#did you like my marina impression

[nephilimbrute]

pearl's death...? what are u talking about guys...she's obviously still alive....

[pearlymel]

A dance— Capitano

Synopsis : your relationship with him grows, and he seems sweeter than ever.

Wc : 3.2k

Warnings : contains NSFW content, fem!reader, reader is mostly called 'wife', he's super sweet, soft sex, unprotected sex, breeding kink kinda, reader wears a dress and heels.

Notes : part 2 is heree! I highly recommend reading part 1 here. And part 3 is out here!

You've tried creating art, you've tried cooking (with the help of your personal maid, Marina), you've even tried planting.

Yeah, you're a plant mom now. Not only that, you're a cat mom too. Saving the poor kitty from the harsh rain one day, you couldn't leave the poor little one outside. It's mother seeming to abandon it.

All because you have become extremely bored on the days where Capitano wouldn't be here, and he forbade you to even clean your shared bedroom because he thinks it's useless when there are servants present to do the job. (He doesn't want to tire you out.)

Come to think of it, the last time you saw him, he kept avoiding you. Whenever you tried striking a conversation during dinner, he would only hum and nod. Or when you suggested to have another picnic, he flatly refused, and it felt like the hardest rejection to your face.

It's like he had his own mood swings that you had to deal with. One day he would indulge you in the activities you wanted to do, then the next he would refuse.

Like last week.

“I used to do this when i was young.” You tell him with the softest smile to yourself, your fingers working carefully with the flower petals and strings. You were determined to make this flower crown, and you were taking your sweet time just to have him by your side.

Capitano silently listened to your words, his gaze fixed on your gentle movements as you delicately fashioned a flower crown. The air between you was calm, "You have a talent for making flower crowns," he eventually responded, his deep voice breaking the tranquil silence.

"Did you learn it from someone?”

“No… just by myself.” He couldn't help but be impressed by your innate ability to create such an intricate accessory without any formal instruction. "Self-taught." He mused, "You have an unusual aptitude for discovering things on your own.”

You hum back while adding the finishing touches, and he watched your proud display of the finished flower crown.

“this is for kitty!” You smile at the thought of the little one purring with a pretty crown on it's head.

Kitty? Capitano is confused once you start talking about the cat, you seem even more excited when you described how you cuddled with it.

"You just happened to come across this crying feline in the rain, and you brought it home with you?”

“yes! Ah, well… i hope you don't mind.”

“i don't.”

And that was the last of your conversation, and it's been a week since you last saw him.

“my lady,” You recognise the voice of Marina as she knocks on the door, and you grant her the permission of her entry.

You set the sleeping kitten on the fluffed up pillow to reach for the letter she hands you.

An invitation to the grand ball… you read the contents of it, scanning every word as you pull the paper down.

“like a party?” you ask, glancing up at her, "Yes, that is correct. A grand ball is taking place tonight. It's a gathering of the higher-ranking Fatui members and a few... select guests.” she trails off, unsure of what else to add on.

“I can see that this invitation is for Capitano, not to me.”

“lord Capitano doesn't normally attend these grand balls. So my lady, you will have to go instead.” Marina explains this and you feel like you're going to have a headache.

All you wanted to do today was sleep in with the kitten. Not to trouble yourself in some party.

But… if it's for the sake of your husband's reputation, then you are willing to do it.

You hope you don't pass away too quick from your social anxiety.

“Marina, does this really suit me?” You stare at your reflection, and Marina looks at you approvingly, her eyes taking in your stunning appearance. "Sì, my lady, it suits you perfectly," she assures you, "The dress brings out your features beautifully and fits your figure perfectly.”

“and the colour?”

"Oh, yes, the color is exquisite. It complements your skin tone perfectly. You look like a princess attending a royal ball.” and you smile shyly as you take your seat, “You flatter me too much, you know?”

Marina chuckles softly, moving behind you to work on your hair with practiced ease. "It's not flattery if it's the truth. You look truly radiant today." She begins to style your hair, weaving intricate braids and pinning them in place with delicate silver pins.

Though you can't even lie to yourself, you looked absolutely gorgeous, even when you felt a little down since you would be going alone, and you barely knew anyone.

Marina pauses in her work for a moment, her expression becoming sympathetic as she sensed your nervousness. “It's natural to feel that way. But I believe you will be fine. You are strong and independent." She resumes styling your hair, her fingers moving nimbly to create elegant curls.

You smile at her, looking at her from the mirror, “thank you.”

"It is my honor to serve you.” As she finishes your hair, she steps back to admire her work, a satisfied expression on her face. "You are ready, my lady.”

You are ready.

You are not ready.

Because why was everyone's eyes piercing bullets through you as you entered the main hall?

The whispers and murmurs start almost immediately, the guests clearly intrigued by your presence. However, you manage to keep your composure, straightening your back and walking forward with confidence, just like how Marina taught you.

Stay calm they won't eat you, you tell yourself, trying to maintain your composure under the weight of their gazes.

You were here to make friends, hopefully.

You scan the room, hoping that someone would approach you to engage in conversation. Yet nobody, not a single soul, seems to have the courage to do so. The guests continue their conversations and dances, seemingly ignoring your presence.

And so, you find yourself standing alone, sipping on a glass of champagne, feeling lost and slightly out of place.

Well this is boring. You could've stayed in with Kitty and Marina, but at least you get free food. They always taste better, right?

Everyone went silent all of a sudden, but you ignored it at first and continue taking sips of your drink.

But the silence becomes uncomfortable, just what happened to the party?

You turn around, your eyes widening immediately in surprise as you see Capitano walking towards you. Your heart seems to skip a beat as you watch him approach, his presence commanding attention and authority in the room. Capitano stops in front of you, you can't make up what his face must be like right now, but you think he has a stoic expression on his face as he takes in your appearance. His eyes roaming up and down your figure, seemingly appreciating the elegance of your dress.

“husband?” You blurt out, setting your glass aside to greet him.

"Wife," he says simply, acknowledging the fact that you have finally addressed him by that term.

The tension breaks when soft, elegant music begins to play, signaling the start of partner dances in the middle of the ballroom.

Capitano seems to realize this as he glances around at the couples already making their way to the dance floor. He then turns back to you, his expression unreadable as he silently contemplates the situation.

He can see the slight tension in your shoulders, the way your hand clutched at your dress.

"I suppose we should dance, wife.”

“you want to dance?”

"Yes," he responds. "It appears it's customary for couples at these events to dance together." He extends his hand in your direction, gesturing for you to take it. You take his hand, wrapping it gently around his gloved one. His fingers close around your hand, his grip gentle yet firm as he leads you towards the dance floor.

You notice the whispers and murmurs among the guests growing louder. But you chose to ignore them.

Capitano guides you to the center of the dance floor and positions himself opposite you, his hand settling onto your waist, and your hands on his shoulders.

"Do you know how to dance?" You whisper to him, making sure no one listens, and your eyes are on him.

"I may not engage in these social events often, but even I understand the basics of dance." His hand on your waist pulls you closer to him, you follow his lead.

Interesting.

He leads the dance with of assurance and grace, his movements fluid and confident. As you follow his lead and swirl together across the dance floor, your eyes meet his, and you find yourself unable to look away. The closeness between you makes it feel as if the rest of the world has faded away, leaving only the two of you dancing together.

You notice how he seems to turn his head slightly to look at others, mimicking their movements swiftly, it makes you smile to yourself.

His hand on your waist feels warm, almost burning even through the fabric of your dress. It's a strange sensation you've never felt when touching him, despite having already kissed (once) before.

”my dress,” you whisper amidst the graceful dance, “what do you think of it?”

You figured you always needed to give him a little push when initiating things.

His attention drift down to take in the sight of your dress once again. His gaze roams over the fabric, lingering on the way it clings to your figure, and how the color contrasts against your skin.

"It's... " he pauses, you're just wearing a dres, but he finds it difficult to describe what he feels, "Very pleasing to the eye.” he manages to continue.

"You look rather well tonight, as well.”

“Thank you, wife.”

The music suddenly shifts to a slower tempo, and Capitano instinctively adjusts his hold on you, pulling you slightly closer as he continues to dance with you.

You totally ignore how your face is almost pressed up against his chest.

As interesting as the party was, the worst part of was walking back to the estate. Why? Because the carriage decided to break down, or maybe the horses were sleepy, you don't know.

You're glad your husband is with you, or else you might've been sacrificed to the dogs at night, now even ants will fear this big guy.

But what's worse? Your damn heels are killing you. The sides of your pinky toes are already aching that you are sure it will cause nasty blisters by tomorrow.

"Perhaps next time you should wear more comfortable shoes." He stated bluntly, his deep voice betraying no pity for your situation. “but they look pretty, plus i feel elegant in them.” you stop at your tracks, looking up at him with a defeated expression.

"I'm well aware." he says dryly, "But at what cost? You're practically torturing yourself with those heels.”

He's half right, your point still stands. Beauty is pain. And now you'll have to sacrifice your beauty.

Bye bye heels. You slide them off your feet, bow having your poor feet to walk on these rocky grounds. You do feel a little better after, though.

“stay still.” He utters, and you're confused, until he takes your heels in one hand before you feel a shift of your weight off your feet, finding yourself being carried into his arms.

you wrapped your arms around his neck silently, your eyes glancing up at him as he continues walking like he you weigh nothing.

The air around you is peaceful. You feel safe with him, he's not like the scary man you hear from the others. Maybe to others he was, but to you? He was soft for you.

Your head leans on his chest where his heart rested, the beats of his heart makes you sleepy, but you refuse to sleep just like this, you want to spend every single second savouring this feeling.

Capitano carried you all the way to the estate, and through the dark corridors, making his way to your shared chambers.

The soft moonlight filtering through the windows was the only source of illumination, the atmosphere around you quiet.

He gently deposited you back on your feet, you're back home safely.

“thank you.” You whisper, your hands reaching to take the pins out of your hair to let it breath from the scruffy yet beautiful hairstyle, and Capitano starts taking off the heavy layers off him as well, with the helmet out.

You don't notice how one of your dress straps seem to fall off your shoulders, but he notices, and oh did that make something in him stir.

His steps closer from behind you, his hand reaching to put the strap back in place, but instead, he glances at the other strap.

It looked rather lonely being on your shoulder, his fingers delicately sliding the strap down which makes you ultimately still in your place.

Your entire body trembled slightly as Capitano's hands caressed your skin, tracing gentle paths across your shoulders and back down to the zipper on your side. “May i.. help you out of your dress?” His low, gruff voice, asking for permission to help you out of your dress, made your heart beat faster.

You could only nod in response, your voice silenced by a mixture of anticipation and desire. Capitano's touch was meticulous, his thumb and index delicately moving down the zipper with deliberate slowness, prolonging the tension.

Capitano lets out another low hum as he watches the dress slide down to your ankles, now leaving you only in your undergarments. His hands traced the contour of your body, his touch delicate yet possessive. His own breathing became ragged, the sight of you partially undressed igniting a fire in his eyes.

“Will you allow me to touch you?”

The question makes you turn your head, of course he can.

When you don't stop him from wrapping his arms around you, his chest pressed against your back, he takes it as a green light to continue.

His hand first brushed your hair out of the way, to allow his lips to come in contact with the nape of your neck, “you're so beautiful..." he whispered, his hot breath sending jolts of electricity through your core.

“I don't…” he hesitates, wanting to move his hands away, “i don't want to do anything you don't like.”

And your expression softens at his concern, you turn around to take his face into your hands, your thumbs caressing the apples of his cheeks and he nuzzles into your touch, wrapping a hand around your wrist before pressing a kiss to your palm. You further reassure him by littering his face with your lips, giving every empty space of his skin with at least one kiss.

“Allow me to experience this with you, and i shall take care of you till i take my very last breath.” he hoists you up easily into his arms, rough hand under your thighs as you wrap your legs around his waist, he laid you down on the soft sheets, his body covering yours as he looked down at you.

“You occupy my every thought,” he starts, “that it feels sinful to even look at your way.” He leaned down, his lips capturing yours in a searing kiss as his hand continued its exploration, ripping your bra off to cup your breast, feeling your nipple harden under his touch. He rolled it between his fingers, pinching it gently as he deepened the kiss when you gasp, his tongue delving into your mouth, savouring your taste and angelic sounds.

He leaned down afterwards, his mouth latching onto your nipple, sucking it into his mouth and your hands find his ling strands instantly, tugging on them while being careful not to hurt him.

His fingers traced down to your hip, giving them a firm squeeze before ripping your panties off next, his thumb rubbing circles on your clit, feeling you writhe and tense up under him.

It felt like an unknown territory you've yet to explore.

Upon sensing your discomfort, he presses his lips to your eyelids, then to your neck, taking his time until you relaxed, until you started feeling good based off how you were bucking your hips now.

Oh how he wanted to take his time with you, but he was aching so bad that if he continues touching you he might just burst embarrassingly fast in his pants.

“Let me in, my wife.” He gently starts massaging your thighs as he parts them, making you feel more exposed than ever, but he distracts you by softly kissing you again and again while he's unbuckling his pants and pushing them down, revealing his throbbing thick, hard cock.

“Capitano—!” you try to squirm away when you feel his tip push into your tight hole, your lips parting from the way he stretched you open, but at the same time you felt relaxed with his soft whispers of ‘take your time’ and ‘you’re doing well, my wife.’

Your cunt soon takes in every inch, swallowing him whole until you were a panting mess, and you didn't even start.

Capitano then began to move, his thrusts slow and deep at first, letting you get used to his size, to how you feel, to how he feels as he makes love to you for the first time together.

You feel your heart up to your throat and ears, it felt incredible, something you've never felt before, your soft moans echoing in the air along with a few groans coming from him.

He shivered when he felt your fingertips trace the few scars littering his shoulders and back, his dick twitching almost instantly before his thrusts grew faster, more urgent.

His hand reached down, returning back to draw circles around the bundle of nerves, and he could feel your body tense, your walls clenching around his cock as he continued to rub your clit.

“come for your husband,” he breaths heavily next to your ear, and you come undone, your moans filling the room as he felt you milk his cock. He could feel his own release following after, his balls tightening before he slammed into you one last time, spilling thick ropes into your womb, until you were filled to the brim.

