heroes We Were

Pairing: Daryl Dixon x Wife!Reader

Setting: France

Summary: Daryl loses his temper with Laurent and you are having none of it.

Warnings: SPOILERS, Yelling at a child, mild violence against a spouse

A/N: That scene was emotional. I felt it in my soul. morgan556 suggested this and I had to go with it!

*gif is not mine

You had admittedly lagged behind when Daryl and Laurent had walked away to the waiting boat. Azlan had been so kind to both you and Daryl, smiling and welcoming. He had shared his stories and his wisdom. Even so far from home, you felt less alone in his company. 

You knelt and placed a trembling hand on the fresh pile of dirt. “We’ll get him there. I promise.” Sniffling, you wiped at your face. You turned once, thinking you heard Daryl’s voice but he’d have to be yelling for you to hear him from there. When you heard it again, you were on your feet in an instant, bolting toward the river. That was definitely Daryl. 

“You stupid little shit!” Daryl was leaned into Laurent’s space, fury radiating from him in waves so strong, you lost your breath for a moment. “Do ya know what ya’ve done?!”

“Daryl!” You dropped your bag and ran toward them, your own rage bubbling to the surface the minute your husband’s fingers came in contact with the kids’ jacket. 

“Ya think you’re so goddamn smart! Worthless!”

“That is enough!” You grabbed both of his forearms and squeezed, making sure your nails bit into skin. He was bigger and stronger than you, but you had to get him to let go somehow. Placing yourself between him and Laurent, you shoved Daryl back hard, but he stepped into you and leaned around to point a finger in the kid’s face. “I should’a left ya right where I found ya! What do we do with ya now?!”

“Stop it!” You shoved him again and when he came back, your palm met his cheek with enough force to whip his head to the side. “Get yourself under control! No matter what he did, he is a child! A fucking child! Calm the fuck down!”

The slap seemed to have made him take a breath, his voice much lower when he pointed to Laurent again. “I wanna know why. Why would ya do this?”

Barely containing your wrath, you looked over your shoulder. “Laurent, why would you cut loose the boat?” While your head was turned, Daryl shoved past you and grabbed the kid again. 

“Why?! Tell me why?!”

You grabbed the back of Daryl’s jacket and yanked, nearly throwing him off his feet while you placed yourself between him and Laurent. “Try it again, Dixon. I dare you. If you think I will let you—”

“Everyone I care about is gone.” Laurent’s broken voice had you turning, his tear-filled eyes flickering between you and your husband. “When we get to the Nest, you’ll both go, too.”

“Laurent.” You said gently. 

“I don’t wanna be alone.” 

You didn’t hesitate to pull the boy into your arms, burying your face in his hair and letting him cry. When you saw movement in your peripheral, you turned your head to see Daryl reaching for Laurent, his expression softened, those blue eyes shining. You only spared him a warning look before allowing him to pull the kid to him much as you had done. 

“Yeah. C’mere. I didn’t mean it.” He placed his chin on the dark mop of hair, shaking his head. “It’s gonna be alright.” He let Laurent step back, the boy’s eyes searching the both of you for reassurance. 

“It’s alright.” You smiled gently, wiping away a tear from his cheek with your thumb. 

“C’mon.” Daryl picked up your bag with his own and held it out of you. You snatched it from his grasp with a sneer, glancing over your shoulder to see Laurent staring at the empty spot where the boat once sat. 

You pointed back and forth between you and your husband. “You and me. We ain’t done.” You spun on your heel and wrapped an arm around the boy, setting off on foot to follow the river. 

You heard Daryl’s quiet grumble of “yes, ma’am” behind you before you could hear him following. 

[zoropookie]

HOW HATERS ARE BORN (HHAB)

♡ chapter twenty-six — br(ok)en (💋)

You stared at your phone light up for the twelfth time within five minutes with a dull expression.

Admittedly, you felt angrier knowing that Scaramouche still had the audacity to even text you after everything. After tormenting you for years and years, what kind of shame should someone feel after that, you wonder. The relentless pursuit of making your life miserable—to which he failed at, but it did make you wonder.

Did you do something to deserve it? Each notification felt like another jab that he took to the heart, reopening your wounds from each time he said something messed up to you. As you laid there motionless, with no light ruminating in the room except your phone, you began to feel tears well up in your eyes for the thirteenth time today.

Pursing your lips, you swiped up to read the messages and only felt reminded even further of every harsh word he said. Every cruel taunt, every moment of humiliation...and yet...

He was still right, despite being the biggest hypocrite known to man. And it pissed you off.

Why were you even laying here? Ignoring the world, rotting here like you're a vegetable. You knew that you were something to people, you knew that you were valued.

There wasn’t anything that was particularly motivating for you to get up, however. You ignored every need that you could have possibly wanted, subjecting yourself to sparseness. No matter how much you wanted to, the thoughts always came back and you didn’t know how to deal with them.

A small knock echoed from the front door. It was loud enough to hear, and you still shoved your head in the pillow and hoped it went away.

The longer time you went without answering it, the knocks became more frequent. It wasn’t Thoma, that’s who you could observe without getting up.

You finally managed to drag yourself out of bed, lazing about sounded so much nicer now that you were dreading who’s at the door. With a frustrated sigh, and irritation already to its peak of your heart, you opened the door to a familiar-ish face.

Little girl?

“Did you forget that you exist?” She said with a smile. “Welcome back to Earth! I didn’t know how long you’d be cooped up in here so I brought treats.”

You stared a bit longer than you meant to at the Tupperware of Asafiri in her hands, momentarily taken aback. “Heh?”

“Yanfei sent me here. Looks like you’re having a little bit of trouble getting back on your feet. I take it you know her?” She inquired.

“Yeah.” You blinked slowly, before holding the door a little wider. “Uh…come in, I guess. Thanks for the…treats.” You cringed. “Wow, I get why Heizou keeps being called a creep now, this can look so wrong.”

“The difference is that he does it to himself.”

The warm water on your body was oddly refreshing.

Getting out of the shower was harder knowing that you'd come back to the gust of wind in your living room, but knowing you had fresher pajamas on was also a plus. Things didn't look too great on your mental, especially since you were accustomed to showering a lot in your fresher mind.

You put on the Lightning McQueen slippers you quite often wear, and moved to the kitchen after hearing soft chops of a knife. You wondered what Nahida was up to, staring at her cut apples and bananas before putting them into a huge bowl she found in your cupboard.

"This is a very odd fruit salad you're making." You drew attention to yourself before her eyebrows furrowed. "I don't know whether or not to tell you to be careful with knives."

"I'm smarter than you think I am." Nahida cooed. "I'm used to people being condescending."

"Oh...I'm sorry— You're killing me here, kid. Lady? Are you a child or not?" You asked desperately.

Nahida turned to you, her saturated green eyes stared at you with obviously deliberate thoughts roaming her head before she took a sharp breath. She pointed the knife at you. "Do you feel better?"

"Not...really? I mean, it happened. All of this at once." You tried to process it quicker, but your head failed you. It's like how you actually felt in the moment was blocked. "I feel like I'm in limbo, I don't want to see the sun these days."

"Your thoughts are your biggest enemy right now. Easy to overthink. It's a lot to deal with on your own, good thing you aren't, right?" Nahida lowered the knife, her expression softening. "I cut you up some fresh fruit. It's better than the Asafiri for now, you don't need that much sugar after not eating for a while, or you'll crash hard. And get a headache."

Looking at the bowl loaded with bananas and slices of apples, you couldn't help but wonder why you were even granted this much care anyway. You were in mild disbelief, sitting down at the island counter in front of Nahida. "Why are you actually here?" You said in defeat.

Nahida stopped cutting the fruit, gaze shifting from it to you. She couldn't find what she could say to answer you, but she did press her lips together. "Do you want me to be honest?"

"A little." Your voice lowered.

"Yanfei and Heizou," Nahida paused, trying to find her words, "They wanted to see if I could convince you to start streaming again."

You frowned immediately. "Oh. Thanks for being honest."

"You made progress today, but I don't expect you to be up to it. It's a really big step." She asked you, but you couldn't even decipher the intentions behind her eyes. It was impossible to detect what anybody was thinking nowadays. "They just told me to come over so they can hope their investigation moves."

You sighed, leaning back in your chair once you felt the bitterness course your body again. Hearing that made your mood possibly worse than what it would've been if you were in bed. "Not happening. Thanks for checking on me though, you can leave if you want."

"I knew you'd say that. I guess it's fair, people are...going crazy right now figuring out whether you're okay or not." Nahida smiled once you looked back up at her. "Both Scaramouche and your fans are trying to get anything they can on your wellbeing. It's better to wait it out."

Your hopeful face turned into a sullen one, shoulders slumped at the mention of his name. "I don't know if I can even go back at all."

"I'm not sure how hard this is for you, but with what happened, you've obviously been through enough. While it's your choice to go back, Yanfei is under the impression that you can get revenge." The shorter girl explained. "In my eyes, though...I think you're able to decide that for yourself."

You felt the weight of the memories heavily, your head daunting enough for you to let out a shaky breath. "You think so?"

Nahida nodded, humming, "You don't have to stream, but don't give him the satisfaction if you're upset. You shouldn't let him know that you're suffering because of what he did. The worst thing that you can do is prove him right."

Funnily enough, as soon as she said that, you felt tears well up in your eyes again. It struck a cord, and you knew she was right. It was just knowing that anybody would say it verbatim. "That's the same thing he told me too." You blinked back your tears, more resilient than you were a few minutes ago, but also to the brim of misery.

"He?"

You shook your head, taking a deep breath to steady yourself. "Thanks," You muttered, choking on your words. You couldn't manage to say anything else, otherwise you'd betray your steely posture. "I'll think about it. Just...stay here a little more with me, please. Maybe I'll...find the resolve or something."

previous ♡ masterlist ♡ next

YOU ARE on your way to being one of the hottest streamer in your nation at the moment, racking a monthly average of 10 million viewers, but something specific bothers you about it. you know that a lot of people hate you, but there's this one account. one account that's been following you since the early days of your career. they leave a flood of rude comments in your stream, your moderators banned each account they made, but they keep making more. you are at the end of your tether. but you are yet to find out that this persistent cockroach is none other than your friend's friend (and the only other streamer that's bigger than you), scaramouche.

taglist ♡ @thystarsshine @veekoko @gumickajolli @simonisferal @kamiboo

@justpeachyteastea @feiherp @pinkismyfavcolor @aether-darling @kunisnaomi

@keiiqq @mine-lu @featuredtofu @danhenglovebot @k4zushi

@kyon-cherri @b4tm4nn @iiinaurate @quacking-simp @auroratumbles

@kookiibun @ulquiorraswife @amvpk01 @simplysm1le @h3xi2g0n3

@alatusorrow @scaranthropy @mellowberrie @magica-ren @vernith

@kabukipookie @bananasquash @suqarlaced @dellalyra @lightyagamifan

@yourfavoritefreakyhan @heartsforseo @yomishen @pwushizz @swivy123

@strxwberryfetish @ibyobi @ashfrommars4 @chemiru @ainnofinway

@agaygothicmushroom @levianamor @dragontammerz @wth121 @lylovw

@morgyyyyyyy @lovemari @suniika @melpomenelurks @yumejo89 @liuaneee

@franaby @tiddieshakeshownu (bold users means i'm having trouble tagging you)

[mediumgayitalian]

fic rec friday 17

hi!! welcome to fic rec friday. every week, i pick five fics i have bookmarked and rec them with a little review. check them out!