Your legs were shaking slightly around him, yet his warm embrace afterwards made you melt, eyelids heavy with him still being buried inside you.

—

You groggily woke up, still half in a dream-like state, the room bathed in shadows due to the closed curtains blocking out the morning sun.

As your senses slowly returned to reality, you heard a soft meow next to you, and sure enough, your little kitten had made itself comfortable in the middle of the bed. To your surprise, Capitano, who was still asleep beside you, didn't seem bothered in the slightest by the creature's presence.

“pst,” you whisper to your husband who only hummed in acknowledgment of your attention. “Can we go have a picnic this early morning? With our baby kitten of course.”

Tags: @sayastyx, @nastylilcvnt, @bigboygoose,

[polin-ista]

I'm sorry but I'm almost in awe of Penelope in season 1, to me just top tier badass bitch shit right there. She's 18 people! Not only did she start a successful gossip column before her debut but she also managed to save Daphne from a disgusting engagement and Colin from a naive and disingenuous one but she did all of it by herself. Also while avoiding discovery from bowstreet runners, the Ton AND The Queen.

The woman is a mogul and you cannot convince me otherwise. She is not perfect, no. But my god is she fkn impressive! It's the 1800's y'all! She's in the highest level of society and one of the most sheltered creatures in that time and she is THE rich husband. I am deadass.

Unpopular opinion but honestly? if I was Colin I'd be grateful for what Pen did, sure it was humiliating to have everyone know like that but she tried to tell him. He dismissed her worries like she was a child and honestly I don't blame her after what Marina said.

It's not so much the brutal way Marina said Pen's love was a fantasy, no. What pissed me with Marina is that she also treated Pen like a child. Someone who was supposed to be her friend and she immediately assumes that Pen is doing what she is doing out of pettiness, when honestly, to me Pen didn't look all that surprised when Marina said that Pen's love was a fantasy. In fact she looked irritated, like that was a given. And I don't think it was Pen's deciding factor but the fact that she knew Marina couldn't love him back is what pushed Pen to write the column.

Pen from the books is well aware that her love is unrequited but it doesn't stop her loving him and wishing him happiness with his future wife. She resigned herself long ago to watch him fall in love with someone else. She believes herself born for him but he was born for another, I think in that scene if you listen to the questions Pen asks, it's never about her, it's always about Colin.

[elenasalvatore94]

Cracks in the Armor - 6

Hi, mi amores!

(previous one) https://www.tumblr.com/elenasalvatore94/765072512262488064/the-push-and-pull?source=share

My special couple...

Weeks passed, and despite their best efforts to keep things casual, Chris and Franco found themselves gravitating toward each other more and more. Chris told herself it was just the thrill of the chase, the excitement of secrecy. She would convince herself that she could keep her feelings in check. Franco, however, was different. She could see it in the way he looked at her now. His usual flirtatious charm was still there, but something deeper was lurking behind those green eyes-something that made her uneasy.

There were moments when she caught him staring at her during race weekends, even when they weren't together. Once, after a particularly close race where Franco had finished on the podium, Chris watched him from the press box. Their eyes locked for a brief second, and she saw something raw in his expression. She looked away quickly, pretending she hadn't noticed, but her heart pounded in her chest.

The problem was, she was feeling things too. Real things. It wasn't just physical anymore, and that terrified her. But she buried it, focusing on work and trying to keep their relationship strictly to late-night rendezvous and heated, stolen moments.

The tension between them had been building for days by the time the inevitable explosion finally came. They were back in Monaco, attending an exclusive after-party for the drivers. Franco had just finished another impressive race weekend, and the party was buzzing with energy. Chris was there to cover the event, but the second she walked into the room and spotted Franco across the crowded bar, she felt that familiar pull.

Franco noticed her immediately, his eyes darkening as they trailed over her figure in a sleek black dress. He made his way over to her, ignoring the crowd of people congratulating him on his performance. When he reached her, he placed a hand on her lower back, leaning in close so only she could hear him.

"We should get out of here," he whispered, his breath hot against her ear.

Chris stiffened, her pulse quickening at the sensation of his hand on her. She should say no. She *should* walk away. But instead, she found herself nodding, her body already betraying her better judgment.

They slipped out of the party and made their way back to Franco's place-a sleek, modern apartment that overlooked the marina. The moment the door closed behind them, Franco's hands were on her, pulling her into a searing kiss that made Chris forget all the reasons why she shouldn't be here.

But tonight, something was different. As Franco pressed her against the wall, his lips trailing down her neck, Chris felt an unfamiliar knot of emotions tightening in her chest. This wasn't just lust. This wasn't just fun. And as soon as she realized that, panic set in.

"Stop," she gasped, pushing him away.

Franco immediately pulled back, his expression confused and concerned. "What's wrong?"

Chris shook her head, stepping away from him. "We can't keep doing this. It's too much."

"What are you talking about?" Franco asked, his brow furrowing as he took a step toward her.

"I mean *this*," Chris gestured between them, her voice rising. "We said it was just fun, remember? We said no strings attached. But now, it's... it's complicated."

Franco's expression darkened, and he crossed his arms over his chest. "You're the one making it complicated."

Chris felt her temper flare. "I'm making it complicated? You're the one who keeps looking at me like-like you want more!"

Franco's jaw tightened, and for a moment, Chris thought he was going to brush it off, like he always did. But instead, he stepped closer to her, his eyes flashing with frustration.

"Maybe I *do* want more," he said, his voice low and intense. "Maybe I'm tired of pretending this is just sex."

Chris's heart pounded in her chest, but she shook her head, refusing to let herself believe what she was hearing. "You're just saying that. You don't really-"

"I'm *in love with you*, Chris!" Franco shouted, his voice echoing through the apartment.

The words hung in the air between them, heavy and undeniable. Chris froze, her mind racing as she tried to process what he had just said. Franco, the cocky, confident rookie who had flirted with her during an interview, was standing in front of her, telling her he was in love.

"No, you're not," she said, her voice shaky. "You can't be."

Franco ran a hand through his hair, pacing in front of her like he was trying to hold himself together. "I didn't plan this. I didn't *want* this. But it happened. I'm in love with you, and I can't keep pretending that I'm not."

Chris felt like the ground had been ripped out from under her. This was too much. She wasn't prepared for this. She had told herself over and over that this was just a fling, something that would burn out eventually. But now, hearing Franco say those words, she realized that she had been lying to herself all along.

"I can't do this," she whispered, her voice barely audible.

Franco stopped pacing and turned to face her, his expression raw and vulnerable. "Why not? What are you so afraid of?"

Chris swallowed hard, trying to keep her emotions in check. "I'm afraid of getting hurt. I'm afraid of what people will say, of what this could mean for both of us. You're so young, Franco. I can't be the one who messes up your career."

Franco's eyes softened, and he stepped closer, reaching out to gently cup her face in his hands. "You're not going to mess anything up. I don't care what anyone else thinks. All I care about is you."

Chris closed her eyes, leaning into his touch for a moment, letting herself feel the warmth and safety of his presence. But then the fear crept back in, and she pulled away, shaking her head.

"I need time," she said, her voice trembling. "I can't give you an answer right now."

Franco's face fell, but he nodded, understanding in his eyes. "I'll give you time. But don't wait too long, Chris. I've waited long enough."

With that, he turned and walked out of the room, leaving Chris standing alone, her heart racing and her mind spinning.

She had no idea what to do next. All she knew was that everything had changed, and there was no going back.

[astropookie]

transparent placements?

I wouldn’t say transparent, they’re more obvious or expressive and for the second one yes, they’re. 👀

Picture from Pinterest

*Birth chart placements

Moon 1H

These people show what they feel. They CANT hide their expressions and emotions that show their true intentions. Their reactions are ICONIC, exaggerated and funny. These ones move all the muscles of their faces: they often find age lines in specific places on their faces depending of the gestures and bc of the emotions they feel/externalize more: line between eyebrows (they often are defensive), lines around the lips (there first reaction is to smile), forehead lines (they often raise their eyebrows in disbelief) and more. THEY FEEL IN SUCH AN INTENSE WAY THEY CANT HIDE IT and what they show is the minimum of what they feel, even if they try to express themselves correctly, is difficult to them. Is hard for them to identify their feelings and to understand them. BUT HAHA their responses to everything are just 👌🏼They’re transparent, they “serve” you their emotions, their moods that change constantly -they’re unpredictable-, their sensitive nature that could be an insecurity they have to overcome trough this lifetime -in the past they have told them that being sensitive is synonym of vulnerability and that this one is seen as “bad”. OBVIOUSLY MY BABY THATS NOT TRUE, this people (that told you that) have their own insecurities that were reflected towards you, people tell you things without questioning themselves, whatever’s the reason is…FEELING IS HUMAN, SO REMEMBER THIS IF YOU FEEL BAD BC OF WHAT OTHERS HAVE TOLD YOU (this placement is sensitive towards the critique of others, of what they think)-. FUCK THEM, BE YOURSELF, JUST BC YOU FEEL IN SUCH AN INTENSE WAY DOESNT MEAN ITS LESS OR MORE IMPORTANT. Moon 1H have such an attitude, I KNOW YOU CAN DO IT -overpass this insecurity and OBVIOUSLY whatever you propose yourself, more everything-.

Ascendant conjunct Sun

These are what they present themselves. The first impression you have of them is that they are charming; they have an intense and magnetic aura WHY? bc they don’t hide anything or they don’t try to or they don’t seem to. Their self-confidence, goal oriented and motivated character -that’s enormous and this one explains why and how they overcome hard times and even become better- attracts and influence people just by having contact with them, they’re inolvidable. They have a beautiful and positive vibe, THEYRE SO MAGNETIC and stubborn. “Their behavior and nature are connected”. They’re who they present themselves. They don’t force themselves, they don’t have to. They’re leaders, they have and represent power just by being and believing in themselves.

Mercury trine Jupiter

They can be TOO OPEN, I’m tired. Jk but they end up mentioning things that are so personal that no one asked. They have the need, the URGE to mention them, so people know they’re not lying or bc WHY TF NOT? They just say it and at the end of the day 🤪 you know about this people, about their life, it depends how much they expose while talking. Besides that, they’re so kind and optimistic. If a stranger ask them “hi, do you know where is this place? Blblabla” in the street they’ll be like “of course, walk there and there but if you want another place that’s better there’s there and if you blabla. omg did you recently move into the neighborhood? do you know blabla? I’m her friend, yeah we were in the same class. Yes my mom lives in another country and…” the conversation never ends 🧍Imagine some baby standing in the street waiting for her mom to finish the conversation she just started with a stranger and ups! a hour have passed AND WTF YOU HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL YOUR MOM OVERSHARES EVERYTHING ABOUT HER LIFE INCLUDING HOW YOU DIDNT GO TO THE BATHROOM FOR DAYS SO SHE BOUGHT A SUPPOSITORY SO YOU CAN POOP.

—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•

❀ Based on my personal experience and what I’ve analyzed in my surroundings.

❀ English is not my first language.

❀ I’m not a profesional astrologer, I just love astrology and I’m willing to learn.

Thank youu. baibaiii🫣🫶🏼💋

Do not copy. Please give me credits.

[melanieph321]

Ruben Dias x Reader - The Houseguest (Part 2)

Summary - A three part series where the reader and family goes on a chaotic holiday with Ruben as their guests.

Enjoy

Yeah, last night was most definitely a dream. You woke up the next day and Ruben was nowhere to be find and no one in your family had even heard of him.

"He's like 6 feet, braud shoulders."

"Sounds like you dreamt that shit."

"Anita." Your mother slapped your sisters hands.

"Ouch Mamãe. Whatchu do that for?"

"Don't make your sister feel bad for having wet dreams."

"It wasn't a wet dream." You groaned.

"Wet dream? Who's having wet dreams?" Tomas overheard your conversation upon entering the kitchen. He was shirtless and you would be impressed by the fact that he has been working out, if it wasn't for Ruben. Last night wasn't a dream, there was a six foot man making laps in the pool. He was as tall as a tree and had the most handsome eyes/abs.

"Y/N. She says Bernardo's friend woke her up last night swimming around the pool."

"Bernardo's friend?" Tomas frowned. "Wasn't he supposed to arrive later today?"

"Exactly. Bernardo is probaly picking him up as we speak. Stop watching wierd movies before bed Y/N. You'll have less wet dreams, trust me. "

"I give up." You sighed. "No one believes me anyway."

"There there, let's not argue about who is right or wrong." Your mom said. "Your father wants us to meet him at the yacht festival down by the marina."

"Don't tell me he's buying a boat?" You said.

"No, your father just likes to dream. We will be joining him for lunch."

It was the perfect day for it. The sun was out and a lot of people roamed the Portimão marina. You couldn't help feeling like a third wheel though. Your mother and father walked ahead, arm and arm, whilst your sister and Tomas went off to have their pictures taken in front of a giant yacht. What's so impressive about a boat the same size as a house?

"Psst... Y/N." Somone hissed.

"Huh?" You shifted your head but to no use.

"Overhere."

"Where?"

You were talking to a ghost. It almost sounded like the voice was coming from above you.

"Look up!"

You raised your head to see "Ruben?" hanging off the railings of one of the boats.

"Care to join me?" He smiled.

"You're real!" You wanted to exclaim. "What are you doing here, on this boat? Is it yours?"

You came around the large fleet. Ruben waited to assist you to hop on.

"My uncles actually." He said, stretching out a hand, helping you cross the bridge from the docks.

"Why is it here, parked on the docks? Is it appart of the festival?"

"No, actually it's kind of my way of helping your brother out."

"Help Bernardo? How?"

"Well..." Ruben's smile looked devious. "Turns out this mystery girl of his has expensive taste in men and...."

"Let's me guess." You interrupted. "Bernardo is pretending to be the owner of this boat."

"Oh, he's told you of his plan?"

"No, but I know my brother." You sighed.

"Good, then you know that..."

Emerging, voices interrupted.

"But Pãi, wouldn't you rather enjoy lunch in a nice restaurant than on a boat?"

"No."

"But Pãi."

It sounded like your dad and...

"Bernardo?"

"Y/N?"

"Ruben?"

"Mr Silva."

It was a bit of a mess, with your dad pushing past you to get to Ruben, greeting him like an old friend.And then there was Bernardo, looking a bit stressed to see you on the boat.

"What are you doing here?" He hissed.

"I'm..." You didn't get to finish your sentence until more voices emerged on the boat. This time it was your mother, Anita and Tomas.

"Where did you go Pãi?" Your mother said, breathless from climbing the stairs onto the top deck.

"I told you I spotted Bernie by the docks and look, it was him." Your dad said.

"What's going on and who's he?" Said Anita, pointing to Ruben.

The top deck of the boat was getting really crowded now, something that made your brother more and more anxious.

"Okay, everyone listen up!" He shouted. "I'm suppose to meet a friend for lunch in about five minutes, so can all of you please get off this boat, like now?"

"Friend? What friend?" Your family exchange confused looks.

"I thought you were having lunch with us?" You mother looked quite hurt by the betrayal.

"No, Mamãe. I told you and dad to meet me at the restaurant, after lunch."

"After lunch?" Your dad snorted. "I'm staying, I wanna have lunch on a boat."

"Then I'm staying too." Your mother said, locking arms with your father.

"Me too." Said Anita, which didn't give Tomas much of a choice.

"Alright, alright, alright!" Bernardo looked to want to pull out his hair. "You can all stay. But when my friend, who also happens to be the love of my life..."

"What!" Your family gasped in unison. Ruben however, turned his head for us not to see him chuckle.

Bernardo rolled his eyes. "When she gets here you all have to play along and say that this boat belongs to me and not Ruben's uncle."

"That's Ruben?" Your sister said, her eyes gazing him up and down. She then looked to you.

"Told you." You grimaced.

"Yes. That's Ruben. Ruben meet my family. My parents, two sisters and their boyfriend Tomas."

"Ex!" You hissed

"Right, right. My sisters boyfriend and my other sisters ex boyfriend. We're a fucked up family, I know. Either way. Five minutes guys. Mamãe, Anita, help me set the table. Y/N, help dad bring the food out and Ruben tell the captain to prepare to get this boat off shore."

It was bizarre, Bernardo bossing everyone around for the sake of sceaming some poor woman. But what didn't you do for your family?

Once his mystery woman arrived you were all off to an exclusive trip on Ruben's uncles luxurious yacht.

"I didn't know you had such a big family Bernie." Bernardo's woman said. Upon meeting her you took back the thought of her being poor in any kind of way, because this woman wore designer from top to bottom. Even her red toe nails were painted with Dior nailpolish. No wonder Bernardo felt the need to lie about his middle class upbringing.

"You okay? You look nauseous?"

The only good thing about this unscheduled boat trip is that you got to sit next to Ruben. He often leaned in to whisper funny comments about this whole situation. Somthing that made Anita but specially Tomas, throw irritating glances your way.

"I'm fine. It must be Bernardo and his lies that's got me feeling bubbly."

You thought that would make Ruben laugh, however he kept looking at you with a serious expression.

"Or you could be getting sea sick." He said. The way his eyes held yours made you blush.

"Pass the chicken, will you?"

Somone kicked your foot underneath the table. Anita. "Ouch." You wheezed. "Whachu do that for?"

"Pass me the salt, will you?"

She was too short to reach it and so you passed it to Tomas instead. For some reason he avoided your gaze, looking over your shoulder to where Ruben sat. Perhaps it was because his arm rested around your chair, making it  look like you two were a couple in front of Bernardo's woman She even made a comment about it.

"So cute. How long have you two been together?"

Perhaps Ruben had caught on the dirty looks thrown your way because he was more than happy to play along.

"Two years." He said, moving his arm to really rest around your shoulder. "I was planning on buying her a ring by the end of this month."

"What?" Your sister gasped.

"Honey?" Your mother said concerned, thinking you had been hiding things from her. Your dad however just found it very amusing. Apparently he knew Ruben and his family very well, something that felt really reassuring to you.

"Some more wine meu amor?" Bernardo said, afraid that his cover would be ruined if we all got to comfortable about things.

"No, wine. I wanna hear more about this not so unexpected proposal." His woman, which name was a Russian one that you couldn't quite pronounce, said. "I love weddings."

"Um...well." She really put you on the spot. Good thing Ruben was a better lier than you.

"We're crazy about each other. No point in beating around the bush. I want to merry her."

"But..." Anita cried, however, sudden movment underneath the table indicated that Bernado gave her leg a kick. To your amusement of course.

"A man that knows what he wants. I like it." The woman said.

"I know what I want." Bernardo said, raising his hand.

Once the conversation switched to dogs and golden beaches Ruben leaned in to whisper again. "You sure you're alright, you look really pale."

Maybe he was right. The air around you seemed to get a bit heated. And so both you ad Ruben excused yourself so that you could get to the leeward side of the ship, where the wind blew less. You leaned your body over the railing incase you'd throw up. Ruben however made sure to keep you steady I'm his arms, preventing you from falling over board.

"What's going on here?"

At one point Anita came looking for you. It wouldn't surprise you if she thought you and Ruben had snuck off to get a quicky in somewhere.

"I think she's sea sick." He said.

"Sea sick?" Your sister frowned but took over Ruben's position of holding you steady.

"I'll go talk to the captain, see if he can turn us back around." Ruben said, disappearing somewhere around the corner.

"You good?" Your sister said, patting your back.

"No." You said, spitting out the bad taste in your mouth.

"You know, if this is your plan to make Tomas jealous or something, it is not working."

"What?" You looked up from the railing and couldn't believe what you were hearing.

"Oh please, I see the way you try to flirt with Ruben in front of him. It's pathetic."

"I don't know what your talking about." You muttered.

"No? Either way he is so out of your leauge."

"Excuse me."

"Y/N?" Said Bernardo. If he, Ruben and the rest of your family hadn't come around deck, you might have thrown Anita to the sharks.

"You okay sis?" He said, finally dropping the rich kid act, to be the brother that you knew and loved.

"Do I look okay?" You sighed. The sea sickness was getting worser and worser with the wind that was picking up. Grey clouds roamed the skies, perhaps there was a storm coming?

"Ruben said that the captain wants us to dock at the next Island, stay there til the storm blows over."

"And when is that?" Anita said, folding her arms with the cold breeze.

"Could be later tonight. But Ruben guesses that it won't ware off until morning."

"Morning?" She frowned. "So we're staying overnight on this boat?"

"There is room for everybody." Ruben assured.

"Yay, a sleepover. I love sleep overs. " Bernardo's woman cheered. "Show me to our room baby."

Bernardo was more than happy to.

"But where are we sleeping?" Anita asked.

"What do you mean." Bernardo frowned. He spoke between clenched teeth. " Do I need to remind you about you position in this?" By position he meant his little lie. "Devide the rooms by couples. Pãi and Mamãe. You and Tomas and Y/N and Ruben."

"Y/N can't stay with Ruben." Anita frowned, behind her Tomas looked to want to utter the same thing.

Bernardo however was being torn by his womans eagerness to get to her room and his baggage of a family. "Of course she can, their about to be engaged." He winked and off he went with his girlfriend, leaving you in a very awkward position with your family.

"Mr Silva I...."

Your dad just shook his head when Ruben spoke, silencing him. "The walls are thin on this boat, rember that son."

"Yes, sir."

"Dad." You groaned. It couldn't get anymore disturbing.

"Pãi." Anita spoke up. "You can't seriously let her share rooms with this man. I mean she barely knows him."

"Nitty, your sister is sick, let her rest." He said, to everyone's surprise.

"Mamãe?" Anita turned to your mother, desperate for her to do something about this.

"Your father is right. Y/N needs to rest." She said.

"But...she's...and he's...

You felt a warm hand caress your back. It was Ruben, helping you up to get you inside. This day really took a turn for the worst, even for your family.

[colapintosss]

lips.

after the exciting race in baku, lando and franco met in the paddock area. the british driver approached the argentinean with his characteristic smile.

—congratulations on your first points, franco. you deserved them.—said lando while still smiling at him, looking genuinely happy for him.

franco smiled shyly, feeling a little embarrassed.

—thank you very much, lando. you also had an impressive run today.

but as they continued talking, franco couldn't help but notice that lando kept looking at his lips. at first he thought it was just his imagination, but when lando moistened his own lips with his tongue and then gently bit them, he felt a shiver.

the conversation continued, but franco felt more and more confused. he couldn't help noticing the way lando looked at his lips every time he smiled or laughed, as if he was hypnotized.

—do i have something?—he finally asked, touching his own lips with his fingers to remove whatever was there.

lando blinked, as if coming out of a trance.—no, no. i'm just… admiring your smile.

franco blushed slightly at his answer.—my-my smile?

lando nodded, his gaze meeting franco's gaze.—yes… it's contagious.

the tension between them was palpable. franco didn't know what to do or what to say about the situation, but he didn't want to ignore lando's compliment.

—thank you, lando.—he finally said, his voice a little lower. he cleared his throat before continuing.—i think i should get back to my team.

lando smiled, his gaze still intense.—all right, then. see you later.

franco wondered what was behind that smile, but he couldn't help but feel an emotion he hadn't experienced in a long time.   […]

something happened a few days before the race in singapore, during the test sessions at the marina bay circuit.

franco felt he was being watched. it wasn't just the classic pressure of competition, it was a more intense feeling… like someone was studying him closely.

as he adjusted his seat in the cockpit, franco noticed a figure in the distance. it was lando, with his trademark dark curls and greenish eyes, staring at him.

it wasn't a casual glance; it was as if he wanted to see right through him.

franco was genuinely intrigued and, at the same time, attracted by the intensity of lando's gaze. he couldn't help but feel a shiver down his spine.

and over the next few days, franco noticed that lando looked at him every time they passed each other in the paddock or on the track.

franco began to enjoy the attention.

he felt that lando saw him in a way that no one else did. the way lando looked at him made franco feel seen… wanted.

while preparing for a test drive, franco caught himself looking for lando with his eyes. when their eyes met, franco smiled slightly.

lando responded with an almost imperceptible smile, but franco saw it.

franco began to wonder what those looks of lando's meant. what lando was looking for from him.

but he couldn't deny that he liked lando's attention on him.   […]   the night party after the singapore race was just getting started.

franco was in a corner, drinking a strange drink and watching the other drivers dancing and having fun. he was quiet, enjoying the moment.

but suddenly, he felt a presence behind him. he turned around almost immediately and found lando right in front of him.

lando was staring at him, not smiling.

—hello.—he said shyly, trying to break the silence.

lando didn't respond. his gaze was focused on franco's lips.

franco felt a little uncomfortable, but there was also a pleasant feeling appearing in his lower stomach.

lando moved even closer to him, invading his personal space.—do you want to go somewhere with me?—he asked, his voice low and intense.

—yes, sure. let's go.—he answered immediately.

lando took his forearm and they both began to walk toward the men's bathroom. the music faded into the distance as the other led the way down the hallway.

inside the bathroom, lando closed the door behind them and cornered him against the wall. franco felt trapped, but he honestly didn't want to escape.

lando stared at him, his greenish eyes shining even brighter than usual.—i've been watching you all night.—he said, his voice almost a whisper.

franco felt dizzy.—what do you want from me, lando?

lando didn't answer. instead, he moved closer and kissed franco with intensity.

franco felt consumed by some kind of hot sensation. his heart pounded wildly inside his heaving chest.

the world around him quickly faded away, leaving only franco and lando completely lost in their bubble. both kissed each other intensely, as if they wanted to devour the other.

franco felt his body responding to the kiss with an intensity he had never experienced before.

lando pulled away slightly, his breath hitching. he leaned close to franco's ear and whispered.—i've been wanting to kiss you ever since i first saw you. i want you very much, franco.

franco shivered as he heard lando's words. he felt nervous, but also very excited. lando's confession had taken him by surprise, but it had also turned him on.

without saying a word, franco took the initiative. he moved closer to lando and kissed him hard, his tongue exploring the other's mouth.

lando was surprised for a moment, but then surrendered to the kiss, reciprocating with the same intensity.

his hands grabbed franco around the waist, pulling their bodies closer together.

the music and noise of the party faded into the distance, leaving only the sound of their heaving breaths and the clicks of their messy kisses.

lando moved down to kiss franco's neck, his breath warm on the other's skin. his hands also slid under franco's clothes, caressing his narrow waist.

franco shuddered with pleasure, his body responding to lando's caresses.

but just as things were starting to get good, the bathroom door opened and charles walked in.

his gaze fell on the two pilots, and his face froze in an expression of surprise. lando and franco quickly stepped back, trying to compose themselves. but it was too late, charles had already seen them.

all three looked at each other with their eyes wide open, surprise written all over their faces.

the silence was awkward. lando cleared his throat, trying to break the tension.—charles…. what-what are you doing here?

charles recovered from the surprise and smiled slightly.—nothing, nothing. i just needed to… wash my hands.

franco laughed nervously.—of course. well, we… were j-just… talking.

charles raised an eyebrow.—talking, huh?

lando blushed slightly.—charles, it's not what it looks like.

but charles had already figured it all out. he smiled and walked over to the sink.—i don't need to know what's going on between you, guys. just remember that privacy is an important thing.

the silence that followed was just as awkward as the previous one. lando and franco looked at each other, both thinking about what had happened.

charles' interruption had ruined the moment, but they couldn't deny that what had happened had pleased them both. and they should end it soon.

charles washed his hands and dried himself with a towel, still smiling.—well, guys, i'm just telling you to be more careful for next time, i wouldn't want to interrupt again.

lando and franco looked at each other, both blushing. charles continued.—and you'd better fuck somewhere more private, you know? i don't think you want the whole paddock to know that you two are fucking.

lando laughed nervously.—thanks, charles. we'll keep that in mind.

charles walked out of the bathroom, leaving lando and franco alone again. they both looked at each other and after a few seconds, burst out laughing.

—what the fuck just happened?—asked franco, still laughing.

—i don't know, but i think you and i were on to something very interesting.—lando pressed franco against the wall, his body close to his.—do you want to go with me to my hotel room?—he asked, his voice low and seductive.

franco blushed, but nodded shyly.—yes… i mean, yes, i would like that.

lando smiled and took franco's hand.—let's go then.

they walked out of the bathroom holding hands, with a sense of excitement and anticipation. they both knew what was to come.

as they walked towards the exit, franco wondered what he had initiated with lando. but he couldn't deny the connection he felt with the brit and the excitement that filled his body to know how things would continue between them.