Drew Tanaka's True Love Connections by @buoyantsaturn

Will smiled. "I have an appointment next door with the, uh… Matchmaker lady?” He winced at his own awkwardness, trying to bite back the embarrassment he felt. “Well, actually my friend set it up for me, but-- Sorry, do you know anything about her? The matchmaker lady, not my friend, I mean. I’m just not sure what to expect, you know? I’ve never, uh, done something like this before.” 

THIS WAS SO SICK I LOVED IT!!!!!! flowershop au with a twist oh yes ma’am. also im so pumped drew was in this every time i see her im like hello my love how are you

2. just desserts by @thegoldenappleofdiscord

It’s just a cupcake, Nico reminds himself. Surely that justifies breaking into the infirmary at the break of dawn. or: nico's love language is baking and will solace gets a lot of cake as a result.

end note hate me GIGGGGLIIING. also i am OBSESSED with this author but i haven’t read the solangelo book yet so i haven’t read a lot of her stuff and i’m DYING to. this was as sweet as nico's baking fr!! i'm writing less of a note on this fic (altho i love it) bc the WORDS i have to say about the next one,,,

3. caught in the river of tears that i cried by @thegoldenappleofdiscord*

In all honesty, it was really for the best that Will didn’t think about all the strange things that sometimes happened around him. After all, his mama had more than enough on her plate already. He was a good kid, and it was best everything stayed as it were. (Though admittedly, the flock of flesh-eating maniac pigeons, men with hooves, and the growing darkness in his veins might just make this a tiny bit more difficult than he anticipated) or: will can only push down a part of him for so long (will has plague powers, but he's known it from the very start.)

UPDATE WHEN UPDATE WHEN UPDATE WHEN REESE PLEASE 😭😭i am genuinely so obsessed with this fic and the WAY everything is woven together....like fear is a driving force!! you can feel it!! this is one of those starred fics fr bc it Changed the way i wrote and characterized will. he is fr a character who has been controlled by fear his Whole life actually. of the world and what it takes from him. of the Fates that do not care for your fragile love. of the things they are forced to do. of the precarity of life. and perhaps most intimately and ardently Himself, and the abilities he does not want to have, the life he does not want to live. the parts of himself that do not fit in the mold he has Built for himself and Forced himself into. and this fic shows that so so beautifully like this story is Woven.....i think about it literally all the time it's insane

4. a handful of almosts by @thegoldenappleofdiscord

He’d said it so easily: “Best friends don’t do that to each other, Will.” It had been a throwaway comment after Will decimated him in a card game, which was usually Nico’s forte. Following that had been a furious, “Besides, it’s war. Entirely luck-based. Winning this game doesn’t mean anything. Stop laughing – why the hell are you laughing?” He’d mostly been laughing because of Nico’s expression – eyebrows drawn tight, mouth twisted in an adorable scowl – but also because of the sudden elation pumped into him like helium. They were best friends – and maybe someone else would be hopeful for more, and maybe one day he'll pursue it (he did want it, had wanted it for a long time) but for now, he’s content where they are, sitting in Nico’s room and cursing at each other through a deck of cards. or: 5+1 of will solace being a pining loser

A HANDFUL OF ALMOSTS!!! WHAT!!! every once and a while u just hit a title that Hits u u know. like a handful of almosts. yeah. what a deeply poignant and tragic thing. how fitting for the pjoverse, a universe of people who are haunted by their almosts. god. and then to turn around and make this story FLUFFY?? MAKE IT THE CUTEST THING IN THE WORLD??? "will solace and his rose coloured glasses" REESE!!!!!! PLEASE!!!!

5. Damage Control by @nikkira

“I couldn’t save Lee. I couldn’t save Michael. I couldn’t save Silena.” “You saved Annabeth when she was stabbed, right? And Annabeth was kind of imperative to the whole saving the world effort. The people you save go on to do things and help people and save people. When you lose someone, you lose them. But when you save someone, you save a dozen more people.”

"i dream of the people i could not save. they're mad at me." oh i am UNWELL. ill i tell you. i read this line and had to sit down for a little while like actually. one thing about will solace is that he never stops punishing himself and no one got that like this fic nine years ago

thank you for joining me this friday!! happy reading!!

[asher-agere]

Little Hanako + (Mainly) Caregiver Tsuchigomori

Uhh yeah hyperfixation is taking over my brain, sorry guys it will happen again

*ੈ𑁍༘⋆

Hanako visited the 4 o’clock library quite frequently. It wasn’t an abnormal occurrence for him to just show up there, usually attempting to annoy Tsuchigomori in some way. However what was strange was that when he’d shown up, he’d actively put effort into not being seen. He’d made sure Tsuchigomori had been away. He’d caused problems for his old teacher, just to make sure he’d stay away. He was also causing trouble for his friends… Maybe telling Kou Tsuchigomori needed to be exorcised was a bit mean. But in his defense he knew Kou wouldn’t actually do it…

He’d just needed the opening to get in here undetected. He wanted… His wants were confusing. He wanted to be alone. But he longed for the comfort of company. Ironic wasn’t it? More like frustrating… Nonetheless here he was, tucked away between a few shelves and bawling his eyes out. He was biting down on his hand to muffle the tears. Why was everything so overwhelming? Tsukasa kept causing problems, Kou thought he could fix everything, and Nene was being so insistent to learn about his past! Which was… Admittedly sorta cute. But he didn’t want to tell her. Not yet. They still had more time…

And Hanako found himself feeling like just the small, scared little boy he used to be. Sneaking into Tsuchigomori’s office to take care of his injuries. He could remember the way his teacher used to wrap his injuries… He sobbed harder as he clutched at his arm, it was bare of course. Ghosts don’t get injured as easily as children do. Why had life been so complicated? He hadn’t wanted any of it. He’d… He wanted to be an astronaut. Yet when it came time to do something with his life… He’d ended it. But it never ended did it? Death was supposed to be the end why was he still here?

Hanako didn’t know how long he sat there, sobbing to himself as his thoughts spiraled, but his thoughts were interrupted by a loud booming voice “Hanako! Explain yourself!” It was Tsuchigomori… Oh of course he was mad. Hanako had set up a disaster with Tsuchigomori as the victim. Of course. What had he expected, for Tsuchigomori to come looking for him? To be worried? To hold Hanako in his arms and ask him what was wrong? Selfishly yes. That’s exactly what he’d hoped would happen. He barely allowed himself to breathe staying silent

Tsuchigomori sounded angry. There were loud thuds and he could hear the librarians stomping feet. But moving right towards him. Eventually he came into view… “Did you seriously think you could hide from me in my own boundary? Hanako! This isn’t-“ Tsuchigomori stopped in front of him, deflated almost as he clicked pieces together “Oh… Hey kid” Hanako finally mustered up the courage to actually look up at Tsuchigomori. Right there was that kind gentle expression he’d desperately wanted to see. But… Did he really deserve care?

“‘M… Sorry. Mis’er” Tsuchigomori frowned and gently held a hand out. He didn’t touch him, just held his hand there like you would to a rabid dog. An upset Hanako was like a wild animal after all. Tsuchigomori spoke in his gentle voice “Save the apologies for later. I expect apologies, but you can tell me later alright? Here… Cover your ears for a moment” Hanako bit his lip, but he did obey. The hand being removed from his mouth so he could cover his ears, then Tsuchigomori called out over his shoulder “I found the kid! Scram now” Sure enough being told to leave had the absolute opposite effect

Footsteps were running their way and Kou came into view “You found him! Is he-“ Hanako spotted Kou and his bottom lip started wobbling as he fought the urge to cry, Kou seemed to spot him too because he looked confused, then understanding, then just concerned. Tsuchigomori was far from pleased though. He extended another four arms to block Hanako from view as he narrowed his eyes into a glare. Kou seemed dumbfounded “Is… He ok? That’s not really normal for- I mean he just doesn’t- Not very frequently-“

Tsuchigomori stepped forwards, pushing Kou with all six of his arms now “You. Leave. Now.” Kou tried sending another worried glance at Hanako but Tsuchigomori wasn’t letting him. So… He left. Then Tsuchigomori turned his attention back to Hanako, sitting down on the floor “You have rather persistent friends don’t you?” Hanako looked down at his knees silently. Hanako didn’t regress often, even less so around his friends. He didn’t fit in. Kou was pretty happy when he regressed, and Nene may cry and complain a lot but it was over silly stuff. Not big issues like he worried about…

Tsuchigomori sighed and used one of his arms to grab a book, he leaned back against one of the bookshelves Hanako was hiding between and started to read. They stayed in that comfortable silence for awhile. Eventually Hanako slowly creeped forwards a bit, looking over his teachers shoulder. The words were fuzzy, but there were pictures of the moon and the stars, planets and the sun… It in equal parts made Hanako want to relax, and want to start sobbing all over again

Tsuchigomori seemed to notice him and closed the book, he turned so they were facing each other. Hanako noticed the four extra arms were tucked away now… “How are you feeling?” That got an almost immediate thumbs down. Tsuchigomori hummed briefly “I suppose I could’ve expected that… Did anything specific happen?” Hanako frowned. A lot of specific stuff happened. How did he sum it up? Narrow it down to just one thing? For better or for worse it was centered around one person… “‘Kasa…”

Tsuchigomori hummed and gently patted him on the head “Good job using your words kid. Everything’s alright ok? He’s… Doing his job. To an extent. He just might need some reminders of what’s considered too far. That’s too much thinking for a little guy like you though. You’re safe where you are now. I know it can be a lot. But… You’ve got some good people in your life kid. It’s ok to mess up, but let’s not give up, ok? You’ve already tried that before” Hanako winced slightly at the wording and Tsuchigomori ran a couple fingers through his hair

“I’m not mad at you. You know that right? I would’ve loved it if you got to keep living, got to grow up, got to… Go see the moon. But… Being here with you for eternity ain’t so bad either” Hanako smiled softly and Tsuchigomori smiled back, wiping the boys tears gently. He took off his coat and draped it over Hanako, the tiny boy was absolutely swimming in the jacket “There. I’ll fight you to get that back some other day” Tsuchigomori picked his book back up, and this time he read out loud, Hanako rested his head on his teachers shoulder contentedly