[vinelark]

please share some outtakes im on my knees

oh man most of my outtakes are like, slight paragraphs/scene rewrites, but here are some bbts lines/alternate dialogue options that didn't make the cut!

chapter 1:

But it’s not like Tim could’ve told the kidnappers to call Bruce right away, not until today’s little attempt, which was another check in the failure column. No one else knows Tim has been practically living at Wayne Manor, and if they did it might raise too many questions. Tim can’t create an unnecessary trail of connections between Bruce Wayne and a random kid, especially a random kid in a situation where superheroes and vigilantes might then show up. He knows too well how quickly those connections can snowball if someone puts together one right conclusion, like hold on, Robin just did a quadruple flip—

---

sb aww are you jealous robin excuse me sb that no one’s made @robinsass yet robin absolutely not kon i said i’m not KON. sb http://twitter.com/robinsass i got u robin i’m calling oracle sb no worries i have five backup urls robin joke’s on you anyway unlike nightwing there are no hq photos of me. also i wear a cape. why do you think i wear a cape kon sb to cover the fact that you have no ass : (

chapter 2:

“Oh, no,” Tim wheezes when he’s done hacking up half the marina. He twists to sit heavily on the wet concrete and starts scrabbling at his shoelaces. “My shoes.”

Kon rolls his eyes. That’s it. No more saving rich kids; Kon is putting a wealth cap on all future damsels in distress. “I’m sure they’ll dry.” Or he can buy a new pair—Kon had looked Tim up after the whole kidnapping thing, just to make sure he healed up okay and everything. Kid’s parents are definitely loaded.

---

“Hey—Superboy, hey, are you good at beer pong?”

“Uh,” Kon says. “For PR reasons I don’t think I should answer that.” The answer is that he has no clue, having never played, but if he said that then half the media would have a field day with how his lack of cliché teenage rebellion secretly indicated he wasn’t so human after all. If he lied and said yes, somehow that same half of the media would clutch their pearls over him being a Bad Influence.

“Oh,” Tim says. “Well. Well, I am very good at it.”

“Um. Okay.”

Tim’s face falls. Kon has no idea why he suddenly feels guilty about this.

---

"But for the record, I’m not scared of you,” Red Hood says. “All I have to do is press a button and have Batman run you out of town if you get too annoying.”

“Batman is off-world,” Kon says, a little smugly.

Hood glares through his mask in a way that tells Kon he knows that, and is annoyed that Kon does too. Good. “Then I guess that leaves me in charge.”

chapter 3:

“What are you going to get Superboy?” Steph says. “Maybe a nice cheese plate?”

“I am going to frame Dick for tax fraud,” Tim mutters. He’s taken to hiding the charcuterie board Kon made in one of his city caches now, because Dick kept sneaking it onto the dinner table every time he visited the manor.

---

“What the—” Muffled talking on the other end. “He says he’s not sure,” the girl says to someone else. “Tim, explain this to me in small words.”

“Um.” Tim rubs his temple. “I’m with Superboy. He—found me. And took me somewhere, somewhere safe, so I’m okay for now.”

It does not escape Kon’s notice that Tim doesn’t mention the part where he apparently gave his gas mask to a kid and got a full dose of fear toxin. He raises an eyebrow, but Tim is doing a great job of avoiding eye contact.

There’s a long beat. “Oh my god,” the girl says.

“Yeah.”

“Oh my god. You are so lucky I don’t have time for follow-up questions. Call me as soon as you’re home.”

(bonus chapter 4:

Kon spares a moment to be impressed that Tim has already figured out where they are, and says, “Because any good date starts with a good snack.”

Tim’s hand spasms where he’s rolling back the jacket cuffs. “A good date, huh?”)

[nightcolorz]

more on dissociative armand- some songs that i feel fit him & this headcanon very well because i cant not relate him to songs (my armand playlist is something like 17 hours long at this point, not including 3 separate ones that are also for him)

- Christine by Siouxsie and The Banshees

“she tries not to shatter, kaleidoscope style, personality changes behind her red smile, every new problem brings a stranger inside, helplessly forcing one more new disguise”

Now, this song is actually about a woman named Christine with DID, but with this headcanon the songs, and particularly these opening lyrics match up with Armand very well, both with his disconnect between Armand, Amadeo and Arun and with his intense masking to hide his abnormalities and discomforts.

- Valley of the Dolls by Marina (and the Diamonds)

“Born with a void, hard to destroy with love or hope, built with a heart, broken from the start”

&

“Living with identities that do not belong to me”

&

“Pick a personality for free, when you feel like nobody”

This song has a whole lot of thing that feel very Armand so i’ll go in order of the lyrics.

The first set of these lyrics definitely reminds me of Armand thinking and talking about his own past and what little he remembers of it. When he is talking to Daniel in 1973 he uses the metaphor of a black hole to talk about the absence of a meaningful self or life, which he projects onto Daniel even as it relates to himself a lot more. Armand is always a character that is sort of “doomed from the start”, his narrative of horrors and dehumanisation beginning at such a young age (even with things like “not made from human hands”) that he doesn’t really know anything else. He doesn’t have any sense of self than a void, and his heart really is broken from the start, never really being able to love someone or understand love at all. (“would he recognise love, if he were to experience it?”)

The second set of lyrics add onto this and the HC of dissociative disorders/ his identities really being separate. The identities of Amadeo and Armand never did belong to him, they were given to him, assigned to him by Marius and Allessandra respectively. Then there is Arun, who he doesn’t remember. He doesn’t know if that was his true name at all and all he does remember is when that life and identity was taken from him. It doesn’t come back up until his relationship with Louis, and when it starts to be used in their unhealthy Dom/Sub relationship, it again doesn’t belong to him, but to Louis.

The third set of lyrics really is an add on to the second, Armand doesn’t really feel like anyone, he has no fixed identity, so he keeps choosing different parts to play to please or serve whoever he’s around and what they want, be it Lestat, the theatre coven, Louis or Daniel. These come so easily and freely because it’s all he knows, it’s not putting a mask over a real person, its becoming another phantom of a person that he has always been.

- Another Marina song, Fear and Loathing

“I’ve lived a lot of different lives, been different people many times, I lived my life in bitterness, and fill my heart with emptiness”

&

“Got different people inside my head, I wonder which one that they like best, I’m done with trying to have it all, and ending up with not much at all”

I don’t really have anything to say here that wouldn’t be repeating what I said for Valley of the Dolls as it’s very much the same thing, but these lyrics are too fitting not to also mention, and this song is So Very Armand both in lyrics and sonically, it has that perfect dreamy-gentle yet heartbreaking tone.

Last but not least Identity by X-Ray Spex gives me a very similar vibe even if the tone is very different (a classic punk song). I can’t really say much about the lyrics as they are quite repetitive (“Identity is the crisis can’t you see”) but it’s very Armand nonetheless and gives me the impression of Old man no nonsense Daniel confronting him about his lack of self

YESSSS UR SO RIGHT THESE R PERFECT!!!! Every time I get sent Armand songs I get ten more years on my life

[shininglynxie]

Alright, now that the English version of the Now or Never Seven song is out, I'm gonna share my thoughts and analyze it a bit.

Spoilers ahead! In case you haven't listened to it yet, you can watch the video here. If you'd like to hear the song in-game first, I reccomend skipping the post entirely.

I'll get my general impressions on Three Wishes out of the way first and then share my analysis of the lyrics.

I really like how this song starts with the idols that are always on the left during the news singing, with the ones that are usually on the right following, and then all of them singing in unison! It's just really cool to hear!

I really enjoy how they've tackled the themes of past, present, and future in each of the idols' verses. My favourite would have to be Deep Cut's, though, as their verse tackles the future from an almosst folk tale-like perspective, which is very in character for Deep Cut and their music. I also love that each idol gets to showcase their individual singing styles in their groups respective verses. All of the harmonies that idols share in this song are lovely! It's just so great to hear all of their voices together like that. This one harmony they have in the end is the best one ,though. It's just so beautiful!

Now I wanna highlight some one-off things I like about some parts of this song.

I really enjoy Pearl's rap part! Her lines feel very in character for her, and I love that!

These Deep Cut lines are also very cute and sweet! They really show just how close their bond is!

Now, let's do some lyric analysis. All of this is just gonna be my thoughts and ideas. I can't know for sure what the exact intentions behind any of these lyrics was.

We're starting off with the Squid Sisters' verse.

"We've come far, you and I, on our journey" - This line to me seems to be a nod to the more mature characterization that the Squid Sister have in Splatoon 3. Alongside, naturally, acknowledging the fact that they're longstanding Splatoon characters.

"Did you think back then we'd be here? Guiding others in our shoes?" - This line feels like the Squid Sisters directly acknowledging the people right around them - Off the Hook and Deepcut - other idols, who were no doubt inspired by them. Besides that, this lyric also almost feels like an acknowledgment of all the octarians, who the Squid Sisters have guided with their performances of Calamari Inkantation.

"Words you write, line by line, showing us your sights. Passed down to us so we sing them today, we feel you still." - These lines seem to be a nod to Callie and Marie's heritage in the Calamari County, as well as Calamari Inkantation, as it is a song that was passed down onto Callie and Marie that they still sing to this day.

Now it's time for Off the Hook.

Let's get the obvious out of the way first. Here are all of the lyrics that show just how gay Pearl and Marina are for each other: "My brightly burning radiance drew you to me", "I've been searching, all of my life, finally I've found my north star. My heart's synced up, a satellite, orbiting wherever you are.", "With you, nothing can stand in my way", "Having you by my side makes today perfect."

The line "My heart's synced up, a satellite, orbiting wherever you are." could also be a reference to Off the Hook's space-themed Splatoon 3 outfits

Lastly, it's Deep Cut's verse.

Like I mentioned above, it seems to me that Deep Cut's lyrics here are very folklore inspired, and they talk about the future from this sort of fantastical fictional perspective.

Like, for example, the hardships that you may face in the future are seemingly likened to monsters and forces of evil in such lines as: "Till we reach the lair where evil lies in wait!" and "The monsters that we face ahead?".

Shiver and Frye seem to almost put themselves in the shoes of the hero of a folk story in these lyrics in general.

The use of the word journey in the line "What in the world could be at the journey's end?" makes me think of the hero's journey which is a common story structure in folk tales.

The line "What will we find in the land beyond the sands?" treats the future almost like a goal to be reached by the hero of a tale.

Whew, that's it, I think. All in all, I absolutely love this song, and I'm very excited to hear all the other Grand Fest music that will undoubtedly be a part of it!

If you've read all the way until the end, thank you! If you enjoyed this ramble of mine, I do suggest you stick around, as this won't be the last. I'm sure of it.

[dudduk4992]

A beached surfer, part 1

Caleb sighed, looking out onto the beach. It was a perfect day, with not a cloud in the sky, the brilliant yellow sand was teeming with people, talking, sunbaking, playing volleyball, building sandcastles, and splashing in the water. Everywhere he looked, he saw people enjoying the sun.

The hotel next door teamed with tourists, just like it seemed to do every summer when Caleb’s dad sent him here to work at his uncle’s restaurant, “The Seaside Crab”  where Caleb worked during his summers instead of enjoying it like everyone else. It always seemed worse to think about, but when he got there it wasn’t so bad, especially since his uncle actually paid him properly now, and with all the tourism they were reeling in, Caleb could only imagine what his bank account would be looking like. Caleb sighed again,

"Caleb! Stop mucking about and clear some tables!" Caleb heard his big sailor-looking uncle yell from within the confines of the kitchen at the front of the restaurant. Caleb gulped and quickly zoomed around the restaurant, clearing tables one at a time.

As Caleb cleaned up another table, stacking the dishes and wiping at the stains on the table, he resumed his daydreaming position at the large wooden bar, adjacent to a long, tall wall lined with glass windows. As he stared even longer, his eyes stayed in the same position, looking out the window despite hearing the front of the cafe's door jingle.

A shadow shunted his daydreaming; he noticed a tall, blonde, wide figure standing at the bar in his peripheral vision. It took Caleb a moment or two to realise that the stranger was waiting for him. "Could I get an iced tea, two lemons please?" Caleb heard the hunky surfer say in his deep voice. It was none other than the legendary Kanen Ariki. A local legend around Marina Beach. He was the only surfer to catch some huge waves, not to mention his insane popularity. When he wasn’t surfing or partying, he worked as a lifeguard at the beach.

Kanen was Polynesian and only 21, two years older than Caleb- and was fully ripped. Big, buff and covered head to toe in muscle, he had a massive chest with huge, meaty pecs and pink cherry-sized nipples, his thighs and calves enormous, and his abs well defined. His face was wide and handsome with a strong jawline, his eyes bright brown with a cut through his left eyebrow. He had various rings in both ears, as well as a double piercing through his right eyebrow and belly button.

His hair was cut in short curtains and dyed blonde while the roots remained black. The hunk also had some impressive Polynesian tattoos; several bands around his right arm, wrist and leg, as well as some triangles, reaching up to the bottom of his belly button. He wore a blue faded singlet, black board shorts and no shoes.

"I- uh, ohhhh..." Caleb Stuttered, gazing in awe at the surfer, he completely forgot what he was doing as he watched Kanen take a table number and sit down.... right next to where Caleb was cleaning. Was this really happening!? Caleb couldn't believe it!

"Hey man, not to rush you, but my stomach’s telling me it’s time to eat," Kanen said with a laugh, noticing that Caleb was stuck daydreaming for almost ten minutes.

"Oh! sorry!" Caleb yelped. "What can I get you today? we have some specials on, if you’re interested, I can show you what they are..." Caleb trailed off, gazing at the blond hunk's breathtaking abs.

"Uh yeah, I'll just get a club sandwich, extra meat, extra cheese, and double side pickle, please. And two iced teas while you're at it" Kanen says with a wink, his voice filled with that deep swagger many surfers carried.

“Right... right, is there anything else?” Caleb murmured.

“Nope! You’re good to go…” Kanen squinted at Caleb’s name tag. “Caleb.” Kanen looked up with a grin. “Nice to meet you, Caleb.” It took Caleb everything he had not to melt at the surfer hunk’s words.