After awhile the tiny fox Yako came running through “Mr. Spiderrrr. Hey! Where-“ Then she spotted them and scampered over. She briefly looked at Hanako but mainly focused on Tsuchigomori who looked far from thrilled, Yako started talking before he could complain “I am dealing with a worried mother hen up in the bathroom! Or should I say a worried mother fish?” Hanako perked up slightly, but quickly shrunk in on himself. Yako continued “Kou came rushing in rambling about a tiny upset boy and Nene refuses to leave it! Perhaps if her master told her to calm down…”

Tsuchigomori sighed and turned to look at Hanako, growing a few arms to block Yako from view “You feeling better?” Hanako was hesitant, but he nodded. Tsuchigomori smiled softly “Good, think you wanna play with your friends a bit kid?” Hanako was even more hesitant this time, but again he nodded. Tsuchigomori stood up and picked him up, holding him safely in his arms “Right then, let’s go. Fox you run ahead and tell Nene to calm down, I’m bringing her boy” Yako protested to being called to as fox, Tsuchigomori used it like a title not even as a name! Neither were acceptable but still, she ran ahead

Tsuchigomori carried Hanako up to the girls bathroom to Nene frantically talking to Yako (“Why can’t I go see him? What if something’s wrong? Yako please!”) and Kou standing next to her watching the door, Kou noticed the two walk in and lightly bumped Nene to get her attention. Nene looked up at the door and gasped as she saw Hanako safe and sound, she quickly rushed over and her expression softened “There you are! You didn’t show up today and I was so worried and then Kou told me- Oh nevermind. We don’t need to talk” Nene smiled softly and adjusted Hanako’s hat

“Silly boy worrying me like that, next time just ask to go play with Tsu ok?“ Tsuchigomori moved to sit on the ground with Hanako still in his arms as Nene shuffled around to pull some coloring books and a pacifier. She held out the pacifier to Hanako carefully “Don’t want dirty germs in your mouth now do we?” Hanako wanted to argue that he was a ghost, it’s not like he’d get sick. But he also saw Nene glance at his hand covered in bite marks, plus the pacifier was pretty soothing… So he accepted it, he leaned forwards but still stayed in Tsuchigomori’s lap as he started coloring, Nene praising him every step of the way. Sure he may not be alive, but in a lot of ways this was better than what he’d had when he had been alive. So… Maybe it wasn’t so bad

[DNI ID: A beige box with a red border. To the left are three mole and to the right Hanako. Red text reads “DNI if your blog isn’t child safe. I will block NSFW accounts” End ID]

[bigenargy]

Cw! : no physical descriptions of reader mentioned, no pronouns used to refer to reader, slight nsfw (nothing explicit or descriptive), 320 ish words, liitle bit of angst (Tom being Tom tbh) obviously toxic relationship, spoiler: he does love you, post-dark lord Tom but he's still hot so dw, not proofread cause I happen to be a real man 💪🏾

"Where'd you get that ring," Lily asked.

Your hand instinctively flinched at the mention of the ornament.

"Um," you hesitated, "it's a promise ring."

Silence, followed by a knowing "oh" was her reply as she fruitlessly tried to mask the judgment her face was rightfully showing.

"I would take it off," You hastily started; "but it's hexed in place."

She sighed, visibly releived. "Yeah, that makes sense." Still, it's weird knowing it's from him.

"Yeah, I get i-"

I tried to reply, only for her to suddenly grab my hand to inspect the ring.

"Wait!" I cried as I retracted my hand from her grasp, but I was too late.

Tears were forming at the rim of her eyes as she held her own hand, trying to soothe the pain. It looked fine, really. There was no redness nor bruising, yet I knew just how much pain she was in. She touched my ring, after all.

It was during 5th year when he gave it to me and during 6th year when he hexed it so I wouldn't be able to take it off and no one else would be able to touch it.

The memory of it is a bit fuzzy, represed memories and all, but what I do recall is the shouting, tears, and his cruel words.

I recall finally snapping and throwing his damned ring right in his perfect little face.

"I'm done, we're done." I spat furiously.

...

He went silent at my words, as a look of pure astonishment annulled his gorgeous features. The fucker was genuinely surprised that I  intended to break up with him.

I turned to leave, rightfully offended, but, the moment I cracked the door open he came up behind me and slammed it shut. His eyes were dark and and his entire body was tense.

"You think that ridiculous ring will change anything? You're still fucking mine, dizzard."

Admittedly, at the time you found that incredibly hot, The boy just had the sexiest red flags. It wasn't one of your proudest moments, but, the intensity of the situation, his piercing gaze, and the proximity of your bodies all sent your hormones into overdrive. That argument, like many before it was never properly settled or ever talked about again as the two of you opted to fuck instead. (As you very often did).

That night as the two of you laid in bed he presented you with ring again just before shoving it onto your finger and reaching for his wand to hex it in place. You only frowned at him before he pulled you into a deep kiss.

"Merlin, make it stop!" Lily cried, snapping you out of your thoughts.

"Right, sorry!" You apologized, "It should stop soon."

"I swear the mans' mad!"

She was right, he is. You initially thought he only hexed the ring in place so imagine your surprise when you tried to take it off again and it tightened so hard around your finger it turned purple and just try to picture your absolute bewilderment when you held a first year's hand and the ring had the poor boy holering in pain.

Riddle was smart but so were you. He excelled in all areas especially potions but you excelled in spellcasting. Really, you could have removed the ring with your magic at any time but you didn't want to. Even after the both of you graduated and went your separate ways, even after you heard the news of how many people he'd killed and his plans of mass genocide, you still loved him and You were sure he felt the same.

Call it delusional or plain idiocy but you knew he still loved you he had to.

[wedriftlikelonelyplanets]

Ok wait hear me out… landoscar 27

27 - Landoscar, a kiss on a place of insecurity.

OKAY this is at least getting the feral evil part of my brain that wanted to put Oscar in a dress out into the universe. I do ACTUALLY plan on writing something proper for this at some point, but HAVE THIS LITTLE BIT FOR NOW. Written to "Dress" by Taylor Swift on repeat. Honestly probably mildly USFW, contains feminization

The dress fits perfectly. 

There was something tight and breathless about the thought of ordering it for himself. It’s not that he wants to be a woman, but he just wants to look pretty, and a little soft. Wants to feel what it would be like, wants to know what he would look like in a dress, maybe with a hint of eyeliner, a dusting of mascara. 

He feels a little insane about it, actually. 

Had worried Lando was going to laugh about it, if he brought it up. Is still in disbelief that it took approximately two and a half seconds for Lando to get on board, giving Oscar that smile, broad and knowing. Had helped him pick it out, had made a comment about how the low-cut back would look almost delicate despite the muscling along his spine. 

Lando had leaned in, pressed a kiss to the hinge of his jaw, trailed a line of kisses down his neck, before biting a mark into his collarbone. “You going to be a pretty girl for me, Osc?” he’d asked, and Oscar had flushed red hot, down his chest, had made a pathetic, needy noise. And so Lando had plucked the phone out of his hands, had tracked down his own credit card, and bought it for him. 

“That’s going to look so sexy, Osc,” his voice throaty with the rush of arousal. 

Looking at the mirror now, he wishes he felt the same way. 

There are parts of him that are admittedly almost feminine, the way his blonde hair curls around his ears, the narrow slip of his waist, slim legs, the swell of his ass. His thighs are maybe a little broader than could be considered feminine, well muscled, but despite this, the dress sits perfectly, a little shorter than mid-thigh and stretched across the curve of his ass in a way that could almost be considered scandalous. 

It’s fine, perfect even, if he doesn’t look above the curve of his waist. Nearly enough to make him feel pretty. 

But his gaze keeps catching at the thickness of his neck, where the ties of the halter neck strain, at the breadth of his shoulders and how they’re too well muscled to look delicate. Has to swallow hard around the lump in his throat. It’s enough to ruin the illusion, really. 

It feels like he didn’t put enough time into it, didn’t think it through before he let Lando buy it. It makes him feel a little bitter. Because there’s no way to change the width of his neck, trained to withstand the force of a Formula 1 car. It’s important. 

In the same breath, it makes him feel a little ugly. 

He doesn’t want to look at his own face in the mirror, because he’s fairly certain he’s going to see a glimmer of tears reflected back at him. It’s stupid, really, to be crying over this. But there’s just something bitterly disappointing about it. 

“Hey, Osc, did we have plans later or was Max just trying to…” Lando rounds the corner to the bathroom and stops dead, mouth open, breath rushing out in a gasp. “Holy shit,” the words are almost reverent as Lando takes another step closer, head tilted. 

“Yeah, I know, it’s…” Oscar can’t hide the frustration in his tone, waves his hand vaguely, “Not great,” he swipes the back of his hand across his eyes, to brush away any wetness, swallows heavy, the click of his throat loud in the silence as Lando just looks, gaze burning through him. 

“You look so hot, Oscar,” there’s something in Lando’s tone that speaks of promise, that makes it sound like he wants to eat Oscar alive. “Look at you, all pretty and dressed up for me, look like a pretty doll,” his voice is a little hoarse, and he takes one step closer, and then another, until he’s pressed up against Oscar’s back, hand wrapping around the curve of his waist. 

“Christ, look at yourself, you’re…god,” Lando swipes his tongue across his lips, squeezes, where his hand sits just above Oscar’s hip. Leans in to press a kiss to the column of Oscar’s neck, scrapes his teeth across the tight muscle there. Oscar lets his head roll to the side, soft whine escaping him at the hot press of Lando’s lips. 

“It’s fine, I know…” Oscar gestures vaguely at his neck, “Neck’s too broad to make it look good or whatever, but it’s fine,” tries to keep the whine out of his voice, but Lando’s eyes dart up to meet his in the mirror, and his breath catches in his chest at the hunger he sees reflected back at him. 

“Such a pretty girl for me, Oscar,” Lando’s voice is sharp and a little mean, as he reaches up, tangles his fingers in the short strands at the nape of his neck and yanks Oscar’s neck to the side, leans in to lick along the column of it, before sucking at the skin, worrying his teeth into it, marking him up in a way that will stay. “If I bend you over the counter will I get to see how wet you are,” 

Oscar can’t help the flush that climbs up his cheeks, the way he squirms in Lando’s grasp.

[frozenjokes]

An Exercise In Wishful Thinking

a fic about HotGuy, and his pathetic little (MASSIVE) crush on an ordinary guy, an ordinary guy who kind of couldn’t give less of a shit if he tried.

Scar’s face smashed against the pavement, his visor splintering against his head and pinching the bridge of his nose as momentum carried him rolling forward, toppling like a ragdoll across the top of the small apartment building. He groaned, disoriented as he finally landed on his back, but CuteGuy’s boot against his stomach forcibly pushed the noise out, leaving Scar wheezing.

“You’re off your game today, HotGuy,” CuteGuy sneered, sharp teeth visible just below his mask, though it wasn’t a shocking thing, sharp teeth, practically everyone had some kind of fangs, and really, it was a bit boring; if Scar was meant to be intimidated, he certainly wasn’t, “Something the matter?” CuteGuy cut through his thoughts, which was rather rude, Scar wasn’t done thinking badly about him yet, but, “We all have bad days. How about you take a day off, get some rest, nap a bit, and leave me alone for once, hm?” Cuteguy pushed again against Scar’s stomach, using more force, enough to shove his entire body back. Scar was only aware of how close he was to the edge of the building when his head hung over the side, half limp. Hm. Not great.