“That… that should be ready soon sir.” Caleb piped, turning and hurrying over to the counter. As he did, he quickly scribbled the order on a piece of paper. However, what Caleb didn’t realize was that he had scribbled Kanen's order underneath a previous order that had come and gone, a family meal in fact. Caleb blindly handed his uncle the order without noticing and went back to clearing tables and taking more orders, sneaking glancing at Kanen when he could. Ten minutes passed as Caleb continued to work, occasionally glancing up at Kanen while he did.

Caleb eventually began to zone back into his work, prioritizing his tasks, rather than gazing at Kanen. Caleb was in the middle of clearing a recently emptied table when he heard someone approach him from behind. He turned around and found himself staring at Kanen, who stood there with a smile on his face.

"Hey there again." Kanen greeted him. "Sorry to bother you, Caleb- but I was just wondering if you knew when my food would be ready? It’s been nearly fifteen minutes." Kanen said with an innocent smile.

Caleb felt his eyes widen. He hadn't realized how much time had passed since he took Kanen's order. "Oh- uh, lemme go check for you." Caleb said quickly as he rushed off to the counter, where his uncle was busy cooking.

"Hey, Uncle Finn!" Caleb gasped. "A customer asked when his food would be out, he's been waiting for fifteen minutes."

"Well, I sure as hell won't be able to figure out his meal if you don't tell me what it is!" Uncle Finn grunted back as he chopped the head off a fish.

"Uhh... '1 club sandwich, double pickle and extra everything' plus two ice teas... For Kanen Ariki." Caleb said aloud, feeling a little embarrassed by the situation.

Uncle Finn glanced across the orders above his head and frowned. "Son, I dunno what you did wrong but I don't have that order here." He muttered. "I DO have an order for one Kanen Ariki, and it does have that sandwich and those ice teas, but there's more than what you said."

Before Caleb could say a word, his uncle placed a full tray on the bench, and it was indeed not what Kanen had ordered; 2 extra large burgers and sides of chips, a large panini, a regular garden salad, A T-bone steak, 2 plates of fish and chips, A regular lasagna, a basket of garlic bread- and of course, the two ice teas and the club sandwich to top it all off.

"Oh Caleb..." Uncle Finn leaned on the counter and covered his eyes. "How did you mess this up." he looked up with a tired smile. "You truly are one of a kind, lad."

Caleb felt himself grow pale as he realized he had messed up.

"I- I'm so sorry..." Caleb murmured, and the boy felt his face go from pale to beet red.

Uncle Finn chuckled and placed a hand over his shoulder. "Don't worry about it kid. I know you'll do better next time, you always do. Just apologize and tell the guy there was a mixup and give him the things he ordered- bring the rest back to me so I can bin it."

Caleb nodded silently and took the tray of food, turning on one heel and quickly made his way across the restaurant. As he approached Kanen's table, he found Kanen smiling at him, but his smile quickly turned to confusion as Caleb set the tray down on the table.

"Hey bro... I didn't order all of this?" he said, confused.

"No you didn't." Caleb confirmed, avoiding eye contact. "I- uh… there was a mixup in the kitchen... and your order got put down with a previous order- but here."

Caleb picked up the plate with the gigantic club sandwich on top. Uncle Finn had used an entire loaf of bread, sliced through the half, and put all of the fixings inside to create the biggest sandwich both Caleb and Kanen had ever seen in their lives.

"W-woah dude... I said club sandwich, not a surfboard panini!" Kanen practically yelped, grinning from ear to ear. "Guess I'm getting my money's worth!" The tanned surfer laughed, a hand resting on his exposed belly. "Seriously dude... thanks for this... you're awesome!" He said. "But I wanted to ask, what's gonna happen to all of this?"

"Uh, I'll probably have to dump it." Caleb replied. "I can't give it to other customers who ordered the same thing. Health code, you know?"

Kanen looked down at the food with a frown. "You can't throw this all away. There's enough food here for a whole family..." he said, gesturing with his hands at the large amount of food in front of him.

"I know." Caleb felt awful, but he really didn't know what else could be done.

"Here, just leave it with me and I'll eat as much of it as I can." Kanen replied with a shrug.

Caleb blinked. "What?"

"It's either that or the garbage disposal, and I hate it when good food is wasted." Kanen grinned. "So yeah, leave it with me."

"Uh... okay, are you sure?" Caleb murmured, placing it all on the table, including the drinks, before picking the empty tray up.

"Yeah man, no worries, I'll see how much I can polish off. Thanks again!" Kanen smiled.

Caleb nodded and left it at that and hurried back to his uncle to give him the tray. When he got to the counter, Uncle Finn was watching Kanen closely. "So he decided to keep all that food huh? Better than chucking it in the bin I say." Uncle Finn said with a chuckle. "He's got one big ass feed ahead of him!"

"Uhh yeah..." Caleb murmured, still blushing as he glanced back to the surfer boy and his massive meal.

***

Kanen wasn't sure if he would even be able to eat this much food. Here, he had arrived for a simple sandwich, and now he had a family-sized feast on top of that. Kanen worked on his original order first, drilling through the club sandwich at a steady pace. The mix of meat, cheese, pickle and lettuce made an explosion of flavour in his mouth as the young stud savoured every bite of the huge sandwich. He ate slowly, enjoying each and every morsel. As he neared the end of his sandwich, Kanen noted that he felt full, his stomach holding its regular curve after a simple meal like this- but his meal was far from over.

"Wow, that was amazing..." Kanen murmured to himself as he took a long sip from his first iced tea, before sighing and wiping his mouth with a napkin. He already felt kinda stuffed though, he thought looking down at his bulging gut.

But there was no time to waste, the food was there, and it needed to be eaten. After he finished the sandwich, Kanen dug into his burger with gusto. The paddy was juicy and fresh, stuck to a slice of melted cheese and accompanied by fresh crisp lettuce, tangy sauce, onions, bacon and tomato. It tasted incredible as he ate it, savouring every bite. With one burger done, the second followed in no time at all. With both now in his steadily growing belly, the young stud took a moment to finish the rest of his first iced tea, sucking down the sweet peach juice like water after a run.

"*BUARRP!*" Kanen belched and blushed as two customers close by glanced at him, Kanen ran a hand over his developing stomach under his singlet, before working on his two sides of chips, each slice of fried potato cooked to perfection as he drowned them in tomato sauce and tore into them ravenously.

The young surfer felt like he could take on the world, his gut was slowly expanding and so full of good food that it felt like he had swallowed a small soccer ball. He had never eaten this much in one sitting before, but he had to admit that he felt great. His muscles were well-fed, and his mind was clear, he felt good, and he was ready to tackle anything that came his way.

With that thought in mind, Kanen worked on his last side of chips and began eating slowly as he watched the people around him. After a few minutes, Kanen moved on his panini. The crust was crisp and the fillings were warm and delicious. The beef was tender and the cheese gooey, the flavors mixing together perfectly. Even though he already felt overly stuffed, Kanen devoured the panini in only a few bites, pausing to take sips from his second iced tea until both the tea and panini were gone.

Kanen burped again, this time not feeling as embarrassed, largely because of how stuffed the surfer stud felt. His slightly bloated muscle gut had expanded substantially, stretching his singlet even further than before as his underbelly dug into the hem of his boardshorts. Kanen knew he wasn't going to be able to fit into his pants for a while.

Now Kanen sat there, stuffed to bursting, yet content. He stared at the remains of his meal; the salad, Steak, double order of fish and chips, basket of garlic bread, and large lasagna, and wondered if he should just leave it there. But he couldn't bring himself to do it. If he did, then he would feel guilty for wasting such a large amount of food, and besides- something about this whole situation he had ended up in felt... good?

In a way eating all this food made Kanen feel amazing. The very idea of pushing the limits of his stomach, even though he was stuffed to the brim made Kanen's body tingle, and the thought of how big his gut would become made him more excited. Kanen took a deep breath and made his decision, he was going to finish every last piece of this food, and then he was going to enjoy a good long rest.

Eager now, Kanen filled a glass of water and downed it in one gulp before he started with the garden salad and garlic bread; The salad was light and refreshing, while the Garlic bread was hot and gooey and crispy. By the time he was done, the surfer was sweating and moaning, his belly was distended so much that it now jutted off of his body a good few inches. He could feel it stretching his singlet further, his gut pushing against the fabric as it grew. it had even begun to slide up due to the great volume of his gut, revealing a slither of his hairless belly.

Steadily running out of steam, Kanen turned his attention to the large steak. Kanen cut the steak into bite sized pieces and began going to work; the meat was tender and juicy, he found after the first mouthful, the juices running down his chin and dropping onto the singlet straining itself around his enormous gut. The steak was served with a side of fries and salad, both of which the hunk was able to finish off with relative ease. Kanen pulled at his boardshorts, which were unbelievably tight now. Kanen burped again, feeling up his tank of a belly, enjoying the fullness and tightness it caused.

He had no doubt that many of the customers in the restaurant were staring at him, especially the ones who had been here since the start and had seen how much food he had consumed. After finishing off the Steak, Kanen felt his gut throbbing now, his abs and stomach muscles burning tight as his belly begged him to stop eating, and that only made him want to eat more.

Kanen realized that if he was gonna get through the remains of the food, he was gonna need more drinks. By some streak of luck, the waiter boy Caleb passed by to clear a table, although Kanen could see that Caleb was also using this opportunity to stare at the surfer's impressive belly.

"Hey... *URP* Caleb?" Kanen spoke up with a long breath.

Caleb turned right around to face him, his cheeks flushed red. Caleb couldn’t belive how huge he had grown!

"Y-Yeah?" Caleb asked nervously, his eyes darting between Kanen's bulging gut and the huge amount of food that was still piled on the table.

"Do you *HIC* think you could grab me two more of those *BUUARP* iced teas?" Kanen asked, resting his hands on his belly.

"Uh... yeah of course," Caleb replied, his voice shaking as he quickly walked over to the kitchen, returning five minutes later with two bottles of iced tea.

"Thanks," Kanen replied with a shy smile.

"No problem... just let me know if you need anything else," Caleb said,  his face growing redder by the second. "I- need to go clear more tables." Caleb rushed off and Kanen couldn't help but laugh to himself. The poor guy looked so flustered, but he didn't blame him. Kanen could only imagine what a sight his gut must be for everyone else.

The fish and chips were by far the hardest to eat, although the battered Cod and chips were crunchy and tasty, they were both dry, and Kanen found himself gulping down a whole iced tea between the two servings. As he polished off the seafood, Kanen felt his belly grow tighter and tighter, it was beginning to push against his waistband as his gut now took up a good portion of his lap. It seemed like he might have to pull down his board shorts if it continued to get any larger.

Kanen had to stop himself from laughing as he marveled at how big his stomach had gotten, he had never been this big before. "Holy shit..." Kanen muttered, looking down at his stomach, which groaned and growled as it struggled to digest the mass amount of food inside. After another glass of water to wash down his throat, the young surfer made his way to his final course, the lasagna.

As he cut into the lasagna, he was surprised to find that it was still warm; the cheese, mince, sauce and pasta sheets melting as he placed the first forkful into his mouth. Kanen had to stifle back a moan as he ate, the taste was incredible. Even though he felt on the brink of bursting point, Kanen devoured the dish with relish, watching his obscenely huge muscle gut creep forward a bit with each delicious, gooey mouthful.

Part of Kanen knew he had eaten past his limit, and yet somehow he was still pushing on, the engorged stud stuffing himself with every ounce of willpower he had. It felt like an eternity before the plate was empty, his gut bloated and stretched beyond its limits, the weight of his belly pressing on his thighs as he sat there. When he was done, Kanen felt like a new man. His belly was stretched to its maximum capacity, obscenely huge and distended, making him look 9 months pregnant. But Kanen was happy with the blissful fullness that came with eating so much food. The weight of everything he had eaten, the pressure in his gut, the strain of his abs and the heat of digestion made him feel so tired.

"Ahhhhhhh!" Kanen moaned loudly as he threw back his head and let loose another deep, manly belch, the sound echoing throughout the restaurant. He closed his eyes, trying to hold in the next one but failing miserably. "Bwuaaarrrp!" Another loud belch escaped the surfer's lips as he looked at the large stack of empty plates in front of him. Something about it made Kanen feel proud, like he was some sort of gluttonous beast who was being rewarded for his excesses.

And so, Kanen struggled to stand up from his seat, his belly was so heavy and his abs stretched to the absolute limit, his legs felt like jelly as it took the stud a moment to adjust to his newfound weight. His singlet had ridden up so much that it only encompassed half of his overgorged belly. Kanen felt all eyes on him as he swaggered over to the counter slowly, holding his gut in both hands like a newborn as he tried not to burp loudly again.

Up at the counter, Kanen found Caleb waiting; a look of complete awe on his face as he gazed upon the young surfer's huge stomach.

"I believe I... *HIC* have a *BUUARRPP* meal to pay for..." Kanen chuckled, patting his belly proudly.

"Oh my God," Caleb gasped. "I can't believe you ate all that." Caleb began to grin from ear to ear. "That was incredible man... I've never seen someone pack away that much food!"

"Thank you *BWARP* Caleb..." Kanen laughed slowly. "I think I've *HIC* had my fill..." Kanen chuckled, his stomach wobbling slightly as he let out another burp, handing the young waiter his credit card, but Caleb shook his head.

"It’s on the house man." Caleb smiled. "You earned it."

***

Kanen lay sprawled out on the hood of his car as he watched the late afternoon sun dwindle on the horizon, the sky turning orange as the evening approached. The young stud had one arm behind his head, and the other wrapped around his gargantuan gut, releasing satisfied burps as he sighed contently. He felt so full... so fucking full... but so good too. The tightness, the weight, the size of his belly all felt incredible.

Kanen let out a long sigh as he brought his hand from his swollen belly down to hard manhood, stroking himself idly as he basked in the glow of his accomplishment. This had been quite possibly the most fun he'd ever had in his life. Eating so much food had left him completely exhausted and drained, his muscles ached and his mind was fuzzy from all the food he had forced into his system, but despite all that, Kanen wanted to see what other places did with order mix-ups.

This summer was going to be fun with people like Caleb around.

[demonic0angel]

Chapter 8 of Ghost Games is out!