Scar raised his hands, shaky from the strain, “Well, since you asked, I guess, yeah, I’m not really feeling too great. I dunno. It’s just hard to be adored and famous all the time, you know? Life’s starting to feel less like fun and more like business, brand deals, work, work, work. I just feel like I don’t have many friends, y’know? Real friends, god forbid, human friends. Hardly a human even lives in this dumb city anymore, too dangerous, too many assholes with wings enacting petty revenge on their landlords from like ten years ago. I-”

“Shut up, I don’t care.”

“You asked! And while we’re on the subject of things you did, I was minding my own business up here before you attacked me! You can’t tell me to leave you alone if you started it!” Scar would have said more, but CuteGuy pressed his boot harder into his stomach, almost stomping, just without the wind up.

“You were looking for me. Thought I’d just send you home on my terms before you decided to become a problem.”

Scar’s head lolled a bit more off the edge of the building, eyes squeezed shut, “I’m not always looking for trouble,” he wheezed, managing to open his eyes just in time to catch a sight of what he’d actually been looking for tonight, just a glance being enough to restore the air back into his lungs. Not tearing his eyes away, he pushed against CuteGuy’s leg, admittedly, a little pathetically, but his priorities were elsewhere, “Pause, pause. Off.”

“Pause?” CuteGuy squawked, bird-like as he tended to get when he was particularly surprised, “What do you mean pause, this isn’t a game you-” HotGuy gathered all the strength he had left tonight to grip CuteGuy’s boot, heaving up and unbalancing him while he was distracted, then rolling away and stumbling to his feet.

“I have to go! Emergency! We wrap this up tomorrow?” Scar hurried over to where he’d dropped his bow when CuteGuy ambushed him, then back to the building’s edge, bouncing in place on his andriod legs.

CuteGuy hissed, and Scar wasn’t sure if he’d ever seen CuteGuy’s feathers so puffed out; even the bits of his face that weren’t covered by a mask were beet-red, “You are not seriously just going to leave! I’m not done with you!” CuteGuy lunged forward, but Scar’s arrow was nocked just as fast, the shot just barely grazing one of CuteGuy’s wings as he awkwardly sidestepped to avoid it. Scar was over the edge before CuteGuy could recover, rolling as he hit the pavement, then running down the street.

The civilian didn’t seem to hear him coming, or any of the other commotion for that matter, clearly oblivious to the danger so close by. It was a good thing that CuteGuy had never been slighted by this particular civilian, or he’d surely be dead by now, walking so carelessly by himself by night. Thank goodness HotGuy was here!

“Cub! Cub!” Scar called, still running, but Cub did not respond, the wires of his earbuds dangling loosely from his ears. Ah. Classic. Cub was fiddling with his phone, brows furrowed as he held it up toward a street sign- taking a picture, maybe?

“Hello! Sir!” Scar called as he got closer, and mercifully, Cub seemed to hear, taking out one of his earbuds and turning around. “Hello!” Scar said again, feeling his heart flutter, though, now was not the time.

Cub looked a little nervous; reasonable, anyone might be intimidated by a superhero running their way. “Hey, man, what’s up?” ‘Man’ Oh, Scar adored how Cub addressed him, so casual, so familiar. It was exciting to be ‘man,’ like he was a friend, oh, could they be friends?

“Hello there! I thought I should warn you, there is a very angry supervillain out and about right now, so we should probably be running in the other direction!” Scar kept a light tone as not to frighten Cub, though the other’s demeanor hardly changed.

“Oh, which one?”

Scar couldn’t help but stumble over his feet and words in his surprise at that question, which was apparently more emotion than Cub felt at being told he could be dead in the next couple minutes if they weren’t careful (though, of course, Scar would never allow this to happen). “Uhm- CuteGuy.”

“CuteGuy..” Cub furrowed his brow in thought, a bit of a distractingly adorable look if Scar was being honest.. hm.. something was different about Cub’s face today. Actually, something was definitely off. Had he gotten a haircut? Scar jumped when Cub spoke again, “Don’t think I’ve wronged any short blonde avians in the past week. I tend to try not to, so I think I’ll be alright.” Cub kept walking. Scar gaped.

“I- well I- I mean CuteGuy doesn’t exactly like me very much, so we may still have a bit of a problem.” Scar had to jog to catch up, unable to hide the strain in his voice.

“Oh man, well, good luck then. Sorry ‘bout that,” Cub glanced back, and didn’t look entirely too thrilled to see Scar still following him, which, maybe that was fair. Though, Cub never looked too incredibly thrilled about anything most of the time; Scar had only seen him smile once. It was a delightful thing, Cub’s smile, one Scar was sure he’d never forget. Like, come on, it’s not every day you see someone with flat teeth-

“Hey, could you read that street sign for me?”

Scar blinked, too stunned to do much else but follow Cub’s gaze, “Uh, that's Wright Street.”

“Thanks, man,” Cub said, and then he just kept walking, kept walking like there wasn’t a supervillain just a block away, probably seconds away from being very rude and interrupting all this chemistry!

“Cub,” Scar stressed, “I just think maybe-” but Scar stopped when Cub startled, whipping around to face him with wide eyes.

“Shit- I didn’t- I don’t have my glasses, I dropped them on the,” Cub floundered, and Scar threw up his hands in a placating motion, surprised by the sudden change. Cub squinted, looking a little distressed, and Scar wanted nothing more than to take it all away.

“It’s okay! I don’t mind reading the street signs!”

“I-” Cub struggled, and with him, Scar’s heart ached, “What’s your name, again?” Oh. Oh. Scar stopped short, stuck somewhere between shock and confusion. Was- Was he not in costume or something? Scar looked stupidly at his own clothes, dumbfounded. How bad was Cub’s eyesight?

“I’m HotGuy.”

Cub stared. Scar stared back.

“Oh. That makes sense.” Cub kept walking. Scar struggled to feel normal about that. Well, maybe he was just embarrassed! Everyone dealt with emotions in different ways, and Cub tended to deal with them by not emoting at all! Nothing wrong with that! Sure, they had only met twice, but Scar had been properly embarrassed not recognizing the faces of fans who had spoken with him before- he couldn’t imagine how Cub must be feeling now, especially with HotGuy being as recognizable as he was (even a little bit blurry).

“It’s nothing to worry about, nothing to worry about at all! My face is plastered just about everywhere, but I still look different in person I’m sure, and it's dark out, and you don’t have your glasses, of course.”

“Oh, not that, I was thinking of the CuteGuy thing,” Cub didn’t even look back as he spoke, not harsh per se, but extremely.. Honest. “Lots of people look kinda like you, all colorful and dressed up. I thought you might be cosplaying or something.”

Scar struggled to keep his smile, unable to do much else but stare. Cub wasn’t looking at him anyway. “..Do they now?”

“Yeah.” Cub continued on. Scar was beginning to suspect they did not live in the same city. Maybe not even in the same world. Cub was starting to get a little far, and once Scar remembered to stop gaping, he had to jog again to catch up. Cub seemed a little more confused by his presence, fiddling with his earbuds again (surely he hadn’t turned his music back on, right?) before turning, “You said CuteGuy was close, right? Are you going to.. fight.. him?”

“Oh!” Scar jumped on his toes, “No, probably not again. At least not right now, I hope. I’m guessing if he was going to he already would have- well, actually, I beat him so badly he’s probably still licking his wounds, like, metaphorically. I kind of embarrassed him, there was a crowd and everything.”

“A crowd?” Cub sounded surprised- no, amused when he turned his head. He had a little smile on his face, gosh, what Scar would give just to be able to look at that forever. “Just a block away, right? On this empty, quiet road?” Cub stopped walking, and Scar was so thrilled to have his attention, it took a couple extra moments to process the words he was saying.

“Ah-” Scar felt his face heat up. He ran a hand through his hair, hoping to hide his embarrassment, “Small crowd. Quiet crowd. I mean, you know CuteGuy, if he feels slighted by anyone, he’ll probably get his friend Poultry Man to egg all their houses or something.”

“Oh yeah, petty guy.”

“Extremely so!” Scar lit up, though Cub still didn’t look like he believed a word Scar said. Scar pursed his lips momentarily before continuing, “You know, you could say my glasses are broken too! We’re like, totally on the same page right now. CuteGuy put up quite the fight, well, a little bit. He didn’t put up that much of a fight, but he did smash my visor. Again. Seriously, someone needs to figure out his identity so I can start sending him my bills, I hate replacing stuff.”

Cub cocked his head to the side, and even without the glasses, Scar felt like he was looking right through him. It was vulnerable, in a magical kind of way. “Can I see it?”

Scar startled, missing the question. “What?”

“Can I see your visor? The place I work manufactures this kind of stuff, I might be able to hook you up for something a bit cheaper.”

“I-I can’t just take off my visor, Cub, you’d see my face. Secret identities, you know how it is.”

“I can’t see anything right now. If it makes you uncomfortable, you could just cover your face with your hands or turn around. Doesn’t really matter to me. I’m not going to steal a look; I couldn’t care less about superhero stuff. It’d be nice if you came by, bought something, then let my manager know who referred you though.”

“I- ah- Well of course! But I-” shouldn’t, was the word he meant to say, and couldn’t would have been even more accurate. Scar could not take off his visor, no matter how many cracks it had. It would be completely irresponsible! And for all he knew, CuteGuy was still around- everyone knew avians had impeccable eyesight. But on the other hand… Cub, Cub removing his visor. His hands in Scar’s hair, undoing the mask, gentle and kind and not sharp, goodness, someone without claws touching his face, peeling back the mask and (not really) seeing him. Scar felt himself melt into that non-existent touch. “Be my guest, then.” He closed his eyes. … He opened his eyes. Cub was staring at him.

“Are you going to take it off?”

“Ah-” Again, Scar felt his face heat up, and suddenly, he wanted much less to remove his visor, “Sorry, just nervous! Never done this before, haha!”

“I can cover my eyes if you-”

“Yes. Do that.” Scar nearly hissed, struggling to contain his own embarrassment. Cub didn’t hesitate, his expression almost crushingly neutral as he closed his eyes, then turned around. Scar bit his lip. The mask wasn’t easy to remove- it was important it stayed on during a fight, so despite doing this thousands of times, Scar still had to fiddle with it to get it off, practically shoving the thing into Cub’s arms so he could properly cover his face, feeling stupid as he cowered with his hands over his eyes. If Cub was paying him any mind, he didn’t know.