(Please start subscribing, I'll stop posting chapters on tumblr after this chapter)

Sparrow's eyes widened. "You're the guy that Brittany likes!"

Oleander glared at him viciously. Marina, however, flinched and ducked her head. Sparrow closed his mouth silently, already feeling the judgement through Oleander's dagger-like gaze.

Nightingale and Robin were silent for a moment, obviously contemplating the new information.

Then Robin asked, "Why did you start killing students? What happened?"

Oleander turned to look at Marina, who stared at him with wet eyes. She clutched at his sleeve and he sighed and relented.

He turned to them and began to explain the sequence of events at East High School.

It had all started when a scholarship student had entered the school. The student was Marina, and she had been a target for bullying since Brittany knew about her. No one defended Marina because she had no friends and couldn't speak well, so even teachers didn't like her.

Marina said in a croaky voice, "I-It's because I s-s-stutter."

"It's because I stutter," Oleander repeated gently.

Marina nodded, and said in a softer tone, "It's... it's because I stutter."

Oleander smiled at her gently but when he turned back to them, his eyes seemed like he wanted to eat them alive. Sparrow was low key impressed by his two-facedness.

Oleander continued his tale. He talked about how he met Marina, found her being bullied and then protected her on instinct. To him, it had been love at first sight.

At that, Marina rolled her eyes lightly but a flush still crept over her face, bringing attention to the mangled scar on her cheek. Nightingale cooed audibly and she flushed further, ducking her head. Oleander smiled at the sight and pulled her closer to him, where she nuzzled him.

Even Sparrow, oblivious as he usually was, felt like the two were deeply in love.

Oleander continued and spoke about how the bullying escalated, even when he tried to stop Brittany by getting her in trouble, scolding her, or bringing it to the authorities. However, nothing happened, even when Marina had her face mutilated by Brittany.

"Nothing I could do was enough. I even threatened her and she laughed in my face. I couldn't stay with Marina all the time, and even when I replaced all of the locks in Marina's room, Brittany would still find ways to make her life hell. The teachers and principal defended her whenever I brought it up."

Sparrow frowned again.

"Nothing happened?"

Oleander snarled, "They're all greedy for money. Of course they wouldn't care about a poor student. I'm rich, so I took care of Marina when I could, but my family's money and power wasn't enough to handle Brittany."

It all came to a head when Brittany finally had enough of Marina and turned crazy. She took Marina from her dorm room and she and her cronies tied her up and beat her. Then as a final act of revenge, they hung her in the supply closet.

Oleander's expression was blank as he explained the events. Marina hugged his arm silently, the bruises even more obvious on her skin now that Sparrow knew what had happened. His heart hurt for her and he wished that she wouldn't have had to suffer.

Nightingale clutched him even tighter and Sparrow let her. Robin silently pressed up against Nightingale's other side and Sparrow noticed his clenched fists that were placed on his lap.

"I found her in the supply closet. It was 3 in the morning when I did. I just woke up, I don't know, it was a feeling. When I found her..." Oleander was silent.

Marina, for the first time in a long time, spoke up. "H-He killed himself. For me. Aft-After that, he s-started killing people."

"After that." Oleander said gently.

"After that, he started killing people." Marina repeated clearly. "We... we couldn't speak to each other as ghosts b-but... but because you freed me, I can now speak to him."

She smiled at Oleander shyly.

Oleander kissed her hair and turned to them with a hard look. "You're players, aren't you?"

"You know you're NPCs?" Robin blurted, surprised.

Oleander gave a snort. "All of the ones who can think for themselves do."

Robin's eyes lit up. "What caused you to stay here? Can you tell me anything about the scenarios?"

Oleander glanced at Marina, who was staring at him in confusion. Then he said, "I'm the only one that has a deal with the Lord God. Don't... don't be eager to earn a wish." Then he looked pained and he stood up, moving away from Marina's hold. "I have to go. You completed the scenario, so the bus should be available to you now. Go find it."

With elation, Sparrow realized that they were now free. By helping Marina down, Oleander would reveal himself and then tell them the urban legend. Without finding the corpse here, there would be no way of completing the scenario without any more difficulty.

Coincidences and planning brought them here. The satisfaction of solving this mystery filled Sparrow with satisfaction.

"Ollie!" Marina blurted. "W-W-Where—!" She stuttered, unable to speak in her nervousness as her eyes began to water.

Oleander stroked her hair and said in a sweet tone, "I'm sorry, I have to go. I'll come find you, okay? These people will get you out." He gestured to the three of them and although Sparrow was a little annoyed that a guy who punched him was ordering him around, seeing how he was trying to comfort Marina, Sparrow just sighed and nodded.

"What's going on?" Nightingale asked and Oleander glanced at her.

"When the bus comes, there'll be one last final attack from the scenario. I'm part of it. Take Marina with you and bring her to safety. I'll come get her once I burn down this hellhole." He clenched his fists but then relaxed and smiled at Marina again, who was beginning to cry.

"I'm sorry. I'll come get you though, I promise. Be good. Go with them."

"No! No, no, I'll s-stay with you!" Marina sobbed.

"Be good," he said again and then he turned into a shadow and flew off.

Marina cried with heart wrenching sobs. Nightingale let go of Sparrow to hold her, consoling her gently. "Come on, Marina. Oleander doesn't want you to be sad. You have to listen to him, okay? Don't be sad, he made a promise to you."

"We have to find the bus." Robin paused and then turned to Sparrow, "Sparrow, you go with Nightingale and find the bus. Nightingale, you take care of Marina."

"What about you?" She asked anxiously. Sparrow was also wide eyed, feeling extremely worried that Robin would suddenly sacrifice himself by doing something stupid.

Robin smiled reassuringly at them. "I'm going to go to the library to broadcast an announcement. I'll try to evacuate everyone, you just get to safety."

"But what about you?!" Nightingale cried out. "What'll happen if you get hurt?"

Robin smiled. "I'm Robin. I'll be fine."

Once again, he mentioned 'robin'. Did that mean something?

Sparrow still didn't know, but he sounded so confident that Sparrow couldn't get angry. He held onto Nightingale's arm and nodded once to Robin. "I'll take care of them. Go!"

Robin saluted him and turned to run out the door.

Knowing that she couldn't stop him, Nightingale looked resigned and she called out, "Stay safe! Come back quickly!"

Sparrow pulled on her arm. Marina had finally stopped crying and was silent, just pressed against Nightingale. "C'mon. We have to get Marina out before Oleander does whatever he has to do."

He lead the two girls through the school.

When Oleander said that the scenario would prepare one final attack on them, he wasn't wrong or exaggerating at all.

Ghosts and ghastly looking students came crawling out of the shadows. Teachers and faculty staff weren't far behind, holding weapons and smiling maliciously. Some of them jerked around like zombies while others darted forward like arrows, determined to kill the three. They were especially agitated when they noticed Marina, frothing at the mouth and turning red eyed.

Crowds of ghosts and monsters converged together to grab and maul Marina to death. Sparrow could even see the male hallway monitor approaching, carelessly killing his comrades in an effort to kill the three of them.

Sparrow fought them back and began to clear a path for both Nightingale and Marina.

Suddenly, there was a loud, shrill beeping from the speakers. Sparrow hissed through his teeth, covering his ears. Nightingale grimaced, using her hands to cover Marina's ears.

Then, there was Robin's voice from overhead, "All students, please evacuate. The scenario is finally ending. Please evacuate the building. The scenario is finally ending."

He repeated this several times.

Sparrow breathed a sigh of relief after hearing his voice and then he took Nightingale and Marina's hand to pull them out of the school.

Marina whimpered. "Ollie," she whispered the moment they left through the doors.

"He'll come get you," Nightingale soothed her.

Sparrow looked around and observed their surroundings.

He had intentionally brought them to the back of the school, knowing that schoolbuses usually picked up students at the back.

True to his memory, he saw a line of neatly packed schoolbuses, each dyed a rusty yellow and covered with mold and cobwebs. He continued to lead the girls as they all peeked inside of the windows, trying to identify which bus would take them away.

That was when he heard a distant explosion and then heat flared behind him. He turned and his eyes widened.

The school had lit on fire, flames blazing proudly to the sky, dying the night clouds a deep and ominous red. Shrieks immediately filled the air. Sparrow shuddered hard, barely able to resist panicking as the sounds of ghosts and spirits dying filled his ears.

"Robin!" Nightingale called out in horror but Marina was even louder than her.

"Ollie!!" She screamed, sobbing.

Sparrow began to panic now.

He had to find the bus. If Robin wouldn't come back to them, he still had to protect Nightingale and bring her to safety.

He couldn't fail.

It was his duty.

Sparrow kept searching and just as he was inspecting a random bus, trying to figure out what identified it as their transport of escape, there was a snarl behind them.

Sparrow turned and a player, the very same wolf dude that had tried to pick a fight with him on the first day, smiled at him ruefully.

"Hahahah!! A runt like you actually survived? I'm shocked," the wolf dude laughed mockingly.

"I can say the same for you, dog breath." Sparrow sneered. "Someone like you could actually survive? Did you find a master to help you?"

He was agitated and time was running out. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted Nightingale guiding Marina away.

Thank goodness, because the wolf dude's friends began to crowd around him.

The wolf dude sneered. "Not so tough now, are you, runt?"

"Screw off!" Sparrow spat.

One of the wolf's companions eyed the bus that was behind Sparrow's back.

"Is this the bus?"

There were murmurs around.

When Sparrow turned his head to glance at the ordinary looking bus, his breath came out in a puff of white. A lightbulb lit up in Sparrow's mind.

His eyebrows furrowed and then he moved his body into a fighting stance. The motion felt natural and he began to grin as he eyed the wolves challengingly. "Yeah, what about it? I found it, so it's mine. I'm gonna be leaving."

"Not on your life," another wolf snarled.

Sparrow narrowed his eyes and then he straightened and shrugged his shoulders. "Fine then. Go ahead."

They all paused. Then the wolf dude said, "You must be tricking us."

"A trick? No!" Sparrow banged on the bus' door and it opened smoothly. "Go ahead."

The wolf growled. "You lie. We won't fall for your tricks!"

Sparrow confidently turned and just as he was about to go inside, he was wretched back by the back of his tracksuit and then thrown onto the ground. The air in his lungs was forced out from the force of his fall and Sparrow groaned in pain, curling onto the grass.

"Stupid brat!" The wolf snarled. "I won't let you get a card!" Then he went inside, his companions following them with mocking jeers.

Sparrow gave a cold snort, just as the doors closed and screams erupted from within. Scratches and paw prints immediately slammed into the glass windows and Sparrow looked away as the blood began to splatter. The pained howls didn't cease for a long time.

Although he had tricked them into dying, he didn't really want to actually see it. Nightingale and Marina peeked out from behind the bus and Nightingale frowned at him.

"Are you alright?" She asked. "You shouldn't have tried to provoke them."

"It's fine," Sparrow said, getting up and dusting the grass stains off of his clothes. "They're gone."

She looked mournfully at the bus. "I know," she said softly. She turned back and said, "Do we know which one is the real bus though?"

"I'm starting to suspect that this spot was a distraction to keep us away from the actual bus," Sparrow grumbled.

Nightingale looked at the burning school and said, "We have to hurry. I'm pretty sure the principal is dead now, and so are the other students. I noticed that the ghosts and monsters couldn't really leave."

"They're all ghosts," Sparrow said absentmindedly to himself.

What did it mean that all of them were already dead?

Marina tugged at Nightingale's sleeve and when she turned, Sparrow paid attention.

"There's another p-place for you to find buses. There-There's a p-parking lot within the forest." Marina said softly. “I-I’ll lead you there.”

"A parking lot in a forest? Who built this place??" Sparrow tried to lighten the mood. A shudder ran through his core.

Nightingale eyed Sparrow with exasperated amusement but smiled at Marina. "Thank you. Oleander will definitely come back."

Marina didn't reply, just nodding. Sparrow didn't say anything and the two of them followed Marina this time as she lead them to the bus. The further they got away from the school, the colder and darker their surroundings became. The forest they entered was quiet and Sparrow couldn't help but turn around every once in a while, just staring at the burning building.

Oleander was definitely the one who did that.

To get revenge for Marina, he had willingly killed himself and turned into a vengeful spirit.

Now the source of his sorrows were gone, burnt with the flames of justice.

It was almost poetic.

When they arrived, two people were already there. Robin and Oleander were chatting, but the word 'chatting' was kind of stretching it, because Robin was asking questions while Oleander was silent most of the time. Occasionally, he would nod and look back at him, but for the most part, he was stoically silent and still.

The moment Marina saw Oleander, she perked up like a wilted flower who finally saw rain.

"Ollie!!" She cried and immediately ran towards him.

Oleander, just like her, opened up like a sunflower who saw daylight.

"Marina!" He called and they ran towards each other in a touching display of love, as they clutched at each other and then hugged desperately. Oleander even picked her up and swung her in a circle as she squealed happily.

Sparrow glanced at Robin and Nightingale, wondering if he was about to become the awkward fifth wheel.

Thankfully, Robin and Nightingale did not decide to imitate the sickeningly sweet couple next to them. Instead, Nightingale approached Robin and put her hands on his shoulders, turning him this way and that. Robin let her inspect him like merchandise, and he was remarkably untouched and unharmed.

Nightingale breathed a sigh of relief. "I'm glad you're okay."

Robin smiled. "Told you I'd be fine."

She glared at him. "Shut up."

Then they gave each other a long hug before letting go. When they spotted Sparrow, they took a few steps away from each other like guilty people.

Sparrow wanted them to feel very, very guilty.

Sulkily, he said, "Now you notice me?"

"Sorry, Sparrow," Robin smiled. He reached over to pat his hair. "You're alright, right?"

"We're fine," Sparrow let go of his annoyance. "I protected us."

"Good job!" Robin praised and Sparrow felt warm, letting a smile cross his face. He finally relaxed and leaned into the touch. Nightingale also moved and then another pair of hands joined into petting him.

He felt like a dog but it was nice and he was tired and their hands felt comforting so he just let it be.

Finally, they pulled away and moved to the bus.

Like the other buses, this one was still rusty yellow and looked aged and worn out. However, when approaching it, Sparrow noticed that the wheels were fresh with mud and the inside of the bus had faintly glowing green seats.

The door opened naturally when they came near. Robin was about to enter first when he paused and turned.

"Are you two coming with us?"

Oleander held Marina's hand and shook his head. "No. I'm staying with her."

Nightingale frowned. "Are you sure? You could come with us."

Oleander shook his head firmly. "No. I appreciate your help in helping Marina. But I cannot leave."

"What are you going to do now?" Robin asked.

"See what this world holds." Oleander looked down at Marina, and the two of them looked at each other and smiled.

Sparrow smiled. "Goodbye, you two. Safe travels!"

Marina beamed, hugging Oleander's arm. She waved, looking more excitable than ever. Even the bruises on her face began to disappear as she smiled widely. "Y-You too!" She called, and Oleander also waved goodbye with her.

Robin entered the bus first while Nightingale continued her goodbyes. Sparrow followed after him. The moment he stepped onto the stairs, a notification from the system took his attention.

[Congratulations for being the second person to find the bus and escape the scenario!

+150 points for completing the objective: Survive for a week within the school while uncovering the urban legend.

+50 points for being the second person to escape the scenario.

+20 points for finding clues and discovering the true ending of the scenario.

+10 points for surviving the scenario.]

He paused and Robin noticed. "You saw the point thing too?"

"Yeah. I got 230. You?"

"280."

Sparrow suddenly felt exhausted and he found his original seat. Sparrow sat in front of Robin and he laid back into his seat, closing his eyes.

All was quiet until Nightingale came back and said softly, "They disappeared. I think they're fine, they look happy. Also, other bus passengers have found us."

Sparrow's eyes snapped open and he stood up to look through the window, where he could spot several people coming out of the forest. Robin stared at the scene of greedily swarming people in silence before he said, "Before they come in, I have to tell you, I got a card."

Nightingale perked up. "What is it?"

"I think it's from my old life, because it feels familiar to me. The system says it's a utility belt and it has a limited amount of things. It gave me a choice between a limited number of tools I could use in each scenario or a large number of tools I could use before it's complete run out."

"You chose the first option?" Nightingale asked and Robin nodded to confirm just before the the doors opened again and a player came inside. He looked inside but when he saw the three of them, he snarled.

"Fuck!" He cursed and glared at them, but didn't say anything, only moving to another seat.

Nightingale moved to sit by Robin's side and then the two of them leaned closer to Sparrow's seat and began to whisper.

"I got 255 points." Nightingale told them perfunctorily. "What did you talk about with Oleander?"

Sparrow frowned, feeling like the number wasn’t quite right, but he was too exhausted to think deeper into it.

"He's not like the other NPCs. He said that NPCs can't think for themselves, but the ones that do are aware of the players' identities and can talk with this "Lord God". I don't know who they are, but from what I've gathered, they seem to be in control of the scenarios. They aren't actively looking for our deaths, but they're the reason why we're here and we shouldn't trust the promise of a wish because of them."

Nightingale sighed softly. "It feels terrible not knowing your identity or purpose but knowing that everywhere around you isn't safe."

There was the sound of a throat being cleared and all three of them looked up. The vampire dude from before looked down at them. He glanced at Robin and said, "Thank you for your warning. My companions and I were able to leave on time before the fire started because of it."

Robin nodded. "It was what should've been done."

The vampire bowed his head and then he said, "Have you three created a party yet?"

They shook their heads and Nightingale leaned over Robin to eagerly ask, "Can you teach us?"

He did so, and they all quickly made a party with one another. The vampire also explained some of the buttons that they could use. The party system allowed them to stay together when they got off the terminal because people were transported to different parts of the station to avoid fights from grudges grown within the scenarios. The party system also let them text each other, but only out of the scenario. Over all, it was just a simple thing to keep them together and in touch.

When Nightingale thanked him profusely, the vampire just humbly replied, "It is my honor."

He was clearly very grateful for Robin's warning.

Sparrow was too tired for anything else and he told both Nightingale and Robin to wake him up when they landed at the station.

However, that proved unnecessary because all three of them fell asleep.

Sparrow snapped awake with a jolt when a mechanical voice spoke from overhead, [Welcome to the Day Station. Please exit the bus.]

The doors opened. Sparrow caught a glimpse of outside, which showed a slightly debilitated airport. Then Robin held him back with a hand before he could move forward.

"Wait." He urged quietly, a glare on his face.

But before they could do anything, they were all directly tossed out of the bus and onto the floor. Robin had quickly grabbed him and Nightingale and protected their heads when they fell but Sparrow was still disoriented.

That was when the system spoke.

[Welcome to the Day Bus Station! Here, you can rest for a maximum of five days. In those five days, you can choose to do whatever you want as long as you are not found killing other players. You may choose a bus anytime and travel to as many scenarios as you want. Have fun!]

Multiple eyes landed on the three of them. Although the setting was that of an old and worn out airport, there were crowds of monsters and strange beings of all different shapes, sizes, and colors. They all surrounded the newcomers with intense gazes.

Robin cursed.

Sparrow wanted desperately to do the same.

||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||

The first arc is finished! Did you guys enjoy it?? Please give me your thoughts!

I kind of want to edit this arc bc I’m not very happy with the characterization of Danny, Jazz, and Jason. However, I’ll probably do that in the future :3 arc 2 is still in progress!

[astra-galaxie]

Hello! So you know how there's always 4 characters with full body renders on the home screen of every mobile CC game (except s6 I think, not sure)? How would you rank each season's set of full body characters?

Well, excluding season 6 since while they do have full-body renders on their home screen, it's not the same style/layout as the others, so it would be a little unfair to judge it with them… That being said, here are my rankings for the remaining seasons!

7 - City of Romance

There’s just something lacklustre about their designs. The colours seem flatter and lack details compared to other seasons despite being the last. Overall, it represents my thoughts on City of Romance: it has potential but falls very short of success.

6 - Save The World

Despite being my favourite season, I don’t like this home screen image. Something about Marina and Elliot's designs and placements just don’t work for me, and they just look awkward. If their positions with Jack and Carmen were better, this would probably be higher on the list.

5 - The Conspiracy

This one has one of my favourite backgrounds, but sadly, the character designs don’t get the same placement. They look good, and the proportions are fine, but I just feel like they don’t look as cool compared to the background they get.

4 - Grimsborough

This one is going in the middle because while it is a nice image, it is not as impressive as some of the others. The characters are clean, detailed, and their proportions make sense, but it doesn’t wow me. However, it will also always be special as it is the image that welcomed many people to the Criminal Case series.

3 - Pacific Bay

I believe this image did the best job of capturing the characters’ personalities and uniqueness. I also like how its brighter colour scheme gives it a beachy vibe without being blinding. It's nice to look at and oddly relaxing for a murder mystery game.

2 - Supernatural Investigations

This image is incredibly detailed and showcases how this team stands apart from the others plot-wise. I think one of the main reasons why it doesn't get the #1 spot is because the proportions between Luke and Ben are very off, and while I know you can argue that maybe Luke is standing further back, I always feel like these images are supposed to be lines ups and I can get past that mistake.

1 - Mysteries of The Past

Compared to the others, this image is the most detailed without overdoing it, and it fits the vintage style the season is trying to emulate. Each character and their personality is also well captured, like how Evie is holding books, Isaac has his pipe, and Diego looks like he could be plotting his next heist.

[aihoshiino]

What do you think would have happened if Gorou had lived, and Aqua was a normal kid? There was a really good fanfic with this concept but it was only one chapter, so I’m curious to hear how you would think the story would play out in this way!

I've been rolling this ask around in my head for a bit cos ngl, it's really hard for me to imagine… I definitely think that 'Aqua' and 'Gorou' are supposed to be understood as different characters within the structure of the narrative but Aqua is so undeniably and irrevocably built on the foundations of who Gorou was that who even is he when you remove that context?

If I had to speculate, though… I think it changes the twins' dynamic a whole lot and Ruby kind of ends up becoming the defacto big sister, even though she's the younger twin because she literally is older than Aqua in this scenario, at least in terms of her mental age. I can't really imagine what Aqua's personality would be like, but I do think he's kind of reticent and weird no matter what just because the idea of being soulcoded as a little freak is too funny to me. I also think Ai lives or at least lives longer in this scenario because Aqua and Ruby probably don't have the 'who's our dad' talk that spurs her to go call Kamiki.

Gorou and Ai probably part ways on nice terms but also with the expectation of never seeing each other again… all the while Ruby is frothing and foaming and trying to beam I'M SARINA into his brain with baby telepathy LOL. But obviously she can't stop Ai from heading home, so she ends up like fourteen hours away from him in Tokyo… I dunno how she'd handle being separated from him again, but I do think she'd be less intense about it that Ruby is in canon? Not just because she can see with her own eyes he's alive and well but from Ruby's POV they were only apart for seconds, if that. So her sense of longing towards him in her new life hasn't really gotten a chance to intensify. Maybe that combined with Ai being in her life longer and her not really having a reason to talk/think about her reincarnation as actively as she does with a reincarnated sibling by her side she might move on and embrace being 'Hoshino Ruby' a bit sooner. Or she could double down even harder on getting back to Gorou, who knows LMAO.

I also kind of wonder if she would've gone ham on trying to get back in touch with Gorou… I kind of got the impression from the anime that she waited a little while to try and get back in touch with him (she's in Ai's first apartment when she makes the call) but I also don't really necessarily know what she planned to do if she did? And TBH I don't think even Ruby herself knew - it's sort of mirrored by her hovering outside Marina's house, not able to bring herself to ring the bell… you know that old saying about dogs chasing cars.

[faegoddessog]

Woman in Red Ch. 15/17

Chapter 15: Too Close for Comfort

Series Summary: She's a very successful woman who can't seem to find a partner that can keep up with her. He is just wanting to find someone who likes him for HIM, not his fame. Neither of them are prepared for what hits them when she walks into that coffee shop.

Chapter Warnings: lil' PIV, Angsty, angst, emotional hurt, fighting, perceived betrayal, tears

A/N: In this story, I make no mention of birth control or condoms or STI's. Please, darlings, please love yourself enough to protect yourself appropriately when you have sex. <3

I just want to preface this chapter with: I'm sorry, the story made me do it.

Message me or leave in a comment if you'd like to be added or removed from my tagged list!

@purejasmine, @slowsweetlove, @richardslady121, @austinbutlerslovers, @tadpoleteef, @allittakesisoneflight

Here is the Woman in Red Masterlist

Here is the link to all my posted work: My Dirty Little, and not so little Stories.

Chapter 15: Too Close for Comfort

“Do you care to explain this?” Austin is standing in front of Aya’s desk. The physical tabloid in his hand, holding it out to her. It’s late in the day. He had waited to confront her, knowing she would likely be the only one in the office.

The trip home from Montenegro had been actually uneventful. Both Charlie and Stacey seemed well sated from their own nefarious activities. Stacey had the look of a woman well fucked and mumbled something about an all night orgy before slipping into her bunk. Charlie especially seemed to be on cloud nine and couldn't stop smiling 

“Did you have any luck at the marina?” Aya had asked. 

“Yes,” Charlie said dreamily, “There was a boat, it was gorgeous, and a man… he was… stellar.” She closed her eyes, breathing out the last word like an invocation.

“Tell me you got his info this time,” Aya said, amused.  

“I have his boat GPS tracker signature.  I’ll mysteriously show up one day,” she winked at Austin.

As soon as they got back within range, Austin’s phone had started blowing up. Bleary eyed and with Aya snuggled up next to him, he had reached over to turn off his phone.

He had kissed her neck. She angled her chin up, invitingly. His thumb grazed the line of her jaw, drawing down her neck, cupping the fullness of her breast under the sheets. Her hand flowed down over his warm thigh. He pressed himself to her backside, hard again. She tilted her hips back encouragingly, pulling her cheek to make room for him. He guided his hardness between her wet lips. He was reminded how she was always wet for him. His fingers made impressions on the front of her hip. He had pushed, she had pulled. He sank into her, moved in her, and quietly fell yet again.  All without a sound. 

  “What is there to explain?” she calmly says, looking up into his pained blue eyes. Eyes that are trying to hold on, trying to give her the benefit of the doubt, trying to wait for a logical reason she would do this to him. 

In the week after Montenegro, there had been a bevy of photos of them plastered all over the internet. Most were from the beach, one or two from the ground breaking in Podgorica. There were ones of them holding hands, ones of them laughing and playing in the water. Gossip sites were conjecturing about who she was and what they were.  Headlines like “Austin’s secret woman” and “Austin’s globe trotting romance” were the nice ones. The ones attached to the pictures of her carrying the shovel and him holding her purse were scathing. One was particularly brutal of her turning to leave and him looking dejected on the beach. This had been the subject of Austin’s phone blowing up on the plane. His sister was worried about him, his ex just sent a middle finger emoji, several of his friends had comments ranging from just checking in to pictures of cougars with accompanying high five emojis. His publicist was in a tizzy about what, if anything, to say. 

“Do we have to say anything? They don’t know who I am,” Aya had asked as they had dinner on her Malibu deck. 

“Oh it’s only a matter of time before they find out who you are, not that I care about people  knowing,” he said quickly, not wanting another fight, “only that I want to protect you as best I can.” 

“Austin, I’m not afraid of a bunch of internet trolls. I am well respected in my industry, there is little they can do to me, hunny.”  

“We don’t have to say anything, but I think it’s good to agree on some kind of thing to say, even if it’s just to people we know,” he is  hoping to broach the subject of their relationship without shutting her down. “Tell them we are just friends,” Aya had said. Austin had shaken his head and shown her the picture of them wrapped around each other in the ocean in a decidedly not-just-friends way.

“Are we though?” he had asked.

“Oh Aus, of course we are,” she had smiled, kissing him lightly on the mouth, “we are the best kind of friends.” She once again glossed over the real question,  desperate to maintain the status quo. 

Neither Aya nor Austin had acted any different towards one another, but each of them could feel it in the air. The tension was a tight string between them. What exactly WAS going on? He wished he could get a straight answer from her or that he could just walk away, but she was like a drug he couldn’t quit.

It had been almost a month since they had gotten back when she broke. 