“Oh, it’s not so bad,” Cub mused, “It’s only the screen that’s shattered; the frame is a little beaten up, but still sturdy. Shouldn’t need replacing, but I guess you’d know better than I would. You want another orange one? Come by after 12:00 tomorrow and I’ll have it ready for you to pick up?” Scar felt the mask bump against his hands, and when he snuck a peek through his fingers, he saw Cub’s eyes were firmly shut. The gesture, benign as it was, made his heart flutter.

“Blue works too. As long as it matches.” Scar took the mask, quickly refastening it to his face. God that was stupid. Why had he done that. He already had suppliers, why did his brain have to be so dumb? “Thanks,” he choked out, “It’s back on.”

Cub opened his eyes, though they didn’t focus much; damn, he really must have awful eyesight- whatever. Fine. But he’d get to see Cub again! He’d have a real excuse, oh, maybe this was worth it. Wait a minute!

“Could I get your number?” Scar felt himself blurt out the words, flustered enough for the extra bit of awkwardness to embarrass him further, “For- ah- directions.” He tried to smile. Cub might have smiled back in his own way; which is to say, not actually smiling at all or making any sort of expression that might ease Scar’s nerves.

“Wouldn’t it just be easier if I gave you the address?” Genuine. Honest. Fucking brutal.

Scar pursed his lips, an expression Cub almost certainly didn’t see. “Yup. Probably.” Hopefully, tomorrow Cub would have another pair of glasses, so at the very least if he wasn’t persuaded by an extraordinarily attractive man desperately vying for his attention, he might just take pity on him. Though this didn’t quite feel like rejection, more just misunderstanding- Scar still had a chance here. Cub gave him the address and Scar wrote it down, still unable to squash the lingering disappointment as Cub, entirely unconcerned, waved goodbye, beginning his walk in the other direction.

But just as Scar turned around, “Wait!” and just like that, he had never stopped so quickly, spinning right back around to face Cub, who had also stopped. “Sorry, I just forgot, I wanted to get a picture-”

“A picture!” Scar cut him off accidentally, excitement taking over, “Why of course! I’d love to!” Scar trotted over, and Cub looked a bit put off, but no matter! Scar was great at taking pictures. Maybe once he managed to get Cub’s number, Cub could send it to him!

Cub shifted his weight, clearly a bit nervous, but that was nothing new. Honestly, it felt incredibly normal, a welcome feeling, and Scar felt right at home bending to Cub’s level as the other fumbled with his phone, flashing a practiced grin. Cub did not smile in the picture, looking nothing less than bored- utterly bizarre, but to each their own! With any luck, they’d get to take many more pictures.

“Thanks,” Cub mumbled, somewhat sheepish, “This is like the third time I’ve met you, and my roommate still doesn’t believe me. Didn’t take my word for it the first time, didn’t believe the picture I took the second time, but now that I’m in this one, he’ll have no choice but admit it.” Cub ended the sentiment sounding deeply pleased with himself, and that.. well. That made a little more sense. That was fine though, Scar wasn’t deeply wounded or anything that Cub didn’t actually want a picture with him just to have it. All good. Normal feelings.

“Well, if they don’t believe you, I’ll march right over there and tell them myself,” Scar joked, somewhat halfheartedly, but Cub didn’t seem to notice.

“Thanks. I’ll tell him that. Bye, HotGuy.” Cub waved, then kept walking, a look on his face that Scar hoped was contentment. Preferably, it’d be something like awe, admiration, or some amount of being utterly starstruck, but contentment would have to do. Hopefully next time, Cub would at least recognize him.

Part (all) of Scar hoped he and Cub would look back at the same time, catching each other’s eye in a moment of romantic tension, but after looking back several times, Scar was pretty sure Cub was just not looking in the first place, and then certain when he started to walk backwards to make sure. Cub didn’t turn around once.

That was fine. That was okay. Scar would win him over eventually- no- tomorrow. Tomorrow at noon, Scar would win him over. Cool! Great! Everything was cool and great. Up until, still walking backwards, he ran into someone else, a clawed hand wrapping firmly around his neck.

“It’s rude to leave a guy hanging, HotGuy, did you know? Or do you just not care. You don’t have to answer, I already know.”

“CuteGuy!” Scar half laughed, forcing as much energy into his tone as he could possibly manage, “It’s getting late, you know. I’m tired, aren’t you tired? You know, we’ve already fought tonight, and you bested me fair and square, so how about I give you a deal?”

CuteGuy’s talons tightened around Scar’s neck, the villain clicking his tongue, “I’ll humor you.”

“You won, you won, definitely not unfairly by ambushing me for zero reason, and I respect you CuteGuy, I respect you. So here’s the deal. You beat me, so tonight and tonight only, you do whatever you want, beat the piss out of whoever for whatever petty slight they committed against you like twenty years ago, and I’ll turn the other way. Won’t give you a single bit of grief! Like it never happened. A generous offer, CuteGuy, one I don’t extend to just anyone. An offer you can’t refuse, truly.”

CuteGuy hummed, and Scar felt his breath close to his ear. It took everything in him not to scoff, but CuteGuy didn’t keep him waiting long for an answer.

“You’re right. That is an offer I can’t refuse. You have a deal, HotGuy. You have a deal.”

“Great! So let's put the claws away then, shall we?”

“Mhm!” CuteGuy released his hold on Scar’s neck, and Scar rubbed it with his own hand, sighing at the pinpricks of blood. That grip would probably leave a mark tomorrow. Well, nothing a little makeup couldn't fix. But something clicked at his back, and Scar felt the absence of his bow right before he was kicked to the ground, yelping as he fell hard to his knees.

“What-”

“Take a guess which idiot I have a vendetta against tonight, HotGuy?” CuteGuy played with Scar’s bow for a moment before tossing it carelessly in the other direction, and Scar was beginning to get a pretty good idea of exactly who CuteGuy was angry with.

…

“Look. See? It’s me and him, super close to our apartment.” Cub held up his phone so Grian could see it, the other taking it from Cub’s hands and examining the picture with so much scrutiny, he almost looked like he was glaring. Something sly crept up Grian’s face after a moment, and he pointed decisively at the photo, tapping the screen with a talon.

“Photoshopped.”

“What?”

“As much as you claim not to care about heroes and villains, you sure do seem awfully insistent on convincing me you’ve met HotGuy. What is this, three times now? Come on, Cub. This is getting sad.” Grian cackled as Cub gaped, giving his roommate a hard shove before snatching his phone back.

“I can’t believe you.”

“I can’t believe you! Especially when you’re this desperate!”

“I am not desperate. You’re either insane, or fucking with me. At this point, I’m pretty sure you’re fucking with me.”

“I’m pretty sure you’ve got some secret obsession with HotGuy. What gives? I thought we agreed we hated that guy; total arrogant piece of shit if you ask me. Complete idiot.”

“He’s not that bad.”

“Cub! I can’t believe you!” Grian crossed his arms, turning away with a huff, but Cub only laughed, tucking his phone back in his pocket.

“Hey, you can be nice and an idiot. Listen, I understand you’re jealous and all, but rest assured, he told me if you didn’t believe me this time, he’d march right up here and tell you himself. You’ll get all the HotGuy you’ve been missing out on.”

“I am going to pretend you didn’t say that.”

“Have fun pretending, then. I’ll see him at work today, so I’ll make sure to let him know you’re just dying to see him.”

“You- you’re what?”

“Yup. He broke his visor, or CuteGuy did at least. Told him I’d get him a new one if he put in a good word with my manager. You know she loves that guy.”

“I-You-” Cub wasn’t exactly sure what the expressions flashing across Grian’s face meant, but he managed to stop spluttering for long enough to say, “You are not allowed to make friends with HotGuy.”

“Uh, sure, I don’t think it’ll be hard. Don’t think he’s short on friends.”

Again, an odd expression crossed Grian’s face, but Cub dismissed it as one of Grian’s Moments; which is to say, exactly what he was in therapy for. To get a handle on the anger, reduce the frequency of flare ups at odd times, all that jazz. For now, best to change the subject.

“See any cool stars while you were out last night? It was pretty cloudy, so I didn’t really get much on the walk home.”

“Oh, right,” Grian relaxed, looking momentarily embarrassed, but the rest of their conversation was pleasant, Cub smoothing out the feathers on Grian’s wings so he wouldn’t have to do it himself. Lots of things tended to set him off, and embarrassment about getting worked up was a big contributor. Best to let him know he didn't have anything to feel bad about, not around Cub.

[haeva]

88 for the spotify wrapped writing game (and plus palasaki if you'd like!)

This took me literal ages, oh my god. I'm so sorry <3

Tearing off your blouse (now you're living in my house)

Pairing(s): Crystal/Niko, minor Edwin/Cat King

Rating: E

Summary: College AU. Crystal and Niko meet and hook up at a house party. Featuring drunk Edwin, Charles being protective and the Cat King being a bit creepy.

Author's note: The song you picked was Girls by The 1975. I don't know why it took me so long to finish this. I'm still not entirely happy with it but oh well. This is also the first smut I've ever posted so I hope it doesn't suck too hard

In hindsight, Crystal should have known better than to let her friends drag her to some shady musician’s house party on a Friday night. The loud music was ringing in her ears while she made her way through the drunk crowd, in search of Edwin and Charles. She pushed past a couple making out in the hallway. “Get a room,” she mumbled. They didn’t seem to hear her. 

God, this place is a mess, Crystal thought to herself as she almost stumbled over an empty wine bottle rolling over the floor. She heard a voice coming from the master bedroom. It belonged to Thomas, the owner of the house. She couldn’t make out what he said, but she could tell from the tone it must have been something dirty. 

How Edwin of all people had gotten involved with this guy was still a big mystery to her. He was a couple years older than them and certainly not in college anymore, if he had ever gone at all. When Crystal had first met him, he had told her that he was an up-and-coming artist, going by the stage name of The Cat King. It was a stupid fucking name. She was willing to bet all the cash in her purse - which admittedly wasn’t a lot - that Edwin had never listened to a single one of his songs. 

Crystal ended up finding Charles in the kitchen. She leaned against the refrigerator as she listened to him go on and on about how Edwin was God knows where doing God knows what with God knows who. 

Crystal couldn’t help but roll her eyes. She loved her two best friends, she really did, but sometimes they were insufferable to be around. “He’s probably hiding in a corner somewhere, waiting for this party to be over,” she said, half reassuring and half annoyed. 

She didn’t tell him that Edwin might be upstairs in the master bedroom with Thomas. That certainly wouldn’t end well for any of the people involved. She downed the last bit of her drink, then chugged her refill. 

She considered offering one to Charles, who had insisted on being the designated driver tonight. Something about getting everyone home safe. Thinking about it made Crystal want to snort. Yeah, right. 

“So we should just find Edwin and go home then, right?” Charles said, nodding his head so hard Crystal wondered if it was gonna fall off. 

“Yeah, let’s just go home,” she agreed. 

“Great! I’ll go get Edwin,” Charles said a little too fast. Crystal sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. 

“Yeah, you do that. I’m just gonna go-” She didn’t even get to finish her sentence before Charles abandoned her. She shook her head. He’s such an idiot

She once again waded her way through a crowd of drunk people. She managed to get to the bathroom without getting anyone's drink spilled on her, only to see someone else was already there. 