Her internal conflict was utterly extreme. She wanted him all the time, he was all she could think about. But when they were together, she could only focus on maintaining a clear  ‘friends with benefits’ boundary. She was so preoccupied with keeping him at arm's length while holding him tight, that she couldn’t quench the fire she had inside. It was maddening, the more she got of him, the less she was satisfied. And boy did she try. They had dinners out in dark restaurants where he fingered her under the table, long sunset drives where they pulled down darkened roads and she sucked his cock, swallowing every drop. Once, on a drive up the PCH she was so horny for him they ended up renting a random cottage on the spot.  They hadn’t even brought clothes with them, luckily they didn’t need them. He kept suggesting a night of rope bondage, though she kept putting it off, knowing giving him that control again would break her resolve.

‘One more time, that’s all I need,’ she kept promising herself like an addict.  They spent nearly every free moment with each other or planning to be together. It was the antithesis to maintaining casual and light, but she couldn't get beyond that in her head. She simply wouldn’t allow them to be anything more, would not let them depend on one another,  no matter how much she secretly longed for it. 

Finally, in a fit of nervous panic, she did the last thing she could think of to try and get him out of her system. She did what she had always done, what had always helped her move on. She pulled out her proverbial ‘black book’ and texted. 

…

She hadn’t realized that she had been followed by the sneaky paps. 

Here is the evidence though, in his hands. One glossy photo of her, wrapped in another man’s arms, lips pressed to his in a parking lot.  She feels the farthest away from ‘moving on’ than she has in a long, long time. She is not used to having the public in her business. She is incensed. So is Austin. 

“Do you think you can just do whatever you want because you have money?” his tone accusatory,  his hand shaking with anger. 

“How the fuck is this,” she points at the paper in his hand, her defenses going up, “about money, Austin?” If she were a man, no one would ever attack her sex life and her wealth like this. “And to be clear, I don’t just ‘have money’. I put in long hours and take risks. I have worked hard to get where I am and I don’t take it for granted.”

Austin takes a big breath, realizing it was a low blow on his part. 

“No, you are right, it’s not. But why?” he pleads, shaking the magazine in his fist. ‘Am I not enough?’ he wants to ask, the words stick in his throat. 

“I don't have to explain anything to you or anyone for that matter,” she says, voice shaking, still triggered. 

“Aya, I thought this,” he gestures back and forth between them, “meant something,  that we meant something more.”

She can see the torture in his face. She wants so badly to give in, to rush to him and kiss away the pain. Pain she knows she caused, pain she feels too. 

‘It has to be like this, for both our sakes, before it’s too late,’ the tape in her head repeats over and over. 

“Austin,” she blows out a breath, trying to muster up the courage to do what she thinks she must, “you are a phenomenal lover,” her tone is placating, “I mean like… the best I’ve ever had and that is saying something. I love spending any and all kinds of time with you, but we agreed to light and casual,” she reminds him, her voice a frustrating mix of near tears and hard edge.

“This isn’t about the sex!” he explodes, tossing the loathsome periodical down on her desk. His lips draw together in an attempt to get himself under control with flaring nostrils and heavy breaths. 

“The thing is Aya,” he begins again, quiet and just a little shaky. “I’ve realized that I can’t do light and casual, not with you. I think about you every second. I dream about you, I wake up smelling you on my sheets and on my clothes. My life is permeated with you and I only want you. And despite all your denial, I know you’ve felt it too. Seeing this,” he points to the shiny, crumpled paper, ”just solidified it for me, how much you mean to me.” Tears threaten to spill from his eyes. “This hurts, Aya and I just want to know why.”

Those last words are like a punch to the gut for her. She tries to apologize, to say she was so sorry for everything. She tries, but she can’t breath past the lump in her throat. “What’s crazy is,” he goes on, “I don’t care. I don’t care if you fucked this guy. I still want you, now more than ever.” He is leaning on her desk. He just wants her to deny it, to say it was a mistake or explain it wasn’t a hook up, anything to buoy his hope that she feels even a glimmer of what he does. 

Seeing her plastered on the front page was terrible for him; it hurt. It hurt because he wasn’t there to protect her from the public eye. It hurt because he was the reason she was there in the first place. It hurt because he loved her.  The fact that she had maybe had sex with someone else didn’t hurt nearly as much as the fact that she had left him out of it. He would have been willing to negotiate, had he known, had he been consulted. But he didn’t have the right to any say in the matter. He wants a say, he wants the right. He just doesn’t know how to get past her mental barrier, at least verbally. He's slipped past it before, usually it’s the quiet moments: a glance stolen between them or when he catches her looking at him, that he sees it.  He knows he has stood before the proverbial sword in the stone, ready to withdraw it from the tight grip of her resolve.  He’s seen  it in her sigh or her contented smile as she drifts off or wakes up, in the split second before her consciousness can fully deny it. It’s in those moments that he knew, he knew it was more than just fuck buddies. That night he held her in the tub, he could feel that the barriers were weak, that he was within reach of her heart, until he opened his mouth. Always it’s his words trying to acknowledge his love for her that shuts him out. So he had held his tongue for the last month, mostly. He had wanted to date someone who didn’t care about his fame, but was it too much to ask that she care about him? 

As she looks up into his face, red and blotchy and beautiful, she watches as a tear wells over his bottom lashes. That tear scares her more than his anger, because maybe it’s already too late. 

“I told you not to fall for me Austin, I never asked for that,“  she goes hard, throwing up a steely wall of protection, protecting herself, her heart, and him. Always protecting him.  Let him believe what he wanted about her. It would make this whole thing easier.  “In fact I thought I had made my stance quite clear.” 

Austin paces back and forth. He opens mouth to say something, but closes it again. The mix of emotions rendering him mute.  She is right. He had agreed to keeping it casual, and had never asked her to be exclusive for fear of scaring her off.  Never, not once, did she say she loved him, not with her words anyway. 

“Well your actions over the past couple months told me something different, and we all know which is louder,” his bottom lip shakes and that one tear finally trails from his clear blue eyes. “Fuck!” he wipes his cheek. 

The room is suddenly hot, closing in on him. His heart starts beating rapidly in his chest. He can’t get a full breath of air. Turning on his heel, he walks out without a word. In the lobby, he shakes his suddenly tingly hands and with tunnel vision makes his way to the elevator. When the doors open, Dalia is standing there. 

“Come on,” she says kindly, she knows exactly what just happened and exactly why. 

“Dalia, not now, Aya and I just….” he sniffs, not looking her in the face, trying to hide his tears. 

“Yes now, and I know,” says Dal matter of factly, pulling him into the elevator and closing the doors, “Listen, I love Aya- “

“Well it’s too late,” he interrupts, slamming the first floor button with his fist, “I already fucked her up somehow, so get in the long line of people who are just going to hate me.” 

“Stop it, Austin,” her mom-like tone brings him up short.

He blinks at her as she takes a big breath. 

“Do you want to know what fucked her up? News flash, it wasn’t you.” 

He stares at her, open mouthed, too emotionally wrung out to argue. The bell dings and the elevator doors open. 

Aya quietly closes and locks the door to her office, tears rolling down her face.  How could she let it get this far? She should have never invited him to the Malibu house, let alone to Montenegro. She was stupid and mean to do this to him. He was such an angel. He felt so good, not just his body on hers, in hers. Simply being near him, being with him was magical. He was so amazing and she was just a horrible bitch, a curse. It was tearing her apart, the desperation of wanting him and the terror of what actually having him could mean. 

‘He is too perfect to fuck up,’ she keeps repeating in her head. Tears begin to drip down her face. 

“It’s safer this way,” she says out loud in an attempt to convince herself. The shake in her voice showing otherwise. Wiping the tears  from her face, she takes a big breath and  calls the Charter Plane Company. 

“Yes hello, this is Aya Glascoc,” her voice switches into business mode.  “I have a flight to Kuala Lumpur scheduled for tomorrow. Can we move it up to this evening, as soon as possible really?”

“That’s why she won’t let you in,” Dalia was saying. She had dragged him into a little conference room on the main floor. “Please, for both your sakes, don’t give up on her Austin.”

“Jesus, what a thing to have gone through,” he says in disbelief. Once Dalia started explaining, Austin had calmed down and actually listened. It actually made a ton of sense. 

“I know, it broke her,” Dalia shakes her head. “You have to understand, I am gambling by telling you all this. Aya would be pissed if she knew. But honestly, I don’t care, I won’t stand by and watch her throw away love.” 

Austin scoffs, shaking his head in disbelief at her words.

“Oh, she loves you Austin,” Dalia says with certainty, “as her oldest friend,  I can tell.”

“You really think so,” hope flickers in his heart. 

“I know so, just,” she breathes, “be patient with her. She is just terrified of somehow fucking you up. She’s got it in her head that it’s some kind of curse.”

“I should go back up,” says Austin, “she is leaving tomorrow, and I’ll be shooting a film soon.  I’d hate to leave this hanging.”

Dalia cringes at his choice of words. 

They get out of the elevator on the 16th floor. Dalia has to jog to keep up with his long legged strides. When they find the door locked, he bangs on it, yelling her name. She doesn't answer. Anxiety floods his mind. After what he just heard, he fears the worst. 

Dalia, knowing what he is thinking, rushes to get her spare key.  Ausin keeps pounding and yelling, not knowing what else to do. 

He bursts in, looking around quickly. Not finding Aya he immediately pulls the secret latch to her apartment. He takes the stairs two at a time. 

Aya retreats upstairs to find memories of Austin are everywhere. The couch, the bedroom, the kitchen, even the floor of the foyer. He had fucked her in every room at least twice in the past month, and that was just here. She didn’t even want to think about the Malibu house. What he did with that collar and leash in Budva? 

‘NO! No! Oh god no.’ Her inner voice’s panic mode breaks through to her outer self. 

She has to leave, to get away from him, for his sake. She didn’t want to hurt him anymore and she has to just let him go.  She didn’t need more than the small bag she had already packed. She hears the elevator ding faintly at the floor below before opening up for her. As the elevator goes down, she almost swears she can hear angry voices calling her name.  

Austin is standing in the dark bedroom at her empty Malibu house, phone to his ear. He had rushed over here, desperate to find her. 

He had been calling her for over an hour, but all he got is the generic recording that is her voice mail, not even a ring. Clearly she had turned her phone off.

He sits down on the bed, head in his hands. Kato jumps up into his lap, purring. Petting the cat helps to calm him. He’ll stay here until she returns, if he has to.

His phone rings. It’s Dalia, she had stayed at the office in case Aya came back. 

“She’s ok,” is the first thing she says. “I called the Charter Company on a whim, and she moved her flight to Malaysia up. That girl is nothing if not good at running away. I texted her again, but she isn’t responding.”

“Same, she has to have it off,” he is relieved to know that she is at least ok. “When does she leave?” he asks, thinking he might be able to catch her. 

“It went wheels up five minutes ago, I’m sorry Austin. We’ll keep trying.” 

“No, don’t. If she needs time, that’s fine. I’ll try calling tomorrow, maybe she’ll have her phone on then.” 

He hangs up and stares out the window to the dark sky over the ocean. He can see the green blink, blink of a plane going west. He just knows it’s hers. 

Austin stayed the night at the Malibu house, unable to bring himself to leave. He cried himself to sleep in her bed, surrounded by her smell, wishing she was there. Hoping and praying that Dalia was right about Aya’s feelings. There was no denying his own. He loved her with all he was. He held onto that hope and Kato all night long. 

[sloaaaa]

Side order first impressions!!

THIS. GAME. IS. GORGEOUUUSSSS AAAHHAGHAHH OH MY FUCKINGNGNHNHNGN CODDDD 10/10 GAVE MYSELF A HEADACHE BINGING IT THE ENTIRE DAY 9AM TO 11PM

ahem. very first thing i noticed was the bg elements being in sync w the music on ohhhohgh my holy fuck whatever nintendo is doing w microdosing their games w some rhythm game elements it is fucken wORKING.

i noticed the ink is shimmery like it was in splat2's finalfest ink, and also when you walk/swim in it it sounds like sand??? i Did not like that bc of The Phantom Textures it gave me at first but it's a really cool concept!!!

ok from here or there r gonna be SPOILERS going from light to heavy bc i finished this thing on like my fourth run(???? genuinely didn't think i would finish it so fast, i was really hoping to savour it better but the hyperfixation really locked in 😭😭😭) so um yeah SPOILER WARNING don't say i didn't warn u :p

ok first off, acht. UGH I LOVE THEM SO MUCH. I LOVE HOW ANIMATED ALL THE CUTSCENES ARE HRRRNGNNGRH. AND THE MUSIC?? OF THE TUTORIAL BOSS????? IS SO FUCKING COOL HELLO???? I DID NOT EXPECT TO SEE MARINA SO SOON, WHY DID NINTENDO FRAME HER DISAPPEARANCE LIKE THAT 💥💥💥💥💥💥

also aGENT 4 MENTIONN!!!!! i'm kind of really sad that the intensifying_harmony(? i forgor the name) boss fight didn't at least have a Trace, a Hint, a Crumb that it was agent 4 somewhere in there. i thought that bc we were given agent 4's palette so early that she was gonna at least have sOME part in side order but no 😭😭

speaking of side bosses the very first time i encountered the layered rotating one i was like. genuinely scared when the ambience when out as i rode the cage to the stage n then the music just blasted 😭😭 but i think its gotta be my fav bos fight of the three :] i'm particularly fond of its soundeffects n such! idk what it is abt them but they're like a safe horror to me if that makes sense hshfkf

and the final boss,, ohhhhohggh myhccod that was the most cathartic boss fight ever. again with the rhythm elements it makes everything so satisfying!! AND THE PART WHERE YOU LITERALLY HAVE TO TAP TO THE RHYTHM. I SCREAMED. OTH FEAT DEDF1SH. AAAUGAHAUAGH ACHT AND MARINA DJING TOGETHER, ACHT'S GAYASS PIERCINGS. N THEIR SINGING VOICE IS SO PRETTY FUUUUCKCJHCHCGCH

n then after that, the 30f boss u fight after having completed the spire once already,, I LOVE THE MUSIC THAT PLAYS THERE SO MUCH 😭😭😭😭 and smollusk,, what the fuck is up with that guy (lovingly)

aHAHCH I AM SO EXCITED TO PLAY SOME MORE WTF but also i burned myself out way too quick by playing for so long nonstop jshdkjfl