Right there sitting in the bathtub was a girl about Crystal’s age with white hair and big brown eyes. She looked like she’d been crying, with her knees drawn up to her chest. 

It probably shouldn’t have been the first thing on her mind, but Crystal thought she was absolutely gorgeous. Maybe it was the alcohol or the fact that it was close to 3 AM, but she could have sworn she saw some of those stupid little cartoon hearts float around the girl’s head. 

“I’m sorry,” Crystal stammered out. “I didn’t know anyone was in here.” She knew she should leave, but something about this girl made her hover in the doorway. “Are you okay?” 

Red-rimmed eyes gazed up at her, as the girl quickly wiped her eyes. “Yeah,” she said unconvincingly. “I’m doing just fine.” Her lips trembled, as if she was about to cry again. Whatever it was that was going on in this girl’s life, Crystal felt bad for her. 

“You don’t look okay.” She closed the door behind her. “Do you want to talk about it?” she offered, unsure why. Truth be told, she felt a strange sense of kinship to this girl sitting all by herself in an empty bathtub, while the party outside the bathroom door raged on. In another life, where Crystal believed in destiny, she would have called it so. But in this one, she just called it what it was: Attraction. 

For a moment the girl stared at Crystal, confused. “But you don’t even know me? I don’t want to ruin your night with my sadness.” 

You could never ruin my night, Crystal thought to herself. Even if you’re sad. But that was an odd thing to say to a girl you just met; a girl whose name you didn’t even know. A name Crystal was desperate to learn. 

Crystal approached her, sitting down at the edge of the tub. “Then maybe you should tell me your name. I’m Crystal.” She touched the girl’s arm, in lieu of a handshake. Her skin was soft and warm.

The white haired girl stared her up and down for a moment before answering. “I’m Niko,” she spoke softly.   

Crystal offered her a smile. “Well, Niko, it’s nice to meet you.” The name rolled off her tongue with an ease as if she had been saying it for years. A pretty name, for an even prettier girl. 

“So now that I know who you are, do you want to talk about why you’re sitting in someone else’s empty bathtub?” She chuckled, gesturing towards the bath. It was a little weird, even for Crystal’s standards and Crystal had been friends with Charles and Edwin for a long time. 

Niko giggled and it was the cutest thing Crystal had ever heard. “I’m hiding,” she admitted, her cheeks turning slightly red. Crystal felt the sudden urge to kiss them.

“Who are you hiding from?” She kept her voice light. Niko might have just gotten her heart broken after all. If that was the case, Crystal would certainly need to have a word with whoever had done so. 

“Everyone,” Niko answered, but it sounded more like a question. “I don’t know anybody here. Not even the guy that lives here. I heard about this party from a girl in my history class and I just came here.” She shrugged, as if coming to a complete stranger’s house party was the most normal thing in the world. 

Crystal couldn’t help but laugh. “And Thomas just let you in?”

Niko nodded. “I was allowed in, because I’m cute.” Her eyes grew wide. “He said that,” she quickly added. “The host, I mean.” 

He’s right, Crystal thought. Niko was the cutest thing Crystal had ever seen. 

“Yeah that tracks.” She snorted. “Sounds just like him.” 

“Are you guys friends?” Niko asked, eagerly. 

Crystal made a face. “God, no!” she answered. She bit her lip, unsure if she should say more. She caught Niko staring at the movement. “My friend has a crush on him,” she decided to add. “That’s actually why I’m here. This isn’t usually my crowd.” 

“Me neither,” Niko confessed. “I only came here because I thought it would help me make some friends.” She looked away, drawing her knees closer to her chest. “But instead, I just hid away, like I always do.” She looked like she was about to cry again. 

There was no way in the world that Crystal was going to let that happen. “Well, I’d love to be your friend. You seem really cool, Niko.” Part of her wanted to punch herself in the face. Way to get yourself in the friendzone, Crystal. 

But Niko perked up. A bright smile appeared on her face “You think so? Most people just think I’m weird.” As quickly as it had come, her smile disappeared again. “They all stare at me.” 

Crystal tucked a strand of hair behind Niko’s ear. “They stare because you’re beautiful.” It was out before she had truly realised what she’d just said. 

Niko shook her head, but Crystal caught the corner’s of her mouth curling upward. “I don’t think so. My roommate calls me a freak. She’s really mean,” Niko admitted. 

Whoever this roommate was, Crystal wanted to punch her. What a bitch. “You should find somewhere else to live. I rent a room from this lady. You could do something like that. Then you don’t have to live in the dorms anymore.” 

Crystal herself had to move out of her dorm, because her stupid roommate at the time had accidentally set it on fire and she couldn’t be relocated. That asshole had even tried to blame Crystal for the whole thing, but when Crystal’s parents had threatened to pull their donation for the school if they pressed charges against her daughter, the board had let the whole thing go. 

“Maybe I’ll take that advice,” Niko said. “Thank you.” 

“You’re so welcome. And for what it’s worth, I think you're the most interesting person at this party so far.” For a moment, the two of them just stared at each other, smiling. It felt natural, almost as if they were old friends. 

Crystal broke the silence. “Do you want to get out of the tub now?” She offered Niko her hand, who gratefully took it, and pulled her up. Niko swung her legs over the edge, sitting down next to Crystal. 

They ended up talking for what felt like hours. Niko told Crystal all about her life back home in Japan. Crystal loved hearing Niko’s stories about her dad. She couldn’t imagine what it was like to be so close to one's parents. The way Niko described it made it sound wonderful. 

She imagined Niko at five years old, with pigtails in her hair - it was still white as snow, Crystal couldn’t picture it as anything else - looking for dandelions with her father. 

She looked over at the Niko that was lying next to her on the bathroom floor; the two of them having moved into that position somewhere in between Niko talking about her favourite foods and Crystal dissing her mother’s cooking. Crystal wondered what Niko would wish for, if the two of them were in a field of dandelions instead. 

“My dad,” Niko answered, shuffling a little closer to Crystal. 

Crystal pulled Niko closer and told her all about her two best friends and the crazy situations she’d had gotten into because of them. Niko laughed at every single one of her stories. She seemed to be particularly fond of Edwin and Crystal promised to introduce him to her sometime. 

“I’m so glad I got rid of that guy,” she concluded the tale of the time Charles had gotten into a fist fight with her awful ex from high school. “He was such a dick.” 

“Luckily, I don’t have an ex like that.” Niko’s head was resting on Crystal’s shoulder. “I mean, I don’t have any exes at all.” She chuckled nervously, as though she thought Crystal was going to make fun of her for it. 

“Really?” Crystal asked, incredulously. “You’ve never dated anyone?” 

NIko awkwardly shifted, lifting her head from Crystal’s shoulder. 

“I’ve never even been kissed.” Niko sat up and looked down at the ground, while her cheeks turned bright red. 

It made Crystal’s heart ache. How on Earth had no one ever kissed the sweet, absolutely gorgeous girl in front of her? She gently lifted Niko’s chin up, so she could look her in the eyes. 

“Would you like to be kissed?” Crystal’s heart was pounding in her chest, while she attempted not to stare at Niko’s lips. The pink lipgloss Niko was wearing made them all the more appealing. Crystal wondered what they would taste like. Strawberry, maybe? Or cherry? 

She would soon find out. Niko nodded, quietly whispering: “Yes.” 

And Crystal wasted no time locking their lips together. Niko’s were soft against her’s, tasting like strawberry and cheap white wine. They parted slightly, allowing Crystal to slip her tongue inside. 

Niko sighed against her mouth, then pulled back, gasping for air. “That was-” she started, but her voice trailed off. “Yeah,” Crystal giddily agreed. 

Niko licked her lips. “I want to do it again.” 

And they did it again. And again, and again, until Crystal found herself sucking hickeys into Niko’s neck and hiking up Niko’s skirt. She dug her fingers into Niko’s thighs, causing a moan to escape from the other girl’s throat. It sent a shock down Crystal’s spine. She brought her hand up, tracing over Niko’s lace panties with her finger. They were damp with Niko’s arousal. Crystal resisted the urge to push the underwear to the side and push her fingers inside. 

Niko inhaled sharply at the touch. “Wait!” she said quickly. 

Crystal moved her hand back to Niko’s thigh and removed her lips from her neck. “You don’t want to?” She looked up at Niko, who stared back at her with dilated pupils. 

“I do. I just… I’ve never done this before.” She cupped Crystal’s face with her hands. “But I want to, with you. Just go easy on me.” A shy smile appeared on her face and Crystal couldn’t help but kiss her again. She hooked her fingers around the elastic of Niko’s panties, pulling them down. 

She pulled back and dipped her head down between Niko’s legs. She hungrily licked her lips at the sight of Niko’s glistening cunt. She felt like a starving woman staring down at a three-course meal. Knowing that no one had ever touched the other girl there made something inside Crystal stir. She wanted to make Niko hers entirely, ruin her for every other girl. 

Part of her wished that she had brought her strap-on. Crystal felt her own clit throb at the thought of Niko’s walls clenched tightly around it, stretching her out. Another time, Crystal thought to herself. 

She licked over Niko’s folds, lapping up the wetness and god was she wet. Niko moaned at the touch, loudly. Crystal’s eyes darted up at her. She wanted to see the look of pleasure on Niko’s face. She looked absolutely divine, with her eyes closed and her lips slightly parted. Crystal wondered what she had done to deserve to not only witness it, but to be the first person to ever do so. 

She sucked on Niko’s clit, drawing more filthy sounds from the girl’s mouth. “Please,” Niko moaned. “More.” And who was Crystal to deny her when she asked so sweetly? She pushed a finger into Niko’s cunt. Niko’s legs twitched at the intrusion and Crystal let out a groan, feeling her own arousal grow. She pushed her other hand down her panties, rubbing her own clit while she worked on Niko.

Niko whined when Crystal added another finger, burying both digits knuckle-deep into her. Crystal hooked her fingers, rubbing over the rough spot inside of Niko, who groaned and arched her back in response. Niko cried out Crystal’s name, causing Crystal’s hips to jerk forward, rutting against her own hand. 

Crystal picked up the pace, fingering Niko with wanton desire. She had never wanted anything so bad in her life as she wanted to see Niko come. She continued to lick Niko’s clit, burying her nose in the black bush of hair that surrounded it. 

Finally, Niko arched her back, moaning loudly as Crystal fucked her through her orgasm. Crystal pulled out, her fingers covered in Niko’s slick. She brought them to her mouth and greedily lapped up the sticky substance. 

“Fuck,” Niko panted. “That’s hot.” She gazed down at Crystal’s other hand, which was still down her own pants. “Did you-” she trailed off, but Crystal understood. 

“Not yet,” Crystal purred. “Do you want to?” 

Niko stared at her with big, hungry eyes, eagerly nodding her head. She sat up, kneeling before Crystal, who pulled her shorts and panties down. She brought a shaky hand up to Crystal’s clit, gently rubbing it with her finger. 

Niko’s touch was soft and delicate, but even-paced. It made Crystal wonder if Niko had practiced on herself. She pictured it in her head: Niko sprawled out naked on a big bed with fuzzy blankets, groaning as she rapidly rubbed her own clit. 

“Faster,” Crystal panted and NIko obliged. Crystal’s head felt dizzy as the waves of pleasure crashed over her and it didn’t take long for her to reach her own orgasm. As she came, she heard Niko gasp. “You’re so beautiful,” Niko murmured, staring at her in awe. 

“Can I taste you?” Niko asked shyly. “I’ve never tasted it before.” And Crystal wanted to kiss her, touch her and fuck her all over again. Yet, all she could do was nod and watch as Niko gathered up some of Crystal’s slick with her fingers and wrapped her lips around them. 

“You taste so good,” Niko moaned as though she was devouring a delicacy. And when she pulled her fingers out of her mouth, Crystal did kiss her again.  

“God, I hope no one heard us,” Crystal said after she pulled back. Truthfully, she actually didn’t care if any of these people knew what they’d just done. She fucked the hottest girl at this party, the hottest girl she had ever met, and kind of wanted to scream it from the rooftops. 

She put her shorts back on, while Niko pulled her panties up and straightened her skirt. 

It was then that the door flung open. Niko jumped at the sound, while Crystal was mostly concerned about the person who came running through it. 

“Are you okay, baby?” Crystal heard Thomas yell from across the hall. 

Edwin barged in the room, not even acknowledging his friend and her new companion, and promptly proceeded to throw up in the toilet. He was quickly followed by Charles and Thomas, both trying to push past one another. 

Niko scrunched up her nose in disgust. Crystal just sighed as she watched Charles crouch down beside Edwin, rubbing his back in soothing circles. “Guess you found Edwin,” she said sarcastically. 

Charles looked her up and down, as if he had only just noticed she was there, then shifted his gaze to Niko and frowned. He opened his mouth, as if to say something, but apparently decided against it as he directed his attention back at Crystal. “Do you have all your stuff? We're leaving.” He didn’t sound all too happy. 

“Perhaps it’s better if Edwin stays,” Thomas suggested. “He’s clearly had too much to drink. He can sleep it off in my bed, no problem.” He smirked down at Edwin, who seemed to be seriously considering the offer. 

Charles, on the other hand, had a look on his face that Crystal could only describe as a snarl. And here we go, she thought. Charles was back up on his feet in no time. Crystal managed to grab onto his arm, preventing his fist from connecting with Thomas’s face. There was no need to escalate the situation. 

“Stop!” Edwin yelled from his place on the floor. “You are both insufferable,” he slurred out, nearly tripping over insufferable. Crystal couldn’t help but giggle. 

Charles helped Edwin up. “Let’s go home,” he said, mostly directed at Crystal. 

Crystal shot Niko a look. “They’re my ride,” she said apologetically. Niko nodded and waved at her as the three of them made their way out. Edwin blew a kiss at Thomas while Charles pushed him out the door. It only occurred to Crystal on the drive home that she hadn’t asked for NIko’s number. 

—

It was a month after the party and Crystal still hadn’t forgotten about Niko. She tried finding her on Instagram, but so far no luck. None of her friends had any idea who she was. Even Thomas had confirmed that he had just let her in on the basis of her being cute. 

She was texting Charles about the homework they’d gotten assigned for Calc II, when she heard her landlord talk to someone in the hallway. Renting a room above some goth lady’s butcher shop wasn’t normally Crystal’s idea of a good decision, but the rent was cheap, she had her own kitchen and Jenny was actually pretty chill once you got to know her. 

Her previous roommate had just moved out, so Crystal could only assume the person Jenny was talking to was a new tenant. She opened her bedroom door to see a pair of familiar brown eyes stare at her in shock. 

“Crystal, this is Niko,” Jenny told her. “She will be renting the other room now that Shelby’s gone.” Crystal couldn’t hear anything else she said. She was entirely fixated on Niko, standing in a pink coat, sheepishly smiling at her. She took a deep breath.

Well this is going to be fun. 

[panda-of-the-trash]

Drabble 3: Inner voices

Nightmare had this power.

A power where he could speak in the minds of others, his voice echoing among their thoughts. It was mostly an intimidation display, a tactic to spread fear among people.

It was small compared to his other powers but it was affective. And he still had his fun with it.

A little too much fun if you asked Cross.

The god could admittedly be quite the asshole. It happened often that he suddenly but randomly used his power on an unsuspecting castle inhabitant that was in the middle of performing a task and they ended up getting spooked by him.

And to say he abused his power with Cross was a bit of an understatement.

Everytime they greeted the new recruits, Nightmare would try and break Cross out of his stoic demeanor by telling him jokes and ridiculous nonsense, but he had yet to succeed.

Whenever Nightmare caught the guards training, he´d tell Cross how good he looked and how he couldn´t wait for him to join him in their chambers so he could tear the guard´s remaining clothes off and do unspeakable things to him. That, on more than one occasion, earned the king a deep blush from Cross.

Sometimes, when he was walking through the halls, Nightmare´s voice would boom inside of his head all of the sudden. The physical appearance of the god Cross could handle. Whenever the god approached him, he could feel his presence. But hearing his voice out of nowhere without feeling his presence? He was a little ashamed to admit that a couple of foul words left his mouth when it happened.

So whatever chance Cross had to take a little revenge on the god, he took.

This was such a moment.

Cross put away the practice spears. He had just finished a training session with some guards. There was a new guard that had been a little too eager to spar with him, ogling him whatever chance he had. He was indifferent to it, he had Nightmare after all.

He closed the weapons cabinet when a shadow fell over him. Cross slowly turned around to meet the eyes of the new guard, grinning at him. Cross gave him an unimpressed look. "Can I help you?"

"You most certainly can." The guard winked at him. Cross gave a little huff of disbelief at the utter audacity he had. "Oh yeah?"

"Yeah. You say I couldn't help but see how fast you were on your feet and I was wondering if you could show me..maybe one on one?"

'Who the hell does this buffoon think he is?'

Cross gave a little snort, picking up on the tone Nightmare had.

"We´re alone at the moment, what do you need me to show you?"

'Cross, Cross what in the gods´s names are you doing.'

The guard grinned, putting a hand on the wall next to Cross. "Well I was offering you an opportunity to meet when we were less sweaty but this´ll do." Cross crossed his arms.

'You cannot actually be serious. Are you really entertaining the likes of him??'

The guard started leaning closer and Cross quickly put a hand on his chest to push him away. "Are you going to tell me about the move or can I get on with my day?"

The guard smirked at him. "I think you know what move I'm talking about." He again walked closer, Cross taking a step back. "With you down on your knees~"

"Am I interrupting something?"

Both Cross and the guard turned to the doorway, where Nightmare looked at them with a stern eye.

"B-boss! No of course not. Captain here just helped me with a move." Nightmare walked closer, looking neutral to those who didn't know him, but Cross saw the subtle signs that the god held no patience.

"Aren't you supposed to be at dinner? Go on, I have things to talk about with the captain."

The guard quickly and nervously bowed, half running out of the training room. As soon as it was just the two of them, Nightmare turned to Cross, looking pissy.

Cross grinned up at him. "You said we have things to talk about your grace?"

"You did that on purpose-"

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Sure you're not." He gave a huff, paling around the room with a pout. "He tried kissing you! He wasn't even being subtle about it!"

"And you know that how?" Cross raised a brow.

"Oh let's cut the crap, you knew I was watching. You did that on purpose to make me jealous."

Cross gave him a wide grin. "Did it work?"

"Wh-you! Of course it worked! I don't like anyone touching what´s mine-" Nightmare growled, pouting like a child.

Cross chuckled softly, walking up to him to wrap his arms around his waist. "Oh Nights, i´m yours for a thousand planets and a thousand stars."

Nightmare huffed softly, cupping Cross´s cheeks, making the guard melt into his hands. "I know…I just don't appreciate someone trying to take you from me."

"Let them try, they'll never succeed." Cross kissed the palm of his hand. "I'm forever yours."

Finally, a small smile graced Nightmare´s face and he pressed a kiss to Cross´s forehead. "Forever mine."

[tupperwaretub]

Blood-Ridden(part 3)

Pairing:Top!Joel Miller x bottom!male!Reader(firefly)

Warnings: excessive drinking, trauma sharing, unprotected SMUT, mainly angst, a bit of drunken fluff. Fluffy end.

Summary: Joel invites you over to his place for a few drinks, you both end up drinking too much and doing some things you regret.

Part 2: here

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

You and Joel have gotten really close since the incident with Charlie, he invites you around on Saturdays for a couple drinks to try and bring some normalcy and structure to the both of your lives, its been a year and admittedly its worked a charm, ever since you and Joel had started hanging out your intrusive thoughts had quieted down, still there... But you can ignore them.

Just like every week Saturday rolls around and you're letting yourself into Joels apartment, his apartment is a little more run down than you and Tommy's but you two tend to put some effort into the structural integrity Joel obviously doesn't care enough.

"Hey Joel." You greet him with a smile and he smiles back. "Hey y/n." You walk over to him and pull him into a hug which he reciprocates. When you both pull away Joel begins to speak "Me and Tess raided a liquor store on our last run outside the QZ, most of it went to buyers but i made sure to save enough for us." He says as he tugs up his floorboard where he keeps his contraband, he pulls out three bottles of liquor. "This'll last us a long time what d'you think?" He shoots you a glance. "Yeah definitely."

Joel turns to grab two glasses and you head for the couch, he joins you soon enough with a shot of liquor each. You clink your glass with Joel's and down it.

.............

You're not sure how long its been since your first drink, you're not sure when you and Joel decided the glasses weren't necessary and started drinking straight out the bottle. You're not sure when you finished that bottle and started on the second but you can tell it couldn't have been long ago because the bottle in Joel's hand is almost full. You direct your eyes to Joel's face, he's saying something.

"On outbreak day.. i lost my daughter." He hiccups "I fuckin' ... Uh.. she got shot by some fedra asshole.. and I.. I couldn't save her.." He wipes his eyes and takes a long swig from the bottle in his hand. "What 'bout you." His eyes lock with yours. "Huh?" You rub your eyes and try to sober up a little. "Did you lose anyone on outbreak day?" You look down at the couch you're sat on and remember daniel. "Yeah." Joels hand rests atop yours. "Tell me about them." You swallowed down your emotions the best you could and told him about Daniel, how you lost him. You had no idea you had started crying until Joel wiped your tears with his thumb. You both went silent for a while, the bottle of liquor set on the table while you basked in eachothers company.

"Y'know how i was a complete ass when we first met?" Joel says breaking the silence. "Uhh.. yeah." You reply swinging your head to face him. "I think... It was just because I found you attractive.." His words are slurred. You sit there and stare at the wall thinking of a response, your brain working slower than you want it to. "Do you still find me attractive?" You say with drunk confidence. "Yeah. I do." You shuffle closer to him and cup his face "why didn't you say sooner?" Your eyes meet and he frowns. "I'm scared... That if i confess things to people, and i get attached, they'll die and I'll have to go through the same grief i went through with sarah all over again." He blinks and a tear rolls down his cheek but you wipe it away. "Well I'm not going anywhere."

Suddenly Joels lips crash against yours and his hands land on your hips, when you process whats happening you sink into the kiss and your arms wrap around his neck. Joels hands slide to your ass and he hoists you onto his lap. He pulls away from your lips and starts kissing down your neck leaving a trail of light hickeys. You let out a surprised gasp as Joel stands up and carries you to his bed, he places you down and starts to fumble with his belt. You slide your pants and underwear down and kick them off and Joel finally unbuckles his belt and takes his pants and briefs off.

Joel pushes you down gently and pulls you into a messy kiss, your hands seek refuge in his soft hair. You pull apart and Joel slowly kisses down your neck, bringing his hand up to your lips his middle and index fingers gently poking for entrance. You take his fingers into your mouth and suck, knowing exactly where they're going next.

As soon as Joel was happy with how wet his fingers were he moved his hand down to your hole, they're a tight fit but the alcohol drowns out any discomfort. His head his still hidden in the crook of your neck as he kisses and sucks dark hickeys that you'll both regret "Joel." You whine, he doesn't even look up but he removes his fingers and replaces them with his cock.

The sex is rushed, careless, there isn't an ounce of intimacy behind either of your moments but more desperation, fear and want.

Joel finishes on your stomach and rolls over, hes fast asleep within the minute. You lay on your back as sleep slowly takes over, the alcohol acting as immunity to any regrets for now.

........................

The light was blinding as you made out the figure of a soldier, he can help. "hello! Hey! Over here! Please, we need your help my friend hes broken his arm and one of those crazy people bit him, he needs medical attention!" You shout towards the soldier. "hands up! Put your hands up!" The soldier exclaims, you both comply but Daniel is unable to reach both arms up.

"your friend, this guy here? He was bitten?" The soldier finally asks, lowering his voice but keeping his gun raised in your direction.

The soldier goes quiet, reaching towards his walkie and mumbling a few things, then finally saying "yes sir." He raises his gun once more now pointing it towards Daniel, and then that familiar bang echoed through your ears.

.........................

Your breath hitches and your eyes open wide to a view of Joel's ceiling, you slowly come back to reality and sigh as you kick your legs over the side of the bed and sit up - your head pounding away. You turn to see Joel's sleeping figure as you remember the events of last night.

Quickly and silently you collect together your belongings and leave Joels apartment, you don't want to be there to find out how he reacts.

Its still dark outside as you sneak your way back to you and Tommy's shared apartment, you find him awake getting ready for the day as you attempt to sneak through the door. Tommy practically jumps out of his skin.

"shit y/n! I thought you were at Joels.." he says with a sigh. "I was." You reply blankly as you place down your things and go into your room but Tommy is quick to follow, "Something happened. What?" He glances at your neck "Oh.. I see." "What? What do you mean?" Your hand covers the area Tommy had glanced at. "He was pretty rough?" He asks, not letting Joel's name slip from his mouth. "Ew Tommy stop it. I just want to forget about it." You rub your eyes and sit on the edge of your bed.

"so it was a mistake? I mean i get it my brother can be pretty charming I've seen him do -" Tommy begins to ramble. "No. Tommy, it wasnt a mistake. Not for me. But i don't know what Joel is going to think when he wakes up, fuck, we had something good going and one drink too many and now its gone." Theres a pause between the both of you before Tommy makes his way next to you and puts his hand on your shoulder. "If you don't wanna speak to him it's fine, I might be his brother but I'm your best friend. I wont make you talk to him." You turn to look at Tommy "thanks.." he shoots you a sympathetic smile before playfully shoving you and getting up. " So how hungover are you on a scale of 1 to 10."

You flop back and laugh "fuck Tommy, like a 9." He chuckles "gonna have to get through it today buddy. Come with me on tonights run we'll smuggle in some aspirin if we find any." You smile at him "thanks Tommy, how will i ever repay you."

"for now, by not dying on me but im sure somethin'll come up." He jokes and leaves the room to continue getting ready.

...............

It's been at least a month now since the night with Joel, Tommy has done a good job at helping you avoid him but you've heard from Tess that he's been looking around for you. You know its stupid to just keep hiding from him but your fear of what he could say gets the better of you and you keep avoiding him.

That was until one fateful day when you were sorting ammunition for Marlene when suddenly you heard commotion outside, before you could see what was going on Joel barged through the door looking pissed.

"shit y/n I'm sorry he just barged past me." Tommy apologises as he walks in past Joel. "It's fine Tommy." You and Joel stare at eachother before Joel finally speaks "we need to talk." His gruff voice gives you butterflies and you start to feel guilty for avoiding him. "While we're surrounded by guns?" "You gonna shoot me?" It sounds like a joke but his face says otherwise. "No. You gonna shoot me?" "No. So this works."

"i was thinking of having this conversation somewhere nicer.." you say directing your attention back to the work Marlene had set you, Tommy had left and shut the door a little while ago. "You were planning on having this conversation? When y/n? Because it really seems to me you've just been avoidin' this." Joel seems to have calmed down slightly but is clearly still incredibly angry. "I guess I was.."

"why y/n?" You were surprised by his forwardness as you didn't take Joel to be the kind of guy to want to have these kinds of conversations. Sober at least. "I don't know Joel.." "yeah you do, why've you been avoidin' me?" You settle down what you're doing again and face him, his face is relaxed but you know hes really anxious on the inside. "I don't know.. i guess i was scared." You admit looking down and fiddling with the hem of your shirt. "Of what ?.." Joel takes a few steps forward but stays a comfortable distance away. "Of you hating me, i was scared you'd wake up and tell me to get out or to never speak to you again. I didn't think it was a mistake but i was worried you would."

You see Joel's shoes enter your vision and you look up to see hes face to face with you with a almost loving look on his face. "I didn't think it was a mistake either." He leans in and places a kiss on your cheek. "Let me take you outside the QZ, I know a nice spot we could go to just the two of us?"

"Like a date?" You smile.

"Yeah.. like a date" He smiles back.

..................

A/n: Joel seems a little outa character in this one for me but also having him in character would make the story more complicated to make and my head can't handle complicated 😔 anyways hope you enjoyed can't wait to get to what i have planned for this series its gonna get a lot better trust.

[ddlcpoly]

A lot happened that day, so much that I was really scared of coming to the club. That night I spoke with MC about what happened with Monika and Yuri and then he told me what happened with Natsuki. We then spoke more honestly than ever, eventually learning that we both were in love with the rest of the club.

Now I already had a sneaking suspicion that everyone in the club was crushing on everyone else, but I honestly thought it was just me having hopeful thinking that I could start a polyamorous relationship with all of them and was just connecting things that weren’t there to delude myself.

But after talking it over and how at least Monika and Yuri like me and how Natsuki liked MC, it all started to seem so obvious. The way Monika spoke so freely about how much she admired and cared for all of us, how Yuri always was sneaking glances at everyone every time she could, how MC still got nervous at times when spending time alone with one us or how Natsuki seemed to blush at little bit every day at the club. I knew what I had to do then, I had to help the club back together and we all needed to be honest to do that.

I open my mouth “I want all of us to be perfectly honest. We all made mistakes that day, but I think that’s mostly that we were always so prone to mistakes.” I awkwardly chuckle “We all hid our feelings from each other because of the fear of hurting one another, but that only caused all of us to get more hurt” Natsuki starts squirming in her seat as she continues to look down, MC keeps staring at me with his always-present blank expression, but I know he is also worried, Monika stares at her desk probably beating herself up in her mind still and Yuri starts shaking nervously “So now I think the only course of action we can all take in order to be able to continue being happy with one another is by being honest.” I take a deep breath, hesitating on whether or not to say what I’m about to say, it’s something that once said I can’t take back and might be problematic in the future. But I trust them and I know this is the best thing I could say right now…

 “I love all of you. I love how diligent Monika is, I love how passionate Yuri is, I love how patient MC is, I love how fiery Natsuki is, Ilove how we can all come together and create a place where I can feel truly happy and loved and I don’t want to lose that!” I start to choke up as a stream of tears start falling down from my eyes.

“I love you too Sayori, I love all of you.” Surprisingly it’s Yuri who says this, her eyes also filled with tears. “I’ve never felt like I belonged anywhere, but this club, no, all of you have become a place of comfort and joy. Every single one of you have accepted me as I am and have treated me with such warmth and care that I can barely keep up with. I wish for all of you to remain a permanent part of my life and if possible, not just as friends.”

“Yeah” Natsuki is the next to speak up “You bundle of idiots somehow squirmed your way deep into my heart and I, well, y’know. I feel the same as Yuri and Sayori.” She sits back down unable to say anything else.

MC stands up “I will be completely honest, I joined the club because I thought all of you were cute.” He confesses, “We all know that, you idiot.” Natsuki retorts “Even with your unchanging face, it was extremely obvious.” “Oh…” he seems slightly disappointed in himself. “Well, that’s not the point I was trying to make, even if the reason I joined was, admittedly, pretty shallow, I stayed because you girls have been the people I have been closest to in the world. I don’t think I could have the same kind of bond with anyone else and I don’t want to lose that. I also love each and every one of you.”

We all start to stare at Monika who is still seated on her desk, frantically redirecting her stare between the four of us, blushing heavily “Eh? G-Guys we shouldn't j-joke about things like that. If this is a prank to get back at me, you guys did it and I probably deserve it.”

The mood sours after Monika says that “Y-YOU IDIOT!” Natsuki yells out, even more tears coming out of her eyes “I-I would never say shit like that as a joke. I’m not that kind of person.” Yuri puts a hand on her shoulder trying to comfort her “I-I understand this might be difficult to understand. To be frank, I haven’t fully processed what is happening at this moment. But I do know that my feelings are true.” Monika just stares at them in shock.

“Look Monika,” MC looks at her determined. “I’ve always admired you and I even had a crush on you when we shared a class together. But getting to know you has made me fall deeper for you, so please believe me.”

“It’s true.” I say “We all love you Monika, do you love us back?” Monika’s eyes start to tear up to which she covers them up with her hands and in the softest voice I’ve ever heard come out of Monika’s mouth she says “yes…”

I sense the mood of the room is starting to significantly cheer up now. “So, what are we supposed to do now?” Natsuki “It’s not like we can date each other now, right?” Natsuki asks.  I immediately respond “Well, actually…”

The rest of the afternoon we spent talking about what happened at that day in the festival, apologizing and forgiving each other, and I eventually brought up what I had planned, I discussed it with MC back when we were discussed our feelings for our friends, and let’s just say, everyone came out of that room with at least 2 more partners.

4/4

Fin